In the nearly two decades since, Thornburg knows of a total of four students who have dropped out of school upon joining the Unification Church, founded by Sun Myung Moon. By contrast, as many as 45 students a year quit school after becoming ICC members, he reports. At least 20 other schools, including Boston College, Marquette University, the University of Southern California, Georgia Tech, Vanderbilt, and Emory University, have barred the group or denied campus registration because of allegations involving manipulative recruitment or harassment of students. College-age students are an important constituency to the ICC . The Los Angeles ICC reports about 22 percent of 11,000 attenders are college students.
Church members cultivate a clean-cut and friendly image.
When they're recruiting, they are polite and respectful. Theologically, the group seems orthodox in many ways. And many consider the fervor and sincerity with which ICC members attempt to follow the Bible's teachings to be admirable. According to Dawn Lynn Check of United Campus Ministry, which coordinates activities at three Pittsburgh campuses, members typically learn students' class schedules, then wait outside to meet them. Check questions the ICC 's legitimacy partly because members do not fully identify themselves when they invite students to an activity.