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(05/02/17 6:48am)
By Kelly Corbett
If you asked me what I’ve learned at the College these past four years, apart from my course load, I’d have a lot to tell you. I’ve learned how to disguise my demons, forge small talk with a classmate or professor while my mental state was in shambles, listen to weird music at 2 a.m. while looping around the track and stop myself from crying in class when someone would say something ignorant, all the while managing to not let my GPA take a plunge. Basically, I learned how to hide that I wasn’t OK.
Not only did mental health become a theme in my life, but it also became a theme on this campus. Three students and one assistant provost died by suicide during my time here. This wasn’t some over-the-top fictional movie I was watching: this was real life. The people around me were struggling with mental health.
Over the past couple semesters, I’ve voiced a few frustrations I’ve had with the mental health facilities at the College. Many of the pieces I’ve written have involved actions that weren’t necessarily a quick fix. I thought I’d use this piece to list a few easy solutions that the College and Counseling and Psychological Services should take into consideration for bettering mental health on campus. Spoiler: they don’t involve construction or additional funds.
First, I think CAPS should nix their application process for monologue events. Every semester CAPS hosts events that provide students the opportunity to share their personal stories in the form of a monologue. Every monologue series has a theme dealing with mental health. In the past, CAPS has used the idea of stigmas or eating disorders as topics for students to talk about. Monologues are raw, honest and exactly the type of rich dialogue that members of the College should have on their radar. The issue is not every student who is willing to share is allowed to share.
Monologue events require students to sign up using qualtrics, which is an online survey. After students sign up, only certain stories are chosen for the lineup. This system is insanely selective. Shouldn’t everyone’s story be told? Mental illness involves one dealing with their day-to-day demons and it takes so much courage to be vocal about this. I was rejected at first from the eating disorder monologues last spring and I was only allowed to speak after someone in the lineup had dropped out. It made me feel like my experience with an eating disorder was not as valuable as someone else’s.
While I understand that there are time constraints with including everyone’s stories, would extending the program or breaking it up into a multiple day event be that problematic? I feel like CAPS peer educators screen applicants far too intensely for these events and only try to select students that share certain messages in their accounts. The monologue events would be much more enriching if everyone’s voice was incorporated.
Second, I think the College’s social media channels could use a little reboot. If there is an event on campus dealing with students discussing mental health, why not toss a post about it on the College’s official Facebook or Twitter beforehand with details on its time and location? Better yet, since it’s mental health awareness month, would it be so out of line to commemorate it on the College’s Instagram, and post links in the photo’s caption that lead to a list of resources for students? I’m not just talking about mental health issues — LGBTQ+ issues, racism and environmental issues all deserve attention.
I have recently seen more facile posts on the College’s social media channels, celebrating events like denim day and promoting selfies for self-care. I’ve also seen posts showing off our picturesque campus and honoring alumni with jobs at elite companies. There simply aren’t enough posts that show how we, as a school, can be deep. We need to show that the College is a school that cares about touchy topics, like mental health. The school tends to only shine a light on academic achievements. However, the ability for students to be compassionate and share what makes them vulnerable is also a major accomplishment that should not go unnoticed.
Third, while professional help is ideal for those trying to cope with their own personal issues, we shouldn’t oust smaller-scale resources. The CAPS website can serve as a resource for students, but it is not marketed well. I checked out Ramapo College’s mental health counseling website and was impressed by what its site has to offer: It has an anonymous screening portion that assesses all forms of mental illness, an “Are you concerned about someone?” section, a self-help section that includes links to TED Talks and adult coloring pages. There is even a featured section that gives students tips on how to cope while waiting for their appointment, as well as a schedule of all mental health related events on campus. I feel that it takes too much digging to find valuable resources on the CAPS website and many students are unaware that there is more in it besides general information on the facility itself.
Fourth, in order to better cater to the schedules of various students, CAPS should consider making its counselors’ schedules more versatile. Counselors have a typical Monday through Friday workweek schedule from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., which provides a very limited window for full-time students seeking help. Instead of scheduling all counselors at the same time, shifts should be staggered. Perhaps half of the counselors could have a noon to 8:00 p.m. shift to offer students a more flexible appointment time. While it is understandable that the current hours are ideal for the counselors, having later shifts would better accommodate the student body.
Lastly, communication about mental health at this school is a weak point. In a previous article I wrote, I spoke about the parking garage barriers that exist as means restriction for suicide prevention. The students were notified by email that construction would be taking place in the parking garages, but were never told that this was the reason why. Also, since my freshman year at the College, I’ve been told that CAPS is the go-to place for students who are struggling. It wasn’t until I went to counseling at CAPS and poured my heart out that I discovered the way counselors help students is by referring them to off-campus providers. When I expressed to CAPS that I didn’t have the transportation to go to therapy, I was told to rent a car. While the College has addressed this transportation issue recently with the opening of InFocus Urgent Care, it shouldn’t be forgotten that its rejection of vulnerable students has been a reality.
When I was in an emotionally disheveled state in the CAPS office the idea hit me that I wasn’t the only one that wasn’t receiving the help I needed. I realized that there were other students besides me who weren’t being provided the emotional support that they deserved. The College, along with CAPS, have kept the topic of mental illness hush hush. Everyone has experienced vulnerability and it’s important to acknowledge that overcoming our weaknesses is what has made us successful students. Therefore, the conversation about mental health on this campus should be constant, candid and limitless.
I challenge this campus to speak more about mental health, to share more experiences and above all, listen.
(04/24/17 3:16pm)
By Kelly Corbett
Staff Writer
Grab a free condom and a raffle ticket, and take a seat. Kesha and Lady Gaga tunes blasted in the background as a mix of performers channeled their inner diva and took the stage. They looked so flawless, you might have mistaken them for Beyoncé.
Soon a posse of fraternity brothers only wearing Calvin Klein underwear, socks and glitter pranced across the floor, collecting money in Easter baskets. Dollars waved in the air, but for a good cause.
At PRISM’s Annual Charity Drag Show on Thursday, April 20, it didn’t feel like the Brower Student Center anymore, but a galaxy far, far away where Miss Queen of the Universe would be crowned.
The celestial spectacle brought in money for HiTops in Princeton, N.J., which is a youth education center that provides LGBTQIA+ services, such as support groups and youth forums. The night consisted of student acts and professional local acts donning the most fabulous of attires, while treating the audience to some stellar moves and lip-synced tunes.
The event was hosted by drag queen alumna Davida Sky (’16), who took the stage in a green and black outfit and silver ombre hair. She knew how to captivate the audience, whether it was through smooth moves or jokes.
When an old song played, she joked, “That song is gone like... Eve.”
The night also included some drag queen acts from professionals: Cyannie Lopez from Trenton, N.J., Rhedd Rumm from Asbury Park, N.J., and Princess Sequoia from Florence, N.J.
The night wouldn’t be complete, however, without student performers who competed for the title of Miss Queen of the Universe.
Audience members donated throughout the night to their favorite acts. Donations were collected by a slew of almost naked fraternity brothers from different organizations on campus.
The first student act was Dorina Dovely, who performed to Anita Ward’s “Ring My Bell.” Her act included props, mainly junior political science major and Phi Alpha Delta brother Nicholas Gangemi, and a paper plate. There was some booty grinding and an outfit quick-change by Dovely, who went from a striped dress and red stockings to a white fur coat with black stripes and some pearls. She also lost her wig in the process.
Next to take the stage was Ebony Dark’ness Dementia Raven Way, singing Evanescence’s “My Immortal.” Typically a dark tune, Ebony brightened it up with her pink headband, scarf, pigtails and skirt.
The student acts took an impromptu intermission after some technical difficulties arose and raffled off space-themed items including a galaxy pillow and a star projector.
Then, a runway contest allowed audience members to show off their sickest strut. The strutter with the most claps was deemed the winner.
Lopez took this time to share some wisdom with the audience.
“Milk does the body good, and I’m not talking about the milk you buy,” she joked. “That man milk.”
Despite being married, she joked about polygamy, as well.
“Men are like the 601 and 609 bus,” she said. “They are all going to the same place.”
Lopez then selected a man from the audience and gave him a pop quiz.
“How many legs does a rooster have?” she asked.
He answered two. Then she asked, “How many teeth does a cat has?”
When the boy didn’t know, she responded, “You know more about cock than pussy!”
The student performances then got back into full swing with duo Hyde N’Sique, performing Fall Out Boy’s “Uma Thurman.” The pair role-played the song.
Miss Virginia Hamm, wearing a full-length zebra striped dress and a furry black scarf, closed the show with “Fabulous Baby” from “Sister Act.”
She literally kicked off her performance, even hitting an audience member with her shoe.
