Stockton’s Failed Storm Response

By Stephanie Russell

Two weeks ago on Wednesday, March 7th, Stockton kept their doors open and school in session during a nor’easter and state of emergency. Many other affected colleges and universities like Rutgers, TCNJ, Rowan, and Ocean County College made sure to close for the day as well as cancel any activities happening on their campuses. Stockton persisted normal campus operations until 2pm, far past the time many commuters arrive from all parts of the state. 

The brunt of the storm hit the area from the time classes started until the school shut down. Stockton’s commuters make up an estimated 63% of the school body, this means that a majority of the students drive from all over the state to get to class every day. A nor’easter could cause treacherous driving conditions for thousands of students. Stockton emailed the students and faculty an alert that the school would close at 2pm. The delayed closing forced commuters to drive back home during peak storm hours of heavy rain, snow, and ice. This announcement came a long time after the state of emergency was declared by Governor Murphy at 8pm the day before. 

While many colleges and universities in New Jersey closed due to the impending storm on Tuesday, March 6th, Stockton’s campus surprisingly remained open. A Stockton parent contacted the institution and explained that her daughter spun out on the parkway and had a near-death experience en route from school. A Stockton representative stated that coming to class was at the discretion of the students. The parent of this student said “My daughter had a near-death experience and all Stockton had to say was that they are not liable because she chose to drive to school. Many classes at Stockton require attendance and students get deducted points for not attending.” This is not the first time Stockton has insisted on continuing normal campus operations during hazardous weather conditions, more specifically hurricanes and nor’easters. January 23rd, 2017 and March 2nd, 2018 were two nor’easters that hit the shores of New Jersey hard, leaving thousands out of power and causing severe flooding along the coast. 

Two devastating hurricanes that hit New Jersey were Hurricane Sandy which made landfall on October 29th, 2012, and Hurricane Jose that hit on September 19th, 2017. During all four of these destructive storms, Stockton did not close its campus. A Stockton alumni that lives in Ocean County, explained that during Hurricane Sandy, Stockton remained open. She stated “They had classes during Sandy. I had a test in statistics and told my professor that I lived in an area that got hit particularly hard, had no gas, or electricity and the whole nine. He basically told me to be there regardless. You think they would be more understanding considering a large group of their student's commutes. I love Stockton so much, but that made me so mad when I was there.” 

Stockton should consider taking more precautions during inclement weather and show more regard for the large commuter population.

Stockton Goes to Fox 29

Carly Caporrino & Dominick Tarangelo

On Friday, March 2nd, some of Stockton University’s Communication Studies students headed to Philadelphia for a day trip to Fox 29 studios. The students were able to take a tour of the studios, see some behind the scenes action, and be a part of a live studio audience for a Philly-based talk show, The Q, with host Quincy Harris. It was an experience for students studying media studies, production, or any concentration in communication studies and a great opportunity for students to get to know each other.

The students started the day off early and made their way to Philadelphia, via bus. Once there the students toured the studio, filled seats and the floor director prepared the crowd for when the show was on the air. After the show ended, Host Quincy Harris and FOX 29’s News Director, Jim Driscoll, spoke to the students and gave them some advice that they can take along with them on their future endeavors. The students then proceeded to take a tour of the rest of the studio, led by the interns, allowing the students to observe the interns on the job. The students were able to see behind the scenes of FOX 29 Studios and how it functions.

The students were accompanied by an adjunct faculty member, Professor Toby Rosenthal. Professor Rosenthal teaches the Media Aesthetics course as well as the Ethnicity Through Film course at Stockton. When asked about her experience with students on this trip, she stated, “I’m proud of our inaugural spring trip to Fox 29 in Philadelphia. Being part of a studio show at a television station in the 4th largest market in the country was a huge opportunity for our students. Receiving behind the scenes access to the station’s news department and technical facilities provided amazing insight into the operations of a network-owned major market station.”

