Oaks Collaborative | Helping College Freshmen Find Their People, Place & Purpose

FUNDRAISE WITH US

7 out of 10 students fall away from Christ in college...

we want to change that.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

That they may be called oaks of righteousness...
Isaiah 61:3

What We Do

We collaborate with local churches and campus ministries to help connect incoming college students to Christ and to Christ-centered community.

We do this by launching 3-day, 2-night retreats before classes start that are led by upperclassmen and focused on living for Christ in college.

How We Do It

We exist to help incoming college students...

Be rooted in Christ
Strengthened through Christ-centered community
Bear fruit for Christ's name on their campus

Our Retreats

Location

Our Retreats

We have 19 retreats located across the southeast

The Oaks Retreat

Auburn University

The Chimes Retreat

University of Alabama

Living Stones Retreat

Troy University

The Grove Retreat

Ole Miss

The Arch Retreat

University of Georgia

The Forge Retreat

Birmingham Area Colleges

The Junction Retreat

Mississippi State

The River Retreat

University of North Alabama

The Hills Retreat

Clemson University

The Heritage Retreat

Florida State University

The Rooted Retreat

Sam Houston State University

The Torch Retreat

U of Tennessee - Knoxville

The Horizon Retreat

The University of South Carolina

The Mountain Retreat

Jacksonville State University

The Rock Retreat

Appalachian State University

The Pastures Retreat

University of Kentucky

The Bridge Retreat

College of Charleston

The Tower Retreat

Louisiana State University

The Encounter Retreat

University of Oklahoma

We believe every student has a place in the body of Christ at their campus & in their city...

we exist to help them find it.

How You Can Help

Pray | Spread the Word | Start a Retreat | Give

Pray

A guide for praying over our ministry & incoming freshmen

Who We Are

Through retreats, The Oaks Collaborative sets the table for incoming freshman and international students to transition to college life and cultivate meaningful relationships with others and Christ.

MEET THE TEAM

Who We Are

This time last week we were asking you to come alongside us for #givingtuesday! Today, we're just here to say thank you to those that gave!

Because of YOU we are $22,908 closer to our year end goal. If you were unable to participate in Giving Tuesday and would still like to join us click the link in our bio!

It's Giving Tuesday!!!

We would love for you to come alongside us in changing the statistic that states that 70% of church-attending high school seniors fall away from their faith in college! Help us raise $70,000 to change the 70% by the end of year. Go to the link in our bio to see how!

#GivingTuesdaycampaign #GivingTuesday #YearEndGiving

We exist to help incoming college students be rooted in Christ, strengthened through Christ-centered community, and bear fruit for Christ’s name on their campus. We wholeheartedly believe that a key part of that is for these students to be a part of a local body of believers in their college town.

We’ve seen this strengthen the body of Christ in a community in amazing ways, but we don’t want you to just hear those words from us. Josh Agerton, local Auburn pastor from @embraceauburn shares his unique perspective of The Oaks Retreat as a pastor, but also as a father to a college student who attended as a freshman and is currently on leadership for the retreat.

Please Join us this #givingtuesday and come alongside us in impacting these college students and the towns where they live. Go to www.theoakscollaborative.com to learn more or click the donate link in our bio!

#yearendgiving #givingtuesday

Today’s testimonial comes from @thearchretreat! Tobi’s involvement with the retreat has strengthened her faith and given her an opportunity to disciple and invest in incoming students. #uga #givingtuesday #yearendgiving

If you would like to join us in making an impact on these campuses we’d love for you to join us and GIVE on #givingtuesday. We’re working to raise $70,000 to change the 70% by the end of the year! Click the link in our bio to donate!

Happy Thanksgiving!

THANK YOU to those that have been co-laborers with Christ with us this year! Through monetary gifts, sharing with those you love about the retreats and supporting us through prayer, we were able to reach 5,326 freshmen, transfers and upperclassmen through the 2024 retreat season!

If you would like to help us expand the impact of these retreats next year, please consider becoming a monthly partner or one time donor at the link in our bio!

#HappyThanksgiving #givingtuesday #yearendgiving

Stories like this are why we do what we do and we never get tired of hearing them. If you hear this and want to be a part of making this impact happen we’d love for you to join us in praying for these retreats, sharing about them with those you know headed to college or joining us by giving to our #givingtuesday campaign. #troyuniversity #yearendgiving

Learn more at the link in our bio. ❤️

Since 2012 we have connected over 12,000 freshmen through these retreats and watched them change the trajectories of students’ college careers and subsequently their lives.

We would love for you to come alongside us in changing the statistic that states that 70% of church-attending high school seniors fall away from their faith in college! Help us raise $70,000 to change the 70% by the end of year. Go to the link in our bio to see how!

