Author Archives: kenned92

The Open Race Panel

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The Open Race Panel was the first dialogue session I attended at Stockton. It took place on November 2, 2015 at the Campus Center Theatre. I am involved with the club F.E.M.A.L.E.S., a student organization dedicated to the empowerment of women, and they directed me to attend the panel in place of our weekly meeting. I do not normally like talking about race because it is a touchy subject, but being an African-American at a white-dominant university, I know I would benefit from addressing the issue head on. The panel featured a diverse mix of six students and faculty representing various backgrounds. It was interesting to see everyone on the panel’s viewpoints on the same topics, viewpoints that were so in sync with those of other civil rights leaders. From the get-go the panel was very thought provoking and it made me feel more cultured and knowledgeable about society.

The first thing they addressed was the offensive discussions on YikYak, an anonymous college campus centered social media outlet, about the role of UBSS. UBSS stands for the Unified Black Student Society. Students at Stockton anonymously posted comments on YikYak questioning the significance of an all-black club, stating that if there was a white student society it would be called racist. I was immediately overjoyed by the powerful responses of the panel as they passionately fought the white privilege induced argument. They clarified that UBSS welcomes all races and has members of various racial backgrounds. Also they made it known that there are numerous white student societies on campus from Student Senate to the Stockton Entertainment Team that are not explicitly exclusive of minorities but rather implicitly unwelcoming. The panel stated that clubs like UBSS and those for Caribbean or Latino or Asian students are especially important to have on white-dominant campuses because they provide safe havens for minority students to interact with people of their kind, enhancing the overall feeling of belonging.

Following that discussion was one on the Black Lives Matter movement. Black Lives Matter is a civil rights movement that highlights the importance of black lives in light of the recent atrocities involving police brutality, racial profiling, and killings of African-Americans. It raises awareness of the fact that media does not cover the murder of people like Trevon Martin and Michael Brown with the same air of importance as whites, suggesting black lives do not matter as much as white lives. The panel discussion focused on the vandalism of a Black Lives Matter sign in front of a nearby church. With white graffiti, someone wrote “All Lives Matter”. This quickly sparked a discussion on the panel who all agreed “All Lives Matter” is a misunderstanding and white privilege concoction. Of course all lives matter but minorities need to be raised up so that it is clear that their cultures are equally as beautiful and important as white culture.

Other topics the panel talked about included: white privilege, culture appropriating, and the history of slavery. I would encourage everyone in the student body to go to the next race panel because race is so necessary to talk about. If we can understand each other’s struggles the world can become a more tolerant and inclusive place.

SOAR

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I am SOAR excited to write this post about the overnight camping experience that kick started my college career. Making the decision to go was hands down the best thing I’ve done in preparation for freshman year. The friends I made and the leadership skills I developed in three days is unmatched to any other thing I have ever done. It has been two months since then and I can honestly say I am still being affected by relationships I built in such a short amount of time.

The first thing that happened for SOAR was check-in which was extremely chaotic. The freshman who went to SOAR had to move in the same day as check-in. Being a commuter, I got to bypass that stressful scene of having to frantically set up my room and say goodbye to my parents. I showed up for the barbeque and at glance, I could feel the community atmosphere and also just knew I would have the time of my life. Everyone was assigned their tribes. I ended up being on sky tribe which was really funny because of all colors, sky? I made fun of it a little in the beginning without fully realizing: a. that would be the premise of my time at SOAR, people saying, “Sky isn’t even a color”; and b. that I would avidly defend the validity of sky being on the visible light spectrum.

It was really awkward at first, meeting my tribe. We all were forced into this disjointed circle by these people called T.A.L.O.N.S. that were W.A.Y. too excited and kept making these weird “SOAR” related puns. No one wanted to talk. Everyone kind of just stared blankly at nearby trees. Then came the icebreakers. And the mind games. And then all hats were off and we bonded. Of course this did not happen as sequentially; there was a bus ride that inadvertently helped break down walls. Since we were already packed like sardines, my tribemates and I were forced to get acquainted for an hour and some on our way to the camping grounds.

There was actually a lot of forced bonding. You were forced to be best friends with your cabin mates who would help you kill spiders in the middle of the night. You were forced to actually eat with people and converse three times a day- one of these family dinners you were forced to host. You were forced to mingle and get to know details about not just the thirty people in your tribe, but about others from the rest of the rainbow. You were forced to open up and contribute to a team and make a chant and skit that you were forced to have pride in. You were forced to have unadulterated fun and stay up way too late. You were forced to identify your lions and take steps toward conquering them. You were forced to take showers with Daddy-Long-Legs and inhale unhealthy quantities of bug spray and sports spray sunscreen. And you loved it.

