Collegian Cayuga Community College Auburn & Fulton, New York
www.cayugacollegian.com
CAYUGABriefs Apples for Teachers
Vol. 60 Issue 9 November 20, 2013
Welcome Dr. Gregory DeCinque
The new interim president replaces Dr. Larson November 20th
Cayuga Spartans Beat Schenectady in Overtime STORY PAGE 3 Lady Spartans Struggle Against Schenectady STORY PAGE 3
The many faces of Dr. DeCinque
To the College Community, I am very much looking forward to joining you and learning about CCC. During my visit several weeks ago I was pleased to meet so many of you and I know I will get to meet many others very soon. There was no doubt in my mind that Cayuga has many dedicated and caring board members, faculty, staff, and students who want the best for the future of the college. In order to begin working with you I will be setting up campus meetings soon after my arrival on November 20. The purpose of these meetings will be for me to begin to hear more from you about how we can work together over the next year and to prepare the College for a new president. I also wish to share with you my view on my role as interim president. I will also be spending time meeting with groups and individuals to help me better understand CCC. You will see me roaming around and familiarizing myself with the campuses, the students and the people of Cayuga. Please don’t hesitate to stop and introduce yourself. Best wishes, Greg DeCinque
PHOTOS BY NICOLE LEMOINE,
10. Professors Scozzari and Driscoll – 5 each 9. Professors Keeler, Felter and Gross – 6 each 8. Professors Bailey and Valente – 7 each 7. Professor Thomas – 9 6. Professor Coolican and Gridley – 13 5. Professors Richardson and Gilmore – 14 4. CAS Staff – 18 3. Professor Reohr – 24 2. Professor Misiaszek – 27 #1 PROFESSOR TRATT – 445!!!
PHOTOS USED WITHOUT PERMISSION
The Tutor Club held their annual “An Apple Today Might Earn You an A” event. A record HIGH 619 apples were sold! Apples were donated from Owens and Bibbens Orchards. All proceeds from this event will be used to purchase Wegmans gift cards for the Financial Aid Office to distribute to students in need during the holiday season. The top 10 winners include:
Trying to head West toward downtown Auburn and the main entrance to Cayuga Community College’s Auburn campus? Forget it. Westbound traffic on Franklin Street is being re-routed around the college down Prospect Street. Construction crews are working to replace underground water pipes and such. The lane blockage continues to the intersection of Lewis Street. The eastbound lane is open. No word when the mess will wrap up. Be careful. One professor reported trucks are often blocking motorists’ view of oncoming traffic and there is no flag person.
The SUNY Board of Trustees recently approved the appointment of Gregory T. DeCinque to the position of interim president at Cayuga Community College. DeCinque will succeed Daniel P. Larson, who retires on November 20 after serving for six years as Cayuga’s president. DeCinque served 19 years as president of Jamestown Community College before retiring in August. Officials at SUNY recommended DeCinque as an interim candidate to Cayuga’s Board of Trustees. “I’m excited, definitely excited. There’s a lot now to be fixed. I expect my colleagues and I will be glad to help,”said long-time CCC professor, Dr. Ronald Grube. “We don’t expect it to be easy if he at least respects us we already respect him. We got to fix a lot of what the previous administration messed up. We believe they are responsible.” Dr. DeCinque wants to meet the college community. He will be on the Fulton campus on Friday, November 22, 2013 at 11:00 a.m. in room F201. A live video conference of that meeting will be held on the Auburn campus in room T229. He will then be on the Auburn campus, Friday, November 22, 2013 at 1:30 p.m. in T229. A live video conference of that meeting will be held on the Fulton campus in room F201. “We believe Greg’s experiences at Jamestown make him an ideal candidate to lead Cayuga through this transition,” said Cayuga Board Chair Jeff Edwards. “Jamestown parallels Cayuga on many levels. Both colleges have branch campuses about an hour away from their main campus, we are about the same size, we have experienced budgetary shortfalls and staff retrenchments, and we share many of the same processes and issues as community colleges within SUNY. “His experience and expertise will no doubt serve the College well,” Edwards said. “The entire campus community was impressed with him, and we are pleased to welcome him to Cayuga.” Among his many accomplishments, DeCinque led Jamestown through the transition from a single city sponsorship to a multi-county regional model, oversaw the establishment of student housing on the campus, and instituted a new branch campus in Cattaraugus County. DeCinque said he is up for the challenges he will face as interim president of Cayuga. “Since I retired, I cleaned out my basement and the garage, and thought, ‘Now what?’” he joked. “I hope to apply my leadership experience to help Cayuga through what I know has been a challenging time for all campus members. We will work together to find the best solutions.” Last spring, the College reduced parttime workers’ hours and froze non-essential budgetary expenditures, and members of three bargaining units agreed to take furlough days to help close the gap in a budgetary shortfall. In July, Cayuga’s Board of Trustees declared financial exigency, and subsequently announced layoffs of several employees to bring expenditures in line with projected revenues. The College is currently in contract negotiations with three of the four bargaining units. The College conducted a survey of campus members’ reactions to DeCinque based on campus visits, conversations and materials shared. More than 80 percent of the 109 students, staff, faculty and administrators who filled out the survey gave him an overall appraisal as being highly qualified for this role. DeCinque’s 12-month appointment begins Nov. 20 and will be renewed as needed on a monthly basis after that, in order to provide the College with time to do a more comprehensive search for a new president. Staff writer Brittany Glassey contributed to this article
O P I N I O N S To the editor...