As the performances commenced, the winners were announced and awarded a tiara and a gift card. Third place went to Ebony Dark’ness Dementia Raven Way, second place to Hyde N’Sique and first place to Miss Virginia Hamm.
By the end of the night, the event raised more than $400 for HiTops.
(04/10/17 6:49pm)
By Kelly Corbett
Lot 7 underwent a short construction project earlier this semester. The end result was a black wire fence installed, barricading the third floor ledge.
If my parents had seen this when we took our first tour of the College, they would have been reluctant, at the least, about the school. A barrier like this is not a typical amenity to a university. So, why did the College build one?
“The College built the barriers as a ‘means restriction’ measure,” said Luke Sacks, head media relations officer at the College. “Limitation of access to lethal methods used for death by suicide is an important and effective strategy for suicide prevention.”
While suicide prevention should be prominent on any university’s agenda, this was not the right action for our school to take. It sends a negative message to visitors and fails to address the root of suicide problems: mental health.
No one wants another harrowing headline about how the College lost another student. We identify as a “survivor school,” with five deaths by suicide in a four-year period, and this barrier is only advertising this message. It sends a message to visitors, prospective students and their families that this is a place where students consider taking their own lives.
This fence is also futile to suicide prevention efforts. The roof is still open. The second floor is still open, and other campus garages have gone untouched by this “means restriction” initiative. Suicide is still very possible at the College, and this barrier really serves no other purpose than to visibly taint our school as an institution where suicide is an issue.
It diminishes the appeal of the College when you see a “means restriction” like this. It is similar to how sweatshops in China install suicide nets to prevent their overworked mental illness-ridden employees from succeeding in their dreary mission.
Currently, no other “means restriction” construction projects are scheduled, according to Sacks. Yet, it makes me fear how the College is approaching the mental health situation on campus. Instead of taking action early on and addressing the underlying issue, the College put up this fence that can only attempt to save a student at what could be his or her very last few seconds of life. At this point, it is far too late to be stepping in. Mental illness is the stimulus for suicide and, unfortunately, mental health resources are the College’s shortcoming.
With the TCNJ Clinic scheduled to close at the end of the academic year and CAPS presently only offering short-term treatment to students in need, the College recently communicated a plan to students.
“We are happy to announce that ‘InFocus Urgent Care’ will not only be providing urgent medical care to the surrounding community, but will also have licensed mental health professionals on staff to offer longer-term counseling to TCNJ students in need of these services,” wrote Amy Hecht, vice president for Student Affairs in an email to the College community on Monday, April 10.
InFocus Urgent Care will be located in Campus Town and is slated to open this summer, according to Hecht. While news of another medical facility opening nearby is a stride in the right direction, I cross my fingers that there is a sufficient amount of licensed mental health professionals, versed in many different areas of mental health, available to accommodate both the TCNJ community and the surrounding community. As urgent care facilities are not the typical environment to go for counseling, I hope setbacks such as placing students on a waitlist for therapy, as CAPS had done, will not be destined in this facility’s future. Also, that tuition rates for either Campus Town or campus as a whole will not dramatically reflect this new addition.
While I see efforts are being made, resources are still limited. This urgent care will not be open 24 hours and will close long before we’ve winded down for the night. For a buzzing student body, we need something open later than our classes run. While this is a promise by the College I am looking forward to seeing come to fruition, I still wonder about their rationale behind other decisions. I just can’t follow why this unusual parking garage accessory, that’s not fixing the problem and only going to put the wrong taste in visitors’ mouths, was installed.
Students share opinions around campus
“Does the College pay attention to mental health?”
"Yes, they have a lot of services readily available."
“Yes, the campus does a good job of promoting mental health. There are plenty of services.”
(11/29/16 1:54am)
By Kelly Corbett
Staff Writer
Martin Luther King Jr. had a dream of African American advancement through gains in civil and economic rights. Fast forward to 2016, when racial unrest in American cities is headlining the news, the gender wage gap remains unresolved and the next president to step into the Oval Office is perceived by many as disrespectful to women and minorities.
Psychology alumna Henrietta Hanson (’15) had a dream of her own — to produce a music video that paid tribute to the black community at the College.
In a two-minute music video titled “TCNJ Formation,” Hanson brought this vision to life Queen B style.
Hanson’s project was inspired by Beyoncé’s hit music video,“Formation.” Filming for Hanson’s video was done on the College’s campus in April. The editing process continued through the summer. The final video was uploaded to Vimeo and YouTube in September, but circulated on social media earlier this month.
“I honestly really wanted to convey a sense of unity and community of black women on TCNJ’s campus,” Hanson said. “I felt like we’re here, but people rarely see us all together.”
While Beyoncé’s version illustrated multiple themes, Hanson capitalized on the unity of black women at the College. She said she chose to feature women of various career paths in different locations on campus to depict the range of beauty in the black community.
“We’re different in many ways and the same in others. We’re human,” she said.
After tossing a couple of ideas around, Hanson said she “started calling and texting nearly every black girl on campus” to take part in the video.
Hanson, who works full-time as a teacher, recruited journalism alumna Raya Brashear-Evans (’16) to help with the filming process. Featured in the video are alumni and current students from the College’s Black Student Union, Association of Students for Africa, Blackout Step Team, Association of Students for Africa’s Dance Team and the various African American sororities on campus — Alpha Kappa Alpha, Delta Sigma Theta and Zeta Phi Beta.
The women can be seen in the video by the College’s entrance sign, on the Library stairs, outside Green Hall, on the Science Complex’s fountain and even laying on top of Roscoe the Lion. Almost every spot of the College campus is featured, illustrating that this is their campus.
“Formation” plays throughout the video. Some of the women featured can be spotted lip synching the lyrics. Donning all black clothing with their hands on their hips, these women demonstrate their fierce demeanor, strength and ferocity.
In the second half of the video, the talent brought out a splash of color through African headdresses, attire and sorority apparel. The end showed the ladies getting into formation by a wall of graffiti.
“TCNJ Formation” has approximately 1,700 views online. The video has also aired on Philadelphia’s local TV channel 66 and Verizon channel 29 on Saturdays at 12:30 p.m. throughout the month of November.
Hanson said she respects Beyoncé and her work.
“I admire everything about her — her art, her sense of normalcy and her black girl magic,” she said.
Hanson noted that Beyoncé also focuses on themes of police brutality and New Orleans culture in the “Formation” video.
“I think (Beyoncé) wanted to show that black people are amazing and magical, but we are most importantly real and human,” Hanson said. “We don’t deserve to get treated as threats.”
While Beyoncé’s version of the video raised a lot of controversy in early 2016, Hanson hopes that “TCNJ Formation” provides a more inclusive sense of unity among the College community.
Hanson also hinted at other upcoming projects.
“They aren’t just pockets of minorities on campus,” Hanson said. “We have a presence and we are amazing people that do amazing things.”
(10/25/16 1:24am)
By Kelly Corbett
Staff Writer
Dear Signal readers, how do you thank someone who has helped you through a rough patch in your life?
Students gathered in the Library Auditorium for the Dear Helper Monologues on Monday, Oct. 17, for a night dedicated to saying thanks to all those special helpers in our lives.
The event, hosted by the TCNJ Student Alliance to Facilitate Empathy (SAFE), gave students the opportunity to read anonymous letters aloud that they have written to people who helped them in the past.
The first to give thanks was senior English major Zoe Schiff, whose helper wasn’t a close friend or family member, but someone she randomly met on the train to work over the summer.
“This person changed my life,” Schiff said. “It was one of those life-changing summers that people always post about on Instagram.”
At the time, Schiff had just taken a new job caring for children with special needs, but working with them proved to be a challenge. Schiff thought the special needs kids were in a tough environment, where they couldn’t just be kids. She wanted to help, but felt stressed and uneasy at work.
Every day on the train to and from work, Schiff confided in her helper, a man who she estimates to be in his 40s. He listened to her, gave advice and helped Schiff make the most of her job.
Schiff said their relationship was a real friendship. She even cried on her last day of work when he got off the train.
“He made such an impact on my life and because of him, I now bring that energy to my relationships,” Schiff said.
Sophomore technology education major Anna Chervinsky took to the stage next to thank her helper.
Chervinsky’s helper, who she said is a couple years older, always had her back, even when it came to those behind-the-scenes moments in life.
“You’ve inspired me to be so much better than my average self,” Chervinsky said.
Next, senior communication studies major Kayla Lafi described how her helper made her feel at home after a rough patch she went through last winter break.
Lafi had recently transferred to the College, had just broken up with her boyfriend after discovering he cheated on her and was diagnosed with Stage I cancer. Depression quickly took over and Lafi felt alone.
“Blinking, breathing and speaking took a lot of effort. I thought I was ready to give up,” Lafi said. “But then, spring recruitment came along.”
