THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH-GHANA
STUDENTS AND ASSOCIATES
APOSA
CAMPUS MINISTRY
OPERATIONAL GUIDELINES
Table of Contents
PageSubject
3Preamble
4Aims and Objectives
5Membership
Structure
9General Operational Principles
12Finances
13Interpretation
14Schedule 1 [organogram]
Schedule 2 [organogram]
15Schedule 3 [organogram]
THE APOSTOLIC CHURCH-GHANASTUDENTS AND ASSOCIATES (APOSA)OPERATIONAL GUIDELINES FOR THE APOSA CAMPUS MINISTRY(A.C.M.)
PREAMBLE
The APOSA National Congress for the Year 2000;
(1) recognizing the need to win souls on campuses and ensure that they are
established, mature and fruitful Christians both in and out of schools;
(2) realizing that students have certain qualities which must be harnessed and placed at the disposal of God;
(3) appreciating the challenges faced by students in the area of the call of God for their lives, and sticking to the vision;
(4) affirming the vital role that Campus Ministries play in the APOSA vision;
(5) identifying a need to tap the potentials even after they leave school and their Campus Ministries; and
(6) recognizing the positive role a well defined Campus Ministry could play in the spiritual, mental and physical development of young men and women in schools;
set up the APOSA CAMPUS MINISTRY (A.C.M.) to serve as a channel through
which these needs and ends could be met.
SECTION ONE:
AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE APOSA CAMPUS MINISTRY
The APOSA Campus Ministry, being an integral part of the general APOSA structure shall primarily work towards the achievement of the totality of the APOSA vision. However, due to their peculiarity, the Campus Ministry’s main focus shall include the following:
(1) To coordinate and monitor the various activities of the Campus chapters of APOSA;
(2) To organize or assist in the organization of outreach programmes or other related activities on campuses.
(3) To organize training programmes to equip the leadership of campus chapters.
(4) To foster unity and cooperation among the various campus chapters.
(5) To promote the spiritual, social, professional and intellectual development of members.
(6) To create an up to date database of all members of each APOSA Campus chapter and ApostolicChurch students in various schools.
(7) To put in place effective and appropriate follow-up machinery for all members of the APOSA Campus Ministry and ApostolicChurch students especially after they leave their campuses.
(8) To see to the establishment of new chapters on campuses where the right conditions for such establishment exists.
(9) To ensure that each chapter adheres to the provisions of the APOSA National Organizational and Structural Guidelines, local campus constitution, the tenets of this document, and the general principles and practices of the church.
SECTION TWO:
MEMBERSHIP OF APOSA CAMPUS MINISTRY
(1) All duly formed APOSA chapters on campuses shall automatically be members of the APOSA Campus Ministry.
(2) The continual membership of all such APOSA chapters on the APOSA Campus Ministry shall be contingent on their adherence and conformity to all the provisions of this document and other related APOSA obligations.
SECTION THREE:
STRUCTURE OF THE APOSA CAMPUS MINISTRY
The main bodies under the APOSA Campus Ministry shall include the Campus Ministry Committee; the APOSA Campus Ministry Network; The National Campus Secretariat.
See schedules one, two and three for a complete organogram of the APOSA Campus Ministry within the broader APOSA structure.
(1) The Campus Ministry Committee (C.M.C)
a. There shall be a Campus Ministry Committee (C.M.C.). The C.M.C. shall be the main body tasked with the responsibility of ensuring the establishment and achievement of the aims of the APOSA Campus Ministry.
b. The Campus Ministry Committee shall be made up of seven (7) members, comprising three associates and three students and the Campus Ministry Coordinator who shall be its chairperson.
c. The three associate members on the Campus Ministry Committee shall be appointed by the Central Executive Committee. The student members of the Campus Ministry Committee shall be selected from the executive committee of the institution hosting the APOSA National Campus Secretariat for a particular year.
d. The associate members of the Campus Ministry Committee shall serve on the committee for a three year period, which may be renewed on expiry.
The student members may serve on the committee so long as they remain as members of the Executive Committee of the host National Campus Secretariat, who have been duly selected to serve on the committee.
