IFYC’s mission is to make interfaith cooperation a social norm, and we think that the college campus is a great place to do that. In the campus setting we are already seeing students from diverse backgrounds and worldviews engaging with one another across lines of difference.
Each year, IFYC recruits a class of students to serve as mentors, trainers, and community builders for their peers. In a variety of in-person and online spaces, coaches help their peers turn their knowledge into action and build relationships across lines of religious difference.
The IFYC Coach Program seeks student interfaith leaders who set themselves apart through their passion, persistence, and perseverance.
Characteristics of an IFYC Coach
- Construct their ethic or theology of interfaith cooperation. Coaches understand how their worldview calls them to interfaith work. Their ability to share how their values and experiences influence their beliefs is vital.
- Navigate relationships with care. Coaches have experience building relationships across religious and worldview differences. Bringing diverse groups of people to the table is crucial and navigating relationships is the foundation of that process.
- Utilize their strengths and the strengths of others. Coaches are actively aware of their strengths and limitations. As leaders, they create spaces where individuals work together to generate positive change.
- Take initiative. Coaches step up and see a project to completion. Assessing the needs of a campus is the first step, but creating and executing a plan to bring about that change is just as important.
- Accept failure as part of growth. Coaches recognize that failure is part of the journey and see the twists and turns in the road as experiences worth learning from.
- Lead with appreciative knowledge. Coaches understand more than just the basic tenets of various worldviews. They also seek to understand how beliefs are lived out, and then build programs that bring about appreciation for the similarities and differences across faiths, worldviews, and traditions.
- Approach decision making with consideration, respect, and compassion. Coaches are self-reflective problem solvers who understand the importance of bringing multiple voices to the table. Examining a challenge through multiple perspectives and seeking input from others is key when leading in diverse spaces.
- Train in both in-person and online spaces effectively. Coaches communicate their beliefs and opinions in a thoughtful and compassionate way. By training effectively, their peers feel empowered to become interfaith leaders on campus.
Requirements & Eligibility
Because coaches draw on real world experience from their time in the training room, applicants must have attended an Interfaith Leadership Institute or a Regional Leadership Gathering.
This year, the Coach Program is moving to a calendar year and will go from January 2018 through December 2018. Coaches must be active students in good standing for the full year and cannot be studying abroad in calendar year 2018*. Here are a few additional dates coaches need to be available to travel to Chicago (costs covered by IFYC):
- Mid January – Coach Training
- July 30 – August 2 – Coach Week
- August 3-5 – Interfaith Leadership Institute
*With prior discussion, exceptions can be made for short study abroad programs happening in June-July 2018.
Apply for the Coach Program
Applications for the 2018 Coach class are open October 1st – 31st. Head here to start your application. Applications will remain open until 11:59pm on October 31st. Strong applicants will hear from us by mid-November for a phone interview.
If you have any questions regarding the Coach Program or applications, email students@ifyc.org.