Running head: HISTORY OF CAMPUS CRUSADE
Institutional History of Campus Crusade for Christ at Ball State University
Autumn Nolder
Ball State University
This paper will be given to the
Ball State University Libraries Archives and Special Collections
Muncie, Indiana
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Abstract
Founded in 1972, Campus Crusade for Christ, an internationally known organization, was
officially recognized as a chapter at Ball State University. Nationally, the organization has grown
from its existence on one campus – University of California, Los Angeles – to 191 countries
throughout the world to date. This paper examines the history at a national level, but more
specifically, the paper will focus on the local organization of Campus Crusade and how it has
grown since 1972 in its impact and student involvement. The paper will also address the
educational influence the organization has had on students involved in the organization as well as
the students and faculty at Ball State who are not involved with the organization.
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In 1951, Campus Crusade for Christ International was established at University of
California, Los Angeles by William – or Bill – and Vonette Bright after Bill received “a unique
impression from God” to use his life to reach the world using college students. Bill was studying
at Fuller Theological Seminary when the vision occurred to him, and in fall 1952, Bill began
Campus Crusade at UCLA. In the first year, more than 250 students prayed to receive Jesus
Christ; among those students were the student body president, campus newspaper editor, and a
number of athletes. In order to help reach more students, the Brights accepted six staff members
(1951-1959: Campus Crusade for Christ International Milestones, n.d.).
In 1962, Campus Crusade looked to locate their headquarters in San Bernardino,
California by purchasing Arrowhead Springs (1960-1969: Campus Crusade for Christ
International Milestones, 2006). In the last hours of the deadline to purchase the property, “God
provided every last penny for the purchase of Arrowhead Springs.” After purchasing the
property, Bill built a new dormitory and cafetorium in Arrowhead Springs Village as well as
refurbished the already existent hotel (Arrowhead Springs, n.d.).
André Kole joined Campus Crusade staff in 1963 as an illusionist who performed shows
with an evangelistic mission, which became Campus Crusade’s first targeted ministry (Campus
Crusade’s 50-Year Virtual Timeline Part 1: 1950s, 1960s, n.d.). Taking the “distilled essence of
the gospel” and writing a booklet, Bill Bright wrote a small booklet in 1965 describing a
condensed version of the life of Jesus called “Have You Heard of the Four Spiritual Laws?” The
booklet has been distributed worldwide through more than 2.5 billion copies in more than 200
languages (1960-1969: Campus Crusade for Christ International Milestones, n.d.).
In 1967, the first Campus Crusade summer project developed in Ocean City, New Jersey
when a church needed help ministering to all the young people who visit the beach there during
the summer. In summer 2009, approximately 3,500 students and staff members traveled to 51
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countries around the world on a summer project that fits their interests. These projects allow
students to grow in their faith and practice sharing their faith with others, and they range in
length from one week to 12 weeks of the summer (About Campus Crusade for Christ, 2009).
Campus Crusade had spread to 25 countries by the end of the 1960s (Campus Crusade’s 50-Year
Virtual Timeline Part 1: 1950s, 1960s, n.d.).
In 1972, more than 80,000 students, Campus Crusade staff members and others met
together in Dallas, Texas for EXPLO 72. At the conference, they received evangelism and
discipleship training and attended contemporary music concerts. More than 300,000 people
attended the EXPLO 74 conference in Seoul, South Africa where it is estimated that 1.5 million
people attended one of the evening meetings, and 323,000 of them became believers of Jesus
Christ in that meeting. (Campus Crusade’s 50-Year Virtual Timeline Part 2: 1970s, 1980s, n.d.)
From 1976 to 1980, Campus Crusade participated in a major outreach to the entire nation
where approximately 85 percent of Americans heard about the “I Found It!” campaign, which
“mobilized more than 300,000 Christians from 15,000 churches in 246 cities for organized
evangelism” (Campus Crusade’s 50-Year Virtual Timeline Part 2: 1970s, 1980, n.d.). The St.
