Lutheran Student Movement – USA

[1] The movement's staff and resources are housed at the Churchwide Office of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in Chicago, Illinois.

In 1988 the ALC, the LCA, and the AELC merged to form the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), thus reducing the number of sponsoring bodies to one.

In 2009, the Legislative Assembly voted to pursue a formal partnership with the ELCA as long as it retained its student-led structure and its Reconciling in Christ status.

The council consists of the president; the vice president, who also serves as the LSM-USA liaison to the ELCA's Lutheran Youth Organization (LYO); the Advocate for Diversity and Service Learning; an intern, who is a non-voting member paid by the ELCA; presidents of the thirteen different regions; a web specialist; a liaison from the board of the LYO; and a national staff advisor, usually the campus minister of a university-based Lutheran campus ministry.

Events at the gathering include worship, workshops, concerts, meals, dances, speakers, service projects, and plenary sessions.

The event consists of service projects, theological education, social-ministry training, small group discussion, and community worship.

Following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina in August 2005, the 2007 planning committee chose the town of Ocean Springs, Mississippi, as the site for Breaking Out!

In 2009, LSM-USA leadership began a partnership with Lutheran Disaster Response (LDR) and its current What a Relief program.

LSM-USA provided funds and service-learning workbooks to campus ministries, while LDR organized the locations for relief efforts.

In 2010, the ELCA decided to expand the Alternative Spring Break program to incorporate other ministries around the United States and abroad.