KAGE KIRISHIMA POSTED ON CAYUGA COLLEGIAN’S FACEBOOK TIMELINE In response to “Why are you ignoring the Cayuga Collegian?”: Clearly I have been reading the newspaper, and although I haven’t seen many pick it up, I know that at -least- a few English teachers have been continually reading it. At least, they were last semester and the one before. What would make people pick it up more? Well in Fulton, that’s easy: The placement of the newspaper stands. Often it is put off to the side somewhere where people just walk past it without ever seeing it. During my first semester, it was put out where the main doors are and there was only ever a few newspapers on the stand at least half the time. Which... Is much better then now, where almost the entire stack is still on the stand. TLDR: Advertise it better and use better placement. What would I like to see? Well, let’s go to the article: “College Grad’s Still Need Skills”. They have a Career Planning Class in Auburn, but in Fulton? Unless my Advisor
was mistaken, no. So why not print every newspaper with a little article on career planning. Not just once and a while. Tell us how to better our resumes. Give us job hunting techniques. Help us. Cater to your audience in Fulton. Try adding a small section on humor. Most newspapers today are picked up by the younger generation because of the comic section. Or so it seems. Sure, that’s not why you want them to pick it up. But if they pick it up -at all-, that’s a start. Especially since something might catch their eye while they are looking for said section. And finally... A section on useful software and books and such would be nice too. I.E Wundelist (Free and simple to do list software with lots of useful features, give it a try), On Course (College Success Textbook that will do them a lot of good.)... I’ve also got some great computer organization software to bring up as well if you’re interested. I don’t know if they’ll work. But hey... Can’t be any worse if no one is reading it right?” Submitted by Kage Kirishima
If I could run Cayuga Community College, I would... “OPEN THE OLD BOOKSTORE BUILDING ON THE AUBURN CAMPUS AND LET ALL THE SMOKERS GO IN THERE TO BREAK THE NO SMOKING ON CAMPUS RULE. WE CAN CALL IT “THE BLACK LUNG LOUNGE”. I’M TIRED OF WALKING THROUGH SECOND-HAND SMOKE. I’M TIRED OF SEEING STUDENTS AND STAFF BREAKING THE RULE. THEY DON’T EVEN TRY TO HIDE IT ANYMORE. I’M TIRED OF ALL THE CIGARETTES BUTTS EVERYWHERE ON CAMPUS. PEOPLE SMOKING IN THEIR CARS JUST CREATES STUDENTS THAT ARE SO SATURATED WITH CIGARETTE SMOKE, IT’S LIKE THEY’RE SMOKING IN THE CLASSROOM. I’M THINKING OF BRINGING FREBREEZE TO CLASS.” - Mary Merritt, instructor If you would like to share what you would change about Cayuga Community College, email us at cayugacollegian@ gmail.com or visit our Facebook page: https://www.facebook. com/CayugaCollegian
GET INVOLVED! The Cayuga Collegian is always looking for more staff members. Email us at cayugacollegian@ gmail.com to join! You can also earn credits while writing articles for Cayuga Community College’s student-run, award-winning newspaper by registering for Telcom 204 this spring!
Have an idea for a news story? Just email your thoughts to cayugacollegian@gmail.com.
The PBL club would like to thank you for all of the amazing campus support for March of Dimes! We raised over $1000 to donate to March of Dimes. Here is a picture of the winner of our gift basket, student Rachel Wieczorek with SGO President and student trustee to the college’s Board of Directors, Max Appleby. We appreciate all of your support. Amy Valente, PMP, MBA Business Instructor NACCE Fellow, Phi Beta Lambda Faculty Adviser
CCC FULTON
STUDENTS The Cayuga Collegian is looking for staff writers to cover news and events happening on the CCC Fulton Campus. Please email cayugacollegian@ gmail.com
Lady Spartans Struggle Against Schenectady
Cayuga Spartans Beat Schenectady in Overtime
Playing by far their worst game of the season Cayuga was no match for a good Schenectady team. Cayuga was down 21-0 before finally hitting one free throw and was down 49-15 at the break. The second half was no better as Cayuga dropped a 104-43 decision to the Royals of Schenectady. Haylie Karlsen (Romulus, NY) led the Spartans with 10 points while Shanna Shaff (Lansing, NY) chipped in with 7 points and Samantha Shaheen (Union Springs, NY) pulled down a team high 9 rebounds.
The Cayuga Community College men’s basketball team improved to 3-1 in Region III play with a 76-74 overtime victory at Schenectady C.C. With the game tied at 74-74 in overtime with 4.7 seconds left on the clock, sophomore guard Glenn Taggart (Rochester, NY) found a wide-open DaVaughn Johnson (Bronx, NY) for a lay-up to put Cayuga ahead 76-74 with .8 seconds left. Taggart led all scorers with 20 pionts, 6 rebounds, 7 assists, and 6 steals. Zaki Thomas (Paterson, NJ) and Mike Guity (Syracuse, NY) both poured in 16 points, while Joe Godette (New Rochelle, NY) finished with 14 points and 10 boards. The Spartans have an overall record of 3-3, and host Columbia-Greene and SUNY Delhi Saturday and Sunday at 3 p.m.
SPARTAN SPECTACULAR Red Wednesday; White Thursday (No “Black Friday” here!)
GOT NEWS? EMAIL cayugacollegian@gmail.com
This Wednesday 11/20 and Thursday 11/21, the Spartan Club will be holding their first-ever “Spartan Spectacular” surplus inventory sales event in the foyer of Spartan Hall from 10 am to 2 pm each day. Items for sale will include Spartan athletics items including Nike warm-ups, sweatshirts, polos, t-shirts, equipment bags, and old uniforms to name some of the items. All items will be priced to move…so get there early for best choices. Skip the “Black Friday” mess and hit up the “Spartan Spectacular” instead! All items are cash & carry only and will benefit the Cayuga Community College athletics program.
Professionalism Workshop Held on Auburn Campus by James Granger, Staff Writer with and Natalie Krone PBL Vice President Phi Beta Lambda Business Club hosted a workshop recently called “Business Professionalism and Etiquette”. The workshop was held on November 6 in room T312. The featured speaker was Meg Osborne, Coordinator of Career Services for the college. The Career Services is located in the Student Development Office, inside across from the main doors to the Auburn campus. Osborne spoke about business professionalism, good networking skills, interviewing and the importance of networking. Another topic of discussion was the importance of an “elevator speech” and how to successfully perform one. An elevator speech is a pitch that is made long enough to present information to a target audience hoping to grab their attention to schedule an in-depth meeting or possible interview. Osborne stated, “These skills are necessary in today’s business and busy world. The last topic discussed was the dos and don’ts of business etiquette to help a job seeker succeed”. She took time to listen to student’s questions about professional situations and offered advice on how to handle them.