Lafi found herself at home with the sisters of Sigma Sigma Sigma sorority.
“I never met a group of girls with such open hearts,” Lafi said. “Now, I realize I am valued and I belong.”
Last to share their story was freshman interactive multimedia major Robin Friedman. In his letter, Friedman thanked someone who helped him realize that he didn’t have to suppress his emotions any longer and could finally value himself.
Friedman explained that he never liked to cry — the thought of tears, snot and ugly face contortions kept Friedman from letting go in times of need.
“You taught me it is OK to cry and listen to my feelings,” Friedman said. “I could finally imagine more than literally a few weeks ahead.”
Besides emotionally freeing him, the helper inspired a newfound self-confidence in Friedman.
The monologues ended with an open-mic, during which some of the TCNJ SAFE executive board members gave thanks to their own special helpers.
TCNJ SAFE, a non-directive support network, creates and provides an environment of empathy for students by conducting supportive group meetings.
While the organization is student-run and members are not trained to give advice or diagnose one another, TCNJ SAFE invites students to share their experiences with their fellow peers in their meetings and at campus events like the Dear Helper Monologues.
(10/17/16 9:44pm)
By Kelly Corbett
It's 10 minutes into class and nothing makes sense. You’re tired and unable to concentrate, yet proud of yourself for even getting out of bed. It’s been a rough week.
Maybe you’ve eaten an uncomfortable amount or barely eaten at all. Maybe your anxiety is spiraling out of control over an upcoming exam or your head is clouded with dark thoughts. Something isn’t right and you’re in need of help. Where can you turn?
Last semester, I wrote a piece for The Signal titled “CAPS turns down some students in need” that detailed my struggle with binge eating disorder and depression, and how professionals at Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) could not offer me help in their office.
The staff at CAPS told me I required an extensive treatment program, but CAPS is a short-term treatment facility. I was denied counseling and told to look off campus for help, where I’d have to pay for sessions. When I said I didn’t have a car on campus, they suggested I rent one. When I told them I have class everyday and am heavily involved on campus, which leaves me little time to travel to therapy, they made me feel like I wasn’t making an effort to get better.
CAPS could not let me join its “Food, Mood and You” support group because I was not yet in a long-term treatment program, and they were afraid some of the language might be triggering to me.
While my depression was eased by antidepressants prescribed by my doctor at home, it didn’t mean I was completely off the spectrum. Still, I was given no help from the College.
It killed me to know that a group of licensed counseling psychologists sat cozily in room 107 of Eickhoff Hall while I sat in my Townhouse South bed, red-eyed and hopeless.
After publishing my article, though, comments on my Facebook and The Signal website hinted that I wasn’t the only student who felt toyed with by CAPS.
To every student, administrator or CAPS employee reading this: please don’t think I’m overreacting. Please don’t frame me as a monster trying to dump on the campus’ mental health facility. I’m sure CAPS has brought light back into many students’ lives. I just don’t think it’s doing enough.
Since I started at the College in Fall 2013, three students have died by suicide. Two of them would have graduated with me this May, and the third would have graduated in 2018. A school this small shouldn’t boast statistics like this. How many more tragedies have to occur at the College for CAPS to get the memo that mental health is extremely important?
It was incredibly difficult for me to tell a counseling psychologist that I have an eating disorder — that I felt as if I had lost control of something as simple as eating and that I have to take antidepressants every morning just so I could get through the day.
There is a place on campus that could have helped me, but didn’t. I tried to make use of one of the facilities on campus that is included in the Student Service Fee students pay each year, but couldn’t.
After my article was published, a CAPS counseling psychologist emailed me and asked if I wanted to come in to discuss it. While she was sorry about my situation, she also said CAPS didn’t find the tone in which I had written my article very “friendly,” and felt that I had written about them in a negative light. She believed I was discouraging students from seeking help at CAPS, which was never my intention.
I wrote the article because I wanted to point out the fact that the mental health facility, the establishment that has been praised as the one place students can turn to in desperate times — I’ve been hearing this since I stepped foot on campus — did not do its job adequately.
We discussed everything I had written in my article and she asked me if I understood why I didn’t receive treatment. I did — I needed longer term treatment than what they could provide me at the College.
As optimistic as I was, I knew I couldn’t make a full recovery in just a couple of months. I finally asked the counseling psychologist what classifies as “short-term treatment.” She said it is something that can be settled in five or six weeks.
I thought of what could bother a student for five or six weeks: a bad breakup or difficulties in a class. You can be upset for five or six weeks and get better, but tackling a mental health issue in five or six weeks seems nearly impossible.
If CAPS is going to continue to be a mental health care facility on campus, perhaps long-term treatment programs are something to incorporate. Maybe students never had an opportunity in the first place to fully recover, as once those couple of sessions are over, CAPS will no longer see you — unless you’re in place where you could harm someone else or yourself — and will suggest that you seek outside treatment — but if you don’t, they are not responsible for you.
Many students are dealing with issues that can’t be handled within a few weeks. Not every student has the finances or transportation options available to them to seek outside help.
Forget the term “brief individual counseling,” which is written on caps.tcnj.edu, and remember the goal of CAPS: “Assisting students with personal challenges that interfere with their academic progress.”
Luckily, over the summer, I started seeing a therapist specializing in eating disorders. Even with my family’s health insurance plan, though, I still had to pay a hefty amount out of pocket, but I was grateful my family could afford to finally get me the help that CAPS should have provided.
But I worry for those who can’t afford it.
I worry for others who are silently struggling. I worry about the handful of students who took their own lives since I’ve gotten here. I worry for students who might be pushed just too far back on the CAPS waitlist. I worry.
CAPS’s performance might be attributed to a lack of funding. I think many students would be happier to see more of our tuition dollars put toward our mental health instead of endless construction and renovations. While more modernized buildings are a nice addition, it should not appear to be a priority over students’ wellbeing.
I’ve walked around this campus late at night, alone and sad, and never once did I think the Brower Student Center needed to be remodeled or that the Library needed some new rocks in front of it.
I know I’m not alone in this.
(09/05/16 11:57pm)
By Kelly Corbett
Staff Writer
Picture this: It’s almost Christmas Day in 2014. In between a round of drinks with your mom, a commercial interrupts the holiday festivities to invite all eligible bachelors to apply to a new season of romantic reality rivalry. You consider it because, after all, who wouldn’t want the opportunity to appear on TV and win over the girl of their dreams, while millions of other women watching from home fawn over you?
Will Haduch, a civil engineering alumnus (’12) and former football player for the College, didn’t think his drunken submission of “I build skyscrapers and I live on a boat,” accompanied by a photo of himself, would land him a spot on “The Bachelorette.” But fast forward 11 months and Haduch received a call from the network to let him know he was being considered as a contender for Season 12. Suddenly, the reality TV show was an actual reality.
The 26-year-old eligible bachelor from Somerville, N.J., had caught the eyes of ABC, and he found himself fighting for the heart of JoJo Fletcher against 25 other men.
Haduch landed the first kiss with Fletcher, despite having little screen time on “The Bachelorette,” and although he was sent home after the second week, the New Jersey-native made fast friends with the other contestants on the show. According to Haduch, the Bachelor mansion, where they all stayed, was pretty lush — definitely a step up from the freshmen Towers on campus.
In a phone interview with The Signal, Haduch spoke about his time on the popular reality series, “The Bachelorette.”
The Signal: Was it love at first sight when you met JoJo?
Will Haduch: Haha. No, I don’t think so.
TS: What was your favorite part of the show?
WH: Definitely getting that first rose and going to the hotel to pack up our bags and move into the bachelor mansion. We were half-drunk on the bus, and James Taylor started singing Justin Bieber and it turned into 20 drunk men singing along.
TS: What was your least favorite part of the show?
WH: I was constantly paranoid. There was really no privacy in the house, except (for) the bathroom. One day, I was eating a ham sandwich and I was wondering, “Is America actually watching me eat this ham sandwich?”
TS: Growing up, were you always one to be in relationships?
WH: No, I haven’t had too many long-term relationships.
TS: If you could say anything to JoJo right now, would you?
WH: No, definitely not.
TS: What was it like after you got that first call 11 months after you applied?
WH: I got the call during my lunch break at work around November or December of 2015. They were asking me about my boat life. It had become my storyline, my quirky thing. They then asked for 25 pictures of me and a 10-minute video. Overall, I went through five rounds (of screening). One was a (New York City) interview and eventually, they flew me out to (Los Angeles).
TS: How did you feel during the firefighting challenge? Were you nervous? Excited?
WH: It was honestly pretty hot out. I was lucky I didn’t drink beforehand. Wells’s was six or seven beers deep, which is why he looked like he was about to pass out.
TS: Did you make any friends on the show?
WH: Yes! We have a group message going and we still chat in it a couple times a week.
