National Student Christian Federation Records

The National Student Christian Federation (NSCF) was a Protestant ecumenical federation that existed between the years 1959-1966. It was the U.S.A. member of the World’s Student Christian Federation (WSCF) and a related organization to the National Council of the Churches in Christ in the United States of America (NCCCUSA). The NSCF’s purpose was to create an ecumenical community in which college students could participate in Christian fellowship, join in the mission of the church, and witness to the world. They achieved this goal by producing Bible study guides and literature on the missionary task, holding conferences such as the 19th Ecumenical Student Conference on the Christian World Mission, and programming events and materials for the WSCF Life and Mission of the Church program.

The NSCF was formed in 1959 when the Interseminary Movement (ISM), the Student Volunteer Movement for Foreign Missions (SVM), and the United Student Christian Council (USCC) merged into one ecumenical organization, which had “related movement” status within the NCCCUSA. There was impetus for this merger when the NCCCUSA wanted to reorganize its Department of Christian Higher Education. Prior to merging, the SVM, USCC, and Interseminary Movement were affiliated with different departments within the NCCCUSA. Since all three organizations worked with college students it was logical from an administrative standpoint to combine them. The “related movement” status within the NCCCUSA meant that NSCF was a unit in the larger organization yet able to have autonomy regarding direction and public statements. It also meant that NSCF had to abide by the NCCCUSA’s fiscal and personnel policies. Once the organizations joined together the SVM changed its name to the Commission on World Mission. The ISM name also changed to the Committee on the Interseminary Movement.

The NSCF was formed as a federation of member movements and agencies. Member movements included such groups as the YMCA, YWCA, Methodist Student Movement, and the Interseminary Movement, which was made up of eight regional councils. The “agencies” were primarily Protestant denominational departments that had been involved with USCC as well as denominational foreign and home mission boards that had engaged with the SVM. Smaller national churches that did not have a presence at universities, as well as students who wished to develop their own movement, were also encouraged to join NSCF. In 1963, the NSCF constitution was amended to include a membership status of “related organization”. The YMCA and YWCA switched their member status to related organization to denote their nondenominational character. The Young Friends of North America (a Quaker organization) were able to join as a related organization through this amendment too. They had been participating at conferences with “observer status” prior to the amendment. The related status meant organizations had representation at the General Assembly, but they could not vote on matters.

Participation in the NSCF occurred on three levels: attending the General Assembly meeting, holding a position on any of the NSCF’s commissions or committees, and attending programs such as conferences and work camps. The General Assembly met once in a year, and all members (except related organizations) voted on the direction, policies, and committee membership of the NSCF. In its early years much of NSCF’s programming revolved around the WSCF Life and Mission of the Church (LMC) program. This program was intended to strengthen theological and mission ideas within the WSCF, and impart knowledge in these areas to the new generation. NSCF accomplished this goal by publishing material and promoting conferences along themes the WSCF had established. For example, the 1963-1964 LMC theme was “The Word, the World, and the Sacrament,” and the 19th Ecumenical Student Conference incorporated this in its program planning. This quadrennial conference (from the SVM tradition) featured Father Alexander Schmemann, an Orthodox minister, as the main speaker. After the LMC program ended in 1964 there was a shift in programming. By this time, students had more representation within the NSCF. This resulted in seminars and programs on social and political concerns such as apartheid in South Africa, Latin American issues, and the peace concern.

