COVID-19 Catch Up
COVID-19 Catch Up
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Spring Break Trips
By: Anna Dudgeon
Mark Twain once said, “Travel is fatal to prejudice . . . and narrow-mindedness . . . broad, wholesome, charitable views of [humanity] cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.” MVNU students certainly found that true during spring break.
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Campus Ministries recently sent students on various trips to Los Angeles, Columbus, Belize, and Guyana. Additionally, professors John Donnelly and Jeanne Serrao led an academic trip to Greece and Italy. According to Chelsea Porter, director of FaithWorks in Campus Ministries, “The point of these experiences [is] that students gain cross-cultural knowledge and experience and become global citizens.”
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Each trip had a different end goal. Students who went to Los Angeles were able to interact with people who lived on Skid Row, while the students in Columbus created relationships with people recently released from prisons. In Belize, the student teams worked diligently to put a computer lab in a high school to help further education for local kids. In Guyana, students helped build a community center; and in Greece and Italy, students experienced and learned about history, art, and culture.
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Porter, who has traveled with MVNU to LA and Belize, explained that, “Both [experiences] are extremely different . . . but [both] gave me [a] fresh perspective on different things.”
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Marhin Chismar, one of the students on the Greece and Italy trip, described the personal impact she experienced: “I feel like I see more beauty in America and my own home after visiting Europe. Through learning about and appreciating other cultures, I have a greater appreciation for my own culture.”
Although spring break is over, the impact of a cross-cultural experience will continue to inpact these students’ lives.
SGA Updates
By : Cat Dugan
Two MVNU students were selected to lead their respective leadership groups through Student Government Association elections on Feb. 13. SGA announced that Jadon Bird will be vice president of Spiritual Life and Ryan Kuhn will be senior class president for the remainder of the 2022-2023 academic year. Both Bird and Kuhn seek to engage in community-building dialogue and to leave a lasting impact on future generations of cougars. Students who desire to share their thoughts and ideas can meet with Bird and Kuhn as liaisons to SGA.
Bird, a Christian Ministry major, has actively served on SGA previously as a ministry director on two class councils. He has also led various ministries since high school. Recently, he has been involved in MVNU’s revival and visited Asbury University in Wilmore, KY, during their nationally known revival.
“Since I have been back, I have been in constant worship and prayer,” Bird reflected. “Whether it has been getting the word out, leading worship, praying with people or speaking what God has put on my heart, I have been doing my best to be a leader.”
Bird will continue as the SGA VP of Spiritual Life through the 2023-2024 academic year. He desires to be used by God and to leave behind long-lasting ministries at MVNU. Bird encourages members of our community to reach out with ideas for ministry and community service.
Kuhn, too, wants to dialogue with the student body, help plan events to bring the campus together and improve campus culture. “One of the biggest issues I see on campus is how quick we are to judge something that is happening and then close out any idea that it could be good,” Kuhn said. His primary goal is to encourage students to be more open-minded, try new things and rid themselves of the stigmas held on our campus.
Bird can be contacted at jadbird@mail.mvnu.edu, and Kuhn can be reached at ryakuhn@mail.mvnu.edu.