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(02/07/17 4:49am)
By Elizabeth Zakaim
Reviews Editor
A bridge peeking out of the scarlet rose bushes.
A ladybug on the stem of a flower.
A wide expanse of sand and beach.
These are just some of the poignant and vivid images described in the 2017 winter edition of Lion’s Eye, the College’s literary magazine.
Published biannually, Lion’s Eye showcases writing and artwork from talented students at the College. Colorful paintings and catchy titles grab my attention as I skim through the pages of the magazine’s most recent publication.
The poem “Yellow T-shirt” by junior English major Grace Gottschling describes a father’s shirt and the memories associated with it. “It smelled like you/I think it was your deodorant/You never liked cologne.”
With its torn hem, this shirt represented a father lost from a daughter’s life. “You missed snow days/Beach trips/And the family camping trip/But most of all we missed you.”
It makes me wonder how lost this father is –– is he truly gone, or is he still alive, but just distant from his family? There’s a nostalgic, yet bitter tinge to this poem. “I hated your job/But you were my hero… You left again for another six months/You gave the yellow shirt back.”
It sounds like the story of a father who has forgotten a little girl who used to wait up for him when he got home late from work and looked forward to the nights spent watching TV together. It seems like this little girl has grown up and seen her father for what he really is: someone who has discarded his role as a father.
In addition to going down memory lane, this magazine takes me on a busy bus ride in another piece called “My Castle in Weehawken” by senior English major Alena Woods. A photograph of a glorious view of the city by Kimberly Iannarone, a former photo editor for The Signal and a junior psychology major, was placed next to Woods’s “Castle in Weehawken” and illustrates the the bustling urbanites she witnesses. As I read her words, I now have a place for my mind to travel.
“New Jersey transit buses are arks separating natives from suburban noisemakers. The ones who clog the pores of Port Authority like blackheads: with our inflamed egos and lack of direction.” Her prose creates a memorable image of expressionless transit commuters filling the streets like the pimples on a teenager’s face.
It reminds me of the quiet, yet enjoyable train rides I’ve taken from school to home for the past few semesters. I enjoy wearing the blank, anonymous face of any other commuter sometimes –– I feel like I’m blending in with the plain, gray walls of the train station.
Other times I’ve felt the same itch that Woods describes: the growing impatience as the bus moves sluggishly through its route or the feeling that I can’t get far enough away from the person next to me.
The painting called “Spoons” by freshman psychology major Rachel Edwards is artfully arranged next to “Summer Recipe” by Jackie Delaney, a former member of The Signal staff and a junior English and publishing and editing major. This recipe, which calls for ingredients such as two teaspoons of bad decisions and 22 ounces of ocean air, reminds us of the warmth of a season so far away.
As I flip my way through the pages full of text and art, I stop at Iannarone’s photograph “Lost in Sunset.” It illustrates a well-known hallmark of our generation: the omnipresent smartphone. The word “photoception” comes to mind as I find myself looking at a photo of a girl taking her own picture of the sun setting in between two buildings.
It reminds me of the digital world in which we are all so immersed. Yet, despite how absorbing our phones can be, we can also use them to catch a good picture at just the right moment, just like that girl capturing a golden sunset.
For me, this issue of Lion’s Eye is one dipped in both nostalgia and creativity. The stunning photography makes me yearn for the longer days of summer and sunsets on the beach.
I find myself thinking over the little moments in life that I wouldn’t normally dwell on –– a bus ride home, holding an old T-shirt –– and wondering if I can find poetry in these small moments, too.
(01/24/17 5:22am)
By Elizabeth Zakaim
Reviews Editor
The College mourns the passing of Morton Winston, a professor of philosophy who died while on vacation in Peru on Jan. 13 at 67 years old. Winston suffered from a heart attack while walking with his family and tour group on a jungle path in Peru, according to the Baltimore Sun. Winston was a beloved professor, colleague and mentor — he leaves behind a legacy of excellence.
According to an email sent to staff, students and faculty on Jan. 14 by College spokesperson Dave Muha, Winston arrived at the College in 1979, where he taught and developed several courses including bioethics, genocide and human rights and philosophy of technology and mind. Winston was dedicated to his teaching and his department.
Before he passed Winston served as a faculty representative to the Board of Trustees and as chair of the philosophy department from 1982 to 1988 and from 2005 to 2012, according to Muha’s email. Winston was also the recipient of the Faculty Senate’s Outstanding Faculty Leadership Award for service as faculty co-chair of the Committee on Strategic Planning and Priorities and for leading the development of the College’s strategic plan in 2011 and 2012.
Winston wanted his students to succeed to the best of their abilities.
“Dr. Winston had a unique ability to empathize with his students’ ideas and galvanize those ideas into something legitimate and concrete,” said Rishabh Sharma, a junior philosophy major.
Sharma recalled bumping into Winston on campus after studying abroad in 2016. They talked about Sharma’s future plans, and Winston recommended different readings he knew Sharma would appreciate. He challenged his students’ perspectives and tested their beliefs. Sharma described Winston as selfless and determined to help his students mold their visions and change the world.
