The Echo

Should election day be a school holiday?

Check out our staff editorial on page 5

Rochester Community and Technical College

Volume 91 - Issue 2 - October 2020

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RCTC Plaza Courtyard opens

Photo by Kristin Mork

RCTC announced the opening of its newest outdoor space, the Plaza Courtyard, in early October. See more photos on page 6.

Nursing program ranks No. 15 in the Midwest RCTC staff Rochester Community and Technical College announced its Practical Nursing program is ranked No. 15 in the Midwest for the year 2020 by NursingProcess.org.

RCTC was the only Practical Nursing program in Minnesota ranked in the top 15.

RCTC’s Practical Nursing program was also ranked No. 1 amongst the 26 Minnesota colleges evaluated.

RCTC’s Associate Dean of Nursing, Susan Jansen, states “RCTC is very proud of our graduates, students, faculty and staff. We also thank our clinical partners for providing excellent learning opportunities and role modeling professional nursing practice.”

RCTC’s Practical Nursing program was one of 660 Practical Nursing programs evaluated in the Midwest region.

Each program was evaluated based on NCLEX-PN exam pass rates and the numbers of students at each college taking this exam. The NCLEX-PN exam is used by state boards of nursing around the country for testing proficiency and granting practical nursing licensure (LPN).

NCLEX-PN rates are one of the best ways to determine how well a school is preparing their students for a career in practical nursing. Rankings and methodology can be found at: https://www.nursingprocess.org/ best-lpn-programs-midwest/.

RCTC students adapt to change in Halloween plans

By Connor Vlasity General Reporter As we creep towards Halloween this year, the virus is still very much out and about.

It is creating a different looking Halloween for many this year. Many people have made alternative plans for Halloween such as leaving a bowl of candy outside for trick or treaters, masking and hand sanitizer or choosing not to participate.

For RCTC student Ben Ellefson, things may not look very different, except he is taking safety precautions.

“On a normal year my family and I would be in our driveway with a fire going on, and when kids come by, we will hand them the candy,” said Ellefson.

This year, they are considering still passing out candy, while wearing masks and socially distancing from the the trick or treaters as much as possible.

However, since there may not be very

many kids trick or treating this year, Ellefson said that he and his family may decide not to hand out candy at all.

Things may look a little different for Ellefson just to be precautionary, but otherwise, he plans to still try and enjoy Halloween.

RCTC student Gabe Langer’s typical Halloween as of late has looked different than most others.

“This year I will be staying in for Halloween because it is still not safe out there.

I will get my own candy to enjoy myself, though,” said Langer.

Usually Langer goes to Freak Fest, which is a Halloween party, with his friends. At Freak Fest, artists come to provide entertainment. Since the pandemic continues, he will forgo Freak Fest this year.

Halloween may look different for everyone, whether they have a family get together, hand out candy or go to a party.

Photo courtesy of Unsplash

This year is going to be different for virtually everyone who participates during Halloween.

Safety is the No. 1 priority for everyone

out there, especially families with young children. Everyone has to adapt and plan differently in the year of COVID-19.

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RCTC adds transgender-inclusive bathrooms

By Faith Boyum Managing Editor In summer 2019, there was an initiative to make trans-gender inclusive bathrooms available on the RCTC campus.

Now a little over a year later, administration has made progress on this issue, which affects Matthew Kasper, who is a member of the LGBTQ+ community, as well as other students in the LGBTQ+ Alliance on campus.

However, this progress on the initiative has taken time. Kasper has wondered why the main campus didn’t have trans-gender inclusive bathrooms because he said there are many RCTC students and faculty on the spectrum and that gender-inclusive bath-

rooms would be validating to them.

“I am a transgender male who uses the male restroom, and yes, I still have moments where I am uncomfortable, although my given appearance is passable.

“If there were signs in the main campus, I would feel validated,” said Kasper.

For students like Kasper, there are now new options.

According to Nate Stoltman, executive director of communications, marketing, and external relations, RCTC has designated some of the bathrooms throughout the main campus as all-gender with appropriate signage.

In the Coffman Center and Endicott Hall on the first and second floors are bathrooms labeled for all genders.

There are also all-gender bathrooms located in Student Services near advising on the first floor.

Bathrooms, which are both handicap accessible and all-gender, but do not have the signs, yet, are located on the second floors of the College Center, Singley Hall, Coffman Center and Health Science and Technology.

For students taking classes at the Heintz Center, the H1400 Suite is now all-gender.

For students in the Sports Center, there is an all-gender bathroom and shower.

RCTC does not have further plans regarding the gender-inclusive bathrooms, but the main campus is undergoing what is called the the third phase of wayfinding.

The third phase of wayfinding is a plan to renumber the rooms on the main campus

and put up new signs, including new ones for the current all-gender bathrooms.

However, this action will depend on the college getting enough funding.

