Youth Leadership Initiative
Pepperdine University, 24255 Pacific Coast Hwy, Malibu, CA 90263
About
Youth Leadership Initiative includes several programs such as CrossWays, Next Gen Preacher Search, and Youth Leadership Lab. CrossWays is a life-transforming, nine-day experience for high school students in the summer after their sophomore and junior years that includes a Preaching & Teaching Training Workshop. Youth Leadership Lab is a free, online course for 6th–8th graders in Christian leadership from the Youth Leadership Initiative of Pepperdine University.
• Ages: 12–17 years old
• Schedule: nine-day experience
In the Next Gen Preacher Search, young people with an interest in preaching submit a 5-minute video sermon, and forty semi-finalists are chosen to attend a Preaching & Teaching Training Workshop where they receive personalized coaching. Four finalists are selected and have the opportunity to present their lessons before over 25,000 Christians at gatherings such as Harbor: The Pepperdine Bible Lectures, the Tulsa Soul Winning Workshop, the North American Christian Convention, and the Winterfest conferences in Tennessee and Texas. Youth Leadership Lab allows 6th–8th graders to learn key character traits and leadership skills from faculty and staff, interact with other students from across the country who are taking the course, and develop as Christian leaders.
The Youth Leadership Initiative is connected with Pepperdine University, which was created and endowed by George Pepperdine in 1937. The goal of CrossWays is to enrich students' lives both spiritually and academically in order to develop strong Christian leaders by equipping them to love and live like Jesus in order to serve and lead as he did. The founding director, Jeff Walling, is a nationally recognized public speaker who addresses over 65,000 teens each year throughout the world and has served churches in Orange County, California for over 20 years, most recently as the preaching minister of the Providence Road Church of Christ in Charlotte, North Carolina since 1997 before stepping into his role at Pepperdine in 2014. The Next Gen Preacher Search is described as a unique outreach to future young leaders in high schools and colleges across the country in a joint effort with the North American Christian Convention and several other Christian colleges and universities.
Last updated March 11, 2026.
• Ages: 12–17 years old
• Schedule: nine-day experience
In the Next Gen Preacher Search, young people with an interest in preaching submit a 5-minute video sermon, and forty semi-finalists are chosen to attend a Preaching & Teaching Training Workshop where they receive personalized coaching. Four finalists are selected and have the opportunity to present their lessons before over 25,000 Christians at gatherings such as Harbor: The Pepperdine Bible Lectures, the Tulsa Soul Winning Workshop, the North American Christian Convention, and the Winterfest conferences in Tennessee and Texas. Youth Leadership Lab allows 6th–8th graders to learn key character traits and leadership skills from faculty and staff, interact with other students from across the country who are taking the course, and develop as Christian leaders.
The Youth Leadership Initiative is connected with Pepperdine University, which was created and endowed by George Pepperdine in 1937. The goal of CrossWays is to enrich students' lives both spiritually and academically in order to develop strong Christian leaders by equipping them to love and live like Jesus in order to serve and lead as he did. The founding director, Jeff Walling, is a nationally recognized public speaker who addresses over 65,000 teens each year throughout the world and has served churches in Orange County, California for over 20 years, most recently as the preaching minister of the Providence Road Church of Christ in Charlotte, North Carolina since 1997 before stepping into his role at Pepperdine in 2014. The Next Gen Preacher Search is described as a unique outreach to future young leaders in high schools and colleges across the country in a joint effort with the North American Christian Convention and several other Christian colleges and universities.
Last updated March 11, 2026.
Is this your business? There is no cost, but you will be asked to sign up or log in.