“He is one of the few people I have met who believed in me like I believe in me,” Sharma said.
Junior philosophy major Stephanie-Rose Orlando couldn’t believe the news. She had Winston as a professor every year since she started at the College. He was more than just a professor to her, he was her mentor, as well.
“He helped me discover my love for civil rights and environmental protection, and I will always be thankful for that,” Orlando said. “Not only did he encourage me to make a difference in the way I wanted, but he really believed that I could and helped me along the way.”
Orlando said Winston was always willing to network with students to give them the best opportunities they deserved.
“He was the type of professor that helped make TCNJ as great as it is,” she said.
Junior philosophy major Lisa Palacio was a first-semester sophomore who had just changed her major from mathematics to philosophy and was grateful to have Winston as her adviser.
“I wasn’t just another student he had to talk academics and class scheduling about,” Palacio said. “He sat with me for however long it took to figure out what steps I needed to take to graduate on time.”
Palacio ran into Winston while he was eating lunch in Green Hall after he had helped give her pointers on a presentation she had worked on for his class.
“In that moment, I really got to know Dr. Winston,” Palacio said. He spoke about his wife and children, and Palacio
could tell how devoted he was to them.
“It was so nice to get to know Dr. Winston outside of the academic sphere,” Palacio said. “Not only was he a great scholar, teacher and humanitarian, but he was a loving husband and father.”
Palacio was a student in Winston’s ethics class and recalls how passionate her professor was about the subject.
“He made me realize that the issues we are fighting in this world are put on by us, and we need to work together to sort out the troubles of this world in order to make a better tomorrow,” Palacio said.
Rabbi Akiva Greenbaum, an adjunct professor in philosophy, religion and classical studies and Chabad rabbi at the College, developed a great relationship with Winston and was upset to hear of his passing. Winston was both a neighbor and a close friend who was often invited to the Rabbi’s house for dinner and conversation.
“Mort Winston or ‘Mordechai’ as he referred to himself when he came to Chabad events, was a TCNJ legend, my personal mentor and a proud Jew,” Greenbaum said. “He has joined Chabad for Shabbat meals and services, holiday programs and even came to the recent bris of my son.”
Greenbaum described how proud Winston was of his Jewish heritage, particularly the religion’s focus on ethics and morality.
“We grew very close and would often have deep theological, philosophical conversations,” Greenbaum said. “We are thinking about and praying for his wife Sally, his children and friends at this difficult time.”
Greenbaum added that he would like to plan something in Winston’s honor in order to keep his memory alive.
Emyr Dakin, an adjunct professor in philosophy, religion and classical studies, had not been at the College long when he developed a close bond with Winston.
“It wasn’t too long ago that I popped my head around Professor Winston’s office door to introduce myself,” Dakin said. “I immediately felt that he was someone that I could get on with.”
Winston had invited him into his office to chat. The picture on Winston’s wall called “The Mask of Agamemnon,” an ancient artifact from the Mycenaean Age, sparked a conversation between the two scholars that Dakin still remembers fondly today.
“This is the man I briefly knew,” Dakin said. “Deeply intelligent, yet very warm and sharing. A great loss to students, colleagues and friends.”
Winston was both a friend and a scholar. According to Muha’s email, his scholarship included his membership of the editorial boards of two leading human rights journals, Human Rights Quarterly and the Journal of Human Rights. He is the author of many published works — his work has been cited 988 times to date — and he edited a renowned textbook on the philosophy of human rights in 1989.
Winston was also an avid human rights activist. Winston led the South Africa Country Group for Amnesty International USA, an organization that exposes and prevents human rights abuses, in the late 1980s, Muha’s email wrote. He also founded their Business and Human Rights program, which works on holding different companies across multiple nations accountable for human rights.
In a statement by Amnesty International, Board Chair Ann Burroughs said the organization is deeply indebted to him for his contributions to the movement. The organization described him as a passionate advocate of human rights, unable to stay silent in the face of injustice.
In 1999, according to the email released, Winston also served as part of Social Accountability International, which ensured the rights of people in the workplace. He was in the midst of his third year as chair of the board of directors for Social Accountability Accreditation Services. In 2007, he chaired the Danish Institute of Human Rights in Copenhagen, and received a scholarship for his successes there and in South Africa in 1992 and Thailand in 1999.
Consuelo Preti, a professor of philosophy, religion and classical studies at the College, appreciated Winston’s dedication to justice and good will.
“Winston was always very real. He wasn’t afraid to speak his mind or stand up for what he believed in, and he was passionate about social justice,” Preti said.
She recalled her first and favorite memory of him, when he was interviewing her for her job here at the College.
“The question he asked me was the best one that I’ve ever gotten in an interview: ‘What was the worst experience you have had in the classroom teaching philosophy? Why, and what did you do about it?’ I had to stop and think about it,” she said. “It made the interview process so much more real and interesting.”
Amidst all of his accomplishments, Preti said she would miss the little things about him.
“His office was right next to mine, and the thing I think I will miss the most is the sound of his laugh whenever we talked about something funny,” Preti said.
