Friday, Jan. 21, marked the day MidAmerica Nazarene University restored the tradition of MNU Mania. Back in the 1990s, MNU Mania was a marquee event, known back then as Lanpher Mania, as it was held in Lanpher basement, and professors such as Mike Gough and Neil Friesland participated in it.
Contrary to popular belief, some people who play sports have more going for them than just their athleticism. For example, the MNU women's soccer team was recently awarded the National Soccer Coaches Association of America 2008-2009 Team Academic Award for having a combined average GPA of 3.
The choral department has a new vibe about it this year. There has been an increase in students enrolling as well as new addition: choir director John Leavitt. The choral music ensembles include Choral Union, Concert Choir, and Heritage Choir. Each ensemble has its own style of music they perform.
On Feb. 19-20, Kansas City will host Acquire the Fire in Kemper Arena. Acquire the Fire is a 27-hour long Christian convention with featured bands and special speakers. While Acquire the Fire mainly caters to teenage youth, it is also beneficial and relevant for older college-age youth.
Composer, conductor, teacher, and church musician are all titles familiar to John Leavitt. To the students of MidAmerica Nazarene University, he is the new choir director. Just days before the end of the fall semester, Professor Juan Hernandez stepped down as the Director of Choral Activities to take the position of Assistant Dean of Music at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona.
This is always a stressful and hectic time of year, especially for college students. Aside from the normal holiday hysteria of travel plans and Christmas shopping, students have to deal with the anxiety of finishing up class work and taking finals. I think it is fair to say that this is the most stressful season for students.
Going into last Saturday's game against Culver-Stockton, women's head basketball Coach Bill Olin was just 7 games away from earning 500 career wins as a head coach during his 30 years of coaching. He also stood just 12 regular season games away from the end of his coaching career.