Osborne lastly said, “As a future employee, this person will represent a company and learn about professionalism.” If anyone missed the workshop a great opportunity is to have your resume reviewed for future employers and job seeking advice answered by the Meg Osborne. With this service available to students and others near graduating, these services can be very advantageous in today’s competitive job market. Students may stop by the Student Development Office to make an appointment. Phi Beta Lambda meets every other Wednesday in room T312 from 11:00 to 11:50 am. The next meeting will be held November 20. The club regularly sponsors guest speaker, fundraisers, workshops and business competitions students can compete in for scholarships and possibly travel to a national competition somewhere in the country. Look for flyers on campus for meeting notices or announcements on the campus video message board. Interested students can also contact PBL club advisor Professor Amy Valente at Amy.Valente@ cayuga-cc.edu.
CCC alum receives letter from Vice President Biden When CCC graduate, Abigail Young ’13 from Union Springs, walked across the stage at graduation last May, she had no idea her life would now be connected to the Vice President of the United States, Joe Biden.
Abigail Young
Young was the recipient of the Neilia Hunter Biden Scholarship Award for Journalism. The award honors Biden’s first wife who was from Auburn and tragically killed along with the couple’s child in a car crash. Over the summer, Young received the above letter from the Vice President. After spending a semester as Assistant Editor for The Cayuga Collegian, Young decided to pursue Journalism as a career.
SUICIDE PREVENTION: STOP TO TEXT STOPS What you can do to help by Nicole Lemoine, Staff Writer Even though suicide prevention month has passed I feel that this subject is one that needs to be discussed throughout the year. Suicide is preventable and people who are suffering need to know that they are not alone. They need to know that there are people out there who care about them and are willing NICOLE LEMOINE to help. This subject cannot be ignored, swept under the rug, or kept quiet as this only confounds the problem. People need to work together to bring this matter out of the darkness in order to help prevent suicide and raise awareness. “There are stigmas surrounding the words ‘suicide’ and ‘mental illness’. The best thing that we can do to raise awareness is to talk about it. The more we bring suicide and mental illness out into the open, and the more we change our dialogue, the more that people will be aware that it is real,” said Sarah Vroman, CNY chapter chairperson with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP). “In 2010, it was found that suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the United States, and in that year, every 13.7 minutes someone in the United States died by suicide. Simple ways one can change their dialogue are is to say ‘completed suicide’ or ‘died by suicide’ instead of ‘committed suicide’. The word ‘commit’ tends to have negative connotations, like ‘committing a crime’. Those who complete suicides don’t want to die, but are in such a dark place that they see it as their only option.” The weight of the world is at times too heavy for people to carry and they begin to give up. This is where prevention, compassion and action come into play. It sounds cliché but the saying we all need somebody to lean on is so very true. It is important to reach out to those around you and lend them a helping hand when they need it. Furthermore, it is imperative to reach out for help if you need help. If you are feeling overwhelmed and alone, there are people out there who are ready and willing to help you. Vroman says the first thing you should do if you are worried someone is contemplating suicide and you want to help is to be direct with the person. “Tell them that you are worried and want to help them. Don’t be afraid to ask whether they are considering suicide and if they have a specific plan in mind. Having a plan may indicate that they are farther along and need help right away. Sometimes people who are thinking about suicide won’t tell you so because they don’t want you to stop them. Your direct, non-judgmental questions can encourage them to share their thoughts and feelings. Regardless of their response, if you suspect that the person may be suicidal, get help immediately,” said Vroman. According to The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, there are warning signs that you can watch for in friends and family. The warning signs are similar for all age groups and may resemble the symptoms of someone who is suffering from a mental illness. ASFP lists the following on the website www.afsp.org under the Risk Factors and Warning Signs link. • Talking about wanting to kill themselves, or saying they wish they were dead • Looking for a way to kill themselves, such as hoarding medicine or buying a gun • Talking about a specific suicide plan • Feeling hopeless or having no reason to live • Feeling trapped, desperate, or needing to escape from an intolerable situation • Having the feeling of being a burden to others • Feeling humiliated • Having intense anxiety and/or panic attacks • Losing interest in things, or losing the ability to experience pleasure • Insomnia • Becoming socially isolated and withdrawn from friends, family, and others • Acting irritable or agitated • Showing rage, or talking about seeking revenge for being victimized or rejected, whether or not the situations the person describes seem real
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Vroman shares the following vital information: “If you fear someone you know may be in immediate crisis, we always direct people to call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 18-800-273-TALK (8255). The Lifeline is a 24 hour a day, 7 days a week lifeline that will put you in touch with a skilled counselor to help you or someone you know through crisis. These calls are confidential and free. The Lifeline will dispatch immediate assistance if necessary. Other immediate resources can be a psychiatric hospital walk-in clinic, hospital emergency room, urgent care center/clinic or to simply dial 911.” There are also many local resources for people affected by suicide. Our local Central New York Chapter has brought The Survivor Outreach Program to our area. These caring individuals have been trained to provide the necessary support to the recently bereaved. They will visit and offer peer support so if you know someone who wishes to arrange a visit please let them know that they can contact Debra Graham who is the Central New York Survivor Outreach Coordinator. She can be reached at dgraham@afsp.org or (315) 6640346. This is an important resource for those impacted by the death of a loved one and there are folks ready and willing to help, but the bereaved must request this service directly for themselves. Another way that survivors can get information and support is to take part in International Survivors of Suicide Day. ISOS Day is always the Saturday before Thanksgiving, this year it is November 23rd. Vroman shares that “Our chapter