by Bryson Durst, Student Public Relations Writer
Throughout the New Testament, Christians are commanded to encourage, serve and pray for one another. Cedarville University’s new “dorm moms” plan to do just that for the female residence halls.
“The dorm moms will serve as prayer warriors for the resident directors (RDs) and resident advisors (RAs) and also come alongside and encourage them through writing notes or celebrating their birthdays,” said Lee-Ann McKay, an administrative assistant in Cedarville’s Department of History and Government who will oversee the initiative. “From there, we’ll also open up other opportunities to serve, because each residence hall has its unique events or activities where the dorm mom could come in.”
The dorm mom ministry is a part of CU Women, a women's-focused ministry that offers fellowship and service opportunities to female faculty and staff. The dorm moms will come from female faculty and staff as well as the wives of male faculty and staff.
McKay was asked to serve on the leadership team for CU Women, and from there she began to implement the dorm moms concept. Joy White, associate professor of women’s studies, had first proposed the idea shortly after her arrival at Cedarville in 2013.
The dorm moms will inherit Dessert in the Dorms, an event started a few years ago to provide homemade baked goods for female students and dorm leaders. The plan is to visit one-half of the female dorms in the fall semester, and wrap up the campaign with the other half of the residence facilities in the spring.
There will be three to four dorm moms for each female residence hall.
McKay emphasized that beyond the ministry of prayer and encouragement, the involvement of the dorm moms will vary from dorm to dorm.
“The dorm moms are going to connect with the RD, and from there it will kind of develop into what it’s going to look like for that dorm. I think it’s going to depend on the personalities of the RDs and the RAs and the dorm moms, the opportunities they have to serve within that dorm and the time commitment they are able to give this.”
This year will be a learning experience for the dorm moms, and McKay hopes to see the ministry grow in the future.
“Our goal is that the girls would see women coming alongside and encouraging them and praying for them and pointing them to the Lord. I want them to be able to see the body of Christ function that way.”
Located in southwest Ohio, Cedarville University is an accredited, Christ-centered, Baptist institution with an enrollment of 4,550 undergraduate, graduate and online students in more than 150 areas of study. Founded in 1887, Cedarville is one of the largest private universities in Ohio, recognized nationally for its authentic Christian community, rigorous academic programs, strong graduation and retention rates, accredited professional and health science offerings and high student engagement ranking. For more information about the University, visit cedarville.edu.