TS: Do people often recognize you from the show when you go out in public?
WH: Yeah, actually. I didn’t have much screen time, but it seems people study the contestants beforehand, and I would go out to bars in Hoboken (N.J.), and people would recognize me.
TS: If you had a chance to do anything over, would you?
WH: No do-over. I’m a pretty goofy dude and I think I stayed true to myself.
Maybe Fletcher wasn’t the one for Haduch. But no worries, as there are still plenty of fish in the sea. Now, Haduch is making music under the stage name Thrills Wilson. The biography on his Facebook page reads, “I live on a boat and make rock’n’roll music.” His lead single is aptly titled “Steal Your Girl.”
(05/05/16 3:24am)
By Kelly Corbett
Staff Writer
“Have you heard of the Enterprise CarShare Program?” one of the counseling psychologists at Counseling And Psychological Services (CAPS) asked me in early February. I nodded yes, while seesawing between trying to stop my mascara from smearing and snapping back at her “Are you really telling me to rent a fucking car?”
After my diagnosis with Binge Eating Disorder, I visited CAPS so I could be granted permission to join one of its support groups, “Food, Mood, and You,” and set up weekly sessions to talk to a counselor. I told her my story — how excessively large meals were a norm for me, how thousands of calories in one sitting were standard, how at times, I felt that I couldn’t stop eating and how I vigorously exercised daily to torch all my regret. She sympathetically bobbed her head, scribbled some notes down and listened to my tales about my frenzied eating patterns. I also said I was on antidepressants, which were prescribed for me by my doctor at home.
The counselor provided me with a flyer of Eating Disorder centers and resources, mostly in Princeton, N.J., and strongly recommended that I look into them. She told me that CAPS could not offer me the help I needed — I required an extensive treatment program, she said, and CAPS only offers short-term treatment — and that I had to seek help elsewhere. She also told me that the support group I wanted to join, “Food, Mood, and You,” could not accept me if I wasn’t involved in a long-term treatment program.
I don’t have a car on campus, which is why I didn’t jump at the idea of receiving treatment in Princeton. The counselor suggested I rent a car, which was ridiculous. I’m a broke college student just trying to get some help, not someone who is vacationing in Disney World and needs a car for a week. On top of paying for outside counseling resources, renting a car sounded costly and time-consuming. I have class everyday, an on-campus job and I don’t have the time to be renting cars and leaving campus just to talk to someone. I wanted to do it at the College. I just wanted to talk to some type of counselor, any type of counselor, anyone with a beating heart, about how I was feeling. I was still too ashamed of myself to open up to my friends, which is why I tried to seek help from CAPS.
When I explained to the counselor my reasoning for not wanting to seek help off campus, she made me feel like I wasn’t making an effort to get better and that I was only taking a step back from the recovery process. Believe me, I wanted to get better more than anything, but putting out the time and money seemed like too much of a stretch for me. I wanted to be able to go to CAPS because it is convenient, free and the counselors are familiar with the College’s campus. If I went somewhere off campus and talked about “Eick,” for example, they wouldn’t be able to understand as well as a CAPS counselor could. Either way, whether or not CAPS could help me solve my eating disorder, they overlooked the fact that I was also dealing with depression, an area they could have certainly helped me with in their office.
So I left room 107 in Eickhoff Hall, feeling even more helpless, and strolled into the main dining hall, a location all too familiar to me and the origin of many of my problems. If someone with Binge Eating Disorder becomes triggered or upset and finds themself in a self-serving unlimited dining hall, things tend to go awry. It was my fault for walking in, though.
The next month, CAPS hosted the National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA) monologues. To apply to be a speaker at this event, you had to fill out a Qualtrics form prior to meeting with a CAPS peer educator to answer a few specific questions. So I did just that, and met with a woman in the atrium of the Social Sciences Building to discuss my disorder with her. She told me that the point of these monologues is to uplift the audience and create a positive message. It made sense that CAPS would want to have speakers be inspirational, however, I wasn’t going to sugarcoat my eating endeavor to comfort the audience.
I knew after a couple of days of not hearing back that CAPS didn’t want me to speak at the event. Was my story not as real as the other ones? Was my story not good enough? I wanted my explanation, but I never got one. I still planned to attend the event, though.
On the day of the monologues, at around 2:30 p.m., I received an email that a speaker had dropped out and they had room in the schedule for me. The event was in a few hours, I was in class and I didn’t have time to prepare a speech. I was unsure of what to say or do — I just wanted to roll up in a ball on my bed. But I said yes.
I didn’t have much time to mentally prepare myself for the night. Only one friend on campus knew I had an eating disorder, so I texted her to come. I fished in another friend with the hook, “I’m giving a speech in the Library Auditorium, can you please come?” She showed, but probably was not expecting one of her closest friends to divulge in public that she had an eating disorder.
Walking in, I felt like I wasn’t worthy enough to be there. I was just the last-minute replacement. In my opinion, everyone that was brave enough to share their story should have been granted time. But again, I don’t run CAPS.
Because I had such little time to prepare, I got overly-emotional during my monologue and I didn’t mention half of the things I wanted to — I was a mess. While the other students filled up rows with their loving peers and supporters, I filled two seats. I would have wanted my boyfriend and a few more select friends there.
I don’t regret speaking, but I decided at that point that I was done with CAPS. They didn’t want to offer me service, they didn’t want to let me into the food-specific support group that could have helped me all semester and my eating disorder story was only good enough to be told after room opened up in the schedule.
I let my mental health take a backseat for a while. My eating disorder lingered in the background of my life while I got into my first relationship in years, finalized my summer plans and received my certification to teach my own fitness class. Things were looking up, but in between all the good news, I tried to slow the tears, making more and more frequent walks-of-shame: Eick edition, because my so-called lunch turned into a 5-course-dinner again. My eating had gone haywire.
While things in my life were improving, I wasn’t. I was getting worse. I was crying on my way to class over food and having to compose myself in the bathroom before I walked in. I was trying to get homework done, but I was always so full that my stomach felt like it was going to rip open. I’d eat the equivalent of three meals a day (or more) in a 30-minute-period and walk around uncomfortably full and upset the rest of the day. I was constantly tearing off my boyfriend’s ear, stressing over my unhealthy eating patterns. He is a great listener, but he doesn’t have a PhD or any experience in the field. I needed something more.
I returned back to CAPS in April, thinking that maybe since there were only a few weeks left in the semester, they would take me. They wouldn’t. I got a phone call and was pitched the idea of receiving off-campus help, but once again, I said no. The woman I spoke to talked me into setting up a time with the counselors to discuss resources and facilities offered off-campus, but I had to wait six days until the appointment. The woman asked me if I had thoughts of harming myself or suicide. I answered “no,” because I didn’t, but that didn’t mean I was in a stable state or that they could push my file to end. Honestly, I just wanted a regular session with a counselor to learn some coping techniques to help me survive the rest of the semester. I just needed something, someone. But instead, I hung up the phone in tears and started writing this.
I still have a long path to recovery, but clearly I won’t be recovering at the College. I’m not asking CAPS to become more specialized in eating disorders, but to stop being so selective in which students they help. Everyone deserves help. Even if the help they could potentially provide me with wasn’t tailored toward me at all, any help is better than letting me walk around campus miserable. Even if the most they could have done was listen to me talk for 30 minutes every week, that would have been perfect.
With recent deaths by suicide that have occurred and a soaring rate of mental health issues on college campuses across the country, you would think CAPS would be more welcoming.
(04/26/16 4:11pm)
By Kelly Corbett
Daily conversations between my best friend — a biology major — and me — a journalism major — consist of her enlightening me with her anecdotes about the flies she’s mating in the lab, the long hours she spent reading about DNA last night or some scientific jargon about molecules or enzymes or mitosis I — and if I’m lucky — mitosis II. I’ll quip back about how I don’t have a solid nut graf in my article or how I have a story due in two hours and I still haven’t been able to get a hold of the person I need to interview. Many individuals rank science and math majors above the arts, communications and social sciences majors. Major-shaming is a thing and it needs to stop.
We’re best friends even though we don’t understand what the other one does in class for over 12 hours a week. While she may spend more hours reading a textbook, I spend more time typing away while trying to slip in some clever vocabulary words and spice up my sentences. Science majors definitely have a load of work on their back, and she definitely does more studying than I’ve done this semester, but I wouldn’t say that downgrades my major.
Earlier this week, I was doing a group project in one of my liberal learning classes and one of my groupmates asked me, extremely last minute, to “help” him with his part because he’s a science major and had a couple exams for which to study.
And that’s what grinds my gears — don’t assume that I have an easier workload just because I’m not studying formulas and labeling test tubes on the daily. And don’t assume I’m not as smart because I’m constantly writing stories.