is hosting several local conference locations. And for those that cannot attend a local conference, they can stream the National broadcast online. Everybody copes with grief differently, so something that helps one person, isn’t necessarily going to help their spouse/child/ friend etc.” AFSP also has many resources on its website under the Coping With Suicide link. There you will find a list of support groups that the ASFP has compiled along with many helpful resources for the bereaved. If you suspect that someone may be contemplating suicide, take the possibility seriously. Ask the person directly and tell them why you are concerned about them.Do not simply try to talk someone out of it or try to get them to make promises. Take action and get them the help that they need. Do not leave the person alone. Get help immediately if you are unsure and you are unable to be direct with the individual please do not hesitate to call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255) for assistance. Even if you have not been directly affected by suicide, there are things you can do to help raise awareness. The AFSP’s Suicide Prevention Advocacy Network has hundreds of dedicated advocates of suicide prevention from all of the 50 U.S. states, as well as the District of Columbia. These supporters educate the people in their states and their local leaders. They raise awareness about suicide and educate the public in order to form laws and policies. Their mission is to change the way that people think and discuss suicide and mental illness. The chapter also holds 3.5 mile Out of the Darkness Campus walks. These walks are beneficial to suicide prevention in our communities as the proceeds of the walks support the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP). For more information or to bring a campus walk to Cayuga Community College’s Auburn or Fulton campus you can email the AFSP Central New York Area Director Debra Graham at dgraham@afsp.org. The following are more resources and contact information available for those affected by suicide or for those who want to help are: Become an Advocate, http://www.afsp.org/ advocacy-public-policy/become-an-advocate • American Foundation for Suicide Prevention national website: www.afsp.org • AFSP Central New York Chapter(local programs and events): www.afsp.org/centralny • Out of the Darkness Campus Walk dgraham@ afsp.org • AFSP CNY Chapter - P.O. Box 283, Phoenix, NY 13135 • Web: www.afsp.org/centralny • Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/AFSPcentralny
by Danielle Skowron, Editor-in-chief Recently I took a trip to Greenfield, Massachusetts and found something interesting along the way. Rest stops and parking areas are now called ‘texting s t o p s ’ . I found DANIELLE SKOWRON this to be amusing and somewhat sad. I also saw signs that remind us to put our cell phones down by saying ‘Don’t text, it can wait. Next text stop in x amount of miles’. If you are traveling 65+ miles on the Thruway, why would it even cross our minds to look at the text that Joebob just sent you. Going that fast, it can be very easy
to lose control of your car by looking down at your cell phone. The signs are silly, but are necessary because we see it every day. The text or call on your phone can wait, put it down and wait until you arrive at your destination or until the very convenient text stop. Keep your life safe on the road.
MEET DR. RON GRUBE by Theodore “T.J.” Ecker, Contributing Writer Dr. Ronald Grube started his aspirations to teach long before he had his Ph.D. He went to visit a friend at Finger Lakes Community College. Professor Ed Kennedy taught psychology. Grube said to his friend, “I’d like to teach a course.” His friend walked out of the room then a few minutes later came back and offered Dr. Grube an opportunity to teach courses in history and psychology. Grube knew right away this is what he wanted to do. After teaching at FLCC, he came to CCC and talked to George Smurdoch. He started as an adjunct instructor. Grube says ACC gave Grube a chance even though he was not the best student. He then went for his Ph.D. and got a job at CCC as a full-time professor in 2006. Grube reflects back on his education saying “I never believed I was a major scholar, but I love to learn and teach. I learned people forget pain.” Grube believes the best atmosphere for a classroom is a relaxed, laid-back and enthusiastic environment where students can “Learn to enjoy having been there.” Entering everything with a clear bias, Grube says he wants to change people’s opinion on history, but first, students need to believe in themselves. Grube says there is a right way and a wrong way to teach history. Grube believes classed should be tailored to the people so the professor can change direction, the way classes are now he feels he’s teaching to an ‘imaginary student’.
Grube believes that there are some good reasons for studying history in that it helps you analyze the world around you and it’s a “way to think logically.” Grube wants his students to know that in order for a society to function, its members must feel connected. If not, we lose ground and when we are not grounded there is irreparable damage done to our society. Grube believes that “getting people to think about issues; challenge what people tell them to believe” is best for anyone in today’s culture. “Times keep changing, we want to think about it and guide it,” he said. Grube reflected about the chaos that keeps unfolding in our modern society. Grube approaches teaching in a very logical way he says he “creates an intellectual skeleton, then everyone can add meat and flesh to it.” If you ever take one of Grube’s courses, he wants you to know that he identifies with his students and he feels your pain. His best advice is for students to not get overwhelmed and to be receptive to his teaching style. Grube believes teaching history should focus on the needs of all students, but he thinks the way the college sets up classes leaves him at a loss. The skills gained through learning history Grube believes are analysis, logic, and imagination. He also wants students to learn how to think for themselves and develop an interest in the world around them.
Gay Alliance SafeZone Training The Gay Alliance SafeZone Train-theTrainer Certification Program develops confident, knowledgeable and effective SafeZone trainers who can work toward developing and maintaining environments that are safe and supportive to LGBTQ students, staff and faculty on college campuses. This is an interactive eight-hour course, which includes activities, small group discussions and opportunities for practicing skills as educators. Each participant will receive a SafeZone Training manual that
will provide a complete guide for running SafeZone Trainings, a review of material from the course, additional reading to extend knowledge, handouts to use in future SafeZone Trainings and a certificate of course completion. The next training will take place on Friday, March 7, 2014. For more information on upcoming SafeZone Train-theTrainer Programs or on bringing this program to your campus, please visit their website at: www.gayalliance.org or contact education@ gayalliance.org.
