Are you a children’s ministry leader serving in a church but without any formal children’s ministry education? Are you looking to continue to broaden your ministry knowledge and skills while expanding your children’s ministry network? If the answer to either of those questions is yes, then Children’s Ministries University Online (CMUO) is for you!

CMUO is proud to partner with the American Children’s Ministers’ Association (ACMA) to offer accredited, college-level children’s ministry training online. ACMA is the professional association for children’s ministers that seeks to raise the standard of children’s ministry across America by encouraging and assisting local children’s ministry leaders at the local level. If you are a children’s ministry leader, click here to learn more about becoming a member of ACMA today!

CMUO offers fully-accredited college-level children’s ministry education that can be completed entirely online! Children’s ministry leaders can progress through each course individually or with fellow workers at his or her own pace and can choose to either take a single course or progress through the required coursework to earn a one year certificate (30 credits) in children’s ministries through Valley Forge Christian College. Credits can be transferred to any other Bible college or seminary that accepts transfer credits.

All courses are user-friendly, utilizing the latest in self-paced online educational technology. Classes present a practical, no-nonsense approach to children’s ministry. Click here to take a look at the online children’s ministry courses available through CMUO.

Best of all… CMUO is affordable! Tuition is offered at a discount of over 80% compared to most traditional on-campus college courses.

ACMA Member Benefits and Discounts

The $25 application fee is waived for all ACMA members! Simply apply today to CMUO and note on your application that you are an ACMA member to have your application fee waived.

As additional discounts and benefits for ACMA members become available, they will be announced here.

So what are you waiting for? New courses begin monthly so you are free to start your studies when most convenient. Take the first step to becoming better equipped to serve the children of your church and community by applying today to CMUO.

Welcome to the new blog for Children’s Ministries University Online (CMUO)!

Dear Friend,

Greetings in the wonderful name of Jesus. He is our Good shepherd and loves the children.

I wanted to drop you a quick update regarding Children’s Ministries University Online. Since we opened the doors almost three years ago, over 583 students have registered and most have taken one or more classes. It is exciting to watch the progress of these students as they continue to sharpen their tools for ministry to God’s children.

We have just awarded our very first certificate in children’s ministries. Ruthie Hill has completed all requirements and is our first student to complete the certificate program. We are proud of her accomplishment. Several other students are nearing completion as I write this letter.

Take a look at cmuolite.com for information our upcoming live training event. October 9-11, 2008 we will host a live training event on the campus of Valley Forge Christian College. Students may participate on campus or virtually from the comfort of their own homes. Both on campus and virtual attendees will enjoy the content of this conference through our conference archive. All general sessions and workshops will be available to every registrant well beyond the week of the event. You will be able to use this material for your inspiration and that of your workers for months to come.

Speakers such as Jim Wideman, Dale VonSeggen, Wayne Tesch, and Dave Boyd will be featured at this event. Many others will be teaching workshops and sharing in our general sessions. We’ve got a great selection of exhibitors participating on campus and/or online with more yet to come on board. Excitement is building here at CMUO central as we receive registrations from around the world.

Children’s Pastor Jessica Vega has been organizing the workshop leaders and topics for the conference and all of these are nearly in place. Here are just ten of the over 50 workshops available:

• Discipline Strategies in an Undisciplined World
• 17 Habits of a Successful Children’s Leader
• Organizing Your Ministry and Yourself
• Building a Biblical Worldview
• Building a Team That Lasts
• Breakthrough Spiritual Retreats
• Your Church Should Have A Puppet Ministry
• Using Contemporary Puppets and Ventriloquism
• Active and Engaging Worship
• Collaborative Planning and Document Creation using Google Docs

Check out the conference and register today at cmuolite.com. Register by August 28th to receive a discount. Student and group discounts are also available. We look forward to participating with you in this historic conference.

May God richly bless you in your continuing ministry to His children.

Dick Gruber
Children’s Ministries Specialist
Valley Forge Christian College
Children’s Ministries University Online

Children’s Ministries University Online announces the launch of the new 3-credit course New Testament Survey to be available beginning May 1, 2008.

CMU114: New Testament Survey offers a panoramic view of the chief events, prominent characters, main themes and salient teachings of each New Testament book in relation to its historical, geographical, and cultural contexts.

CMUO courses begin monthly, so you can sign-up and begin your journey toward expanding your children’s ministry skills anytime. No matter whether or not you have taken an online course through CMUO before, you can sign-up today to begin your online learning experience as soon as May 1st. Simply logon 24/7 to http://www.cmuo.com and find out more details. Current CMUO learners or those who have already applied and been accepted to CMUO can register for the new “New Testament Survey” course at: http://www.cmuo.com/register

Have a question about CMUO? Contact CMUO Learner support at: http://www.cmuo.com/support

Join Dick Gruber and Jason Rhode for this first-of-its-kind 3 hour interactive online workshop where you’ll discover the practical steps to Cultivating a Cutting-Edge Children’s Church.

In conjunction with the National Children’s Ministries Leadership Conference, this pre-conference workshop offered face-to-face at the conference will be webcast live online on Tuesday, April 1, 2008 from 9:00am-12:00pm (CDT) and then repeated later that day from 1:00pm-4:00pm. View the FREE session online and interact with the presenters and other participants live online during the session!

Two identical sessions will be offered:

• Session 1: Tuesday, April 1, 2008, 9:00am-12:00pm (CDT)
• Session 2: Tuesday, April 1, 2008, 1:00pm-4:00pm (CDT)

Both sessions will be webcast live online using Ustream. To participate in the chat room to ask questions and post comments during the workshop, you need to login to Ustream. If you do not have a Ustream account yet, click here to register for free. Then, 10-15 mins before the session begins, click here to login to participate live online!

For those unable to participate live, the sessions will be recorded and archives made available afterwards at www.cmuo.com/workshops/kidschurch. Links to additional resource materials and the slides referenced during the sessions will also be posted there.