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neXus Boston helps mobilize, motivate, and activate youth workers in Greater Boston.

neXus Boston seeks to improve the lives of urban youth and their communities by encouraging, supporting, and training Christian youth workers to serve urban and high-risk youth and their families more effectively. neXus is a collaboration between EGC, Boston TenPoint Coalition, Boston Urban Youth Foundation, Black Ministerial Alliance, Urban Youth Workers Institute’s Center for Youth Studies, and Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary’s Center for Urban Ministerial Education (CUME).

In FY 2009, neXus launched the “Living Room,” a periodic gathering of youth workers which features fun, fellowship, and empowering conversation. neXus Director Rev. Matthew Gibson says that as relationships are built at the Living Room, the next step is to encourage regional clusters of youth workers, teams of Christian youth workers in the same neighborhood who can meet for mutual support. In the fall of 2009, neXus launched the first two clusters, one in the South Shore region and one in Boston.

neXus staff continue to meet one-on-one with youth workers. “People are not coming here necessarily because something is wrong, but because they want to grow as youth workers,” Matthew affirms. “neXus is a place where you can share your heart with somebody who has been there.”

Chase Grogan, operations coordinator, sends out a weekly “E-Blast” newsletter to 350 youth workers that includes details on all of neXus’ upcoming training events, including seminars and workshops, certificate-level seminary classes, and a year-long intensive leadership program. Through a partnership with Trinity Boston Counseling Center, neXus offered a 12-week self-care and resilience training program to help prevent youth worker burnout.

www.bostonnexus.org

[published in Inside EGC, November-December, 2009]