9 Ways to Encourage Students to Attend a Conference

A conference offers an environment and opportunities that often cannot be duplicated in a local or typical setting. The ministry we do accomplishes many things and there are some things that happen at a conference that we deeply value in a student’s life. Here are some ways to help them consider how this could be a great use of their time and resources.

Know the Purpose of the Conference Clearly

If you do not know the purpose of the conference, you will have a hard time convincing a student to go (or their parents to let them go). Is it an evangelistic retreat, a leadership conference, or a conference for growth and training?

Sow Broadly with Students

Promote the conference widely. Get your leadership students involved early. Train them how to explain the conference and keep track of those you challenge. Have the students write down 5-10 friends they want to invite. Use creative skits, announcements at meetings, mailings, registration giveaways, and testimonies of those who have attended before. Early registration deadlines are often a help to get a core of students registered early.

Pray

The Lord desires students’ growth more than they or we do. Ask Him to bring the students to the conference He wants there. Ask Him to help provide the finances, free up the schedules, and move in the hearts of their parents.

Challenge Each Student Individually

Every student is unique so we need to ask each student uniquely. A great announcement in a big meeting is not enough to get students to a conference. Instead, make a list of students you want to invite and begin talking personally to them about the conference. Tell them how you think the conference would help them personally and help them work through any barriers that might stand in the way of them attending the event.

Get Student Leaders Signed Up Early

Students come because their friends are going. Months before the event, tell your student leaders about it and get them on board. Get them all signed up far in advance so that when you make your first main announcement to the group, your student leader can say, “You should come with me,” rather than, “I don’t know if I am going, but you should go.”

A conference offers an environment and opportunities that often cannot be duplicated in a local or typical setting.

Deal with Barriers

Validate students’ concerns for any of the barriers. Discuss the practical solutions to each problem. Be aware that sometimes students have issues that block them from going but may be afraid to tell you because they do not want to disappoint you. Let them know you will think no less of them if they do not go, but that you want their best. Also, be prepared to work through the solutions to their problems in going.

There are four barriers that often come up:

Lack of desire
Schedule conflicts
Parents are not sure about it
They do not have the money

Find out from them which are the biggest barriers standing in the way and help them work through those barriers.

Talk to Parents, Teachers, Coaches

As their leader, you can offer some credibility and influence for the student as they speak with parents, bosses, and coaches. Demonstrate a true servant’s heart by respectfully, yet confidently, speaking to these people. Be ready to communicate how crucial you believe this conference is to the student. As a leader, you can often clarify miscommunications the parent/coach/teacher and student have had – i.e. the parent who thinks this is just an unsupervised wild time at the beach, or the coach who thinks the student is just going with their friends for a vacation, or the boss who does not understand the potential benefit for the student.

PRO TIP:
Hold a parent meeting once a semester when you begin to recruit to the conference. There you can have a student testimony, a parent testimony, and introduce the fundraiser for the conference. You can also recruit parent help for your Cru Community Team – getting parents involved in the movement at large.

Raise Funds

You should already have scheduled or have in mind, several fund-raisers. Money has to be raised for most students and we can help by being creative in our fundraising techniques. Fundraising also deepens the students’ commitment to the conference because it will “cost” them something.

Communicate Other Details and Follow Through

As the event approaches, make sure that everyone is informed of specific details (departure, arrival, phone number, what to bring, etc.) Put yourself in the role of a parent – what would you want to know if your child were going away for several days? Do not assume people will just figure it out.

Recruiting for a conference can be a lot of work, but it is worth it! We often say that a conference accomplishes about as much in a student’s life as six months of normal student ministry. Whatever it takes, get your students there!

Next Step

Make a challenge list for each student in your ministry, and set up a specific appointment with each to challenge them to attend the conference. Read Conferences and Retreats - Are They Worth It? to learn more about why it is important to get students to a conference.

Learn More

From Grief to Purpose: Finding God in the Storm

Growing up in a Christian home, she always knew about Jesus, but her relationship with Him didn’t feel personal until tragedy struck in eighth grade. Transitioning from homeschooling to public school had already pushed her out of her comfort zone, and anxiety loomed as she struggled to find her place. Then, during the fall of 2020, both her parents contracted COVID. While her mom recovered, her dad’s condition worsened, leading to months of uncertainty. She vividly remembers the day he left for the hospital and the long, heartbreaking journey that followed. Despite moments of hope, her dad passed away on February 20th, 2021. At just 13 years old, she faced the devastating reality of losing her father—a loss that shook her world and her faith.

In the midst of that grief, she began to see God’s hand at work. During sleepless nights and moments of overwhelming sorrow, God surrounded her with people who cared—friends, family, and a community that embodied His love. Though the pain of loss didn’t disappear, she found comfort in the truth that this life is not the end. Inspired by Paul’s words about eternity, she started to see her father’s passing as a reminder of the hope we have in Christ. That hope spurred her to action. On a family mission trip to Thailand, she met students leading Cru groups at their schools, and the seed was planted to start something similar back home. Despite initial uncertainty, God provided resources, opened doors, and brought others alongside her to launch Cru at her school—a ministry that has been thriving for nearly a year now.

"Anxiety loomed as she struggled to find her place."

