tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34057723607286201392024-03-08T06:34:26.144-05:00AdaptiveACAdaptiveAC is a blog of and around Atlantic City and Atlantic County. Initially started as a project of City Storytellers of The Citizen's Campaign, it is dedicated to telling the stories of citizen empowerment and showcasing community innovation in and around Atlantic City and Atlantic County. Currently supported by the writing of Stockton University students in the COMM2103 class.AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.comBlogger136125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-57627544324177171672019-12-17T10:00:00.000-05:002019-12-17T10:00:12.423-05:00Blackjacks Go Bust in Atlantic City, Taking Dreams with Them<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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by Raquel Rothstein, Adaptive AC Correspondent</i></b><br /><br />Football? In Atlantic City? At Boardwalk Hall? Brilliant. This was a typical reaction of local people when they heard about the new Arena Football League Blackjacks team coming to Atlantic City: FINALLY, something new and positive is coming to Atlantic City! <br /><br />It all started with strong plans. Indoor arena football is something exciting and innovative to bring to any city, but especially Atlantic City. Arena football is rapid-paced with a titillating atmosphere to draw crowds in and keeps that crowd on their feet. Fans in the stands are just off the field with the players and any action that occurs is that much more fun as a result. Throw in running clocks, sexy dancers and booming music to make it a fun-filled time. <br /><br /> The uniforms for Atlantic City were bold red, black and gold, and the team was named as a result of a community competition. In a gambling town, the Blackjacks were fitting. Personnel were in order as well -- the head coach was Ron James, supported by offensive coordinator Shane Stafford. Sergio Gilliam was the defensive coordinator and Brandon Lang the director of player personnel. <br /><br />The players hailed from around the country, with long and winding paths to the Arena League. Many of the players felt as if they made history by being the first to have a team like this in the city. The closest Arena League team is the Philadelphia Soul, over the bridge and an entire market away. Locals in the area got excited, hyped up really, and many were eager to attend the home opener game to see what this new thing was all about! <br /><br /> In the meantime, preparations continued at Boardwalk Hall. A dance team called the Diamonds was fielded to cheer on the team. Many dancers were from the local area, some from Northern New Jersey and Philadelphia. Momentum grew, and more and more people were benefiting from this team coming to town. <br /><br />Tons of jobs were created at Boardwalk Hall when the Blackjack rolled into town. The cheerleaders, coaches, behind the scenes support staff, coordinators, concession stand managers, merchandise specialists and more all were bringing home pay checks. The team created partnerships that produced internships, opportunities, and jobs for many. The Blackjack Arena Football Club brought advantages and positive vibes, giving people a bright spot in the community.<br /><br /> In a city of bet big and bust such as AC, this was good news. It offered a live sports game to look forward to each week, a viable alternative to a show at the casino or a movie at the local mall -- the few sources of entertainment locally. <br /><br />At the home opener against the Columbus Destroyers, the crowd was vibrating with excitement. The energy was so powerful and strong, the hype and happiness as the crowd gathered to watch this first game was palatable. Children were catching T-shirts, fans had already invested in Blackjacks apparel, and a sea of smiles and clapping could be heard as the new team was being introduced and coming onto the field. <br /><br />Each action packed drive was bursting with emotion and so entertaining no eyes turned from the field.<div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="160" src="https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/q_NymhyJdMc_YfwzjCWt5vOYYl6vBogenSiu52UIvhDtgz_Dlm1eqasMKo6DQEdyPdA8VU6w-KgO_ZK-XHXwSuqClIqIfvKdj4vK06XmzpTSmtPfgACtCVmTE9xX7DiXhgS24EkJ" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">James Whelan Boardwalk Hall Arena packed with Fans at the first Blackjacks Game.</td></tr>
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<br /> The home opener was very successful, with a fully packed stadium, and the crowd could not wait for the next game to come. The launch of the Blackjacks went better than expected. <br /><br />“I think our players were very much pumped for the game,” Atlantic City coach Ron James said. “Just because ….. the history of the building. We talked about it, (but) they didn’t realize just how historic the building was (At first), so it was great to see them react that way.” The football games brought the community together, and the fans were passionate. <br /><br /> Wide receiver LaMark Brown commented after the first home opener that “One of the things that you kind of worry about being a new team is fan attendance… Our fans showed up. They were into the game. They were in tune. They really came out to support us, so it’s a good feeling.” <br /><br />All of the players and coaches were pleasantly surprised at the success of this first game. This gave a wave of positive energy, and was just what the players needed to hype them up for each game to follow. <br /><br />Ventnor native Ryan Rothstein, the emcee of the Blackjack games, loved his job. The thrill of the stadium was exceptional. Part of Rothstein’s job was to go on the field and hype the crowd up and get them excited. <br /><br />“As I walked onto the field, my adrenaline would sky rocket. My job is to get everyone pumped up for the game but with the natural excitement in the arena, it was made easy to do. When I would walk onto the field, the whole stadium was on their feet. All yelling and jumping up and down enjoying themselves. T-shirts and hot dogs were thrown out and dancing and everyone genuinely having a great time. I feel the Arena football league brought all positive to the community and the area of Atlantic City. This was something so new with so much potential, everyone could not help but be excited and wanting to attend these games throughout the summer,” said Rothstein. <br /><br />He reported that the energy of the coaches and football players was amazing every game. “Regardless if the Blackjacks won or lost a game, the excitement level never changed,” he stated. “I loved this job because everyone was happy, there was no negative. I looked forward to each home game because it brought a positive atmosphere and joy around me.” <br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Ryan Rothstein preparing to throw T-shirts and Hot dogs to the Blackjacks fans</span></td></tr>
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<br /> Kiante Northington of Louisville, Kentucky was a defensive back for the Atlantic City Blackjacks. </div>
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“Joining the Arena team was a great opportunity and I immediately took it. Football is my passion, and I was looking forward to checking out the area and seeing what Atlantic City is all about. I graduated Eastern Kentucky University and then played for the Massachusetts Pirates of the Arena League. This new team was an exciting thing for me, I couldn’t wait to try something new especially knowing its new in the area as well. <br /><br /> Like a football thrown out of bounds, the energy and excitement of the newest AC sports team dropped to the ground with news that came in October. Not only was the Atlantic City Black Jack team folding, but the entire Arena Football League was done. <br /><br /> Unfortunately, the league faced a lawsuit filed by an insurance carrier that provided workers compensation coverage for the league between 2009 and 2012, leading to the Arena Football League closing. Suddenly, the high cost of doing business outweighed the energy of the sport.<br /><br />“I had high hopes for passionate, excited fans and that’s exactly what there was. It made playing so much more fun and awesome. I also ended up really loving the city of Atlantic City. We constantly did charity work, fun events, and more. It was an overall great experience that I appreciated every minute of.”<br /><br />Northington stated he will never forget the experience of the Blackjacks team and memories that were made. The team was always doing charity work at Chick-Fil-A, events at Hamilton Mall, and other appearances. All the team players were from all over the country which was very unique and interesting. Giveaways and ticket deal packages were sold to get more people to attend games. <br /><br /> Ron James, the head coach of the Atlantic City Blackjacks said “I played college football at Siena College. I have been coaching since 1986 and always had the biggest love and passion for the sport. My mindset going into this was nervous but determined. I was overwhelmed by the amount of support our team received from the start and up until the very last game. The team became a family very quickly with one another and we just worked. It all just worked. The experience for me was a blast and I enjoyed every minute of it.” <br /><br />James loved coaching this team and said he was taken aback in a positive way of the amount of love and constant support the community poured out to him and the new team. <br /><br /> The end of the Blackjacks and Arena League Football was disappointing after the successful launch in Atlantic City. It left many shocked and surprised. <br /><br /> The average attendance for their home games was 5,430 fans, and the last two games included 6,685. The team finished with a 4-8 record, but definitely were celebrated by fans and the community. It is not clear where the players, coaches and support staff will head to next, but for one bright and shining season, the Blackjacks landed on black.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small; text-align: start;">Atlantic City Blackjacks Team Photo 2019<br /></span></td></tr>
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<b>Raquel Rothstein</b></div>
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<br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGuY9fTYGLKaXl05O18TF-w9nbqL46E15ofuvNXBjTWNKeuTISY3gTMeRzr8c39BQr5k0XQq7gj5wH450DoAaifcLqgiPlTf50Mv99pazCfztwhUlrnfShx_7LhDYsJz1-EcwusXjMzMo/s1600/Raquel+Rothstein+headshot.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="750" height="127" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGuY9fTYGLKaXl05O18TF-w9nbqL46E15ofuvNXBjTWNKeuTISY3gTMeRzr8c39BQr5k0XQq7gj5wH450DoAaifcLqgiPlTf50Mv99pazCfztwhUlrnfShx_7LhDYsJz1-EcwusXjMzMo/s200/Raquel+Rothstein+headshot.jpeg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<br /><b><i>Raquel Rothstein is a Ventnor resident who is also in her third year at Stockton University. Raquel is a founder of Sigma Delta Tau Delta Pi chapter at Stockton. She works as a concierge at Marriott Fairway Villas and in her free time loves spending time at the beach and hanging with friends and family. </i></b><br /> <br /><br /><br /><br /><div>
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AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-16799859324879490772019-12-16T09:00:00.000-05:002019-12-16T09:00:01.276-05:00Defining Recovery One Day at a Time<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNcr6DHg457vZL5ZWqWEAsLYTqpZC-u_xsrWio6ClBOgOgexSIdRlMOsooCS1-29nUxUY27UYHMFkYAsvp4ZNiI2szfNTJ9Zhro4kcW6B7hMUx-yRMbQ5g-esQOr85x9GpaSM9HYy_KdA/s1600/IMG_3969.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="842" data-original-width="828" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNcr6DHg457vZL5ZWqWEAsLYTqpZC-u_xsrWio6ClBOgOgexSIdRlMOsooCS1-29nUxUY27UYHMFkYAsvp4ZNiI2szfNTJ9Zhro4kcW6B7hMUx-yRMbQ5g-esQOr85x9GpaSM9HYy_KdA/s320/IMG_3969.jpg" width="314" /></a></div>
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The National Institute on Drug Abuse of Bethesda, Maryland reported in 2019: “There were nearly 64,000 drug overdose deaths in 2019 in the United States to put that in a context that’s more than gun deaths. That’s more than car crashes. It’s more than HIV/AIDS during the peak of that epidemic. Another way of looking at it is it is more deaths in the United States from drug overdoses than there were United States casualties during the entire Vietnam War.”<br />
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A human achingly known to many in South Jersey was Matthew Bee. He illuminated every room he walked into and was truly the most unique person. Besides being handsome, Matt was beyond intelligent. Matt was hilarious, that kind of funny that makes one almost pee their pants and made you snort terrible sounds. Matt was beyond athletic and the kind of athletic as in not only good at every sport he played and started football varsity as a freshmen in high school, but he could also shred on a surfboard and skateboard effortlessly. <br />
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As if that wasn’t enough Matt was also very artistic and musically inclined, even his school journal doodles were remarkable and he could play the guitar as though he were born to it, as well as sing. The most important thing about Mathew Bee was that he was the most loving, kind-hearted soul and truly cared about everyone. Matt had a way about him that was like no other, so humble and carefree, it would have been amazing if only he could have seen himself through other people’s eyes. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_EmEkrJtUbp3PYz6_d8r2Z_ekr5diQBelOxE3y8WOcvmxqHtURwd7DPT-4J-yF8w0RbFYY0zCSTI4AGzx8M13R4IE1DmKM5yHtqUQ96Z35SDP0cnA9DNt3GJ5tBDULRjyta5_rZTQmLo/s1600/21641142_10210765005668893_6749594976500997618_o.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1250" data-original-width="1000" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_EmEkrJtUbp3PYz6_d8r2Z_ekr5diQBelOxE3y8WOcvmxqHtURwd7DPT-4J-yF8w0RbFYY0zCSTI4AGzx8M13R4IE1DmKM5yHtqUQ96Z35SDP0cnA9DNt3GJ5tBDULRjyta5_rZTQmLo/s320/21641142_10210765005668893_6749594976500997618_o.jpg" width="256" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghsb1wHwOx0M8s1uCsf_5qBMK_TsuhyphenhyphenRSvlUQLehR1K9Ab1EK1wqldMmmMFB-fh1mxPuIILDZyLx9aaCqqqfl6LlukARPPshV2_6I2_QisrZD0znUoCmBvaBAjgB3BHeQsFfq7Nl8XYd0/s1600/IMG_3970.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="807" data-original-width="828" height="311" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghsb1wHwOx0M8s1uCsf_5qBMK_TsuhyphenhyphenRSvlUQLehR1K9Ab1EK1wqldMmmMFB-fh1mxPuIILDZyLx9aaCqqqfl6LlukARPPshV2_6I2_QisrZD0znUoCmBvaBAjgB3BHeQsFfq7Nl8XYd0/s320/IMG_3970.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<i><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Matthew Bee on his 20</span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: 0.6em; vertical-align: super;">th</span></span><span style="font-family: "calibri" , sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Birthday August 2016.</span></i></div>
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Tragically Matthew Bee passed away in September 2016, at the age of 21 -- because of the disease of addiction. His mother Lisa Bee started the Matt Bee Memorial Fund with the help of the Hanson Foundation. The Matthew Bee Memorial Fund and the Hansen Foundation partner in expediting treatment in a safe and healthy environment, for those who would not have the financial resources and someone to advocate for them.<br />
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The Matthew Bee Memorial Fund donations go one hundred percent to treating those who cannot afford treatment. “My choice to send patients to the Hansen facilities is based on the outstanding care and resources provided. I have the ability to share in the client’s treatment and be a part of their recovery plan through my close relationship to the Hansen family” says Lisa Bee. <br />
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Lisa Bee had a real need to start the Matthew Bee Memorial Fund and the passion to make it real. <br />
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“In 2016 I tragically lost my son Matthew sue to the disease of addiction. Matthew was an incredible human being. He was kind, intelligent, tremendously athletic and beautiful inside and out” said Lisa. “After his passing, it was my mission to stop the stigma of addiction and mental illness as well as help those who have the need of treatment” said Lisa. <br />
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Lisa faced her own difficulties but pushed through it and others were ready to help. “In truth, it was difficult for me mentally because of the heartache of losing my beloved son Matthew. As far as raising funds people were ready to.” said Lisa. <br />
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Lisa wanted people to remember Matthew in a positive way. “I think the community was ready to deal with a subject matter that was in one shape or form effecting us all” stated Lisa. <br />
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Matthew Bee Memorial Fund has been highly successful raising upwards of two hundred thousand dollars to help people go through detox, treatment, and sober living. “I have had the pleasure of seeing people’s lives change and for them to thrive and be happy,” said Lisa. <br />
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Anyone who cares about addiction and people with the disease can get involved. The best way to become active is through bringing awareness about the risks and dangers of drug abuse educate students by having speakers and informational materials, make it a conversation built around solving the epidemic rather than bringing shame and isolation. <br />
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Stockton University is one of the many schools that provide recovery housing. In New Jersey in 2017, it was actually mandated in all colleges that have one-third of its students living on campus. Michael Levin, one of the counselors at Stockton University, devotes his time and is very hands-on in the recovery housing and councils those who seek help. <br />
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“Not many people want to live in the recovery housing because it is not a very glamorous title,” said Michael. At Stockton University there is currently only about two or three students living in recovery housing, where they have their own RA, kitchen, etc. The most Stockton has ever had in recovery housing was five and they all graduated last year. Recovery housing has its own weekly meetings and events. <br />
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Michael also explains how there are “smart recovery” groups which are non-faith based meetings that are held twice a week. There are some students who are “recovery coaches” as well. <br />
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“There are a lot of other addictions besides drinking and drugs, gambling is a big one, porn, and the internet,” said Michael. “Students should be knowledgeable and know that there are resources to help them and not be afraid to ask for help!” Michael explained. <br />
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Lisa Bee and Michael Levin share a goal, even though they have never met -- to help the world understand that addiction is a disease, and it is a disease that can be addressed. Every day that a student or youth lives addiction free is a triumphant day.<br />
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<i><b>Dani Starr is a Brigantine native who loves running and spending time on the beach. Dani is a Communication Studies major, on the Public Relations track and hopes to graduate in May 2020. She lives with her family, including her younger brother and sister. She is an Atlantic City High School alumnus.</b></i></div>
AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-43027749251779650232019-12-13T09:00:00.000-05:002019-12-13T09:00:02.361-05:00Forging Community While Studying for the Citizenship Test<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 2.4; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-indent: 36pt;">
<span style="font-family: "arial";"><span style="white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>By Emily Montgomery, Adaptive AC Correspondent</i></span></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: medium;"><i>Naturalization Ceremony held on Stockton’s main campus in Galloway, NJ, provided by Stockton University Flickr account.</i></b></td></tr>
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<br />Can you name two Cabinet-level positions of the United States government or what stops one branch of government from becoming too powerful? Do you know how many voting members are a part of the House of Representatives or the exact date the Declaration of Independence was adopted? What about the US Senators? Can you name any of them? <br /><br /><br />As of this past June, eighteen people who attended the naturalization class offered at Stockton knew the answers to not just these five questions, but 95 more as they all passed their civics exam. At the end of November, one more student, Mauro, passed the civics test. Mauro, who is represented by his first name only for this article, was the 19th person to pass the exam. Consequently, the passing rate for the class is 100%.<br /><br /><br />The atmosphere in the room is unique from any other classroom setting. Students can attend the class whenever they please up to the day they take their exam. Typically almost all of the students in the class show up diligently every week in pursuit of knowledge of the US. All of the students are eager to learn, determined to pass, and curious about their environment. <br /><br /><br />Mauro came to the naturalization class for the first time on November 19th. He had informed Dr. Merydawilda Colón, Professor of Social Work, Director of the Center for Community Engagement and lead teacher of the class, that he was scheduled to take his exam that week. Compared to the people who had been showing up to class for weeks/months and had ample time to prepare, Mauro was behind. Going to the class that night, however, was the best decision he could have made for himself and his future, according to Colón.<br /><br /><br />“His mom told me, had he not come to this class, he would not have passed,” says Colón.<br /><br /><br />In 2015, the Stockton Center for Community Engagement (SCCE) began offering the sessions for people in the community who are trying to become naturalized citizens. The course began a year after Colón became the center’s Director. At the time she started, there was only one program that SCCE offered to the community, and for Colón, that was not enough. <br /><br /><br /> “When I began working here in 2001, I always wanted to teach naturalization. Many people have to do so many levels of approval to get permanent approval for US citizenship. When I became the Director, I said this is it, this is the time because now I’m able to facilitate the process for it. I knew about it and knew there was an importance for it in the community, so that’s how it came to be,” she said. <br /><br /><br />As a tactic to get every student engaged in the class, the students are expected to just shout out the answers to the questions. Rather than have the students raise their hands, all the students actively participate. This way, each one learns the answers and the correct pronunciation of the words. Also, they feel a sense of belonging as they participate in the class, which ultimately boosts the classroom’s energy and enhances the student’s ability to form relationships with one another. <br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: medium; text-align: start;"><i>Dr. Merydawilda Colón, Executive Director of Stockton Center for Community Engagement and Tenured Professor of Social Work, photo by Stockton University Flickr account.</i></b></td></tr>
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The class is set up in a way that gives each person taking the class a student Fellow to work with one-on-one. The SCCE Fellows are Stockton students who act as tutors and additional teachers.<br /><br /><br /> The community members typically memorize 100 answers to 100 questions, including such things as Cabinet-level positions and how many voting members are a part of the House of Representatives. However, during the civics exam, they are only asked 10 of the 100 questions they prepare for. And while you may be able to answer questions about the US Senate and the rules of government, these students are expected to answer the questions in English, the language many of them are still getting comfortable with. <br /><br /><br /> That’s where the Fellows come into play, like Mike Meros. The Fellows can pronounce every word so that the naturalization students can fully understand. The community members taking the class must learn how to actively and accurately understand English because the test is given to them orally. <br /><br /><br /> “I want to make a difference in the lives of many and by playing a part in this class, I realized I could start making a difference right away,” says Meros. <br /><br /><br /> The SCCE Fellows work hard, repeating every question and exaggerating the pronunciation of particularly difficult words to ensure that the naturalization students comprehend them. The Stockton students actively practice patience and are empathetic towards each of the community members’ needs. <br /><br /><br /> “It’s tedious because you’re saying the same things every night, but to the members of the community, they want this content so badly. We feel a sense of pride that we can help them in this process,” said Colón. <br /><br /><br /> Being a part of the class and working with the members of the community means more than just community service to the Stockton students. They genuinely care about each of the community members. While the student Fellows are impacting the lives of the community members, the community members are also impacting the lives of the Fellows simultaneously. <br /><br /><br />The people taking the naturalization class are not just taking the class to memorize a bunch of United States trivia, take the test, and be done. Rather, they are taking the class to fully understand the United State’s government, culture, and language and to set themselves up for a future that they have craved for a long time.<br /><br /><br /> “I concentrate on people understanding, this is not simply about being documented. This class isn’t a path to be documented,” says Colón. <br /><br /><br /> The challenges of the class are just the beginning for many of these community members, who crave citizenship so intensely. Before anyone can even consider the class, they have to have permanent residency with a green card for at least five years. In addition to going through the prolonged process of getting a green card, (this can take up to 3 years) permanent residents have to wait another five years before they can take the citizenship test. Colon reserves spots in the class for those who have everything to become a citizen, and only need to prepare for and take the test. <br /><br /><br />“We care deeply,” says Colón, “but we [the US] don’t always make things easy for people who want to become American citizens.”<br /><br /><br /> The green card requirement sets back some people who are eager to not only learn a new language but who want to immerse themselves in a new culture. During the naturalization class recently, a woman, bright-eyed and smiling, who spoke Italian and very little English, passionately walked into the classroom. Sadly, she had to be turned away from the class because she only had her green card for less than a year. Unaware that she had to wait five years when she was told she could not stay, she immediately sank into despondency. <br /><br /><br /> “I want to learn more, I don’t want to wait,” she said.<br /><br /><br /> With similar goals in mind, all of the students taking the class form a deeply connected community amongst themselves. Since most of the students show up every week, spending time together and learning, they quickly become bonded. When one student passes, it’s as if the whole class passes. There is a sense of accomplishment among all of the students, even if they have not taken the test yet. For the students focused on becoming citizens, this provides hope, motivation, and something to show them that their hard work will eventually pay off. <br /><br /><br />“I love it,” says Colón. “They call me to tell me they have passed, and then they come by to celebrate. If there's one thing that you will always know as a student, it’s that you need to network. Everything is about relationships. I work hard to maintain relationships.”<br /><br /><br />Even the student SCCE Fellows have developed relationships with the community members. <br /><br /><br />“You could say I have developed a relationship with some of them. It’s more a teacher-student relationship, but also a friendly relationship as well. They’re great people to be around,” says Meros. <br /><br /><br /> Anasky, (her last name has been withheld for safety), has had her green card for five years this March. She has been attending the class for about a month with her mom with the hope both will pass their civics test. Anasky came to the United States with her mom in 2015, following her father who came in 2008. They are motivated in their desire to complete their education and land dream jobs -- jobs they would not have the opportunity to get back in their country. <br /><br /><br /> “The laws right now are really hard. I feel like if I want to go back to the place I was born, they’re not going to let me go. I want to study here. Back in my country, I was supposed to graduate high school in 2016 and I came here in 2015, so I had to do high school here, and now, I am in college. I wanted to come here [to Stockton], but they don’t have what I want [talking about wanting to be a pediatrician],” says Anasky.<br /><br /><br />Anasky’s mother, Norma, does not speak English as well as Anasky does. Language is one of the biggest reasons why becoming naturalized is so valuable to Norma. Norma explained that she aspires to go back to college, but she can not do that until she passes the civics exam. Norma tells her daughter, who translated the conversation, that she wants to become a kindergarten teacher and that if she can not do that, she would like to be a medical assistant. <br /><br /><br />“I want to integrate myself in the American community,” says Norma. “In my country, I practiced being a nurse, but I am not finished. I want to improve my English, so I can interact with patients.”<br /><br /><br />All of the opportunities that could potentially be available to the community members in the class start with the passing of the civics test and becoming citizens. This course and what it offers is indispensable.<br /><br /><br />The work that goes into implementing the class is more than just important, it’s crucial. Colón, the student Fellows, and other community partners that are part of SCCE, all work together to not just educate the community members -- they help to transform their lives. And community members never let it go unknown how thankful they are, either. <br /><br /><br />“I love when students pass, it’s my life, my everything. These individuals, they want this badly, it’s a gift every day that I get to do this. The community members are the experts, not us and it’s good to know we’re making such a big difference,” said Colón.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img height="213" src="https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/mQZMWT23bqpf6SP_v9PHVuDjYjXIu1_74qMDYM2LPHMc7dus6yfTApTHykuM_rw9ywLSAmc5OeSU1rUA_OuiMTMTqZl-SbGrqMT4Lb6LWF56bfl4WwaxfYJrB266hlECL5HCHr2S" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b style="font-size: medium;"><i>Naturalization ceremony held at Stockton University on May 7, 2019, provided by Stockton University Flickr account. </i></b></td></tr>
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<b style="text-align: left;">Emily Montgomery</b></div>
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<i>Emily Montgomery is currently a Communication Studies student at Stockton University, concentrating in General Media Studies and minoring in Spanish and Professional Writing. She is a Staff Writer for Stockton’s independent newspaper, The Argo, and she hopes to one day pursue a career in Broadcast Journalism. In her spare time, she likes to workout, take pictures, and explore the world around her. </i></div>
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AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-77524956085337640302019-05-18T17:00:00.000-04:002019-05-18T17:00:10.730-04:00Mentors Guide the Next Generation in Atlantic City<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="416" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/7fR3v7Nsa6w" width="600"></iframe><b><br /></b><b>Videography by Kedar Dockery, AdaptiveAC Collaborator</b><br />
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<b>By Marissa Luca, Student Collaborator</b><br />
Jodi Burroughs’ footsteps echo in the empty halls as she walks to her office at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. School Complex in Atlantic City. The usually bustling school, decorated with multi-colored murals and photographs of civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., is quiet on a recent Thursday morning. It is spring break, a time for catching up on sleep or having fun.<br />
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For Burroughs, the principal of MLK, who serves students from preschool to eighth grade, this time “off” means acting as a liaison to the contractors renovating the floors of the Pre-K classrooms in the school, ensuring that it is ready for the children’s return.<br />
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Working on the weekends is not unusual for Burroughs, a resident of Atlantic City for most of her life. Growing up, she often volunteered alongside her sisters in the community, paying special attention to the needs of those around her, internalizing a desire to help, wherever and whenever possible, to the best of her ability.<br />
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For mentors like Burroughs, guiding the next generation toward success is less of a choice and more of a natural drive to give back to the community. For some, it’s these systems of mentorship that helped them grow. For others, it’s about connecting the youth in Atlantic City to personal development and career opportunities.<br />
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Burroughs saw a way to give back through teaching, and so, after graduating from Rowan University, she pursued a career in education, working as a teacher in the K-12 Atlantic City school system. Burroughs worked her way up from teacher to the district’s literacy coach to the vice principal of Texas Avenue School. Shortly after, she was appointed principal of MLK.<br />
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“I love my job,” Burroughs says. “I’m destined to be here. My hope is that I’m nurturing people’s gifts and that I’ll leave things better than when I got here.”<br />
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One of Burroughs’s priorities at MLK is introducing her students to new careers and aspirations outside of the classical curriculum. For instance, MLK has been working on creating makerspaces for students to design, experiment, build and invent in hands-on, creative ways as they engage in science and engineering. Recently, in a makerspace funded by a grant, the MLK students have assembled a prosthetic hand for a young woman with the assistance of a doctor and an engineer.<br />
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“It’s important for them to know their value and what they can do,” Burroughs says, “because unless you know you can, you won’t.”<br />
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Mentorship seems to run in Burroughs’ family. <br />
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Her son, Marvin Burroughs Jr., is constantly aware of the effect he has on the kids who participate in the Accelerated Reading program at Texas Avenue School where he teaches.<br />
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Burroughs Jr. also coaches basketball at Atlantic City High School, trying to give students the same sort of support he had. <br />
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“Growing up, I was lucky to be the kid that, out of all my friends, I had both parents,” Burroughs Jr. says. “My home was a haven and my parents raised me to give back.”<br />
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Unlike his mother, Burroughs Jr. wasn’t always so sure he would be an educator.<br />
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“This is honestly the last thing I thought I would be doing,” he says. “But I know there are institutionalized disadvantages kids in the city face. School is an institution, so why not change it from the inside out?”<br />
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Atlantic City is no stranger to disadvantages: The national portrait of the city, painted in broad strokes, is marred by economic troubles caused by tumultuous shifts in the gaming industry that gave and took in equal measure. <br />
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The 2008 recession hit the city hard and many lost their jobs as a result. Since then, the city has been working to bounce back. <br />
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More casinos have been developed in the area, and, in March, Atlantic City gaming revenue increased by 34.5% from 2018, according to <a href="https://www.nj.gov/oag/ge/docs/Financials/PressRel2019/March2019.pdf">data</a> from the state Division of Gaming Enforcement released in a press release by the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General. Since the opening of Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City and Ocean Casino Resort in June 2018, gaming revenue has steadily increased each month, with gains often being in the double digits. The legalization of sports betting has also benefited gaming revenue.<br />
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Despite the recent successes, the story of the city still seems to be one of constant challenges.<br />
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But it doesn’t have to be, according to Michael Everett, the founder of the local chapter of the Champions of Youth Program. <br />
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Everett, who worked at Atlantic City High School for years as an English teacher and then a guidance counselor, founded the Champions of Youth Program with a “holistic approach” in mind, which he defines as a signature approach. The mentors in the program examine the needs of each individual student, meet the champions where they are in life, and provide them with the resources they need. <br />
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“These kids have every kind of need you can think of and their goals are as diverse as they are,” says Everett. “Some are homeless, some are on the honor roll, some are the only breadwinners in their family, so when you come to them, you have to be genuine. You have to be an advocate. You earn that trust, and when you do, you get results.”<br />
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Those who have graduated from the program have achieved different levels of accomplishments ranging from being the first in their families to graduate from high school or attend college to owning their own homes. <br />
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Programs similar to Atlantic City’s Champions of Youth have found success across the nation as well. In 2013, three researchers conducted a study on the role of risk, which was funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and distributed by the Manpower Demonstration Research Corporation, also known as MDRC. The <a href="https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED544230.pdf">study’s results</a> show that mentorship, both through official programs and unofficially by educators and community organizers, reduces symptoms of depression, increases social acceptance, and improves students’ academic attitudes and grades.<br />
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“If you give kids the tools to succeed, they will,” Everett says. “Former Champions have not only accomplished a great deal in their careers and academically, but they have taught me so much as well.”<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jamahl Williams, Atlantic City native. <br />
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For Jamahl Williams, an Atlantic City native and graduate of Champions of Youth, success looks like attending Stockton University and running his own videography business, FlicKing Media, part-time.<br />
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Williams joined the program in his junior year of high school, later than most of his peers. He emphasizes just how important it is for kids to have someone show them not only what they are capable of, but where they can go in life.<br />
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“Michael helped me apply for college and took me to different places, to see what it’s like outside the city,” he says, “and not a lot of kids know that life exists outside the city.”<br />
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Now Williams, like Burroughs, Burroughs Jr. and Everett, acts as a mentor to kids just like himself. Each Saturday, at Stockton’s Atlantic City Campus, College Bound, a mentorship program, allows local high school students to ask college students questions and build lasting connections. The program, which is a partnership between Stockton University and the state, also provides classes and field trips designed to prepare students for college. <br />
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“I know what it’s like to grow up in Atlantic City,” Williams says, “and kids don’t often know that they matter. So I try to show them that they do, and they should never give up. Helping them allows me to give back everything I was lucky enough to get.”<br />
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Williams’ sentiments are echoed by Pam Cross, who has been running Stockton University’s Writing Center for 32 years. As a professor who teaches each summer for the Educational Opportunity Fund program in Atlantic City, Cross often works with students who are at risk academically or are having trouble adjusting to college. She notes that they often lack confidence or have never been told that they can succeed. <br />
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“I try to impart to every student of mine that there is a future for them and that we have so much to learn from each other,” she says, “and that every bad day can be followed by a good day.”<br />
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Atlantic City is known for its bad days, but for the youth of the city, these mentors hope, good days are not only in reach but waiting for them.<br />
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“Yesterday is gone; we can’t change it,” Everett says. “But we can, and will, take one step forward.”<br />
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-7026d296-7fff-fd8c-d38b-351efd09ceb0"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This story was produced as part of </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stories of Atlantic City</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, a collaborative project focused on telling restorative, untold stories about the city and its people. The project was produced in partnership with </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Free Press</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, the </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Center for Cooperative Media </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">at Montclair State University, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ivoh </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Images of Voices and Hope), </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stockton University</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Authentic City Partners </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ThisIsAC </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">co-founder Evan Sanchez, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Grace & Glory Yoga </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Leadership Studio </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">co-founder Alexandra Nunzi, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Press of Atlantic City</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Route 40</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SJNtv </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Breaking AC</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. Stories of Atlantic City is funded with a grant from the NJ Community News and Information Fund at the </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Community Foundation of New Jersey</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, a partnership of the </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">John S. and James L. Knight Foundation</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. To read other stories produced as part of the project, visit </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">www.storiesofac.com</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10pt; font-style: italic; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNajgrnnoIeDbqwzjrDr7zQ0CeWJHpl-Jtklq2sT-KShMTieuzKqWiF4czrH2tCzzcjIplYOcuNawxBT5hjQUKfZuB4mCfgYzeFlKP9YFrHEPk-R5BUGcKHdGeL-ZKbOtUW_RTjHdpI1U/s1600/MarissaLuca.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="990" data-original-width="956" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNajgrnnoIeDbqwzjrDr7zQ0CeWJHpl-Jtklq2sT-KShMTieuzKqWiF4czrH2tCzzcjIplYOcuNawxBT5hjQUKfZuB4mCfgYzeFlKP9YFrHEPk-R5BUGcKHdGeL-ZKbOtUW_RTjHdpI1U/s200/MarissaLuca.jpg" width="193" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Marissa Luca, Student Collaborator</b></td></tr>
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<b>To Contact Marissa Luca:</b><br />
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AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-78146660141479590902019-05-17T11:00:00.000-04:002019-05-17T11:00:06.429-04:00After Decade, “Back Sov” Skatepark Wheels Hope into Atlantic City <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS7U2NZVEhg5tVv4iaZF_s269AYpJwqIUCI1fycJ1cOlYb1ISQVZcZbtYDu2UPWemL-h26oKxzOruy1Qa9Ao_Rjys9ZvSP2nY1sJ0r0mFURow5tO3Aj7K2NWc49yfD9J-92Qc_OxyF7aQ/s1600/skatepark.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="728" data-original-width="1400" height="207" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS7U2NZVEhg5tVv4iaZF_s269AYpJwqIUCI1fycJ1cOlYb1ISQVZcZbtYDu2UPWemL-h26oKxzOruy1Qa9Ao_Rjys9ZvSP2nY1sJ0r0mFURow5tO3Aj7K2NWc49yfD9J-92Qc_OxyF7aQ/s400/skatepark.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>"Back Sov" Skatepark. Photo Credit: Luke Miller</b></td></tr>
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<b>By Alexa Taylor, Student Collaborator</b><br />
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At three o’clock on a Thursday afternoon, Atlantic City’s Sovereign Avenue skatepark, affectionately nicknamed “Back Sov,” truly comes to life. Walking his dog around the park, Zach Katzen watches as dozens of children flood down the street after school dismissal, racing to the skate ramps with boards in hand. <br />
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Katzen, program director of the Atlantic City Arts Foundation and one of the prime movers behind Back Sov’s installation, visits its site overlooking the Atlantic City bay daily. Katzen is responsible for monitoring the park’s activity and keeping the grounds clean. <br />
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“I love the community, I always have,” says Katzen. “These kids like to skate, and deserve to have a place solidified for them.” <br />
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His two partners, Jason Forslund, 32, and Jason Klotz, 31, also serve as the park’s representatives. Together, the three embody the entity “Skate AC,” a non-profit organization dedicated to enhancing the community of Atlantic City through its public skatepark. <br />
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Forslund and Klotz, two Atlantic City locals and skate-enthusiasts, became advocates for the building of a park almost a decade ago. Katzen joined his friends on the project in 2017. <br />
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“I really felt like this place, with a proper skatepark, could be the East Coast’s Venice Beach, and it starts with something like a generational skatepark,” says Forslund, now a father of two.<br />
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“Back Sov is a promise to the kids of Atlantic City, and I hope that it’s the very first one of many.” <br />
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After reading an ad that encouraged Atlantic City residents to get involved with their community, Forslund began attending NJ Casino Reinvestment Development Authority (CRDA) meetings in 2010 to propose his ideas of building Atlantic City’s first public skatepark. <br />
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“I was often the youngest person there,” says Forslund. “One day I stood up, introduced myself and said, ‘I really love Atlantic City, and I would love to see a skatepark here.’”<br />
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“They were all kind of perplexed. At first, they kind of just blew me off, but I just kept coming.”<br />
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Klotz, who had moved from Atlantic City to California, returned back to the island in 2011 when he heard about the headway Forslund was making on the proposal.<br />
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“A park on the island was always my dream,” says Klotz, who had run out of spots to skateboard in Atlantic City by age sixteen, due to illegalities. “I heard Jason Forslund was stirring up the idea of a skatepark in AC and I wanted to get involved.” <br />
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Once the two got the plan for the park on a docket, the NJ CRDA voted their favor. But for every step made that seemed closer to having the skatepark built, there were twice as many hurdles standing in their way. <br />
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“I saw the obstacles my friends were facing while interacting with the government,” says Katzen. “The struggles have been showing that this park is something that is needed by the community, beating the preconceived notions that a lot of people have about skateboarding.” <br />
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Feeling discouraged, Forslund took a break from the project. <br />
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Klotz took over much of the responsibility, creating and funding the initial “Do-It-Yourself” park in 2014, and launching the GoFundMe campaign after the park was torn down by the city. <br />
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“We skated there a lot and would host events to donate boards, shirts, shoes, and wheels to local kids,” Klotz says. “One rainy night, the city’s public works team was ordered to tear the park down.” <br />
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However, Klotz decided to push forward. The GoFundMe page helped raise thousands of dollars for the rebuilding of the park, while also spreading awareness to the community about its building process. <br />
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“In 2017 the new mayor, Frank Gilliam, who is an advocate for recreation, let me know he would help us,” Klotz says. “He stood by his word.” <br />
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Meanwhile, Katzen, a partner to “48 Blocks AC” and the Atlantic City Arts Foundation, felt his connections within the community could also help drive the project over the finish line. <br />
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“I saw they were having a lot of trouble,” says Katzen. “I said, ‘Let me step in and try to help you.’” <br />
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Katzen decided to commit himself to the venture until the goal was achieved, joining the organization known today as “Skate AC.” <br />
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“All credit goes to the guys who did all the work leading up to it, starting the GoFundMe and getting the community’s support,” says Katzen. “I was just able to utilize my channels to get everybody together and show them that we’re all on the same page, that we’re all working towards the same goal to make the community better.” <br />
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<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="416" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/MkhEGcgOaBw" width="600"></iframe>
<b>Videography by Luke Miller, Student Collaborator</b><br />
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Once the true goal of the project was finally realized, community leaders in Atlantic City started coming together to support the completion of the park. <br />
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Katzen’s friend, lawyer Jacob Perskie, volunteered his time by writing a contract for the city to accept the skatepark as a donation. This allowed 5th Pocket Skateparks, a Pennsylvania-based corporation specializing in park design and construction, to come on board to generate the architectural plans for the park, which could be built after approval by officials. <br />
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Once the plans were approved, Atlantic City’s Hard Rock Hotel and Casino not only donated to the project, but offered the 5th Pocket creators complimentary rooms for three weeks so they could have a place to stay while building the park. <br />
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City council members even stopped by the construction site to show their support. <br />
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“When we get to do projects like this, it pulls everybody together,” says Katzen. “There’s less of a divide between the city officials when you see the mayor come out here with Councilmen Fauntleroy and Cheng.”<br />
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“We were very lucky to have all the support of the community members,” Katzen says. <br />
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As the process was nearing its final stages, Skate AC felt their vision for the park would not be fully achieved without contributions from local artists. <br />
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Fortunately, through Katzen’s involvement with the Atlantic City Arts Foundation, five artists became quickly available to help, fully willing to lend their talents by painting murals all over the newly-restored park. <br />
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One of the Arts Foundation artists, Christian Correa, says each painter was simply encouraged to express him or herself through their work. One of his murals, called “Stay Not Normal,” was inspired by the creative process experienced by both skaters and artists. <br />
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“It kind of feels organic to the space,” says Correa. “I think it’s cool that this was a thought, and that this brings the arts and skate communities together.” <br />
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Katzen says the responses to the artwork have been so positive that the artists have come out in subsequent weeks to continue the murals. Eventually, they want to fill up the entire park with paint. <br />
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“While we were painting, people were here skating,” Katzen says. “They were asking, ‘Can we skate, is it dry yet?’… They’ve been waiting so many years to have this park that we didn’t want to make them wait any longer.” <br />
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So far, the impact of the park on the community has been far and wide. Before it was even finished, people were visiting Back Sov with their families and friends to see the progress that was made.<br />
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Every afternoon, when school is dismissed, 20-30 kids run out to the park with skateboards and scooters, and even basketballs. <br />
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“When you give them a place that’s for them, they will respect it,” says Katzen. “They appreciate all the efforts.” <br />
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Forslund says that the skatepark was not created only for local skaters, but for the entire community. He believes that these types of projects help bring Atlantic City back to its roots as a family-oriented area.<br />
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Jason Thomas, 25, of Egg Harbor Township, brings his three-year-old son, Tristan, to Back Sov as often as he can. <br />
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“It’s so awesome that I can bring my son there to learn how to skate, while being around the great people that go there,” Thomas says. “This is something that is special for kids… it gives them a safe place to be.” <br />
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The Skate AC team plans to expand this venture by giving to the community more safe, public spaces that promote values of creativity and athleticism.<br />
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“There is a lot of potential in the formula we used to do this,” says Klotz. “The struggles it took hopefully inspire people to know you can make amazing things happen with love and your imagination.” <br />
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“Down the line, the idea is that this inspires everyday people,” says Katzen. <br />
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“Having a park like this, having a place that’s their own - that’s something that they can remember and pass down.”<br />
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-1008ead8-7fff-78fa-8425-9db4c06194f1"><b><i><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This story is part of </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stories of Atlantic City</span><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, a collaborative reporting focused on telling restorative, untold stories about the city and its people. The project was produced in partnership with </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Free Press</span><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, the </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Center for Cooperative Media </span><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">at Montclair State University, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ivoh </span><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Images of Voices and Hope), </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stockton University</span><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Authentic City Partners </span><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ThisIsAC </span><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">co-founder Evan Sanchez, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Grace & Glory Yoga </span><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Leadership Studio </span><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">co-founder Alexandra Nunzi, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Press of Atlantic City</span><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Route 40</span><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SJNtv </span><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Breaking AC</span><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. Stories of Atlantic City is funded with a grant from the NJ Community News and Information Fund at the </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Community Foundation of New Jersey</span><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, a partnership of the </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation </span><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">John S. and James L. Knight Foundation</span><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. To read other stories produced as part of the project, visit </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">www.storiesofac.com</span><span style="font-size: 10.995pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></i></b></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPY6QvqVuUzgv-jFO0F6Kc2ZaLWKXqGH8XhXJgZAIglqaLtWJlIQW277qP8-6lC9AKbc_t-Y494EXFf8SGLqYLk_8DNXoN_6z5VDcRxU1PQtIROhnhj94EbwH1TobDtZs4z6kpfz3E9yU/s1600/AlexaTaylor.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="960" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPY6QvqVuUzgv-jFO0F6Kc2ZaLWKXqGH8XhXJgZAIglqaLtWJlIQW277qP8-6lC9AKbc_t-Y494EXFf8SGLqYLk_8DNXoN_6z5VDcRxU1PQtIROhnhj94EbwH1TobDtZs4z6kpfz3E9yU/s200/AlexaTaylor.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Alexa Taylor, Student Collaborator</b></td></tr>
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<b>To Contact Alexa Taylor:</b><br />
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-c83744b7-7fff-7e38-c639-72ccede5d46b"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #212121; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11.5pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Instagram:</span></span></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-c83744b7-7fff-7e38-c639-72ccede5d46b"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #212121; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11.5pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">@lexzerr</span></span><br />
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-c83744b7-7fff-7e38-c639-72ccede5d46b"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #212121; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11.5pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Alexa Bonsera-Taylor. </span></span></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-c83744b7-7fff-7e38-c639-72ccede5d46b"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11.5pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexa-bonsera-taylor-95988017a" style="text-decoration-line: none;">https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexa-bonsera-taylor-95988017a</a></span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnKAk80ms3jCl1LkIAH_5BSEolND0uAloL_GD7rfhoqtG-jlhB4kObBbU22ItaHwlzOC109p8saNh1UER3EbRCoEw89yc4F8EyLiwrp-LMpEv7NkRQkHfL5SFD2MmO_mXCyFIL3E-Fcdw/s1600/LukeMiller.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1200" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnKAk80ms3jCl1LkIAH_5BSEolND0uAloL_GD7rfhoqtG-jlhB4kObBbU22ItaHwlzOC109p8saNh1UER3EbRCoEw89yc4F8EyLiwrp-LMpEv7NkRQkHfL5SFD2MmO_mXCyFIL3E-Fcdw/s200/LukeMiller.jpeg" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Luke Miller, Student Collaborator</b></td></tr>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-c83744b7-7fff-7e38-c639-72ccede5d46b"><b>To Contact Luke Miller:</b></span><br />
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-c83744b7-7fff-7e38-c639-72ccede5d46b"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #212121; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;">Instagram: lukemillerfilm</span></span></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-c83744b7-7fff-7e38-c639-72ccede5d46b"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #212121; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-c83744b7-7fff-7e38-c639-72ccede5d46b"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #212121; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;">Personal: lukemillz18</span></span></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-c83744b7-7fff-7e38-c639-72ccede5d46b"><span id="docs-internal-guid-fe562f48-7fff-5468-900c-348ceb32a4a1"></span><br /></span>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-c83744b7-7fff-7e38-c639-72ccede5d46b"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #212121; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11.5pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre;">Twitter: @lukemillz10</span></span></div>
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AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-87498397359093999812019-05-16T09:30:00.000-04:002019-05-16T09:30:08.062-04:00Taking Atlantic City Jazz History into the Future Through Music Education<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-4tojPXYXHfigvAvtbWZyr__quWkAfzj2OSwr8Q7lyLANhBbDUWBAVSE1ohHyIgLjBKZjfeyWgm599lBIlrAPXcOFSy9qsP1DBGzAleoEBKqrqWYFfF51hm3K3zkKOoU-jpqBWR_hVhQ/s1600/south+tenn+house.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="801" data-original-width="1400" height="227" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-4tojPXYXHfigvAvtbWZyr__quWkAfzj2OSwr8Q7lyLANhBbDUWBAVSE1ohHyIgLjBKZjfeyWgm599lBIlrAPXcOFSy9qsP1DBGzAleoEBKqrqWYFfF51hm3K3zkKOoU-jpqBWR_hVhQ/s400/south+tenn+house.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>726 Indiana Avenue in Atlantic City, home of the Chicken Bone Beach Historical Foundation. </b><br />
<b>Photo credit: Shannon Joyce</b></td></tr>
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<b>By Shannon Joyce, Student Collaborator</b><br />
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“They don’t have a beach; we have a beach,” says Henrietta Shelton in a voice full of emotion as she speaks to an attentive audience at the Stockton University Atlantic City campus during a rainy April morning. “They don’t have the Atlantic Ocean; they don’t have a boardwalk. So what are we missing?” In this presentation specially prepared for Stockton’s African American Cultural Heritage event, Shelton questions why the Atlantic City jazz scene is not up to par with major cities, especially after its forgotten heyday.<br />
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Although jazz may be historically associated with New Orleans or Chicago, Atlantic City's jazz clubs had their pinnacle days of glory from the 30's to the 60's when legendary singers such as Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra and Dizzy Gillespie came to perform before local clubs went dark. Now, a committed group of city music enthusiasts are working to revitalize the jazz scene. The music genre is seen as a valuable art form that represents black heritage, and an opportunity to bring Atlantic City forward by reaching into the past.<br />
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Shelton founded the Chicken Bone Beach Historical Foundation in 2000 to keep the legacy of a historical landmark in Atlantic City alive. Chicken Bone Beach, the once-segregated Missouri Avenue Beach, was nicknamed by locals. Black families brought fried chicken to eat by the ocean, then buried the bones in the sand. Shelton does not find the nickname derogatory; growing up, she witnessed the beach bring comradery among the black community. Similar unity happens through black culture and jazz, says Shelton. The foundation also hosts jazz concerts and summer camps for local youth hoping to revive the jazz scene in Atlantic City through music education. <br />
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“Jazz gives me the same vibes that Chicken Bone Beach gave us,” says Shelton.<br />
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<b>Atlantic City’s Past Jazz Scene</b><br />
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The salty air of the ocean and the cawing of seagulls greeted Jane Stark on her first visit to Atlantic City in 1963, 15 years before the city’s first casino appeared. <br />
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The Atlantic Ocean was merely the first of this student’s sights during her weekend getaway. Stark, a white undergrad, was not a top-40 girl, nor did she care for rock’n’roll. Instead, she was a fan of jazz by black musicians. Her music guru friends were eager to introduce her to the jazz scene in the resort town.<br />
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Stark and her friends ventured over to the renowned Kentucky Avenue, the “black side” of the racial divide during a segregated Atlantic City.<br />
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With music on almost every street corner, the atmosphere in AC had a kinship to Bourbon Street in New Orleans. Men in their best suits and women wearing their favorite glam roamed the streets to their club of choice. Some stopped at the 500 Club for Frank Sinatra or Skinny D'Amato. Others visited the Wonder Gardens to see Dizzy Gillespie or Brother Jack McDuff.<br />
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Stark’s group of friends chose Club Harlem. When they arrived at “the place to be” on a Friday night, the line to get in was phenomenally long as fans waited to hear this weekend's shows. Numerous headliners regularly performed at the premier jazz club for black artists, including Louie Armstrong, Sammy Davis Jr., and Chris Columbo, who later became Stark’s friend.<br />
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In 1979, Stark moved to this resort and gambling center after being hired as entertainment publicist for Tropicana Atlantic City. In 1992, she publicly thanked Columbo at the Showboat after being honored as Business Woman of the Year by the Greater Atlantic City Chamber of Commerce.<br />
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“If it hadn't been for Chris and his music, I never would have come to Atlantic City as a permanent resident,” she said.<br />
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<iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="555" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/sVvGlaDlNsc" width="600"></iframe>
<b><br /></b><b>Videography by Kedar Dockery, AdaptiveAC collaborator</b><br />
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<b>Atlantic City’s Present Jazz Scene</b><br />
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“Once again ladies and gentleman, The Eddie Morgan Trio,” the emcee announces as Eddie Morgan, Daryl Robinson and Jeff Burnside take center stage at Kelsey’s on Pacific Avenue in 2014.<br />
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The calming sound of the keys and drums fill the air before Morgan’s trumpet erupts among the chattering crowd. On the right beat, vocals begin.<br />
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“Ain't no sunshine when she's gone … It's not warm when she's away,” Morgan sings into the microphone.<br />
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Morgan, an Atlantic City native, knows the ins and outs of the local jazz scene as he is a performer by night and music teacher by day. Launched in 1993, The Eddie Morgan Trio is a local band that performs renditions of jazz standards that old souls know by heart, and modern music in a jazzy way. Today, one of their prime venues is Kelsey’s, a club established in 2012 that serves soul food and features live jazz music. <br />
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Morgan wishes he could get more gigs, but it has become more and more difficult for local bands, especially jazz artists, to find work. He recalls that by the late 1970’s, Kentucky Avenue’s heyday was overlooked as the city’s casino era moved forward.<br />
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Morgan explains that there were once many opportunities for professional musicians in AC. In 1978 musicians were excited about the opening of Atlantic City’s first casino, Resorts International. Regulations required showrooms seating 350 or more to use live musicians. A few years later the law was lifted after casinos claimed it to be too costly; tapes were a more viable option. As more casinos opened, showrooms shifted their focus and less opportunities became available for local musicians to perform. This forever altered the music scene of Atlantic City, Morgan remembers.<br />
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Today, there is a lot of live music in a city that touts the “Do AC” slogan, as venues such as the Hard Rock, Golden Nugget, Tropicana, Borgata and Boardwalk Hall frequently draw in big names. However, Morgan notices that casinos tend to feature performers from major cities instead of locally-based groups like his Trio. For jazz musicians specifically, the scene is even more limited now that the pinnacle glory days of Kentucky Avenue are gone. Like Stark and Shelton, Morgan doesn’t want that history to be forgotten, and he loves to share his knowledge with younger generations.<br />
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Morgan teaches general music at Leeds Avenue Elementary School in Pleasantville, a suburban town outside of Atlantic City. In April, Jazz Appreciation Month, he takes the opportunity to talk to his class about the genre with roots from blues and ragtime. <br />
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“To see the music of their culture helps you gain an insight as to the way they feel ... the way they think,” he lectures, and adds how jazz originated in the early twentieth century from the black communities of New Orleans.<br />
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A study of children ages 8 to 11 found that those who had extra-curricular music classes developed higher verbal IQ and visual abilities compared to those with no musical training, cited by the National Association of Music Merchants. Morgan finds that students who study music learn to be more focused, resulting in greater academic success.<br />
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With most of the jazz scene in Atlantic City obsolete, and fewer opportunities for younger generations to learn about music, Morgan feels a wave of discouragement. Then hope comes along.<br />
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<b>Atlantic City’s Future Jazz Scene</b><br />
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An abandoned, white shuttered row home aching with blight sits at 726 Indiana Ave., to the left of the Atlantic City Fire Station. The floor of its porch is bright red, screaming for someone to visit. <br />
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“They said ‘we’ll tell you when settlement is; you have the house,’” Shelton says during a tour of the property one recent afternoon. Chicken Bone Beach Historical Foundation was offered the house by Well Fargo Bank through its Community and Urban Stabilization Program in 2016, and didn’t have to pay a dime.<br />
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Shelton is transforming it into the Chicken Bone Beach Youth Institute for Jazz Studies, which will offer year-round music and art lessons to children in Atlantic City. The top floor is going to be a soundproof recording studio used to generate money to keep the school open. As the house remains gutted on the inside, Shelton fundraises and seeks donations and grants to make her dream project soar into the future.<br />
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“The babies made this,” she says about the Jazz Institute Coloring Book, created by students to raise money for the future studio. Two drawings of Gloria Lynne, a famous jazz singer, by students Maryam Bibi and Millie Kelly are in the middle of the book. Lynne and other jazz superstars performed at the Chicken Bone Beach Jazz on the Beach Series at the boardwalk amphitheater Kennedy Plaza in 2001.<br />
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“This is where the babies are going to do their gardening,” Shelton gestures at the backyard of the soon-to-be jazz house, where students will support a planned community vegetable garden. Eight garden boxes are lined up within a fence. Next door, jugs sit at the end of the fire station’s gutters to collect water for the garden.<br />
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“And my vision is having these babies play in the summertime,” Shelton says while gazing at the lackluster landscape around the block, which she hopes to transform into a community park. <br />
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“I want to carry recognition to Chicken Bone Beach, and talk about the unity and camaraderie that was on that beach,” she said. “And I can do it through jazz. Jazz artists improvise, and they create at that moment, beautiful music on stage. The song he plays today is not the song he plays tomorrow.”</div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-43ec4e05-7fff-a05b-9e71-757205c69368"><b><i><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stories of Atlantic City </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">is a collaborative project focused on telling restorative, untold stories about the city and its people. The project was produced in partnership with </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Free Press</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, the </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Center for Cooperative Media </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">at Montclair State University, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ivoh </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Images of Voices and Hope), </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stockton University</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Authentic City Partners </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ThisIsAC </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">co-founder Evan Sanchez, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Grace & Glory Yoga </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Leadership Studio </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">co-founder Alexandra Nunzi, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Press of Atlantic City</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Route 40</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SJNtv </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Breaking AC</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></i></b></span></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-43ec4e05-7fff-a05b-9e71-757205c69368"><b><i><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stories of Atlantic City is supported by </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stockton University </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">with funding from the NJ Community News and Information Fund at the </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Community Foundation of New Jersey</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, a partnership of the </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">John S. and James L. Knight Foundation</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></i></b></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">To read more about the project, visit </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">www.storiesofac.com</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></i></b></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFiGAjNN8Oeu5k9ufbQ8TloHgmA25Agy8Su5yD7yZxjq0_U9tiLLe_CQRWrvp8vfsA85n03lvuQ7uKC9oTtAIDYaoBfIMEQx8gSGKZLw_HYINSBm1vizJJyd8TsM1KmSlt0-aRoRyeVWE/s1600/ShannonJoyce.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="333" data-original-width="250" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFiGAjNN8Oeu5k9ufbQ8TloHgmA25Agy8Su5yD7yZxjq0_U9tiLLe_CQRWrvp8vfsA85n03lvuQ7uKC9oTtAIDYaoBfIMEQx8gSGKZLw_HYINSBm1vizJJyd8TsM1KmSlt0-aRoRyeVWE/s200/ShannonJoyce.jpg" width="150" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Shannon Joyce, Student Collaborator</b></td></tr>
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<b><i><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 10.995pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">To Contact Shannon Joyce:</span></i></b></div>
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AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-87342106809779799452019-05-15T12:29:00.000-04:002019-05-15T12:29:13.203-04:00Overcoming Mental Health Stigma with Holistic Healing in Atlantic City<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM36EI2Jl905pR9qhkaVP8EGCOIXZFyCM2-oogDOpLncMOF0_G_tJifKeogxPia_TL10frgpg936QEDcViCT2dcMt5uAe3Jr4q6Gng5epTBf00uNvhomigwcH3QmxouhC7rv3BAsQs7sc/s1600/Deon_1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1143" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM36EI2Jl905pR9qhkaVP8EGCOIXZFyCM2-oogDOpLncMOF0_G_tJifKeogxPia_TL10frgpg936QEDcViCT2dcMt5uAe3Jr4q6Gng5epTBf00uNvhomigwcH3QmxouhC7rv3BAsQs7sc/s400/Deon_1.jpg" width="285" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Deon Davis, AC native. <br />Photo credit: Ray Nunzi</b></td></tr>
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<b>By Katelyn Woolford, Student Collaborator</b></div>
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May 2019 marks the 70th anniversary of Mental Health Awareness Month, a national event for fighting stigma, providing support, educating the public and advocating for policies <br />
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that help people with mental illness and their families. Over the years, community leaders in Atlantic City have been working towards responding to mental illness. In February 2019, Indra Owens, counselor and the co-founder of Princess Inc., a city nonprofit that fosters mentoring, education, empowerment and community service, partnered with the Leadership Studio to create a yoga therapy program to assist community members coping with trauma.<br />
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Seeking mental health treatment can be a daunting task that many feel as though they cannot handle, according to Philadelphia psychiatrists Delane Casiano and Karriem Salaam, co-authors of the book, “<a href="https://psychnews.psychiatryonline.org/doi/full/10.1176/appi.pn.2018.7a11">Mind Matters: A Resource Guide to Psychiatry for Black Communities</a>.” There are a lot of options to explore, such as traditional methods like medication, therapy, or more holistic methods such as meditation, yoga, and other forms of exercise.<br />
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There are many reasons why people of color may not seek mental health treatment, according to Casiano and Salaam. Treatment may not be accessible, there might be language barriers and stigma plays a major role. People could have a hard time finding someone in the mental health care system that looks like them or comes from their community, which creates a cultural boundary between patient and professional.<br />
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<b>Mental Health in the U.S.</b><br />
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According to the National Institute of Mental Health, about one in five Americans live with a mental illness (<a href="https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/mental-illness.shtml#part_154785">46.6 million in 2017</a>). <a href="https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/releases/stigma-as-a-barrier-to-mental-health-care.html">Stigma around treatment</a> has greatly harmed those who need treatment the most. Representation of mental health and those who have an illness can prevent people from getting treatment. Friends’ and family members’ opinions can be a major factor in seeking services also.<br />
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<b>The Community Leaders in Atlantic City</b><br />
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Owens earned her bachelor’s degree in communications from Temple University, then completed her master’s degree in school counseling. She started a therapy program called “Journey to Inner Peace: Mindfulness to Transcend Trauma” at the Leadership Studio on South Tennessee Avenue. Having a program in the city is important because “people here rarely go offshore except to go to the Hamilton Mall,” said Owens, who saw a need for local healing. <br />
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The program first ran on Wednesday nights, from February to April, offering a place in AC to practice yoga for residents new to this mindful exercise. The sessions revolved around some light yoga practices led by mindfulness teacher Andrea Nelson, incorporating coping mechanisms and ways to become stronger in order to improve mental health. Diverse members of the AC community attended the first run of the program, demonstrating a thirst for non-invasive, alternative mental health wellness strategies.<br />
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According to Georgetown Law’s report on how “<a href="https://www.law.georgetown.edu/news/yoga-helps-at-risk-girls-cope-with-trauma-georgetown-law-report-finds/">Yoga Helps At-Risk Girls Cope with Trauma</a>,” yoga changes how someone’s body is impacted by the harmful effects of trauma. <br />
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Creating an unconventional and new approach to mental health treatment may increase the amount of people willing to try it. This may lead to further, more official and formal treatment, or an awareness of the potential, since many continue to neglect their own health. Owens stated that being in an environment that is filled with uneasiness, rather than acceptance, can make someone not feel comfortable enough to open up.<br />
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Owens is hopeful that Atlantic City residents who deal with a multitude of different traumas will connect to someone who has experience living in the city. As Alexandra Nunzi, founder and CEO of the Leadership Studio said, “It does take someone of the community to say ‘Listen, I’m worth this, and you’re certainly worth this.’” <br />
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Owens has now established a sense of trust with people of the community. Pairing with the Leadership Studio’s holistic approach created a strong balance for helping residents.<br />
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<b>A Student’s Perspective</b><br />
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Deon Davis, a Communication Studies major and Student Trustee at Stockton University, was born and raised in Atlantic City. He participated in the Champions of Youth program at the Leadership Studio, which helps local youth experience the world through mentorship and travel. In his 22 years, he has seen casinos open, close, and become vibrant again. It was troubling to watch the fallout of businesses closing, since it can take away tourist revenue and impact the residents' everyday lives.<br />
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Being in college is stressful, and many students neglect their mental health, only focusing on their physical wellness. Davis shared, “I realized in my time at college that there’s a lot of factors playing into your ability to keep up with everything. It’s something that we don’t take inventory of. People work out regularly, or have a certain diet that they follow. But they neglect the mental part of their overall well being.” Outside of a college setting, many people still do not take care of the mental part of their health, said Davis.<br />
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Davis also believes formal and informal care fit well with each other, and should be brought together to create a happy medium for successful treatment. “Informal care is what a lot of people where I’m from do because they don’t think they are entitled to it [formal care], or it’s not for them because of stigmas that are put in place.”<br />
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<b>What’s Next?</b><br />
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Owens and the Leadership Studio are restarting their program this summer. Since so many community members attended the first sessions of the program, it demonstrated that a judgement-free space as a therapy option is needed. Talking is the first step to healing, and the success of this program brings hope to the community.<br />
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-2341385e-7fff-68d2-3dd1-e78d3c7bcfeb"><i><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This story was produced as part of </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stories of Atlantic City</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, a collaborative project focused on telling restorative, untold stories about the city and its people. The project was produced in partnership with </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Free Press</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, the </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Center for Cooperative Media </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">at Montclair State University, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ivoh </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(Images of Voices and Hope), </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stockton University</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Authentic City Partners </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">ThisIsAC </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">co-founder Evan Sanchez, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Grace & Glory Yoga </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Leadership Studio </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">co-founder Alexandra Nunzi, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Press of Atlantic City</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Route 40</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SJNtv </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Breaking AC</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. Stories of Atlantic City is funded with a grant from the NJ Community News and Information Fund at the </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Community Foundation of New Jersey</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, a partnership of the </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">John S. and James L. Knight Foundation</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. To read other stories produced as part of the project, visit </span><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">www.storiesofac.com</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></b></i></span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_6VZTOzPm_b7FJucjF1_09rpTbzQuurx_O5q2Ou6vzUcff4AR4gFV_9cz9inG_eoHHVv_JYcQOBSM_v1G1IlspMMzgOCzSTu8R2j9X-Nx3MwzTQ-AfRFrAvyS-8fR7fS8WXRqGYx0hBc/s1600/KatelynWoolford.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1552" data-original-width="1552" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_6VZTOzPm_b7FJucjF1_09rpTbzQuurx_O5q2Ou6vzUcff4AR4gFV_9cz9inG_eoHHVv_JYcQOBSM_v1G1IlspMMzgOCzSTu8R2j9X-Nx3MwzTQ-AfRFrAvyS-8fR7fS8WXRqGYx0hBc/s200/KatelynWoolford.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><b>Katelyn Woolford, Student Collaborator</b></td></tr>
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AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-6036746936522545052018-12-05T02:11:00.003-05:002019-05-14T12:23:09.291-04:00Printer Points Scandal at Stockton<div dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-88369295-7fff-6269-40f9-ed37715fcff7" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 22.08px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
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<b>The Printer Point Scandal at Stockton</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/eSwyj8ecpZmDauz8fzoafD8tJX7FMM6k4D2PnmntcJdYECxUEDi1iRITCR_QDuKYGmMZMb6QqM0x7g0basjJ2cRQ8bxpq8QICAs5EOTUWx5zobT-u2G7Vt-UPkt6rcI-ciuSp9uH" imageanchor="1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: #0066cc; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"></a></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-45671d1b-7fff-dc1f-3feb-67fef3c5ca3c" style="background-color: transparent; clear: left; color: black; float: left; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 32px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap; word-spacing: 0px;"></span><span style="font-family: "arial";"><b>By: </b><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><b>Dominic Verrichia</b>
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<br style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;" /><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/eSwyj8ecpZmDauz8fzoafD8tJX7FMM6k4D2PnmntcJdYECxUEDi1iRITCR_QDuKYGmMZMb6QqM0x7g0basjJ2cRQ8bxpq8QICAs5EOTUWx5zobT-u2G7Vt-UPkt6rcI-ciuSp9uH" imageanchor="1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: #0066cc; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-left: 16px; margin-right: 16px; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/eSwyj8ecpZmDauz8fzoafD8tJX7FMM6k4D2PnmntcJdYECxUEDi1iRITCR_QDuKYGmMZMb6QqM0x7g0basjJ2cRQ8bxpq8QICAs5EOTUWx5zobT-u2G7Vt-UPkt6rcI-ciuSp9uH" style="border-image: none; border: 0px rgb(0, 0, 0); transform: matrix(1, 0, 0, 1, 0, 0);" width="320" /></a>
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<div dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-a3ec4ec7-7fff-2c55-3da1-34bfb3670f45" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 13.33px; margin-top: 13.33px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Every Stockton student receives a set number of printer points every semester. For undergraduate students, that number is 1600. Graduate students are allotted 2000 points. One printer point is equivalent to a one-sided printed page of black and white paper.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">All Lab computers are defaulted to print double sided in efforts to save paper. In this case, one sheet of paper counts as two printer points. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Each student is also granted a one-time quota of 20 color printed pages at the beginning of their first semester at Stockton. Additional pages can be purchased for $5 in increments of 50 pages. </span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 22.08px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<br style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;" /></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 13.33px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Color printer points do not reset every semester unlike black and white printer points. This leaves many students with zero color printer points very early. Some wonder why the black and white print quotas are so much higher than color print quotas. </span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 13.33px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Many students never come close to the black and white print quota every semester. However, the color print quota runs out almost immediately for most students.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 13.33px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Every student pays for printing in their tuition, so those who do not use all of their printer points are selling themselves short of paper that they paid for in the beginning of the semester. Many students are paying for printer points that are never used. </span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 13.33px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The number 1600 seems astronomical to most students who usually only print between 100 and 200 pages a semester. It brings up questions about what would happen if every student exhausted all of their printer points in a semester. </span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 13.33px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stockton’s undergraduate population is 8,275. Each of those students are allotted 1600 pages which adds up to over 13 million pages of paper. If every student used up their print quota, it is clear the school will likely have a problem as they do not have 13 million sheets of paper on hand with enough ink to print on every sheet.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 13.33px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The numbers may sound alarming, but many students do not come close to 1600 pages. It is assumed that the Technology department does not expect many students to use all of their points. </span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 13.33px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The numbers may be that high so students will never have to worry about running out, while also preventing students from getting carried away. If they simply gave unlimited printing privilege to all students, the amount of unnecessary printing would increase significantly.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The reason behind such high print quotas remains unknown, but the Information Technology Services (ITS) Department located in D-127 may have more information on the topic. </span></div>
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<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/eSwyj8ecpZmDauz8fzoafD8tJX7FMM6k4D2PnmntcJdYECxUEDi1iRITCR_QDuKYGmMZMb6QqM0x7g0basjJ2cRQ8bxpq8QICAs5EOTUWx5zobT-u2G7Vt-UPkt6rcI-ciuSp9uH" imageanchor="1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: #0066cc; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: underline; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"></a></div>
<br />AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-34653693364701459552018-12-05T02:07:00.003-05:002018-12-05T02:07:52.350-05:00pros and cons of being a stockton student<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></b></div>
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Pros and Cons of Being A Stockton Student</span></b></div>
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<b>By: Shawn Cella</b></div>
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<img height="240" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/kBuPd1Tk0A_rYGXQ_LM5OhseRtYKO2RpLBSb11cXvGivN_hXKRidfnAkV-fZGNNwK9Aa11Pk75YAVXTJIp1Z9IbTqKlHrq7PIdAZIswaAe-iTpelEDgtm71unLsqWmeR2EByvMQMul7imjdqzg" style="border-image: none; border: 0px rgb(0, 0, 0); transform: matrix(0.000796274, 1, -1, 0.000796274, 0, 0);" width="320" /></span><br style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;" /><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike></div>
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<b>Photo of Stockton University by Shawn Cella</b></div>
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<br id="docs-internal-guid-8dedb121-7fff-2351-75c0-7782e0768ce7" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;" /></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: justify; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When deciding what college I wanted to attend, there were many different variables that I had to take into consideration. These included but were not limited to campus environment, distance from home, tuition cost, and majors offered. Now that I am almost done with my first semester of my sophomore year, I am going to be completely honest about the pros and cons of attending Stockton University.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: justify; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">First, let’s talking about the campus. A main factor in me choosing Stockton over all the other colleges I visited was the feel of the Galloway campus. I loved how it felt so private located in the middle of the woods. The academic buildings are in walking distance of the housing which meant you did not have to take a bus like bigger schools such as Rutgers make you do. There is no denying that Stockton has a lot of qualities that most schools cannot offer, such as a giant lake right on campus and free campus parking. Unfortunately for not only me but a lot of sophomore students, there was no housing available at the Galloway campus. Although everything is new and fresh in the new Atlantic City campus, it is almost the exact opposite of what made me attend Stockton. Apparently not providing on campus housing for sophomores has been an issue Stockton has had for years now, and I felt misinformed that this was never brought to my attention until it was too late. </span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: justify; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One thing I could say is an easy pro for me about Stockton are the professors. Almost every professor I’ve had has gone the extra mile to ensure that I do as well as I could. Not only do they reply to my emails within twenty-four hours, but they take questions during class, have office hours for extra help, and usually will never hesitate to assist you if you require extra help. Sometimes I feel like I am still in high school because of how caring the professors are to their students. </span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: justify; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Nothing is more stressful to me then class selection day. Especially as a freshman, you feel like you are choosing classes that not only you are not really interested in, but you do not necessarily need. My biggest complaint about Stockton is that they want to be a small school while making the money of a big school. By this I mean they let too many incoming freshman and transfer students attend. This creates a shortage of living and classes, while the current students suffer. </span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: justify; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I am very happy that I picked Stockton University to receive my college education. There are pros and cons to this university, but hopefully as the school expands they will be able to fix these issues by simply building more housing on campus or by adding more classes. I hope that Stockton never loses touch of their identify and remember that people come here because of their beautiful Galloway campus. </span></div>
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AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-18516399566512639662018-12-05T02:02:00.002-05:002018-12-05T02:02:31.086-05:00The Ballad of Buster Scruggs: A Return to the West By Thomas Taylor<div dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-a116c7a0-7fff-48ed-1aaa-291d7fd49c69" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 22.08px; margin-bottom: 4px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
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The Ballad of Buster Scruggs: A Return
to the West</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.66px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">By Thomas Taylor</span></div>
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<a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/1aW0EyB7vWsjWcsouo8t4miYtFfljX7Tc6WaP6JLQkRAYzF4uUKGhjVjdO6yLE9BYrrDsOCJxOpXN3ZbwwVNDFd7kBQJvCnpGQYDnqFCisSrd7TcctOa3n3T4VSaYv2TuRu6FUhp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/1aW0EyB7vWsjWcsouo8t4miYtFfljX7Tc6WaP6JLQkRAYzF4uUKGhjVjdO6yLE9BYrrDsOCJxOpXN3ZbwwVNDFd7kBQJvCnpGQYDnqFCisSrd7TcctOa3n3T4VSaYv2TuRu6FUhp" style="border-image: none; border: 0px rgb(0, 0, 0); transform: matrix(1, 0, 0, 1, 0, 0);" width="213" /></a></div>
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<br style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;" /><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><span id="docs-internal-guid-0dc2348f-7fff-b2ed-a8f7-e78b00e98d44" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.66px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap; word-spacing: 0px;"></span><br id="docs-internal-guid-56e23233-7fff-4e60-4a5b-5b1c36dc13e0" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;" /><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.66px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap; word-spacing: 0px;"> </span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.66px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap; word-spacing: 0px;"> </span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.66px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap; word-spacing: 0px;">Interest in the time period of the wild west has not been as prevalent as it was in the sixties and seventies, but we might be seeing a resurrection of the western genre in the media. Between the hyped release of Red Dead Redemption 2 and </span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.66px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap; word-spacing: 0px;">The Ballad of Buster Scruggs: A Return to the West</span><span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 14.66px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap; word-spacing: 0px;">, it’s evident that here is still interest in classic stories about cowboys and tumbleweeds. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs represents this perfectly by showing several different stories of life in the wild west. This Netflix original movie is an anthology film that is broken up into different chapters of one big book. A central theme in the movie is survival setting the precedent in the first story that any character can die. This theme can also be seen in each character’s motivation. Even the titular Buster Scruggs’ motivation is to prove that he can survive any gun duel that he is challenged to. One of the best albeit one of the slowest short stories is the final story that shows where people go when they don’t survive the perils of the frontier. This movie shows not only the dangers, but also the untamed beauty of the western frontier through it’s vast deserts, scorching prairies, and lush forests. The dialogue was as good as any other Coen Brothers movie in that it is exceptional, but sometimes causes the movie to drag. The cast has such notable actors as: James Franco, Tim Blake Nelson, Liam Neeson, and Clancy Brown. Each turn out an incredibly believable performance as their characters. Each story conveys a different mood which could be jarring to some viewers. Some shorts are cartoonish while others are melancholic, but each short was so good that I didn’t even notice the inconsistency until hours after I finished the film. Buster Scruggs proves that there are more stories to tell from the wild west.</span><br style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;" /><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike></div>
AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-17514955681561238492018-12-05T01:58:00.001-05:002018-12-05T01:58:08.558-05:00Fire frill at AC residemce<div style="text-align: center;">
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<b><span style="font-size: x-large;">Fire Drill at A.C. Residence</span></b></div>
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<b>By: Moira Solano</b></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-8c8d13c0-7fff-acb9-f9e1-d373ea67c845" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Calibri; font-size: 14.66px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap; word-spacing: 0px;"><img height="320" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/fbrUeSKA8oYXlpwWFmBM04N4v-cCaD9OtIGftAsA0FTW-FIY81HQIxIZy3rvsd-UIDFliIm6VAujfD-3EEiDw1o0ZXbw3DRDMNFI1L6JHqXP3RJqaCnfSKoDAtukkmpfSXm1yYWyj6zPpphaSg" style="border-image: none; border: 0px rgb(0, 0, 0); transform: matrix(1, 0, 0, 1, 0, 0);" width="240" />
</span><span id="docs-internal-guid-f3679929-7fff-e9be-fa1a-715f3f61b5df" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap; word-spacing: 0px;">The outside view from the Atlantic City Campus.</span><br style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;" /><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike></div>
<div dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-78f6875e-7fff-714f-9a99-53e1247fa2ea" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 10.66px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">45 Minute Fire Drill: Real or Fake?</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 10.66px; margin-left: 48px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Atlantic City, N.J. --- On Friday, November 30, 2018 at about 6:25 p.m., another fire drill took place at the Atlantic City Campus Residential Complex. These drills have caused a lot of frustration for the students who live here since the beginning of the school year, but was it just a drill or an actual emergency?</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 10.66px; margin-left: 48px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As stated, these alarms have caused inconveniences and eye rolls by many of the students living at the Atlantic City Residence. Due to the flaws of the fire alarms that have caused people to think there was a rush to get the building up and running.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 10.66px; margin-left: 48px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The slightest amount of heat that would be detected by the alarms was a huge issue in the very beginning. Even just the steam that came from an average shower could set off the alarms, and did on a few occasions.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 10.66px; margin-left: 48px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There was also a lot of frustration about the number of fire drills that would happen within one day. It was kind of ridiculous to be honest. Nobody ever knew they were going to occur, and nobody was ever prepared for them because of the random trend that they had.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 10.66px; margin-left: 48px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The day before school started and everyone was still adapting to the area, there were about one or two that happened, but these were set off at times that weren’t so bad. The weather was nice at least and the sun was out.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 10.66px; margin-left: 48px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">However, there was one that happened in the middle of the night, I would say a little after one in the morning. Most students, me included in that group, had 8:30 classes that morning, so you can only imagine how cranky that made everybody, regardless of having an early class or not. It interrupted everyone’s sleep schedules that are already not the best.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 10.66px; margin-left: 48px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There was at least one incident that caused an emergency. This was due to cooking where not much attention was paid to watching the stove. A slight buildup of smoke was in the hallways. The fire department was informed and sent to the scene. </span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 10.66px; margin-left: 48px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A mass email was sent informing students about the incident, how important it is to keep a close eye on your food, and to always be safe. Emails were also sent prior about apologizing, the inconvenience, and that they are working towards fixing them.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 10.66px; margin-left: 48px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I wasn’t there on Friday during the recent fire drill, but I was informed about it from my roommates. The fact that a drill happened randomly didn’t surprise me, but what did was that it lasted 45 minutes. My roommate, Allie, said, “45 minutes is absurd if it was just a drill since it was cold and rainy.” She also said that they still had to stand out there regardless, risking getting sick.</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 10.66px; margin-left: 48px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">She said, “So I’m thinking it was real. But in that case I think they should send us an email or something letting us know what happened.”</span></div>
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<br style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;" /></div>
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AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-24435359491331533782018-12-05T01:53:00.001-05:002018-12-05T01:53:47.642-05:00Sweet Tooth Day: Winter Theme <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #424242; font-family: Times; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 22.08px; margin-bottom: 6.66px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-indent: 48px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
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<b>Sweet Tooth Day: Winter Theme</b> </span></div>
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<b>By: Alexander Bluze</b>
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<a href="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/J1H0jpwGvfqy4MORDUw7a5FPI5MVY9sw7C6OuQOZtBMfGJx1tFcOMmwbwZpb5xfNTeE3GQd7XUc-MCDYFEjRfCh29l-CPoB7w8PTcH8sCatsOdENsfdwUSd-5g9M_-WH_DbmfibH" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="179" id="docs-internal-guid-d2729212-7fff-df48-6a04-65411ff9a97f" src="https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/J1H0jpwGvfqy4MORDUw7a5FPI5MVY9sw7C6OuQOZtBMfGJx1tFcOMmwbwZpb5xfNTeE3GQd7XUc-MCDYFEjRfCh29l-CPoB7w8PTcH8sCatsOdENsfdwUSd-5g9M_-WH_DbmfibH" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; border-image: none; border: 0px rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; transform: matrix(1, 0, 0, 1, 0, 0); white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;" width="320" /></a></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font: 400 16px/22.08px Times New Roman; letter-spacing: normal; margin-bottom: 6.66px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #424242; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span id="docs-internal-guid-e318c88e-7fff-0dcb-04bf-daaabb577d1f" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: #424242; font-family: "News Cycle"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap; word-spacing: 0px;">Image of scene in “Dr.Seuss's: How the Grinch Stole Christmas”.</span><br style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;" />
Pick up FREE holiday treats on December 11th, Sweet Tooth Day, in the Campus Center between 2pm and 4pm before you leave for winter break! Put your feet up by the</span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 22.08px; margin-bottom: 6.66px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #424242; font-family: Times; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Campus Center fireplace and chow down on candy and other delicious free sweets. You can RSVP to the event on OspreyHub.com. “Martha May Whovier will be there.” If you don’t understand that joke, then you have probably never seen “How the Grinch Stole Christmas”. It is a great movie to watch while munching on some delicious sweets to celebrate Sweet Tooth Day.</span></div>
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AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-33884950785771331182018-12-05T01:43:00.001-05:002018-12-05T01:43:13.036-05:00Stockton Vs Kean and the Cadillac Club Suites<div dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-f1dfeae1-7fff-9427-0df9-a7344c6d49d3" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
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<b>By: Ryan Kennedy</b></div>
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<div dir="ltr" id="docs-internal-guid-80ee72d6-7fff-8325-ded3-b92abf079ba1" style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 38.4px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-top: 0px; orphans: 2; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Atlantic City</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> -- On Friday, December 14th Stockton’s men's basketball team is playing at Boardwalk Hall against Kean University. At 7:30 the two teams will face off in Atlantic City and those willing to pay $20 will be able to enjoy the game from the Cadillac Club Suites. The Cadillac Club Suites allow for one to be able to enjoy the game with the included luxury of food and nonalcoholic beverages being offered. Anyone looking for a more enjoyable way to watch the game other than sitting on bleachers could take up this offer and get a new way to enjoy Stockton’s events and games. Stockton University students and staff are permitted entry to the game free of charge, and general admission tickets are $5 for anyone else wishing to view the game. Kean students and senior citizens tickets are only $2, and all tickets will be available for purchase on game day at 2301 Boardwalk, Atlantic City. The game will also be available to watch live via streaming services. If you tune in to livestream.com/StocktonAthletics the day of the event then you will see that the game is available to watch online for free. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The men's basketball team has had a great start to their season so far, going 3-1 previously beating teams such as Rutgers Camden, and in the NJAC they are currently 2-0, holding a win streak that may hopefully continue. Players to look out for include Jordan Taylor, who previously scored a team high of 15 points against Rutgers Camden, as well as Freshman player Travis Young from Toms River who recently scored his first double digit game against Rutgers Camden scoring 11 points, a great start to his young career. Brandon Hamilton has been consistent with his layups, also making him a dangerous addition to the team. Overall, the season is looking up for the Ospreys, and hopefully the continuation of their undefeated season can happen with a victory over Ramapo on Saturday, and Kean this Friday. </span></div>
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AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-27871223075462933292018-12-05T01:31:00.000-05:002018-12-05T01:31:54.556-05:00For a Weekend Retreat Came a Treat<div style="text-align: center;">
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On November 16, 2018, Stockton University hosted a retreat that welcomed all students to enjoy a weekend full of fun, food and activities, but mostly to bring students together from different backgrounds with hopes of leaving the retreat feeling as one. The retreat had many different topics and issues that were covered during the sessions, which included race, gender, privilege and more. Like expected, the students went into the sessions with a guard up and and ready for war, preparing themselves for anything that might have been said that they were not going to agree with. The students sat in chairs around a circle, gave their name, who they identified as, and their true thoughts on America’s biggest issues that stop all Americans from coming together as a whole. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #454545; font-family: Arial; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Over the next couple of days, students were about to live with strangers they had never seen before, even in passing through the schools campus. Little did any of them know, they would leave the retreat greeting one another like they had known each other since they were five years old. One particular student stood out the most. Emmanuella, a nineteen year old freshman from Africa who has only been in America for six years had many concerns. When asked if she learned anything from the retreat she said in quote, “I had no idea that black Americans were going through racism. In Africa, I am considered a rich black, but in America, black people are considered the poor and the ones in poverty. Clearly racism is only an issue in America.” She then went on to say, “There were alot of stories going around in the circle, people sharing their experiences of how they were chosen for jobs and schools over the phone or internet when applying, but as soon as they showed up for the interview, the interview was never conducted. Since being in America, I would like to say most of the blacks live in a lower income place, and even since I’ve moved to America because my dad is disabled and he wanted the best for us, we always lived in white neighborhoods and went to white schools. I still haven't experienced what blacks who were born in America have experienced. We need to make a change, one for the better!”</span></div>
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AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-35306704605865404002018-11-28T00:00:00.000-05:002018-11-28T00:00:03.260-05:00NFL Picks Week 14<div style="text-align: center;">
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By Shawn Cella</div>
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Today, I am going to pick the teams that I believe are going to win for week 14 of the NFL season. I am no professional analysis, but with my research, I believe I will be able to predict some of the correct scores. This is being written on Nov. 26, so any injuries or events that happen during week 13 will not be accounted for. <br />
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The first game of the week is the Jaguars vs Titans, two struggling teams. I would not recommend watching this game, but I do think that the Titans will come away with the win. The fact that they are still in the playoffs hunt will be enough to propel them to a victory.<br />
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The Browns finally have a few wins on the season, and the Panthers have a very talented roster. This should be a really interesting and entertaining game. I think Cam Newton will be able to move the ball through the air, and Baker Mayfield will have rookie struggles against the Carolina defense. I’ll take Carolina to win by 14+ points. <br />
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The Ravens vs. Chiefs, and Jackson vs. Mahomes. Lamar Jackson has thrown for multiple picks already throughout the season and has turned the ball over, which is not a good way to help your defense slow down the hottest offense in the league. Chiefs should win this game, but expect the experienced Ravens to keep it close. <br />
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The Saints get to avenge their only loss on the season. Going on the road and playing in an outdoor stadium is always difficult for a team who plays indoors, but I do not believe that the Buccaners stand a chance. They have been flip-flopping quarterbacks all season, and against the powerhouse Saints, I don’t like their odds. I’ll take the Saints by 10.<br />
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The last game I am going to cover is the Eagles vs. the Cowboys. This game should decide who will win the division and make it to the playoffs. The Cowboys already beat the Eagles once, and they did it on the road. Now they get the defending Super Bowl Champions at home with a chance to make a statement on the division. This game lies on the shoulders of Carson Wentz. If he is able to move the ball on this tough Dallas defense, I think the Eagles will be able to win. I do believe he will be able to get it done and carry the struggling Eagles to victory. I think the Eagles will win by 13 points. <br />
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Those are my picks for Week 14 of the NFL season. Hopefully we don’t look back on this article and laugh. Best of luck to your favorite team this week, unless you’re a Patriots or Raiders fan!AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-12353659440757185972018-11-17T16:00:00.000-05:002018-11-17T16:00:09.408-05:00Movie Review: Overlord<h2 style="text-align: center;">
Movie Review: Overlord </h2>
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<br />The WWII movie with a zombie twist. Overlord was produced by the professional producer J.J Abrams, directed by Julius Avery and written by Billy Ray.<br /><br /><br />The premise is about a group of soldiers who survived a plane crash and find themselves with a mission to destroy a nazi radio tower to help the troops in Normandy. The soldiers stayed in a village, where they realize that the nazis were experimenting on the people that lived there. Using a super soldier serum, the test subjects reacted harshly causing the soldiers to further their investigation. What happens next gets pretty insane, making the movie live up to its R rating. The war scenes in the movie are really well made and are very graphic, same goes with the zombie scenes. The score on Rotten Tomatoes is a well deserving 81%. The movie was both entertaining and terrifying. Fans of Call of Duty Zombies would enjoy this because it has a very similar premise. I have to say they could have fought the zombies for a longer period of time. But the scenes you see the zombies, a considerable amount of screentime, have you at the edge of your seat. Overlord is out now so if you like the concept and think it will be good visit your closest movie theater and watch it now!<br /><br /> <br />The movie starred Jovan Adepo who played Boyce the main character. Wyatt Russel who played Ford. Mathilde Oliver and Jacob Anderson who played the villagers named Chloe and Dawson, Pilou Asbaek who played Wafner the main antagonist. Then there is John Margaro and Iain De Caestecker who played Tibbet and Chase. AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-87549292565531195632018-11-17T12:00:00.000-05:002018-11-17T12:00:08.831-05:00Who's Vine Is It Anyway?<h2 style="text-align: center;">
Who's Vine Is It Anyway?</h2>
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On Thursday night, Stockton University held an event called “Whose Vine is it Anyway?” in the campus center coffeehouse. </div>
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<br />Over one hundred students attended this event, as it was heard that money was the grand prize for the winners.. <br /><br />There were three rounds that took place during Vine Night: the first being a much loved game of Kahoot, the second a finish-the-vine assignment, and the last being charades. Emilie Linzan, a contestant throughout the night, claimed that there were too many people and she was disappointed that she didn’t get the experience she wanted. “Using Kahoot sucked, especially because there was a lot of people on one game, I answered one question and it wouldn’t register. I was very upset.”<br /><br />For the Kahoot game, there were thirty-two teams of four people. For those of you who have never been faced with Kahoot, the object of the game is to get the correct answer from a possible total of four choices in the fastest time out of all the teams or people you are playing with. There is a leaderboard that lists the top five winners after each question which will most likely change after each question. So don’t worry if you don’t see your name at the beginning of the game, chances are you’ll see that name of yours up on that leaderboard for everyone to see. <br /><br />The second round of the night was finish-the-vine, where each team of four was given a blank piece of paper. The Stockton Entertainment Team, otherwise known as SET, was in charge of the sequential videos that followed, playing only the first three seconds of each vine. The contestants and their team members then had to guess the ending of each vine and write their answers on the piece of paper. <br /><br /><br /><br />The last round was charades, where each team had to go up to the front of the coffeehouse and one person from the group had to act out a specific vine and the other group members had to guess what it was. <br />By the end of the night there were mixed reviews from those who attended. Some claimed they had a fun night while others declared they were disappointed. Another contestant named Samirah Barnes says, “I did not enjoy my night, it was very packed and uncoordinated.” If you ended up having fun, good for you! Making the most of your college experience is important in your future so that you don’t have regrets. Make the most out of college, attend events and make new friends, you won’t regret it in the end!</div>
AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-63716838588145279802018-11-16T15:30:00.000-05:002018-11-16T15:30:00.146-05:00Are Millennials Getting Married?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Are Millennials Getting Married?</h2>
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Shayonne Ray | Contributing Writer</div>
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<br />Way back when our parents and grandparents were coming up, marriage was<br />considered being a necessary accomplishment, and an important thing to do in society at<br />that time. Our parents were married with children by the age of 23, but millennials are not<br />following in their footsteps.Why? This generation of young people are changing the<br />stigma of marriage being a necessity and into marriage being an option.<div>
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Marriage was put into effect so that a young couple could benefit from each others<br />families, raise their children and hopefully live what they took to be the American dream.<br />Researchers are finding that millennials focus is less on marriage right away and more on<br />their personal career goals, financial goals, and spiritual goals. Millennials perspective on<br />marriage is changing swiftly, we are seeing marriage happen later in life after they are<br />financially secured, educated and able to know what they want out of a relationship.<br /><br /> The millennial age range are those born between 1981 and 1996. These are the men and<br />woman who would rather wait for the right mate to come along, focus on themselves, or<br />other important factors in their lives. On average most millennials aren't even leaving<br />home until they are 25 years of age. This is because of the social and economical shift in<br />the world today. Millennials want to better prepare for the future. Rather than commit to<br />what society expects from them, they are making their own paths.<br /><br />The women are more educated than ever before, the men are now.focusing more on their<br />needs rather than the needs of an entire family. Some say this change is a positive one and<br />we are headed in the right direction, others question the state of what will happen in the<br />future is we lose the value of marriage and the history behind it. All we know now is<br />marriage was the number one goal in the past but for a millennial that goal has dropped to<br />the bottom of the to-do list.<div style="text-align: left;">
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AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-73623554192015681502018-11-16T12:00:00.000-05:002018-11-16T12:00:05.912-05:00Sports Betting: What Does it Mean for New Jersey?<h2 style="text-align: center;">
Sports Betting: What Does it Mean for New Jersey?</h2>
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<br /><br />New Jersey won a Supreme Court case in May that would allow all forms of sports<br />betting throughout the state, overruling the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of<br />1992, which outlawed sports betting in the majority of U.S. states. The inaugural day of sports<br /> betting in New Jersey commenced at Monmouth Park in June, as Governor Phil Murphy placed<br />the states’ first sports wager. Borgata Hotel and Casino became the first Atlantic City casino to<br />accept a sports bet., with Basketball Hall of Famer and former Philadelphia 76er Julius “Dr J.”<br />Erving laying the very first action. Shortly after the opening of the Borgata sportsbook several<br />other Atlantic City casinos have followed suit, including Tropicana Resort & Casino, Bally’s<br />Hotel & Casino, Golden Nugget Hotel and Casino, Ocean Resort and Casino, Harrah’s Casino<br />Resort and Resorts Casino Hotel.<br /><br />Figures from the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement in August showed that $96<br />million was wagered on sports in the month, and reports from September reveal a 15.5 percent<br />increase in revenue from the year prior, totaling $272.2 million. With a struggling economy and<br />over saturated casino industry, sports betting proved to be just the boost that the Atlantic City<br />casinos needed. “Sports betting has been the thing that this struggling city has needed. Being that<br />Atlantic City is in between New York City, Philadelphia, and Washington D.C, sports betting<br />has a real chance to flourish here,” said local small business owner and casino worker Lee<br />Geiger.<br /><br />While the kickoff of sports betting yielded very favorable results for the state, those<br />numbers would pale in comparison to the current revenue coming in from the sports books in<br />New Jersey. Sports betting revenue has almost doubled from August to September. $184 million<br />in wagers were placed in September, the surge stemming predominantly from the start of the<br />NFL and NCAA football seasons.<br /><br />Although the kickoff of the football season has created a spike in the sports betting<br />revenue, it’s quite possible the best has yet to come. Revenue will likely increase dramatically<br /> with from the season opening of two of America’s four major sports-- the NBA and NHL. An<br />influx of tourists traveling to Atlantic City and staying in the casinos during the holiday season,<br />coupled with a slew of professional sports games to for the masses to bet should significantly<br />benefit an ongoing attempt at a city revival that has been sought for years.</span><div style="text-align: center;">
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AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-29357411741469773252018-11-15T17:00:00.000-05:002018-11-15T17:00:06.317-05:00Stockton to Hold Diversity Issues in Higher Education Event<h2 style="text-align: center;">
Stockton to Hold Diversity Issues in Higher Education Event</h2>
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Ryan Kennedy | Contributing Writer</div>
