Mental Health | 5
Opinion | 6
Religion | 6
Lifestyle | 7
The profound power of self-compassion
Let's taco 'bout it: Del Taco is better than Taco Bell
The Christian uncertainty: Assurance of salvation
Five tips from a veteran camp counselor
October 02, 2024 Collegedale, Tennessee
Southern Accent
Vol. 80 Issue 04
The student voice since 1926
Back to the beat: Dancing returns
Magie Freitas dances with the other Hawaiian dancers for Asian Night. Saturday, April 1, 2023 (Photo by Judah Brass)
Alissa Flores Reporter After a year of restricted movement, Southern Adventist University students can lace up their dancing shoes and hit the stage. The university has lifted its restrictions on dancing at cultural nights and will allow it again at certain annual events, albeit with moderation. This move sparks enthusiasm and cautious celebration among students who enjoy the university’s cultural events. The first chance to experience the newly reinstated dancing will be on Oct. 12, during the Latin American Club’s cultural night in Iles P.E. Center, starting at 9 p.m.
In an email to the Accent, Dennis Negrón, vice president for Student Development, explained the reason for the temporary pause on dancing during cultural nights in 2023. “A one-year hiatus, not a ban, was placed on the cultural dancing occurring during these evenings to encourage clubs to expand their creativity,” Negrón stated. “Though choreographing a dance routine and then practicing it is a lot of work, the focus of the evenings had too often been on the dances. When these evenings were created, the intent was that they were to showcase more than just dance.” Negrón also stated that dancing was an activity that had
always been strictly limited on campus, according to the student handbook. The only exceptions were for cultural nights hosted by the Latin American Club (LAC), Black Christian Union (BCU) and Asian Club. “Cultural dancing will be featured during these evenings this year,” Negrón said. According to a previous Accent article, this was not the first time cultural club leaders have had to hit pause on dancing. But many students, including Rebecca Vega, last year’s LAC night director, felt upset about the notion of taking away an aspect of their culture, just to showcase other parts. Megan Sewell, senior health science major and current
Southern establishes new five-year accessibily plan Eva Resz Reporter Southern Adventist University has created a five-year accessibility plan that began this school year. The plan aims to address equal accessibility for all students on campus. There will be several installations throughout campus, such as handicap push buttons, tactile signs for those who are visually impaired and an elevator in Thatcher Hall.
There will be several installations throughout campus, such as handicap push buttons, tactile signs for those who are visually impaired and an elevator in Thatcher Hall. Southern’s Student Development committee, Disability Support Services office and Student Development department began discussing the five-year accessibility plan in 2023, according to Dennis Negrón, vice president for Student Development. The American with Disabilities Act (ADA) is a federal law that was established to ensure that those with disabilities are allowed equal
opportunities as everyone else. Negrón said that Southern's decision to improve its campus “is an expectation of the federal government and our goal is to make things easier for those students with disabilities.” Over the next five years, 15 changes will occur in order to reach the benchmark of making campus more accessible, according to the five-year plan provided by Negrón. The plan will be updated annually as time goes on and aims to make the campus fully ADA compliant by 2028-2029, according to Negrón. Southern’s campus can expect several changes, which include an accessibility map that will be updated each school year, elevators with auditory capabilities to announce floors and handicap buttons throughout Southern's campus. Outstanding impediments to accessibility such as heavy doors, steep inclines of ramps and walkways will be addressed. “We recognize that our campus is growing, and as it grows, it also grows among students who are in some way disabled. Because of that, we recognize there is a need to make our campus fully accessible to all students,” said Negrón.
The Student Development Committee reached out to Heidi Burke, sophomore history major, and Kyla Robbins, Southern alumni, before the five-year plan was established to assess where Southern's campus could improve. The committee asked both participants questions on their challenges as students with disabilities navigating campus and what accessibility project they would prioritize. The two suggested the addition of ramps throughout campus, smoother walkways and easier access within buildings. The information Burke and Robbins shared was an important part of developing the five-year plan, according to Negrón. Burke shared with the Student Development Committee that although the campus is “accessible,” she must leave much earlier for class, and the lack of a strong program for students with disabilities was discouraging. Robbins explained to the Student Development Committee that signs on campus do not have braille and are not labeled tactically in buildings.
president of Asian Club, stated in an interview how difficult it was when plans had to change last year. “Dancing is a large part of these cultures, so it became a challenge to have that shift and having to replace that significant piece in the program,” Sewell said. When asked if any stipulations were given to club leaders regarding dancing this year, Nathalie Jacome, junior psychology major and LAC president, shared what she was told. “I think that rules were a little bit vague. I think they said that we could only do three dances. That was the only command we had,” Jacome said. “We always have to pass the songs by the
film screening committee — that hasn’t changed — and then have basic modesty whenever you’re dancing, and don’t move the hips as much.” Jacome continued to share the significance of what dancing will bring back to cultural nights. She explained that, in her opinion, dancing makes people more involved, because it can create community. “We had so many auditions, so I think that shows that people really like to dance and they wanted to be part of it,” Jacome said. “I also think, for most seniors, it brings a sense of ‘Oh, it’s my last year. I want to dance and be part of it.’ I think it does See DANCE on page 2
Symphony plays Southern student’s composition Anaya Parker Reporter On Thursday, Sept. 26, the Chattanooga Symphony & Opera (CSO) played a composition written by a Southern Adventist University student. The piece, “Atlantic Overture,” was written by Matthew Kimbley, senior piano performance and music theory and literature major. Kimbley began learning to play the piano when he was age 5. He said it was only a few months later that he began composing music. His parents were in a meeting at church, and in boredom, he began to write.
“I just [started] writing notes on the page,” Kimbley said. “None of them really sounded very good, but I mean, hey, I at least knew what they were sounding like while writing them down.” “It was just something that I enjoyed doing after that. Five years later, in that same church, we performed my first hymn arrangement,” he said. Kimbley said he kept writing music throughout middle school and high school, a practice he continued at Southern. His love of music led him to choose it as his major and further develop his composing skills. He wrote “The Pursuit of Happiness” for Southern’s Wind
Matthew Kimbley and Steven Beck take audience questions after the concert. Thurs-
day September 26, 2024. (Photo by Malachi Cushion)
See SYMPHONY on page 2