Petersburg Evening Independent published an article in their newspaper on November 17, 1976
about the “I Found It!” campaign, which included television commercials, advertisements,
bumper stickers, and bus posters with the message “I Found It,” and the people in the
commercials were proclaiming “they found a new life in Jesus Christ, and they want to share this
new life with other people.” The campaign included a phone number viewers could call, and they
were forwarded to a neighborhood call center where the worker would have a personal
conversation on the phone or in person with the individual to share their faith with those who
called. One of the main ideas behind the campaign was not only for others to hear about Jesus
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Christ, but also for “the training of Christians in how to share their faith in a clear, concise,
effective way” (Fulkerson, 1976).
In 1979, a film that portrayed the life of Jesus Christ called “Jesus” aired in 250 theaters
in the United States. The film, based on the book of Luke from the Bible, was filmed in 202
locations in Israel, and it has become the most translated film in history as it has been produced
in more than 500 languages and has had 2 billion viewers as of 1999. The film was used then and
continues to be used to propel the gospel into the world to share the story of Jesus Christ.
Campus Crusade had spread to 71 countries by the end of the 1970s (Campus Crusade’s 50-Year
Virtual Timeline Part 2: 1970s, 1980, n.d.).
The EXPLO conference took place again in 1985 in the form of a videoconference where
it was estimated that 300,000 students and staff at 98 conference sites on five different continents
attended. Bill Bright spent one day of the conference on each of the five continents from which
the videoconference aired. NewLife 2000 formed in 1987 as a new ministry of Campus Crusade.
The goal was to bring 1 billion people to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and they
began by showing the “Jesus” film in some areas as a part of the NewLife 2000 initiative.
Campus Crusade had spread to 93 countries by the end of the 1980s (Campus Crusade’s 50-Year
Virtual Timeline Part 2: 1970s, 1980, n.d.).
In 1990, 102 countries sent representatives to Manila in the Philippines over six months
as a part of NewLife 2000: Manila Project where more than 5,000 people talked to 3.3 million
Filipinos about the life of Jesus Christ and how they could become a believer. Through the
project, 447,000 became believers. Campus Crusade relocated their headquarters from
Arrowhead Springs in San Bernardino to Orlando, Florida to Sunport Technological Center for
eight years while their official headquarters – on donated land – was prepared in 1991. (Campus
Crusade’s 50-Year Virtual Timeline Part 3: 1990s, n.d.). The magazine Money named Campus
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Crusade as the No. 1 “religious charity for its effective use of funds” in 1993. Bill Bright
participated in a fast for 40 days in 1994 where he called for prayer and fasting to help revitalize
America (1990-1999: Campus Crusade for Christ International Milestones, n.d.).
In 1996, Bill Bright won the Templeton Prize, which recognizes the “spiritual dimension
overlooked by Nobel prizes.” It is the largest annual award with a financial benefit of more than
$1 million; however, Bill gave the money away for prayer and fasting promotions. Campus
Crusade found its new headquarters in Orlando at Lake Hart in 1999 – home of Campus
Crusade’s world headquarters currently (Campus Crusade’s 50-Year Virtual Timeline Part 3:
1990s, n.d.). Campus Crusade had spread to 186 countries by the end of the 1990s (1990-1999:
Campus Crusade for Christ International Milestones, n.d.).
In 2000, Bill Bright began the process of stepping down as president of Campus Crusade
and named Steve Douglass, executive vice president and director of U.S. Ministries, as president
as of August 2001. In 2002, Christians from India, the Philippines, Singapore, France, and the
United States rallied together to mobilize Christians in 22 African countries under the Operation
Sunrise Africa. Their goal was to share the story of Jesus Christ with thousands of Africans in 50
cities in 50 days. During their mission, “64 million people heard the gospel, 1.7 million indicated
decision to receive Christ, and 81 new churches were planted.” In 2003, Bill Bright died after
founding the “world’s largest Christian ministry” 52 years prior. During 2006, at least 10,000
students helped with Hurricane Katrina relief in New Orleans, Louisiana and Mississippi during
their spring breaks (2000-Present: Campus Crusade for Christ International Milestones, n.d.).
