Varieties of Schools Most schools provide separate sessions for adults, youth and children. Some schools are sponsored by the conference United Methodist Women and are planned for women only. Schools last from 3 to 5 days. Many are Friday night through Sunday noon. They include classes around chosen study themes, worship, large group gatherings, eating together, meeting new people, sharing faith stories, singing, and other planned activities.
Some conferences sponsor one-day sampler events to introduce the studies.
Most schools are held during the summer, but there are a smattering of fall and winter schools across the country. Many who have come once to these gatherings return again. The Women's Division of the General Board of Global Ministries provides a basic plan, recommends resources for study and trains leadership for Schools of Christian Mission. A school committee in each conference is responsible for putting the plan into action. The Women's Division uses WebTrends Live to analyze traffic to this web site.