On September 16th I had the honor to represent Stockton University at the United Nations. I was one of 18 Stockton students to attend the Youth Summit on International Peace Day; it was a truly life-altering experience. I met students from around the world and listened to presenters from nearly every continent. They made me feel like my everyday actions could make a difference in the world. All the speakers and presenters were instrumental in instilling the belief that I am a global citizen, and not just citizen of the United States. My favorite speaker by far was Dominique Rankin, an Algonquin Chief. He began speaking in a Native tongue, but switched over to French about halfway through his presentation. It was such a surreal feeling to be able understand his message in its original language, rather than having to rely upon his translator.

After the Summit concluded, we headed to a different conference room for dinner and a social mixer with students from other universities. There, we had the opportunity to use Virtual Reality headsets to view a Syrian Refugee camp from a 14-year old girl’s perspective. It took me a few moments to realize that I could spin myself and get a 360 degree view of the camp. In some scenes, there were small children at my feet. In others, there were boys younger than me lifting weights to prepare for their journeys. It was such a unique experience being able to see the environment. It was if I was actually there, seeing the camp from the eyes of a 12 year old girl. As we left the United Nations, the security guards reminded us “welcome back to the United States!”. At that moment, I knew it would be a different country I was walking back to.

On Saturday September 17th, my friends and I ventured to the Campus Center for the free showing of the movie Central Intelligence. The movie featured the actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and comedian Kevin Hart. “The Rock” played CIA officer, Bob Stone, who was bullied in high school. Kevin Hart’s character, Calvin Joyner, did not live up to his classmates expectations of “most likely to succeed”. The movie opened with a traumatic high school memory: “The Rock” donned a fat suit and was thrown in the gym of his high school completely naked. Kevin Hart’s character saved him from embarrassment. Later, it shows the pair reconnecting for their 20th high school reunion. Hart is recruited to help Johnson with is CIA case. Of course, there were humorous scenes throughout the movie. It was the perfect brainless comedy to see during the first few weeks of college. 

The movie night was sponsored by Stockton Entertainment Team (SET), which puts on two movie showings a week. This gives students the opportunity to view movies on Thursdays and Saturdays. Their movie nights are perfect for the students who choose to stay on campus for the weekend; Stockton notoriously clears out on Fridays. Having weekend entertainment on campus sponsored by the college provides a great way to have fun! Students have the chance of winning movie posters and even two tickets, worth over $30.All movies shown by the Stockton Entertainment Team are only recently released to DVD. Upcoming movies being shown include: Ghostbusters, Star Trek Beyond, Sausage Party, Suicide Squad, Lights Out, War Dogs, Bad Moms, Jason Bourne, Sully, and Bridget Jones’s Baby.  A full schedule with dates and times for the rest of the semester is listed on Stockton’s website. SET’s movie nights provide a fun, and entertaining agenda for students looking to see a recently released movie with their friends!

Elyse Hazel