Campus Crusade currently has representation in 190 countries, making up 99.6 percent
of the population of the world (2000-Present: Campus Crusade for Christ International
Milestones, n.d.). Currently 33 ministries exist under the main ministry of Campus Crusade to
reach people through their interests and current stages of life (Ministries of Campus Crusade for
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Christ International, n.d.). Area operational offices are located in 13 countries – Ghana, Mali,
India, Hungary, Germany, United States, France, South Africa, Philippines, Singapore, El
Salvador, Bolivia, and Canada (Campus Crusade for Christ International at a Glance, 2009).
“Today there are more than 26,000 staff members and 225,000 volunteers working in more than
191 countries worldwide” (About Campus Crusade for Christ, 2009).
Part of the growth of Campus Crusade for Christ International was undoubtedly the
growth to campuses across the United States, as that was Bill Bright’s original vision for the
organization: help build movements everywhere in the world in order for every person to know a
follower of Jesus Christ (Campus Crusade for Christ International at a Glance, 2009).
Campus Crusade was approved as a campus organization after submission of their
constitution to the Student Association, which members approved January 6, 1972, and to
Student Welfare, which approved the constitution on February 2, 1972. Eric and Jane Denial,
who now reside in California, were two of the four people here at Ball State to help start Campus
Crusade in fall 1971. The other couple that worked with Denials was Dick and Bev Johnson,
who are currently in business in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Both couples were newly married and
new to Campus Crusade staff as this was the couples’ second year working with Campus
Crusade and Dick’s first year as a campus director. Jane had previous experience at Purdue
University in West Lafayette, Indiana and Dick and Bev were on staff the prior year in Riverside,
California (E. Denial, personal communication, November 14, 2009).
Months prior to staff coming to work on the campus, people throughout Indiana were
praying for Ball State as a new location for Campus Crusade to begin. One student in Jane’s
Master Action group at Purdue was Merritt Hole, an upperclassman engineer major from
Muncie. He was a member of the First Presbyterian Church adjacent to Ball State’s campus, and
because people in his church were eager to have a Christian witness on campus, they voted to
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give $1800 to the couples to begin the Campus Crusade ministry on campus (E. Denial, personal
communication, November 14, 2009).
They used the money to purchase copies of the Four Spiritual Laws booklets, the Ten
Basic Steps Toward Christian Maturity, and other materials for evangelism and discipleship. The
couples were welcomed by the Office of Religious Affairs on campus, and when they heard
about the couples’ efforts, the office offered a special telephone hookup that allowed them to call
any campus in Indiana at no cost in a time when long-distance phone calls were expensive. Eric
said, “One event which launched Campus Crusade into a viable memory on campus was the
Jesus Trip. This was held at Bill Keller’s farm that September,” Eric said. “Keller had met Christ
and was concerned for students’ spiritual well being. He decided to put on the Jesus Trip as a
way to expose students to Christ by way of Christian music.” At the Jesus Trip, they shared a
promotional video of EXPLO 72 and the student movement that was sweeping across the
country. Through the booth that Campus Crusade had at the Jesus Trip, Christian students shared
that they were interested to learn more about the Campus Crusade ministry, and they signed up
to attend EXPLO 72 (E. Denial, personal communication, November 14, 2009).
In order to get students on board with the movement they were cultivating on campus, the
couples used the phone list of freshmen living in the residence halls at Ball State. Roger Agness
was one of the first students Eric contacted to set up an appointment. Roger and Eric met to go
through the Four Spiritual Laws booklet, but Roger was not ready to accept these laws until the
next time Eric met with him, and he had already became a believer of Jesus Christ himself
through reading through the booklet again on his own. These personal meetings were followed
up with training on the ministry of the Holy Spirit, establishing a prayer life, and dealing with
unconfessed sin (E. Denial, personal communication, November 14, 2009).
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Some other ways they brought students into the movement was through a table at the
beginning of the year where individuals talked about the organization as well as dorm
evangelistic popcorn parties. They also invited André Kole to campus for his illusionist show
during their time at Ball State. Athletes in Action, a Campus Crusade ministry, visited campus in
early 1972 to speak to Ball State’s wrestling team, but other leaders at Ball State worked more
closely ministering to the athletes (E. Denial, personal communication, November 14, 2009).
