Alignment: Open Schools Matched with Interested Churches

     It is the time of year when many of us reflect on the past 12 months and plan for what might be in store during the new year ahead. Looking back on 2011, I am very excited and encouraged about what God has accomplished. Crossroads Kids Club expanded from working in just one school district in Illinois to working (through local churches) in three districts in two states with another two districts on the horizon for January. Throughout this process of beginning to grow beyond our home town we have been talking with both church leaders and school leaders. One thing I have observed is that there is frequently a geographic disconnect between the open schools and the interested churches. What I mean is this: Sometimes I find a school district that is wide open to having a Christian club in their building(s), and I cannot find a church in that community interested in taking advantage of that opportunity. Other times (and more frequently), I find a church that is interested, but its local schools require quite a bit of coaxing in order to open their doors. 
     Having noticed this, I have a new plan for 2012, which involves being more strategic in selecting which churches to approach.
Yesterday, I found a map of all the school districts in the State of Illinois. This will allow Crossroads to systematically investigate the policies of each district regarding the use of space by community groups. My plan is for us to assign a color code to each district on the map based upon its probable openness to a faith-based club. Most likely we will use green for those that are most open, yellow for those that are probably open but may have some hurdles, red for those that would be the most challenging, and gray for those where the policies are ambiguous. After doing this, we can then look at what churches are meeting in the "green districts" and then we can let them know that their local schools should be wide open. Hopefully, this plan will allow us to gain momentum a bit quicker in 2012. Also, my hope is that once we get established in the open districts, it will be harder for the "yellow districts" and even the "red districts" to stop churches from starting clubs when all the neighboring districts have set the precedent.