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Podcast: S9 Ep. 1
Date: January 12, 2026
Title: LU Moment: Healthy conversations with Sara Chavez | S9 Ep. 1
Host: John Rollins

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JOHN ROLLINS: Welcome to the LU Moment, where we showcase all the great things happening with ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ University faculty, staff, students, and alumni. I'm John Rollins, associate director of community relations and public affairs here at LU, and I want to welcome you all to this week's show. Welcome back to the LU Moment for the first episode of 2026. To get the year started off, we're going to focus on health and wellness at ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ University and dive into topics such as medical services, counseling services, and health education programs available to our students here on campus. Joining me today, I've got Sara Chavez here to tell us all about it. Welcome to the show, Sara.

SARA CHAVEZ: Thank you for having me.

JOHN: First time here, huh?

SARA: It is!

JOHN: Very nice. We love a first-timer, especially on our first episode of the year.

SARA: I know, I feel so special.

JOHN: Yeah, you're bringing in the new year. So, it's interesting because probably about two years ago, I had Jayna Bonnette on the show. She's the assistant director of health education on campus. I remember referring to the Student Health Center as the best-kept secret on ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ’s campus, or one of them. But now y'all have relocated into the Sheila Umphrey Recreational Sports Center—very visible, very accessible. So go ahead and tell everybody about the Student Health Center.

SARA: Yeah. Well, just like you said, it's a lot more visible. So, when students go to the Rec Center, they’re able to work out, but right as soon as you walk in, you have the Student Health Center. It has a privacy kind of screening on it, so you can't really see in unless you actually go through the doors. But it’s brand new. I got to take a tour of the Student Health Center before I even got the position, and I was just in awe of it—very updated. All of the patient rooms, they have these nice dry-erase boards outside. The offices are brand new. The counseling offices, lots of privacy. Of course, the staff is just amazing—that hasn’t changed.

JOHN: Right, right.

SARA: They’re just their spaces. But yeah, it's really nice, really updated. Jayna and I in Health Education are a little bit further down in McDonald Gym. So, we get our daily walk in whenever we have to go over to the Health Center to talk to the staff over there. But yeah, we’re really enjoying that new space. More than anything, we’re just really fortunate that the students can see it a little bit better and kind of kill two birds with one stone—you know, with the Rec Center there and with the Health Center.

JOHN: It all kind of ties together, right?

SARA: Yeah.

JOHN: So let's talk about the services provided through your program and the Student Health Center.

SARA: Yeah. So, the two main services are medical and counseling. As long as students pay their Student Health Center fee, which is included in their student fees, counseling sessions usually run about $10—pretty cheap. They can go in for counseling sessions; they don’t have a limit on them. And then they can go in for medical services. Those prices range depending on what they need. They can run labs, and we have a pharmacy back there. So anything that students need, especially during flu season while the weather’s changing, they can just call the Student Health Center and schedule an appointment for counseling or medical services. Then what Jayna and I do is run the health education part of it on the side—really promoting everything that's going on in the Student Health Center, partnering with different student organizations, departments, and areas on campus to promote and educate our campus population on holistic health and wellness.

JOHN: I love that you used the word “holistic,” because it is a very rounded approach—not just for students, but faculty and staff wellness as well. We make those efforts through things like the TimelyCare online service, which I know we’ll talk about a little later. I love that you bring up some of these things that maybe not a lot of people fully are aware of: pharmacy, labs. I mean, this is stuff that you know, when you go to a doctor—especially without insurance, which some of our students may be in that boat—it could be pretty costly. You can do it here for $10. That’s amazing.

SARA: Yeah, I think in general, healthcare can be intimidating.

JOHN: Oh yeah, no matter what age you are.

SARA: Exactly. And I mean, you hear “insurance,” you hear “doctor’s office.” I'm sure there’s always the—especially for our students—“How much am I going to pay? What can I actually get? How do I get there?” Jayna and I are out tabling a lot with students and talking about different services, and we always tell them, “If you need someone to walk you over, we’ll walk you over. We'll introduce you to the reception staff. They can help you. They can walk you through everything.” It’s all very accessible and pretty simple once you get your foot into that Student Health Center door. And yeah, like I said, focusing on that holistic mind, body, soul—there are so many different dimensions and aspects to health, and there are so many different ways that the Student Health Center can help.

JOHN: With medical services, you know, with medicine and prescriptions and things like that. But I feel like we’re in a day and time where the stigma around mental health is kind of shifting to where we’re more willing to talk about it. So I love that those counseling services are tied in with all this as well, because that’s on the uptick. People are willing—they want to talk to somebody about things. Especially on a college campus, you've got exams, you’re juggling a lot. You might have a full—well, maybe not full-time—but you might have a pretty extensive job on the side, on top of school. Some of our students may have families. There’s a lot involved. So I love that we have a resource like the Student Health Center here on campus.

SARA: Oh yeah. And just to add to that, the student organizations will reach out to us to do presentations, maybe at some of their club meetings, or maybe they want to partner with us to table for some kind of initiative that’s coming up. And mental health is definitely the issue they want to tackle the most. So, to your point, the students are eager to discuss it and address it.

JOHN: We’re living in a time when it’s okay to talk about that. I think we’ve got to talk about it. So I didn’t even give you an opportunity to introduce yourself, Sara. I know you’re a familiar face on campus, but tell us a little bit more about you. I know your title is Health Education Program Coordinator, so tell us what you do in your job role and a little bit of background about yourself.