#GivingTuesdaycampaign #GivingTuesday #YearEndGiving

If you’ve been with our ministry for any amount of time you know by now that our goal is to change the statistic that states that 70% of church-attending high school seniors fall away from their faith in college. It’s what drives our team to reach college freshmen, equip upperclassmen leadership and partner with the local body of Christ in these campus areas.

Last weekend we got to focus on “equipping upperclassmen leadership” at our annual Summit Retreat.

Today’s leadership testimonial from the retreat is from @thegroveretreat at Ole Miss. Grace’s experience with The Grove Retreat came full circle this past year and it’s just a beautiful example of the body of Christ at work in Oxford, MS. We were so grateful for the chance to hear from these leaders during the weekend.

If you want to come alongside us in changing the statistic, we invite you to help us raise $70,000 to change the 70% by the end of year. Go to the link in our bio to join us!

#GivingTuesdaycampaign #GivingTuesday #YearEndGiving

Leadership team members from across 16 of our 19 retreats are headed our way for the annual Summit Retreat! We are so excited to kick it off this weekend! Stay turned!

With Giving Tuesday and the end of the year coming up, we wanted to take the time to remember all that the Lord has done within the ministry, while looking ahead to all that He has in store and inviting you in to be a part of making it happen.

We want to introduce you to a local ministry partner of The Oaks Retreat, Will Spivey. Will has been a longstanding friend of The Oaks and we’re grateful to partner with him in ministry to continue impacting college student’s lives.

Follow along in the coming weeks as we share our goals for the end of the year and how you can be a part of what the Lord is doing!

This week’s testimonials are coming from The Forge Retreat Retreat!

This was year 3 for The Forge Retreat. This retreat is unique in that it is meant to reach students at multiple campuses across Birmingham. Students have attended the retreat from UAB, Samford, Jeff State, and Montevallo. Local church involvement is key in the success of this retreat.

If you would like to help us expand the impact of The Forge Retreat next year, please consider becoming a monthly partner or one time donor at the link in our bio and we would love for you to help us spread the word about this retreat!

This week’s testimonials are coming from The Torch Retreat!

This was the first year for The Torch Retreat! The leadership team of 34 served 96 incoming University of Tennessee Knoxville freshmen and transfers! Check out what they had to say about their experience.

If you would like to help us expand the impact of Torch Retreat next year, please consider becoming a monthly partner or one time donor at the link in our bio!

The Exchange 2024 Fall Retreat kicked off last night and we’re excited to see how the Lord moves throughout the rest of the weekend. We would love for you to join us in prayer over this group.

For those that may be new to this part of our ministry: The Exchange is a three day, two night retreat for International and American students to connect, have a vibrant cultural exchange, experience defining moments, engage in deep conversations, and start relationships that will continue for the duration of their time in Auburn.

This week’s testimonials are coming from The Junction Retreat!

This retreat was started in 2022 to reach incoming Mississippi State students and has in three years tripled the amount of students impacted!

If you would like to help us expand the impact of The Junction Retreat next year, please consider becoming a monthly partner or one time donor at the link in our bio!

Whether you’ve been with our ministry from the beginning or are just joining us, we want to share the heart behind what we do and the hope we have for freshmen and transfer students that attend these retreats.

This week’s testimonials are coming from The Living Stones Retreat! This was year 6 for The Living Stones Retreat and it reached 253 students this year at Troy University through leadership, freshmen and transfers.

We’re so grateful for the local churches, campus ministries and dedicated upperclassmen students that have partnered with us at Troy year after year to help these incoming students find their people, place and purpose in college.

If you would like to help us expand the impact of The Living Stones Retreat next year, please consider becoming a monthly partner or one time donor at the link in our bio, please join us in prayer for this retreat and we would love for you to help us spread the word about it!

THANK YOU!
Thanks to your generosity we are now $100 away from all meals being covered for our fall Exchange Retreat! We cannot express how much appreciation we have for those that have given!
If you would like to help us reach our goal visit the link in our bio!

We cannot say thank you enough to those that have given to help with food for The Exchange Retreat! Breakfast is now taken care of because of your generosity!

We're a quarter of the way there! The remaining funds raised will cover two dinners for our international friends that we will host this month. We're excited to share that there are already students planning to attend from China, Nepal, Brazil, and Ghana! So your gift makes a global impact!

If you would like to make a donation click the link in our bio!

This week’s testimonials are coming from The Mountain Retreat!

This was the first year for The Mountain Retreat serving students at @jacksonvillestateuniversity . As you will see through the testimonials...there were times that the numbers for this year were discouraging - with only 5 freshmen signing up. BUT GOD. The eternal impact of the retreat made it all worthwhile. Two students accepted Christ as their Savior and their lives are now forever changed!

If you would like to help us expand the impact of The Mountain Retreat next year, please consider becoming a monthly partner or one time donor through the link in our bio and we would love for you to help us spread the word about this retreat!

