Maryville Adventures in Studying Theology (MAST) is a Lilly Endowment-funded resource at Maryville College that strengthens youth ministry by offering educational programming that deepens theological investigation, builds leadership capacity, and fosters an intentional community of youth, youth ministers, and lay leaders.
In November 2015, Maryville College received a grant from the Lilly Endowment to establish Maryville Adventures in Studying Theology (MAST), a program that aims to cultivate youth leaders for the church and world by helping them discover and embrace the traditions of Christian faith, put their faith into practice, and explore – through the lenses of Bible study and theology – important questions of our time. The grant is part of Lilly Endowment’s High School Youth Theology Institutes initiative, which seeks to encourage young people to explore theological traditions, ask questions about the moral dimensions of contemporary issues, and examine how their faith calls them to lives of service.
Expanding Horizons
A Summer Theology and Leadership Camp for High School Youth
The theme for EXPANDING HORIZONS 2025 is Stories that Shape the World: Telling Our Stories as a Part of God’s Grand Story.
EXPANDING HORIZONS is an annual residential summer camp program for high school students who have completed 9th, 10th, 11th, or 12th grade. Expanding Horizons is designed to stimulate theological investigation while fostering community and building leadership capacity in high school youth by helping them discover and embrace the traditions of Christian faith and exploring, through the lenses of Bible study and theology, different responses to important contemporary questions.
Additionally, the MAST program works with our denominational partner, the Presbytery of East Tennessee, to provide leadership training and faith development to equip young people with tools to face a vast and ever-changing world.
Our Partners In Ministry
