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A 'New World' at ORU
Student-led conference 'Ignites' a passion for change
By Jennifer Raynes (Class of 2006)
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It worked for Paul Daugherty and Sara Swanson, co-directors of this year's Ignite leadership conference. Their revolutionary message was captured in this year's fierce (and controversial) theme: "New World Order." Why the harsh imagery? "We live on a campus that sees conferences all the time," said Swanson, "so we wanted something that made us [stand] out and catch peoples' eye. Made them say, 'What?' . . . We wanted people to talk about it."
Backed by a compelling mission, on Feb. 16 and 17, Daugherty and Swanson sought to rally the troops and get serious about the cause. "We inspire and help motivate college students to become leaders in their sphere of influence, and then in turn they change their world," said Daugherty. Swanson echoed his enthusiasm: "Ignite's goal was to hit the Millennial Generation . . . and change the way they see things instead of just letting things be the way they are." On the Ignite Web site, the fiery challenge was just as strong. "We cannot sit back and expect others to do what God has called us to do. We cannot become weak and lazy in our walk with God. We must rise up and take back our generation for Christ."
With Humility, Of Course . . .
And nothing helps stir people to action better than a big name to help spread the vision. This year's "big name" speaker for the conference was best-selling author and leadership expert, John Maxwell. After years of (not-so) subtle persuasion by former Ignite directors, Maxwell accepted the invitation to speak this year--on his 60th birthday! Honored that he would share such a special day with ORU, students made sure it would be a birthday to remember. Maxwell laughed heartily when Ignite leaders (along with his leadership protégé, Tim Elmore 83) presented him with a gift on Friday night: a festively decorated wheelchair. Taking his aging in stride, Maxwell had been the first to poke fun at his "old man" status while speaking in chapel earlier that day.
Fun and games aside, Maxwell's visit to campus will be best remembered for his empowering sermons. Touting his signature message of servant leadership, Maxwell told students that the key to "changing the world" is through serving. "I think too many leaders are into titles and not enough leaders are into towels," he said in his evening session. That morning, he urged chapel attendees to "Serve with a generous spirit . . . Not only serve others, but serve others abundantly. Not only help others, but go the second mile." With unapologetic candor, Maxwell challenged young people to count the cost of leadership and question their motives for desiring those positions. "Do you want to impress people or do you want to impact people?"
Perhaps the greatest aspect of Maxwell's message of humility, though, is that he actually lives it--something ORU students experienced firsthand. On Friday night, conference attendees got a special treat when Maxwell shared the stage with Tim Elmore, an ORU alumnus he has mentored for the past 20 years. The duo sat on stools around a bistro table in a coffeehouse-style atmosphere and conversed about how their "Paul and Timothy" relationship has respectively impacted their lives. During that personal-yet-public dialogue, Maxwell "the leadership expert" faded into the background, and Maxwell as simply "the man" emerged. With tear-filled eyes, Maxwell spoke genuinely and openly, connecting with his audience of young leaders in a powerful way.
No Little Plans
The year 2007 marked the fifth anniversary of the Ignite conference and proved that the event just keeps getting better every year. In addition to headliner Maxwell, Elmore (whom co-director Swanson refers to as "the daddy of Ignite") held a Saturday-morning session in which he shared from his latest Habitudes book: The Art of Changing Culture. (There's that revolution theme again!) The afternoon was divided into three workshop sessions, where speakers shared leadership insights specifically relating to the areas of business, ministry, and music (worship). Respective workshop speakers were former ORU Alumni Relations director Lynette Troyer Lewis 84, the Jeff Deyo Band, and Pastor Terry Henshaw. Beginning his session with a list of "Things I wish I would have known when I was here [at ORU]," Henshaw spoke about his hindsight reflections on the power of obedience and the importance of consistency in prayer. Lewis advocated the importance of preparation and offered "how-to's" for balancing work and family, while Deyo and his band shared songwriting techniques with young worship leaders. Closing out the conference Saturday night, former LA Raiders running back-turned-pastor Napoleon Kaufman spoke about "The Blessing of Leading While Following." Kaufman's sermon, though brief, convicted students to pursue humility, surrender their own dreams to the Lord, and seek God's plan for their lives. "God, I don't want my dream," Kaufman prayed, "I want Your dream!"
Face to Face with the Future
Big dreams, it seems, come quite naturally to ORU students, Ignite leaders notwithstanding. Swanson couldn't stop praising this year's creative team for their innovative ideas that helped make the 2007 conference unique. One new spectacle was a "wax museum" in the chapel lobby--a dozen or so students dressed as notable leaders, "frozen" in triumphant positions, and on display for viewing and inspiration. Another new creative element this year was the pragmatic "Ignite Experience." According to Swanson, this element of the conference was a way of being "more practical. Because you need something to bring it home."
