January 26-28
Austin College will be the destination for some 400 high school youth and their ministry leaders Friday through Sunday, January 26-28, as they arrive for the annual Grace Presbytery Senior High Youth Connection (SHYC) held on campus. Grace Presbytery is comprised of 158 congregations in 53 counties of northeast, north central, and central Texas. The youth gathering, scheduled at Austin College each January since 1980, is planned by a special team of adults and youth from across the presbytery in partnership with the Austin College ACtivators youth ministry team.
The event will include numerous small group and breakout sessions as well as all-inclusive services at which the Rev. Drew Travis, pastor of First Presbyterian Church of Granbury, Texas, will be the keynote speaker. He will speak around the theme of “With Christ … We Can,” focusing on the text of Joshua 1:9.
Additionally, the young people will join together with the “Kids Against Hunger” organization, with a goal to package 30,000 nutritious, low-cost meals to feed hungry children in the border areas of Texas. The group aims to reduce the number of hungry children in the USA and to feed starving children throughout the world. Austin College students serve with the Kids Again Hunger organization every year as part of Opening of School activities.
Grace Presbytery and its churches are part of the Presbyterian Church (USA). Presbyterians trace their history to the 16th century and the Protestant reformation.
The Austin College ACtivators program was founded in 1995 and has involved more than 550 Austin College students in 665 Presbyterian ministry events involving more than 51,000 children and adults in 13 states. During the 2016-2017 academic year, 40 students and Austin College chaplain John Williams traveled more than 6,700 miles to lead 29 events in ministry to more than 1,100 individuals.
Austin College, a private national liberal arts college located north of Dallas in Sherman, Texas, has earned a reputation for excellence in academic preparation, international study, pre-professional foundations, leadership development, committed faculty, and hands-on, adventurous learning opportunities. One of 40 schools profiled in Loren Pope’s influential book Colleges That Change Lives, Austin College boasts a welcoming community that embraces diversity and individuality, with more than 40 percent of students representing ethnic minorities. A residential student body of approximately 1,275 students and a faculty of more than 100 allow a 13:1 student-faculty ratio and personalized attention. The College is related by covenant to the Presbyterian Church (USA) and cultivates an inclusive atmosphere that supports students’ faith journeys regardless of religious tradition. Founded in 1849, the College is the oldest institution of higher education in Texas operating under original name and charter.