We're gearing up for our Fall 2024 Exchange Retreat and could use you help!

In the next two weeks we're hoping to raise funds to cover the meals for the retreat and would love for you to partner with us! Our goal is $1,000. Donations can be made through the link in our bio or by mail to PO Box 285, Auburn, AL 36831.

As always, your prayers are greatly appreciated as we reach out to international students in Lee County to have a vibrant cultural exchange and start relationships that will continue for the duration of their time here.

We are beyond excited to share that The Oaks Collaborative and Turn Ministries are officially merged as of today! We look forward to seeing what God does through this partnership and are thrilled to welcome the following retreats:

@the.bridge.retreat24
@thehillsretreat
@encounter_ou
@thehorizonretreat
@therockretreat3333
@shsurootedretreat

Each of our retreats exist to help freshmen and transfer students find their people, place, and purpose as they start their college experience. What you may not know, is at the heart of every retreat is an incredible Leadership Team, made up of dedicated upperclassmen who are passionate about making a difference in the lives of the students that are coming to their campus.

This team commits to praying for the incoming students, using their unique gifts to create an amazing, Christ-centered retreat and in the process develop life-changing leadership skills. Many of them were once in the same position and are eager to pour into the lives of freshmen, reflecting the beautiful way the body of Christ operates on each campus.

As we are wrapping up forming these Leadership Teams across our 19 retreats this September, we invite you to join us in praying for them.

This week’s testimonials are coming from The Grove Retreat - Ole Miss.

The Grove Retreat started in 2021 with 56 freshmen at Ole Miss. Since then it has impacted the lives of 628 students!

If you would like to help us expand the impact of The Grove Retreat next year, please consider becoming a monthly partner or one time donor at the link in our bio.

We have heard countless testimonies come from the 2024 retreat season and we just can’t keep them to ourselves. We want to invite you to “Come and see what God has done.” (Psalm 66:5) As we do, we’ll take time to introduce you to each of our retreats.

This week’s highlight is on The ARCH Retreat. This retreat started in 2021 with 55 freshmen at the University of Georgia. Since then it has touched the lives of 649 students and just continues to grow!

If you would like to help us expand the impact of The Arch Retreat even more next year, please consider becoming a monthly partner or one time donor at the donate link in our bio.

We're excited to celebrate the final numbers from the 2024 retreat season!

2,663 freshmen and transfer students were impacted by 1,328 upperclassmen volunteers, connected to over 200 ministry partners across 19 retreats and 11 states. We are in awe of these stats and just continually grateful for each and every life the Lord impacted over the past several weeks.

Thanks for celebrating with us! If you would like to help us expand this impact even more next year, please consider becoming a monthly partner or one time donor at the link in our bio.

We have so many reasons to praise the Lord as we wrap up retreat season!

Faith was strengthened, community was created, ministries and freshmen were connected, leaders were formed, the body of Christ was unified and salvation was found. We are in awe of what the Lord has done and is doing through these retreats and we are continually grateful to be a part of it.

The team was back together in the office today!

We shared stories and celebrated all of the many reasons to be grateful for what the Lord has done through the 2024 retreat season! We are overwhelmed with gratitude to Him for allowing us to be a part of what He has done and is continuing to do across these college campuses.

It's official! Retreat season has started for us! The @thechimesretreat for the University of Alabama and surrounding schools kicked off yesterday and @theoaksretreat Leadership has been gearing up all week to start session one this weekend in the Auburn area!

Please join us in praying over these retreats and the lives of the freshmen and transfers that will be impacted across 19 campuses in the coming weeks.

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@theoakscollaborative

Contact us at info@oakscolab.com

The Oaks Collaborative and any program of The Oaks Collaborative is not endorsed by, directly affiliated with, or in any way officially connected with any institution of higher education, including universities or colleges, or with any other company or non-profit organization. Contributions are solicited with the understanding that The Oaks Collaborative has complete discretion and control over the use of all donated funds.

The Oaks Collaborative | PO Box 285, Auburn, AL 36831

The Oaks Collaborative has been awarded these badges because of the financial transparency provided through our organization.

7 out of 10 students fall away from Christ in college... we want to change that.

That they may be called oaks of righteousness... Isaiah 61:3

What We Do

How We Do It

We exist to help incoming college students...

Our Retreats

We have 19 retreats located across the southeast

We believe every student has a place in the body of Christ at their campus & in their city... we exist to help them find it.

How You Can Help

Pray | Spread the Word | Start a Retreat | Give

Pray

Who We Are

​

Follow us on Instagram

Contact us at info@oakscolab.com

7 out of 10 students fall away from Christ in college...

we want to change that.

That they may be called oaks of righteousness...
Isaiah 61:3

We believe every student has a place in the body of Christ at their campus & in their city...

we exist to help them find it.