International Day of Remembrance: Transatlantic Slave Trade

By Zahirah Pearsall

Stockton University held an event March 20th at the campus center theater that featured a program centered around the horrifying experiences of those Africans ripped from their homes to be sold in the transatlantic slave trade. The program was presented by Dr. Janice Joseph and featured the perspectives of Dr. Kameika Murphy and Dr. Raz Segal. The presentation was offered free and without the need of tickets to the Stockton community as a way of raising awareness of people who have suffered in the past and of those who continue to suffer today because of expulsion and slavery.

The presentation featured clips from HBO's documentary, "Unchained Memories: Readings from the Slave Narratives," where the experiences of slaves are offered with gruesome details. Emotional experiences and physical abuse, as well as day-to-day life for the average slave, are all outlined in the documentary. To enhance the impact that the documentary had on the audience faces and names were given so the viewer could connect with the stories of those who have passed on. Between each of the experiences shown, Dr. Murphy and Dr. Segal gave an in-depth perspective on the circumstances that the slaves had to endure.

The presentation served as an eye opener for those who were not too familiar with the gruesome details of the events of the slave trade. It is one thing to learn and memorize the facts in school, and it is another to see and hear the most detailed accounts of experiences of those who were enslaved. Chelsea Aquino, a student of Dr. Segal, stated, "It was something that made me very uncomfortable. But I guess that was the point, it wasn't meant to be something that was going to make you feel good." The presentation was an open analysis of the working of the transatlantic slave trade, the treatment of the enslaved people, and how it has affected society in its long-term effects.

Spring Break Splashes at The Pool After Dark

Written by: CJ Coyle

       Photo from The Pool 

Spring break took the east coast by storm, as college students from all over rejoiced in their week off to spend time with family, relax, and most importantly, party. Atlantic City was a hot spot this week for Stockton students looking to make the most out of their breaks. From parades on the boardwalk to nightlife, the city has it all. Many gathered to the Pool After Dark at Harrah’s Resort throughout the week to catch acts including Mike Stud, T-Pain, and Machine Gun Kelly.

Rhode Island local Mike Stud started off the break on Wednesday, ringing in the start of Spring Splash at The Pool. Stud performed a few of his hit songs, including “Even Steven,” “Swish,” and “These Days.” Stockton Alumni Cali Watson had this to say about his performance “I lost it when he sang ‘Even Steven.’ Me and my friends used to listen to that song all the time senior year back in high school, so it brought back a lot of memories.”

The week had just started with Stud, as things only got bigger with T-Pain and Machine Gun Kelly, or MGK, on the weekend. T-Pain kicked the weekend off, bringing in a crowd of over 2100, mostly college kids. The revenue from bottle service and cover charges surpassed $70,000, and T-Pain performed quite the show. Wes Hill, Lifeguard at The Pool After Dark, quotes his experience watching the show unfold late Friday night, “the show was full of energy, we had to keep giving him towels so he could wipe his sweat off his face, it was that high energy. He was only contracted to only sing 3 songs, but he ended up singing like 12 songs, dude was a true performer,” Hill stated enthusiastically. Towards the end of the night, T-Pain was found sleeping on the steps of the stage, resting long after his killer performance. Hill goes on “He doesn’t like all of the security and entourage stuff, so it was funny seeing him just lay there alone. He was drinking a lot, and probably had other shows this week.”

MGK ended the weekend with another killer performance, bringing in just over 2,000 spring breakers. The total revenue count for Saturday night was a whopping $107,000, surpassing the amount of both Mike Stud and T-Pain. As pictured above, MGK really knew how to hype up the crowd, as he scaled the set of The Pool, singing into the hearts of his fans from above. When asked MGK’s performance, Stockton Alumni Scarlet Kromer had to say this, “it was so much fun! I’ve only been there once before but it was a really good time, the music was good and he was amazing!!!” Kromer has loved his music for quite some time, so finally being able to see MGK in person was a thrill.

As spring break winds down, students are getting ready to return to school. The next big break will be this summer, as the City will once again offer much to do for those on break.