We’re all smart and talented in different ways. Some of us will be doctors, some of us will be musicians and some of us will be teachers. Some might excel in writing but can’t solve a problem past 10th grade algebra. Some individuals might be creative, while others think in numbers and graphs. Some might struggle to write a research paper, and others might struggle to conduct research. Where would scientists be if the media didn’t cover their newest breakthroughs? You need us and we need you, and I think we both need that paycheck.
Regardless of what my major is, I’ve had my share of late nights in the library and feeling like I’m drowning in a whirlwind of assignments. We all have. We all came to college to launch a career path for ourselves. We are the future lawmakers, physicians, reporters, book publishers, business people — the list goes on. We shine in certain fields but struggle in others. What we decide to study in school, our passion, shouldn’t be judged because it isn’t what everyone else is studying. It just means you took a different route — but never an easier route. Hard work in any field is what builds a successful candidate. Just because you study something differently than others doesn’t make you superior. Just because you spent eight hours on a paper and your roommate binge-watched Season 2 of “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt” for eight hours because they were assignment-free doesn’t mean her life is easier. Worry about you, your GPA and your future. Don’t belittle others because they don’t share the same vision as you.
Students share opinions around campus
Are some majors more valuable?
“Yes, different majors give you different opportunities in the work force.”
“Some majors are more valuable in terms of job market... That’s how I look at it.”
(03/29/16 4:21pm)
By Kelly Corbett
Staff Writer
In between bites of falafel, pierogies and churros, students took a trip around the world — or rather, just around the Brower Student Center — as Student Government’s Center for Equity and Diversity hosted TCNJ Epcot on Thursday, March 24.
Aimed at helping the campus expand its cultural knowledge, promote diversity and launch students into a deeper conversation about cultural differences, the event featured 20 different cultures.
A rainbow of streamers and national flags draped from the Atrium’s ceiling as students swarmed to see the main spectacle of the night — the performers. Whether they were recording a Snapchat video or cheering on their friends, all eyes were focused on the rhythmic jives of the nine groups that performed. Sigma Lambda Beta got down on the dance floor to “Down in the DM,” Union Latino’s dance group, Ritmo Latino, treated the audience to some suave partner footwork and the TCNJ Association of Students for Africa Dance Team incorporated some booty shaking and backflip action into its routine.
Other festivities of the night included a mechanical bull challenging students to hold on, sumo wrestling matches, henna tattoos and a photo booth where students could pick from a variety of landmark backgrounds, such as the Eiffel Tower or the Great Pyramid of Giza.
The student center was lined with tables informing students of the various cultures represented that night. Sigma Lambda Gamma supported breast cancer awareness by having students put their beer pong skills to the test, during which students aimed for bras instead of red solo cups, to learn a fact about breast cancer.
At Sigma Lambda Beta’s table, students could design their own masks, adding colors and symbols representative of their culture. The Global Minds, which promotes diversity and helps international students integrate into the College campus, had a table that invited students to mark where they are from on a world map and any locations that they have visited.
Senior communication studies major and Ritmo Latino performer Orlando Salas said that events like TCNJ Epcot are important because of the lack of diversity on campus.
“As a minority, I do feel very isolated from the student body here on campus, but with events like Epcot, we were able to educate the student body about the different cultures that are underrepresented on campus,” Salas said. He also said he believes cultural events are significant in the betterment of the campus community.
Created last year, this event was made with the expectation that it would become a TCNJ Legacy Event, Student Government’s Vice President for Equity and Diversity Priscilla Nuñez said. She said the committee wanted “a fun event to educate the TCNJ community at large about different cultures.”
This year’s event took about four months to prepare, as the committee had to work around all the student center renovation obstacles.
“The logistics always become problematic with contracts and how many things are time sensitive, but the Student Finance Board student activities and student center staff really worked together with me to make TCNJ Epcot a success,” she said.
(02/23/16 8:52pm)
By Kelly Corbett
Staff Writer
Potatoes resembling Beyoncé, Pepperidge Farm shortages and genitalia-themed raps fueled the audience’s laughter as the most giggle-worthy students took the stage on Friday, Feb. 19, for CUB Alt’s “Student Comedy Night,” which invited the funny, the punny and anyone looking to “LOL” to the Decker Social Space.
The colorfully-attired Mixed Signals, the College’s very own improv comedy troupe, kicked off the night with some impromptu games. “Continuation” involved two Signals starting a scene only to have a magic bell ding at any time, prompting two other Signals to pick up where the last pair left off and take over the scene until the bell sounded again.
The theme of the scene was flower bouquets, resulting in an overly-emotional interaction between a customer and a florist. The customer fancied the florist and tried to present them with flowers that he had just purchased, going above and beyond the normal employee-customer relationship.
In the game “What The Fuck Chuck,” two Signals were given a word to start a scene and two other Signals put in earbuds and later tried to reenact the scene, having seen but not heard how the scene was originally performed.
The first pair of Signals created a scene about potatoes resembling Beyoncé, Jay-Z and Blue Ivy with their conflict being: do the Signals starve or do they mash up the A-lister potatoes? After the earbuds came out, the other two Signals tried to imitate the skit. Their approach was more holiday-themed, as the duo acted as elves delivering toys, unhappy with Santa that he wanted them to drive the sleigh.
Another skit involved brooms, a couple very lackadaisical about keeping their home clean and a husband who couldn’t stop his gyrating dance moves, or as he liked to call it, his mating dance.
The evening then transitioned to student stand-up acts. The first student of the night was Sean Delanoy, a freshman economics major at the College. He began by revealing his regimen to staying fit. He poked fun at the buff dudes who religiously workout, post about it on social media and wear clothes advertising their macho-ness. Instead, for 20 minutes a day, three days a week, Delanoy calls his mother. How does it keep him in shape, you may ask? It gets him sweating, he said. He posts about it on Facebook and he even has a shirt that says “Number 1 Son.”
When junior communication studies major Connor Meany took the stage, he came out to the audience... as a vegetarian.
Meany also spoke about his love for Halloween and dressing up, although he was upset with his defective oxygen mask.
“I don’t think it works because it makes me look nothing like oxygen,” Meany said during his set.
Up next was senior economics major Tom Barr, who joked about his mom asking him to call the dog in from outside, but he couldn’t do it because he didn’t have the dog’s number. He also praised those in the audience that read for pleasure because he said “most people just have sex.” He ended his set with a shocking anecdote about how he got revenge on a boy who stole his bike when he was 12 years old.
During his set, senior communication studies major Jonathan van Halem compared white-privilege to being in the Gryffindor House in “Harry Potter” and schooled the audience in some Revolutionary War facts. He even picked up a copy of The Signal, shedding light on the breaking news on campus that the College’s contract with Pepperidge Farm is on hold.
Finally, senior marketing major Erik Hess and his one-man band “Fat Matt” ended the night by spitting some rhymes. Their set featured raps about the cold weather, hurtful words, being “the man” and even glorified the scratching of one’s private parts. At one point, “Fat Matt” jumped down toward the audience, calling out all the men for being scratchers.
After a comedy-filled evening, the audience was left with high spirits, smiles and some new rap tunes to hum in the shower.
(02/09/16 8:35pm)
By Kelly Corbett
Staff Writer
What does senior special education and history double major Joanna Felsenstein have in mind after graduation? Unlike many college graduates who will move back home to start the job search, Felsenstein will embark on an 80-day bike trip across the country. She and a team of bikers will travel 4,072 miles through 16 states, stopping along the way to volunteer with 15 affordable housing organizations and nonprofits in need of extra hands.
“I enjoy cycling very much and when I heard about this opportunity, I could not think of a better way to see the country, get fit and volunteer this summer,” Felsenstein said.
Starting on Monday, May 30, Felsenstein and 29 other bikers will cycle across the country. Their journey will begin in New Haven, Conn., and end when their bike wheels hit the sand of the Pacific Ocean in Half Moon Bay, Calif. As part of the “Bike & Build” program, participants in this 11-week long biking expedition will have “build days” during which they take a break from their peddling to help build houses organizations such as Habitat for Humanity and Rebuilding Together. Approximately 60 of the 80 days on the trip will be spent on the road, while the other 20 days will be spent with power tools and hardhats.
Besides getting quite the hamstring workout in as she peddles from destination to destination, Felsenstein’s real desire to embark on this journey comes from her Jewish roots. Felsenstein was taught in Hebrew school that we all have an obligation to help others. “Tikkun Olam,” meaning “Repair the World,” is one of her favorite concepts in Judaism and she hopes to do just this, along with lending a helping hand. Felsenstein also explains that her passion to help others has inspired her to become a teacher.
A typical day for the “Bike & Build” riders will begin with a carb-rich breakfast. They will then pack up the storage van and trailer before sunrise and reunite with it later for a lunch break after cycling through half a day’s journey. The group will travel roughly 70 miles each day of the trip.
