Adult Advisors

Advisors for CazUUm 2021

What is an adult advisor/sponsor?

A adult advisor (also known simply as an advisor, a youth advisor, or a sponsor), is an adult who is at least 25 years old and is approved by their congregation to accompany youth to a youth event.

What's involved in being an advisor at CazUUm?

Adults are an important part of CazUUm. Not only is adult presence required for safety reasons (all CUC youth events, including online, maintain a youth:adult ratio of 8:1), but adult advisors are also considered full members of the CazUUm community. Youth highly value having adults in their lives other than parents and teachers who they can trust and share experiences with. For these reasons, we encourage adult advisors to participate in the conference as fully as they are able.

Being an adult advisor at a con is an opportunity to deepen relationships with your youth, witness youth leadership in action, and build friendships and support networks with other advisors. Many adults find it to be an incredibly fun and rewarding role.

Adult advisor duties

• Each adult advisor may sponsor up to 8 youth. Most often these are youth from your own congregation whom you already know. Sometimes youth who do not have a sponsor attending with them may be paired with an adult from another congregation.

• Before the event

  • Get to know the youth you are sponsoring - be in touch with them and their parents/guardians before the con and learn about how they are feeling about participating and if they need any special support to be able to participate fully.

  • Make sure the youth and their parents/guardians know how to contact you during the event.

• During the event

  • You are the go-to adult for the youth you are sponsoring

  • Check-in with your youth each day of the con

    • The CazUUm Coordinator will schedule a time for youth and sponsors to meet in break-out rooms

  • In the case of a covenant or rule breach involving one of your youth, you will be their advocate and support throughout the resolution process

  • Keep track of where your youth are. Ask them to let you know if they are taking time away from the screen. If you don't see them when you expect to, check in

Special events for adult advisors

Advisor Orientation - before con

• There will be at least one session in the weeks leading up to CazUUm for registered advisors to meet each other, the Advisors' Advisor (a position on the CazUUm staff team dedicated to supporting advisors), and CUC staff. We will go over how to be an advisor at an online con and answer any questions you have.

• Once you register, you will be contacted with the details

Advisor Check-In - during con

• There will be at least one scheduled meeting time for all the advisors at the con to check in with each other about how things are going for them and their youth

Bridging Events - during con

• Young adult advisors (25-35 year olds) are welcome to attend the bridging social events with the young adult community of Ensemble

FAQs

What about breaks? Do I have to stay the whole time?

We strive for a balance of participating in the community as fully as possible while also taking care of ourselves. The CazUUm schedule has short (5-10 minute) and long (30-60 minute) breaks worked in, but for the most part they are quite full 8 hour days on Zoom. We expect most people will need to take breaks, so please do! We just ask that you are in touch with the Advisors' Advisor about when you will be logging off so that they can make sure that youth:adult ratios are maintained. Please also let your youth know when you will be taking a break, and how they can get ahold of you during this time if something comes up.

I can't commit to the whole weekend - can I switch off with another adult?

We prefer to have all participants around from start to finish - this helps the community to build trust and deepen. However, sometimes it's just not possible. If you need to make alternate arrangements please contact canuudle@cuc.ca.

Do I need to register and pay? What forms do I need to submit?

Yes, adult advisors need to register and pay for CazUUm using the same registration form and sliding scale fee as the youth. Many congregations will cover or supplement the cost for advisors to attend youth cons; we encourage you to talk to your congregation about how they might support you in this important work.

In addition to the registration form, adult advisors need a Congregational Involvement Form to be signed and submitted on their behalf by a church staff or board member.