Michelle Tomko: Comedy That Clicks

By Kate Rowland

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Stand up talent Michelle Tomko visited Stockton University’s Kramer Hall on March 15, spreading her knowledge of comedy with the Hammonton. Despite being Cleveland, Ohio native, Michelle has rocked the house down in Atlantic City, receiving the 2016-2018 Atlantic City Weekly Nightlife Award for “Best Comedian”. Tomko’s comedy has also been featured on TMZ and NPR’s “It’s only a Game.” Most recently though, Michelle was found presenting a comedy workshop for Kramer Hall’s Third Thursday event, where possible stand-up superstars gathered to learn how to enhance their wisecracking talents. This is Tomko’s 3rd consecutive year attending Kramer Hall’s Third Thursday, and when asked why she continually comes back, she states, “I like to teach...I get to combine it, I can do the jokes and then tell everybody why I’m doing whatever joke. I always come here whenever they ask me.” During her workshop, she encourages attendees to brainstorm joke from their unique experiences, draw from the mundane, and follow the rule of thirds.

In addition to encouraging her audience to become personal comedians, she also encourages them to think about comedy in a new light. While stand-up is usually all in good fun, sometimes the medium can be used to express important, topical affairs. “I didn’t do the joke tonight, but I talk about gay marriage and I kind of flip it around. I say that I’m not for it, I say ‘well that’s a perk of that lifestyle that it’s illegal to get married, think of all the hassles you save’...always when I do that joke have people come up to me and say, ‘I never thought about it like that,’ and that makes me happy...you get people’s brain working.” Using comedy as an assessable medium to convey heavy subjects leads to a wider audience understanding, and helps to push certain ideas that other platforms may fail at. Stockton hopes Michelle Tomko comes around for another year and teaches her audience how to laugh again.

Stockton’s Ice Hockey Team is on Thin Ice

By Michael Donne

Stockton University’s ice hockey team is on thin ice. With 25 games this season, and five practice days a week, this team mirrors professional commitment. However, players are frustrated with the team’s lack of funding.Stockton’s ice rink has been in Toms River for the past two years. This 45-minute drive is long compared to the short 22-minute drive of the previous Atlantic City location. On why Stockton changed rinks, Assistant Director of Athletics and Recreation Jeff Haines explained the ice time is earlier at Toms River compared to Atlantic City, which allows students to get home sooner.However, player Jake Mcdonald spoke about how earlier practices don’t make up for distance. He said: “We practice at AC. Practices don't start until 11:00. And even with the 15-minute drive, we’ll still be getting home at the same time. An earlier practice, but more gas. I don’t know what they were thinking.”Along with the new rink being twice as long of a drive, players are given no transportation to the game. Also, athletes are not given parking passes, leaving players to walk from Lot Eight to the housing during late hours. These problems scared away many potential ice hockey players. Freshmen athlete Braden Howcroft explained: “There are so many hockey players in this school, it's crazy, and they just don’t play.” As a result, Stockton’s hockey team consists of only 18 players, 13 of them being freshmen.Away game transportation is also inconvenient, as students often rely on three small vans to get to games. Jake Mcdonald commented on how Stockton does little to help this issue and said: “Again, we’re taking vans and I see shuttles sitting in Lot Nine. That makes no sense.”However, according to Assistant Director of Athletics and Recreation Jeff Haines, the solutions to these problems aren’t “black and white.” For Stockton to consider their hockey team a division III sport, Title IX would require another women's’ sport as well. With ice hockey being one of the most expensive sports, being able to comply with Title IX wouldn’t be feasible for Stockton. Jeff Haines believes there are solutions to the lack of funding, and it comes back to the athletes. He stated: “The ice hockey team hasn't done as much fundraising as some of the other clubs.” While fundraising would not fix the problem entirely, it's the first step the team can make for better opportunities.

I Stand on the Bra Straps of Giants

1941 -- 2016

Beverly I. Gilbert

The Original “B.I.G.”

“If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” – Isaac Newton

To paraphrase Isaac Newton, if I have seen further it is because I stand on the bra straps of giants. Those bra straps have been on the shoulders of some powerful and forceful women, women who weren’t afraid to make a change, talk about how the world could be different, be bold enough to request a place at the table.   Beverly Irene Gilbert, whose initials were, appropriately, BIG, was just such a woman.  

In 1975, a group of women in  Atlantic County decided that, as the civil rights movement had changed the country, so too could the women’s rights movement. One of the greatest needs was to provide victims and survivors of domestic violence with shelter and safety. These women, with their own families to care for, with their own careers to consider, founded the Atlantic County Women’s Center. Status quo didn’t work anymore, and women in Atlantic County were no less impacted than women in counties across the nation.  Bev led this charge as our founding mother in spirit and action.

In feminist pedagogy, it is often talked of first wave, second wave, and third wave feminism.  Bev was a wave unto herself in South Jersey -- a tsunami, even.  I remember when someone from the state of New Jersey was talking at a never-ending meeting about the early days of The Women’s Center under Bev’s leadership.  They told a story about how whenever Beverly Gilbert called, people in the office would immediately scramble.  The mere mention of her name created action, and they dared each other to take her call.  She was not a woman who accepted “no” readily.

Her tenacious personal power was what made her such a transformational leader.  And lest you think that her sweeping eye of Sauron (I had to throw in at least one literary reference, this one from The Lord of the Rings, because Bev was a ferocious reader) was reserved only for state contact administrators, think again.  To be loved and admired by Bev was to be held to her high standard.  Her expectations were that people meet their fullest potential and nothing less.

Bev and I weren’t always close.  In fact, for the first 6 years of my career at The Women’s Center, I lived in fully intimidated terror of her.  Who was this diminutive woman who --for all intensive purposes -- birthed social service programs and nurtured them into existence?  She had an Associates degree in nursing, traveled all over the world, and announced her presence in the Executive Director’s back corner office with the wafting smell of smoke.  (It was 1998, and smoking in public office buildings might have still be legal.  Might not have been, either.)

Once, as a young employee of The Women’s Center, I had poorly facilitated a meeting and it was dragging on and on.  Bev put down her papers, got up, and walked out, without a word.  She did not suffer fools lightly and there were things to be done.  I learned to make an agenda in advance, and that no meeting should last longer than an hour.

She was a masterful trainer and I owe much of what I know as a trainer to her.  She had a sardonic sense of humor, scaffolding us, leading us, sometimes pushing us to take leaps and expose our assumptions and biases, necessary to shedding them.  She was fascinated by people and their internal dialogue.

She had a few things in her repertoire of expressions that I have shamelessly stolen, and still use as an instructor today:

“When you are saying yes to something, understand what you are saying no to.  And when you are saying no to something, understand what you are consequently saying yes to.”

“The only person I can truly control is myself.”  

“When the only tool you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.”

“There is no try, there is only do.”

The last two quotes are actually Abraham Maslow and Yoda, respectively, but that was Bev -- a woman who read ferociously, loved ferociously, and worked ferociously toward the justice she knew victims and survivors deserved.  Beverly Gilbert bent whole systems to her unstoppable will.  When there wasn’t a shelter but a tremendous need for one in South Jersey, she was unrelenting in creating one not just in Atlantic County, but supporting ones to be formed in Cumberland, Salem and Cape May County.  When child protective services didn’t adapt quickly enough, she wrote policy and introduced it at meetings.  When there were people who cared, but no real movement in South Jersey, she moved people to come together.  When there wasn’t affordable or safe child care options, she wrote a grant, hired the first employee (who is still to this day with The Women’s Center), and encouraged the slogan, “If my child care doesn’t work, neither do I.”  She was instrumental in forming  The Atlantic County Women’s Hall of Fame -- and was promptly inducted into it.

After she retired, I was honored to become a close friend with Bev, and I consider her my mentor.  In one version of what I think Bev is doing now, she is organizing the angels into a union and writing a manifesto.  In another version, she is impatiently waiting her turn to be reincarnated to continue her work.  In yet another, she is here with us, all of us, carried around in our actions, words and the living legacy of the lives she changed and the movement she nurtured.  Every time I think of her passing, I want to stop and cry.  And then I hear her voice in my head.  “Get it together,” she would say.  “There’s no time for that.  There’s still work to be done.”

And so, I do.  There is no try, there is only do.

-- Erin O'Hanlon