Ray Young and Church Education.
Ray Young and Jack Schaap taught Church Education. Church Ed as it was called was a five day a week class that met immediately after chapel at 12:10 pm. You had to take it for 4 years in order to graduate.
CE was easily the largest class at HAC. Probably 700-800 students every semester. With that many students Bro. Young had to develop a way of answering the students questions about attendance, grading, assignments or follow up questions to what was taught in class in a way that was fair to everyone. As the lead teacher Ray Young developed a process to meet with and answer students questions.
From 7:15 am to 7:45 am every Tuesday a student who had a question regarding Church Education could come to Ray Young's college office and stand in line and meet with the class teacher. If you did not want to or were unable to stand in line from 7:15 am to 7:45 am on Tuesday you could put your question in writing, drop it in the Church Education box at the South Hallway Desk and expect an answer within 14 business days. (To this day there are probably students still waiting for answers to Church Ed questions)
It wasn't a great system but it was what it was.
Now at the beginning of each semester of Church Education, Ray Young would take a good amount of time to warn the class not to ask him Church Ed related questions at any time except from 7:15 am to 7:45 am on Tuesday. We were warned that bad things would happen if we did. Bad things. Really bad things. We were warned not to talk to him, his lead secretary, Miss Laurie Weir, or any of the 11 other secretaries that worked for him about Church Ed matters. His reasoning was if he stopped for one he would have to stop for all and he wanted to treat everyone fairly.
Now Ray Young was not mean about this. As a freshman I once passed him after class in the hallway. I stopped him, said hello, and asked him a follow up question about something he had just taught. In mid sentence I realized what I was doing, stopped and apologized. He chuckled and very kindly and graciously answered the question. So there was nothing unkind about the policy and when I slipped up he was very nice about it.
But there were others. There was a junior named Howard (not his real name). Howard had a question regarding his grade in Church Education grade. Howard must not have been willing to stand in line at Bro. Young's office door from 7:15 am to 7:45 am on Tuesday. And I'm guessing he had not waited 14 business days for a written answer to be returned to him. Howard decided to stop Miss Laurie Weir in the hallway and ask her his question. Now Miss Weir was one of the kindest, nicest people at HAC. So Howard must have really pestered her for an answer.
The next day as Church Ed class started Bro. Young stepped to the podium. He made several announcements and then said he needed to take care of something. He called Howard by name and asked him to stand. After Howard stood Bro. Young informed the class that Howard had persistently asked Miss Weir a question. He reminded Howard that it was a violation of class rules to ask questions anytime other that 7:15 am to 7:45 am on Tuesday. He told Howard that since he could not follow the rules that everyone else followed that he would personally answer his question right then and there. He said, "Howard, the answer to your question is yes." Red faced and embarrassed, Howard sat down.
Now should Ray Young have handled it that way? I don't know. I know this. Howard is an alumnus but I don't think he has much nice to say about Ray Young. And today Howard is quite wealthy. My guess is that when he receives alumni fundraising letters they go into the circular file.