On September 17 and 18, 2013, the Stockton Office of Student Development organized an event called the “Get Involved Fair.” This event offered students a variety of ways to get involved with Stockton clubs and activities this fall.  The tables were arranged down the halls through A to J wing. Tables had representatives from fraternities, sororities, major specific clubs, club sports, student leadership organizations, and volunteer opportunities. Many tables appealed to me. However, since I am a freshman, who is still getting acclimated, I decided to minimize my sign-ups.

I approached three tables at the fair. All of the representatives at each table were welcoming, upbeat, and informative. The representatives for the sorority I approached gave me information about upcoming socials and events they were hosting. They encouraged me to come out and experience these events to make my decision process easier next semester.  The next table I visited was Circle K. Their representatives described different volunteer events I could participate in, which would help me satisfy the service learning requirements for the honors program here at Stockton. The final table I visited was the Public Health Club. I found myself the most interested in this table mainly because I am majoring in Public Health with a concentration in Healthcare Administration. The president of the club explained how last year’s members volunteered at health practices and Relay for Life walks to raise money for diseases like Alzheimer’s and cancer. I think this club is perfect for me because it provides me with the opportunity to participate in volunteer work that I am very interested in. These volunteer projects will also be great real world experiences for my career goals.

I found attending this event was very helpful. The “Get Involved Fair” made it much easier to see everything Stockton has to offer and find out what is best for me. Getting involved with these great clubs and activities will make the college experience much more enjoyable. I highly recommend attending this two-day event every semester.

Thomas Guardino

Professor Lenard

Honors Program

October 2015

Blog Post: Munchie Monday

On a sunny Monday morning, I had decided it was in my best interest to go and get food. I put on my shoes and exited my residential hall and was under the impression that there would not be any surprises on the way. However, that is the funny thing about surprises, you never know when one is coming. I entered the Campus Center at the end near the Dunkin Donuts and questioned why there is always such a long line. As I walked up the three steps that lead to the main hallway of the campus center, my stomach growled.

At a distance, I was able to see a figure of a woman standing near the wall behind a small cart with baskets on it. I had no idea what this could have been so I ignored my thoughts and continued walking. As I passed the woman, she smiled and asked if I would like a free snack. Taken back, I asked, “What is the catch?”.

She replied with a smile, “No catch, just need to swipe your ID card”.

I was thoroughly surprised and I handed her my card. Afterwards, she let me choose one snack from the wide selection. The choices were limitless, and they ranged from Welch’s fruit snacks to Lay’s potato chips and even had Raisinettes for the healthy munchers out there. Mulling over the options, a wave of excitement came over me as I discovered the Ritz Bitz that were hiding behind Cheetos that I almost grabbed.

As I walked away, I thanked the nice woman who had indirectly made my day just a little bit better. This type of action by the University, I realized, is something that is incredibly uplifting and great for general morality of the student body. It is the little things like this that have brought out my true love and admiration for Stockton University.

On September 26, 2013, all freshman were asked to attend a Convocation with writer Mary Roach, author of the summer reading book Spook: Science Tackles the Afterlife. During this event, Mary Roach gave students the inside scoop on the workings of her book. She talked about her travels, her struggles, and everything about being a scientific writer.

I must say, Mary Roach is a very unique individual. She has no shame in discussing the most vulgar topics and answering the most ridiculous questions. She went from talking about being in Cambridge at the medium school to discussing hyenas giving birth through their clitoris. That discussion got the crowd energetic and constantly laughing. During her entire time at the Convocation she interacted with the crowd and kept everyone interested. For example, she asked the crowd a question: What other part of your body can have an erection besides the penis? Everyone had very unique answers, but none where the right one. Come to find out the answer was the nasal cavity. This shocked everyone, and I will carry that fun fact with me forever. It was an all around fun time at the convocation with Mary Roach.

Then the conversation turned serious. Through all the laughter and crazy stories there was an underlying meaning that Roach wanted us all to understand. To paraphrase Mary Roach, curiosity is your greatest asset. If you are not curious, you are not living. She talked about how her main drive for writing her books was pure curiosity for things. She encouraged all of us to live life asking questions and looking for the answers.

I was truly inspired by Mary Roach’s presentation. She justified her book to the criticism presented, and she expressed her love for her writing and curiosity. She has encouraged me to question things and strive to find the answers based on my own will to solve the problem.

Thomas Guardino

Day of Service

September 12, 2015

On the morning of September 12, 2015, I was not entirely sure what to expect of the Day of Service. We were greeted with breakfast and broken up into teams. After opening remarks, our teams were sent to our first activities of the day. For Team Red, we entered the Theater and sat down to listen to representatives from various organizations.

Of the organizations in the Theater that spoke to us, the one that definitely caught my attention the most was the Covenant House. Located in Atlantic City, New Jersey, this organization opened my eyes to a new perspective on homelessness. This is a shelter for mostly teens who are without a safe home to return to every night. They offer over twenty beds and three meals a day. They provide the opportunity for these lost teens to continue their education and push them to do so.

