Students at Charleston Southern University have begun asking an important question: “What about our time here at Charleston Southern prepares us for the lives we will soon face that are so much broader than the textbook?”
CSU student Michael Silvestri leads kids in some fun at the Countdown to Kindergarten Kickoff.Rick Brewer, vice president for planning and student affairs at CSU, hopes to answer that question with a program that puts students in touch with neighbors and strangers seeking servants. He founded Catalyst, not knowing exactly what to expect.
Weeks later, the program has grown from an idea from God into something that is changing ideas about God.
Serving as coordinator for Catalyst, Corey Humphries understands the incredible volume of the task at hand.
“Whether it’s putting on a roof, or hanging out with kids, that is where God is working. That is where we want to be,” said Humphries.
One individual recently in need was Anthony, a blind man whose home, practically demolished by termites, was rebuilt in part by Catalyst during February’s project entitled “Rip the Roof Off.” Charleston Southern students installed flooring, cleared debris and performed landscaping.
The idea is that values held by Charleston Southern University students and administrators can be brought to life by something as simple as a work project a few miles down the road.
“I am seeking to develop leadership in participants. At Rip the Roof Off, people just picked up hammers. They are already grasping the concept. Catalyst allows for opportunities in which students can accept the call, take a leadership role, and develop problem-solving skills,” said Humphries, a 2004 Charleston Southern alum, currently pursuing a master’s degree in criminal justice at his alma mater.
In Catalyst, Humphries envisions a program that will essentially speak for itself – that is, be a catalyst by stimulating other universities to pilot similar programs. Leadership development produces exponential results.
To communicate effectively, people must gain experience by doing. Students must know how to relate to the unbelievers, the uneducated, the unloved, and undefended, Humphries believes. Communication is an active part of the service ministry, he added, because “we do the work in order to open that specific avenue of communication.”
Catalyst coordinator Corey Humphries, above, explains procedures to CSU students at Rip the Roof Off.Catalyst links service to helping others, developing leaders, building relationships and spreading God’s love, Humphries said. He is certain that Catalyst is a way for Charleston Southern to “be about our Father’s work.”
“The social skills developed when working with a team of people,” he continued, “will benefit students throughout their lives. Students feel a sense of well-being when serving others, especially as they learn the meaning of obedience to God’s command,” he said.
Catalyst puts Charleston Southern students in places they wouldn’t normally be on Saturday mornings.
Helping at the Countdown to Kindergarten Kickoff sponsored by United Way, Catalyst volunteers found that the most important work they did was actually in the relationships that they built.
CSU students guided families through the event.?Charleston Southern was well-represented in every area, directing the flow of traffic, registering the soon-to-be kindergartners, and encouraging them to sign up for dental and health screenings.
After experiencing the entertainment room, the 5-year-olds picked up their new backpacks and t-shirts, filled them with snacks, and proceeded to the big yellow bus for a ride that would prepare them for their first day of school.
Humphries emphasized that the students involved in Catalyst at Charleston Southern are learning an important lesson – that experience is a part of their university education.