(2)The APOSA National Campus Secretariat
a. There shall be an APOSA National Campus Secretariat which shall be the focal point of all campus related activity within APOSA.
b. The National Campus Secretariat shall rotate biennially between the first three traditional Universities namely the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, (KNUST); the University of Ghana, (UG); the University of Cape Coast, (UCC).
c. The rotation shall be in the following order: Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST); University of Ghana (UG); University of Cape Coast (UCC).
d. Where the General Executive Committee of APOSA ascertains that the University which should as of right host the National Campus Secretariat is not adequately prepared to do so, that University shall be skipped to the next in line. However, when such a University becomes prepared for the hosting later, it shall be considered.
e. The General Executive Committee of APOSA shall in the course of time determine which other Universities shall be added to the first three traditional ones for the purposes of hosting the National Campus Secretariat. Any such recommendation for the inclusion of any university in the list of those eligible to host National Campus Secretariat shall before implementation be ratified by the National Congress.
f. The President/Ambassador, Secretary and Financial Secretary of the host National Campus Secretariat shall serve on the Central Executive Committee as the Vice National Organizer, Vice National Secretary, and Vice National Financial Secretary respectively.
g. The other functionaries of the Executive Committee of the Campus hosting the National Campus Secretariat shall exercise National responsibilities for the various offices not covered under the Central Executive Committee.
h. The handing over of office from one National Campus Secretariat to the other shall be done during Campmeetings. Where for any particular year, a Campmeeting is shifted from the month of December, the handing over shall be effected on an appropriate date in December.
(3) The APOSA Campus Ministry Network (ACMN)
a. The APOSA Campus Ministry Network shall be the decentralized component of the Campus Ministry structure at the Zonal levels.
b. The APOSA Campus Ministry Network shall be divided into three zones as follows:
Zone 1- Western and Central Regions.
Zone 2- Eastern, Volta and Greater Accra Regions.
Zone 3 - Ashanti, Brong Ahafo, Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions.
c. All Campus chapters shall form part of the Campus Ministry Network and shall work within their zones of operation.
d. The Secretariat for the Campus Ministry Network in each zone shall be hosted by a tertiary institutional chapter in that zone.
e. The selection of the Zonal Campus Secretariat shall be done by the Campus Ministry Committee.
f. The Zonal Secretariat shall be rotated among eligible chapters in each zone every two years unless decided otherwise by the Campus Ministry Committee.
g. The Executive Committee of the chapter hosting the Zonal Secretariat for any year shall also assume corresponding executive positions of the Zonal Executive Committee. The Zonal Secretariat of the APOSA Campus Ministry Network shall report directly to the Campus Ministry Coordinator with copies to the APOSA Zonal Coordinator responsible for their region.
h. Each zone shall have a Zonal General Assembly (ZGA).
i. The Zonal General Assembly shall consist of the President/Ambassador and Secretary of each accredited chapter within the zone.
j. The Zonal General Assembly shall meet at least twice in each year. The venue of such meetings shall ordinarily be the Campus hosting the Zonal Secretariat, unless the General Assembly decides otherwise.
k. During a meeting of the Zonal General Assembly, one-half of the entire membership shall form the quorum.
(4) Campus Ministry Coordinator
a. There shall be a Campus Ministry Coordinator who shall be the chairperson of the Campus Ministry Committee.
b. The Campus Coordinator shall be nominated and elected by the Central Executive Committee for a term of three (3) years. The term of office of the Campus Ministry Coordinator may be renewed on expiry.
c. The Campus Ministry Coordinator shall be a member of the APOSA Central Executive Committee.
d. He shall report on the affairs of the Campus Ministry Committee to the Central Executive. He shall towards that end serve as the main liaison officer between the Central Executive Committee and the Campus Ministry Committee.
e. The Campus Ministry Coordinator shall work closely with the APOSA Zonal Coordinators to facilitate work on the campuses in those zones.
f. The Campus Ministry Coordinator shall work to create a congenial relationship between Campus chapters and the non campus chapters and local church assemblies within their vicinities. He shall encourage them to hold joint programmes with each other as and when necessary.
SECTION FOUR:
GENERAL OPERATIONAL PRINCIPLES FOR THE APOSA CAMPUS MINISTRY
(1) The broad vision of APOSA is to reach out to every campus within the country and eventually make them fully fledged APOSA chapters. However in forming chapters on each campus, the following criteria may be considered:
a. There shall be the availability of ready and willing brethren who understand the APOSA vision.
b. The brethren spearheading the formation of the chapter shall liaise with the Campus Ministry Coordinator and the APOSA Zonal Coordinator through the APOSA Campus Ministry Network and the Campus Ministry Committee.
c. The sustainability of the Chapter in the long term should be an important guiding consideration. Towards that end the prospective chapter shall, if possible, have a pool of brethren to fall on when those at the forefront complete their studies, and should preferably also have a support base through a nearby local assembly/chapter or a strong near-by campus chapter.