Melinda Roberts, a philosophy professor, shared a fond memory of her colleague. Winston offered her suggestions of ways to improve an informal presentation she had given. His suggestion really made Roberts think critically about not just her presentation, but the philosophy behind it. During her presentation on WWII, Roberts made a statement saying that had the war never taken place, neither she nor Winston would have existed.
Winston corrected her statement by suggesting she say that had the war not taken place, “then very probably Mort and I would never have existed,” she said. That correction set her thinking deeply about the probability of her and Winston’s existence.
“Mort’s insistence on precision — and perhaps his own deep understanding of the problem I was trying to analyze — led him to ask me the right question at the right time,” Roberts said. “And he often did that, far more often than almost anyone else I know.”
(12/07/16 7:20am)
By Elizabeth Zakaim
Social Media Editor
Ashley Lai, a senior psychology and music double major, didn’t make it this far in her academic career without learning to plan ahead and participating in the election was no exception.
She knew that being a full-time student, a Brower Student Center employee and an e-board member of four out of the five clubs she is in meant she could not go home in the middle of the day to vote. She applied for a mail-in ballot in August, yet did not received it by Election Day or, in fact, at all.
Lai realized when she checked her mailbox on Election Day that she wouldn’t be voting by mail this election. While she acknowledged that she should have checked her mailbox sooner, she still intended to vote.
“I was really frustrated, and I tried call my county's office and they told methat my ballot was mailed at the end of September and that it wasn’t returned,” Lai said. The secretary told her there was no way she could vote unless she drove all the way back home.
Lai vented her frustration on Facebook where she found an unexpected solution. Someone commented on her post, suggesting she call a voter protection hotline. From there, she was told to call a lawyer from the American Civil Liberties Union, which, according to its website, works to defend citizens’ constitutional rights. Lai was given a lawyer free of charge, and he defended her right to vote in court.
“I signed some forms, and he went in front of a judge,” Lai said. “In the end, I was able to vote via email.”
Voting by email is usually reserved for people serving overseas in the military, but in Lai’s case, the judge made an exception, and she was able to vote in the election.
When trying to figure out who is at fault, sophomore biology major Jessica Kopew did not blame the College or her county clerk's office receive her ballot until two days after the election. She said she had applied for it in either late September or early October.
“It could be Camden County itself, but I know plenty of people who don’t live in my county who didn’t get their mail-in ballot, so I think it's the post office," she said.
Anne-Marie Manko, the Camden County supervising elections clerk, said students who called to complain to the elections office about their ballots were those who applied too late. She said students also have to consider that the College’s mail system does not operate on weekends, and that the applications must be submitted at least a week before the election.
However, both Kopew and Lai said they did abide by those policies and did not receive their ballots on time. Lai said her only regret was waiting until Election Day to check her mailbox.
“If I do an absentee ballot again, I’m going to know this time that I should be getting it weeks in advance,” Lai said. “So if I don’t, I know to call in advance.”
Regardless of who is at fault, Lai said she was very annoyed when she realized she could not vote in the election.
She knew that a lot of other college students who also did not get their ballot on time. Lai said all of the mail-in ballots that did not come in time for the election could have made a difference.
The Supervisor of Mailing and Receiving Services at the College, Sebastiano Carnevale, denied that the late ballots were the College’s fault. Carnevale said the College gets its mail from the West Trenton Post Office around 9 a.m., and the mail gets distributed to the residence halls the same day that it arrives in the mailroom.
He said he saw a lot of ballots in the mail being sent and received. While he does occasionally get some service complaints, he did not receive any complaints from students about their ballots not being mailed to them on time.
Halbert C. Clark, the postmaster of the West Trenton Post Office, said he did not have time to discuss the issue, while other post office representatives could not be reached to comment.
There are other ways mail-in ballots might never reach their destination besides getting lost in the mail. According to npr.org, some applications weren’t accepted because they were filled out incorrectly or the signature on the ballot did not match the one on people’s voter registration forms.
Even if the ballots had been sent out on time, there was still room for error somewhere down the line.
According to cavotes.org, mail-in ballots that are mailed must be postmarked on or before Election Day and received by the appropriate county elections office no later than three days after Election Day.
Some county elections offices allow their website users to check if their mail-in ballots were received. The application for the ballot must be received by mail at least seven days before the election.
Lai said a lot of her friends were fed up with the application process. They didn’t vote because they didn’t feel like going through the hassle.
"I know some people don’t even bother with the application because they find it too annoying,” she said. “My friends have been throwing out this term ‘voter suppression.' It's so difficult for you to vote, and so you end up not wanting to vote.
(11/01/16 1:08am)
By Elizabeth Zakaim
Social Media Editor
It was an ironic place for a meeting: In the lounge between Travers and Wolfe halls, the program management firm Brailsford & Dunlavey (B&D) held a forum to inform attendees of the administration’s plan to destroy both buildings.
On Wednesday, Oct. 27, B&D presented its market analysis, developed from student input regarding what they like about the towers, and shared with Student Government (SG) members what they plan to implement in the new construction of freshman-year dorm life.
