As finals week draws near, some students are preparing for more than just their last exams; they are preparing for the beginning of the rest of their lives. On Dec. 17 at the Tivoli Theatre in Chattanooga, 157 Bryan graduates will say “goodbye” to college life and “hello” to their careers.

This year’s winter ceremony will see more students receiving their diploma than ever before. Last year 130 graduated, with 20 of those being traditional students.

“It is common to see more students from the ASPIRE program graduate [in December] than traditional students, and that hasn’t changed this year, but all the programs have increased this year, including on-campus students,” said Dr. Bradford Sample, academic vice-president.

“I am so excited about my future plans,” graduating senior Caleb Haynes, a traditional student, said about receiving his degree in psychology with a minor in criminal justice. He plans to move to Virginia after graduation and pursue a career in law enforcement.

“Of course, I am a little nervous. I know that I may not get exactly what I want at first. But I am determined not to give up until I get what I want or realize the job isn’t for me.”

This year’s ceremony will begin at 7:30 p.m. The event will feature Rev. Tony Walliser of Silverdale Baptist Church as the main speaker, with Dr. Paul Boling, Bryan professor of philosophy and father of graduating senior Bryan Boling, reading Scripture, and James Koan II, father of graduating senior Joy Koan, giving the benediction.

by Ericka Simpson
Assistant Editor

Distribution of club funding was delayed about three weeks because Bryan College is in the process of standardizing club rules.

The reason this funding is an issue, according to Vice President of Operations Tim Hostetler, is because if Bryan is giving the clubs money, then they are legally responsible if an accident were to occur.

Triangle photo by Lana Douglas

“We have to look at the worst case scenario,” he said. “We don’t have issues until someone gets hurt, and we are sued.”

All of the clubs were funded this year except for Rugby, according to sophomore SGA Vice President of Finance Kelly Findley. SGA is responsible for distributing all club funds.

“We were wondering if the Rugby accident was what sparked it because the example they gave us was a roadway accident, but it’s just speculation,” Findley said. “We think the reason that we couldn’t fund them is because they are a more contact sport.”

The Rugby accident occurred two years ago on Nov. 8. Current seniors Josh Jones, Bryan Boling, Jordan Pilgrim and Andrew Zimmerman, and juniors Steven Magnusson and Steven Bryan were in a head-on collision on the way back from a match against North Georgia College and State University (Dahlonega). All the players suffered injuries and went to the hospital, according to Zimmerman.

Hostetler said that they are trying to decide how much independence the college can give the clubs and still financially support them.

This issue plays into the role of advisers and transportation, creating multiple questions for the administration to address.

Do the advisers have to be at every club meeting and function? Do they have to travel on every trip the club takes? Who is allowed to drive the students in the clubs? What vehicles are they allowed to take?

“Like dealing with the government, you take government money and you have to go by government rules,” Hostetler said. “So it’s the same with the college, if you take their money, then how much of the rules do you have to go by? And that’s what we are trying to figure out.”

Some decisions regarding clubs have been made. According to Hostetler, the clubs can no longer use school vehicles.

He said that they have had attorneys come in and talk with them regarding the college’s liability when it comes to clubs and how best to handle the issues. They have also researched what other colleges have done in regard to clubs, which include club manuals and mandating that the advisor be at every club function.

“It’s not a capricious thing. It’s not that we do not like clubs,” Hostetler said. “We are trying to protect the clubs and the institution.”

Up to this point, clubs have been setting their own rules, according to Vice President for Enrollment Management Mike Sapienza, and he said that the college wants the students and sponsors that are in charge of the clubs to understand what their responsibilities are.

“It’s a big deal to an insurance company–not just so much what the policies are but that you follow your policies,” Sapienza said. “If an accident happens and these policies are followed, then what more could the college have done?”

In the next few weeks, according to Sapienza, the college will have a document that states what clubs are and what the guidelines and policies are for the students and sponsors. These policies are in place to deal with liability issues for the college but also serve as protection for the students.

Freshman Joe Zimmeran looks to make a pass in the first half of the game Thursday/Triangle photo by Billy Findley

by Catherine Rogers
Multimedia Editor

Last Thursday, intramural flag football kicked off with the much-anticipated preseason tournament.

The annual tournament is a chance for each team to play a warm-up game that won’t affect regular-season standings. It’s also a chance for the freshmen to meet the other players in their class for the first time and decide who is best for each position.

According to senior Brian Mullinex, who’s played every year that he’s been at Bryan, flag football is different from other intramural sports. In this game, the players don’t pick their own teams, but instead are split by classes, so they have to work with what they have.

Another unique feature of flag football is that the faculty forms its own “class” and competes against the student teams.

Mullinex said that he didn’t know what to expect in the preseason tournament and that made it almost impossible to have a set game plan.

“You never know what kind of plays to run or what defense the other team will use,” he said. “You also don’t know how many people will come out to play or what positions will be easily filled.”

There seemed to be a good turnout for each team, according to Mullinex. The seniors, for example, had close to 20 players.

