Southern Accent

Chandler, Ochoa and Fenwick win SA election, voter turnout more

Génesis Ventura Reporter

This year’s Student Association (SA) talent show will be different from previous years. In an interview with the Accent, SA Executive Vice President Htet Myint said tickets will now be open for the public to purchase.

The proceeds will go to to Katelay Adventist Elementary School in Myanmar, formerly called Burma. Htet said SA has collaborated with a mission called Advocates for Southeast Asians and the Persecuted (ASAP).

Alana Crosby Editor-in-Chief

Senior finance major Jared Chandler won the election for Student Association (SA) president for 2023-2024, receiving 62.8% of the 1,152 votes. Zach Kirstein, Chandler’s opponent, received the remaining 428 votes.

Dain Ochoa, junior allied health major, won the election for SA executive vice president. Ochoa received 51.5% of votes, securing his position by 34 votes. Ochoa ran against David Lazcano, who received the remaining 48.5% of votes.

Lauren Fenwick, junior business-public relations major, won the SA election for social vice president. Fenwick ran unopposed and received 93% of the votes.

According to the Southern Accent’s coverage of last year’s election, general election voter turnout was the lowest it had been since 2013, with a total of 563 votes. This year, voter participation more than doubled with 1,152 votes.

In an interview with the Accent, Chandler said he wanted to run for SA president because of the impact he can have on students. Chandler’s plan for next year is modeled after Jesus’ early education in the book of Matthew. He hopes to focus on physical, mental, spiritual and social aspects of student life.

“... I want to help Southern become a more spiritual place so that revivals can happen on our campus,” Chandler said. “Not necessarily in a way where we have just singing for weeks at a time and stuff like that, but true revival when people come to God, to repentance and turning to God. That's something that I really want to do on campus as president, to help be a leadership figure, to help point the students in that direction.”

Chandler's goals include organizing a Tedx Talk, emergency towers on campus and a charity basketball game between Southern Adventist University’s A-league basketball players and Oakwood University.

“I'm really grateful to have this opportunity, and I'm honored to represent the students this coming semester, to be their voice,” Chandler said.

Ochoa said he is looking forward to initiating more interactive events with SA Senate next year. He plans to open a pancake bar during finals week and hopes to create an environment where students can “chill” and rest.

When asked what inspired him to run for SA, Ochoa said:

“Last year I was an SM [student missionary], right. And when you're a SM, and actually in general, the biggest thing is service. Since I was young, my mom always instilled in me service, like, wherever you go, just serve people. … This isn't just something that's gonna go on my resume. This is something that I can actually use to help the student body with whatever needs they have. I want to serve the student body.

Myint was made aware of the situation by a pastor friend who recently went back to Myanmar and is currently serving there. Myint’s family is from Myanmar — his mother is from Karen State and his father is from Burma — and were refugees from Myanmar.

“This is my way of doing what I can to help those who are in similar situations like my parents were decades ago,” Myint said. “This position as executive vice president has helped me have a platform to help my country.”

Myint explained that all the proceeds from the talent show will go to Katelay Adventist Elementary School. The fundraising funds will pay for teacher salaries, supplies and for a new motorbike, which is

New SonRise ticket distribution targets non-Adventist community members

Alexis Dewey Staff Writer

Each year, free tickets are passed out for SonRise, an Easter event held annually on Southern Adventist University’s campus and organized by the Collegedale Church of Seventh-day Adventists, according to the church’s website. However, this year, the church is changing the way in which tickets are distributed to reach more non-Adventists than ever before.

SonRise is a reenactment of Jesus’ last days on Earth. Attendees walk through this event with biblical characters like Peter, John and Mary Magdalene.

In the past, church members handed out SonRise tickets to the community early in the morning at Hamilton Place Mall, said Tim Cross, one of the associate pastors and a staff member on the ticketing project. Last year, for the first time, they gave tickets away online. This year, the church board decided to change the distribution methods again in an effort to impact a more diverse group of community members. However, according to Cross, “students will be able to receive tickets exactly as they have in the past.”

Students can receive tickets from Teri Reutebuch in the Student Development office, which will be able to hand out the same amount of tickets to students as years prior.