Growing up with a father who commuted into Manhattan every day and tagging along to multiple ‘Bring Your Kid to Work’ days, I had always been familiar with the homeless that inhabited the busy streets. However, they all seemed to be middle-aged. I never truly considered what it may be like for a teenager to be in that horrible situation. Since poverty and homelessness is a scary reality, it is comforting to know that these unfortunate teens have a place to go where they will be taken care of.

To start my Homecoming weekend off right I went to the showing of “Monster’s University” in the campus center on Thursday October 3, 2013. Although I narrowly missed winning the Wawa gift card I wanted, I had a great time watching the movie and sitting with some of the girls from my floor. Little did I know it was the start to hectic and crazy weekend.

Friday began as just another normal day for me. I woke up. Got breakfast. Went to class. Got lunch. Went back to my dorm. But, at 4:30, my floor mates and I walked over to see the Homecoming parade. The weather felt like summer and we sat in the grass right by the judges’ table. As the different clubs and organizations went by we got lots of handouts that included candy (which I particularly enjoyed) and invitations to their meetings. All of the golf carts were beautifully decorated and all showed off the groups’ personalities. A club I had just joined, the American Sign Language Club, had (in my humble opinion) one of the best floats, connecting sign language to the theme of the weekend, Stocktonopoly. Afterwards we all rushed over to the pep rally.

I must be honest- I did not expect such a pepped up pep rally. All of the students and faculty were so excited for Homecoming weekend and had so much school spirit. All of the sports teams were introduced, along with their collective many championships won. Many fraternities and sororities made appearances at the pep rally as did many clubs. The dance team and the cheerleading squad both performed. The ASL club did an amazing performance of “Roar” by Katy Perry in sign language that absolutely stunned the crowd. After the crowd was all excited, we all went in to get our free Stocktonopoly t-shirts and the bonfire began. The bonfire was huge, and it lit up the entire freshman quad. My friends and I were disappointed that we could not roast marshmallows or make smores on the fire. We couldn’t get close enough to the fire to do that even if we had really wanted to.

The big events all happened Saturday- the carnival and then the dance. My parents and younger brother came down for the day, and I loved spending time with them. My brother made me do all the blow-up obstacle courses with him and mocked me because I was slower than him. It’s worth mentioning that he is ten and it was way easier for him to manage the obstacle courses than it was for me. My parents took us out to my favorite restaurant Applebee’s for dinner, and it was amazing to have a real, off-campus meal for the first time in almost a month. After dinner we said our goodbyes so I could get ready for the dance.

My entire floor was in a frenzy getting ready for the dance, making sure our hair and makeup were perfect. We took floor pictures with our wood cutout of Gloria from “Madagascar” in the common room, which resulted in us being late to the dance. By the time we got there everything was already underway, and the party was pumping. I personally took off my heels as soon as we walked through the door and headed straight for the dance floor. Shortly thereafter my group of friends and I had formed a rather large circle on the dance floor and were having a blast (our song “The Fox” even came on). I danced the night away with my girls and I couldn’t have asked for a better freshman Homecoming dance. What a way to kick off my college experience.

Overall my first Homecoming weekend here at Stockton was full of fun, laughter, family, friendship and good food. I can absolutely not wait until next year!

Adam Smith

Dr. Rosner

GEN 1033-003

10/16/15

Freshman Blogging Project: Sherlock Holmes

On Friday, October 2nd, at 7:30 p.m., I sprinted through the dark parking lot in the pouring rain towards Stockton University’s Performing Arts Center. As I neared the building I noticed a crowd of people standing inside. Contrary to my prior beliefs, I soon realized that the Sherlock Holmes play that I was about to watch was for more than just Stockton students, but also for those around the community who enjoy the arts. I entered the theatre in my rain-soaked clothes, took my seat amongst the audience and waited for the show to begin.

As the play commenced, I was shocked to see that the main character, Sherlock Holmes was played by a woman. Whispers murmured around the audience as soon as Holmes stepped on stage. The play continued on and it soon became apparent that not only was Holmes played by an actress, but the character was actually referred to as a “she”! Various characters, including Watson, who was played by a male, would refer to Holmes as a woman. The show went on and Holmes did as Holmes usually does, and used his or her heightened intelligence and analytical thinking process to solve an “unsolvable mystery”. In this case, the play actually focused on three simultaneous mysteries.

Due to the sex-change of the main character and the already confusing plot, I found myself struggling to keep along with the play’s storyline. Out of the three mysteries present in the play, I was only able to really follow one of them. This particular mystery revolved around a white husband and wife. The wife would often sneak out in the dead of night, long after her husband is asleep, and would venture off to an old abandoned house nearby. One night, her husband is awakened by her leaving and waits for her return. It is revealed to the audience, with the help of Holmes, that the woman was visiting the child of her previous husband. The child was African American and lived in the abandoned house, where the woman’s new husband would not see her.  

All ends well for the couple and the child, but I still found myself wondering why the director of the play chose to do what he did. Why did he or she change Holme’s sexuality, and not that of any other characters? Why did the director not inform the audience why he or she did this? I found that this took away from the play, not because Holmes was a woman, but because it was not explained. I found myself pondering this idea more so than the actual play’s  plot.

