Christian Responsibility

As a Student Venture volunteer, you have chosen to accept the incredible opportunity of introducing teenagers to Jesus Christ. Along with this opportunity comes the responsibility of representing the Christian faith, Student Venture, and yourself with integrity.

Ephesians 5: 3-4, 8 says, "But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kinds of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving. For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.”

How you live your life often has a greater impact on your ministry than anything you say. Teenagers decide whether you can be trusted and whether the message of Jesus Christ can be trusted by what they observe in your life. How you treat your family, the decisions you make about your career, the purchases you make, the language you use, the stories you tell, the way you conduct yourself in social settings, etc., all have a crucial impact on your ministry among the teenagers with whom you are working.

Conduct Policies

Similarly, how you conduct yourself when working with the teenagers in your ministry is crucial. The biblical principles described above must form the foundation for every decision you make in your dealings with students. Student Venture has adopted the following policies to help staff and volunteers maintain their integrity as role models. This list is not intended to be exhaustive. It is our expectation that you will use good judgment in all of your dealings with students:

• Males should only minister to males, and females only to females.
• Don’t be alone in a recreational or driving situation with a person of the opposite sex. Leaders cannot drive home students of the opposite sex.
• Any one-to-one in-depth conversations with students of the opposite sex should be held in a public place.
• Respect the boundaries of others; don’t assume that others welcome your hug or touch. Full frontal hugs are not appropriate with students of the opposite sex.
• Dating between a leader and student is never appropriate and is strictly prohibited.
• We believe that God’s design for the gift of sexual relations is that it be exercised and enjoyed exclusively within the covenant relationship of marriage between one man and one woman. In your work with Student Venture and in your private life, Student Venture staff and interns shall not engage in any relationship or activity which constitutes sexual misconduct, including but not limited to the following:
• Sexual relations or activities with any person outside of the marriage covenant
• Sexual relations or activities that constitute sexual offenses as defined by federal or state law
• Any other sexual relations or activities that are contrary to the theological and moral affirmations of Student Venture’s ministry