Chi Alpha helps Xavier students cope through pandemic, college stress

By: Kamryn Edwards, Staff Writer

February 10, 2022

Students at Xavier University of Louisiana study a bible lesson taught by Chi Alpha life group leaders.
(Photo source: Kamryn Edwards)

The christian campus organization, Chi Alpha, has been helping students at Xavier University of Louisiana cope with the trying times the world has been in for the past two years and the general stress of being college students. Chi Alpha uses things such as life groups, where students pray for one another and offer one-on-one discipleship meetings with their staff members. Morgan Fulton, one of the Campus Directors, does a lot of coordinating for the organization and initiates many of these meetings. 

“Stress is a big issue that our students struggle with daily. At these meetings, we strive not to just focus on the spiritual issues, but the emotional as well. We try to work through why students are living with stress to gain more peace in their lives,” Fulton said.  

Chi Alpha Women’s Pastor, left-center, Morgan Fulton leads a Chi Alpha Life Group On Campus at Xavier University in 2022.
(Photo source: Kamryn Edwards)

Fulton also helps to provide specific strategies students can apply to their daily lives to live with less stress. Fulton believes that it is important for students to stay grounded by looking back at the reason they came to college in the first place as well as encouraging them to disconnect their self-worth from their education. 

“The strategies I suggest to students as they manage stress in their lives really fall into two categories: perspective and holistic health,” Fulton said. “I try to encourage my students to remember their ‘why’ when they are stressing over a test or class. If they are believers, I remind them that while God has a magnificent plan for them that includes their education, their worth is not the summation of their educational success. Their worth does not diminish because of a grade,” Fulton said.  

Chi Alpha is like a second home to many students at Xavier University. Destiny Johnson, now a sophomore has been a part of the organization since her freshman year, and she loves the familial aspect that Chi Alpha provides as well as being able to take what she has learned from being a part of this organization to reach other students.  

A Xavier University student looks deeper into the bible study lesson from Chi Alpha.
(Photo source: Kamryn Edwards)

“Chi Alpha is such a welcoming organization, and we are all truly a family,” Johnson said. “We connect together well as we strive to deepen our relationships with the Lord while also being a light for other Xavierites,” Johnson added.  

Chi Alpha has been a part of Xavier’s community unofficially since 2011 and became an official student organization nearly five years ago. Isaac Fulton has been a pastor with this organization for about seven years and he has great hope for the future of Chi Alpha.  

With high hopes for the future of Chi Alpha, Johnson believes that there is one thing that could make the future of this organization even better. Chi Alpha currently has a lot of female attendants and only two males. Johnson would like to see this change in the future.  

“Xavier is a predominantly female university; therefore, we will naturally have more females in our organization. One overall goal is to have more males in our Chi Alpha family” Johnson said.  

“It was a hard process becoming an official organization on campus because we are outsiders, and we serve at a private school. But God was faithful during the process and even though it took years, we are so glad we are here,” Fulton said. “We don’t have any student leaders yet, but in two years we definitely see ourselves with a good amount of student leaders, who disciple other students and a fruitful and consistent time of worship weekly,” Fulton added.  

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