The Festival Center

One of The Festival Center’s core programs, Discipleship Year is a year-long residential experience that actively engages volunteers with issues of social justice and servant leadership.

Volunteers will:

• live in intentional community in a Christian setting
• enter into theological study and/or reflection through classes at the Servant Leadership School
• work in one of the Church of the Saviour ministries or a similar organization

Work for Compassion and Justice

Discipleship Year places participants with organizations that have the pursuit of a more compassionate and just world at the core of their mission. A number of our placements provide direct service to low-income individuals and families, addressing inequities related to housing, health, education, and experiences of incarceration. Other placements focus on the ways that advocacy and oganizing efforts can respond to issues such as global poverty and climate change. Click here for a full list of current placements.

Classes at the Servant Leadership School

The classes at the Servant Leadership School provide a unique opportunity to integrate faith and life. Classes are designed to connect “heart” learning and “head” learning in a way that allows for a variety of theological perspectives to be shared. Class offerings are on topics such as prayer, call, power, justice, community, poverty, servant leadership, racism and scripture. Volunteers are required to take one class per term, a total of three classes during the program year. Volunteers are also welcome to attend special events offered by the Servant Leadership School.

Volunteer support

Volunteers work 32 hours per week with one organization (“placement”) during the program year (35 hours per week if volunteer is also eligible for Americorp, with which we have a contract). In turn, the placement covers housing costs ($750/month) and provides a stipend ($250/mo). The program requires that volunteers pool $100 of the monthly stipend to share food costs. Additionally, the placements provide work related transportation costs and health insurance to the participants.

Duration of the program

Discipleship Year is an 11-1/2 month program (August to August) to which participants must commit for the entire year. Applications are available January through August.

Application and Contact Information

Applications are still being accepted for the 2013-14 cycle and will remain open until the program is full. Click here to download the application.

Name: Dawn Longenecker, Program Director
Address: 1640 Columbia Road, NW, Washington, DC 20009
Telephone: 202.328.1102 or 202-328-0072
Fax: 202.328.7483
Email: dlongenecker(at)slschool.org
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