Yesterday, November 8th, 2016, I attended an “Election Party” in the Campus Center Board of Trustees Room.  It was a huge event: at least a hundred students gathered together (with pizza and soda!) to watch the votes be counted to declare the 45th president of the United States.  Students debated political views/ideologies on specific topics, played a “Who Said That?” quote game with sayings from Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton, and just had a good time in each other’s company.  We had no idea about the storm that was brewing.

       At the beginning of the party, at around 7 o’clock, Clinton was destroying the election.  It seemed like her name was constantly lit up on the screen, highlighting a win in a progressive state.  Even as I left, around 10 or so, her name was still flashing, and people were still cheering “Hillary! Hillary!”  

       I was very excited for Hillary Clinton’s win.  I classify myself as a Libertarian: I believe in a majority of the things that that party stands for.  I’m not a huge fan of Gary Johnson, given his lack of knowledge when it comes to global affairs, so I associated myself #WithHer.  All I knew for sure was that I did not want the homophobic, xenophobic, islamophobic bully that is Donald J. Trump to win the presidency.

       Eventually, around 2 a.m., I couldn’t stay up any longer, so I fell asleep.  I woke up a few hours later to the news that Donald Trump won the presidency.  I was completely baffled: a man without any political experience won the slot as the face of this nation.  A man that does not care about women, minorities, or the disabled, now is the executive of the United States.  I am still in shock as I type this essay.  I feel as though this event has pushed aside all of the efforts of civil activists like Martin Luther King Jr., Susan B. Anthony, and Lady GaGa, and put a halt on our progress as a nation.

       I will not use this space to bash Donald Trump, but I just would like to express how disappointed I am in America.  I thought we were more progressive and loving than we really are.  It seems as though this nation is more hateful, vengeful, and racist than it seemed.  I think it is imperative that if we (anyone other than straight white males, I mean) wish to retain the rights we have been granted, we need to stand together and keep our voices loud.  We cannot allow Trump and Pence to strip us of any liberties they deem unjust.  We cannot allow common people to attempt to infringe upon the rights of others, because the “Trump Effect” is real.  Trump’s behavior has not only affected adults, but children as well, and I fear that the impressionability of children with breed more and more Donald Trumps.  

        In conclusion, I pray that Trump’s whole campaign was a joke, and that once he sits in the Oval Office, he’ll shape himself up and make the right moves.  If there’s one thing I’m happy about when it comes to this election, I am happy that I am on a campus that allows me to exercise my right of free speech and allows me to communicate with other people that feel as I do.  

Surprise, surprise – it’s another sports-related article!
When you attend a sporting event at a large school (i.e. Rutgers, LSU, UDel) there’s a large likelihood that a good portion of the spectator population was attracted by things other than the love of the game. T-shirt cannons, scantily clad cheerleaders, free merchandise at the entrance – there are countless outliers that draw in crowds at games. However, that fact almost guarantees the absence of actual attention paid to the competition at hand. The fact of the matter is, larger schools draw in less athletic fans and more merchandise fans.
Stockton University’s men’s soccer team has accomplished great things so far this season. They have worked with determination at every practice and game. However, we are a small school, void of confetti machines and t-shirt cannons at every game. Therefore, the stands are rarely filled during game days. One particular evening, the men’s team played a game in the frigid rain. The game went as any other soccer game would. The boys played hard, and they acted as if the rain and slowly dropping temperature were no different than a sunny 65 degree day. The fans, however, are what caught my eye.
As I sat in the front row of the fan section, which was sparse enough for me to turn around and see most of the bleachers, the cheers and screeches rose from behind me. When the temperature dropped, no one moved. When it started drizzling, Stockton spectators only budged to pull up their hoods and continue cheering. We cheered loudly for the boys, and up rose the occasional hiss at the opposing team.
This particular crowd is one I’ll never forget. I knew almost none of their names, but I knew they were present out of love – for the game or for the school, I couldn’t tell. Their unwavering support was true, unmotivated by bribery with merchandise or shivering dancers on the field. We spectators sat in the frigid rain, on a Wednesday night, without music or shiny trinkets as a reward, just purely out of support for the boys. Now, this is in no way surpassing the effort the boys put forth to actually play in the rain rather than sit through it, but it was pretty beautiful to watch a bond form between forty some-odd strangers who really loved Stockton.