The activities within the movement started small, but there were action groups, which
were groups that taught students to grow in their faith and “reach others for Christ.” The Master
Action groups were student leaders who met for prayer and to form a strategy to reach the
campus for Jesus Christ. There was also the beginning of weekly meetings known as Campus
Life, which included regular Crusade members and newcomers to the organization. Meetings
were usually held in the residence halls, the Student Center or the couples’ apartments. There
was an average of 10 to 20 students involved as leaders of the Action groups during the time the
Denials were here, and a number of those students went on to join staff with Campus Crusade
upon graduation (E. Denial, personal communication, November 14, 2009).
In the 1972-1973 school year, there were three more single staff members who joined the
campus team. The national Campus Crusade sent traveling senior staff to Ball State to encourage
the staff and to provide on-the-job training. The staff developed men’s and women’s ministries
that year, which included seminars on the weekends as well as Senior Panic conferences and
Christmas conferences in Fort Wayne. The events and conferences helped build student
leadership as they spoke to their friends and took a stand for Jesus Christ on campus (E. Denial,
personal communication, November 14, 2009).
When the Denials left Ball State in 1973, there was a system of action groups in place
dedicated to students reaching their residence hall and other spheres of influence, which most of
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these groups were student led. Bill Thomas continued as campus director in 1973, and there was
a team of three to six staff members in place to begin the 1973-1974 school year (E. Denial,
personal communication, November 14, 2009).
Thomas was the campus director of the organization from winter 1972 to 1976 and came
a year after the Denials arrived. During his time as campus director, there were several
outreaches and activities to target students who were not already involved in the organization.
There were speaking meetings with athletic teams, Greek houses, and in the dorms. These
meetings were arranged ahead of time, and they “usually brought three people – an emcee,
someone who shared how their life was changed by Christ, and someone to share a relevant
message on how they could have an abundant, meaningful life through knowing God.” There
were other larger events where Campus Crusade worked in cooperation with other Christian
ministries at Ball State, such as Navigators, Intervarsity, and Christian Campus House to invite
the entire campus. These events focused people’s attention to teach them how they could know
Christ personally and have a relationship with him. They also sponsored André Kole, Josh
McDowell to speak and debate, and music groups to come perform as ways of reaching students
who were not already Christians (B. Thomas, personal communication, November 10, 2009).
Thomas said these outreaches always brought a mixed reaction as some students would
mock the outreach, others would dismiss or ignore it “but others saw how they could know
Christ in a personal way and saw their lives transformed.” He said, “After more than 30 years, I
am still in touch with some who became believers during that time and saw the direction of their
lives turn from a self-centered way of living to being servants of Christ and giving themselves to
the betterment of those beyond themselves or of their own circle of friends” (B. Thomas,
personal communication, November 10, 2009).
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For those who were already involved in the organization, there were discovery groups for
people who lead those who wanted to know more about Christian life. Action groups existed for
students who wanted to grow in their Christian life and learn how to “win others for Christ and
lead others.” There were also master action groups for student leaders who led other students in
action groups. They had social events and outreaches, which were student-led, and students
participated in summer training through summer projects, Christmas conferences, spring and fall
retreats, and spring break trips to Daytona Beach to do beach evangelism (B. Thomas, personal
communication, November 10, 2009).
The meetings were usually held in homes, but for bigger events where they hoped
students outside of Campus Crusade would come, they met in dorm lounges or other similar
venues. Thomas saw the organization grow from a few students to several hundred who were
involved in some sort of small group. Through students’ involvement in Campus Crusade,
Thomas said they developed “self confidence, leadership skills, boldness to go beyond their
circles of confidence, interpersonal skills, marketing and organization skills, and directional
living for a cause beyond themselves” to name a few (B. Thomas, personal communication,
November 10, 2009).