Her story is one of resilience, faith, and transformation. Through unimaginable grief, she discovered the depth of God’s love and the strength found in trusting Him. The loss of her dad deepened her desire to share Jesus with others, knowing firsthand how essential His presence is in life’s hardest moments. Cru has given her a platform to do just that—to tell others about the God who redeems brokenness and uses ordinary people to do extraordinary things. Her journey reminds us that while pain is inevitable, God is sovereign, faithful, and able to bring beauty from ashes.

Next Step

Check out Christina's Story and consider how God might use an international mission in your or another student's life.

christina's story

The Six Milestones Every Student Needs to Grow in Faith

Why These Milestones Matter

If we are not careful, students can float through our ministry without ever taking real steps forward. They might show up every week, but never really grow or take ownership of their faith. Milestones give us a simple, clear map for helping them keep moving. They help us answer the question, “What’s next for this student?” and give students the courage to take that step.

When we guide students from milestone to milestone, we are not just helping them stay involved. We are helping them grow into strong, confident followers of Jesus who are ready to lead and influence others.

The Six Milestones

Share Christ with a Student Who Doesn’t Know Jesus

Before anything else, a student needs the chance to hear the good news of Jesus in a clear and personal way. This is where it all begins. Many teenagers have never heard the gospel explained in full, even if they have been around church. Take the time to share about God’s love, our need for forgiveness, and the hope we have in Christ. The first step in their journey is not about them sharing their faith — it is about them hearing it for the first time.

Helpful Resources:

Students grow best when they know what’s next.

Lead a Student Through Their First Follow-Up

When a student says yes to Jesus, it is just the start of something new and exciting. The first follow-up meeting is where you can help them understand what it means to walk with God daily. It is also a chance to build trust and start a discipleship relationship. This step anchors their new faith and helps them grow instead of drifting away.

Helpful Resources:

Help a Student Understand the ministry of the Holy Spirit

Helping students understand the Holy Spirit is a game-changer. Too often, new believers try to live the Christian life in their own strength, and it leaves them frustrated. Teaching them about the Spirit-filled life shows them how to depend on God’s power for both living and sharing their faith. This is when students start to realize that God is not just calling them to do hard things — He is empowering them to actually do them.

Helpful Resources:

GodTools App (go through the Satisfied tool with them)
Holy Spirit Booklet

Holy Spirit Study in Thrive Studies

First Evangelism Experience

Many students have never had the chance to talk about their faith with someone who doesn’t know Jesus. Taking them out to share, whether on campus, at an event, or in the community, changes that. At first, they might feel nervous, but once they see God working through them, it can be life-changing. That moment when a student realizes, “God just used me to help someone understand the gospel” — that is the spark that often leads to a lifetime of ministry.

Helpful Resources:

A student’s journey starts when they first hear the gospel.

Challenge to a Cru Training Event

There is something powerful about getting students away from their normal routine and into an environment filled with worship, biblical teaching, and friends who are chasing after Jesus. Conferences give them the space to grow, hear from God, and take big steps of faith. The bus ride there might be full of nerves, but the ride home is usually buzzing with stories of what God did. Over and over again, we have seen students return from these events ready to lead and make a difference.

Helpful Resources:

Conferences Page

Challenge to Spiritual Leadership on Campus

Teenagers are capable of more than they realize. The world constantly challenges them to step up in sports, academics, and clubs, but sometimes the church forgets to ask them to lead in ministry. Giving students real leadership opportunities — leading a Bible study, speaking at a meeting, planning an outreach — unlocks their potential and sets an example for younger students. Over time, this creates a culture where leadership is expected and contagious.

Helpful Resources:

Student Leader Section – GoToTheCampus.com

Wrapping It Up

These milestones are not a checklist to rush through. They are a pathway to help students grow, one step at a time. Every student you know is somewhere on this journey. Your role is to encourage them, challenge them, and walk alongside them as they take the next step. The goal is not just to build a ministry — it is to build students who live on mission for Jesus for the rest of their lives.

Want to dig deeper? Check out our full conversations about the Six Milestones in these YouTube videos.

Next Step

Write down the names of every student in your ministry. Identify their current milestone and decide how you can help them reach the next one.

The Priceless Project: Impacting Girls in Public Schools

The Priceless Project: Impacting Girls in Public Schools

The Priceless Project is a powerful small-group resource designed especially for girls, offering a safe, encouraging space to talk about identity, value, and purpose. It’s already making a difference in public schools, giving students a chance to connect, grow, and be reminded of their worth.

One of its greatest strengths is flexibility. The Priceless Project comes in two versions:

A Bible study version for church, youth group, or Christian school settings
A public school version with the same strong themes but without Scripture references — making it ideal for campuses that might not allow explicitly faith-based content

The public school version can be a great way to get in the door on a campus that’s difficult to access. It allows you to mentor a group of girls who need it, build relationships with them, and meet real emotional and social needs in a way that schools welcome.

Priceless Project

from Emily French

Why use The Priceless Project?

Creates a safe, respectful space for girls to share and be heard
Meets real emotional and social needs in public schools
Builds leadership and peer-to-peer mentoring skills
Easy to use, with free resources and an app for facilitators
Proven track record in schools through partnerships with teachers and administrators

All digital resources are free for Cru. Use the discount code PricelessCru at checkout. All physical books are available for purchase at iampriceless.me.

A free Priceless Project App is also available for Apple and Android — with digital curriculum, playlists, blog posts, and a safe space for facilitators to connect with the girls they lead.

You can learn more, explore the curriculum, and order resources at iampriceless.me.