On October 18th, 2016, I was a spectator at a Stockton University women’s volleyball game. This isn’t going to be a sports narrative about how many kills a player has, or about the history of the Stockton Ospreys in volleyball, or even about the results of the game. This blog post is about how beautiful athletes are when they are doing what they do best.
Let me start by saying that I know nothing about volleyball, so my sheer enjoyment was due only to my love for athletics as a whole, not to any attachment I have to the game. That being said, this post will be written using my limited – and by limited I mean nonexistent – knowledge about volleyball. As lost as I was to how the game works, I had nothing but the purest admiration for the way the athletes moved, swiftly and knowingly. It was like an ocean that had purpose in its waves, the way the women’s team covered each other. When one girl moved toward the front line to execute a play, the athletes behind her fell into line, knowing exactly where they had to be to support her.
It’s moments like those that I can reflect on and relate teams to families and their undying support systems. Families put issues, quarrels, and grudges aside when one of their own is at risk, as did this team. If there had been a dispute between teammates at any point this season leading up to this game, I would never have been able to tell. These ladies worked with precision and effervescent words of encouragement. After every well-executed play, they quickly circled up and tapped each other on the backs, both congratulating and encouraging each other with as many words as one can cram into two seconds. This was to be expected after a successful play. However, these ladies culminated quickly in this exact same manor, even after bad plays were made.
The athletic ability of these women was outstanding. The women on the front line soared high in the air in preparation to spike the ball, as if her fluorescent Nike sneakers had wings. It’s incredible that their time in the air could be solely accredited to the power in their long legs. The player who served the ball moved her body with such precision, knowing exactly where she wanted the ball to go and marking that spot with her eyes before swiftly sending it sailing over the net. Athletes had to rotate between setting their teammates up for a spike and being the person to execute such a play, and this beautiful volatility is what makes athletics both an art form and comparable to being on the front line. You never really know what your next move will be, because you can’t predict how the opposing party will act, but you know for sure that you have to make your counter attack effective. An effective counter attack is, in many cases, a beautifully executed one, especially to another fellow athlete.
There is such beauty in how both the body and mind of an athlete works. I’m not going to reveal the outcome of this game, because truthfully, my opinion of these young women wouldn’t change no matter the score. They played with clear determination and genuine adoration for the sport, and is that not the goal of collegiate athletics? If you ever want to see beauty in its truest form, go watch the Stockton women’s volleyball team play.

Paige Weisman

Although this was not the reflection session I thought I would be attending on October 10, I was glad that I got to listen to Gregory Pardlo’s poetry. A hometown hero who grew up in New Jersey, it was refreshing to hear stories about him and his family venturing the streets of Philadelphia. When he was introduced, he was portrayed as a complex writer. The Stockton faculty member highlighted the fact that he wrote about world issues like racism and poverty, yet also incorporated other art mediums into his work. Pardlo said that Bruce Springsteen and Jimmy Page have made appearances in his prose.
When Pardlo took the stage, I felt immediately connected to him when he asked “Does anybody even know who Jimmy Page is?” I raised my hand with pride.
Beaming, he asked, “Can you tell me what he’s known for?! I just need to hear you say it out loud.” I replied, “Led Zeppelin!”
It was very relaxing to listen to a craft with which I am not familiar. His flowery word choice thrilled my inner-writer. The poet was a captivating speaker. I was engrossed in his performance. If he returned to Stockton, I would make every effort to attend because I appreciate when people can articulate their thoughts with ease and with beautiful metaphors. His public speaking skills are admirable and I can see why he is a Pulitzer Prize winner.

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.