After lunch, they will continue the rest of the day’s journey until they arrive at the house of their host (granted they have a host that night) and give a “Bike & Build” presentation. The “Bike & Build” team will also offer a bike safety talk to the local kids.
Not all days will be the same, though. According to Felsenstein, “there’s also a rule that if it’s over 90 degrees or over 90 miles, we eat two lunches and have two stops.”
In preparation for “Bike & Build,” there is a 500-mile training requirement. One of these preparatory bike rides is 65 miles long, and another required obstacle is a group ride in the rain. In addition, all riders must fundraise $4,500 each before they embark on this cross-country journey.
Besides her required training, Felsenstein has been hitting the gym daily to get in better shape. She is working to increase her stamina through fencing practices offered by the club sport on campus, of which she serves as president. In addition, Felsenstein plans to start biking outside daily as the weather warms, beginning with 15 miles per day and working her way up from there. She also wants to join a local cycle group for training support and gear advice.
Felsenstein is one of four leaders on this 80-day journey and is in charge of setting up sleeping accommodations for the group. Some nights, the bikers may find themselves roughing it on the floor of high school gyms, synagogues or Jewish Community Centers — but hardly ever a real bed. For the nights where shelter is unattainable, the riders will each have a ThermaRest inflatable mattress and will camp outside, Felsenstein said.
Other duties Felsenstein is in charge of include organizing 20 days of the trip and food donations, educating riders on the affordable housing curriculum and planning the end-of-trip party. She and the other three leaders must also be CPR and First Aid certified, Felsenstein said, in case anyone gets injured on the road.
Thinking ahead to this summer, Felsenstein has already taken into consideration some of the factors that may become hazardous during the team’s travels, including keeping a lookout for cars, potholes, lane positioning and weather conditions. She also plans to learn the hand and voice signals used by experienced bikers.
Felsenstein said that she is most nervous for her team’s trek through the uphill battle that will be the Rocky Mountains during their time in Colorado. Another potential concern is the wind, which can offset their balance and lane positioning, according to Felsenstein.
Despite being on the road for a majority of the day, the riders plan to recharge their phones every night in order to stay connected with friends and family. Felsenstein is excited to take lots of pictures along the way and will be keeping her own blog to track her journey. Her “Bike & Build” team will also be posting photos and journal entries on the website bikeandbuild.org.
As May nears, Felsenstein said that she is most excited to meet new people from the communities they will travel through and bond with her riding team during the trip.
“I want to be engaged with the people we see, hear their stories and have conversations about the effects of the affordable housing cause and what we can do to make a difference,” Felsenstein said.
(01/26/16 10:46pm)
By Kelly Corbett
Looking back at the almost six-week winter hiatus that we had in order to recover from the semester grind, the nights of little sleep and the mornings of too much caffeine with far too many pages still left to read, I guess it was a nice, stress-free break. Unlike during the semester, I didn’t have any urges to throw my textbook out the window or take a nap at 2 p.m., for I wasn’t sleep-deprived or trying to avoid responsibilities. I functioned more like a human being and less like a confused college student trying to get her life together every morning before her 11 a.m class. Yet, despite all the positive aspects of a long winter break, I can’t help but feel like it was just too ridiculously long.
O.K., I know what you’re thinking: Is this chick really complaining about time off from school? Is she that nerdy? Is she that weird? Yes, yes and yes. But let me elaborate. This winter break, I saw some old high school friends, I celebrated the holidays with my family and I was able to shorten my never-ending to-do list that always seems to duplicate during the semester. But basically, that’s ALL I did over winter break.
I wouldn’t consider it an accomplishment to finish a whole TV series on Netflix or fall asleep at 4 a.m. every morning over break. I felt like an unemployed 35 year old who was living on a strict diet of pizza, Christmas candies and hot chocolate. All mail, phone calls or inquiries for me could be directed to the blanket and pillow fort built on my bed.
While winter break is supposed to be a “recharge session,” I was at 100 percent by the beginning of January and these extra few weeks didn’t benefit me in any way. It’s not like I could find a job for just six weeks, especially since most retail stores hire seasonal employees whose employment ends after the holidays. Anyway, jobs and internships are usually tasks I take on in the summer. I was ready to dive headfirst into spring semester after just three weeks of winter break, but the College wasn’t expecting us back until Sunday, Jan. 24, while the majority of my home friends started class a week or two earlier.
I hate not knowing what’s next, not having a busy schedule and rolling out of bed in the afternoon only to ask myself, “Gee, what am I going to do today?” I’d rather be super busy than super bored. I’d rather be outlining a textbook than walking around my house or driving around my town trying to find something to do. During the semester, at least at the end of the day, I could look back and tell myself all that I accomplished something. But over winter break, I wasn’t productive. I’m sure I’m not the only person at the College that feels this way.
The College’s calendar is already planned out for the next couple of years and I’ll have long been graduated before this could be put into action, but perhaps a shorter break could be considered. Most of my high school friends had a month-long break this winter while I was home for an extra two weeks.
Is the winter session at the College the cause for the delay? I’d like to know what causes this exceptionally long recess. A shorter winter break could ultimately result in a longer summer break, which is when I feel most college students, like myself, are able to work at part-time jobs and take on internships. But for now, I shall excuse myself because, as I’m writing this, it’s still winter break and I’m going to watch another episode on Netflix.
(12/01/15 3:31pm)
By Kelly Corbett
Social Media Editor
This semester, the College’s Group Fitness Program initiated a membership fee for students to attend the classes offered in the Recreation Center Fitness Center and the Travers and Wolfe Fitness Center. For $25, students can find their inner zen during yoga, release their mighty uppercut punch during kickboxing or sweat through intervals of push-ups and burpees in Pump Up the Pulse.
Previously, the Group Fitness classes were free to all students. Until last semester, students would rhythmically groove to top tunes in Zumba or strengthen their core in Ab Blast, free of charge.
Since classes have been free for so long, what prompted this new fee?
Fitness Center Administrator David Ilaria said that with this funding, the Office of Recreation was able to “increase the number of classes from 20 hours per week up to 35 hours per week,” since they were able to compensate the class instructors for more hours. Also, new equipment was purchased to allow for a larger variety of classes.
This semester, Insanity started being offered, defined as “a HIIT (high intensity interval training) class that tones and strengthens the whole body,” according to the the College’s Recreation Center Fitness website.
“Basically all of the money being made by implementing this fee is going directly back into the program to make it better and to enable us to offer more to the students on campus,” said Gina Costanzo, a yoga instructor at the College. “But I have noticed a difference in attendance from last year to this year since implementing this fee.”
As of last month, there are 165 students enrolled in the classes, according to Ilaria. He said that fewer students enrolled than in previous years. Ilaria also said that a spinning class is in the works for the spring semester.
“We have funds approved and plan to bring in 12 group cycling bikes later this semester,” he said, which would allow the Office of Recreation “to offer some trial classes to our existing members in order to build interest for next semester.”
Furthermore, new yoga mats and yoga blocks are on the way, according to Ilaria. A portion of the funds will also be used in supplementing the cost of re-organizing and equipping the Travers and Wolfe Fitness Center, which just reopened this semester, Ilaria said.
The Group Fitness students are more than just students who have a passion for a certain type of exercise. They are certified instructors who not only dedicate their time to perfecting their poses and raising their heartbeats, but who also spent a large sum of money and hours of commitment to get certified. Depending on where the instructors receive their certification and what type of certification they earn, the price of training may vary. After being certified, they must coordinate workout routines for their weekly class, just as teachers create lessons plans.
To become a yoga instructor, one must complete 200 hours of training. Costanzo completed her training at Kripalu, a yoga retreat center in Massachusetts. She lived there for 27 days, with eight hours of training each day and one day off each week. Her day would begin at 6 a.m and end at 8 p.m.
“It was a really great experience. It was really busy and packed full of information,” Costanzo said. “We were able to be completely immersed in living our yoga practice for the entire 27 days that we were there.”
During her training, she was required to complete five practice sessions, where she would instruct a class to other students in the program, being observed by a certified instructor for two of these classes.
Costanzo paid $3,200 for her training and says that most teacher-training programs run between $2,500 and $5,000.
In comparison to classes offered in fitness center chains, such as Retro Fitness, students are paying much less at the College for classes than at other local facilities. According to the Lawrenceville Retro Fitness website, members pay a monthly fee of $19.99, an extra $9.99 if they want to attend fitness classes and an enrollment and maintenance fee. That is a significantly larger amount compared to the $25 students pay at the College, which covers the four months during a semester.
While the fee may have driven some students out of the classes, one student finds solace in a smaller class as the instructor is now able to work more closely with students to perfect their form.