Sherlock Holmes is a world-renowned fictional character that has made appearances in all forms of media. In the Sherlock Holmes play hosted by Stockton University on October 2nd, the director of the performance made the decision to change the sexuality of the main character without explaining why. I would argue that this change had a negative impact on the play because it added to the confusion of the already perplexing plot. After discussing this topic with my peers, various conspiracies arose to why this happened. These explanations varied widely. Some believed that the director was trying to prove a point that women can play a role just as well as men, while others thought it was just because this particular actor could play the violin. A way to clear this confusion would be a simple explanation as to why the director chose to do this before or after the performance, rather than leaving the audience to attempt to guess for themselves. The play was an entertaining experience, but could have been easily enhanced with little effort.

Adam Smith

Dr. Rosner

GEN 1033: Life of the Mind

11/17/15

Stockton University vs. Montclair State University Volleyball Game

As I swiped my Stockton ID and walked into the gymnasium in Big Blue at 2:00 pm on the 7th of November, I looked eagerly at the volleyball nets as this would be the first college level volleyball game I would watch. I took my seat next to my friends and waited for the National Anthem to play. Everyone removed their hats and faced the flag as the song played over the sound system. I glanced towards the players they all seemed to glow with excitement. As the song finished, Stockton’s women’s volleyball team walked towards center court to meet their opponents, Montclair State University. After shaking hands, the referees told the players to take their positions. The match was about to begin.

The referee blew his whistle to start the match and immediately cheers from the stands commenced. “Go Stockton!”, “Let’s go Ospreys!”, “Beat Montclair!”, all rang throughout the stands as the Stockton served the ball. After a short rally, Stockton’s Stephanie Kovacs spiked the ball down to win the point. It became clear that Stockton would lead this match. As the match progressed on, I soon learned that a college level game of volley is won by the team who wins best three out of five matches. A match is won by whichever team wins 25 points first. Stockton quickly accumulated 25 points, beating MSU, with 16 points.

Although the attendance was only 233, the enthusiasm of the Stockton fan base made up for the lack of people. Everyone was wearing their osprey apparel as they cheered their team on. The second match soon began and MSU ran on to the court with more excitement than before. MSU took the lead with two aces and a spike. An ace is a term used for when the player serves the ball and wins the point without the opposing team returning it. Stockton took a timeout and rotated in new players. They stepped back on the court with confidence and started the clock again. The new players quickly regained the lead and won the set. The MSU players bowed their heads as they lost the second set 18 to 25 and walked toward the bench to receive a pep talk.

After a five minute break filled with osprey cheer and support, the two teams took their places on the court and began the match. It was evident that MSU’s defense was slowly crumbling as Stockton continuously scored point after point. “Choke! Choke!” screamed a few Stockton fans to the right of me. MSU served the ball only to be spiked back down by Stockton’s Macy Schwartz. It was 24 to 10. Stockton was in the lead and only needed one point to win the final match. Lindsay Schuele served the ball, but MSU took possession and set themselves up for a spike. The audience stared at the ball, eager for the match to end as a MSU player smacked the ball down towards the ground, but just as it was about to hit the floor Kovacs saved the ball and gently bumped it over the net. MSU stared in disbelief as the ball fell into their court and hit the ground. “We won!” cheered the crowded as the women’s team rushed the court and hugged each other. After a few minutes of celebration, the stands cleared and I walked outside with my friends. The women’s team’s win over MSU invigorated me and left me wanting to attend more athletic events at Stockton to support the Ospreys.

Helping out with the club S.E.T. (Stockton Entertainment Team) has been a major part of the contributions I have made to this university. It allows for me to work with friends and many other new members of the group as we organize and spread news of upcoming events around campus. The club is ran by several upper classmen students on an executive board. Among them some are Nicole Leppert, Hannah Feldman, Sarah Voishnis, and Chelsea Miller. They hold meetings every Thursday at 5 o’clock in room B-125. There is one major event in the fall and spring semesters. This year it was the comedian Carly Aquilino in the fall, who took the stage during University Weekend on Friday October 9^th. The performance went great and it only continued to bring attention to the Stockton Entertainment Team and their work. In the spring is the highly anticipated annual concert, WoodStockton! Last year’s show was highlighted by Panic! At the Disco, and was very well received. Recently the club has sent out this year’s options for possible bands to play at WoodStockton 2016, in order to see what the rest of the students would like to hear. Some of the options are Snoop Dogg, Third Eye Blind, and Gym Class Heroes. All students received a poll in their Stockton email so that S.E.T. can get the most desired performer this spring!

I myself have contributed to the club by tabling for the S.E.T. information table, handing out flyers for Taco Tuesday, and helping to set up for the Halloween dessert bar. I hope to gain enough “Piggy Points” by participating in these events so that I can meet the band that performs at WoodStockton, just like several S.E.T. members met the lead singer from Panic! At the Disco last year. Despite that incentive, it is fun and rewarding helping out with the different weekly events knowing you are making others happier and more comfortable on campus. Therefore I plan on staying with this club and possibly running for a position later in my time at Stockton University.