"After the Summer Mission with Cru, I saw maturing in my daughter's faith. I can see that she is developing her faith in a way so that she can provide better guidance to other people. She is living her faith in everyday life as a result of a Summer Mission."
We are excited that your son or daughter is considering taking part in a Summer Mission with Cru. We firmly believe that this is one of the best things a college or high school student can do with his or her summer. These students are given a rare opportunity to develop skills, leadership abilities and character traits that will become part of the foundation of who they will be for a lifetime.
We desire that you be informed about our Summer Mission trips and what they involve. We support you, both as a parent and in your role as a guide and guardian of your child. We encourage you to explore the information on this site and contact us with any questions or concerns you may have.
Cru is an interdenominational Christian organization founded in 1951, with the purpose of helping to fulfill the Great Commission of Jesus Christ as recorded in Matthew 28:18-20. When Bill and Vonette Bright first launched the ministry, then called Campus Crusade for Christ, the underlying concept was to “win the campus today and change the world tomorrow.” More than 50 years later, the mission remains the same. In 2012, Campus Crusade in the U.S. formally changed its name to Cru. Learn more about Cru.
Traditional, orthodox Christian beliefs are at the core of the Cru movement. We hold to the essential claims of the Christian heritage including the birth, life, death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. We have no ties to any one particular denomination but work instead in cooperation with many local churches to aid the spiritual development of young men and women. See our Statement of Faith for more information.
Your student’s safety is our priority whether stateside or overseas!
While no one can guarantee the complete safety of anyone, anywhere, we do take common sense precautions. Upon their arrival, students will have several days of orientation to life in their location including street smart travel and what to do in case of an emergency. Each location has its own policies that help to provide for your son or daughter’s safety.
"We were skeptical of the trip when we first heard about it, not because it was with Cru, but because it was located in downtown Chicago. We were worried that finding a job would be difficult for our daughter and that it would be dangerous. We were even worried that our daughter wouldn't raise the money. But God provided everything, and since our daughter has had this experience, her growth in the Lord is evident in everything she does. What a blessing to our family."
Safety is our number one priority. During every phase of the trip, safety is given the highest priority. Before a location is even selected as a destination, it is evaluated for political stability, recent and previous history, as well as any national issues that may have the potential to escalate. Locations are monitored continually to ensure stability.
The mission trip leaders are trained in basic areas of crisis management, and contingency plans are developed for each location. Our National Staff Care Team constantly monitors all travel advisories issued by the U.S. State Department and SOS International (an international emergency evacuation service). This team is in frequent communication with local contacts in the ministry areas. During their visit they will work with local contacts to ensure the safety and viability of all food, housing, transportation and ministry locations. If at anytime during the preparation process a country becomes unsafe, it will be immediately cancelled and all affected missionaries will be assigned to another country.
During the trip, every policy upholding the safety of the students will be followed at all times. If conditions were ever to become unsafe during the trip itself, the appropriate emergency protocol for that destination would be followed. Our team in the U.S. will be notified of the emergency and information will be available for the families at the number listed below.
Each participant of an international mission trip will be signed up as a member of SOS International, our emergency evacuation service. With this service comes medical referrals and advice about medical facilities around the world. Their service is available to the projects 24/7.
For only matters that are urgent in nature, please call 1-321-270-6200. This number is monitored 24 hours each day to help provide emergency services for the 3,500 students on summer mission trips and their families.
For general questions, please do not call the 24 hour number. Instead, please call 1-800-690-0911. This voice mail is cleared 3 times each week because our summer missions coordinators are helping provide leadership to other summer missions too. Email is another way to contact us with matters that are a bit less time sensitive. Please email us at summer.missions@cru.org.
When calling, please be ready to give the following info:
COVID Health and Safety:
Each of our summer mission locations will follow local and state guidelines, as well as Cru guidelines and restrictions for gathering. Each mission is staffed with an Opportunity Safety and Care Coordinator to help ensure compliance with all rules and regulations. This coordinator will also ensure that mask usage, social distancing, and hygiene expectations, based on CDC guidance, are followed.
COVID adjustments to Housing and Facilities:
Shared housing space and facilities can increase risk of exposure to COVID-19. We are committed to offering the safest possible housing and facilities to our participants as we follow CDC guidelines for shared residences. Quarantine housing will be provided for any participant who has been in close contact with a confirmed COVID-19 case or who has COVID-19.
Caring for your Child in light of COVID:
Because of the complexities of hosting a Summer Mission during the COVID-19 pandemic, we are asking all of our student participants to be especially flexible this summer. With rapidly changing circumstances and policies, we will all need to be adaptable. So, it will be important for your student to have a humble and responsive posture toward their trip leadership as they work quickly to ensure their safety and compliance with local, state, national, and Cru policies. There will be a commitment they will need to sign stating their agreement with this posture.
Our highest priority is your student’s care and growth. Living in the midst of a pandemic is more mentally and emotionally taxing than normal. Because of that reality, we are designing less intense schedules on our Summer Mission trips than normal, in order to give additional space and time. Your student’s Summer Mission will likely have more Cru staff on it than usual, which will provide more personal care and connection for them during their trip.