Involved in Campus Crusade during his time at Ball State, Rob Butler, senior pastor at
Winchester Congregational Christian Church in Winchester, Indiana, attended Ball State as a
student from 1979 to 1982. He first began attending Campus Crusade events in fall 1980 to see
André Kole, the illusionist who was on staff with Campus Crusade, and he said it presented the
gospel message at the end. As they passed out information cards for the students to fill out at the
end of the show, Butler filled out a card to receive more information on a Bible study to get to
know other Christians. Pat Daniels, a staff member at Ball State, contacted Butler the following
week with more information on a Bible study, and Daniels later became Butler’s discipler.
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Similar to the time in which Thomas was here, Campus Crusade hosted André Kole and Josh
McDowell on campus. The activities were aimed at students not already involved in the
movement with which they could share the gospel at the event (R. Butler, personal
communication, November 3, 2009).
Thursday nights were the weekly Campus Crusade meetings. At the time, they were held
in the building behind the LaFollette Complex on campus in a large classroom with 80 to 100
students attending the meetings each week. There was a time of worship with a guitar and an
overhead projector with a lesson. Similar to Thomas’ time, there were Bible studies throughout
the week. Butler attended two studies – one he would lead with his roommate and the other he
attended with other Campus Crusade leaders for his own spiritual growth. One activity Butler
emphasized was the opportunities he had to evangelize on campus. He sometimes shared by
himself, but most of the time went sharing with his discipler Daniels or with another Campus
Crusade staff member. They focused specifically on the Student Center or the residence halls. In
the Student Center, they would look for the students who were hanging out between classes, and
in the residence halls, they would look for open doors. Butler said the tool they used the most
often in these meetings with individuals was the “Spiritual Survey” or Four Laws booklet. “The
survey was my favorite since it came at the idea of spiritual truth in an unsuspecting way.
Sometimes I would see people tense up or roll their eyes when you pulled out a track,” Butler
said. “The survey seemed less ‘threatening’ and seemed to provide a quicker means into some
good discussions about the individual’s beliefs” (R. Butler, personal communication, November
3, 2009).
Campus Crusade did not just teach him how to grow in his relationship with Jesus Christ,
but it also affected his academics. “Campus Crusade provided a platform for spiritual growth
which no doubt impacted how I applied myself to my studies,” Butler said. “Now only did I
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learn that we are called to know God and that He loves us and wants that personal relationship
with us, but because of that, I needed to apply my abilities and honor Him through all I do,
including how I studied and did my class work.” The organization helped Butler to learn how to
blend his faith into his everyday world, through his occupation, studies, and home life (R. Butler,
personal communication, November 3, 2009).
Twenty years after Campus Crusade became recognized as a campus organization, Bill
Kollar joined the staff at Ball State as the campus director for 11 years from 1992 to 2003. The
involvement in the organization as well as the outreaches had increased significantly since its
start in 1972. During Kollar’s time at Ball State, they had a number of campus-wide outreaches,
of which none were similar to previous outreaches at Ball State by Campus Crusade. One of the
outreaches featured Jon Rittenhouse speaking on Satanism, and he explained the only way to
answer concerns over the topic was to have a relationship with God. Steve Douglass, president of
Campus Crusade, gave a lecture called “How to Get Better Grades and Have More Fun,” which
tied into the gospel in the area of experiencing God’s peace in stressful circumstances, such as
academics. They also did a series of media campaigns where they took a topic – for example, sex
– and “ran a pithy, provocative ad with an 800 number for students to respond to if they wanted
more information.” They did an after dark outreach where Joe White from Kanakuk Kamps, a
Christian athletic camp, took on the persona of a Roman cross builder and erected a cross while
he explained the gospel, and Derek Webb came to play music during the outreach (B. Kollar,
personal communication, November 5, 2009).