According to B&D consultant Alan Resnick, the new building would be built in front of the Towers, leading all the way to where the tennis courts currently stand. The firm proposed that the tennis courts would be rebuilt closer to where other athletic fields are, past Packer Hall.
Representatives from B&D showed an effort to reproduce the green space that would be swallowed up by the new construction. Resnick proposed that the land where the Towers stand now could be turned into efficient green space later down the road.
Assistant Vice President of Student Affairs Sean Stallings described the unseen danger the Towers currently pose to residents’ health and safety.
“If left unchecked, (these dangers) can have a catastrophic impact on the student experience,” Stallings said.
Heating systems installed when the 45-year-old buildings were first built, as well as leaking pipes, can have a long-term effect over the years, according to Brenden Kollar, a B&D consultant who spoke at the forum.
Kollar said it would be cheaper to renovate, but not by much. According to the consultant, the cost of renovating is 73 percent of the cost of new construction, and that saving 27 percent of that cost for renovations is not worth it in the long run, as renovations often requires further repairs in the future. It’s like buying a car, Kollar said.
“If you buy a used car, you know you’re gonna have issues as you move forward compared to a new car that has all the latest technology,” he said.
Lloyd Ricketts, the College’s vice president and treasurer, crunched the numbers to figure out the cost discrepancy.
“The numbers I saw for the renovation cost was about $85 million,” Ricketts said. “Let’s say we take two years to renovate. That’s another $18 million added onto the cost. The renovation cost, plus the forgone money from having one tower closed at a time, would be equal to the cost of new construction.”
Renovation would mean a huge revenue loss for the College, even just one tower was renovated at a time, Vice President of Student Affairs Amy Hecht said.
“If we were to renovate, it would take about one-and-a-half to two years per tower,” Hecht said. “During that time, we’ll lose about 500 beds. We’ll also lose $4.5 million per tower in revenue.”
Ricketts also noted that the loss in revenue and the cost to renovate would have to be compensated.
“The College is required to balance its budget every year,” Ricketts said. “So, the College would be forced to cut expenses, lay people off… or raise tuition and housing so exorbitantly to close the gap.”
The College would need to borrow around $95 million to renovate or construct, he explained, but the likelihood of receiving a loan to construct is much higher than receiving a loan to renovate buildings as old as the towers.
Construction would mean that freshmen would still be able to live in the towers while the new dorms were being built, whereas about 500 people would be displaced while one tower was being renovated. According to Kollar, new construction would start in five years and last about two years.
Nicole Herrmann, a member of SG and a senior marketing major, proposed that the construction in front of the towers would isolate the freshmen and discourage prospective students and their parents from choosing the College over other schools.
In response, Hecht said admissions officers received feedback from families who decided not to come here. The feedback found that many of the families were mostly deterred by the current state of the towers that they observed during their tours.
In B&D’s survey conducted last spring, they found that students most wanted to see improvements on the current air conditioning and lack of Wi-Fi. According to Kollar, the current concrete block structure of the towers inhibits the ability for Wi-Fi to transmit itself throughout the buildings.
No more towers means saying goodbye to T-Dubs, too. Stallings said he asked the team if there was a way to keep the beloved dining space. However, due to a utilities issue, keeping T-Dubs would not be feasible.
“What we discovered was that in the 1970s, they thought it was a good idea to put the electricity on one side, Travers, and put the water on the other side, Wolfe, and so, when we tear these down, (the T/W lounge and T-Dubs) would sit here with no utilities,” Stallings said.
However, the College is thinking about converting parts of the Brower Student Center into a late night dining space for students.
The new buildings would not have the “quad spaces” that the towers do, according to Kollar. The quads in the towers were originally lounges that were made into bedrooms to fit four people inside. Hecht also explained that both freshmen and sophomores would be living in the new building in order to reduce the “downgrade” freshmen would experience moving from a brand new building freshman year to an older building sophomore year.
Some members of SG were concerned about the decrease in the number of beds in the new building. Stallings explained that the new building would have about 200 fewer beds than the towers, which currently have around 1,100 beds.
When asked about the downsize, Stallings said the College currently doesn’t fill up those 200 beds in the fall, and that the vacancy only increases in the spring when students transfer, face academic dismissal or study abroad.
One SG member was concerned that a building would cost more to build but house fewer people would be a waste of money and an inconvenience. Ricketts explained that the 200 extra beds are currently not being occupied, and the money being spent to pay for them is not being compensated.
The College budgets about 96 percent of the total occupancy in the towers, which leaves room for vacancy. According to Ricketts, the best practice would be to fill all of those beds, but that is not always possible.
Sophia Grigolo, a member of SG and a sophomore criminology major, said the forum helped her understand the situation better, but that the issue of the decrease in beds still remains.
“I really feel like the representatives avoided confirming the loss of beds,” she said. “They didn't entirely deny that there will be significantly less beds. They say that they want our school to grow, and it is, but if we aren't accommodating for the increased amount of new students each year, upperclassmen and the campus, as a whole, will feel the effects.”
Christopher Blakely, vice president of Administration and Finance and a sophomore civil engineering major, is also a bit skeptical about decreasing the number of beds. He wanted to see the numbers before forming an opinion.
Alex Molder, vice president of Academic Affairs and a sophomore finance major, acknowledged the legitimacy of both claims and understands that accepting change can be difficult.
“There is undoubtedly comfort in familiarity,” he said. “For this reason, the change, regardless of what it is, will be met with some resistance.”
(09/28/16 8:34pm)
By Elizabeth Zakaim
Social Media Editor
Being a transfer student means being adaptable, beating the competition and making big adjustments.
“This year, we had almost 400 applications and we accepted about 180 students,” said alumna Kaitlin West (’15), one of the College’s admissions counselors for freshmen and transfer recruitment.
West explained some of the factors that the College looks for in transfer student applications.
“We believe that the transcript can most accurately tell us how well they will fare in an academic setting,” West said.
According to her, the College looks for students with strong standardized test scores unless they’re applying with more than 45 credits. The school also likes to see letters of recommendation and resumes, which West said gives a little more information about who the students are, not just the grades they’ve earned.
The recruitment process for transfers is not the same as it is for freshmen, as the two groups are almost the opposite.
“Transfer events are very different from first-year events,” West said. “With first-year students, they are often very lost in the college process. They are usually unsure of what they want to do or even where to begin. Transfers usually already know what they want (in regard to their majors and minors, for example) so conversations with them are usually very direct and concise.”
Senior journalism and professional writing major Hannah Fakhrzadeh transferred to the College last year. She started her freshman year at Fairleigh Dickinson University (FDU) in Teaneck, N.J. After one semester there, she transferred to Middlesex Community College to earn her Associate’s Degree in English and then transferred to the College for her Bachelor’s in journalism. She said that she is glad to have left FDU.
“I didn’t like the professors,” Fakhrzadeh said. “It just didn’t really suit what I was looking for. It was a small enough school, but still, I had a lot of professors that showed up late and that I felt didn’t really care.”
Fakhrzadeh said that given the chance to go back, she would have applied to the College as an incoming freshman.
“I wish I had started here from the beginning,” Fakhrzadeh said. “I made the mistake of applying to 11 schools. I think when I decided on Fairleigh, I accepted just to get the decision over with. I would have started here if I had known as much as I know now.”
This year, sophomore biology major Anshel Bright transferred from Baylor University in Texas to the College. He originally decided to go there because of the school’s good reputation and a scholarship they had offered him.
As a New Jersey native, he experienced a bit of a culture shock when moving down south. In Texas, open-carry laws for weapons are the political norm.
“Baylor is a private institution, but in other public universities in Texas, they’ve legalized open-carry laws, so students are allowed to openly carry their weapons to class,” Bright said.
Bright was quick to fill out a survey Baylor sent around to the students about how they felt about students being able to bring weapons into class.
Coming to the College exposed Bright to a different side of the political spectrum.
“TCNJ is a very liberal school in the northeast — something I was more accustomed to since I’m from here — while Baylor has very conservative ideals and motivations,” Bright said. “One way (the College) shows its position is by the people they invite to speak here. They have Bill Clinton, Laverne Cox — those are all political motivations that do highlight TCNJ’s liberal stance.”
Bright explained that even Baylor’s approach on their student’s sexual activity differed greatly. He admires the way the College is more open-minded about its students and their different perspectives.
“Texas policy is abstinence, abstinence, abstinence,” Bright said. “Here, it’s very different because you know students are going to conduct themselves in any manner they feel like, whether or not you are going to impose these laws.”
Overall, Bright is satisfied with his decision to return to his home state and is grateful for the academic advantage he has here.
“I was definitely looking for smaller classes, which (the College) had a really good reputation for,” Bright said. “That’s where TCNJ really shines because since it is a small school, they have the ability to pay closer attention to its students.”
With smaller classes, students at the College can take advantage of the available academic opportunities. Patrick Hall, a junior criminology major and transfer student, was attracted to the school’s academic eminence.
“Primarily, I think TCNJ students are far more determined, serious and academic than in other institutions of higher education,” Hall said.
Last year was his first year at the College after starting out at St. John’s University in New York City, and then a semester later, he transferred to Raritan Valley Community College (RVCC). After two semesters at RVCC, he transferred to the College. Not one to settle for anything less than a challenge, he chose the College because of its academic rigor.
“My other schools were not like this,” Hall said. “Both of them were composed of students who were far less concerned with their grades, which in turn created a much less positive environment. Ultimately, I think this school consistently pushes me to achieve my full potential, and that’s why it’s far different, and better, than my previous two.”
Another RVCC transfer, junior psychology major Nick Veronsky, admitted that community college was a lot like high school.
“I would drive there everyday and come back home,” Veronsky said. “Here, it’s a lot different, which I really like. It’s more of a community where school and relationships with friends and professors all meld together into one.”
Veronsky prefers to work and relax outside where he can appreciate the warm weather while it lasts.
“Instead of there being a place for work and a place for home, it really becomes one and you can pick and choose when you want to do something like go to class or just relax.”
Despite the freedom, he also feels a lot of pressure at the College that he didn’t feel at his community college.
“At RVCC, I felt like I had more time to figure things out,” Veronsky said. “The people there were also in the same boat as me, so the amount of pressure this year is different. That school was my stepping stone, but this is where I feel like I need to be and this is where I’m going to form my future. I have a major, I’m very studious, but I guess coming in as a transfer student, I feel like some people are ahead of me because they’ve had more time to connect with the school and faculty.”
Andrew Fenwick, a junior political science major who transferred from Bergen Community College, also feels like he’s missed out on what students who have been here since their freshman year experienced.
“I get the initial feeling of being late to the party when I got here,” Fenwick said. “I'm only here for two years and I'm a little envious of the other students who get to be here longer.”
He also misses the relationships he built at community college.
“I had great relationship with my professors at Bergen Community College, and wanted to have the same feeling in my next school,” he said. “I didn't want to be another number in a classroom filled with 200 other students.”
He was grateful for the education he received there, which helped him get to where he is now, at the College.
“The faculty members were so set on student success and helped us any way possible to get into our dream schools,” Fenwick said. “The administration was so willing to have students come up and talk about issues with them. It was a very open atmosphere at Bergen and everyone there was willing to help you out.”
Luckily, the small classroom sizes at the College are exactly what he needed. To help him and other transfer students with the pressure of the transition are the College’s Griffins, or mentors, who were once transfer students themselves. Griffins are usually paired with students majoring in the same school as them. They are there as mentors to help smooth over the difficult transition.
“Being a Griffin is my favorite thing about being at TCNJ,” said Allie Clapp, a senior biology major. “It has brought me the most joy, and I think it genuinely ‘saved’ me. I felt like I had no place on campus and being a Griffin makes me feel like me being a student at TCNJ has a purpose outside of being a student. I hope to help other people have a better chance at transitioning than I did.”
Clapp was able to empathize with her mentees because she knew how hard it can be to make the transition.
“When I transferred last fall, there was no Welcome Week or weekend,” Clapp said. “We moved in the same time as everyone else and were expected to basically figure it out. I made so many mistakes not knowing what to do, so it feels good being able to help new transfer students transition to TCNJ. I am able to share all the struggles and mistakes I made that made transferring so difficult.”
Her job as a Griffin involves sending out weekly emails to students and meeting at least twice a month for an hour to discuss their adjustment. Mostly, it’s Clapp’s job to form a relationship with those students willing to reach out.
“The most important part of my job is making sure the students feel comfortable at TCNJ,” Clapp said. “I think being a resource and even a friend is also a valuable part of my job. I try to be a friendly approachable person so the transfer students feel comfortable asking me questions. I try to make myself available or make time for anyone who wants to meet me.”
Going through the transfer process can be tough, according to several of the transfer students. Still, they believe it was a worthwhile transition.
“It seems daunting to transfer from a new school,” Fakhrzadeh said. “It was hard for me to adjust at first, but once I got used to the campus and the people and the professors, it was a lot easier.”
It wasn’t easy for Fakhrzadeh to adjust to the three different schools she went to, but she learned a lot about the diversity each campus presented. She realized an easy way to avoid the transfer nightmare: do your research.
“Before committing to a school, it’s important to make sure you know enough about it first, and that you’re not deciding just to decide,” Fakhrzadeh said.
Veronsky learned the same lesson as a transfer student.
“Get familiar with the school you’re going to and don’t just think you know everything about it right away,” Veronsky said. “You might know how to go to college, but not enough about the college you’re going to.”
(09/26/16 10:31pm)
By Elizabeth Zakaim
Social Media Editor
“I am Eric Garner.”
“I am Prince Jones.”
“I am Frank Shepard.”
These were some of the names spoken in somber remembrance at the vigil held in Alumni Grove on Wednesday, Sept. 21, to honor the countless victims of police brutality.
Students stood in a circle and held posters that paid tribute to victims. Each student at the vigil lit a candle — its warm amber glow a memorial of those lost.
The vigil was sponsored by Chi Upsilon Sigma National Sorority, Inc., and cosponsored by the College’s Black Student Union and Gospel United Ministries.
“As an organization, we knew that this was a prevalent issue that has impacted
our communities negatively, and we could no longer just sit back without doing something,” said Renee Waldron, Chi Upsilon Sigma president and a senior business management major.
Waldron knew it was time to shine a light on the issue and bring some awareness to the campus community.
“We decided to get at least 50 names of the victims whose lives were cut short due to police brutality,” Waldron said. “We also wanted to create a place where the TCNJ community could mourn as a collective unit.”
The vigil brought together students with a common goal: to educate the community on police brutality and incite a call to action that would end the growing list of affected families and victims.
“Standing in that circle, holding that name, lighting that candle — I had so many conflicting emotions. Sadness. Fear. Disgust. Indignation,” said Sarah Bennet, Black Student Union president and a sophomore elementary education and math double major. “We went around the circle and said the name of each victim. My heart grew heavier and heavier as the names piled one on top of the other. I sensed the mutual pain emanating from each voice, (so much so) that it brought me to tears.”
