A revamped Chapel greets returning students this year.

The Chapel staff, formerly headed by Mark Lewis, the new Dean of Students, is now led by Mark Jackson and David Moses. Jackson, the associate director of student organizations and programs, and Moses, director of leadership camps, take the ropes in addition to their normal roles.

The pair will administer the email list, schedule speakers and preside over Chapel on a regular basis, Jackson said.

Jackson said that the Monday, Wednesday and Friday chapels in Moody will primarily look the same, but seniors will begin to speak on Wednesdays this semester.

“We want students to hear from our seniors and learn from their experiences,” Jackson said.

The chief change this semester concerns small group chapels. Beginning the third of week of the fall semester, they will occur on Tuesday and Thursday, instead of just Tuesday.

Immersed, an instrumental Chapel in Moody, will also occur on Tuesday and Thursday instead of once a week, Jackson said.

Jackson sought out alumni preachers and recruited them to speak in Chapel this year.

“They will speak about their testimonies, faith journeys and a theme centered around worship, discipleship and unity,” he said.

As new leaders, Jackson and Moses went to students to determine what changes they would make to the daily Chapel service.

“I prefer more experienced leaders when going to a worship setting,” said Steven Hendry, senior political science major from Los Angeles. “I’m excited to hear what they have to say and how ACU has helped them get to where they are today.”

Ultimately, Chapel will continue to do what it does, Jackson said.

Jackson and Moses will not change the previous approach, but took students’ opinions into consideration.

“We heard loud and clear that students really wanted more small group options on Tuesday and Thursday,” Jackson said.

Jackson said that many students also told him they wanted to lead and participate in Chapel, but did not know how.

“Soon, we should have an online application for students to get involved in Chapel,” he said. “We want to mix it up a little bit too. Getting students involved in prayer, scripture readings, the praise team and speaking in Chapel will provide that change of pace.”