Katie Brandt

On Saturday October 22^nd, Stockton’s Habitat for Humanity Club hosted a street clean-up on 10^th Ave in Dorothy, New Jersey.  This was a one-time-only event that was open only to members of Habitat for Humanity.  The event was slightly difficult to get to.  There was no communal transportation system.  Everyone was on their own to find a ride or carpool to take them to the clean-up location.  Attendees were also not informed as to which end of the street they were to meet, so that was a semi-confusing situation.  Other than the difficulty of getting to the location, the experience was wonderful.  For me, this was the first time I had met any other members of Habitat for Humanity.  I found this event a great way to meet new people.  Everyone was so kind and happy to be helping the environment.  At first it was a bit concerning because it was raining, however, just in time to start cleaning, the rain stopped.  Attendees were supplied with gloves and trash pickers.  The members were split into two groups: one started at one end of the street and the other group started at the opposite end.  Any piece of litter that was found was picked up a taken care of.  Everything plastic, aluminum or glass was put in a bag.  Then, any other type of garbage found was put in a separate bag to distinguish between recyclables and trash.  We all walked together and talked about are life goals and interests.  The whole situation was moving.  It was amazing seeing a group of young college students bonding while helping the environment and the world around them.  This was not a mandatory event.  Each person that came decided to voluntarily come and provide community service.

On October 13, 2016, I attended Stockton’s Afternoon of Service sponsored by Commuters on the Go.  The event was held from 4:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. in the Board of Trustee’s Room in the Campus Center.  This activity was comprised of two sections, one of which was volunteer service stations and the other being a reflection session.  As mentioned by group leader Zeal, there will be another event hosted later in the semester.

Upon arriving at the event, I noticed that there was not a large turn-out of volunteers.  Personally I found this shocking since I had heard that there was a great deal of volunteers at the Day of Service earlier in the semester.  Although I attended along with my friends, there were other attendees who I had not met before but now had to opportunity to work alongside of and meet.  The event consisted of three service projects scattered on three tables around the room.  The first project presented was a sewing project.  At this table, colorful fabric was used to sew together teddy bears and heart shaped pillows for children who suffer from cancer. Some fragmentary bears were left on the table from previous sessions and are able to be worked on at the next Afternoon of Service later in the semester.  The second project presented was a craft of making heart-shaped baskets.  The baskets are going to be given to the elderly in nursing homes for Mother’s Day.  As well, thoughtful messages were written on construction paper to be placed into the baskets.  Both the teddy bear and the basket projects were ones I did not partake in, yet, I did partake in the third project.  The third project was the creation of birthday cards for homeless families who are not financially able to purchase gifts let alone cards for their children’s birthdays.  The designs on the outside of the cards were left up to our imaginations whereas the inside of the cards were left blank.  The purpose of the card being blank on the inside was so that the families could personalize the cards for their children.

Following the volunteer aspect of the event, a brief reflection session was held.  For the reflection activity, each participant was given three post-it notes.  We were instructed to write down a person, an object, and a trait that we deemed important to us.  Randomly, we were to switch our post-it notes with someone unfamiliar to us and then to throw away one of the person’s post-its into a bin.  Then, we received our individual post-it notes and had to see which note was missing.  The purpose of the demonstration was to have people realize the detriments of losing something important to them.  For me, I was upset with the post-it note that was discarded and I cannot imagine what it would be like to actually lose it.  Overall, I found this event and dialogue session impacting and one that I wish to be a part of in the future.

Stockton Myths and Legends

Thursday, October 6th marked the beginning of University Weekend. Between movies, comedians, parades, and fairs, it was bound to be a busy few days. However, a small event on the crammed schedule caught my eye. Stockton Myths and Legends, hosted by Stockton alumni and staff. Unsure of what it could possibly be, I made my way to the event room. I grabbed a cannoli and sat down quickly in the second row, already late. Seated on the stage before me were people much older than me, talking to each other, fixing their microphones, and playing on their cellphones.