CCC honors veterans with special events by Brittany Glassey, Staff Writer Cayuga Community College is a class act when it comes to honoring the people who have served in the military to protect our freedoms. For Veterans Day, the college’s Veterans Club held a color guard ceremony on Monday November 4th. The group also handed out red, white and blue ribbons for the college community to wear to show their respect for the sacrifices made by those who serve. The Veterans Club is planning a pancake breakfast fundraiser. The breakfast will be held at the Port Byron Volunteer Fire Department on November 24th. Veteran Club president Christopher Dodge said that as soon as he has the specifics, more information will appear on the televisions monitors around school, so make sure to keep a look out for that. Dodge says they also plant to get the word out about their Veterans Club meetings. “The next meeting is set for November 22nd at 11 am in the local history room of the library. We welcome any and all veteran supporters,” said Dodge. Dodge also says the Veterans Club has a lot going on and if it’s something your interested in, you should take the time to stop by a meeting. He says meetings are held every other Friday. “During a typical meeting we discuss what went on during the SGO meeting, fundraising ideas, trips and events such as the ongoing paintball competition with the Criminal Justice Club, and an expected trip in the spring to Washington, DC. The group will be accompanied by the History Club hosted by
CCC professor, Dr. Ron Grubee. “Anything that is pertinent from the Veterans Working Group, which is something I’m involved with, is also passed on to the members,” said Dodge. “Kevin Justian is also on the VWG, and does work with medical benefits for disabled veterans, has played an active role this semester. His email address if anyone has questions regarding the topic is KJustian@veterans.ny.gov.” Dodge also said if anyone would like to contact him in regard to having the Veterans Club help them with local events they may do so by contacting him at cdodge@Cayugacc.edu. ” I would like to send a sincere thank you to Jackie Darquea, Janet Nelson, and Kathy Gross for all their support and hard work in getting the color guard together in honor of our veterans and those who are in service of our people,” said Dodge.
Cayuga Community College Selected as a Top Militaryfriendly School Cayuga Community College’s alum, Brian Knapp ‘13, was honored in the 30 Heroes Under 30 ceremony which was held as part of the CNY Veterans Parade at the NYS Fairgrounds. Knapp is the founder and served as commander of the Veterans Club. Knapp is originally from Fleming. He joined the Marines when he was just 18. He served for five years and spent seven months in Afghanistan where he was injured by a roadside bomb. He was a logistician and embarkation specialist.
Cayuga Community College has been selected as a top military-friendly school by Military Advanced Education (MAE) and will be included in the 2014 MAE Guide to MilitaryFriendly Colleges & Universities. Readers of the MAE Guide include educational service officers and top-level commanders, who guide educational decisions. The MAE
Guide provides prospective students with information about colleges and universities with military-friendly policies and services. Members of the Cayuga Veteran’s Work Group, chaired by faculty member, Sarah Yaw, work diligently to support policies, services, and programs that enhance the overall educational experience of student veterans. A grateful campus thanks Sarah, Janet Nelson, Jo Ann Harris, Lisa Clark, and Kevin Justian for leading the efforts that led to this prestigious designation.
STOP SMOKING ON CAMPUS Cayuga Awarded IVMF 2013 Vocational Acceleration for Veterans Grant by Danielle Skowron, Editor-in-chief
If you smoke or use tobacco products, please raise your hand. Cayuga Community College is a tobacco-free campus and has been since January 2010. “We are in the process of coming up with an enforcement policy,” Jeff Rosenthal, Vice President of Student Affairs said. Rosenthal says in the past years, the no tobacco policy, which includes electronic cigarettes, cigars, cigarettes and chewing tobacco or dip, was being ignored and was loosely enforced. Smoking in front of
entrances has increasingly become a problem Rosenthal says an enforcement policy would look something like this: First offense: verbal warning Second offense: written warning Third offense: fine Fourth offense: even larger fine Fifth offense: hold on students account Rosenthal urges that everyone help with enforcing this policy. “Public Safety officers just don’t have enough time to walk around citing everyone that smokes on campus,” he said.
Janet Nelson, director of adult education and the Cayuga’s liaison to the Department of Defense for Student Veterans, recently learned that her grant application for almost $20,000 was funded by the Institute for Veterans and Military Families. Nelson will work with Cayuga colleagues to create Commissioned for Success: Collaborating to Enhance the Employability of Wounded Warriors (C4S), a multi-faceted educational program that includes: veteran-specific, individual and group academic advisement beginning early in the college acceptance cycle (prior to first semester registration); a series of structured, interactive workshops,
the content of which accelerates employability by enhancing a veteran’s knowledge, skills and ability to apply research-based vetspecific best-practices during the job-search process; and professional development for college faculty, staff, and local employers on vet-specific topics, including combat-related disabilities, particularly those characterised as “hidden.” More than half of the funding covers reimbursements for indirect costs (staff time dedicated to project planning and piloting) with the remainder covering direct Program materials for marketing, delivery and assessment of the pilots for each target group.
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Learn how to make better food choices with Cornell Cooperative Extension by Melissa Wilson, Contributing Writer
Cornell University Cooperative Extension (CCE) located in Auburn, serves Cayuga County. Becky Crawford, Community Nutrition Educator, works for the Nutrition, Health and Safety services. The local Nutrition, Health and Safety services focus is on low income families. The program is meant to help low income families to be able to correctly read a nutrition label, eat healthier, and be safe. “You can use food stamps for seeds. You can spend a few dollars and grow your own food! It’s much healthier and you save a lot of money by starting your own garden!” Crawford said. Crawford has recently started teaching a safety course in addition to her regular duties at CCE. A useful tip from Crawford is that there are simple kits that can be used to test for radon in houses. Radon is the second leading cause of lung cancer. Crawford, the only full-time employee out of three in the department, talks to the community to educate people on how to control their health. When presentations are held, the community members meet at the Education Center in Auburn where there is a kitchen. “We focus on using fruits and vegetables that are grown locally. Also, people who live in the city can grow fruits and vegetables by using a bucket and putting it by their
window,” Crawford said. Food preservation is also important to the organization. The educators make it known that by freezing and canning fruits and vegetables, people can have fresh fruits and vegetables all year round. Crawford has also had the chance to present to Headstart,after school programs, parent classes, 4H, and Girl Scout troops in the county. “I enjoy presenting and teaching elementary students the most! They are willing to try new foods and are fun to teach!” she said. Crawford has worked for this non-profit organization for 10 years. The organization is funded by grants. Over the years, with the crashing economy, the grant money available for this type of program has rapidly decreased. At one time the organization was receiving $200,000 for a single grant year, beginning in September and ending the next September. This past grant year, the organization only received $40,000. The grant money is “Use it or lose it,” Crawford said. Crawford also made a point to talk about the fiscal cliff and how it affects her job and how much money can be taken away from the program. During the 2010 fiscal cliff some funding was restored from the grant that they received, but it’s still not where it was in 2010.