Seniors watch during the preseason football game against the freshmen/Triangle photo by Billy Findley

The tournament opened with the Sophomore Class playing against the juniors. Both classes have well-balanced teams this year, according to junior Matt Wiggins, who also said it was a great game. The match went to the juniors with a final score of 22-20.

The second 30-minute game was between the senior and freshman classes and despite the freshmen having a strong team, the seniors’ experience of playing together for the past three years gave them an edge.

“[The seniors] have a solid offensive line in Greg Creswell and Justin Morton and a very tenacious defensive line with Bryan Boling,” said Wiggins.

The seniors were victorious in that game, qualifying them for the championship game.

The juniors took the field next and faced the faculty who have a very strong team defensively, according to Wiggins.  An impressive run and touchdown by Dr. Brian Eisenbach and some good receptions by D.J. Scheidt highlighted the game.

“The faculty capitalized on a lot of the juniors’ mistakes, which helped them win the game,” said Wiggins.

The championship game saw the seniors defeat the faculty with a final score of 12-6.

Intramural flag football is still open to all men who want to play, regardless of participation in the tournament last week.  Weekly schedules and further information will be emailed to your Bryan address.

They can be found jamming everywhere from the aged practice rooms in the dark basement of Rudd Auditorium to the cold stone steps outside of Mercer Hall, practicing in groups of two, three or even seven and more. ‘Bryan Hill’ is no stranger to exciting new musical talent, but over the summer big changes brought to some student bands success in the turbulent music industry and to others a sad farewell.

Little Foxes take a break

After members Allison McLean and Colton Davies graduated this past spring, the popular Little Foxes are temporarily taking a break from performances. The group, formed by senior Bryce McGuire during his first years at Bryan, boasted multiple concerts last year and was eventually even selected to play at the awards ceremony of the Broadstreet Film Festival where one of McGuire’s most popular songs “We Are Stories” was featured.

The indie/rock band has included many familiar faces over the years including seniors Bryan Boling, Josh Jones, Kelley Shannon and Billy Findley as well as others who brought their unique talents to blend together, displaying talent in everything from flute and accordion to cello and even a full brass section.

“That’s the great thing about the band and Bryce,” member Billy Findley said. “There’s a distinct musical variety…Nobody expects anything; they know we are in it for the fun. We’ll play for an audience of five people or nobody at all and have to draw the crowd to us.”

But Findley says he does want to have at least one more concert before his own graduation.

“You grow close to the people you play with. The music brings you together like nothing else.”

Florida band Grecian Urns takes off

“Everything seems to get a little bigger every year we come back home in the summer,” Bryce McGuire said about his home band the Grecian Urns, which recorded and released its album LOVEDREAM this summer, touring the state of Florida to promote it.

McGuire, who plays guitar and is the lead male vocalist for the group, helped start the band in high school and has returned every summer since, adding his own sound to the complicated weave of folk pop music. David Norris, Brandon McGuire, Katherine Dunn, Laurie Beth Norris, Jared DiMaggio and Trevor Butts join McGuire in their goal to “sing with the joy that comes from our faith.”

Highlights from the album include title “LOVEDREAM”, “Indian River” and the Urns’ version of “We Are Stories.”

Florida music magazine Reax Music Mag called LOVEDREAM one of the year’s finest, saying that “the Urns sound less like a local band and more like a regional or national act proud of their Florida roots.”

The band has several performances lined up in the Tampa area for Fall Break.

Brock’s Folly begins recording

After the intense controversy last fall resulting from a concerned parent’s letter to the admissions office, the group formerly known as Gunshots in a Crowded Mall dropped its divisive name and went for something with a little more soothing sound. They call it Brock’s Folly.

Made up of juniors Luke Lillard and Jesse Murray on piano and guitar, Joel Peckman on the electric guitar (and also whistles), Clayton Schmidt on drums and senior Justus Stout on trumpet, the group is back and ready to continue playing its own version of folk-rock music.

“It was a miserable start,” Stout said. “We started out with terrible sound…Silly. It was just silly. But we got better and better and started playing at school events last year. Now we’ve gone from having fun with our music to being good with it.”

Good enough, it turns out, to begin recording their self-titled album through the Nehemiah Foundation for Cultural Renewal, a group dedicated to the production of finely crafted Christian media, in the few weekends before the end of last semester.

Currently, the band is trying to raise enough money, some $2,500, to finish mastering the 12 tracks and distribute them. To aid in this endeavor, the members have rough-mastered four tracks, including their popular “Christ the Thief,” and will soon be selling these online, along with performing benefit concerts and possibly doing a spring tour in Atlanta.

In the end, though, Stout says it’s about more than being popular.

“It’s all up to God. What we do in the future, if we even make another album after this…it all depends on not how well this album does but on how much it benefits people’s hearts and minds. If a lot of people are encouraged by it, if it does something good for them, then we will continue.”

Click here to view the embedded video.

Click here to view the embedded video.