Louisiana College could have a new president by the end of the month - if trustees elect a candidate nominated last week by the school’s presidential search committee. Louisiana College could have a new president by the end of the month - if trustees elect a candidate nominated last week by the school’s presidential search committee.   In a seven-hour scheduled session - almost five hours of which was spent in executive session - trustees received a report and recommendation from the search committee charged with nominating a successor to former President Rory Lee.   The name of the candidate was released to trustees - but not to the public. Trustees have set a face-to-face session with the nominee this month in order to talk with him and vote on his candidacy.   Search committee Chair Ed Tarpley of Pineville said the group had no plans to ask for a vote on the candidate last week. Instead, trustees took the report under advisement and entered into a time of "prayerful reflection to consider the candidate and meet with him personally, ..." he said.   "All we did today was make a recommendation," Tarpley said. "We had no intention of asking for a vote … [Read more...]

Louisiana College women’s head basketball coach Tonya McIntosh says she eagerly is anticipating the upcoming season, but for one reason in particular that has nothing to do with wins and losses. Louisiana College women’s head basketball coach Tonya McIntosh says she eagerly is anticipating the upcoming season, but for one reason in particular that has nothing to do with wins and losses.   She says she is looking forward to seeing the changes in her players’ lives after their recent missions trip to Greece.   "My team’s walk is so close with the Lord right now," McIntosh says. "This trip strengthened our faith. I’m excited about what God will have us to do in women’s basketball this year."   The Lady Wildcat basketball team was among four International Sports Federation teams - and just a sampling of Louisiana Baptists - who ministered in Greece during the recent Summer Olympic Games.   Atlanta-based International Sports Federation is a network of coaches and athletes who work with Southern Baptist missionaries to share Christ’s love where traditional missions efforts cannot go.   McIntosh, her father and nine members of the Lady Wildcat basketball team … [Read more...]

It is not as if no one has been saying it, but now a new study confirms all the previous warnings - a regular diet of television that is high in sexual content can encourage teenagers to engage in sexual activity sooner. It is not as if no one has been saying it, but now a new study confirms all the previous warnings - a regular diet of television that is high in sexual content can encourage teenagers to engage in sexual activity sooner.   In other words, television is harming the kids.   Researchers interviewed 1,792 teenagers about their television viewing habits and sexual activity. Surveys were taken in 2001, with follow-up interviews conducted the next year.   "Adolescents who viewed more sexual content at baseline were more likely to initiate intercourse and progress to more advanced ... sexual activities during the subsequent year," researchers wrote in Pediatrics online journal.   "TV may create the illusion that sex is more central to daily life than it truly is and may promote sexual initiation as a result," the researchers maintain.   Researchers found that 64 percent of all television programs contained sexual content during the 2001-2002 season, the … [Read more...]

Some participants in healthcare plans of GuideStone Financial Service of the Southern Baptist Convention (formerly the Annuity Board) received good news recently. Some participants in healthcare plans of GuideStone Financial Service of the Southern Baptist Convention (formerly the Annuity Board) received good news recently.   GuideStone officials announced the majority of participants in GuideStone Personal Plans health insurance will see no rate increase for 2005 — and many participants actually will see a rate decrease due to changes in the rating structure, an agency release said.   Meanwhile, the health insurance industry is projecting about a 13 percent increase in healthcare costs.   For many employers in GuideStone’s Group Plans, rates also will remain the same or decrease for 2005. However, officials also noted some employers will see an inflation-driven rate increase or an increase based on prior claims.   Even so, the average increase remains below the predicted national medical trend for 2005, officials said.   Officials credited the news to the benefits of the agency’s PPO (Preferred Provider Organizations) network discounts.   Also, … [Read more...]

For the week of September 30, 2004 Marriage amendment   As expected, Louisiana voters gave easy approval to a state constitutional amendment to define marriage as only between a man and a woman. However, the margin of victory was even more than some expected. The amendment was approved by a margin of 78 percent to 22 percent. It even won in New Orleans, where some had suggested it could be defeated. However, even there, the amendment won by a margin of 10 percent. More than 610,000 votes were cast for the amendment, while just a little more than 170,000 were cast against it. The amendment is sure to be challenged in court. However, at this time, it places Louisiana among states that have banned recognition of same-sex marriages. In addition, the Louisiana amendment prohibits the state from recognizing civil unions, which provide the same benefits of marriage to homosexual couples.   Disaster relief efforts   More than 1,500 Southern Baptist disaster relief volunteers from 25 states are cooking meals, cutting up fallen trees and providing childcare in six states in the path of destruction left by Hurricane Ivan. Southern Baptists are providing an average of 50,000 meals a day in the … [Read more...]