The Original Christian Mission by Krislyn Rogofsky, Contributing Writer If you’re an avid thrift shopper like myself, I’m sure the name Salvation Army rings a bell to you. But did you know that it is actually much more than a thrift store for those who are seeking out neat clothing for cheap prices? It’s actually an international nonprofit movement, a Christian organization, that helps out those in need in over 126 countries, including those such as the US, Germany, Mali, etc... Their message is based on the Bible, which makes their overall mission to preach on the teachings of Jesus Christ and to meet human needs in his name without discrimination. The Salvation Army, which was once called “The Christian Mission”, was founded by Methodist minister William Booth and his wife, Catherine, in London back in 1865. After just a few years from their start, with their newly-gained supporters, and their financial contributions from multiple wealthy Londoners, they were able to provide both spiritual and physical support for the poor people in their area. The United States was the next to welcome the program into their country and the Salvation Army spread their teachings, goals, and their need to help people around the world. Ever since 1865, the program has spread to over 100 countries and are currently helping over 30 million people in the
United States alone. Some of their programs consist of Disaster Relief, Drug and Alcohol Rehabilitation, Elderly Services, Fight Human Trafficking, and multiple others. Dennis Smullen, who is Corps Commanding Officer of the non-profit in Auburn, states that their main goal is to meet human needs and provide basic human services to folks who are having trouble providing for themselves. They seek to provide what is requested from the people here in Cayuga County, whether it be food, clothing, or referral. He says that they hope to assist people in achieving a greater measure of self-reliance. They are an active Christian church, who also conduct programs promoting character development among youth. The Salvation Army is currently seeking out volunteer bell-ringers to help out with their Christmas fund drive for their Red Kettle Campaign, which runs until December 24th. Some students here at Cayuga Community College are already set to cover some shifts at their Wal-mart location, but they are still in need of people to cover all 15 locations, six days a week. All funds raised will benefit their programs and the people they help right here in Auburn. To learn more about Salvation Army, what you can do to get involved, or to join their “army”, check out www.salvationarmyusa.org!
Cayuga Home for Children: Bad for Bad Kids by Jeffrey Streeter, Contributing Writer Bad comes in all shapes sizes and ages. What happens when the bad is coming out of the children in the neighborhood or even your home? These children go to Cayuga Home for Children. The mission statement of this organization reads, “Our mission is to help children, families, and individuals to grow as independent, healthy and productive citizens through quality counseling, residential and support services. We do this in partnership with those we serve as well as government agencies and other service providers.” Although this is what the statement reads, a former employee states that this is not the way this organization behaves. The individual who was interviewed asked to remain anonymous. When asked to describe his experience as an employee at Cayuga Home for Children, he simply responded, “rough.” When asked if the home fits its mission statement, the former employee answered with, “No, it does not. Reason being the majority of the workers there are hypocrites. In order to set a person
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straight, you need to be on the straight and narrow yourself. In the home, this was not happening.” “The positives of the home are the kids have a place to go, counseling is provided for them, and they get to talk to people about their certain issues. The negatives are the children are treated badly and somewhat abused. The children who live in the home are violent, angry, while some are nice and withdrawn,” the former employee said. What would the former employee like to change about the Cayuga Home for Children? “I think the structure of which the home in which the children are given doesn’t fit a lot of their lifestyles. I think they need to get more workers who are in touch with the lifestyle that these kids come from so that they will really understand why these kids feel this way, and why they are there in the first place.” The former employee says they feel the organization doesn’t do an adequate job rehabilitating children.
Making Strides to Upgrade Owasco Lake by Ashley Kukella, Contributing Writer Heading toward Moravia via Route 38, you pass the beautiful Owasco Flats. It is filled with lively green plants, Dogwood trees, Sweetspires, Hydrangeas and many other different varieties of plants that were saturated with black mulch. Even though these plants hold a purpose for making the Flats charming and welcoming, they have another objective that is doing much more for the community. “It’s just one small step,” Katie Ambrose of Auburn and a Blueprint II member said. More than 60,000 people of Auburn and the surrounding towns have water coming out of their faucet from Owasco Lake. Five out of those 60,000 residents decided to do something about the water quality of the lake to help improve it. The Blueprint II Student Leadership program is where they saw their opportunity to enhance something so significant as water quality. After two years of developing a plan and an area to do this, the teenagers set up with group leader Ann Moore; Parks and Trails commissioner for Cayuga County, Gary Duckett; and biologist from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Center, Sandie Doran; to achieve the goal of better water quality for the residents who depend on it. In order to achieve their goal of improving Owasco Lake’s Watershed, the group had to come up with a method and a goal through the Blueprint II Leadership program. It took two years to develop a project that the Stardust Foundation was going to fund. After a presentation to Stardust and a few other organizations, they were onboard to support the $30,000 improvement project. The group
was more than grateful and appreciative that they could start the hard work finalizing their plan of improving the water quality. Before the big planting day, the five Blueprint II group members took the drive up to Owasco Flats to see how their plan would unfold. They experienced mud and gravel falling from the road into the vegetation, eventually running off into the inlet, poisoning the drinking water. Along the road and the pull-off area were suffocating with dying vegetation along the trail and along the inlet. More than sixty-five percent of the lake’s drinking water comes from the inlet, making the Flats an ideal place to prevent run-off. For the plants to survive and thrive in the area, certain plants and trees must be selected and planted in their own special place to be able to absorb run-off to their best ability. Sandie Doran walked around that day writing down notes about what vegetation is going to work best and where. She said that the pretty Hydrangeas, Elderberries and Sumacs will be planted toward the road for absorption of run-off and to make the area a little more pretty. On the day of planting, more than 50 kids, adults, teenagers and parents came to help the Blueprint II group install more than 200 plants and pounds on pounds of mulch. The day was long, lasting more than five hours, but the group said they appreciated everyone coming out and helping them with this project that took so long to develop. Everyone there was proud of their work and the group was even more satisfied with the outcome that they had anticipated.
