Job Description

Youth Minister Job Description

The purpose of a written job description is to give the parish and the youth minister a clear understanding of work expectations. The job description protects the youth minister from being assigned tasks beyond his or her immediate responsibilities. The job description also gives the parish a specific way to evaluate the work performed by the youth minister.

No job description can cover every situation or circumstance in the ministry. Thus the accountability section of this job description describes the process by which ministry happens in the church. It is important to have the youth minister responsible to the pastor and Parish Council. Feedback from the youth minister's supervisor and lay committee gives the youth minister general guidelines for implementing ministry. If staff or church members ask the youth minister to do tasks far afield from his job description, the youth minister should discuss the problem with those directly involved. He or she can also refer everyone involved back to the job description and seek clarification of the ministry tasks listed.

The following definitions may help clarify this job description:

Youth Ministry Team refers to adult volunteer youth workers, teachers and youth group officers or representatives, working together to plan and implement Youth Ministry in the parish.

Make sure the church and the youth minister understand and agree on how social security will be part of the salary package. It may be understood in two ways. First, if the youth minister is self employed, the Social Security amount would be fixed as a benefit to offset the amount of tax the youth minister is required to pay personally. Second, if the youth minister is an employee of the church, then the Social Security amount the church pays becomes an added expense to the church and should be calculated by the church as an expense associated with this position.

Youth Minister (Worker) Job Description

The youth minister shall be a well-trained professional, committed to Jesus Christ, the Holy Orthodox Church and to ministry with young people and their families. The youth minister shall possess the administrative skills necessary to perform his or her duties and carry out details, as well as the interpersonal, relational skills for working with young people and adults within the parish. He shall further work with the Regional and Archdiocese Youth Departments, as well as the Regional and Archdiocese Organizations with which he is working with on the parish level.

Responsibilities

1. Recruit, train, encourage and support lay people in the various volunteer ministries of working with young people in the parish.

  • Provide regular training sessions for teachers and volunteers
  • Have regular volunteer and teacher meetings for planning and programming.
  • Work with the youth ministry team (see introduction) to identify and recruit potential volunteer youth workers.
  • Help recruit volunteer youth workers.
  • Locate and use valuable resources like youth workers magazines, periodicals, curricula relevant to youth ministry, as well as to attend deanery, regional and archdiocese youth worker seminars and the like, as well as to utilize information and resources as provided by the Archdiocese Department of Youth.

2. Support young people and adults in planning and programming evening and weekend fellowships.

  • Work closely with the youth ministry team.
  • Develop a quarterly calendar of youth programs and events.
  • Help implement plans by ordering needed materials, scheduling speakers, handling setup details for events, etc.
  • Attend evening and weekend fellowships whenever possible.

3. Provide for growth of youth groups.

  • Arrange for regular pastoral visits to active, inactive and prospective young people and their families.
  • Develop effective publicity for youth activities through the church newsletter, bulletin, youth newsletter, mailings, media publicity, etc.
  • Research and schedule special events such as Antiochian Village Camp, conferences, delegates meetings, seminars, retreats, lock-ins, trips and so on.
  • Train young people and plan for special outreach to other teenagers within and without the parish, as well as from other Orthodox Communities.
  • Locate resources to meet the needs of smaller groups in such areas as spiritual growth, Bible study, drama, personal and interpersonal growth, and so on.
  • Offer service opportunities throughout the year to involve young people in ministering to others within and without the parish, such as visiting the elderly, shut-ins, as well as service projects such as Special Olympics and Project Mexico.

4. Work with the youth and education teams to coordinate youth ministry with the ministry of the total parish.

  • Provide the teams with information about quality resources for curriculum materials.
  • Offer ideas and personal input about future goals for the parishes' ministry with young people.

5. Build relationships with the parents of young people in the youth groups.

  • Visit young people in their homes - with their family.
  • Provide resource seminars for parents based on their needs.
  • Call on young people and parents in pastoral-need situations such as sickness, hospitalization, crisis intervention, death and other situations in which teenagers may need help or support.
  • Meet with parents at least three times a year to communicate about the youth ministry calendar, volunteer needs, parental concerns, etc.

6. Work with adult volunteers and other members of the congregation to make youth ministry an effective effort.

7. Work as a professional under the direction of the Pastor and with the Parish Council and other ministry team staff to provide for the pastoral needs of the parish.

8. Attend workshops and personal growth conferences to stay informed on new and effective ways to implement youth ministry.

9. Lead the parish members as they establish long-range goals and short-term objectives for ongoing youth ministry in the life of the church.

Accountability

1. The Pastor and the Parish Council will supervise the work of the youth minister (worker).

2. The youth minister will provide a written report to summarize his or her work for the past month to both the Pastor and the Parish Council.

3. The youth minister will communicate the plans and activities of the young people to the professional staff, the church planning committee and the youth ministry team.

4. The youth minister will be evaluated annually by the church's Pastor and Parish Council. A written report will be provided and explained. A copy of this report will be forwarded to the Chairman of the Archdiocese Department of Youth & Parish Ministries.

5. Should the youth minister feel mistreated by any staff, church member or committee in the parish, the youth minister may discuss any grievances confidentially with the pastoral relations committee and or the Pastor.

6. The parish or youth minister may dissolve this agreement by giving 30 days notice.

Compensation

1. Basic package (annually)

Base salary $

Housing allowance $

Utilities allowance $

2. Benefits (annually)

Retirement $

Car allowance $

Health insurance $

Social Security allowance $

Books and subscriptions $

Continuing education $

3. Vacation time: weeks per year.

4. Other:

This job description is entered into good faith through a commitment to serve Jesus Christ and His Holy Orthodox Church on .

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Youth Minister Parish Council Chairman