Photo: Vice President of Student Life Jeffrey Jordan gathers with students in the “Leadership Studies Minor Capstone” course. Front row, left to right: Spencer Ceballos ’19, Jireh Reduque ’19, Christie Pak ’19, Monica Moeng ’19, Serina Dawa ’20, and Nate Canny ’21. Back row, left to right: Jeffrey Jordan; Board of Trustees chair Cedric Davis; and Chuck Strawn, dean of students for community life.
I love saltwater taffy! As a kid, I grew up going to the Jersey Shore every summer. We strolled down the boardwalk, always stopping at the candy store, watching the taffy being pulled, and getting a pound to take home. It wasn’t until years later that I understood that the stretching of the taffy was extremely important, because it allowed air to go into the sugary mixture, making the candy lighter and more flexible — and that this process took hours to complete.
Today, as vice president of Student Life, one of my areas of responsibility is overseeing Athletics. To better understand this part of the SPU world, I talked with our athletic trainers about the importance of stretching. Similar to taffy, there is a great advantage for athletes stretching. It provides greater flexibility and range of motion leading to more strength and coordination of movement. Like the taffy, athletic stretching takes time and often it requires some uncomfortableness or suffering.
This past year, I asked the Student Life, Athletics, and University Ministries staff to think about the value of stretching related to our students. This may be in our programs, conversations, advising student leaders, challenging our athletes, digging deeper with our ministry students, and so on. My hope was that our students would be stretched similar to what we read in Romans 5:3–4: But we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. (Read “sufferings” as ways of stretching.)
We know that learning happens in and out of the classroom, and students are stretched in many ways. We trust that the stretching of an SPU education leads to increased perseverance that builds character and increases the hope we have in our calling from Jesus. Stretching may be uncomfortable at times, but stretching is never an end. It leads to deeper competence in learning, broader understanding of grace, fuller development of character, and courage to be people of wisdom in our communities and world.
As you look forward to interacting with your student over the holidays, I hope you engage your student and learn about the stretching that has taken place.
- Ask about how your student is being stretched in and out of the classroom. What topics are interesting and challenging? What perspectives have changed?
- Ask about the people with whom he or she is being stretched. What types of activities are meaningful? Who has inspired your student?
- Take time to be part of the stretching of your student. Make it an enjoyable time to laugh and listen. Go out for a cup of coffee or tea or a piece of taffy. Take a walk and don’t forget to stretch.
It is our privilege to be a part of your student’s stretching. May God richly bless your time together.
Return to the Nov. parents’ In the Loop Newsletter.