What does CCC’s Alumni office do for graduates? by Zachary Davis, Contributing Writer There since the beginning, the ACC/ CCC Alumni Association helps maintain a community among the graduates of Cayuga Community College. With more than 23,000 alumni to account for, a majority of them have kept their ties with the school, whether they are graduates from the school as Cayuga Community College or as it was previously known, Auburn Community College. Somewhere in the ball park of 17,000 graduates receive the alumni newsletter, The Spartan, two times each year. They also have an electronic magazine available via email titled Get Inspired eMagazine. Their mission is “to promote and enhance relations among the alumni, the college community and the community at large.” Other functions of the Alumni Association is awarding scholarshipse to incoming freshman or returning students. The ACC/CCC Alumni Association helps a the community as well, with events such
as various bus trips to a variety of locations sometimes three or four times a year. They have been to Gettysburg, which is a quite popular tour, and sells out quickly as most do. Other locations include Washington D.C. and New York City. Another up and coming alumni office sponsored event is an antique fair where you can go and have appraisals done of items you may have that might be worth something. The 60th anniversary of Cayuga Community College was celebrated on October 18th with cake and a small event on campus. So despite an array of other offerings, the ACC/CCC Alumni Association has one main goal, which is to maintain connections between the alumni. Some of our graduates have gone on to do many great things, and it’s important to keep where you come from in mind, and those you may have met somewhere along the way, and the ACC/ CCC Alumni Association doing a great job keeping ties.
Auburn’s Speno Music gives back to community by Adriana Mucedola, Contributing Writer Speno Music store in Auburn is a ‘mom and pop’ business that has been in the family for more than 60 years. Not only do they value the importance of music education in schools, the owners of the store take the time to cherish each and every customer and help them in the process of choosing the perfect musical instrument for their child. Living in a world full of big corporations that make big profits from consumers is what most of America is used to seeing today. Speno Music in downtown Auburn cares about its America has big fast food chains, customers and the community. superstores and big companies that take little to no time to get to know of the store themselves, it’s no wonder why their customers; the people who keep their there are 50-60 guitar repairs alone that business running. “We try to help people as need to be done along with back-to-school much as we can,” says owner Mike Speno. “If cleanings and repairs. a family comes in with a tight budget, we’ll Is anyone short-changed? Never. Each definitely lower the price of whatever they instrument is carefully inspected, wiped need to make them and their child happy.” down and repaired like new, each getting And it’s true. A family walked out with a $400 equal amounts of care. violin, bought for just $125 (and a beaming “We especially like to help out local child). schools. Cato has needed a lot of repairs this “It’s all worth it, knowing that we help season,” says Mike, laughing. “We take the people out on a day to day basis,” Mike Speno Speno Music van out there at least once a explains. week to pick up damaged instruments.” So what’s a typical day at the music store That’s right, the store goes directly to like? “It’s indescribable,” says employee schools in the area to help them out. Typically, Molly Laxton, because of the cuts in the budget of the Arts who has been that the state has been making, the store working at the makes a few trips a week. Speno Music visits store since whatever schools need repairs, picks up the she was just damaged items, fixes them for a small price, 1 5 - y e a r s - o l d and then drops them back off to the schools and that was within a week. Just like that. more than “We value the importance of music 15 years ago. education in schools and try to help them out “Sometimes it’s as much as we can. My grandfather started overwhelming. It’s back-to-school season this store in 1948. My dad learned the ropes and everyone needs something, whether of the shop, and now it’s my turn. It’s what it’s a brand new instrument, a rental or just we’ve been doing for over 60 years,” says a reed for a clarinet. You just have to keep Speno. swimming.” Looking around the store, it looks like As families flock into the store to rent Speno is true to his word. There are piles instruments for their child, Laxton has a of repair tickets, unopened UPS boxes with smile on her face and is willing to tackle customer’s special orders, stacks of unfiled whatever problem may arise. “Our store isn’t papers, boxes of unpriced records and above like others. Our customers understand that all else, smiling employees. we’re only one little shop,” she says as she “It’s a satisfying feeling knowing that we looks at the pile of instrument repairs that help so many people,” beams Speno. “It’s need to be done. “They don’t have that’I want sometimes a struggle to get to the end of my coffee and I want it now’ attitude.” the day, but there’s nothing like going home She says sometimes it may take up to a at the end of a busy day with the feeling of week for repairs. Done by the few employees satisfaction.”
The American Red Cross wants your blood Get ready to donate on Auburn campus November 21st
Harriet Tubman’s legacy is important to Auburn’s history by Kelsey Mclean, Staff Writer As much as we study history and its effects on our world, we often forget to celebrate it and admire it as well, often shoving it aside as being ‘said and done’. But the events of the past are always with us, in every aspect of our lives, whether we know it or not. We have much to thank for the actions of those who came before us, which is why we shouldn’t leave them behind to rot away in the annals of history. Take Harriet Tubman, for example. While her centennial ‘death day’ just passed two weeks ago, certainly longer than anyone else alive can remember, the mark she left on our local community can still be felt today. That’s why, in celebration of her birthday and her achievements, the U.S. House of Representatives have enacted the Harriet Tubman National Historical Parks bill to enact some of Tubman’s most important locations and sites as historical sites - including a place right here in little old Auburn. Admittedly the size is far from impressive, the ‘park’ being hardly the size of a parking space, but it’s the memory that counts. To commemorate this event, CCC hosted a a symposium reflecting on Harriet Tubman’s life; her achievements,
her struggles, and her impact on the civil rights movement then and today. Co-sponsered by the Harriet Tubman Boosters’ Club, the Seward House Museum, and the Women’s Right National Park, many renowned scholars and professors from colleges as prestigious as Cornell and Syracuse University to dictate on her life and times. The event spanned two days, the first expounding on her influence in various conferences and speeches, and the second offering a self-guided tour of the important historical landmarks associated with Tubman in Auburn. While the entire event was astounding overall, the highlight was undoubtedly Millicent Sparks’ spine chilling performance, ‘A Change Gon’ Come’. Sparks, who often plays Harriet Tubman for events such as this, delivered a profound performance as the daring activist, recounting her entire life in a short hour and a half. Spanning from her early life as a slave, to her dangerous work as a conductor of the Underground Railroad and a spy for Union, and finally as an activist trying to bridge the gap between races in antebellum America, the performance was electrifying. Sparks channels the character as if she herself was Harriet Tubman in the flesh, oftentimes emoting and, yes, even crying with such earnestness that it was hard not to shed a tear or two yourself. All in all the event was a rousing success, closing with the official commemoration of the Historical Park. While it may be a small step, it’s every step that counts.