Throughout its life, the NSCF struggled to find direction and define itself to the constituents it served. Part of the problem lay in a lack of cooperation within the NSCF. Initially, the NSCF was a merger in name only. The Commission on World Mission (CWM, formerly the SVM), the Interseminary Movement, and the United Student Christian Council retained their same programming goals and staff. In addition, all three groups kept separate budgets. The NSCF Budget and Finance Committee attempted to keep all accounts reconciled, but it was ultimately up to the departments to spend and raise their own money. Upon creation of the NSCF there was an attempt to merge the Study Department of the USCC and the Literature and Study Committee of the Commission on World Mission into one new unit called the Commission on Ecumenical Study and Strategy (CESS). This did not happen, as much of the work of the CWM’s Literature and Study Department revolved around publishing materials that focused directly upon the missionary vocation. In addition, it took the NSCF two years to activate the CESS. When the CESS started working, its goal was to produce Bible studies and promote the World Student Christian Federation’s Life and Mission of the Church program. At the NSCF General Assembly in 1962, the CESS recommended splitting into two committees and dissolving itself. The new committees were the Inter-movement Council, which focused on student concerns and the Committee on Program and Study Secretaries, which would continue the Life and Mission of the Church work. This type of bureaucratic problem plagued the NSCF. On February 7-9, 1962, a Development Consultation took place in St. Louis, Missouri. The consultation focused on new ways in which all committees and commissions within the NSCF framework should work together and come to term with financial problems. Overall, the NSCF was not meeting its budget, particularly the Committee on the Interseminary Movement, which had stretched itself too thin between planning a Triennial Conference and coordinating a new theological publication. (By 1963, the ISM would close the national office within the NSCF operations and exist only in the form of regional groups.) A group of students led by Rebecca Owen presented a statement explaining their wish for the NSCF to be more responsive to the student-lay community and take their concerns seriously. The committees and commissions pledged to unite staff and budget and allow the General Secretary to direct the entire organization.

The NSCF also faced a problem of communication in making itself known to the students whom it sought to serve. Students learned about programs and goals of the NSCF primarily through denominational agencies and mission boards, which were interested in promoting their own interests first and NSCF second. Since these were the same denominations and mission boards on which NSCF was dependent for financial contributions to sustain its budget, there was a potential for tension if the NSCF were to push for more exposure. In addition, students who did know about the NSCF were frustrated because they felt their concerns were not being heard. The creation of the Inter-Movement Council in 1962 gave students a place to work within the NSCF structure. Out of this Council, concerns for civil rights, Latin American issues, and peace concerns were expressed to the General Assembly. In 1964, Leonard Clough was hired for the General Secretary position. This was a turning point for the NSCF as he encouraged more collaboration within the organization. From this point there was also an increased emphasis on making the NSCF more of a student movement. At the 1964 General Assembly participants voted to suspend the NSCF constitution for one year and to include more student representation on the Central Committee. The Assembly also approved a Student Administrative Secretary who would be based in the New York office working within the administration. (This position was never filled, as the Central Committee felt funding should go to programming.) The Commission on World Mission, the Committee on Ecumenical Service Projects, and the Committee for Christian Work Among International Students (committees of the NSCF) were encouraged to meet on the same day and place in order to improve communication and cooperative work. The General Assembly Hearing Group cautioned that it did not go far enough, asserting that real structural changes were necessary in order to make the NSCF an effective, ecumenical organization. The 1964 General Assembly also saw NSCF taking steps to create a relationship with the secular organization Students for a Democratic Society, as political and social concerns were of high importance to the students.

By the next General Assembly in 1965, structural changes had taken place, such as reduced staff and administrative expenses, to free up money for student-directed programs. The Commission on Ecumenical Voluntary Service Projects was transferred out of the NSCF and into the NCCCUSA’s Division of Christian Unity. Social concerns such as apartheid, the Vietnam War protest movement, and Latin American concerns took precedence during the 1964-1965 year. Clough called upon the General Assembly to either reconsider a new, flexible structure for the NSCF, or end the federation. From his perspective, NSCF needed to become a grassroots student movement, rather than a federation of organizations. During this time period, students were drawn to such grassroots groups instead of joining in established denominational student groups. In order to change, NSCF needed to be a student movement involved in mobilizing instead of reflecting. Ultimately, this led to the NSCF evolving into the University Christian Movement in 1966.