Monthly Archives: September 2012

Quizzo Night

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It was only yesterday that I participated in quizzo night. As I entered F-111 I was immediately pelted with candy. I can’t think  of a better way to start any event. From there we formed several teams as we waited on the last few people. The team I was a part of was, the cookie tribunal. In all there were five teams formed by the time the questions started.

The category of the first round was pop culture. Our team consisted of an engineer, a mathematics major, and a business major. We looked to each other knowing, we were probably going to lose. “In what month did the royal wedding take place?” None of us could think of the answer until one of us mentioned that the wedding took place a few days before the death of Osama Bin Laden. Knowing the day of his death was the beginning of May we were able to deduce that the royal wedding was most likely in April. This was how we were able to get through the round in third place.

As the rounds went on we, the cookie tribunal, were able to push our way to second place. The categories included American history, numbers, and sports. Then came the fifth round, famous movie quotes. We began that round in second place, and we ended in fourth place afterwards. Out of fifteen questions we got seven correct. Out of fifteen questions we answered five Forrest Gump and one I don’t know. As our luck would have it the “I don’t know” answer was the only one on the page from Forrest Gump. After kicking ourselves for not realizing that earlier we proceeded to the last round.

The category for the last round was music. The round did not go so bad we were able to grab third place with a tie. We didn’t come in with the intent to win so none of us were disappointed. The night ended with a few goodbyes and candy grabbing. It was not an especially memorable night, but it is one of the first of many Stockton Experiences.

 

 

 

 

Blood Donation

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I was very nervous the whole day when I was scheduled for my blood donation. I had only considered donating blood when it was first mentioned but I needed an extra push. I was walking to the cafeteria to purchase some food when my fellow honor students asked me if I wanted to donate blood. I knew one of the people sitting behind the tables thus making it harder for me to say no. Unsurprisingly to myself, I ended up selecting the best day and time for me to donate blood and I kept thinking about how the experience will be like.

The day of my blood donation I walked to the Big Blue and I was ready. I walked to the entrance on the parking lot side only to find out I need to go in from the entrance opposite thus walking in a circle to my embarrassment. I eventually entered Big Blue and there were already a few people donating blood which made me calmer.

I was instructed to read some information regarding blood donation and then I was taken to a booth. A lady punctured the tip of my finger to draw blood to see my iron levels. The pain was light and brief which assured me thinking the other needle would be a bit worse.

After I completed their questionnaire, I was instructed to wait on a raised mat where I would be donating my blood. I was prepared by a man, but he left me for quite some time to attend to another person. As I made myself comfortable, my hands started to get sweaty while holding this stick. I kept looking at my wristwatch and I almost fell asleep.

Eventually he came back doing some more things to prepare me. There were many instances where I thought he was going to insert the needle and I embraced myself, but he did not insert it yet. I kept raising my head to search for the needle that will inevitably go into my arm.

A bit surprised, the needle was inserted into my arm. The pain was not as bad as I had previously thought and it slowly diminished. However, I could still feel a big needle stuck in my arm. I squeezed the stick in my right hand which I assumed the action pushed my blood out faster. I felt my right arm slowly numbing thus my squeezes felt weaker. I enjoyed the music playing in the background and I tried to relax. The process was complete quickly. Then came the only part of blood donation I was looking forward to, the snack table. I ate a few snacks before leaving.

Overall, the experience was much better than I had previously thought. I would definitely do it again next time. Donating blood could save someone’s life, however I did not like how I felt after donating blood. I felt really weak and wanted to go to sleep though I had my honors freshmen seminar class directly afterwards. A friend commented that I looked paler probably as a result of all that loss blood. The pros outweigh my cons and I will actually look forward to blood donations in the future.

 

Blood Drive

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On September 19th and 20th, 2012, Stockton College opened its doors to the Red Cross Foundation, who was in need of as much blood as the school was willing to offer. This event ended up being a resounding success, as they managed to collect an exciting amount of blood and plasma donations from both students and faculty.

I was not able to go to the actual blood drive, but I can proudly claim partial credit for the great turnout that occurred.  This claim is justified by my actions on September 13, 2012, from 2:15 to 5:10.  During this time, my only goals were to inform and convince, in relation to the blood drive.  I would wave people down, call over to them, or meet them in the hallway.  I soon discovered which quickly- blurted lines were the most persuasive, and used this information to its full potential. Even those who were unable to donate promised to tell others about our cause; many of them followed through.  Multiple students approached the table (a pleasant change!), already convinced by their friends. We soon had a steady stream of students at the sign up sheets, and the empty spots gradually turned into reservations.