Kasper sees changes such as signs on the bathrooms as an indicator of gender inclusivity and support to the LGBTQ+ community on campus and to visitors.

“The all-gender signs also show an open and accepting status for our school. Some prospective students may visit [the] campus and seeing the signs may make a positive and hopefully lasting impression,” said Kasper.

RCTC receives Legacy Scholars Program grant

Graphic by Mark Fantonial

RCTC staff Rochester Community and Technical College in partnership with Winona State University-Rochester and Project Legacy received a $120,000 grant from the Minnesota State system to administer the Legacy Scholars Program.

The program will serve 25 at-risk young adults of color who require access to education assistance, mental health services, basic needs, addiction services, and case management.

The program will be housed on the RCTC campus to ensure that the students have easy access to the provided services.

Karen Edmonds, the co-founder and executive director of Project Legacy, adds, “The mission of Project Legacy is to provide connections and access to resources and supports, so that youth of color can overcome barriers and achieve their dreams for a brighter future.

“The partnership with RCTC and WSUR is the right collaboration, at the right time, to create a pathway to generational change and the creation of a positive legacy for future generations.”

Olmsted County has seen a significant increase in populations of ethnic and racial minorities in recent years. Minorities now make up almost 17% of Olmsted County’s total population.

These changing demographics are reflected in RCTC’s growing population of students of color. The percentage of RCTC students that are of color increased from 20.9% in 2014 to 28.4% in 2019. This shift in student population intensifies the need to remove achievement gaps that exist between students of color and their white peers on both the RCTC and WSU-R campuses.

Because Project Legacy employs staff of color with similar life experiences, program participants place their trust in them to help navigate life’s journey.

This approach allows Project Legacy to closely mentor and guide students through their education and career paths by removing barriers and providing support, which improves retention, increases graduation rates, and eliminates opportunity and student success gaps that currently deter many students of color from attending and/or completing a college education.

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Mental health in the COVID-19 era

By Ilwad Salex General Reporter With a lot of students switching to online classes this year, the schoolwork can end up feeling like it is a lot more of a workload than it was last year.

Many students across the nation have reported that being forced to switch to online classes has not only damaged their academic learning, but their mental health, too.

Thirty students on campus shared their thoughts on the pandemic’s influence on their mental health. Their answers suggest that mental health during the pandemic and in general, is an important topic that needs to be discussed more openly.

With many getting cut off from their jobs and having to stress about bills, online school has ended up being much more than students initially thought it would be.

Twenty of the 30 students said that their mental health has gotten worse since the pandemic, and RCTC is not the only school to have reports like this.

“The workload just seems to be 10x as much when compared to last spring when we first transitioned to online classes.

“I don’t know why, but school has totally gotten way harder to keep up with,” said Christina Johnson, an RCTC student.

“This year has forced me to develop healthy organizational study habits because if I did not have that, my grades would probably end up even worse right now.

“Yeah, I had a schedule before, but now I’m spending full days on one class.

I couldn’t imagine what I would do if I had other responsibilities like work or family,” said Aisha, another student at RCTC. As these students have shared, their mental health is being affected by the pandemic.

What options are open to RCTC students? RCTC offers free and private therapy sessions.

To learn more about the therapy sessions, the changes in therapy services due to COVID or to schedule an appointment, call 507-285-7260.

Photo courtesy of Unsplash

Many students across the nation have reported that being forced to switch to online classes has not only damaged their academic learning, but their mental health, too.

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The power of the checklist

By Breanna Shen Guest Writer

October 2020 Volume 91, Issue 2 AH-402 507-438-6932 RCTCecho@gmail.com www.rctc.edu/echo Managing Editor Faith Boyum Assignment Editor Samantha Olson

Reporters

Amaya Travis Ilwad Salex Mark Fantonial Connor Vlasity

Photographer Kristin Mork Editorial Assistant Tim Galvin

In fastidious preparation for an all-important Zoom presentation where I would explain the conclusions of my two-month-long neuroscience research project, I put on my best blazer and spent half an hour arranging my hair.

I even struggled into my dress pants, determined not to reenact the mortifying stories of business executives who accidently stand up and reveal their SpongeBob pajama pants on live video.

As the modShen erator gave the introduction, I kept my camera off and artfully planned the strategic moment when I would flick on my camera and dazzle the audience. Upon the announcement of my name, I turned on my webcam only to discover that my own video feed was missing.

Panicked and sweaty, I gave my entire presentation, clueless about my own appearance. At the end of it all, when I was finally able to glimpse my video, I was horrified to see my webcam angled up, filling the frame

with an unflattering close-up of my neck and face.

Something had clearly gone wrong in my plans. I had prepared so much but had forgotten a very important step. I had forgotten the camera check before my presentation.

Besides providing entertainment at my expense, my goofy error on my Zoom presentation didn’t cause much damage.

