Short-Term Mission Associate

The Short-Term Mission Associate is part of International Ministries’ mission engagement team (MET), whose mission is to invite and equip people to respond to God’s call to cross-cultural cultural global service. Together, this team facilitates the development, recruitment, and sending of short and long-term global servants from the United States and Puerto Rico by forming and effectively managing relationships with prospective candidates, the churches and regions that send them, the global servants and partners that receive them, and the area directors who are IM’s primary point of connection for identifying global service opportunities. The Short-Term Mission Associate will take primary responsibility for managing short-term mission program elements for volunteers and teams over the age of 30.

Responsibilities
·         Build relationships and collaborate with area directors, international partners, and global servants to plan and develop meaningful volunteer opportunities; effectively communicate and publicize opportunities throughout IM (including the MET and Marketing and Communication teams), the American Baptist Churches (ABC), and beyond.

·         Match volunteers with suitable opportunities. Serve as a relational bridge between volunteers and hosts.

·         Plan and shape Discovery Team experiences. Recruit team members and leaders for these experiences. Coordinate logistics.

·         Build relationships with volunteers, members of STM teams, team leaders, and special assistants to support them through any challenges they experience prior to, during, and after service.

·         Facilitate (and equip others to facilitate) pre-trip cross-cultural orientation training and post-trip debriefing.

·         Form and maintain relationships with retired global servants who can serve as guest presenters or field consultants during orientation sessions with volunteers.

·         Obtain and post volunteer stories and photos on the IM website (i.e. journal entries)

·         Maintain STM volunteer manual and standards of excellence information and accreditation.

·         Develop, maintain, and be familiar with a library of STM resources.

·         Promote short and long-term mission engagement by attending and actively seeking out prospective candidates at mission conferences and local churches, as well as regional and national events.

·         Promote short and long-term mission engagement in churches and events through conversations, presentations, outreach to churches and campuses, and communications such as marketing and social media. Educate churches and individuals about the foundations and importance of mission engagement.

·         Encourage and equip individuals and churches to develop long-term, meaningful relationships with global servants through mission engagement opportunities.

·         Respond in a timely manner to individuals inquiring about short and long-term global service opportunities; screen prospective individuals, teams, and team leaders for physical, emotional, and spiritual readiness; accompany prospective volunteers in discerning their gifts and interests, in order to facilitate effective placement.

·         Seek outcomes that are faith-enhancing and spiritually forming for volunteers and mission-enhancing for partners and global servants.

·         Relate and effectively communicate with volunteers, prospective candidates, IM personnel, IM partners, regional and national ABC representatives, and others as appropriate.

·         Equip volunteers and prospective global servants as they prepare for and are engaged in service by providing logistical, administrative, missiological, and pastoral support, and by facilitating orientation and debriefing as appropriate.

·         Handle with sensitivity and confidentiality all information received from prospective global service workers and their references, with prayerful discernment.

·         Educate and advocate with all mission engagement stakeholders regarding best practices related to the needs, care, and support of short and long-term global servants throughout the stages of preparation, service, and return.

·         Lead mission trips as appropriate.

·         Respond to and manage crises in collaboration with the Crisis Management Team as appropriate.

·         Maintain/Update and distribute Volunteer Manual, Host Handbook, Going with God Toolkit, and Standards of Excellence Peer Review Notebook

·         Proactively and efficiently engage administrative aspects of all the above in collaboration with the MET.

·         Network with counterparts in other mission agencies.

·         Stay current with changing trends in global mission, giving, media, etc.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE

Education, License, Certification

·         Minimum bachelor’s degree in a ministry related field, counseling, or social work. Master’s degree is desirable.

Experience (job-related)

·         Experience participating in and/or leading mission trips, campus ministry, church youth group, Bible study.

·         Ability to speak a foreign language, desirable.

·         Demonstrated ability to work effectively in cross-cultural communities with volunteers and co-workers in a collaborative environment which impacts larger constituents and relationships.

·         Demonstrated ability to articulate a biblically based theology of short-term mission.

·         Demonstrated ability to handle adversities with maturity to reflect and grow from experiences.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities (KSA)

·         Ability to articulate a biblically-based theological understanding of mission with regards to global servants and the ministry partners who host them.

·         Understanding and enthusiastic support for IM’s vision “on earth as it is in heaven” and core values of faith, service, and community.

·         Working knowledge of and established relationships with American Baptist Churches USA and/or an ABC regional organization.

·         Excellent written and verbal communication skills, capacity to teach, preach, and provide individualized coaching, and use social media in communications and network-building.

·         Technical competence in MS Office systems (Word and Excel), experience in Salesforce preferred.

·         Ability to stay calm and organized in times of crisis and handle a wide variety of issues and personalities with maturity and discernment.

·         Sensitivity to culture and its effects upon the individual’s sense of values and worldview

·         Ability to work effectively on teams and in a multi-cultural, collaborative organizational environment.

·         Ability to assist in resolving conflict between team members.

·         Knowledge of ABC and IM required. Member in an American Baptist Church preferred.