It was truly gratifying to be working for such a noble cause. I knew that every passerby had the capability of being a lifesaver, and it was up to me to help them to their potential.  With the right explanation and a smile, it became a simple task. They could tell how strongly I felt about the Drive, and so they took it as a serious consideration.

This experience was not only beneficial for the Red Cross and the blood-recipients, but for me as well.  I learned to better understand people, and how to use this in a positive way.  This will surely be useful in Stockton and beyond, and I’ll forever be grateful for the knowledge opportunity.  Needless to say, this was not my last time tabling for volunteer purposes.

 

 

A Day of Surprises

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A single voice addressed the crowd at the Stockton Day of Service announcing, “I need volunteers to go off campus.”  Hardly any eyes from the students congregated in the room looked up front as Daniel Tome, the program coordinator for the Office of Service Learning, addressed the room. The Stockton Day of Service was not starting off in the spirit of volunteering as many students waited for someone else to volunteer to venture off campus.  The group of students had gathered on September 8th for a day of working with service projects on and off campus organized by the Office of Service Learning.  Students were asked to designate interests at registration and then they were supposed to be sorted into service projects that fit those interests. According to the amount of people in the Event Room for Girl Scouts and Circle K, a ton of students had the same interests.  It seemed that, although it was a good idea to place students by interest in the different service projects, the even distribution of students among service projects was lacking greatly.

I was among the students designated to stay on campus that volunteered to rush onto a bus at the last minute and be whisked away to some unknown place.  I had no clue what service project I was going to be working with until I walked through the doors of the Martin Luther King Jr. School in Atlantic City to be introduced to A.H.E.A.R.T. Ministries. A.H.E.A.R.T Ministries is an organization that helps at risk infants and their families who are in dire situations.  The volunteer group I had been haphazardly put in was assisting with the Infant Mortality event where mothers came in with their infants to gather clothes and supplies they desperately needed. With winter looming, we piled onesies and miniature flannels into bags for the mothers to take home. When it was time to board the bus at the end of the day, I did not want to depart.

The Stockton Day of Service, though it had some organization problems in the beginning, turned out to be a success for Stockton students. Enough students braved the blind volunteering for an off campus project and each service project was successfully completed.  All of the students who participated learned that taking the initiative to step up in the community leads to pleasant surprises. Some found themselves painting at the Covenant House while also discovering the talents of the people who reside there.  Others ventured to the South Shore Thrift Shop, the Atlantic City Rescue Mission and other locations for more eye opening experiences. Ultimately, the students who had originally had reservations about going off campus were buzzing with excitement over the new experiences the day had given them.

I am thrilled that I made the decision to step onto a bus and let the driver take me out into the community to help.  I was able to unearth a gem of the Atlantic City community I would not have found without the Stockton Day of Service.  A.H.E.A.R.T. Ministries is an inspiring group that I hope to volunteer with in the future. As I think back to it, my Day of Service is filled with fond memories of the people I was able to assist and of the strong leaders of A.H.E.A.R.T. Ministries who run the amazing organization. I am looking forward to the next Stockton Day of Service, ready to discover another wonderful service project in the community and learn how Stockton students can make a difference being involved with it.

“… and Justice for All.”

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Almost two weeks ago today on September 14, 2012, I attended a lecture called ‘Sex and Justice’ in the Campus Center theater. It’s not exactly the title of a lecture I could really see myself going to a year ago, so initially I wasn’t sure what to expect by going to the event, I honestly planned to go because I knew I would get extra credit for a class! I assumed that it would be kind of boring, since Anita Hill wasn’t going to be there and it would only be a video that would make me sleepy and possibly cranky before my next class.

As part of the Constitution Day Series 2012, it was obvious that the issue being discussed would have something to do with our nation’s government. However, until I saw the actual video, I never knew how much of an impact Anita Hill’s accusations against Justice Clarence Thomas had on the nation. After watching the video, a step by step documentary of the testimonies themselves, it was really evident that Professor Hill put a lot on the line accusing Justice Thomas so very publicly. It was also apparent that regardless of whom the hearings turned in favor to, the issue of sexual harassment in a workplace would never go back to where it was before.