COVID and Financial Adjustments:
Though COVID-19 requires additional financial considerations and expenses, we will maintain appropriate participant prices to make it affordable for your student’s participation. Signing up and raising funds for pending trips will have impacts on both your student as the participant and their potential ministry partners who support their trip financially. As such, we seek to care for them and their financial partners by establishing a clear and easy support raising process that enables confidence to engage in the mission.
On a typical Summer Mission with Cru, one male and one female Director, along with a small team, will oversee all administrative operations, and are responsible for scheduling, logistics, teaching, training, and discipling the entire group. Each Director has been hand-selected by the Cru staff for their experience and proven leadership. They strive to provide a quality experience for each missionary.
Stateside Trips The base cost of each trip includes housing, project materials (Bible studies, notebooks, evangelistic materials, etc.), special project activities and the projects that do meals together also include a portion of your food costs.
International Trips The base cost of each trip includes international airfare, missionary training and debriefing, in-country transportation, housing and food. Trip prices offset costs such as tracts and literature, administrative, and project setup costs.
In addition to the cost that is already listed for the project, students are able to raise additional funding to cover their transportation to and from project or briefing, supplies they bought to raise funds for the summer and some other costs that the project leadership will tell them about when they are accepted.
Each student on a summer mission trip has the opportunity to grow their faith by trusting God to provide the financial resources needed to attend project. We will provide great resources to help your student learn how to invite others to partner with them this summer by giving financially and praying for them. Every one of our staff members in the world is responsible for building a team of ministry partners and God has provided for each of these as well as for the 50,000 plus students who have gone with us the past 41 summers.
"I told my daughter she wouldn't be able to raise all that money and, quite frankly, I was uncomfortable with the idea of sending her on a mission trip if it meant spending thousands of dollars for her to go. But I witnessed God provide for her financially-- she raised more than the required amount! Not only did God show me His provision before the project, but after she returned, I got to talk with her more openly about our spirituality."
Cru is a charter member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability and is registered with the IRS as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, making all donations to the ministry tax-deductible. In order to receive a tax deduction, the IRS requires donors to release to Cru the control of how their donations are spent. This means all contributions raised for mission trips must be payable to Cru in order to receive a tax deduction.
Please note: The application fee is not considered a donation.
Each year Cru helps thousands of students and leaders raise the money for their adventures, and we will help you too! Raising the money is probably easier than you think. Once your student has been accepted to a Summer Mission with Cru, they will receive assistance in writing support letters, making phone calls and following up with potential sponsors.
We have found that there are two major resources that will help students raise their money. As we go through them, remember – GOD is always our source!
Family and friends: It is very important for your son or daughter to share the story of what God has done in their heart with family and close friends. We will help your student write a support letter to share where they are going, why they are going, and how the family member or friend can be a part of what God wants to do through them. It is important for your student to let them know how much the trip is going to cost so that they know how much help will be needed. This will give them the opportunity to be a part of your son or daughter’s summer mission trip. Support letters not only give people the opportunity to help financially, but also prayerfully. It is a great way to allow people to see what God is doing, especially to those who may not know you very well. Family and friends, regardless of their religious beliefs, will often be very willing to help—all you have to do is ask. Remember, the money that they give is for God, not for you, so don’t hesitate to ask. It is also tax deductible which is a big plus!
Pastor and youth pastors: Churches desire and are often able to be a part of sending your son or daughter on a mission trip like this. Your son or daughter could set up a meeting with the pastor and/or youth pastor to share what God has placed on their heart. See if they would be willing to help by allowing your student to address the church, take up an offering, or talk with the mission’s board.
Cru’s commitment to stewardship
Once your son or daughter has been accepted, they will receive a welcome packet from their trip leadership team with all kinds of information they will need and you most likely you will want to know. Since we have so many locations each summer, these project leadership teams have the most current and specific information regarding their location. If you and your student have questions not answered in this packet, we encourage you to contact the directors by email or phone. Their contact info will be in the welcome packet.
We know that simply hearing your son or daughter’s voice can set your mind at ease, so we encourage students to call home when they arrive at their location. Many will be able to also touch base via a phone call or by email during the summer as resources and time allow.
We ask that all students who have been accepted to be a part of the trip make themselves available for the entire length of the trip. We generally do not allow students to leave for overnight trips due to safety concerns, and in light of activities.
A student may be allowed to attend a family reunion, wedding, etc…, but only after receiving permission from their leadership.
Yes, of course. We encourage that you just check with your son or daughter to see if the leadership asks that visitors only come during certain times in light of their schedule.
If there is an emergency, please call 1-321-270-6200. This number is monitored 24 hours each day to help provide emergency services for the 3,500 students on summer projects and their families.
For general questions, please do not call the 24-hour number. Instead, please call 1-800-690-0911. This voice mail is cleared 3 times each week because our summer missions coordinators are helping provide leadership to summer mission trips themselves. Email is another way to contact us with matters that are less time sensitive. Please email us at summer.missions@cru.org.
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