SARA: So, I started in this role back in November, and prior to that, I was in enrollment marketing—going on my third year now, but two years prior to this role, I was working as a marketing coordinator specifically for the College of Education and Human Development. Such long titles, such long college names. Now I have a new title that I have to remember, but yeah. Starting this past November, I began a new position with the Student Health Center as the Health Education Program Coordinator. I work with Jayna, who is the Assistant Director of Health Education. Our responsibility with health education is one of the services of the Student Health Center. So basically, we promote everything that the Student Health Center has to offer, educate our college campus, find areas that resonate most with college students’ health issues at this stage of life, and figure out how to get them resources, educate them, and refer them to professionals in the Student Health Center who can help them get through whatever health concerns they might have.

JOHN: So, you’re basically a liaison, in a sense.

SARA: Yeah, which is kind of perfect for me, because I have a teaching background. Educating people and providing resources is not new to me.

JOHN: Oh yeah.

SARA: Engaging with students has always been a part of my job for the last 10—man, has it been 10 years? Yeah, I taught for about seven years, and I’ve been here for the past three. So that’s awesome—connecting with students, figuring out how I can assist them, help them, connect with them, and then help them find whatever assistance they might need in so many different areas. And now it just so happens to be in health.

JOHN: Love that. I think you’re in the right spot for sure. So let’s definitely talk about TimelyCare. I briefly mentioned it a while ago. What is this service, and how can students utilize it?

SARA: Yeah, TimelyCare is amazing. It’s a free service for LU students, and I’ll clarify a little bit: TimelyCare is a free online platform for students where they can access many different health services, from counseling services to self-care education. We even have dietitians on there who can help students with their meal planning.

JOHN: Yeah, I just found that out. That’s a really neat thing they added.

SARA: I love that. I myself have utilized a dietitian in the past to learn about my eating habits, and the fact that students have this free at their fingertips—it’s a big deal.

JOHN: Especially at that age. When did we eat our worst? Probably in our teens and twenties, right?

SARA: Exactly. There are numerous resources on the app that students can use. It’s especially useful when they’re away from campus. Right now, during break, students aren’t back on campus yet. So right before break, Jayna and I did a lot of outreach because we knew students would be away from campus and unable to use on-campus resources at the Student Health Center. We try to get a lot of students registered so they can use the service over break. There is 24/7 counseling, so if students need to access a counselor, they can do it on the app. Like I mentioned before, holiday eating, New Year’s resolutions—many people want to eat better. They can utilize the dietitians on the app for meal planning. Unfortunately, students aren’t automatically registered for TimelyCare. When we talk to students about the service and they’re not aware of it, we sit down with them and help them register. They just have to fill out some information. But once they’re registered, it’s free, and they can use it whenever they want. We just encourage them to have the app downloaded and ready so they can access it if needed.

JOHN: And this is a 24/7 platform, so it could be during holiday break, spring break, or finals week. It’s an amazing resource for our campus and students. I know y’all partner with a lot of community and student organizations. Do you want to talk about some events you’ve got coming up or partnerships you’re particularly proud of?

SARA: So we partner a lot with Legacy, and we do monthly STI testing on campus for students. We bring Legacy on campus to different locations every month. It’s completely private, and students can get free STI testing. We also partner with LifeShare to do blood drives. We have one coming up in February. And we’re bringing back our Health and Wellness Fair, where we try to gather as many community resources as possible to bring on campus. That’s also happening in February. Right now, Jayna and I are emailing many businesses around Southeast Texas, keeping that holistic mindset—catering to mind, body, and soul. Anything from nutritional food businesses to mental health services in Southeast Texas, nonprofits, United Way, and any type of fitness businesses not offered at the Rec Center. We’re also including student organizations on campus that focus on health and wellness, and different departments, so students know what resources they have off campus too. They might graduate soon, and they won’t have the Student Health Center anymore—where do they go? What do they do?

JOHN: Or maybe they need a new gym.

SARA: Exactly. Or during a break or summer, when they don’t have access to campus resources, how can they maintain their health and wellness off campus?

JOHN: So we’ve got that to look forward to. And I know y’all have the Healthy Cards group and the Nutrition and Dietetics Association, so there are lots of groups y’all partner with to spread the word about health and wellness.

SARA: Yeah, I actually forgot to mention our Healthy Cards and our Peer Health Educators. We have two current students employed with us who go through certification to become Peer Health Educators. They help Jayna and me give presentations to different groups or educate the student population on relevant health topics. Our Healthy Cards are a volunteer group of just over 20. Anytime we’re out tabling or at different events, they help spread the word about health and wellness.

JOHN: That’s a good number of volunteers. Real quickly, I know we’re in peak flu season. Y’all offer flu shots, right? Around $30? How can anyone on campus take advantage of that?

SARA: Yes, flu shots are $30. They can just call the Student Health Center to schedule an appointment. Students, faculty, and staff are all eligible.

JOHN: I love that. And this is open to faculty and staff too. I was speaking with Dr. Tacy, Dean of the College of Nursing and Health Professions, and he said this is a new variant of the flu, which is why it’s spreading quickly across the U.S. Definitely take advantage of that $30 flu shot if you can.

SARA: Absolutely.

JOHN: Tell me this really quickly, then we’ll wrap up: What are the hours of the Student Health Center, and how can people get connected with you? Social media, website—what would you recommend?

SARA: The Student Health Center is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Students can call to schedule an appointment or go in person. For the most updated information, our Health Education social media accounts post all updates. It’s under “LU Health Education” on Facebook and Instagram.

JOHN: There you go. Easy way to stay connected. Sara, thanks again for joining me today. We had a great chat, and thanks for all you do to keep our students healthy here on campus. Stay connected by searching “LU Moment” on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts to keep up with events, activities, programs, and people right here at ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ University. Don’t forget to follow us on our socials under the username ÃÛÌÒÊÓƵ University, and share the podcast episodes when you see them posted. We’re wishing you all a happy new year and a wonderful 2026. This is John Rollins, your host. Thank you for listening, and we’ll talk to you next time.