So as I sat there for an hour and half watching the actual Supreme Court hearing that made history, I slowly forgot about how cold the theater was or how the camera close-ups in Professor Hill and Justice Thomas’ faces really bothered me. I really got into the actual context of what was being said. Anita Hill made bold accusations against Clarence Thomas; saying that he repeatedly asked her out, spoke to her of detailed pornographic visuals, and gave her vivid accounts of his own sexual life. In retaliation, Clarence Thomas opted to the use of pathos, stating he had worked for 40+ years to get to where he was and that not only was his nomination into the Supreme Court suffering, but the integrity of his name and his family were taking a toll as well.

The testimony of both parties was intense, emotional and drove nearly all watching to the edge of their seats.  Anita Hill gained a plethora of followers with the help of Senator Kennedy of Massachusetts and Clarence Thomas was a prominent and well known political figure with an army of followers. The decision was too almost too close to call. In the end, the Senate ruled 52-48 in favor of Clarence Thomas and he succeeded in obtaining his position in the Supreme Court of the United States.

Many people even today are upset by the decision of the Senate when they stop to think of it.. Some people believe that Anita didn’t win because she was a woman, some believe she didn’t win because she wasn’t as well connected as Clarence Thomas, and some people believe she didn’t win because she was lying the whole time. Regardless of Anita Hill’s defeat, the blurry lines of sexual harassment became more distinct after this historic event.

I wasn’t able to attend Anita Hill’s keynote lecture, but I know that she had a lot of courage to project her accusations so vocally. I believe that everyone has a voice and the choice to use it and because of Anita’s courage, the workplaces of America are a lot more safe and people have more courage themselves to speak up when they don’t feel safe. The Pledge of Allegiance states “Liberty and Justice for all,” and the testimony between Anita Hill and Clarence Thomas certainly played to that.

 

A Successful Day of Service

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Richard Stockton’s 9th Annual Day of Service, held on September 8th, assisted in connecting students with local organizations and volunteer opportunities. The function was run by the Office of Service-Learning, which “encourages relationship growth across faculty, students, and community partners”. The program began in the Campus Center event room, which was instantly occupied by over 300 volunteers and additional staff. A total of 25 community organizations participated in the event and offered assistance to volunteers. The impressive attendance contributed to the overall success of Day of Service, and marked a record in the school’s history.

Examples of the participating community partners were Circle K, Lake Fred Cleanup, South Shore Thrift Shop, Community Emergency Response Team, Books Without Borders, and more. These organizations challenged students to step out of their comfort zones. For instance, several students were asked to clean Lake Fred and remove mounting garbage. Others volunteered their time in thrift stores, sorting through and cleaning inventory. These activities may have been unusual and surprising to students. However, the experiences held countless benefits to both society as well as volunteers.

During registration for Day of Service, I indicated that my preferences were working with children and the environment. Those in charge compiled this information and placed me in the Girl Scouts of America. I had assumed that I would be learning about the organization and assisting young scouts in their attainment of badges. To my surprise, we were asked to compile paper work. Paper work? Wasn’t this Girl Scouts? Weren’t we supposed to be outside, identifying insects and leaves? It took a few moments for my mind to become adjusted to the idea of organizing folders, badges, and papers. To my surprise, this volunteering project challenged my ability to process information and quickly respond to directions.  I learned to compute incoming information quicker, and stay focused on one single task.

I am grateful for my experience at Day of Service, and plan to volunteer with Girl Scouts in the near future. I was able to make connections with the scout leaders, who were more than willing to assist me in my forthcoming efforts. Along with other honors students, I plan on attending the 9th Annual MLK Day of Service on Monday, January 21, 2013. With our unified efforts, we can give back to society while simultaneously reaping countless rewards.

S.O.A.R.