An Inside Look at the Radio & Television (R.A.T.) Guild by Alex Marro, Contributing Writer The R.A.T. Guild, short for Radio And Television, is a group at Cayuga Community College that is not only open to all Telcom students. As soon as you are enrolled as a Telcom student, you are automatically a member of the guild, so you might as well join in the activities. The guild has annual trips and events, a full studio of equipment, and offers students many opportunity for students to excel. Martin Seaman, the president of the guild, says every fall the guild attends the SBE Chapter 22 technology expo at Turning Stone where you can go and get an inside look at new and upcoming equipment and they encourage you to inspect it and ask questions. Seaman says the guild also embraces the nation-wide event, College Radio Day. The idea of the event is to help support local artists who are trying to spread their music to a larger audience. Some of the highlights of College Radio Day is an opportunity to pick up some free CDs and T-shirts. You can talk to band members and figure out a little more about bands that may have caught your interest. The guild takes its members to NYC to have a day out where they can walk around with friends and spend the day relaxing and maybe even look at some studios or radio stations. The guild gives every student a chance to
improve their skills and they get supported by the staff every step of the way. The college has all the state-of-the-art equipment from audio mixers, recording equipment, video editing labs, a TV studio, multiple cameras, a switch board, audio board and any other tools you may need to create your video or record a song. CCC’s Telcom courses teach you how to plan, prepare for, and create all different sorts of video and audio projects. The is plenty of time for hands-on experimentation. After you become more familiar with the tools and equipment and you feel confident enough, you can enter your projects into contests and win awards and accolades to show your progress and build your resume. As you can see, the R.A.T. Guild is great for any CCC Telcom student who would like to get support and improve their skills. They have numerous trips and events that help promote local musicians and film makers who are trying to get out there a little more, and the equipment that you have access to is top-of-the-line. The R.A.T. Guild is open to everyone can get you a good start in your future career whatever field of work you choose to go into. If this hasn’t convinced you, then how about free pizza at meetings every Wednesday at 11 AM in the TV Studio, so come on down and share the experience and food!
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t s i t r A l oca
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WITH ERIC NANS
Russian Love Machine
Jacob and Jared met in the summer of 2009. They jammed with each other periodically over the next few years. Jared had an idea to forge a drum and bass band. It would be called Russian Love Machine...Description Raw, dirty, distorted, syncopated, grungy, punk-ish rock with angry, frantic yells. Band Interests: Cowboys, Westerns, facial hair. Interesting, weird, scratch-your-head kind of music. RLM had it’s first jam on September 12, 2011. The first show was on January 21, 2012. “Now we are looking to spread our music across the dimensions…” https://www.facebook.com/RLMachine http://www.reverbnation.com/ russianlovemachine
Date 11/21 Exhibition - Quilts Art Quilts Time: 10:00 am - 5:00 pm Location: Schweinfurth Memorial Art Center, 205 Genesee Street) Date 11/21 Faces of Cayuga County: 1880-1920 Time: 12:00 - 5:00 pm Location: Cayuga Museum of History and Art 203 Genesee Street
LIVE EVENTS
Date: 11/21 LEE TERRACE + Mister F Time: 7 pm Location: The Lost Horizon THE BIG BREAK: Semifinals: Kill The Lites; Autumns Last Fall; The Projection; Go Down, Moses; The Unknown Woodsmen; i am Fool. Time: Doors 6 pm; Show 6:30pm Location: The Westcott Theater Date: 11/22 Driftwood Time: 8 pm Location: The Lost Horizon Date: 11/23 FLOODWOOD + CABINET + THE RUSTY DOVES Time: Doors 7 pm; Show 8 pm Location: The Westcott Theater
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INFORMATION HIGHWAY
Website of the Week WITH ERIC NANS
Date: 11/23 Twiddle + Strange Reflex, + Ocupanther Time: Show 8 pm Location: The Lost Horizon Date: 11/24 MUTANTES + CAPSULA Time: Doors 7 pm; Show 8 pm Location: The Westcott Theater Date: 11/24 POP EVIL + THE LETTER BLACK + EVE TO ADAM + BLACK OXYGEN +PACINELLO Time: Doors 7 pm; Show 8 pm Location: The Westcott Theater Date: 11/26 DARK STAR ORCHESTRA Time: Doors 7 pm; Show 8 pm Location: The Palace Theater Date: 11/27 95X & Music For The Mission Toys For Tots Benefit Time: 7 pm Location: The Westcott Theater
This week’s website is called Cooplearn and it’s a completely free social learning platform for students. The idea behind it is the more students that register, the more everyone can help each other get through the academic year. Cooplearn is set up like A normal social site but without all the advertising. On the site, after making an account, they give you some tools to keep your information organized. (A majority of the information they ask for in your profile is asked on most University applications). There are also study group options, ratings, works, news, and notification tabs. This website is geared for the more proactive student, but everyone is encouraged to join. I spoke with one of the representatives of Cooplearn. “We are still very early in this project but are already experiencing quite a surge of users joining Cooplearn. The website is 100% free. We want to give this to the students as we know ourselves how hard it is to get through school. We came up with the
idea thinking about how much more fun and easier school is if we stuck with our friends and classmates.” I, think it’s a progressive website, although the one thing you will need is your course code. (Course Codes can be located in My Cayuga accounts in your transcripts). This website would work best if everyone used it, but if you and your friends are good team mates then you can hold it down. Former CCC alum’s review: “I’m currently a student at Hunter College. I just thought this would be a good resource to share with students and wanted to share it with my first school. This website is great. I am always connected with my friends and we work together to complete assignments, share notes and study for upcoming exams. Each one of the Studyrooms is also specific for the course that I am taking at my college which is great as it is so organized not providing just a free-for-all of questions and answers.” If you want to check it out just go to www. cooplearn.com to see for yourself.
CAMPUS CANDIDS