Reaching the Community through Childcare: A Plan to Use Early Childhood Centers to Assimilate Members into Resurrection Lutheran Church in Sioux Falls, South Dakota

Ascher, Christopher D. “Reaching the Community Through Childcare: A Plan to use Early Childhood Centers To Assimilate Members into Resurrection Lutheran Church, Sioux Falls, South Dakota.” DMin Major Applied Project, Concordia Seminary—St. Louis, [2014]. [207] pp. Churches have for some time operated early childhood programs. Often times the stated reason is to reach out to those in their community, and the unstated reason is to bring members and growth into their congregations. This project is a descriptive study that surveyed congregations operating an early childhood center. Follow up interviews were then conducted with church staff whose congregations saw some growth coming through their early childhood center in order to determine some best practices that could inform an outreach plan at Resurrection Lutheran Church in Sioux Falls, SD. While the project and literature review were intended for Resurrection Lutheran Church in Sioux Falls, SD, the research indicates that many congregations operating early childhood centers are struggling to connect with the families in the center. The findings may provide insights as well as challenges for congregations who operate early childhood centers