AS HIGH SCHOOL FINISHES

While the support for a youth should have been a long-term approach by a church community, the focused guidance of a high school grad begins at the start of their final year. The soon-to-be-grad will be experiencing a lot of changes and pressures. It is vital to have a mentor (or several adults) who can walk alongside them in the coming months.

As they approach the end of high school, celebrate well with them. Provide a space for the church family to celebrate with them and to pray a blessing in their next chapter, whether going to school or another opportunity.

Grad Support Guide
Grad Mentoring Kit

Click below for additional resources

Resources were curated from the Transition 101 events

MOVING FROM HOME

Research demonstrates that if the sending church helps a grad connect to their next faith community, they are 4x more likely to remain with them. If they are going away to school or work in September, actively connect them to a person who’s at the same campus/city.  For those going to an Ontario public university, you can use our T101 Connect portal to establish contact with a person at that campus who will reach out to that grad. You can also contact campus group ministries below:

STAYING HOME

If they are staying home, you may want to encourage them to experience another local church for the next few months to help broaden their faith experience. This challenges them to step into a new experience similar to some of their peers who are moving away for school/work.

For those looking to do a gap year, consider using our Gap Year Template. This resource provides a self-directed program to help establish some key foundations before moving away.

Gap Year template

POST-POST-SECONDARY

When a person is ready to re-establish their life as they enter their early career stage, it is vital for their home church to encourage them to join their next faith community. While some may choose to return to their home church, many will want to move on. It is important for the home church to bless that person towards whichever Christian faith community they continue on with.