Chi Alpha | ΧΑ, is an international and interdenominational student Christian Fellowship on college campuses. Sponsored by Chi Alpha Campus Ministries and local churches, it is open to college students of all backgrounds. Even though the national governing organization is a ministry of the Assemblies of God USA, membership at local chapters includes many people of varying denominations.
Purpose
The mission of Chi Alpha is to reconcile students to Jesus Christ, thereby transforming the university, the marketplace, and the world... The core values are Community, Creativity, Diversity, Excellence, Integrity, and Servant-Leadership.
History
The Assemblies of God began a ministry to collegians in 1947 at the urging of J. Robert Ashcroft, which consisted of a newsletter sent to college students to encourage them in their faith. It soon became apparent that a newsletter by itself was inadequate, and so in 1953 Dr. J. Calvin Holsinger chartered the first Assemblies of Godstudent group at Missouri State University in Springfield, Missouri where the Assemblies of God headquarters is located. The movement quickly spread to other campuses. For example, the first Chi Alpha to own property was the UC Berkeley chapter, which purchased a house next to campus in 1964. The name Chi Alpha was inspired by the contemporary Assemblies of God youth movement, Christ's Ambassadors. The initials "CA" were changed to Greek initials "ΧΑ" in order to resemble the names of other college organizations. Chi Alpha began its development internationally in the 1970s, establishing chapters in Europe under the name :de:Studenten_für_Christus|Students for Christ, and also into Latin America under various names. In 1977, the first ever Chi Alpha internship was launched at Western Washington University in Bellingham, Washington by the WWU Chi Alpha campus director Brady Bobbink. In 1978, Dennis Gaylor became national director of Chi Alpha, and served until April 2013. Chi Alpha is currently led by Scott Martin. There are Chi Alpha ministries and fellowships on over 310 campuses throughout the United States.
Cultural mentions
In the 2014-2015 school year, Chi Alpha at CSU Stanislaus was removed from campus because they required that their leaders be Christians. The case gained national attention and was covered on Fox News. The chapter was eventually reinstated.
The chapters at Georgetown University and the University of New Hampshire were highlighted in a 2003 article in The New York Times entitled "Of Bart and Homer, and the Many Ways of Faith" - an article about their use of the Simpsons as a Bible study tool, and in 1986 The New York Times mentioned the chapter at Columbia University as representative of a trend of growing Christian fellowships on campuses in the northeastern United States.
Annie Dillard wrote a widely reprinted essay, "Singing with the Fundamentalists", about her experiences singing with a group of students from the Chi Alpha chapter at Western Washington University.
