Six Characteristics of ServeHere Ministry Partners

1. Commitment to developing next generation leaders

One of the cornerstones of ServeHere’s success over our first five years has been the effort our ministry partners have been willing to make to create great experiences for their student interns. We look for organizations that are excited about the opportunity to help develop our high-potential students; that will make them feel part of the team; give them challenging assignments; and take the time to provide feedback and direction. While our partners get the benefit of receiving great work FROM bright and energetic students, the heart of ServeHere is a development and discipleship program FOR the students.

1. Interesting and impactful work

This is a critical season in the life of ServeHere students – they are talented juniors and seniors who are really trying to find their place in the world. So, we work hard to find roles in organizations where students will have an opportunity to meaningfully contribute to the success of the organization. In some cases, that means picking up day-to-day responsibilities that keep the organization humming. In others, it means tackling project-level work with deadlines and deliverables. While everyone is on board to roll up their sleeves and do the less glamorous work all non-profits have to do, we are careful to make sure there is balance – and real opportunities for impact and personal growth.
The type of work varies dramatically by organization – some provide roles and projects in marketing, accounting, or development, that are primarily associated with the business operations of the non-profit. Others utilize an intern to provide key elements of the services they offer, which often includes highly relational roles interacting with clients.  ServeHere interns hail from virtually all majors, and we enjoy placing the right student in the right role in our partners’ organizations.

1. Supervision & mentorship

It has been our experience that the biggest determinant of the student’s success is the assignment and availability of an appropriate supervisor for the intern. Our partners assign supervisors who are: excited about managing somebody and making a bit of an investment, willing to proactively meet and provide feedback, helpful in exposing the student to new experiences, and perceptive about the student’s abilities, interests and insecurities. In almost all cases, the student reports to either the Executive Director or someone on staff who reports to the ED – either situation works fine in our experience. (In larger organizations, they may report another line down.)

1. Sense of place

For many of our college students, they are looking forward to their first experience working inside of a professional organization. After previous summers perhaps spent as youth leaders or camp counselors, they are curious about how they fit into a work environment that includes an office, adult co-workers, and meetings that help steer the organization forward. While we have occasionally, and carefully, arranged internships that were virtual (for very small organizations without offices), the strong preference is to place our students with organizations that have an office and at least a few staff members and/or dedicated volunteers with whom they can regularly interact.

1. Faith-based mission

ServeHere exists to help students experience what happens when they explicitly connect their faith with their vocational activities. Our students are mature and committed Christ-followers who are seeking out a summer experience that is different than those available in typical marketplace roles. So we partner with organizations that are inherently faith-based and approach their work for and because of Christ. Some actively share the gospel as part of their ministry, while others rely on it for the daily inspiration for their work and the guiding principles for how they operate.

1. Logistical fit

Our program has a few relatively simple logistical guidelines that have to mesh with the partner’s abilities and needs. 
ServeHere’s summer program is a ten week-long experience where students are required to work 30-35 hours per week -- so there needs to be enough work to productively fill 30 hours of time each week. We leave it to the partner organization to determine the hours and days of the week the student works. We let students take one week off during the summer to accommodate a family vacation or a mission trip – in these instances we tack on one week to the length of the program. Outside of the internship, there are some mandatory ServeHere program events that students have to attend. There is a two day kick-off event in late May. And students typically meet once a week with their program leaders and peers in a session that usually starts about 4:00pm. (They will also meet a few times for one-on-one mentoring sessions, typically over lunch or coffee.)

For school year internships in the fall or spring, we are looking for students to spend 12-15 hours per week in their internship assignments. Our strong preference is to work students whose schedules allow them to be in the office a minimum of three days a week. This regularity helps them get in the vibe and workflow of the office, and it also ensures that you can hand a project off to them on one day and they will be back soon enough to finish something in a useful timeframe. Outside of their internship hours, they meet weekly with their ServeHere mentor to track progress and follow a curriculum designed for spiritual and vocational growth.

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