I’ve got some big news to share. And it’s not about us being pregnant or having another child (though that is in the works, too… ask me more later). After 17 years of direct involvement in campus ministry - 4 years as a student + 2 1/2 years as a Volunteer Intern + 10 1/2 years in vocational ministry - I will be leaving staff with InterVarsity in a few months to become a High School Special Education Teacher & Coach. Same heart for serving the under-served and developing the next generation, just different context. As I’ve begun to approach the time of closure for my time of campus ministry, I wanted to share with you all some about the process so far and to ask for your prayers in the season of transition that is ahead.
Where did this come from, you might be asking? Great question. I think God has used 2 major pieces to bring this big shift at this stage. As many of you know, the last 4 years have been a pretty big adjustment as we’ve been learning as a family how to embrace Isa and all of her special needs. Professionally, I’ve been grateful for the freedom that I’ve had in ministry to shift my hours around (from full-time to now 20-hrs a week), and to shift my job description (from CSULA for the past 9 years to now working more specifically with LaFe across GLA). In a lot of ways, caring for Isa has been the unexpected gift of clarifying my sense about my gifts and calling. But in that process, I’ve also begun to realize that being able to live out that call on campus has felt like it’s been diminishing each year.
Enter in major piece #2. Last Spring, a good friend of mine, Chris Rattay, who has been church planting here in East LA, invited me to coach football with him at Lincoln High School. Initially, I was just expecting to have some fun with a good friend and to enjoy the game again in a different way. I was surprised by how much of a “fit” coaching was for me. I keep telling people, in many ways it was just “like leading bible study small groups.” 
I was really encouraged by huge influence opportunity that was there in coaching - the same influence that I’ve loved having with students for the past 17 years - and, in particular, how that influence opportunity really worked well in overlapping with my gifts & calling as well as in our life as a family.
After the season ended, I felt God stirring me to think about all of this - thinking about my gifts, about the future and my sense of calling, and about our family needs. And I began to realize that a time of closure for my time of campus ministry was coming. I just didn’t realize how quickly God was going to open the door. In January, I began to talk with Abner, my supervisor, and ministry partner for the past 9 years in working with Latino students. I was thinking maybe I’d serve 1-2 more years with InterVarsity, and was hoping for a nice onramp to the next thing. With wanting to think about the kingdom influence opportunities in coaching, teaching quickly arose as a great avenue to be able to make that happen. At the end of the month, I attended a meeting at LAUSD regarding a Special Education Initative for training & recruiting teachers for Special Education. And then things really picked up steam. I turned in application - honestly expecting the budget crisis in education would equal a slow process - only to get an immediate response and request for an interview! This kicked things into high gear, with my goal now of being enrolled in the district’s teacher credentialing program this summer and to begin teaching at a local high school in East LA this coming fall.
As you might imagine, this has been quite a whirlwind. And there are still a lot of pieces that need to come together. We are really grateful for the strong sense of peace and God’s leadership that we’ve experienced in many clear ways as we’ve been walking through this. But we did want to ask for your prayer as we move forward. For one, leaving a ministry that I’ve loved after 17 years of involvement won’t be easy. I’ve loved the investment and involvement that I’ve had in students’ lives - specific people, even some of you - and am hoping to be able to see some things happen before I leave. Also, I’ve partnered with so many great people on staff and in my donor team, that I want to “end well” with all of those relationships. Even as I leave a vocational role with InterVarsity and LaFe, I’m looking forward to finding a new role as alumni, a donor, and a volunteer resource on campus.
And on the “next stage” side of things, there are a lot of pieces that need to line up. My dream would be to get hired by the district at the school that I’ve been coaching at, for many reasons, including being able to continue the ministry overlap with the church that we are going to. As for prayer requests, in order to qualify for employment and the certification program, I’m preparing to take the CSET - a subject matter test for teachers - on March 13th. And then I need to get hired. With the budget challenges in education right now, I just need God’s favor to keep the process moving along, with the goal of getting a position here in East LA (again, I would really love to find a opening at Lincoln H.S.). Despite the budget issues, there are still large needs for special education teachers. So the challenge is real, but the opportunities are real also. So please pray with us for God’s favor as we walk through the process.
This is my big news. I really appreciate you and wanted to share as much as I could before the process had gone too much farther. Please be praying for me and for us as a family. And as I’ve given a tease at the beginning, there are several other great things that we are looking forward to as a family. Feel free to ask us about that as well.
