Lee introduces new app to track chapel attendance
Photo by Shay Maclean
In a Monday livestream, President Mark Walker clarified for students the process for virtual chapel. Now, students can file for virtual chapel exemption if they feel unsafe attending in-person worship.
“We’ve had students who have felt the need that they to be exempt from Chapel, and ever since we have put a Chapel plan together [in] the reopen guide that we put out a couple of weeks ago,” Walker said. “In the Chapel plan that Dr. Hayes and his team put out on the website, it makes reference in there that students can file for Chapel exemption to go virtual only, meaning they don’t have to be in our in-person venues.”
Students attending virtual chapel will still be required to attend at least 70% of the services each month and will need to log their attendance on the new “iAttended” app. Walker added that while Lee follows the Tennessee Health Department guidelines on social distancing, he understands some students feel cautious in these circumstances.
“We are following the Tennessee Health Department guide in terms of how to social distance in a large gathering worship setting, and that’s how we have spaced out all these venues,” Walker said. “Even with that, we know that some students may have some physical preconditions that even being in the social distance environment [makes] them feel like they don’t need to be exposed.”
During Chapel on Aug. 20, Pastor Rob Fultz revealed the new app to track students’ Chapel attendance. In his closing speech, Fultz explained this new application would be a safer way of monitoring student presence at the services than the former scanning process.
“Typically, normally, in history, we would scan you on your way out. That is obviously not going to be the mode of our operation from this point forward,” Fultz said.
The app, which is listed as “iAttended” near the bottom of the Lee University application, will require attendees to sign in through a Google or Facebook account and type in a weekly code to track their attendance.
“The only thing you need to do is go to your Lee University app that’s on your phone, click it open, go to the menu bar which is the three little lines at the top, go almost all the way down to the bottom where it says ‘iAttended,’” Fultz said. “This will take you to a downloadable app that you can use on any platform.”
Students should open the app, click “enter code” and enter the 4-digit pin given to them by their chapel host to track their weekly attendance and receive Chapel credit.
This is one of Lee’s newest additions to a hybrid model of operation and comes after the announcement of regulated chapel sites for non-exempt students arranged by alphabetical order in various buildings across campus.
In a video posted to Instagram this week, Lee University shared a detailed description of the latest chapel guidelines stating that “each venue must adhere to social distancing guidelines. Additionally, students must wear masks upon entering and exiting a building as well as corporate worship.”
Senior psychology major Nathan Marlowe said he agrees with the school’s decision to allow students to attend chapel virtually.
“I appreciate how dedicated Lee is when it comes to providing chapel for their students,” Marlowe said. “I do believe that the option for students to petition for [online chapel] is very important, though. Many people are around family and friends who are considered high-risk of the virus and must take care of their health during this pandemic.”
Junior pastoral ministries major Josh Routzon said he disagrees with virtual chapel, stating that chapel should be considered a priority.
“If you are able to attend your classes in person, it should be no different for Chapel,” Routzon says. “Chapel is such a critical experience, and it should be considered a priority just like our classes.”
Chapel is held every Tuesday and Thursday morning from 10:45 to 11:30. All inquiries about the Chapel exemption process should be forwarded to Morgan Schalk at mschalk@leeuniversity.edu. To watch weekly Chapel services live, click here.