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The Ninth Annual S.O.A.R. trip was destined to be great because all the planning from the previous year slowed over into this year. Due to an unfortunate accident, the weather decided to downpour as a hurricane passed through our area, last year’s S.O.A.R. trip was cancelled, but it was full speed ahead this year. As excitement built, the freshman started arriving on campus to unload their things and to load the buses. Energy hit its peak as we pulled into camp and the experience began. The trip was intended so the freshmen could make friends, and I believe that those of us who succeeded had the time of our lives. The trip began with unloading our bags, heading to the cabins, claiming bunks, and then meeting for dinner and icebreakers. The icebreakers become a staple part of every freshman’s diet as each new club or activity decides that the ice has not been broken enough. However, these icebreakers became bonding moments and although I groan when I hear the word, I am excited to relive the memories I made while playing icebreakers with my fellow classmates. Also while on the trip we learned to respect our differences and find common ground, even when far above it. The ropes course was a terrifying, but exhilarating test of will. When you are up on the ropes and all that you see is the ground, you learned that there were people routing for you. As anyone crossed the rickety bridge or ran up the uneven log, there was a network of people cheering from the ground. The positive motivation and the collective will for the person to succeed carried on into our classes where we help one another and cheer for them to do well. The entire trip built teamwork between the tribes and promoted ingenuity and creativity in problem solving. At the end of the day, the memories I have with the friends I made, will not go away, and I encourage all freshman to attend the event, even if you do not like camping. The friends, fun, and early check-in make the entire trip worth the time and money.

Dude, it’s a fair, of course they’ll have free stuff. “The Get Involved Fair”

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As I walked out of my final class of the day into h-wing, I was greeted by a swarm of people stationed at tables throughout the halls, hailing to people as they passed. I found myself wondering, “So this is the Get Involved Fair. Why isn’t in the gym?” I’m not sure if I am just used to fairs or events involving a lot of tables being in gyms because of high school but I found the whole situation quite chaotic. I’m pretty sure even if I wasn’t used to the whole gym idea I’d still find the scene quite chaotic. However, amongst all the chaos there was a sense of order to be found. The tables were not just thrown willy-nilly around the hall; they were spread as two long rows pushed to either side of the hallway. There was an obvious section for the Greek Life clubs, and you could eventually see that the services Stockton offered was to one side of the hall, and actual clubs were to the other side of the hall near j-l wing. While the Greek Life and the Stockton services looked decorated and had some thought in them, I felt as if some of the clubs could have added a bit more pizzazz to try to get members. One club that really got to me in the way of “pizzazz” was the Buddhism club. They had a flashy poster, freebees and other enticing ways of getting people interested. The Ultimate Frisbee club incorporated music and a dance routine as another way to entice possible members. I should also realize though that a lot of people probably had an idea of what club or clubs they wanted to join. It’s just for the person who is looking around for clubs that interest him…such as myself. Their welcoming nature was quite comforting though.

There were a fair amount of interesting clubs that were open for joining this year at the fair and are still open to joining. “E.D.I.B.L” is probably the leader in the pack of most interesting clubs as it is basically about using bugs as alternative source of protein. Some other clubs that I joined were the Asian Student Alliance, the Music Union Club, the 91.7 FM Radio, Circle K, Ultimate Frisbee, the Photography club, and the Fencing Club. These are but a few of the possible clubs you can join if you are a person who somehow missed the entire fair, (which would be kind of hard to believe since it was on for two days).

One of the things I enjoyed about the fair was how convenient and how long it ran for. The fair was on my way to my dorm and to my classes, so I never felt as if I’d have to go out of my way to visit it. It also ran on reasonable hours, (10am-7pm and 10am-4pm). I just feel that the fair is an important part of making sure the Stockton students know what is available to you and I hope you all had the chance to take it. If there is a reason that you couldn’t make it though, don’t fret. The Stockton website has a pretty clear list of most of the clubs and also there are still a lot of fliers still hanging around.

 

