Pastoral Assistants to Fill Many Ministry Needs
Until his junior year, Josiah Klatt MLC ’23 (pictured top) majored in elementary education. That’s when he realized that perhaps he wasn’t cut out to teach in one classroom full-time. Perhaps he’d prefer a variety of ministries with people of different ages. So he changed his major to staff ministry, filling his schedule with courses like Intro to Youth and Family Ministry, Foundations of Evangelism, and Caring and Counseling—many taught by Dr. Lawrence Olson NWC ’79, WLS ’83 (pictured at the board).
At his graduation in 2023, Josiah and his wife, Maria (pictured in the red dress), learned they were both assigned to Apostles in San Jose, California. As their staff minister for the last two years, Josiah’s days have been filled with variety, just as he’d hoped: teaching religion to grades 9-10, teaching catechism class, leading youth group, and teaching Bible class to 20- and 30-somethings. In the summer, he administers the summer school campus, an all-day, all-summer program with 80 children, three head teachers, and eight aides.
“If you love to talk about God,” Josiah says, “but you don’t know where you fit in with the teacher or pastor track, look into staff ministry.”
2025 graduate Noah Kvidt agrees. In the fall, he finished his internship with Pastor Ben Kuerth MLC ’02, WLS ’06 in Doral, Florida (bottom picture), and on Call Day he was assigned to the Divine Savior School in Doral as a staff minister and assistant teacher! “
There are so many unique opportunities with staff ministry!” he says to prospective students. “So, if you’re like I was in high school, unsure of what you want to do in your career, but you love Jesus and sharing his love with others in some way, shape, or form, I encourage you to consider staff ministry!”
Expansion of Our Staff Ministry Program
Because our mission is to meet WELS ministry needs, we asked congregations what other needs they had for staff ministers. In addition to the ministry training they receive, might it be helpful if some of our staff ministry candidates were also trained in, say, Christian counseling? Or maybe business, information technology, marketing, or media production? We realize that 21st-century congregations have 21st-century needs.
About 300 congregations responded to our survey, and we’re taking note. In fact, the subject of our Higher Learning Commission Quality Initiative is possible expansion of our staff ministry program. We want to keep our existing foundation of ministry training intact, but explore whether we could make room for course-sharing to create minors or credentials in some of these other areas.
“One of the most rewarding aspects of the program’s initial development,” explains Dr. Olson, “was the collaborative effort to bring together nearly all staff ministers to document their roles and identify the knowledge, skills, and traits vital to their work. This grassroots approach, grounded in real ministry practice, led to a curriculum that truly reflects the heart of staff ministry. Since then, the program has continued to adapt, shaped by the changing needs of congregations. As we review survey data and gather insights from focus groups and interviews, I am enthusiastic about the opportunity to contribute to strategic revisions to the program and to explore creative, forward-thinking ways to further enhance the program for the future.”