Sometimes it’s easy to think that such tragedies won’t happen to you or someone you know. But Mella Teshome, Black Student Union member and a sophomore communication major, learned that night that it can happen to anyone.
“I saw how many of us there were and how many names, and the fact that there are almost 2,000 people this year alone who have been killed by police is mind blowing,” Teshome said. “I want people to learn that this is a big deal. It can be your uncle, aunt, cousin, sister or brother. It can happen to anyone, and there has to be something done about it.”
Though the mood was somber, Waldron was pleasantly surprised by the amount of students that came and the overwhelming support they showed.
“We were very appreciative of the support that we received from the TCNJ community, including student, faculty and even the police officers that are on campus,” Waldron said.
The best part of the huge turnout was the reminder that the issue is important to everyone despite their differences.
“We felt like we weren’t alone,” Waldron said. “Everyone that could and wanted change came out regardless of their race, ethnicity, gender or social status. We all came together as one and stood for something greater than ourselves.”
(09/06/16 5:12am)
By Elizabeth Zakaim
Social Media Editor
First impressions are often the most lasting, and I will never forget my first impression of the College.
My dad pulled up to the round, stone steps, to drop me off at the College’s open house on a windy October morning in 2015. My first sight? A sign that read “Loser Hall.” I snickered to myself as I climbed up the steps. Somehow, a building with the name “loser” on it was enough to calm some of my nerves about touring the school — an uncharted ground — even if the pronunciation of the building’s name is slightly different from that of the popular insult. Think more along the lines of “Losher” — but that didn’t stop anyone from laughing.
During my freshman year, I found that other students had the same amused impression about Loser Hall. Other than, “Wow, that kid must have gotten beat up a lot at school,” we wondered what person would be brave enough to have a last name like that declared on the face of a building — the admissions building, nonetheless, and the first one you see when you turn onto Metzger Drive.
Back in 1987, those people were businessman Tom Loser and his wife, Carol Loser, a trained biologist. The building was named after Tom’s late father, Paul Loser, who served as a superintendent for schools in Trenton, N.J., according to a news release from the College in September 2006.
Both husband and wife have made major contributions to the building’s development. In 1987, Tom made College history with his $1 million gift to fund Loser Hall. Tom was president and co-founder of Wyrough & Loser, Inc., a medical firm in Ewing, N.J., that established new forms of chemicals for the rubber industry, according to the same release. During her scientific career, Carol was a member of the ’50s Rockefeller Institute scientific team, which discovered that genes were made from DNA, and that DNA is responsible for transmitting hereditary information — a pretty revolutionary conclusion.
Fast forward almost 30 years later, when the Losers donated $5 million dollars to the College, now the largest donation in the history of the school. Their donation went toward the development of the School of Nursing and Health and Exercise Sciences, which are still housed in Loser Hall today.
President R. Barbara Gitenstein expressed her appreciation for the generous donations made by the Losers who were, as she put it in the release, “exceptional individuals who have their roots in the Trenton community.”
So were they losers? Definitely not. Their donations made history, and Loser Hall is an integral part of campus today. Even though I’m not taking nursing or health and exercise science classes there, I remember first walking up those steps for my tour of campus, and months later, smiling for my student ID photo taken at orientation. So, my first impression has been irrevocably altered. I guess we have the Losers to thank, even if their last name still brings a smile to my face.
(04/26/16 4:24pm)
By Elizabeth Zakaim
Staff Writer
Colorful, hand-written letters decorated boards in the Library Atrium all week long in honor of Sexual Assault Awareness Month. The event, Love Letters to Survivors, was sponsored by the College’s Anti-Violence Initiatives (AVI).
According to AVI’s online mission statement, the program “leads the campus effort to address issues of sexual assault, domestic/dating violence, and stalking. (It) works with community partners to create a campus environment that is intolerant of abuse and responsive to needs of victims/survivors.”
The letters were showcased for all students to examine and read over, whether or not they had been personally impacted by sexual assault.
“They are put on display in the Library Atrium for the campus community to read and learn more about how to support survivors,” AVI Coordinator Michelle Gervasi said. “Love Letters to Survivors is a call to survivors of sexual assault, their loved ones and TCNJ community members to publicly celebrate survivorship and create an environment of support.”
Gervasi works hard to educate students of the College on sexual assault, consent and bystander intervention. She also provides counseling and other support services for survivors.
According to Gervasi, the placement of the letters on the first floor of the library was intentional. She hopes that the display will spark a dialogue about the issue of sexual assault on college campuses.
“The best way to spread awareness about power-based personal violence and prevention is to talk about it. We want to raise the visibility of the issue by having intentional conversations with students, faculty and staff,” Gervasi said, hoping the art display would leave a lasting impact on the College community. “Let others know that addressing violence matters to you. Tell those impacted by power-based personal violence that you believe them and that you’re here for them.”
Students studying in the library or passing through on their way to class could take a moment to admire and read the letters. Many responded with positive feedback.
“The letters are really nice,” senior biology major Syndi Barish said. “(They) illustrate the prevalence of sexual assault and that the victims are not just victims.”