The host walked over to a separate podium and began to speak. He introduced his distinguished guests one by one. Stockton Myths and Legends, he explained, was an event where the first members of Stockton College’s pupils and professors met to speak about what the college was like when it’s doors first opened. One professor left great money in a well established school to teach a liberal arts education to students, he felt, needed it more. Another handed in her application simply because she needed a job.

They described the early days as a combined effort between students and staff to create an education they both agreed on, implementing unorthodox courses such as women’s sexuality, classes in which they created isolation chambers, and others which were extremely unordinary for the time. They created clubs left and right, and the professors even played football alongside their students. It was, as they saw, an opportunity to construct the kind of college they thought the world needed.

While all in attendance agreed that the Stockton they taught at was wonderful and unique, a distinct separation in opinion arose, those who felt the university had strayed from its original platform, and those who felt it was the same place it always was. The perennial optimist of the group argued that the alterations seen were necessary for the University to grow and spread its ideals; his counterpart maintained that Stockton changed for the worse and had already conformed too much.

I like to hope that Stockton is still the place that they called home all those years ago, but who am I to say? The event was hilarious, enlightening, and gave me a whole new love for my school. As I shuffled through the double doors, University Weekend t-shirt in hand, I decided I would certainly be attending next year’s event too.

Eryn Swineford

Early Sunday morning, my lacrosse team and I volunteered at the Atlantic City Half Marathon as the 2.5 mile refreshment team. I woke up at 5:00, put on an absurd amount of layers (morning temperature 42 degrees), and drove the half hour from Stockton to the main drag of the marathon. It was still dark and windy, but our team was in it together. As soon we realized the full extent of the weather, we immediately sent a few of our teammates on a WaWa run to get hot chocolate and bagels for everyone. Then we had to set up the tables and start pouring refreshments for over five thousand runners that would soon be upon us. I was working the first table of water with three other teammates and we had the entire table full of water before the race started at 8:00. Miraculously the first group of the fastest runners came past our table at 8:13! They were moving so quickly that nearly all of the water spilled out of the cup when I tried to hand it off. Then around 8:25 an enormous mob started moving towards us. I frantically started handing water to the runners as my other teammates poured more cups, but it was nearly impossible to keep up with the demand. Water was spilling everywhere, crushed cups were strewn around the road, and people were stripping layers off and tossing them aside. In the midst of all of this hectic action, runners were thanking us for encouraging them and cheering them on and telling us how much they appreciated the volunteers. It was at that I started truly enjoying the volunteer work. Our team bonded so much that we agreed to do it again next year!

Kristen Russo

             On October 7^th, 2016, the Stockton Student Development was in the midst of its annual University Weekend celebrations. On this particular night, they were hosting Chris Distefano from MTV’s Guy Code in Big Blue. I had arrived early so that I could ensure a seat in the front. I was especially excited because I had never been so close to a celebrity before. As I made my way inside, those who had organized the event were handing out free t-shirts, which made me even more excited to attend the event. Who doesn’t love a free t-shirt, right?

            The night was an overall success. Chris Distefano was absolutely hilarious. He cracked jokes about the various majors of the students, his Hispanic wife and daughter, and even the elections. My favorite part of the night had to be when one of the students asked Chris, “Are you going to chop your balls off when you vote for Hilary?” to which he replied “You clearly haven’t been listening to me the whole night. My girlfriend owns my balls. Are you going to put your confederate flag up when you vote for Trump?” As freshman, I was at first surprised he could say that, but then I remembered college is a lot less filtered, and I really felt myself enjoying the event and appreciating college.

The next day was the street fair, which I was excited to bring my family to. It was nicely organized and there were many vendors to buy food from. Unfortunately, I had missed the parade due to the rain, but it was nice to see what was left of the event. Perhaps for the street fair next year, student development might consider having the vendors in a closer proximity as the trucks and table were spread out from each other. This made the event space look quite empty. Other than this, it was a fun event to the addition of the weekend, and family enjoyed it as well. It left me excited to see what is in store for next year. (Nudar Chowdhury)