They also had the I Agree With Andy campaign in 2000, where Andy Brinkman, a junior
at Ball State at the time, was the face in front of an evangelistic campaign where students asked
the question: “What about Andy?” According to a Ball State Daily News article from October
2000 when the campaign took place, Pruis Hall was filled on the night of the event with 732
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students attending where Brinkman shared his personal beliefs – a relationship with Jesus Christ
(Miller, 2000). They also had a panel of professors, students, and area ministers to answer
questions during a question-answer session after the presentation. There was opposition to the
outreach, though, and Pruis Hall had provided more workers the night of the event in case of
necessity. Students throughout the week of the outreach had mixed reactions – some supporting
what “Andy” was doing and students accepting Christ, students who wanted to know who Andy
was and what he agreed with, and some students who were arguing forced religion on the people
of Ball State (Brinkman, 2000).
They also did common activities such as new student questionnaires at the start of the
school year as well as letter and phone call outreaches where they offered Bill Bright’s Man
Without Equal in a letter and followed up with a phone call to see if they wanted a free copy.
Kollar said the staff believed a “great way for students to reach out relationally to their friends”
was through the use of parties as an outreach. They tried to incorporate an evangelistic
component to the parties, such as one of the Campus Crusade students sharing the story of how
Jesus Christ changed his or her life (B. Kollar, personal communication, November 5, 2009).
Involvement in the organization by students included weekly meetings, parties, Bible
studies, leadership-level Bible studies for those leading groups, training meetings – usually held
three Saturday mornings a semester from 9 a.m. to noon – retreats, and conferences. The training
seminars covered a variety of topics where they learned how to share, how to communicate, and
how to multiply their faith. Some topics included how to be filled with the Holy Spirit, how to
share their faith, how to disciple others, how to tell the story of God’s work in their life, and how
to lead a small group (B. Kollar, personal communication, November 5, 2009).
When Kollar first arrived on Ball State’s campus, involvement was around 150 students.
Involvement shrank to about 75 students in the next year. The numbers began steadily growing
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from there to between 500 and 600 students at weekly meetings during Kollar’s last year at Ball
State in 2003. “In addition to that numerical growth, I think we grew in seeing Christ-centered
influence in different parts of campus that we weren’t getting to in the earlier days: for example,
Greek [fraternities and sororities] system, Impact movement [African American ministry],
athletes, off-campus students, international students, and academic departments like architecture
and art,” Kollar said. “Plus I think God graciously allowed the global impact of Ball State
Campus Crusade to grow during our time there: sending lots of students to Albania, Turkey, East
Asia, and other places” (B. Kollar, personal communication, November 5, 2009).
During the first years of Kollar being on campus, the meetings were most frequently held
in the Robert Bell building room 125. As more students came to the meetings, they no longer fit
in the room, so they began meeting in Teachers College room 101 or 102 – two large lecture
halls. In 1997, the meetings were held in the Student Center Ballroom or Cardinal Hall. The last
two years Kollar was on campus they divided time between Pruis Hall, Emens Auditorium, the
basketball arena, and the Student Center Ballroom (B. Kollar, personal communication,
November 5, 2009).
Students had a lot of leadership within the organization to lead at the peer level with the
staff instead of the staff coming up with ideas for the students to follow. There was a core group
of student leaders during Kollar’s time, and these students gave overall leadership to the
movement with the staff’s help. Student teams were also used to direct various activities such as
the weekly meeting, fall retreat, parties, and outreaches. Overall, Kollar ensured that students
learned to “walk with the Lord, to love others well, to share the gospel with those around them,
to live in light of eternity, and in light of God’s heart for people everywhere to know Him” (B.
Kollar, personal communication, November 5, 2009).
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Kollar attributed the growth of the organization to God. “Perhaps our greatest passion
was that God – not Campus Crusade, us, or anyone else – would receive the honor for what
happened. If there’s anything to which I would attribute the growth and everything else that
happened, it would be that,” Kollar said. “God will not share his glory with another” (B. Kollar,
personal communication, November 5, 2009).
