Osprey Ball 2016

On Saturday, October 8th, I attended the 21st annual Osprey Ball which was held during Stockton’s annual University Weekend. This fun-filled homecoming weekend was packed with activities for families, students and alumni to participate in such as the Osprey Ball and the Street Fair. Students and their guests were invited to wear semi-formal attire to the Osprey Ball which took place in the Campus Center Event Room. Before the ball began, everyone was busy getting ready for the festivities by looking for an outfit to wear, putting on makeup and finding the perfect hairstyle. However, that night it was pouring rain, so guests had to quickly make their way to the Campus Center to avoid ruining their attire.

When students and their guests arrived at the Osprey Ball they were greeted and checked in to the event by staff members. When everyone first walked into the Event Room there was a DJ and a lot of people dancing with their friends on the dance floor to remixes of well-known pop songs among other types of music. There was also a photo booth which was probably one of my favorite parts of the Osprey Ball. The photo booth had a lot of weird hats and masks that you could wear while taking funny pictures with your friends. Most importantly, there was a ton of food at the ball including chicken tenders, pigs in a blanket and of course a giant cake and other desserts. I definitely can say that I did not leave the ball hungry.

Overall, I had a fantastic time at the Osprey Ball this year and I made another great college memory. Although I did not enjoy running through the pouring rain to get to the ball, I did love dancing with my friends and my sister and taking pictures in the photo booth with them. I also had fun eating endless amounts of cake and getting all dressed up for the Osprey Ball. I look forward to attending this University Weekend event next year.

Rioult Dance Performance

On Friday, November 18th, I attended the Rioult performance to watch the Rioult Dance Company from New York, New York perform a collection of dances for the Stockton community. The event was held in the Stockton Performing Arts Center and the audience eagerly waited for the performance to begin. Even though I was required to attend this event for several of my dance classes, I was excited to see this company dance for the first time. The Rioult Company consists of nine core members and the founder Pascal Rioult, who creates all of the pieces for the company. The choreography of the company is based around the Graham modern dance technique, which focuses on the contraction and release of the spine in movement.

The Rioult performance really surprised me and caught my attention because the company projected images behind the dancers as they performed each piece. The overall theme of the performance was based around nature and the images behind the dancers changed based upon the theme of the dance. I also enjoyed watching the dancers convey the different themes of nature in each piece through the utilization of movement, emotions, costuming, background changes and lighting. The Rioult company did an outstanding job in bringing nature alive and engaging the audience throughout the performance. Overall, I felt as though there was never a dull moment in their dance concert and I would recommend this performance to anyone who is interested in dance or even the arts in general. Hopefully, I will able to see the Rioult Dance Company perform again in the future because I loved watching them dance!

Presidential Debate Watching Party

This past Monday, September 26th, I attended the Presidential Debate Party to watch the presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton discuss issues that are important to Americans. The event was held in the Board of Trustees room in the Campus Center and there was a decent turnout. Snacks, including popcorn and soda, were provided to those who attended the event. Before the debate officially began, the event coordinators welcomed everyone and offered bingo boards to people who wanted to play. In order to win bingo, the participants had to match the words or phrases on the bingo board verbatim to statements that were made by the candidates during the debate. For instance, if Donald Trump mentioned the word Florida in his address, the participant could cross the box with the corresponding word off on their bingo board.
In the debate, the candidates mostly centered their discussions around the topics of prosperity, direction and leading America. These debates are extremely significant for Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton because they must try to attract additional support from undecided voters for the upcoming election as well as voice their presidential goals. Throughout the course of the night, there was a lot of disagreements between the candidates on particular issues such as taxes, crime, race relations and the economy among others. As the debate went on, many people at the event started cheering or laughing when Trump and Clinton quarreled or insulted each other. The dynamic of the two candidates made the debate very interesting to watch, even for people like me who are not really into politics.
Overall, I am happy that I went to this event and watched the debate along with many other students. Hearing the reactions of people with many different political views while watching the debate definitely made me more interested and engaged in the conversation.
Although I have never sat down to watch a presidential debate before, I am glad I took the time to attend this debate party. I look forward to attending the next presidential debate party in the near future.