Mental Health | 5 What are we reading? A few book recommendations
April 13, 2022 Collegedale, Tennessee
Opinion | 6
Religion | 6
Seventh-day Adventism and literature evangelism
Lessons from C.S. Lewis: Don't let your mind drearily flicker
Lifestyle | 7 Climbing the stairs: How do I practice being brave?
Southern Accent
Vol. 77 Issue 21
The student voice since 1926
'We all loved her': School of Nursing Dean JP remembers professor Bonnie Hunt Mathis to leave position in June Lucas Bueno Reporter
gram poll with their own stories of Hunt’s influence in their lives. Senior nursing student Hannah Cheneweth described Hunt as having a “kind and loving nature,” which “made a lasting impact on everyone she came into contact with.” “One time I went to Bonnie’s house with a friend of mine who was getting tutoring from Bonnie individually,” Cheneweth said. “Bonnie opened up her home for us and even offered us food. She just wanted the best for each student she came into contact with, and I will never forget her lasting impact on my life as a future nurse.” Another senior nursing student, Desther Camacho, said he knew Hunt from ASAP sessions.
JP Mathis, an associate dean at Southern Adventist University, will be leaving her job at the end of June this year. Mathis and her husband will be returning to Highland Academy, where Mathis had once served as a dean from 1994 to 2008. Mathis said she will be serving as dean once again in her new position. Mathis’ main responsibilities at Southern are currently with the Southern Village apartments; however, she also works with Thatcher, Thatcher South and Talge halls. Her office is in Thatcher South. In an interview with the Southern Accent, Mathis said she began working as an associate dean at Southern in 2008. However, that was not her first time working at Southern. “I worked for the Physical Education Department full-time in 1989 and then part-time teaching racquetball, basic tumbling and helped in the custodial department [from 1990 to 1993],” Mathis said in a statement to the Accent. After working at Southern the first time around, Mathis and her husband went to Highland Academy to work as deans. According to Mathis, God called them back to the university, which is why they eventually moved back to Southern. Mathis stated that some of her favorite experiences while
See HUNT on page 2
See JP MATHIS on page 2
Bonnie Hunt on her 80th birthday. Thursday, February 2, 2012. (Photo courtesy of: Connie Cash)
Madison Wilcox Reporter Bonnie Hunt, a former longtime professor at Southern Adventist University’s School of Nursing, passed away on Wednesday, March 30, after 45 years of service at Southern and almost two months after her 90th birthday. She was survived by two sons, a daughter and five grandchildren, according to previous School of Nursing Dean Barbara James. James said Hunt began serving as a professor and upper division coordinator in the School of Nursing in 1977 and, after retirement in 1997, founded and coordinated the nursing student success program, Assisting Students to Achieve Professionally (ASAP), where she worked hourly
until early January of 2022. She also guest lectured frequently during this time. According to James, Hunt offered ASAP as an optional study aid to several nursing classes, including Fundamentals of Nursing and Adult Health I, II and III, holding biweekly tutoring sessions to help students review for their tests. She also offered tutoring for the NCLEX-RN. At the group sessions, students would bring their books and notes, and Hunt would ask questions and draw on the whiteboard to review concepts taught in class. Hunt even held Saturday night study sessions several times when students requested extra help before facing big exams. “Many students credit her
with helping them get through,” James said. Yet, Hunt’s goals for ASAP went further than helping students pass their exams, according to James. "Assisting them to achieve professionally … goes beyond just passing the next test and passing NCLEX,” she said. “It’s truly helping to model what professionalism is and what a nursing professional … should be.” James remembers Hunt as a “huge student advocate” who lived her Christianity with “amazing energy” and a passion for helping students. Hunt knew how to laugh with her students and used her knowledge and humor to bridge the generational gap. Several students who knew Hunt responded to an Insta-
University Assembly SonRise props subjected to approves updated minor damages from storm, Sexual Integrity tent still being assessed Policy, transgender policy guidelines Megan Yoshioka Editor-in-Chief On Monday, April 11, the Southern Adventist University Assembly approved updates to the institution’s Sexual Integrity Policy along with transgender policy guidelines. As reported in a previous Accent article, the university’s policy on public display of affection (PDA) is now more clearly defined, and policy on pregnancy, pornography and transgender topics were added. According to the PDA part of the policy, the university does not condone PDA that may be sexually suggestive, including but not limited to intimate touching, fondling and prolonged kissing. Although the pregnancy section states that the university does not condone extramarital sexual relationships, the university will provide support and/or resources to pregnant students, according to the document.
The new policy on pornography defines pornography and declares that accessing, creating, viewing or distributing pornography is unnacceptable on and off campus. Under the new transgender policy, bathroom and locker room usage, housing situations and intramural participation would be determined by an individual’s biological sex. The policy and guidelines will undergo a final legal review before implementation, according to Senior Adviser for Sexual Integrity Alan Parker in a statement to the Accent. Parker said the updates will be implemented in the next academic year if they go through the approval process in time. Implementation guidelines for the transgender policy is considered a separate document from the Student Handbook policies, but the handbook will contain a See POLICY on page 2
The worship tent, which was storing SonRise props, collapsed during a storm. Wednesday, April 6, 2022. (Photo by: Alva Johnson)
Megan Yoshioka Editor-in-Chief As reported in a previous Accent article, the worship tent next to Hulsey Wellness Center collapsed during a storm on Wednesday, April 6. According to Sherrie Williams, assistant director of SonRise and communication director for the Collegedale Church of Seventh-day Adventists, the SonRise props that were being stored in the tent
experienced little damage. “Minor repair will need to be done to the Last Supper stairs, one of the side stages for Judgment and a couple of panels for Marketplace,” Williams said in a statement to the Accent. “Marketplace fabric (for the shop structures) needed to be dried out as well as some of the wood.” The tent is still being assessed for damage, according to Service Department Director Donald Lighthall. Mike Fisher, preventative maintenance tech-
nician for Plant Services, said there were some tears. Assessments will not likely be completed until after graduation, according to Lighthall. Lighthall said prior to the storm, the tent was scheduled to be taken down on April 25. He said the tent will stay down during the SonRise program and throughout the summer. SonRise is still scheduled as planned for this Saturday, April 16.