When asked to list priorities and how effective a youth ministry is at meeting those priorities, parents responded in the following way:

In terms of the youth pastor, parents rated their satisfaction in the following way:

In truth, there is a lot that we can celebrate here:

• More than two-thirds of parents say their program is at least somewhat strong in each of the priorities listed.
• More than nine out of 10 say they are “very” (59%) or “somewhat satisfied” (36%) with their youth leader.
• Generally, most youth pastors received high rankings on personal / character measures and on “keeping kids safe”.
• Seven in ten parents say they are very satisfied with their youth pastor as a “role model” (75%), with his or her knowledge of the Bible (65%), and with his or her spiritual maturity (61%).

Here are the things that we need to work on:

• The largest gaps between “very important” priorities and the equivalent assessment were with “safe space to explore faith” (16% difference), “positive peer relationships” (16% difference), and “guidance for career / direction in life” (16% difference).
• It’s interesting to note that a high level of satisfaction with the youth leader correlates to more interaction between the parent and the leader. So if you have parents who seem to be dissatisfied with the youth ministry, asking them to get involved might be one way to help win them over.
• Youth pastor satisfaction ranked the lowest in “administration / organization”.

Dig into the rest of the data from The State of Youth Ministry report available for the first time at NYWC. But you can pick up your copy—for free—just by registering for NYWC today!