THE ADVENTURE TEACHING IMPACT STREAM (Working Doc)

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1 THE ADVENTURE TEACHING IMPACT STREAM (Working Doc) PROJECT SUMMARY: Adventure Teaching Inc. currently helps college graduates of all disciplines secure excellent ESL teaching jobs in South Korea. Adventure Teaching has plans to expand throughout Asia in the near future. Adventure Teaching is now launching a second stream of its services called AT Impact, which will work to establish missional communities through English Teachers who love and follow Jesus and want to impact the world in a positive manner. Adventure Teaching is partnering with Missio Lux (a Covenant Church in Sammamish, Washington) to establish AT Impact. Adventure Teaching and Missio Lux will equip, train, and support these communities throughout the duration of their time abroad. Adventure Teaching hopes to expand to include development projects as well. As a part of AT Impact, ESL Teachers gain international experience, are part of a meaningful community, have outstanding opportunities to share the love of Jesus, and are able to save money while doing so. No financial support is necessary. WHAT IS ADVENTURE TEACHING? Adventure Teaching Inc. (AT) is a teacher placement agency currently operating in South Korea with plans to expand throughout Asia in the near future, and around the world in the more distant future. We help college graduates find great teaching positions in South Korea. AT works as a safeguard between foreign English teachers and Korean schools. We use our industry awareness and experience working as English teachers to help applicants navigate the ESL industry. We help applicants find excellent positions in great areas. We lay the foundation for an unforgettable experience. We work with a limited number of teachers and schools to ensure quality placements. Currently, AT has offices in South Korea and the United States. The company was formed and is run by people with experience working as English teachers. Scot Sustad and Reuben Zuidhof, the owners of the company, work fulltime alongside their Korean staff to ensure quality and that each teacher is supported from the beginning of the process until the end of the teacher s contract. AT provides excellent communication, necessary resources, and personal attention to each teacher so that they are prepared to live and teach abroad before they leave home. 1

2 AT believes that international experience encourages personal growth, cultural diversity and a greater global perspective. Quick Facts about the Korean Teaching Opportunity: Applicants must have an undergraduate degree. Any discipline is ok. All teaching is done in English (it s not necessary to speak another language). Teaching contracts are one year contracts. Teachers can expect to save between $10,000-$20,000 during the year (this amount may fluctuate because of the exchange rate). This is possible because of great salaries and low expenses for more details, please see appendix a. Teachers will experience working and living in another culture. Teaching positions are usually available every month of the year. WHAT IS AT IMPACT? Currently, Adventure Teaching is building a second stream to their services called AT Impact. AT Impact will utilize the teacher placement services of AT that are already in place, and adds a new focus. This focus will be on experiencing Jesus in the context of community and spreading his love around the world. We will do this by strategically establishing Missional Communities throughout South Korea, and later throughout Asia and the world, partnering with Missio Lux and using the Missio Lux model. AT will help establish Missio Communities by placing 3-5 like minded teachers in schools within a short distance of one another so that they can get to know each other and establish a Missio Community soon after they arrive in Korea. AT has partnered with Missio Lux (details below) and uses the Missio Lux model to enable AT Impact. The beauty of this opportunity is that NO FINANCIAL SUPPORT IS NECESSARY. Teachers are actually able to save money while they are a part of AT Impact. 2

3 WHAT IS MISSIO LUX (ML)? ( Missio Lux means mission of light in Latin. The Missio Lux mission is: To experience and share the freedom and hope Jesus offers to everyone! The Missio Lux values are: 1. Knowing God 2. Loving one another 3. Serving the world Missio Lux is church without the walls, or as the tag line states: A lifestyle. ML began in Sammamish, Washington and is part of the Evangelical Covenant denomination, although it works with people of all denominations. ML is made up of Missio Communities that meet in homes weekly or every other week. All of the communities then come together once a month for the ML Celebration to worship, share the stories of what God is doing in their communities, and remember that they are part of a larger community. The focus of a Missio Community is to experience and learn about Jesus in the context of community, support one another in friendship, and impact the world. To help further understand the Missio Community concept, it will be helpful to notice the five norms of a Missio Community. Five Norms of a Missio Community (MC): o MCs will usually share a meal when they meet to build community. Sharing a meal together allows the people in the community to get to know one another, talk about every day life, enjoy one another s company etc. in a non-threatening environment. o MCs will have a focus time After the meal, there is focus time, which is a deeper sort of discussion. These discussions will vary according the people in the community. Abundant resources, from online sermons, to written curriculum and books, are available for facilitating focus times. o MCs will have a missio (a missional purpose) Instead of just focusing inwardly on their communities, MCs seek to serve the world with an outward focus. Each community s missio will vary according to their passions, 3

4 interests, abilities, and community dynamic. Missios can range from neighborhood dinners to combating aids in Africa. o MCs will multiply when they outgrow their meeting place. The goal of each community is to remain small enough that everyone in the community can know each other and experience genuine relationship. When this becomes unfeasible the community should multiply by raising another Catalyst (instigator/leader) and planting another MC. o MCs abroad will be supported by a parent community in North America and be a part of periodic ML events and retreats In north-america, all of the ML communities are able to gather once a month for a celebration. The MCs abroad will most likely gather once or twice throughout the year to do the same or as is feasible. Core Values and cohesiveness are maintained through the ML Huddle. The Huddle is a concept adapted from Three Dimensional Ministries (www. which is a small group model of church that is growing mainly in Europe. The huddle helps the ML body and MCs: 1. Connect 2. Communicate 3. and Equip. The huddle follows the low management and high accountability model. The Huddle helps MCs maintain focus on the ML vision and values and is a main source of accountability. 4

