For years, members of the Youth Missions Network and other short term mission leaders have been aware of the need to enhance the quality of our short term mission efforts. With an estimated one million Americans participating is some kind of cross-culture mission each year; the Youth Missions Network determined that helping develop a standard of short term missions was a top priority.

            As a result of the combined input and effort of various mission leaders, the following 7 Standards of Excellence in short term missions were developed:

Refer to www.stmstandards.org for more information.

The Nationally Derived Standards

1. God-Centeredness

An excellent short-term mission seeks first God’s glory and his kingdom, and is expressed through our:

1.1 Purpose — Centering on God’s glory and his ends throughout our entire STM process

1.2 Lives — Sound biblical doctrine, persistent prayer, and godliness in all our thoughts, words, and deeds

1.3 Methods — Wise, biblical, and culturally-appropriate methods which bear spiritual fruit

2. Empowering Partnerships

An excellent short-term mission establishes healthy, interdependent, on-going relationships between sending and receiving partners, and is expressed by:

2.1 Primary focus on intended receptors

2.2 Plans which benefit all participants

2.3 Mutual trust and accountability

3. Mutual Design

An excellent short-term mission collaboratively plans each specific outreach for the benefit of all participants, and is expressed by:

3.1 On-field methods and activities aligned to long-term strategies of the partnership

3.2 Goer-guests’ ability to implement their part of the plan

3.3 Host receivers’ ability to implement their part of the plan

4. Comprehensive Administration

An excellent short-term mission exhibits integrity through reliable set-up and thorough administration for all participants, and is expressed by:

4.1 Truthfulness in promotion, finances, and reporting results

4.2 Appropriate risk management

4.3 Quality program delivery and support logistics

5. Qualified Leadership

An excellent short-term mission screens, trains, and develops capable leadership for all participants, and is expressed by:

5.1 Character — Spiritually mature servant leadership

5.2 Skills — Prepared, competent, organized and accountable leadership

5.3 Values — Empowering and equipping leadership

6. Appropriate Training

An excellent short-term mission prepares and equips all participants for the mutually designed outreach, and is expressed by:

6.1 Biblical, appropriate, and timely training

6.2 On-going training and equipping (pre-field, on-field, post-field)

6.3 Qualified trainers

7. Thorough Follow-Up

An excellent short-term mission assures debriefing and appropriate follow-up for all participants, and is expressed by:

7.1 Comprehensive debriefing (pre-field, on-field, post-field)

7.2 On-field re-entry preparation

7.3 Post-field follow-up and evaluation