Bryan College Triangle

Junior Emily Moon swing dances in Bicentennial Park last September as an attendee of MainStreet Swing. The group meets in the public park in warm weather because Bryan students are currently forbidden in the Student Handbook to hold dancing events on campus. /Triangle photo by Krissy Proctor

Krissy Proctor
Online Editor

While many students spent the past week recovering from Spring Break or the dreaded “Deferred Midterms,” two student representatives, along with faculty and staff, held the power of life and death in their hands for five pieces of SGA legislation at the annual meeting of Student Life Council.

This year’s proposals addressed changing the minimum age to live off-campus from 22 to 21, allowing dancing at Bryan-sponsored events and on campus in general, removing the 2 a.m. curfew on weekends, allowing dress code-appropriate shorts in classroom settings, and altering the piercings policy to allow a wider variety of modifications for both males and females.

Dean of Community Life Bruce Morgan went into the meeting early on Wednesday morning as head of the council, followed by members Tim Shetter, assistant dean of community life; Kauri Tallant, psychology instructor; Chris Clark, assistant professor in communication studies; Bryan Hill, professor of chemistry; Karie Harpest, resident director of Huston; and student representatives junior Clari Stewart and sophomore Corey Heartfield.

After much discussion, the Council emerged in mostly unanimous agreement: changes to off-campus living age and the current piercings policy got the boot. The “shorts in Mercer” rule as well as removal of weekend curfew have been passed on to the Executive Cabinet for further review.

“Of course, we realize that some students will be disappointed with the council’s decision,” said Shetter after the meeting. “But this is not the only opportunity for change…..They can always resubmit a proposal. If students have an issue, they need to present their ideas to the representatives and see what happens. We’re not against change by any means. We just don’t mean to support change for the sake of change.”

“It was actually a really good meeting,” said Stewart, commenting that though some difficult discussion took place throughout, everyone remained calm and patient. “No one was on a power trip or overlooked what we had to say…. We all listened to one another and tried to see other points of view. It was fun to be a part of something like that.”

And what of changes to the dancing policy? Council member Chris Clark said that so much discussion and debate took place regarding the issue that the group unanimously decided to table the issue until a later date when it can be given more time for consideration.

“It’s a difficult issue to deal with, and we [the council] wanted more time to clarify some of the details,” Clark said. “We don’t want students to feel controlled…like this is ‘Footloose’ or something…but there are considerations that even I had never thought of before and they need to be talked about first.”

Shetter says that the Student Life Council should be reconvened at a later point in the semester to deal specifically with the dancing proposal.

Meanwhile, the two accepted proposals will now make their way to the Executive Cabinet, according to Shetter, there to receive the final evaluation and possibly to be made ready to be implemented in next year’s Handbook.

“If you don’t like something it is possible to see change,” Shetter reiterated. “Don’t just sit around and complain, do something.”

Photo courtesy of MJM Entertainment

Clari Stewart
Triangle Reporter

 Riverhorse Entertainment along with MJM Entertainment released “Doonby,” a movie which emphasizes the importance of choices and the way our lives affect others, this past Friday in Chattanooga, Tenn., as part of a weeklong limited release.

“Who is Sam Doonby?” is the echo of people in a small Texas town as they try to uncover the past of a drifter who appeared one day off a Greyhound bus. The movie explores the identity of Sam Doonby, played by “Dukes of Hazzard” star John Schnieder, and how his presence causes the whole town to stir.

“It’s a movie that entertains first,” said Jenn Gotzon, who plays the opposite of Schneider as Laura Reaper, a girl who is intrigued and captivated by Sam Doonby. Gotzon compared the movie to a cross between “It’s A Wonderful Life” and “Crazy Heart,” with an unexpected ending like “The Sixth Sense.” Read full story »

Regnerus spoke at Bryan as a part of a week and a half chapel theme titled “Sex, Singleness and Marriage.” His first talk, “What If We Don’t Kiss Dating Goodbye?” began an uproar of conversations still continuing among the student body / Triangle photo by Anna Katharine Thomas

Clari Stewart
Triangle Reporter

From cafeteria tables to the hallways of Mercer, the Bryan College campus has exploded with conversation in response to talks given by Dr. Mark Regnerus in chapel, a “Coffee and Conversation” event and classes where he spoke on the economy of sex, dating, and marriage in the context of popular culture.

Regnerus spoke at Bryan as a part of a week and a half chapel theme titled “Sex, Singleness and Marriage.” His first talk, “What If We Don’t Kiss Dating Goodbye?” began an uproar of conversations still continuing among the student body.

Regnerus is the associate professor of sociology at the University of Texas at Austin, and he holds three degrees in sociology from Trinity Christian College and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

He approaches his topics from the standpoint of a social scientist with statistics and facts, addressing the status quo of a society driven by the “economy of sex.” In chapel Monday (Feb. 6) he spoke of how young people easily become frustrated in their efforts to remain physically pure before marriage because the “price” of sex is so cheap in modern culture.

Monday afternoon he took questions from students during a “Coffee and Conversation” event sponsored by the Spiritual Formation Office. Tuesday he spoke in classes including “A Biblical View of Sexuality” and “CLF:Worldview & Life.” Read full story »