Chapel/Convocation

Chapel is a vital part of community life at Olivet Nazarene University. It is one of the few occasions when each segment of the college community has the opportunity to join with the others for worship, instruction, and encouragement to serve. This activity is the occasion for the Olivet community to develop and clarify values and priorities, to share in musical and dramatic performances, and to find guidance relating to crucial life choices. As a Christian community, we are committed to making worship of God the central focus of our lives. Olivet Nazarene University is committed to being both a community of learning and a community of faith. Chapel services are designed to provide an opportunity to contribute to the integration of faith, learning, and living.

Chapel Times and Attendance — Chapel is held in Chalfant Hall from 10:00 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. every Wednesday and from 9:35 a.m. to 10:20 a.m. every Thursday. During special emphasis weeks, required chapels will extend to other days.

Attendance Policy — Students are allowed up to three absences per semester for sickness, medical or dental appointments, personal business, emergencies, sick children, or other circumstances of this nature. Problems inevitably surface when students choose to interpret the allowable absences as personal privileges with the expectation that emergencies, sickness, and unexpected inconveniences should be granted beyond the allowed absences. Such management of allowed absences is not compatible with the attendance policy.

Resident Students—Students living on campus, regardless of the number of class hours, are required to attend all scheduled chapels. Reasons for exemption are limited to the following: student-teaching, education field experiences, internships, nursing clinicals, and special academic projects pre-approved by the faculty instructor. The associate academic dean must approve all exemptions of this nature; no individual petition is necessary.

Commuter Students— Full-time commuter students taking 12 hours or more are required to attend all assigned chapel services. A full-time commuter student could petition to be exempt from chapel for the following reasons: he or she does not have classes on a chapel day, he or she does not have a class immediately before chapel, he or she does not have class until after the chapel hour. Commuter students taking 11 hours or fewer are considered part-time and are not required, but are encouraged, to attend chapel services.Petitions for exemption should be made through the Student Development Office.

Tracking Attendance — Students are encouraged and responsible for keeping track of their attendance record. Attendance updates are generated weekly once a student reaches three absences. Students can track their attendance online.

Penalty for Excessive Absences: