Our youth are our future: the Metropolitan Philip Youth Worker ScholarshipsWith the blessing of Metropolitan Joseph, the first six SOYO Metropolitan Philip Youth Worker Scholarships have been awarded to the following six people, each in the amount of $800, for the 2015-2016 Academic year. Five of the six recipients are studying in the St. Stephens Youth Ministry Concentration working towards a Master Degree in Applied Orthodox Theology with a concentration in Youth Ministry (more information available here) and one—Gregory Abdalah—is working on his Doctor of Ministry Degree at St. Vladimir’s Seminary.
All six of these recipients are members of a parish in the Antiochian Archdiocese of North America and all of them are currently doing youth ministry work on the parish and or diocesan level.
First Name | Last Name | Parish Name | Parish City | Parish State |
Fabiola | Sweis | St Mary Orthodox Church | Palos Heights | IL |
Julia | Shaheen | St. George Orthodox Church | Akron | OH |
Amal | Michael | St. George Orthodox Church | Canton | OH |
Michelle | Ibrahim | St Elias Cathedral | Ottawa | ON |
Kh. Delia | Haddad | St Mary Antiochian Orthodox Church | Palos Heights | IL |
Gregory | Abdalah | St George Antiochian Orthodox Church | Phoenix | AZ |
The SOYO Metropolitan Philip Youth Worker Scholarship Policy is as follows:
Requirements for Eligibility of the SOYO Metropolitan Youth Worker Scholarship
The following are the requirements that must be met in order to be eligible for the Youth Worker Scholarship.
- The applicant must be an active member of an Antiochian parish for at least the last five years.
- The applicant must be active in youth work.
- The applicant agrees to enroll in a recognized Orthodox Christian program with a youth ministry focus or component. The recipient will seek direction from the Chairman of the Archdiocese Department of Youth as to which institution is available for training.
- The applicant is willing to make a minimum three year commitment to parish youth work in the Antiochian Archdiocese either as a volunteer or on a paid basis, but only following completion of the program.
Archdiocese Policy for the Youth Worker Scholarship Fund stipulates:
- That the funds raised by NAC SOYO over several years to help create this scholarship program, will be invested by the Archdiocese in the name of the SOYO Metropolitan PHILIP Youth Worker Scholarship Fund.
- That all funds are to be used solely for the development and education of Parish and Diocesan Youth Workers of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America.
- That the appointed members who will be part of that committee to decide who is awarded the scholarships will include the following category of persons: The Chairman of the Archdiocese Department of Youth, The NAC SOYO Spiritual Advisor, Two Diocesan Youth Directors, one Diocesan Spiritual Advisor, and NAC SOYO Vice-President. The number of members on the voting committee is not to exceed six at any time, in addition to the Chairman.
- All scholarships granted by the committee of the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese must be approved and blessed by the Metropolitan Archbishop himself. At first the Chairman of the Department of Youth will see through the scholarship application and judging process, and then he will present the committee's selection to the Metropolitan for his blessing, as is done in all other scholarship funds.
Those wishing to help this fund grow and make more scholarships available to our parish youth workers may add to this fund by mailing their check to the Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America 358 Mountain Road Englewood NJ 07631 and earmark their contribution for the “SOYO Metropolitan Philip Youth Worker Fund.