Historical Sketch

The National Campus Ministry Association was founded in October, 1964 at St. Louis, Missouri. Its first national conference was held in June of 1965 at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. The N.C.M.A. was formed by a merger of the Association of Presbyterian University Pastors, the Campus Ministry Association, the Fellowship of Campus Ministry, and the National Association of College and University Ministers. Organizers of the N.C.M.A. recognized that campus ministers needed a clearer sense of support from their professional colleagues. The Association was formed to serve those in campus ministry by fostering their educational development, by offering opportunities for support, communication, celebration and personal growth, and by providing channels for relating the resources of the university world to the shaping of the Church's policies and strategies for mission.

At the time of the N.C.M.A.'s formation there was a close tie between the United Ministries in Higher Education and the new Association; most of the N.C.M.A.'s financial support came initially from the denominational boards involved in U.M.H.E. In 1967, the U.M.H.E.-related grants were combined into a contribution to the N.C.M.A. budget, and U.M.H.E. staff were "Loaned" to the N.C.M.A. to aid in the Association's development. Gradually, however, the N.C.M.A. felt that it needed to establish its own autonomy and direction. At a N.C.M.A.-U.M.H.E. Consultation held in February, 1972, it was decided that beginning in 1973, U.M.H.E. would no longer fund the N.C.M.A. as an organization, but would contribute financially to selected projects in the area of continuing education for ministers in higher education, an area of common concern. Since this decision, the N.C.M.A. budget has relied upon membership dues as its major source of income.

The National Campus Ministry Association has been the most inclusive and ecumenical of the professional campus ministry groupings. The Association has served as the bridge agency to the Lutheran Campus Ministry Association, the Catholic Campus Ministry Association, the Jewish Hillel Society, the United Ministries in Higher Education, and other similar groups. Many campus ministers are members both of the N.C.M.A. and a separate denominational campus ministry professional organization. The biennial conferences of the N.C.M.A. are held in cooperation with these other organizations. Through the N.C.M.A., the Women's Campus Ministry Caucus and the Ministries to Blacks in Higher Education Caucus were represented at the national level.

In its early years, the accent within the N.C.M.A. was on vocational status and academic responsibility, and the Association sent representatives to many of the academic professional societies. The emphasis then shifted to "advocacy", "action-research" projects, some of which failed for lack of interest. Historically, the strongest response has been to continuing education projects in the area of theology or family structure. The N.C.M.A. publishes a newsletter and sponsors conferences, seminars, and convocations. At present, its membership is primarily composed of personnel from the United Church of Christ, the United Presbyterian Church, the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), the American Baptist Churches, the United Methodist Church, and the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

For more information, see the History of the NCMA booklet in Box 28, Folder 201.