Leading an International Expedition
All Chi Alpha student teams serving internationally must be done with our AGWM partners, an affiliated Assemblies of God ministry like Convoy of Hope and Project Rescue, or a National AG Church. Student missions teams working with non-Assemblies of God missionaries or ministries will not be approved. If you have any questions, please contact us at [email protected].
Leading an international Expedition? Here’s a summary of what you need. More detailed instructions are below.
- Register with Chi Alpha here as soon as you know where you’re going and approximate dates.
- Register with AGWM and purchase insurance at wideopenmissions.org. This has multiple time sensitive steps so don’t delay starting. If working with an AG Affiliated Ministry or an AG National Church, then see the section below.
- Have each AGUSM account holder traveling with your team complete an AGUSM Travel Form here. Email these to [email protected].
EXCEPTIONS TO THE NORMAL TEAM PROCESS
- If your trip is over one month long, you must register as MAPS volunteers. This is a longer process so please plan for 3-4 months.
- If you are a credentialed minister traveling alone or with your spouse, you must register as a short-term minister abroad (STMA).
- If you have a team of less than three members, or a family unit, you must register as volunteers.
If you meet any of these criteria refer to the wideopenmissions.org teams page for how to register.
IMPORTANT DEADLINES
This entire process should be completed by February 1 for spring break teams and April 1 for summer teams! If leading a team in a timeframe other than spring break or summer, all paperwork must be completed and submitted 45 days prior to departure. If you are needing a disbursement from your account for a trip, then all paperwork must be submitted 2 months prior to when you will need the funds.
Helpful Suggestion
Often, we want to give students as much time as possible to commit to a trip and raise funds (which is the real indicator of whether they will go or not). This can also cause us to begin the application process later than expected. Go ahead and process those team members, especially U.S. Missions Account holders, that have committed early. If other students join later, they can be processed as a separate team. It doesn’t matter to AG Financial that they are part of the same actual team.
If you have any questions about or need assistance with the registration process, please contact us at [email protected]. We are happy to assist you!
Register with Chi Alpha
Team leaders, the process of missions trip approval begins here. Team registration through Chi Alpha is only step one in a multi-step process. Once you’ve completed this step, an email will be sent to you with further instructions.
This entire process should be completed and submitted by February 1 for spring break teams, April 1 for summer teams and 45 days prior to departure for all other timeframes. This process is how we protect our students and our ministry in the occasion of an emergency. It is not optional.
If you are traveling alone or with your family, you should also complete the trip form linked below.
Please email any questions to [email protected].
If you have international students going on missions trips, there are some steps they will need to take beforehand. Read more here.
Working with AG Affiliated Ministries or National AG Churches
Important To Know
- AGWM consent is required for all missions teams working with AG Affiliated Ministries like Convoy of Hope, Project Rescue, etc. or National AG churches. It is designed to protect both Chi Alpha and AGWM from sensitive, on-the-field issues that would be otherwise unknown to our Chi Alpha leadership. On rare occasions, teams could be asked to amend their trip itinerary in light of ongoing situations. This consent must be received before securing other plans for the trip.
- ALL Chi Alpha international missions teams are required to purchase insurance through Mission Assure. Exception: Teams working with Convoy of Hope do not need to purchase insurance with Mission Assure – you will purchase your Mission Assure insurance as part of your Convoy of Hope trip registration. You will need to ask Convoy of Hope to send you a receipt or something that shows insurance has been purchased. Please send this proof of insurance to [email protected].
- The Mission Assure insurance is required even if the ministry which you are working with has its own separate required insurance.
Step One: Obtain AGWM Consent Immediately
AGWM consent is required for all missions teams not working with an AGWM missionary. It is designed to protect both Chi Alpha and AGWM from sensitive, on-the-field issues that would be otherwise unknown to our Chi Alpha leadership. On rare occasions, teams could be asked to amend their trip itinerary in light of ongoing situations.
To obtain consent, we need:
- A letter of invitation from the AG Affiliated ministry or the National AG Church leader with whom you will be working. This is usually an email. Once we receive this letter it will be submitted to the appropriate AGWM director for their approval. You will be notified once AGWM consent has been given.
We recommend you do not promote your trip or devote finances to it before AGWM consent is obtained.
Step Two: Purchase insurance directly with AG Financial/Mission Assure
After receiving AGWM consent, you will purchase insurance directly with AG Financial/Mission Assure unless you are working with Convoy of Hope because they also use Mission Assure.
Step Three: Send Insurance Confirmation to Chi Alpha
- Once you’ve purchased your insurance, you will receive a payment confirmation email from AG Financial. Please forward that email to [email protected]. If working with Convoy of Hope, please ask them for proof of insurance and forward that email to expeditions.
Step Four: Submit Overseas Travel Forms
AGUSM requires all national missionary account holders to submit an overseas travel form to leave the United States for any ministry related purpose. This includes nationally appointed missionaries, missionary associates, CMITs, and anyone else who may have a national missionary account. You will need to submit a separate form for each account holder traveling with your team. Married couples can share a single form if they have a single missionary account. Please download the form here and email completed forms to [email protected].
Please email [email protected] if you cancel your trip or add any AGUSM account holders to your trip.
Thanks for leading!
Short-Term Team Playbook
To help plan your trip, here is the Chi Alpha Short-Team Team Playbook with contributions from other Chi Alpha leaders across the nation. It contains helpful tips from planning and preparing the trip and your team, the trip itself to debriefing the trip.