I encourage all incoming freshman to go because the camp ground was crawling with hot Australians, New Zealanders and beautiful men from the UK, all with panty dropping exotic accents. Seriously though, it was great. I would recite a litany of activities we did but in the end it wasn’t even about what we did but how the experience made us feel, and that is just one of those you-had-to-be-there moments. People who went to SOAR were able to extend the sense of belonging and community to the rest of the freshman class during welcome week who were going through the same anxious, new school, new life jitters we experienced on check-in day. This is because we arrived back on campus with thirty best friends and a hundred other distant-relative-like acquaintances who we were connected to because we shared a super special secret. What secret you ask? That we’re SOAR excited to begin the next chapter of our lives. And we know what a stick really is, how hot is hot, that Johnny likes to whoop, and hopefully by now, who has the magic box.

Bingo Night

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Bingo Night

Walking into Bingo Night, I already had preconceived notions of how much fun I would actually have; which erected from pop culture associating hearing-impaired retirees with utter and vicious enjoyment of the game. I reluctantly went with a group of my friends. We were forced to position ourselves toward the back because, as always, we arrived late. I quickly realized this was a disadvantage because of the distance one would have to race compared to others on the path of victory to receive their prize if they indeed got five in a row. Nevertheless, I received my three boards and the game went on.

On the stage the orator called out the letter-number combinations. Having three boards proved to be an exasperating task as I vigilantly searched each in hope of finding the announced coordinates. Tension and misguided hostility filled the atmosphere almost instantly. This surprised me because before I even knew it I was immersed in the competitive spirit. I never realized how much anxiety a person could experience playing Bingo, hoping they have the lucky board, praying for others’ misfortune. It was intense.

Throughout the night we played about fifteen games, each having three-five winners who won raffle tickets that could potential get them a prize. We didn’t just play traditionally (marking five places in a row either vertically, horizontally or diagonally), but instead switched it up by spelling out letters, or getting each of the four corners or the entire board. People at my table won here and there and I was happy for them but it would have definitely felt better if I won. There was actually a time when I thought I won and in my excitement I ran all the way up to the stage just to find out spatial positioning matters (the seven was upside-down).

Overall, the experience was a positive one, although many times I wanted to rip my hair out or trip people on their way to the stage. It was nice having a community of people who had the same goal and experienced the same roller-coaster of emotions. I learned that Bingo has the ability to bring out a different side of me, one I’m still figuring out whether I like. I am going to encourage as many people as I can to go to the next Bingo Night because it truly is a fun pastime that brings people together.

Student Faculty and Staff Dinner

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The Student Faculty and Staff Dinner took place on November 19, 2015 in the Campus Center Event Room. The primary objective of the dinner is to honor exceptional professors at Stockton. This event is open to the entire student body and it is through the students that the dinner is made possible. Students hand pick the professor they wish to invite: each student is allotted one ticket for themselves and another for a faculty or staff member.

I heard about the dinner a few days before the event and I immediately drew a survey of professors I wanted to invite in my mind. Although I am only a freshman, I found myself having great difficulty choosing which professor I would give my second ticket. For this reason, I enlisted some help from some friends who share similar schedules and professors. In the end, we ended up inviting about seven professors but three were unable to attend. My guest was my chemistry lab professor, Dr. Walters. I thought he was really deserving of the honor because of how diligent and helpful he is during lab. He graduated from Stockton for undergrad and this was his first year teaching at the university.

The really cool thing about the dinner is that it gives students the opportunity to show their appreciation to faculty and staff members who have helped them throughout their career at Stockton. A lot can be said about the quality of faculty and staff members at Stockton just by looking at the turn out of the dinner. The Event Room was packed full of bright eyed students and gleaming professors grateful for the invite. There were at least fifty tables set up with about fourteen seats each so you can only imagine the magnitude of the event.

The other really cool thing about the dinner was that was an endless supply of free gourmet food just in time for Thanksgiving. The food was really good. Personally, just the food alone provided incentive for me to participate in the next annual dinner. There was mashed potatoes and sweet potato pie, and penne de vodka, and a meat station, and an assortment of bread right out of the oven, and MORE. It was just really good.

If you or a friend are ever looking for an opportunity to show your professors that you care and appreciate them, the Student Faculty and Staff Dinner is the place to go. Besides eating, I got to sit down with my favorite professors, and other professors at my table, and converse with them. I was really nice actually getting to know them outside the classroom setting. The dinner encourages a healthy and personal relationship between staff and students which, like Stockton, is very distinctive.