Voters trying to discern presidential candidates’ stands on various issues will have to scavenge for them among the deluge of charges and counter charges concerning just about anything but issues. Voters trying to discern presidential candidates’ stands on various issues will have to scavenge for them among the deluge of charges and counter charges concerning just about anything but issues. And the deluge of charges just about all concern matters that occurred some 30 year ago. The media is dominated by whether or not one candidate did as he said he did 30 years ago, or did not do what he said he did 30 years ago. One would think that the election should be decided by whether or not a 20-something man made the right decision in the midst of a volatile time in a tumultuous world setting.   Actually, it makes no difference if the candidates want us to decide our vote based upon what happened then, or if they believe these considerations have been forced upon them and their campaigns, voters should understand the election is about current matters.   This is not to say voters should not consider how candidates respond amidst this parade of accusations about action of three decades ago. That may be … [Read more...]

Southern Baptist Convention President Bobby Welch recalls how a reporter called recently for input on a story about what has happened to the idea of traditional church and religion these days. Southern Baptist Convention President Bobby Welch recalls how a reporter called recently for input on a story about what has happened to the idea of traditional church and religion these days.   The reporter cited a survey in which 29 million people said they believed in God and the Bible - but would not go to church. He asked Welch to explain why these people - who are open to faith - never connect with a traditional church.   Welch’s response was simple - and direct.   "The reason those 29 million aren’t connecting is because the church has failed them," he said.   Welch offered his observation during a recent stop at First Baptist Church of Norco. The church marked the halfway point in a 50-state bus tour Welch has undertaken to rally Southern Baptists to the cause of evangelism.   The tour serves as a kickoff to the "Everyone Can Kingdom Challenge for Evangelism" emphasis, set officially from June 2005 to June 2006. During that time, Welch has challenged Southern … [Read more...]

In Peggy Haymon’s 15 years of involvement with Southern Baptist Disaster Relief efforts, she says the scene at Flomaton, Ala., was the second worst she has seen. In Peggy Haymon’s 15 years of involvement with Southern Baptist Disaster Relief efforts, she says the scene at Flomaton, Ala., was the second worst she has seen.   "Next to the tornadoes in Oklahoma a few years ago, this is about as bad as I’ve seen it," said Haymon, a blue cap - the manager - with the Louisiana Baptist Disaster Relief feeding unit from Alexandria.   "The one thing that makes you feel good is the people are so appreciative. It helps when you serve other people."   Haymon is a member of three Louisiana Baptist Disaster Relief teams assisting with Hurricane Ivan relief efforts in the small south Alabama farming community. The Alexandria feeding unit and the Bayou Macon Association and Winnsboro chainsaw crews were stationed at Little Escambia Church in Flomaton.   The Alexandria feeding unit’s last day in Flomaton was Sept. 28. However, the chainsaw units from Louisiana could remain in Alabama for more than four weeks, said Loy Seal, Louisiana Baptist Convention director of men’s ministries and … [Read more...]

Louisiana College trustees recently amended the hiring process for new faculty members, granting trustees representatives earlier involvement in the process. Louisiana College trustees recently amended the hiring process for new faculty members, granting trustees representatives earlier involvement in the process.   As approved, the trustees’ academic affairs committee now will be involved before a preliminary contract is extended to potential faculty members.   In the past, the college president was empowered to extend a preliminary one-year contract to persons before presenting them to the trustee committee.   The recent action simply represents a reordering of the hiring process and should not create any problems for school leaders, trustee and administration officials note.   But based on recent history, other observers caution the change could affect the school’s accreditation. Meanwhile, in a published report, a faculty representative voiced frustration that the change was made without their input.   The change for the Louisiana Baptist school in Pineville was approved in a closed-door session at the board’s scheduled meeting this month. However, the action … [Read more...]

Louisiana College trustees voted last week to offer the presidency of the Pineville school to Malcolm Yarnell, an administrator and professor at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas. Louisiana College trustees voted last week to offer the presidency of the Pineville school to Malcolm Yarnell, an administrator and professor at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas.   Yarnell, 42, did not immediately accept the offer - but assured trustees that he would have an answer by the middle of this week. If the answer is yes, Yarnell’s acceptance would end a six-month search to find a successor to Rory Lee, who resigned the college post earlier this year. It also would make Yarnell the eighth president in school history.   The call was extended to Yarnell at the close of a six-hour closed-door trustee session. It was the board’s second extended executive session in less than two weeks.   "On behalf of the board, we are excited about the prospect of having Dr. Yarnell on campus," trustee Chair Bill Hudson of Rayne noted. "The board supports Dr. Yarnell 100 percent.   "We feel there are great days ahead."   Meanwhile, search … [Read more...]