Kollar left Ball State in 2003, and Chris Sarver took his place as campus director that
year. The outreaches that have occurred since 2003 when Kollar left have been similar in nature;
however, the outreaches recently have been geared toward the ever-changing audience members
whose attention is now grasped through the use of technology. Campus outreaches are large in
scale to engage students with “the claims of Christ.” Campus Crusade averages two outreaches a
year. Last winter, the author of the book Porn Nation Michael Leahy came to speak at Emens
Auditorium as an outreach sponsored by Campus Crusade and the Student Government
Association. In October 2009, Campus Crusade did another I Agree With campaign using Tyler
as the face of the outreach for two weeks. Last fall, the organization used a short-films
evangelistic strategy using the Global Short Films Network films in Emens Auditorium and
inviting students to watch the films and discuss them. Another evangelistic technique used was
Soularium, using small pictures to engage individuals in spiritual conversations, as well as fun
outreaches such as trying to break the world record for the largest pillow fight (C. Sarver,
personal communication, November 11, 2009).
Not much has changed in regard to attracting new students at the beginning of the year.
Freshmen are asked to fill out a 60-second questionnaire, and freshmen receive a full-color
Campus Crusade informational brochure when they fill out the survey. Eighty students and 20
staff lead the effort, wearing their Campus Crusade T-shirts. Not only does the group use
campus-wide outreach techniques, but they also focus on small group and one-on-one efforts
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through the use of questionnaires and personal relationships to begin spiritual conversations and
invite students to Bible studies (C. Sarver, personal communication, November 11, 2009).
Students’ reactions to the outreaches have been across the board, according to Sarver.
“There are usually a handful who don’t like what we’re trying to do, some usually are willing to
seriously consider Christianity as a result, others actually turn to Christ to become Christians,
while others listen politely or attend the event and are not interested,” Sarver said. “For example,
during the I Agree With Tyler campaign, a Facebook group titled ‘I Do Not Agree With Tyler’
started while many others engaged in conversations about Christianity and asked questions, and a
handful of students became followers of Jesus” (C. Sarver, personal communication, November
11, 2009).
Since 2003 when Kollar left as campus director, there have been even more ways for
students who are active within Campus Crusade to stay involved. Staff members choose the
leaders when they feel the student is spiritually mature enough to lead other students in the
growth of their faith. These student leaders are members of a leadership team that numbers in the
eighties and has monthly meetings. These students are responsible for mentoring younger
students, leading ministry teams, sharing their faith, and helping out and serving in numerous
ways. Sarver said, “They are the engine that really makes this ministry work and grow.” Similar
to other years, the organization has large group weekly meetings on Thursday evenings as well
as approximately 40 weekly small group Bible studies that meet on and off campus. As in the
past, there are access groups for those wanting to know about the Christian life, equip groups for
students to learn how to share their faith through their actions and words, and action groups for
student Bible study leaders to continue growing in their faith. Students have opportunities to be
involved in men’s and women’s teams, the outreach team, overseas missions team, conferences,
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retreats, evangelism training opportunities, and domestic and international summer missions
projects (C. Sarver, personal communication, November 11, 2009).
Weekly meetings are usually held in Pruis Hall, but they have also been held in the
Student Center Ballroom, Student Center Cardinal Hall, and at First Presbyterian Church at
Riverside and New York avenues behind the Dehority Complex. Sarver said he has seen the
organization grow from about 250 students actively involved when he first arrived at Ball State
to 550 or more students involved currently. “I’m hopeful that students are learning about Jesus
Christ – who he is and what he’s done as shown in the Bible – and how to live lives consistent
with that knowledge,” Sarver said. “They learn leadership, communication, relational, problem
solving, and critical thinking skills” (C. Sarver, personal communication, November 11, 2009).
One important part of the ministry that is often overlooked is the funding that is behind
funding outreaches, training seminars, retreats, and other activities held by Campus Crusade. The
campus ministry is funded through various churches and individuals – including some active
students, their parents, and alumni of the organization – contribute to the campus’ operating
account. There is a large fundraising banquet in the spring that pulls together a significant
portion of the annual budget. Every spring, students are called to prayerfully consider
participating in the Summer 75 where interested students have an opportunity to contribute $75
of their summer earnings to the Campus Crusade operating account (C. Sarver, personal
communication, November 11, 2009).
