Time Out chapel, PLNU’s only weekly alternative to Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning chapels, does not start until 9:30 p.m. I believe that this is too late.
First, because Time Out starts so late, students who commute, have early classes or busy work schedules are less likely to be able to attend. It is recommended that students get at least eight hours of sleep a night, and this can be very difficult if chapel does not finish until 10:30 p.m.–or later, as Time Out has been known to go well past 11:00 p.m.
PLNU has classes starting as early as 7:15 a.m. and the first shuttle for Liberty Station leaves at 7:05 a.m. If attending Time Out is one of the chapel credits that you count on to fulfill a semester’s chapel requirement, having to go so late can be very detrimental to your schedule and your sleep.
Second, even if you choose not to go to Time Out, the late start and end times will affect you. I live in Goodwin Hall, and when Time Out finishes, my fellow dormmates are understandably energetic and loud coming back to their rooms.
I tend to go to bed early, so being woken up by everyone coming back from Time Out is very disruptive to my sleep. I understand why people are noisy–I don’t blame them, but when I have to wake up early every day for classes, it can be frustrating.
Lastly, if you do choose to attend such a late event, it can affect your sleep even once you are back and in your own bed. Many people feel energetic or more awake after being surrounded by so many people, which can make it very difficult to unwind at night. This leads to students staying up even later than they may have intended because they still feel energized by the chapel service and accordingly have a hard time falling asleep.
I believe there is a fairly straightforward solution to all of these complaints. If Time Out was moved to a slightly earlier start time, such as 8:30 or 9:00 p.m., not only would more students be able to attend, but the ensuing wave of students leaving Brown Chapel would be less disruptive to those who decide not to attend.
Although there are night classes that go late into the evening and may conflict with an earlier Time Out service, I believe that the number of students negatively affected by the current schedule is considerable.
As college students, we are often informed of the importance of balancing school, work, social events and rest. It seems to me that moving Time Out slightly would greatly benefit us in this pursuit of healthy habits while here at Point Loma.
Jordan Lemke is a junior majoring in journalism.
Grace Gaines