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MVNU Parking:
Surge in Tickets Causes Confusion
By Daniel Russell, Staff Writer and Video Team
Students saw a serious rise in parking tickets on campus at the start of the semester due to parking sticker confusion. An email sent out at the beginning of the semester caused confusion with parking information, as many students stated that this email did not divulge any information about needing a new sticker after paying the $50 parking fee. As a result of this, many students who paid the fee still kept their old stickers and never went to campus safety to get a new one; this caused many students to receive parking tickets.
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Junior Ethan Throop said he received two tickets for not registering his car this semester. Throop stated, “I didn’t have a new sticker because the email didn’t explain that it was required. Safety waived the fine because it was brought to their attention multiple times.”
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“I hated how January went,” said Matt Spraker, Vice President of Student Life, when discussing the mass confusion at the beginning of the semester; Spraker also stated that he did not know that students needed a new sticker when the email was sent out. To prevent similar occurrences in the future, he explained that MVNU was looking into having a single fee during the fall semester with ways to get a partial refund if the student did not return for the spring.
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Some students question parking fees, wondering if they are new this year because we have limited space on campus. Ben Cook, director of facilities and campus safety, mentioned, “Fines have not changed in five to 10 years on campus; the only thing that has changed is the registration fee, which was set by the board.”
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He discussed how fines and fees are there to help raise funds for future repairs and expansions of campus lots and roads; however, doing so is not cheap. “Every year, safety spends tens of thousands of dollars on maintaining blacktop. It costs about 25 cents per square foot just to reseal it.” Cook continued, “Resealing the entire campus would cost roughly $240,000. Repaving the entire campus would cost around $4.5 million.”
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Spraker also stated that students who received a ticket during the beginning of the semester can have that ticket waived if they contact campus safety and show proof of having purchased a parking pass before the ticket was issued.
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Tossed Up: Students Respond to 586 Menu Changes 
By Zoey Hover, Assistant Editor
Once a place to satisfy cravings, MVNU’s 586 Cafe underwent significant menu changes this past summer, eliciting a mixed response from the student body. Previously, the 586 was known for its fast food-style options, including chicken tenders, burgers, fries and milkshakes, but the revamped menu—referred to as the “Tossed” menu—offers wraps, salads and premium protein smoothies.
“I preferred it more how it was … last year,” junior Marta Miranda stated. “I do appreciate the choice for making healthier decisions and having the smoothies and wraps and all, but I think it would be best to have kept both options.” Specifically, Miranda said she missed being able to fulfill late-night fast food cravings right here on campus, especially with their flatbread pizzas and mozzarella sticks.
Matt Spraker, vice president for student life, said the decision to change the 586’s menu was based primarily on the fact that the administration had received many requests—particularly from student athletes who eat at the 586 often, given its location in Arial Arena—for healthier dining options.
One such athlete, Dillon Hittle, a lacrosse player, stated, “I like it [the new menu] in the sense that it’s healthier for athletes… I think having the protein smoothies is super helpful for athletes, especially post-practice or post-workout.”
Hittle, however, acknowledged that not every student is an athlete and that these options may not be for everyone. “I think if they brought that [the fried foods] back but also kept the healthy stuff, that’d be a super, super good option.”
“This isn’t necessarily permanent,” Spraker stated. Having taken note of students’ desire for the foods offered on the previous menu, he explained that SGA has been meeting to discuss how the 586 can be changed to satisfy both athletes’ needs and students’ wants.
“I would love to see if we can’t have a mixture of both,” Spraker said. “We really want to bring more people down there and want students to be happy with the offerings. So we’re taking all of this feedback in and trying to figure out what a solution is on the actual menu.”
Changes to Chapel:
New Leadership to Take Over Worship
By Abby Almodovar, Editor
One day a week—for a sliver of time on Monday mornings—students, faculty, staff and visitors migrate from all corners of campus to pour through the chapel doors. The communal worship during that hour is integral to campus life, and as seniors graduate, new students will take the lead for chapel band.
One of the leaders for next year is none other than an engineering major. Sophomore Josh Keith reflected that he picked up worship only around three years ago, “So I haven’t been doing worship for that long, but I immediately knew that it was something that I want very prevalent in my life, because I feel called towards it.”
Keith’s approach to worship is bi-vocational, and he hopes for a dynamic with engineering as his day job and leading worship as a long-term calling.
Kate Carter, on the other hand, wants to pursue worship with her career and sees this as an opportunity to prepare for her future job. Carter worshipped with MVNU before even moving onto campus her first year, traveling throughout the summer with the music and ministry team. “We’re not just a bunch of people that just come together and play music,” she explained, “but we all know each other, and we all have that love for each other and the Lord at the same time.”
Keith and Carter discuss their approach to leadership plans for next year and their balance in music taste. While Keith admits that he prefers throwbacks and enjoys incorporating hymns at the end of songs, Carter loves playing current hits that the congregation is likely to hear on the radio.
They agree that the ideal mix lies somewhere in the middle. “Worship is congregational,” Keith explained. Such an approach leaves room for all of MVNU, from all backgrounds, to enjoy songs they recognize.
Tyler Maddux and Nina Davis, current leaders, look forward to passing the torch. “I am very excited to just watch them go,” Davis commented, “to see them step into this role and start making things their own and hopefully doing them even better than Tyler and I did.”
Both graduating seniors now, Maddux and Davis recalled the process of taking on their roles with little to no preparation. Working with Carter and Keith now to prepare them for next year, they hope, will set the team up for success, confidence and maintaining the band’s close bond.