“The fee isn’t all the bad,” sophomore biology major Kristin Sorrentino said. “If you do the math, by going to a class once a week, you’re really only paying a dollar or two a class anyway.”
The Rec Center Fitness Studio, home to the high energy jumps and swift footwork of students laced in Nikes, currently hosts a Barre class, a Kickboxing class, Ab Blast, Pump Up the Pulse, Boot Camp, Insanity and several different Zumba classes. The Travers and Wolfe Fitness Studio hosts a variety of yoga classes, including Yoga, YogaFit and regular and advanced yoga stream classes. Classes are taught throughout the week and the schedule can be found on the College’s Group Fitness website.
(11/17/15 8:50pm)
By Kelly Corbett
Social Media Editor
Racism, protests and resignations have been rattling through the University of Missouri’s campus. Heightened tensions, especially in the last two weeks, have resulted in the resignation of university President Tim Wolfe and media professor Melissa Click, on Monday, Nov. 9, according to CNN.
According to CBS, 79 percent of the student body is white while 8 percent is black. Black student groups, the target of many racial slurs and incidents, complained that Wolfe was unresponsive and had not properly handled this issue.
“I felt unsafe since the moment I stepped on this campus,” Jonathan Butler, a black graduate student at the University of Missouri, told CNN.
Butler launched a week-long hunger strike, refusing to eat until Wolfe had resigned from office.
Also in favor of Wolfe’s leave was the school’s football team, where dozens of black football players went on a football-related activity boycotts until Wolfe left, according to CNN.
Click made headlines when, during the height of these racial protests, she was caught on film grabbing senior photojournalism student Tim Tai’s video camera and telling him he had no right to be there. She then asked for “muscle” to have him removed, CNN reported. Her courtesy appointment resignation means she can no longer work with journalism doctoral students in topics that fall into her area of research, according to CNN.
In October 2015, the Concerned Student 1950, an organization said to represent every black student on campus, published a list of demands to Wolfe. One demand in particular urged for the removal of Wolfe. While he continued to exert minimal effort to hinder the racial tensions on campus, the football team’s boycott and Butler’s hunger strike pushed him to finally leave office.
According to CNN, Butler wrote in a letter to initiate the strike that, “In the past 90 days alone, we have seen the MSA (Missouri Students Association) president, Payton Head, being called the n-word on campus, graduate students being robbed of their health insurance, Planned Parenthood services being stripped from campus, Concerned Student 1950 peaceful demonstrators being threatened with pepper spray, and a matter of days ago, a vile and disgusting act of hatred where a MU student drew a swastika in the Gateway residential hall with their own feces,” CNN reported.
Besides asking for Wolfe’s removal on the list of demands, the Concerned Student 1950 asked for more black faculty staff members, more funding for social justice centers on campus and a comprehensive racial awareness and inclusion curriculum, according to ABC.
“I truly love everybody here and the great institution, and my decision to resign comes out of love, not hate,” Wolfe said in response to his leave, ABC reported.
(11/04/15 3:59pm)
By Kelly Corbett
Social Media Editor
You’ve probably seen it. You’ve probably shared it on Facebook and captioned it with a prideful status. And, hey, you might have even made a star appearance in a clip.
In late 2014, between juggling his senior thesis and completing schoolwork, Class of 2015 graduate and interactive multimedia major Joshua Lewkowicz lugged his RED Scarlet cinema camera around campus, building a collection of footage featuring campus and sporting events, as well as candid and staged interactions, for the now popular admissions video titled, “Welcome to TCNJ.”
In the span of two and a half minutes, Lewkowicz, alongside junior interactive multimedia majors Christopher Lundy and Ryan Laux, the “video dream team,” captured the essence of what it’s like to be a part of the College community in the eyes of students and staff.
“We all felt that there needed to be a way to translate the emotion we all feel from our experiences at TCNJ to someone that may have never set foot on a campus,” Lundy said.
College spokesman Dave Muha and Lewkowicz had come up with the idea for this production: an admissions video which was informative, yet also allowed for people to feel as a member of the College community for three minutes.
“I would go out and shoot footage of different people, places and events and keep a running list of what I had shot thus far,” Lewkowicz said.
When Lundy and Laux joined in on the project, they took a load off Lewkowicz’s shoulders. Just having another person on set and having someone there to help move equipment made the project more manageable, according to Lewkowicz.
Lewkowicz took on the role of a street photographer during the filming. While some portions were staged, a “majority of the video is just me pointing the camera at what was around me at the time,” he said.
After Lewkowicz graduated and began working at DreamWorks Animation, Lundy and Laux took over the editing portion, working through October, sifting through hours of footage to pull out the clips that best fit the video’s vision.
One of the best parts of the project for this trio was being given so much creative freedom to do a video that typically would be something so strictly structured, according to Laux.
While there were certain guidelines for the video and information that had to be included, “being able to add my own spin with 3D animations and sound effects made it a lot of fun to work on,” Laux said.
The video went on to garner 83,286 views on Facebook as of Friday, Oct. 30, and almost 1,236 shares, according to Muha. In all, the video reached 222,792 people on Facebook.
“I think a lot of people have pride in TCNJ and are happy to share the video proudly and show off our school,” Lewkowicz said.
Lewkowicz, Lundy and Laux had all worked together previously during Campus MovieFest, getting sent to Hollywood twice. Given the opportunity once again “to work with your best friends to produce such a video made it all the more enjoyable,” Laux said.
And indeed, they worked well together. Before graduating, Lewkowicz had edited some sequences together, but it was his partners that “took those bits and really put them together to make the video what it was,” he said.
However, the video dream team did face some difficulties while creating the viral video. Producing such a well-done piece while balancing academics and having a social life proved to be a little stressful.
Lewkowicz said he seized every opportunity he could to shoot some footage.
“Before or after classes, in between projects and homework, any time I got a chance to go out and shoot footage, I would,” Lewkowicz said.
Inside the editing room, Lundy and Laux worked just as hard editing sequences and creating the finished product. They set aside as much time as they could to foolproof the piece.
“I think that the most difficult part of the project was having so much beautiful footage and only being able to showcase a fraction of it to fit the needs of this particular video,” Lundy said.
With hours of footage, they had to make sure the video was representative of all the departments, activities and groups on campus.
“We wanted to make sure everything was absolutely perfect and I think we got pretty close in the end,” Lundy said.
But one of the greatest parts of this video, Laux explained, is that the way it was edited can allow them to go back and make newer versions as time goes on —and they already have ideas on how to improve it.
(11/03/15 9:20pm)
By Kelly Corbett
Social Media Editor
Have you ever been driving and wondered, “I wish I had a dashboard camera on the back of my car to record all the exciting and thrilling moments of my drive?”
Well, if you have, your dreams may soon be coming true. Recently in class, I was asked to look at current issues in technology and I took a look at the dashcam produced by Waylens.
What will this new technology allow us to do? Well, while we’re cruising down the road, this dashcam will let us record our drive to capture any of the amazing moments we have. But wait, there’s more. A steering wheel remote allows users to bookmark these exciting moments captured, which can then be uploaded through a smartphone app to social media.
Wow, does this mean I can post videos of me driving for all my friends to see and think I’m super cool? Yup.
OK, so I’m not bashing the dashcam completely. It’s a interesting concept and product, honestly. My problem with it is how we humans are going to make a trainwreck out of it. It’s a distraction, and unless you’re a professional race car driver, action movie star or Superman, I don’t think it’s a good idea to have this attached to your car.
Head to Waylens’ website and in their description of the dashcam you’ll see, “You’re a driver, not a cameraman. So, just drive and leave it to the Waylens to capture, manage and store all your best moments behind the wheel.” And while that all seems great, is it necessary?
Ever heard the saying too much of a good thing is a bad thing? Too much technology, especially for us millennials, is going to ruin us. We don’t need all these devices operating in our car. All we should be focusing on is the road and how we’re going to pay for gas.
We can’t even drive without texting, and adding another electronic device to the mix is just going to be even more dangerous. The fact that this dashcam has an option to post videos to social media means that some people — the bold, outlandish and dumb population — are going to try to do some super intense, almost flip-off-the-highway, moves. Because who wouldn’t want to catch something cool on video for all their friends to double tap on Instagram?
While the dashcam will allow us to play back footage in case of an accident and verify details of who hit who, then I agree, it would be handy. Otherwise, I don’t think this product should be marketed to the public.
On the other hand, this new technology could encourage more cautious driving because people will feel like they are being watched and might make them focus more on the road. While that could be true, I see some flaws. People text openly on the road, in front of officers, and don’t wear seat belts. We’re rule breakers who have no fear — this makes the dashcam too much for us to handle. It’s a cool idea. I just don’t think it’s something I’ll be attaching to my Toyota Corolla anytime soon.