Alpha Lambda Delta Induction Ceremony

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Alpha Lambda Delta is the academic honors society at Stockton that freshman students can join after their first semester. In order to be eligible for the honor society they must meet a 3.5 minimum GPA requirement and pay a $50 membership fee. Benefits of joining include scholarship and leadership opportunities as well as it just looking really good on your resume. The induction itself took place on February 19, 2016 at 5 pm at the Campus Center event room. There would be an induction portion and then an honorary dinner.

Inductees were supposed to wear business casual attire. This is where I went wrong. I had the most major wardrobe malfunction and ended up wearing a camo baseball cap, a tshirt, leggings and running shoes. I was mortified when I saw my classmates dressed in the gorgeous and professional outfits, the men wearing suits and dress shirts, girls in dresses skirts and heels. To say the least, I felt like an elephant. Granted, I showed up to the dinner still frantic from rushing to hand in my TALONS application so I did not have the opportunity to change because I am a commuter. I remember sitting at the table and everyone saying it’s okay, that they’re not judging me. But I was judging me. Even reassurance from Dr. Rosner, the faculty advisor of the honor society and the head of the honors program, didn’t erase my uneasiness. Thankfully, I have awesome friends who rushed me a change of clothes so I could feel less out of place.

Moving on to the actual ceremony, the induction featured a few speakers including Dr. Rosner and the President of the university, Harvey Kesselman. Then came calling everyone’s name. Since there were so many inductees, what happened was when your name was called you stood up. All applause was meant to be saved until the end. It was actually really funny, hearing the speaker either butcher or eloquently say the person’s name and then looking around the large room for a body to pop up. Although the honor society is incredibly selective, I felt proud to see so many of us that were being inducted. The name calling took an extensive amount of time, especially since the dinnertime food was glaring at us from the other side of the room. Slowly but surely, however, every name was called and person was standing. There was a huge round of applause and the inductees were directed to pick up their certificates and get food.

So all in all, please learn from my mistake and dress to impress. Even if you don’t, people will not judge you because everyone is so nice… but you will feel out of place. Work hard and make sure to get the 3.5 GPA your freshman semester so you can be part of such a wonderful national honor society such as Alpha Lambda Delta.

MLK Day of Service

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Bright and early at 8 am on January 18, 2016, the Stockton community joined with local volunteers to celebrate the birth of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Being a commuter that lives in Galloway, I have attended the MLK Day of Service four consecutive years prior but I was excited to take part in it this time as a student of Stockton. I went with a few of my girlfriends. Once we signed in we headed towards breakfast at the food court. Stockton provided a delicious breakfast with an awesome array of options from donuts to various breakfast sandwiches to coffee, orange juice, and tea. I always like to comment on food (if you have read my previous blogs) because the food at Stockton is unmatchable to some other universities I have visited and I always want to pay tribute and show appreciation towards the staff.

After breakfast we were directed to go to the campus center event room. I was actually taken aback by how good of a turnout there was; there were so many people that the chairs were not enough and many had to stand to the side or towards the back. It is always very encouraging seeing people, especially my peers, show up eager for a cause, this one being to spread service and pay tribute to the life and impact of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The events that followed included: several speakers, honoring members of the community for their service, singing, and informing people of the different projects and locations. I loved the singing which was led by Mrs. Beverly. She always brings an outburst of energy that spreads throughout the entire room. Along with at least 200 other people, I sang “We Shall Overcome” and really took in the words, using them as motivation and energy fuel to get through the rest of the long day ahead.

There was en extremely wide range of projects to choose from, both on campus and off-campus. I don’t quite remember them at the moment but they were all awesome. I decided to stay on campus and work with Circle K creating some cool crafts for people at Atlanticare Hospital. I spent most of my time sewing large heart shaped pillows for older patients and those who are going into same day surgery. I made sure to put as much care into the pillows because I know they definitely make a difference and have calming powers. Other people worked on creating little sock babies for infants in the hospital. The idea behind them is that parents carry the sock babies around with them and when they leave the child will have the sock baby and be able to smell their parents and be comforted. Valentines day cards were also being made and I think they were dedicated to the troops.

After making crafts, we all received a lunch package then moved on to an informative portion of the day. The lesson we learned was on the being a bystander. The bystander effect is a psych term that describes what happens when people in passing see something bad happening to someone but do not help because they assume someone else will help or that is not their responsibility. This little workshop was designed to make people aware of the bystander effect and to stand up in situations where a victim needs help. Something I remember from the lesson was “The 5 Step Decision Making Model” which goes as such:

  1. Notice the Event
  2. Interpret it as a Problem
  3. Assume Personal Responsibility
  4. Know How to Help
  5. Step Up!