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On November 16th, Stockton University will be holding an all day event to tackle the ideas of diversity in higher education. The conference will go from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the University Campus Center. <br /><br />Every year the event is given a different theme and this years theme focuses on the ideas of Diversity and Inclusion. To begin the event there will be a speaking event by Wayne Boatwright, who is the Vice President of Diversity and Inclusion at Hackensack Medecin Wealth. <br /><br />After the events and some words from the Stockton President Harvey Kesselman himself, <br /><br />there will be four workshops available for attending titled: Safe Spaces: Hate Crimes and Violence, a Political Landscape Shaping Diversity & Inclusion Engagement, Business Case for Diversity and Inclusion, and Call and Respond: Dealing With Social Issues on Campus. <br /><br />For 18 years the American Conference on Diversity has partnered with New Jersey's leading institutions to hold these events. The event is open to the public and the starting admission stands at 65 dollars, however, fortunate Stockton students can show their ID for a discount that makes their admission to be 35 dollars instead. Student Nauera Abou Abdou, 19, said that she is has “heard about the event in one of her classes and was interested in attending the event.” <br /><br />There is also expected to be members and representatives from the United Black Student Society, a club which tackles issues and creates programs to address issues related to student minority life. Another likely club that will be represented would be Los Latinos Unidos, a club which strives to enhance the presence of the Latino community around Stockton. <br /><br />This would be a great event to meet different clubs and experience different workshops. Nearing the end of the program, there will be an area available for another workshop event titled “Student Panel Discussion: Stories Worth Telling.” “I think this [“Student Panel Discussion: Stories Worth Telling.” workshop] will be the most interesting part of the event” (Abou Abdou).<br /><br />The ending event of the night is held to allow all attending students and staff to speak of personal experiences that they have had to create a “feed” of stories about living as a minority in college life. Any questions can be referred to Diane D’Amicio, Director of News and Media Relations at her email; @Diane.D’Amicio@stockton.edu. The event is advertised for on the University’s website Stockton.edu with all information regarding the event to encourage all students and staff to attend.<div style="text-align: center;">
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AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-17326280564747498762018-11-15T13:00:00.000-05:002018-11-15T13:00:01.967-05:00A Safe Space for Women of Color to Grow <h2 style="text-align: center;">
A Safe Space for Women of Color to Grow </h2>
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<br />On Tuesday, November 6th, 2018 a group of about 15-20 girls gathered together to offer support, encouragement, and love to one another. The event is known as TogetHER Tuesdays, and they meet every first Tuesday of the month in the TLRC building at the Galloway campus. <br /><br />This is the organization’s second meeting as they continue to be holding strong. They had sweet beverages and containers of irresistible food catering to those who joined their meeting including freshly baked chicken tenders and mozzarella sticks. With so much delicious food it was a struggle to prevent from getting distracted as they all came to the meeting for one reason- to feel empowered. <br /><br />There were many exercises shared with the group to help everyone better get to know one another as well. This is in addition to discussing ideas that may better develop the organization and truly create a space for women of color to turn to for support and growth.<br /><br />According to Dr. Nicole Milan-Tyner, “Mentoring women in the areas of academics, professional, and personal development lends to that empowerment.” Betterment in these three areas lay down what women of color need to achieve higher marks academically, succeed in the professional world, and grow as an individual.<br /><br />In today’s world although women have made progress in attaining equal rights, breaking gender roles, and feeling more empowered, there is still work that needs to be done. And it can begin with universities around the globe like Stockton University. All it takes is one voice and one idea to cause a wave of change. This is exactly how TogetHER Tuesdays developed because according to Dr. Nicole Milan-Tyner the organization started through “informal conversations among colleagues.” It was from these minute conversations that a grand idea emerged to then develop into such a supportive and loving event. <br /><br />Not only is there a challenge to overcome as a woman in this day of age, but also as a woman of color. Various nationalities that encompass the female population often face prejudice, bias, discrimination, and so on which discourages them from gaining the education and support they need to thrive. <br /><br />Women of color must fight for what they deserve and need to be successful. Women of color must develop their own destiny in the world. Women of color must help one another achieve what seems impossible.<br /><br /><br /> <div style="text-align: left;">
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AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-9959069039982913082018-11-14T19:00:00.000-05:002018-11-15T18:14:58.459-05:00College Football Playoffs Selection Who’s In?<h2>
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<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-size: small;">It’s that time of year again. The days are becoming shorter, the holidays are approaching, and college football is almost over. Before it could end, four teams will be selected to participate in the NCAA Playoffs. The winner will become the National Champions. These four teams are decided by the “Selection Committee” based off of talent on records, rosters, strength of schedules, win margin, total offense, total defense, and other considerations.<br /> <br />There are hundreds of teams in the NCAA, so only the best of the best are selected. At this time of year, you can make an argument for about ten different teams to be put in. The University of Central Florida is undefeated for the second year in a row, but have not played a single ranked opponent all season. Georgia lost to LSU, but they are ranked ahead of them by the committee. I point this out because there are arguments to be made for many teams, and I am going to make my argument who I feel should be the four teams selected.<br /> <br />Number one, the University of Alabama. Alabama is on a different planet than their opponents. They are men amongst boys and have not showed any signs of slowing down. This is a very uncontroversial pick, so I will not spend much time on them. They have only played a total of two ranked opponents, but they shut both of them out including the number three ranked team. Every game they play, they seem to get stronger on defense and their offense led by Tua Tagovailoa is having a Heisman season.<br /> <br />Number two, Clemson. This also will not surprise many people. They have a dominant defensive line, full of players who are destined to be first round picks in the NFL. They have had some hiccups against unranked opponents, but are undefeated and look to be getting hot at the right time of the season.<br /> <br />Number three, Oklahoma. This is where my list differs from the current rankings. The selection committee currently has them at number six, but I believe they are a top team in the nation. Led by one of the best athletes in the NCAA, Kyler Murray, they lead college football with 49 points per game. Their offense seems unstoppable and because of this I have them ranked higher. Their defense on the other hand is a liability, but I would take this team to beat both Michigan and Notre Dame any day of the week.<br /> <br /><br /><br />Number four, Georgia. Georgia has one of the most balanced teams in football. They have an amazing defense paired with an above average offense. Add excellent coaching and experience into that equation and you have a scary team. Unlike the committee, that is why I put Georgia over both Michigan and Notre Dame. Georgia still has Alabama on their schedule, so if they are able to get that win, I don’t see a way you could leave Georgia out.</span></span>AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-48394368934410277962018-11-14T17:50:00.000-05:002018-11-14T17:50:00.152-05:00Bohemian Rhapsody <h2 style="text-align: center;">
Bohemian Rhapsody</h2>
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Thomas Taylor | Contributing Writer </div>
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Days before his death in 1991, Freddie Mercury met with his manager to discuss the rights to both the use of his image and music in the foreseeable future. "You can do what you want with my music," he said, "but don't make me boring." Sadly, Brian Singer’s film, Bohemian Rhapsody, ignores his final wish and tells an incredibly boring and predictable story. The movie follows Freddie Mercury’s personal life, but edits it to create a bland, by-the-numbers biography that had all the creativity of a first graders’ oral presentation. It hits every musician biopic cliché that it was hard not to wonder if it was satire like Walk Hard. It’s not that the story was boring, but how Singer structured it was though. With a better director at the helm, I feel like the movie could have been a lot more enjoyable. Bohemian Rhapsody hits all of the overused beats that are used in music biopics such as: the musician is made fun of before performing, the musician blows everyone away with his/her talent, the musician lets fame go to his/her head, and the musician learns a lesson before the “big show.” The only saving grace of the movie is the music, but that’s because they just use Queen’s hits. I would have liked them to use some of Queen’s lesser known songs, but the music they used did distract from how boring the movie is itself. With a two hour run-time, Bohemian Rhapsody feels longer than it should.AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-89381447787291137972018-11-09T11:00:00.000-05:002018-11-09T11:00:16.467-05:00Crazy Rich Asians<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: center;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 26pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Crazy Rich Asians</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><img height="287" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/t5y3LQE7lRlSNnqm_QCdtmgu25kxUbkzLS7YkaUvHbFhWQuNh0foIfyXKgOAGevm1Fm0WAZBFnLtHqbpyokkuKmRMUqGSpHk3o3mJsHFYluTJNDflUqGTW3zyNqUD6WBQ1fFKsOE" style="border: none; transform: rotate(0rad);" width="195" /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space: pre;"> </span></span></div>
<span id="docs-internal-guid-80c3a0f7-7fff-0978-bf19-4eed6066b2d8"><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On Saturday November 3, Stockton held a showing of the film </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Crazy Rich Asians </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">in the Campus Center Theatre . I initially didn’t want to see the movie because of how the trailer framed it. Before I saw the movie, I thought that it would be boring and humorless, but as the film progressed, I feel like I was proven wrong. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Crazy Rich Asians</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">’ trailers definitely pandered to the movie’s key audience, but they lacked something that differentiated the movie from most Rom-Coms: the exploration of culture. </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Crazy Rich Asians</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> explores the difference between Asia and the U.S. through food, customs, and familial roles. Food plays an important role in the movie even from the very beginning. The first time that Rachel, the main character of the movie, meets one of Nick’s cousins, they immediately bond over dinner. Food is constantly used as a chance for Rachel to bond with Nick’s family whether she’s at a dinner party or making dumplings with Nick’s grandma. Customs are also explored in the movie. There is a scene in the trailer, in which, Rachel starts to drink water out of a bowl not knowing that it is for guests to wash their fingers. Although it is played for laughs, it also gives insight on Asian culture. Another stand out scene is when Rachel’s mom is helping her pick out outfits for her trip. In any other chick flick, this would be a fun little montage in which she tries on a bunch of outfits, but the movie uses this scene to teach the audience that every color has a meaning in Asian culture. Blue and white are usually worn at funerals, while a bright, vibrant red signals fortune and fertility. The final insight is the familial role. The story focuses on several families, but most of them show a pattern of similar roles. The man is supposed to be the breadwinner. This is seen in Nick’s brother Eddie Chang who constantly seeks to tower over everyone he meets. It is also seen in Astrid’s husband, but from his lack of money. His infidelity comes from the idea that he resents his wife’s wealth, while he is struggling to start his own business. The second and most focused on role is that of the strong stay at home mom. The main conflict stems from the fact that Nick’s mom, Eleanor, wants Rachel to give up her ambitions and adopt this role so that Nick can inherit his father’s company. Rachel has to show her that women aren’t limited to the role of a mother and can succeed alongside their significant other. My main problem with the movie is the weak third act. Many movies fall into this trap, and </span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Crazy Rich Asians</span><span style="font-family: Arial; font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> is no different. The ending felt rushed and they could have resolved the climax a lot better, but overall it was an enjoyable film.</span></span>AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3405772360728620139.post-67166134624739319572018-11-08T12:00:00.000-05:002018-11-08T12:00:03.763-05:00Advice From a Senior<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; text-align: center;">
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 9pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><img height="451" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/7KX9I3hn_p99qr3PDx-Sv5N-l9pce-y6RTnwePgBiIxn1PsAVQQAd514DE46mwBck9X5PkKGyMCJW5LGWtpQ4qmMGjVeKpjkTzp3GggNRRRra66ROX89MouOdmJ1DoZojLL1ZeLA" style="border: none; transform: rotate(0rad);" width="624" /></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Arial; font-size: 9pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Pictured above is Jawaad Siraj posing for an instagram picture on a bench.</span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-a8700417-7fff-3571-898d-cc1d33ec730d" style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: -webkit-standard; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b><br />
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 2.4; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s normal to feel overwhelmed, nervous, and even afraid at times when school or work is looming and the future is undetermined. Life is scary and draining for everyone. But in times of need we look for strength from those who have gone before us and seem to have prevailed, those who are older than us. Take senior at Stockton University Jawaad Siraj, 22 years old and gearing up to graduate. </span></div>
<b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: -webkit-standard; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 2.4; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Word of advice: Try your best to brighten someone's day because you have no idea what they're going through or what they need to hear.”</span></div>
<b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: -webkit-standard; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Having gone through the majority of his college experience Jawaad took a look back on his experience remembering the good times.</span></div>
<b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: -webkit-standard; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 2.4; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“My best experience at Stockton was being a part of the Education Opportunity Fund program and attending Stockton for five weeks in the summer before my freshman year. I not only enjoyed the help and guidance… but I also met people that I know will be a part of my life for many years to come.”</span></div>
<b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: -webkit-standard; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 2.4; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But not everything was great with school as Jawaad reflected on one of his worst experiences.</span></div>
<b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: -webkit-standard; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“My worst experience was probably getting stuck with a bad roommate situation freshman year. It really affected me because I never felt comfortable in my own space.”</span></div>
<b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: -webkit-standard; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 2.4; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ups and downs are what we all face, Jawaad had his best experience before his freshman year which was quickly followed by his worst experience when he actually started school. Coming from someone who has had his fair share of highs and lows Jawaad remains positive and wakes up everyday knowing it’s another fresh start.</span></div>
<b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: -webkit-standard; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Basically just the idea that I can make someone’s day better; and that every day is a new day where I can start fresh.” </span></div>
<b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: -webkit-standard; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 2.4; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jawaad consistently harps on focusing on others which is a lesson for all of us. It’s impossible to understand everything about a person when you can’t see behind the closed doors of their life. You wouldn’t know it based off of first impressions but Jawaad deals with social anxiety.</span></div>
<b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: -webkit-standard; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Like I said I have social anxiety but I’ve been trying really hard to work on it. It’s really normal to get nervous.”</span></div>
<b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: -webkit-standard; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 2.4; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">You wouldn’t guess Jawaad has social anxiety based on his drive to brighten others day, but that is the whole point. You never know what someone is dealing with and treating others as such will transform your life. </span></div>
<b style="-webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: -webkit-standard; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 2.4; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-variant-position: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Leaving the students of Stockton with one last bit of advice Jawaad had this to say about being involved in school. “I wish I got more involved on campus and left my mark on Stockton. I don’t want my family legacy to die with me even though it might (laughs). I recommend being as involved on campus as your schedule allows you. Join clubs, go to events, and of course take advantage of any free trips the school offers. You’ll be a senior too, faster than you think.”</span></div>
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<br class="Apple-interchange-newline" />AdaptiveAChttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12840230872071994152noreply@blogger.com0