Students share opinions around campus
“I don’t see how they could be dangerous… I think having dashboard cameras in all cars would be a good idea, but might make some people’s insurance rates go up.”
“I think it’s a good (thing to have) if you get into an accident… It could make you more careful.”
(10/27/15 4:34pm)
By Kelly Corbett
Social Media Editor
Well, it’ll soon be that time of year again. Happy holidays, folks. Time to trample a stranger to get the last Malibu Barbie doll on the shelf and wait on lengthy lines, almost as long as your rapidly growing credit card bill — all in preparation to pile up heaps of attractively wrapped presents for your loved ones.
And while many of us probably haven’t even thought about holiday shopping yet, the season has been marked on every retail store’s calendar for quite some time. If you work at a retail store, the Christmas season can seem like a beauty pageant where you have to sparkle and outshine the other contestants.
Over fall break, I returned to my retail job at Carter’s to learn that for the second year in a row, several malls will be open on Thanksgiving Day, and will extend their hours for Black Friday.
Carter’s is scheduled to be open from 6 p.m. to 1 a.m. on Thanksgiving Day, and then re-open a few hours later from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Black Friday. Every mall and store operates under different hours, of course, but this is the schedule most New Jersey malls will likely be following.
Now, I’m not complaining about the irregular hours I’m going to have to work, the innumerable cups of coffee I’m going to have to drink, the smiles I’m going to have to fake to all the aggressive customers or even the sanity I’m going to lose during the holiday shopping season — because that’s all part of my job — and hey, they’re paying me (phew).
It’s not their fault they have to open on the holidays. I blame consumerism. I blame the fact that we’re more fixed on what’s under our Christmas pine or what we’re receiving each day for Hanukkah than actually being with our loved ones.
The holidays have transitioned from a time to spend with your family to a money hungry holiday. We’ve come to the point where people would rather speed up the day of giving thanks for what they have so they can race to the mall to get 40 percent off something that they don’t even necessarily need. Who needs turkey and gravy (me), when you can snag a Michael Kors watch for $100 less if you are one of the golden first few customers in line?
There’s a whole month between Thanksgiving and Christmas to knock out holiday shopping — so why must we start the buying process in between bites of stuffing and sweet potatoes?
We’re in too deep to tame this Christmas consumerism beast, but we must try to stop it before it gobbles away at our whole Thanksgiving holiday. Things are bad, but they could get worse, malls could be open the whole day on Thanksgiving.
As we approach this upcoming holiday season — before you swarm to the mall armed with your MasterCard and ready to pounce on anyone that tries to blockade you from having that last toy on the shelf — I ask that you remember who you’re buying the present for. They’re still going to love you even if you don’t get them everything on their wish list. Don’t sacrifice family time for late-night mall escapades and material items. Don’t let sales, no matter how tempting they are, distract you from time with your loved ones.
Students share opinions around campus
“It is becoming a problem… I feel like it’s overpowering. The generation is getting into that and I think we should get back to why we have Thanksgiving.”
“Personally, it doesn’t bother me. If you want to enjoy your family meal, then do you. Or go shopping.”
(09/29/15 8:05pm)
By Kelly Corbett
Social Media Editor
On Wednesday, Sept. 23, students received devastating news either firsthand or via social media that meal equivalency, the sacred hours between 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. meant for nourishing students’ tummies with $7.50 of free non-Eickhoff hall food, was indeed down.
One social media app flooded with posts about this lunchtime atrocity, but it wasn’t Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. It was Yik Yak. Two things occurred to me after scrolling through the 200 characters or less posts crafted by the minds of hungry students. First, I couldn’t get a cinnamon raisin bagel or caramel iced coffee for free — absolutely awful.
More importantly, this whole occurrence was headlining on an anonymous social media app. Probably within a minute of employees giving the lunchtime crowd word that meal equivalency was not working, students had already reported to the College’s Yik Yak community that they would not be getting their free chicken caesar salad or pumpkin spice latte that day.
Students all across campus could scroll through these posts reading, “DEVELOPING STORY: MEAL EQUIV IS DOWN ALL OVER CAMPUS,” “I live off of meal equiv so I might just shrivel up and die at this point” and “MEAL EQUIV IS DOWN EVERYWHERE ZOMBIEAPOCALYSECJUDYLGBF” and they would know to rearrange their lunchtime plans.
Nothing was posted on the TCNJ Dining Services Facebook page or Twitter, or the TCNJ Meal Equiv Twitter account — I mean, I guess it wasn’t an emergency. We’re just overly dramatic students. Even if the College had posted about it, how many students would have even read it before they journeyed to the Brower Student Center or library with empty stomachs and their student IDs clutched in their hands, ready to swipe? Not many.
All three of these social media accounts run by the College each have less than 1,000 followers. And even if these accounts had posted a note, it would be buried among other posts from other accounts and friends that students follow.
This means that Yik Yak was the number one news source in spreading word about this situation. The social media app, often brimming with posts about campus cutie sightings, disapproval of Eickhoff Dining Hall food and unicycle guy spottings, is now the CNN of the College’s community.
In this bubble community of 18 to 23 year olds, students are receiving their campus news mostly through the anonymous posts of other students. We have a student newspaper (in fact, you’re reading it right now) and multiple social media accounts affiliated with the College, but nothing seems more appealing to students than short blurbs of information that could very well be false.
Students prefer reading one or two sentenced yaks over reading verified news articles. Maybe it’s the appeal of how brief a yak is or how easily accessible it is on a student’s smartphone, but how can students be delivered accurate, credible news with the quickness of Yik Yak?
Students want to know what is going on right at the moment, what Eickhoff hall is serving for dinner or what event is going on in the Decker Social Space at the moment. They’re trusting an app whose icon is a hairy cartoon yak.
This app, often filled with humorous posts, relatable college student posts and, unfortunately, hate-filled posts (yikes) is now a news source for the millennial student. But the real question is, as this app garners popularity, will it start to take priority over the original news sources on campus? Slim chance, yes. But, gosh, let’s hope not or else my journalism pals and I are out of a gig.
Students share opinions around campus
“Word of mouth (is best). No one really goes on (Yik Yak anymore). I know a lot of people in sororities, fraternities and sports teams, that’s how I find out a lot of things.”
“I feel people find out through other people on campus. Word of mouth is quickest.”
(09/29/15 7:57pm)
By Kelly Corbett
Social Media Editor
Fashion week rolled into New York City earlier this month, from Thursday, Sept. 10, to Thursday, Sept. 17, as some of the most elite designers showcased their upcoming masterpieces on the runway, attracting A-list celebrities to the front row.
This year, instead of taking place in the historic Lincoln Center as in prior years, the shows took place in various locations in midtown and downtown New York, most notably the Skylight at Moynihan Station and Skylight Clarkson Square.
According to Fashion Week Online, $900 million was shelled out for the week.
The week began at the New York City Ballet, where one dancer fell, only to leap back onto her feet seconds later. Audience members found out later in the show, as other models took a stumble, that these falls were indeed staged.
The opening ceremony also treated the audience to a “lush garden with vibrant geometric stained-glass light installations and wall frames,” according to CNN Style. The ceremony was inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright, an American architect, known for designing structures in sync with nature.
Public School, known for their minimalist approach, showcased their pajama-inspired street chic runway looks and carefree drape-styled dresses and pants, CNN Style reported.
Quite the opposite of Public School was Jeremy Scott. He premiered his collection of bold colors and prints and even had articles of clothing made of plastic.
According to CNN Style, Scott showcased funky prints such as big, bold polka dots, cartoon caricatures and black and white high school yearbook pages.
Themed around female empowerment, Diane Von Furstenberg showcased her collection on some of the industry’s most popular icons. CNN Style reported that Furstenberg surprised the audience with not the usual bow at the end of her showcase, but by shaking hands with the audience and happily throwing her hands in the air, pleased at the success her show was.
In honor of the earthquake that hit Nepal in April, killing more than 8,000 people, Prabal Gurung, a Nepal native, used his show to introduce his collection of saffron, mustard yellow and deep red attire, but also to pay respect to his homeland and the catastrophe that rattled it, reported CNN Style.
The 9/11 attacks were also commemorated during Fashion Week by French brand Givenchy, using a backdrop overlooking twin light beams in the distance. The set, designed by a close friend of Givenchy, envisioned the, “spirit of a Brazilian favela” according to Vogue.com. The show exhibited men’s and women’s ready-to-wear, new denim and couture pieces.
Kanye West also made an appearance during Fashion Week to debut his collection, “Yeezy Season 2” collection.
Another week of runways and debuts travelled to Britain’s capital. London Fashion Week kicked off on Thursday, Sept. 17, and ended on Tuesday, Sept. 22, according to CNN Style.