However, this year, community tickets will be available to those who fit a certain description.

“We have defined our target for ticket distribution to be primarily people who live within 30 miles of the Collegedale Church, are not Seventh-day Adventists and have never before experienced SonRise,” said Cross.

Cross said this change was proposed to the church’s administrative team and later approved by the ministry team during a staff meeting. He added that it was voted on by the church board, as well.

When asked how the church’s ticket distribution team will determine if someone is an Adventist, where they live and if they have ever been to SonRise, Cross said the process primarily relies on “the honor system of the ticket target leaders and those they invite.” According to Cross, he interacts with the ticket target leaders and has them each fill out an application. He said he can normally tell a lot from just a quick interaction.

Cross has received applications from a large number of people to be ticket target leaders. These volunteers are currently helping several people get tickets.

There is another new aspect regarding tickets this year, said Cross. All volunteers ages seven and up, including Southern students, who volunteer for SonRise will be able to collect an additional three tickets while supplies last, due to the limited number of tickets available.

The church’s biggest goal with this change is mission, according to Cross.

“[We want people to] choose to walk with Jesus, and we would love to personally join in their journey,” he explained.

Cross said he believes this new ticket distribution method will result in a high number of attendees who want to make a commitment to follow Christ for the first time.

Southern software developer analyzes usage of Hulsey Wellness Center

April Espinoza

Staff Writer

Hulsey Wellness Center is open to students, faculty and community members. But which of these groups uses the facility the most?

Miguel Rivas, a software developer in the IT department at Southern Adventist University, pulled data from Hulsey’s servers last year and shared his findings with the Accent to see who goes to the gym most often.

According to the data, students went to the gym the most last year, accounting for 60% of Hulsey’s attendance, while community members came in sec- ond at 17% in attendance. Faculty members made up about 8% of the total attendance.

Hulsey was the busiest Tuesdays and Wednesdays, with an average of 2,610 people going on Tuesdays and 2,580 people on Wednesdays, according to the data.

The data also showed how the times students prefer to go to the gym differ from the times faculty members prefer to go to the gym. Students, on average, went in the afternoons between 5 and 8 p.m. Faculty members, on the other hand, typically went to the gym between 5 and 11 a.m.

Although Hulsey is on campus and free for students, some students still choose to go off campus and pay for a gym membership.

According to Anela Dixon, a sophomore physical therapy major, “The space is too small, and there is not enough equipment for the amount of people who go to the gym regularly. It feels crowded.”

Hulsey’s facility manager Darin Bissell said each year the gym receives a budget specifically for upgrading equipment. This year, Hulsey has had a couple of updates, including five new bench presses to help alleviate the heavy usage of the power racks which were purchased a few years ago and have been in high demand, according to Bissell.

“We also got two new stair climbers last semester, and we have a hack squat and t-bar row machine ordered that will arrive soon with some more plates and women's needle bars,” he said. “We have also installed two new ice bath tables. And with the ice bath area receiving a lot of use, those have been very nice to have. Each year, we replace two treadmills to help weed out the ones that have higher mileage or other problems.”

The installation of new equipment has encouraged more people to use the gym. Bissell also noted that COVID-19 caused a decrease in community attendance, but the number has begun to rise in the decline of the pandemic.

“Students have always been the highest users of the facility since it was really built for student use, but we are thankful that it is a community outreach and also provides jobs for students to interact with the community, whether it be swim lessons, personal training or watching kids in child care.”

Sa Elections

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That's why I decided to run.”

Ochoa’s three main goals for the upcoming school year are safety, spiritual/mental health and making some improvements at the Hulsey Wellness Center.

In an interview with the Accent, Fenwick said she was drawn to the position of social vice president because she has a passion for helping people connect. She said she loves event planning and wants to create events where people can make friends.

“I want to say that I'm super excited. Thank you for electing me,” she said, addressing the stu- dent body in the interview. “Also, I'm very open to any ideas, so anybody can find my email, and just email me if you have something that you want to do. … I would love to hear other people's input.”

Fenwick expressed excitement about the plans she is forming for SA events next year, one of which is a country-themed party. Fenwick said she wants to expand the theme to bring in elements from the surrounding area and embrace Southern’s location.