Campus Crusade for Christ International requires any staff and interns to raise their own
financial support to cover their salary, benefits, ministry expenses, and other costs. They have to
find people interested in joining their support team in order to raise money to pay for these
expenses. According to Fay Gammon, first year intern at Ball State, “raising support taught me
how to cast vision and get people excited about a cause,” Gammon said. “It wasn’t about money,
HISTORY OF CAMPUS CRUSADE
19
though; it was about showing people their vital position in the kingdom of God.” Gammon said
even raising support has had educational benefit to her. She realized she was starting ministry as
soon as she began the support raising process, and she had to teach her supporters the idea and
meaning behind donating money (F. Gammon, personal communication, October 26, 2009).
Over the 37 years of existence on Ball State’s campus, Campus Crusade has
demonstrated its educational mission by teaching students how to live a Christian life and grow
in their relationship with Jesus Christ. Students have learned from day one of the organization’s
time on campus to become leaders in order to effectively share their faith with their peers.
Historically, the organization has been recognized as the largest religious organization on
campus, according to Stacey Myers from the Office of Student Life at Ball State (personal
communication, November 12, 2009). More students are involved now than ever before, and
these students are sharing their faith with others on campus and around the globe. As the
organization has grown, more leadership has been handed to students, and the staff is there to
support students and teach them to lead others through the movement. Approaches to ministry
and outreaches have changed significantly since 1972 when Campus Crusade was first
recognized on campus, but the message is the same: winning students for Jesus Christ and
sending them into the world to share with others how to have a relationship with God.
HISTORY OF CAMPUS CRUSADE
20
References
Arrowhead Springs. (n.d.). Campus Crusade for Christ. Retrieved from
http://www.arrowheadsprings.org/html/campus_crusade_for_christ.html
Brinkman, A. (2000). Do You Agree With Andy? Retrieved from
http://www.bsu.edu/web/acbrinkman/andyweektitle.html
Campus Crusade for Christ. (2009). About Campus Crusade for Christ. Retrieved from
http://www.gosummerproject.com/about/
Campus Crusade for Christ. (2009). Campus Crusade for Christ International at a Glance.
Retrieved from http://www.ccci.org/about-us/ministry-profile/index.aspx
Campus Crusade for Christ. (n.d.). 1951-1959: Campus Crusade for Christ International
Milestones. Retrieved from http://www.ccci.org/about-us/ministry-profile/timeline1950s.aspx
Campus Crusade for Christ. (n.d.). 1960-1969: Campus Crusade for Christ International
Milestones. Retrieved from http://www.ccci.org/about-us/ministry-profile/timeline1960s.aspx
Campus Crusade for Christ. (n.d.). 1990-1999: Campus Crusade for Christ International
Milestones. Retrieved from http://www.ccci.org/about-us/ministry-profile/timeline1990s.aspx
Campus Crusade for Christ. (n.d.). 2000-Present: Campus Crusade for Christ International
Milestones. Retrieved from http://www.ccci.org/about-us/ministry-profile/timeline2000s.aspx
Campus Crusade for Christ. (n.d.). Campus Crusade’s 50-Year Virtual Timeline Part 1: 1950s,
1960s. Retrieved from http://billbright.ccci.org/public/multimedia/5060Campus.pdf
HISTORY OF CAMPUS CRUSADE
21
Campus Crusade for Christ. (n.d.). Campus Crusade’s 50-Year Virtual Timeline Part 2: 1970s,
1980s. Retrieved from http://billbright.ccci.org/public/multimedia/7080Campus.pdf
Campus Crusade for Christ. (n.d.). Campus Crusade’s 50-Year Virtual Timeline Part 3: 1990s.
Retrieved from http://billbright.ccci.org/public/multimedia/90Campus.pdf
Campus Crusade for Christ. (n.d.). Ministries of Campus Crusade for Christ International.
Retrieved from http://www.ccci.org/ministries/index.aspx
Fulkerson, P. (1976, November 17). ‘I Found It’ Message Everywhere. The St. Petersburg
Evening Independent, pp. 3B.
Miller, J. (2000, October). Andy exposed, brings followers, skeptics together. The Ball State
Daily News, pp. 1.