5 MCS ABROAD HAVE AMAZING POTENTIAL As in the ML model, each community abroad will develop their own personality. They will take on various shapes and forms. Some will be made up of all foreigners while others will focus mostly on connecting with people of another culture. This is for the individual community to decide. Their missio can involve something in their host country or elsewhere in the globe. The missio should be decided according to the community s blend of unique passions, interests, networks, and talents. Opportunities to expand the community and share the love of Jesus abound in South Korea. Here are three major points of connection that have potential for amazing impact: Foreign teachers from 7 different countries: o Canada, America, Scotland, England, Ireland, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand Koreans are hungry for English and relational faith. o Most Korean people are interested in any opportunity that involves English. o The Christian church in Korea, is often based on prosperity Gospel and pastured are revered with great authority. Often the relationship with Jesus is over looked. 5

6 Migrant workers: o Many workers from countries throughout South East Asia, China, Eastern Europe, India, and Africa work in the factories throughout Korea. Foreign Teachers living and working in Korea: Foreign teachers come from varying paths and religions, but the spiritual temperature amongst them seems to be overwhelmingly agnostic. It can be a somewhat exhausting experience for many Jesus followers if they do not have a supportive community. The majority of teachers go to Korea alone; without an acquaintance, friend or spouse. As a result, most people are in search of a place to be accepted. Because most people are stepping outside their comfort zone and are alone, a very unique opportunity for connection and openness exists. Often, agnostic people are willing to get involved in a community, even if the gatherings surround the person of Jesus. Reaching even one of these agnostic people with the freedom and hope of Jesus could have an immense impact. Imagine if they went home and planted a similar community in their country, or even just brought the light of Christ home to their families. Korean People: Korean people are often interested in connecting with foreigners in order to learn about western culture and learn English. Korean people often enjoy sharing their lifestyle and culture with their foreign friends as well. These relationships can be very rich and rewarding. They are a great way to combat stereo types and get a real view into the differing cultures. Although Christianity is the leading religion in Korea, the Korean Christian church is often caught up in legalism, the prosperity gospel, and the status of being a Christian. The opportunity to lean about Jesus through relationship in the context of a community of peers is a very unique opportunity for the Korean people. Migrant Workers: Migrant workers from China, India, Africa, Eastern Europe, and S.E. Asia are often considered some of the lowliest people in Korea. They are constantly discriminated against and face a multitude of financial and social challenges. The migrant workers are often desperate to find an opportunity to connect with other people outside their workplace. Just like a foreign teacher can go back to their country with a new Faith to share, so can the migrant workers. 6

7 WHAT WILL THE COMMUNTIES DO FOR THEIR MISSIO (MISSION)? Missio opportunities abound in Korea. They span from serving the homeless, orphans, or prisoners, to cleaning up the trash in their neighborhood, hosting a dinner for their fellow teachers, or teaching free English lessons. As mentioned before simply because the MCs that go through AT Impact will be living and working abroad, does not mean that there missio needs to be carried out in their host country. WHAT RESOURCES ARE IN PLACE? AT IMPACT (Resources in Place) Strategic Job Placements in Screened Schools throughout S. Korea Visa Preparation Support Teacher Preparation and Country Introduction Orientation to living and working in South Korea Orientation to teaching English (During Catalyst Training) Teacher Support and Problem Solving Leadership Training on how to start and maintain a Missional Community Missio Community Website Financial Structure for each community s giving is provided through ML. Of course, this is not required 25% to ML overhead 75% goes into each Missio Community s account, which can be accessed to accomplish their missio or be given to a source of their choice. Each community abroad will have a supporting ML Community in N. America for support communication, and accountability. ML Huddling for Community s Catalyst. Connection with other foreign teachers and AT Impact teachers Assistance in getting a cell-phone and communication established right away Abundant teaching and learning resources and curriculum for focus times and activities. 7

8 WHO IS ELIGIBLE FOR AT IMPACT? Any Jesus follower is eligible to be a part of AT Impact. People that want to impact their world for Jesus, no matter where they live make the perfect candidate. They must also meet the minimum requirements to get an E-2 teaching visa which include: 1. Being a native English Speaker, with citizenship from: Canada, America, Scotland, England, Ireland, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand. Korean people are also eligible to teach and work in Korea. 2. Bachelors Degree (all disciplines are accepted) GLIMPSES OF THE FUTURE Currently, Adventure Teaching is only operating in S. Korea. AT has plans to expand to China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Japan, Cambodia, Laos, and Vietnam. Building good into everything that we do is part of the AT company DNA. We hope to use AT as a platform to impact the world. We envision partnering with other individuals and organizations to fund and be part of humanitarian projects. We want to continue to provide our teachers with new opportunities and places to serve those in need. We want to use our networks and resources to help empower people to live out their unique dreams, passions, and callings. We envision partnering with others to help build shelters and develop programs for victims of human trafficking and bring water to villages in Africa. All of this becomes feasible when people and businesses cooperate. HOW CAN YOU HELP? Pray for Adventure Teaching and Missio Lux Share this opportunity with anyone might be interested in going to Korea. Help us expand our network by connecting us with people that can help us carry this vision out Join the AT Recruiting Network Help us set up times to share with groups and leaders about this opportunity 8

9 APPENDIX: a. Financial Details Teaching in Korea is a fantastic opportunity for many reasons: -The employers provide round trip airfare. -Contracts include paid vacation time -Employers pay 50% the teacher s medical insurance. -A basic furnished apartment is provided for each teacher. -A bonus equal to one month s salary is provided after the teacher completes a one year contract. - Salaries usually range from $1,800 to $2,500 USD per month. 9