“Tell Me Again, Why are We Doing This-”
By Dr. Barrett Mosbacker
May 30, 2009
New training course provides inexpensive, flexible professional development that boosts teachers’ enthusiasm for life-on-life influence.
We are Christian educators because in our hearts we know that it changes lives and can ultimately change the culture. It is in this spirit that I want to alert you to a new professional development program that can reenergize your team and reinvigorate their sense of why we do what we do.
This resource is from Dr. Jeff Myers’ Passing the Baton International (PTBI). In the last three years, PTBI has equipped the faculty of 500 Christian schools to rediscover the ancient art of discipleship and help students become world-changing leaders.
PTBI just released its training on DVD with a full set of teaching resources that make it simple and inexpensive to offer a professional development program worth two CEUs. You can find out more at www.passingthebaton.org.
How Passing the Baton Ignites Teachers’ Enthusiasm for Life-on-Life Influence
PTBI says that its new course “provides dynamic, proven professional development to renew teachers’ sense of joy and equip them to reconnect spiritually with students.”
It does this by showing teachers how to mentor, coach, and disciple students in a biblical, natural, and fun way, whether their interactions with students are thirty minutes or thirty seconds.
The evidence is impressive. PTBI conducted pre-test and post-test studies of 3,000 participants and found that its training makes a statistically significant difference in teachers’ understanding of and preparation for discipleship, as well as their motivation to become disciplers.
Can Passing the Baton Lead to Long-Term Change in How Teachers View Their Mission?
Renny Scott, Headmaster of Christian Heritage School in Dalton, Georgia, is one of many fans of Passing the Baton. “You could feel the difference in the spiritual atmosphere at the start of the school,” he says.
Cynthia Greer is one of those enthusiastic leaders. After guiding her faculty at Westbrook Christian School (Rainbow City, Alabama) through Passing the Baton, she helped them establish goals and plans that she says have “had dramatic results in the lives of students.”
A year after hosting the training for his faculty and staff, Dr. S. L. Sherrill conducted a spiritual formation audit at North Raleigh Christian Academy and was pleasantly surprised to see “mentoring” show up on students’ radar as one of the things they appreciated about their school.
Paula Moore, Early Childhood Director at Providence Christian School in Cape Coral, Florida, tells of how one teacher got so excited that she called three meetings to discuss how to turn their school into a more encouraging, uplifting place. Paula says, “I personally have three children in our school and can attest to the huge transformation that has taken place.”
Does this mean that Passing the Baton is a miracle cure? Myers says it depends on the leader’s commitment to life-on-life influence: “This workshop is only a catalyst, but when an enthusiastic leader implements it, the breakthroughs can be incredible.”
How the New DVD Course Can Help You
In the past, the Passing the Baton workshop was only available with a live speaker in an inflexible one-day format, and it was expensive. With the DVD course, you have the flexibility to offer Passing the Baton as a one-day training, a two-day retreat, or a once-a-week program for twelve weeks. The price is surprisingly affordable.
Terry Broberg, principal of Cascade Christian High School in Puyallup, Washington, has previewed the course and says, “It is money well spent for anyone who works with young men and women.”
In fact, pilot schools seem to prefer the DVD course over Dr. Myers’ live presentations.
What You Get With the Passing the Baton DVD Course
The course consists of twelve 45-minute lessons, each of which includes a 20-minute video segment and follow-up discussion. A facilitator’s guide makes it easy to lead with minimal preparation.
The CD-ROM includes reminder cards and posters for each session, along with an attendance-building guide with skits, brochures, and bulletin inserts. This material would also work well as a church-based Bible study.
The cost for the whole package is $127. Each teacher needs a participant kit, reasonably priced at $20, which includes a 72-page study guide, a copy of Jeff’s hardcover Handoff book, and a relay baton.
You can save $30 by using the coupon code “baton” when you order online at www.passingthebaton.org. The coupon code is good until midnight April 22.
The bottom line: you can host the Passing the Baton training at your convenience for just over $20 per person and grant your teachers two CEUs from ACSI.
For years you have piled up kindling. It is time to light the match.
The need for a strong godly influence on students will not wait until the economy improves. If you think that Passing the Baton could springboard your faculty toward greater influence, visit www.passingthebaton.org. Or call 423–570–1000 and speak with Sean Bevier, a long-time Christian school dean of students who can answer your questions and coach you in helping your school become a nerve center for developing the next generation of leaders.