With this, I feel more equip to provide help in times of need.

Following the lesson on the bystander effect as a reflection session pertaining to the MLK Day of Service. There were questions to be answered with people are your table as well as an online  survey.

Stockton Stand Up- Justice March

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The March on Stockton took place on November 19, 2015 promptly at 4:30pm. Participants met at the Campus Center and were encouraged to bring posters or signs to display while marching for racial equality. The flyer for the event challenged, “Will you stand if we walk for justice?” Following the march was a panel discussion which geared toward conversing about racial issues on campus and worldwide, highlighting equality and diversity. This march was monumental because as a student body we collectively took a stand on an issue that has been pressing American culture since the formation of this country.

Arriving at the event, I was struck by how many people were actually present. There was a wide assortment of participants, with students from various racial backgrounds and even some faculty and staff members who wanted to be part of the statement march. The sign I carried stated, “RacISm Wrong #StocktonStandUp” and a friend of mine’s sign stated “Black Lives Matter #HandsUpStandUp”. Something I remember from the event that I am having trouble putting into words is the overwhelming feeling of importance and purpose I felt being a part of something like this. I am confident the other participants felt it too.

The march was something out of a movie. Almost as if the sky knew we were coming, it started violently pouring rain outside. That did not stop us from standing up. As any other march, crowd mentality took over and my fellow participants and I started chanting civil rights mottos at the top of our lungs. Leaders immerged from the crowd initiating new chants or prolonging the current one. My favorite was, “No Justice No Peace, Know Justice Know Peace”. As a group we had a lot of fun, it was very exciting. I remember at one point I turned to my right and realized I was marching next to my argument and persuasion teacher, Professor Damon Smith, who is extremely vocal about his beliefs on civil rights issues such as the War on Drugs. It was then, walking with my professor as equals, that it hit me that hey, I am a civil rights activist. Like me, a lot of activists were born that day, or at least were exposed to the world of purposeful action.

After the march, participants were given pizza and invited to stick around for the panel discussion on race. I did not get the chance to attend the panel as I was rushing to the Annual Student Faculty and Staff Dinner but I am more than positive it was very enlightening. Reflecting back on the event, I am very grateful and proud to attend a university that allows justice marches to take place, whose faculty and students can walk side by side, united because of common unavoidable issues. Little steps like this make a difference and impact the bigger picture and scheme of things. The Stockton Stand Up march was definitely one for the books and I would do it again in a heart beat.

Casino Night

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Casino Night was one of the events freshman students were encouraged to attend during welcome week. We were promised food, games, entertainment, and most importantly prizes. It took place in I-wing gym from 9pm to 11pm. Upon arrival, each student was given $50,000 of fake ticket money they could use at different tables to jump start their gambling. There was a really good turn out and the line to enter was ridiculously long. The pinnacle reason for this was the prizes which were handed out raffle style with winners announced I think every thirty minutes. One raffle ticket was equivalent to either $5,000 or $10,000 (I’m sorry its been a really long time). The prizes increased in coolness as the night progress, providing further incentive for people to stay the entire length of the event. The really big ones everyone wanted were the beats headphones and the television but there were other notable prizes.

Since I am not a big casino, card game, gambler person I did not really play any games. However, I watched and people who knew what they were doing looked like they were having a really good time. All the lights were off in the gym and fluorescence was provided by flashing colorful lights and glow in the dark elements of the game tables. There was a lava lamp colorful light display in the back along with a projector displaying music videos corresponding to the music that was blasting our eardrums. People who weren’t playing games or waiting for their turn just kinda loitered and took laps around the room starting at the food table. Some people even starting dancing which was interesting. Just kidding.

If anything, casino night was the perfect opportunity for everyone to socialize and create new friendships being that it was still the very beginning of the semester. I remember my now super close friend and I decided to entertain ourselves by collecting fake money from people who were headed out and no longer had use for their $50,000. Our master plan was that we would collect as much money from voluntary donors and use our newfound wealth to buy a surplus amount of raffle tickets. We would then put all our raffle tickets toward one prize we would share. This strategy made for a really interesting night and completely defeated the purpose of casino night and working for an honest living. Together we hustled our way around the room and “earned” more than $700,000. We were really proud of ourselves. The joke was on us though because by the end of the night we won, nothing. It’s been months and I’m still upset.

All in all, casino night was a success, despite my tragic situation. I encourage all incoming freshman to attend and even upperclassman that are looking for a good time and free food. I certainly will consider attending next fall and hopefully I’ll do casino night right that time around.