“There’s a fly in my soup!” Stockton’s E.D.I.B.L

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The kick-off meeting for the Environmental Discourses on the Ingestion of Bugs League (E.D.I.B.L) first caught my attention at a Circle K Meeting. April Hamblin, the president of the club, was dressed as a bumblebee at the time and was very enthusiastic in giving us the details of one of Stockton’s most intriguing clubs. The club has many incentives, but it’s main focus is based on raising awareness of viable protein sources other than beef, pork, and poultry. Not only is it a club that explores the culinary arts, but it also provides us with a hard look into the impact of our eating habits and the environment. The first meeting was Tuesday at 4:30 in the Arts and Sciences building, with the smell of pizza greeting us. Unfortunately, there were no bugs in the pizza. Now, at first, my personal reasons for joining this club was not because I wanted to be more eco-conscious, but rather, I wanted to get over my ridiculous fear of insects. When I say ridiculous, I mean that if I were to see an insect crawl toward me, I would shudder, clutch at my throat, and tell myself not to cry. Going to a college in the middle of a nature reservation has settled my nerves quite a bit, but what better way to get over a fear of something than to voluntarily put it in your mouth and swallow it? I was resolute before entering the meeting.
After briefing us about the club’s message, we were shown a few videos of insect consumption, and yes, I’ll admit that my feet were unconsciously inching toward the exit during the first video. We saw a factory that had drawers upon drawers of live mealworms. Very, very alive. We also saw locusts that were bigger than my hand crawling on top of each other in tanks, their antennas constantly swiveling around. All of this was very unsettling to me, and I couldn’t help but wonder if this was a good choice in coming here. The next video was what saved me. We have an event coming up with chef David Gordon in November. He is a renowned chef who has traveled across the country teaching people of all ages about the tasty world of bugs. We were showed a video of him giving a cooking demonstration to elementary children, and the response was great. A child came up to the camera with a large cricket in his hand and tells us that it didn’t have a head anymore because he ate it and it was really good. If children, who oftentimes turn their noses up at things such as broccoli and peas, can bite the heads off crickets, so can all of us.
Another very important fact to mention is that this club does not entail it’s members to go out and catch themselves a delicious meal. The critters that are eaten will be provided for us from a manufacturer, so there’s no need to worry. The club condones eating insects, but there’s no condemnation for anyone who joins with only a curious mind and not the stomach. If there are any people out there that wonders whether or not they can eat bugs, the only stipulation is that you must not be allergic to shellfish, which means you are mostly likely allergic to all arthropods. Otherwise, this club represents much more than being an adventurous eater and invites all who are interested in the environment to come out and enjoy some “grub”.

The Beginning of a New Adventure

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I arrived at Stockton unsure of what to expect. There were so many new faces in a place that felt so unfamiliar, a place that I had yet to explore. Although I was immensely excited to embark on a new journey and create a whole new world of experiences for myself, I was also anxious about the instability that comes along with change. Everyone received the key to their new dorm rooms as well as verbal confirmation of which tribe they would be part of during SOAR (Stockton Orientation Adventure Retreat). I was told that I would be part of purple tribe and although I didn’t know what this meant at the time, my first objective was to determine if anyone else I already knew was also on purple tribe. This seemed an impossible task considering that at this point in time I didn’t know many people here at Stockton, but one friend happened to also be on purple tribe. This gave me a comforting sense of security and I proceeded to move my things into my new dorm room.

It seemed like I had just arrived at Stockton and we were already preparing to leave. After being served lunch, we met with our tribes where our TALONS introduced themselves. They would be our tribe leaders for the next few days. They were wonderful at motivating everyone to engage with each other through the use of ice breakers and making new friends became an easy task. We loaded our luggage onto the buses, attended a few presentations regarding the trip, and finally advanced towards Camp Matollionequay where we would be staying from August 28th until August 30th, 2012.

There was so much to take part in at SOAR. Everyone participated in a variety of ice breakers as well as other fun games. Each tribe worked together to create a chant that would be used to express everyone’s pride in their own tribe throughout the trip. Everyone got very engaged and enthusiastic with this. A campfire was held where each tribe acted out a skit pertaining to their experiences at the camp. They were all quite humorous due to the inclusion of various imitations of TALONS and staff members of the camp. In terms of other activities there was swimming, archery, and boating. There were low ropes courses that were used as team building exercises and high rope courses that allowed everyone to test their abilities and face their fears in an effort to have fun. Interestingly enough, it was one of the low ropes courses that resulted in two TALONS falling into a dirty swamp and being covered head to toe in mud. Everyone had such a great time at SOAR and leaving only seemed easy due the desire to no longer sleep in the cabins or take showers with the spiders as well as the knowledge that all the new friends we’d acquired at SOAR were coming with us back to Stockton.

SOAR gave students a chance to connect and make plenty of friends before the start of classes. Stockton staff members as well as those who worked at the camp contributed greatly to the wonderful experience that SOAR continues to be. I would recommend to all incoming freshmen to spread their wings and SOAR right into the beginning of their college experience.