New BCM O'ahu Intern Program

By Arjay Gruspe

During COVID, many things shut down, including the Baptist student dorm at Manoa. Last Spring, it reopened with a new purpose. Students apply, and those accepted have the privilege of living in the dorm as part of the Baptist Campus Ministries (BCM) O’ahu Internship Program, led by NextGen Director Arjay Gruspe.

In their internships, students develop in three areas of ministry focus: leadership development, theological development, and missional engagement. They get practical ministry experience by serving at the BCM, attending a leadership class, mentoring, and learning through conferences, locally and on the mainland, through partnerships within the Southern Baptist Convention, such as NAMB, IMB, BCNet, and the HPBC.

Julia, a former intern who graduated from the program and has joined the BCM staff, said, “I entered the program thinking, ‘I got this.’ Little did I know it would literally change my life!” Julia now serves with BCM O’ahu with a focus on the leadership development area of the ministry.

Our vision through this program is to develop a leadership pipeline for students to be trained to serve effectively and missionally for God’s glory, either locally or globally. We are excited to have seen this program grow with the addition of more students this semester.