The Story of Student Life

Our Story

We believe that Student Life is not the creation and vision of man alone, but that the hand of our mighty God has moved in the formative stages of this organization and still continues to move today.

In 1993, Student Life, Inc. began as an effort to provide an exciting, biblically-based summer camp experience for junior high and high school students. It has grown into an organization committed to meeting the needs of the Church and supporting its ministry. In addition to youth summer camp, Student Life now offers kids camp, beach camp, conference tours, international mission trips, in-depth Bible study curriculum for youth and adults and a variety of other printed and web-based materials that are aimed at Helping People Know Christ through His Word.

The beginning of Student Life shows the hand of God moving in the life of Randy and Valerie Hall as they chose to locate themselves in Fort Worth, Texas, for Randy to continue his education at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. Shortly after school began, Randy accepted a job serving on staff at First Baptist Church, Arlington, Texas, as the youth minister. There he inherited a camp tradition and a Wednesday night program that later became known as Student Life.

After serving in Arlington for seven years, Randy and his family moved to Columbia, Tennessee, where he took a position as a minister of education. While in Columbia, he began to reminisce about the days of camp. God’s plan continued as the desire to pursue creating a camp remained in Randy’s heart. During a round of golf with a friend the decision was made to plan a camp together for four churches. The camp was hosted in Marion, Alabama, at Judson College in 1993. Randy and one of the original staffers, John Mark Wallace, did what they could to make the event a success, but discovered that they did not have the equipment, people and resources that they had in the past to create a successful camp.

Randy vowed that he would never attempt camp again after his experience at Judson College. To prove this promise to himself, and maybe to everyone else, he registered for Sunday School Week at Ridgecrest Retreat Center in North Carolina. As he sat in a room with fellow ministers of education during the week, Randy was hit with a reality he never expected: his job description was inside that room, but his passion was outside of those windows with the students that were playing as part of a Centrifuge camp. He spent the rest of the week mingling with students at the Coke machine and around campus. In a phone conversation with his wife Valerie, he shared that he felt the Lord’s leadership calling him to try to do camp again, but this time carrying out the plans correctly.

Thus, Student Life began with four full camps during the summer of 1994. Those camps were held at Ouachita Baptist University in Arkansas, and Covenant College on Lookout Mountain, Georgia. Randy moved his family to Birmingham, Alabama, and took a part-time position with Details Marketing while he also focused on preparing for the camps. After just a few months, the demand for his time forced him to leave Details and focus full-time on the needs of this young organization.

During the summer of 1994, the organization landed on Jeremiah 29:11, “For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the Lord, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future.” What a promise from the Holy God! Student Life still remains committed to that Word.

Over the years, Student Life has worked hard to improve in every area of camp ministry. We have tried to focus on subjects that are relevant to today’s students. While we focus on growing Christian students, many times we get to see students begin their relationship with Christ. We believe in directing students to their local church for any counseling and spiritual guidance. We do this because we believe in the 52-week ministry that youth ministers and children’s ministers are called to do.

In 1996, the leadership of Student Life began to pray and plan for a conference tour. That spring saw two conferences take place in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and Birmingham, Alabama. Those conferences proved to be a learning experience and the beginning of a great part of the Student Life ministry. During the following year we had the privilege of partnering with Dave Busby and Michael John Clement on the “Going Off the Deep End” Tour. We ministered in 10 cities during the spring of 1997. Since that time, the conference tour has seen some of the best youth communicators and worship leaders in the country. We have found that conference tour and camp are a great complement to each other in ministry.

In the fall of 1999, Student Life began a new aspect of ministry, beginning Student Life For Kids. This is a camp ministry for kids that are in 3rd through 6th grades. Because the dynamics of this age group are different than youth, the kid’s camp experience is very different from the youth experience. Student Life For Kids takes great care to reach kids where they are while maintaining our goal of helping them Know Christ Through His Word.

In 2000, Student Life also began involvement in mission projects around the world. Servant Life is a separate non-profit organization that partners with Student Life to reach students across the world and to allow American students the opportunity to serve the globe. With mission trips in more than five countries and a partnership with Compassion International, Servant Life is focused on helping the world Know Christ Through His word.

Branching out yet again, in 2003, Student Life launched Student Life Bible Study, a six-year Bible study curriculum for youth master teacher classes, Sunday school classes and small groups. It was, in the words of Randy Hall, “an elaborate response to a great need.” And in 2007, Student Life decided the enthusiastic response to Student Life Bible Study was enough to warrant a similar effort in the adult education world. On June 1, 2007, Life Bible Study, an innovative adult Bible study curriculum, was launched-again advancing the goal of Student Life: to help people know Christ through His Word.

We continue to be amazed at the growth and blessings that we have experienced in the last nine years. The reality of what Student Life has become has far exceeded our expectations in 1993. We have plans, but no idea where the Lord will take us from here. We pray that we continue this journey with Him in control. His promise then is still His promise today. Jeremiah 29:11.