Swanson thought it was vital to warn students about the challenges they would face when pursuing their dreams. With its engaging creativity and personal touch, the "Ignite Experience" served as the perfect opportunity to share such a warning. Using the timeless theme of time travel, sophomore Ben Block created an interactive video to illustrate the obstacles peers would surely encounter after leaving ORU. In the video, Block played an older (wiser) version of himself who traveled back in time (via a video screen) to warn his present college-student self about the "tough times ahead." A humorous sight to behold, Block stood on stage and dynamically interacted with his virtual persona about the mysterious "future" that lay in wait. Given YouTube's popularity with the current generation, one can only imagine how well the audience took to the video. It served as a convincing reminder to students of the opposition and obstacles they might well face in their "refining process" as leaders.
Day by Day
Without a doubt, "process" was a buzzword at the conference, and it was introduced by Elmore. After the hoopla and energy of a big event fades, Elmore said, then comes the hard part: the day-to-day process of living out leadership principles that were taught. To illustrate the contrast, Elmore also chose to use a video to tell the story of two characters: "The Event" and "The Process." Event was a flashy, extroverted character who boasted about his ability to excite and empower people. His sidekick, Process, though less eye-catching, was considerably more laid back and "normal." After an insightful discussion, the two characters realized their interdependent nature and reciprocal need for one another. Elmore summarized the video by noting that there must be a practical mentoring process in place after an event in order to sustain the intensity and empowerment over the long haul.
That means Ignite 2007 isn't over yet. Though the event (conference) may be finished, the ever-important "process" of leadership has just begun. Through "mentoring groups," dozens of students were mentored by peers in weekly small-group meetings. For eight weeks, these groups studied Elmore's leadership principles from his first Habitudes book, The Art of Self Leadership. Co-director Swanson says it's in the process, not just the event, that the true leader is made. "Ignite is a practical way of teaching leadership," she says. "Instead of just learning about it, this is the actual application of it. Because when you apply something to your life and you [are] actually living it, it's so much easier to learn it."
Fanning the Flame
Beginning as a mere spark on ORU's campus, the Ignite conference is now spreading like wildfire. Beyond just ORU students, Ignite 2007 attracted students from other universities in the Tulsa area, as well as a significant number of attendees from Evangel University in Springfield, Mo. Watching the Ignite influence expand beyond the ORU realm, co-director Daugherty has sought to expand its original vision. The new plan, he says, includes creating "an Ignite traveling team that goes to different universities and sets up the leadership program for them and then teaches them the principles to run it themselves."
In March, Evangel University had the privilege of becoming the first such Ignite lookalike, thanks to Evangel senior Sharah Harris. After attending Ignite 2006, Harris immediately caught ORU's vision to raise up millennial leaders. She first heard the story of Ignite in 2005 when she attended a leadership camp with Tim Elmore. "I was amazed that two people [founders Selah Davis Hirsch 03 and Sara Grace Turner 03] could formulate an idea and then produce it within one year to impact their school for godly leadership." At the 2006 conference, Harris got the chance to chat with Elmore, whom she said had no idea that she had been "dreaming of how to start a leadership conference [like this at home]." Harris remembers that, "Near the end of our conversation, [Elmore] said, 'This needs to come to Evangel.' It was as if every story and vision had come back to life in my mind!"
ORU's Ignite leaders, past and present, played a significant role in helping Harris launch that vision for Evangel's own student leadership conference: Collision. "The main idea for Collision is the same as Ignite," Harris says. "It is a program formulated by students, targeted for students, while giving leadership principles to see spiritual and career growth." Throughout the whole planning process, ORU students were there to support Evangel students by giving them the resources, information, and empowerment necessary to re-create the Ignite-esque event at their school. Having already been "impressed most by [ORU students'] professionalism . . . humbleness, servant leadership, and organization" during the 2006 Ignite, Harris brought her entire Collision leadership team to this year's conference. The Evangel team was grateful to be able to glean firsthand event planning experience alongside ORU's seasoned young leaders.
As Collision hit the Evangel campus (with a bang!) in March, the first official offspring of ORU's Ignite conference was born. With the incredible success ORU's Ignite experienced this year, next year's leaders are already brainstorming ideas to make it even better in 2008. A new senior director, Katie Bohrer, has taken the reins (along with assistant directors Daugherty and Tess Holtzclaw), and is confident that Ignite will only continue to grow stronger in the future. "This conference is bigger than we can understand, and we are just holding on tight, praying for God's vision to be manifested through our team. There are huge things in store for Ignite, and we are ready and willing to make them happen."