Instead, the event referred to “victims” as “survivors” in an effort to empower those affected by sexual assault.
“I think the letters are extremely heartfelt and bring attention to a serious issue,” sophomore English major Alexa Zupko said. “I definitely believe that it helped (raise) awareness due to its position in the library and the colorful letters. There is no way to ignore the display board and thus, there is no way to ignore this ever-growing problem on college campuses around the United States.”
Zupko said she was proud of the College’s efforts to spread awareness of sexual assault on campuses. By showing support for sexual assault survivors, she hopes her peers will feel more comfortable speaking out and sharing their stories.
“The majority of campus assaults go unreported,” Zupko said. “So I think that victims who are unable to report their assaults due to the fear of being shamed or of not being believed will feel brave and gain the strength to take action if they want to.”
(04/05/16 4:03pm)
By Elizabeth Zakaim
Staff Writer
How many of us living in this country grew up without electricity? How many lived in a home without running water? How many of us had to skip a meal for lack of food?
These were questions raised at the Immigration Monologues held on Tuesday, March 29, in the Business Building Lounge. The event was organized by a group of Bonner scholars from the College who volunteer to teach English as a Second Language classes at El Centro, a learning center in Trenton, N.J.
One Bonner scholar, sophomore deaf education and sociology double major Yuleisy Ortez, proposed the idea for the event after hosting a similar one last year that helped dispel stereotypes associated with immigrants.
“We had a great turnout (last year) and wanted to continue to bring the issue of immigration to light on our campus,” Ortez said. “I proposed that we do Immigration Monologues to give a face to the stories of immigration that many of our students either have experienced themselves or have some experience with.”
One speaker, a sophomore international studies major, is a native, or “indio,” of Costa Rica and has chosen to remain anonymous in the retelling of his story.
“Indio means I am descended from Amerindian — in my case specifically, the Bribri-Talamanca tribe,” he said “There are many differences between Latinos and Indios, as Indios are often forgotten when talking about Latin American countries.”
He described his house, a banana-leaf shack, and how his childhood pastimes included climbing mango trees and playing “pass the dirt,” his version of hot potato.
“As I look back at growing up there, I cannot think badly of my experiences. If I am honest, I don’t believe my particular circumstances have made me any stronger than anyone else,” he said. “People sometimes have a preconceived notion that third world hardships and second world hardships are worse than first world ones, but in living in these two different conditions, I can say that the first world still experiences poverty, violence, disease, trauma and disaster.”
The Costa Rican native was six when he came to the United States.
“Assimilating was and still is difficult, as a part of my being is in love with American culture, while the other half resists and tries to honor my roots,” he said. “I miss the warmth of my home there, the fresh food, the community-oriented people and the general acceptance of the people in my society. I would say, though, that however much I miss those things, I am and will forever be an American.”
Assimilation is a hardship all immigrants have to face. Junior communications major Natasha Piñeiros spoke to the audience about the challenges that she and her family faced while emigrating from Ecuador.
“It was really tough,” Piñeiros said. “I was used to my parents being really involved in my school affairs. My family was well-known in my town and never did I have to think about people having different cultures or languages. It was navigating through the airport in the U.S. where I began to realize how my life was taking a 360.”
Because she spoke the most English in her family, Piñeiros had to take on a lot of responsibility that would normally fall on her parents.
“I translated for my parents all the time. It all began as soon as we stepped out of the airplane. I (would) translate documents for them, attend doctor appointments with them and I’m really the only person who has had contact with our landlords over the years,” Piñeiros said. “It has helped me mature so much. You don’t have 13-year-old kids talking about tax returns, lease or permanent residency paperwork. But I had to pick it up, and quick. This helped me think differently about my identity.”
Senior business management major and Bonner scholar Talia Martinez helped coordinate the event and also spoke at the monologues. Martinez shared the story of how her mother was deported back to Mexico when Martinez was 11 years old and said that her family is still coping with the loss.
“I spent many days traveling to many different lawyers, trying to see if we could find some way to bring my mom back,” Martinez said. “Holidays were very tough and my family had to overcome being physically apart.”
Martinez said that until recently, it was hard for her to open up and tell her story to others. Hearing an insensitive joke about immigrants from a peer, however, changed her perception of her past. She then realized that she should be sharing her story with others who can listen and relate to her hardships.
“I started to think about all the jokes I’ve ever made and how real they actually are,” Martinez said. “In the beginning, when my mom was first deported, I kept it a secret because I didn’t want people to judge me. I later realized that she did nothing wrong. She had not hurt anyone, so why be ashamed? Now I take it as an opportunity to inform people about immigration (and) the sad side to deportations.”
The Immigration Monologues not only gave students who have emigrated from outside the country a platform with which to share their experiences, but also allowed their peers to learn from these personal stories.
“It is important to hear these perspective because this is a human issue and those who aren’t directly affected (by) it do not know about the process and how hard and difficult it can be to immigrate,” Ortez said. “These monologues open the minds of those attending and give the audience a different perspective from the eyes of the speakers.”