(2) In the formation stages of the APOSA Campus Ministry, the following mechanisms among others may be employed to make it more functional, with modifications with the passage of time:
a. There shall be a mass membership drive to identify and register all Apostolic Students on various campuses. The said membership drive shall also involve aggressive evangelism to win unbelievers and encourage non Apostolic student believers to also join the group.
b. The General Executive Committee shall put in place an effective machinery to ensure the formation of all the necessary structures that would facilitate the operations of the entire APOSA Campus Ministry.
c. The Central Executive Committee shall also ensure the strengthening of already existing chapters, and shall therefore be the regular supplier of Bible Study outlines and other allied materials like prayer bulletins for the spiritual, moral and mental development of the members.
(3) The Campus Ministry Committee shall ensure regular contacts with the various campus chapters.
(4) Campus Chapters shall be encouraged with regular letters and circulars to them and their members especially during the period of examinations and during or after otherstressful circumstances.
(5) School leavers and out-going executive members of the campus chapters may be givencertificate of membership and performance.
(6) There shall be adequate training of new converts with the proper impartation of theAPOSA vision to ensure deeper commitment levels and the continuity of goodleadership on campuses. This could be done through systematic teachings at new converts classes, maturity classes, standardized brochures on the APOSA vision etc.
(7) School leavers should be encouraged to actively participate in the activities of the Alumni group. They should also furnish their Zonal Campus Secretariat with their permanent home addresses when leaving school for onward submission to the National Secretariat, and be encouraged to notify the Alumni group when there is a change in their address, occupation etc.
(8) The General Executive Committee and all other allied APOSA structures shall endeavour to tap the talents of members of the Campus Ministry by falling on their areas of special gifts, even after they leave school.
(9) Outreaches shall be undertaken regularly and consistently at least once a year. These outreaches shall be undertaken by tertiary institutions, all or part of the campuses under a particular zone of the APOSA Campus Ministry Network, or institutions across the various zones. The feasibility studies on places to be targeted will be done under the auspices of the Campus Ministry Committee which would also supervise the planning and implementation of the outreaches.
SECTION FIVE:
FINANCES
(1) The various Chapters under the Campus Ministry shall send regular financial reports through the Campus Ministry Coordinator to the Central Executive Committee.
(2) The Campus Chapters shall send at least one-tenth (1/10) of their total income to APOSA National coffers. This should be done monthly. Punitive measures may be taken against defaulting chapters.
(3) The Central Executive Committee shall take due cognisance of the activities of the Campus Ministry Committee in the annual budget of the group.
(4) A portion of revenue accruing from the various campus chapters shall be set aside for the advancement of the APOSA Campus Ministry structure in its entirety. The amount to be set aside each year should reflect in the APOSA National Budget which shall be approved by the National Congress.
(5) The Campus Ministry Committee may operate bank accounts. The accredited signatories for these bank accounts shall be the Campus Ministry Coordinator as a mandatory signatory, the National Financial Secretary and the National Organizer and/or the National Secretary. Any one of these two other CEC members may sign with the Coordinator and the Financial Secretary to authorize any transactions.
SECTION SIX
INTERPRETATION
In this document, unless the context otherwise requires -
(1) “Campus” means any institution of learning and instruction at the secondary and tertiary levels and includes vocational schools, commercial schools, technical schools etc.
(2) “Alumni” means graduates from tertiary institutions who subscribe to the vision of APOSA. The term “Alumni” also includes all professionals within APOSA.
(3) “Traditional Universities” refers to the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), University of Ghana (UG) and the University of Cape Coast (UCC).
SECTION SEVEN
SCHEDULES
Schedule One and Schedule Two
Organogram of the APOSA structure incorporating the Campus Ministry Set Up.
Schedule Three
APOSA Campus Ministry Network divisions
Schedule 1
National Congress
General Executive Committee
Central Executive Committee
Zonal Coordinating APOSA Ladies APOSA Campus APOSA Prayer APOSA
Committee Forum Ministry Committee Network Alumni
Zones
Area
District
Local Chapters
Schedule 2
National Congress
General Executive Committee
Central Executive Committee
Zonal Coordinating APOSA APOSA Campus APOSA APOSA
Committee Prayer Network Ministry Committee Ladies Forum Alumni
APOSA National Campus Secretariat
APOSA Campus Ministry Network
Zonal General Assembly
Zonal Campus Secretariat
Local Campuses
Schedule 3
APOSA Campus Ministry Network
Zone 1 Zone 2 Zone 3
↓ ↓
Western Central Volta Eastern Greater Accra Upper Ashanti Brong Northern Upper East
Region Region Region Region Region West Region Ahafo Region Region
Region Region
1