''Harding used to be pure/ya residential school. As we have expanded and enrolled more commuting and part-time students who are outside the typical 18-to22yearold mold, we have attempted to adjust our chapel schedule to meet their needs." Non-traditional chapel offers students ... A Fresh Approach Chapel has been a part of life for all Harding students since the institution was chartered in 1924. For most of them, it is at 9:00 a.m. in the Benson Auditorium. A few, however, have chosen to be a part of what is known as the "non-traditional chapel." Offering a less formal setting and involving about 20 students, non-traditional chapel is targeted to meet the needs of non-traditional students - those who are beyond the traditional college age. "We started the non-traditional chapel three years ago, and it is working well ," Butch Gardner, assistant vice president for student services, said. 'We would like more students to participate; we had hoped for 100 to 200 students." In spite of its name, senior Michael Carter says the time there is anything but non-traditional. "It is actually more traditional than the regular chapel. The program is always about the same: announcements, singing, prayer and a speaker. We never have 'special programs' like they do in regular chapel." Stephen Beliech, coordinator for the nontraditional chapel , works with individual departments to determine the actual format for each week's devotionals. This practice incorporates many faculty and students from every academic area into the agenda. Among the benefits of such an alternative for many is the 11:45 time slot, which better meets the needs of commuter students. "Harding used to be purely a residential school," Beliech said. "As we have expanded and enrolled more commuting and part-time students who are outside the typical 18- to 22-year old mold, we have attempted to adjust our chapel schedule to meet their needs. For example, we have one mother who gets her children ready for school and then drives an hour to get to Searcy; for her, a 9:00 chapel does not work too well." "I have classes each morning, and they sometimes don't start until 10:00. It is convenient to not have to arrive early since I live in Cabot," James Martin said. Since chapel is a major channel of communication for the entire student body, the regular announcements are made in the non-traditional chapel as well. The rest of the 20-minute period is spent in devotional activities. "I enjoy the smaller group, the ability to get to know everyone and the opportunity to add prayer requests to those in the formal announcements," Carter said. He also noted the potential for increased interaction with the audience. "When a speaker asks a question, it is not just a rhetorical question; it is possible for the audience to answer, and often they do." - Marcus Porter JimmyAllen speaks during chapel to an attentive crowd. Allen andothers offeredspiritualguidance during an evangelistic outreach ofthe College Church ofChrist early in the year. Photo by Aaron Gillihan.
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