However, in high-stakes corporate deals, airline flights and open-heart surgeries, human errors would be catastrophic. How then do big corporations, airliners and hospitals prevent human fallibility from wreaking havoc?

Surgeon and author Dr. Atul Gawande offers us a deceptively simple answer in his enlightening book, “The Checklist Manifesto.”

He suggests that a simple checklist can prevent almost all human errors due to inattention. In fact, the efficacy of the checklist has been tested in multiple real-world situations.

Results show that streamlined checklists for takeoff, landing and emergency situations help avert airline disasters, and checklists for surgical procedures reduce infection rates and boost patient survival rates.

In the first 18 months of one hospital study, “the hospitals saved an estimated $175 million in costs and more than 1,500 lives… all because of a stupid little check-

list.”

Even in our daily lives, checklists in the form of shopping lists and science lab procedures provide dependable safeguards.

At first, despite all the evidence pointing to the effectiveness of checklists, I still wasn’t convinced. I thought that the security of a checklist might not be worth the extra time it takes to create the checklist.

Yet, I have since discovered that the peace of mind a physical checklist offers is invaluable.

The process of creating the checklist also helps clear the clutter in our short-term memory, freeing us to focus on the important things.

Checklists can streamline our thoughts and ensure consistency and discipline in our performance. It also takes surprisingly little effort to jot down a simple list; I take just three minutes to write a list of tasks at the beginning of my study sessions.

For those concerned with maximizing task efficiency and accuracy, adopting the checklist in life, school and work can pay dividends.

The next time I prepare for a Zoom presentation, I will create a checklist, and I will for sure write a bolded, capitalized and underlined reminder: “Check the webcam!”

Breanna Shen is a guest writer and former Arts and Entertainment editor for The Echo.

Faculty Adviser Marissa Gentling We want to hear from our readers. Send your comments, story ideas or upcoming events to: The Echo is a free publication written by RCTC students who are dedicated to freedom of press, while reporting on issues affecting the student body, faculty, administration and staff.

Letters to the editor are subject to editing for content and length, and opinions expressed within The Echo do not necessarily reflect the views of Rochester Community and Technical College’s administration, faculty, staff or student body.

“The newest computer can merely compound, at speed, the oldest problem in the relations between human beings, and in the end the communicator will be confronted with the old problem, of what to say and how to say it.”

— Edward R. Murrow

Illustration by Mark Fantonial

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Echo staff editorial: Election day should be a school holiday Echo Staff Editorial The turnout for this year’s election is expected to be the highest in decades. It should be. This is the most important election of our lifetime.

But the turnout could be better.

Just 56% of eligible U.S. voters cast ballots for president in 2016. We civicminded Minnesotans led by example with a 74% turnout, but that should be a national threshold, not a local one, considering that nations such as Belgium, Israel, New Zealand, South Korea and Sweden all have more than 75% of their citizens casting ballots on election day.

What’s the difference? Elections in those countries are national holidays or held on weekends. Atef Dimian, a political science instructor at RCTC, agrees with this practice.

“Yes, I believe it should be done on a weekend or made a voting holiday,” said Dimian, who teaches Introduction to American Government.

RCTC history instructor Chad Israelson also thinks that election day should be made into a holiday. He would be in favor making it two days long to accommodate people who need to work on election day such as healthcare workers.

“Anything we do to make voting easier,” said Israelson, who co-teaches History of the American Presidency with Dimian.

It’s going to take years of momentum for election day to become a national holiday, but the first step can begin at Rochester Community and Technical College.

When the RCTC administration drafts the 2022-2023 academic calendar, it should schedule no classes on Tuesday, Nov. 8,

2022, so that students, staff and faculty have every opportunity to vote.

Critics will say that there’s already plenty of voting options, whether it’s in person or by absentee and mail-in ballots. If that were true, why did 44% of Americans and 26% of Minnesotans stay home in 2016?

We concede that apathy is a factor and that some people won’t vote no matter what, but we think busy voters crunched for time is a primary reason for low turnout.

We believe that’s especially true for college students, most of whom who are juggling jobs and family while going to school.

Just 50% of Minnesotans between ages 18 and 24 voted for the 2016 presidential election. The number of traditional college-age voters between 18 and 24 dropped to 37% in Minnesota’s 2018 midterm election.

If the journey of a thousands miles begins with one first step, let it start in Rochester.

If RCTC honors our democracy by not holding classes on election day, eventually other colleges will be inspired by our example. Then other entities in the private and public sectors will follow suit.

Give us the day off on Nov. 8, 2022. We’ll make you proud by breaking voter turnout records.

In the meantime, despite your hectic class and work schedule, we encourage everyone to make the time to cast your vote on Nov. 3.

This year has seen unprecedented crises of a COVID-19 pandemic, an economic recession and racial protests erupting in several U.S. cities.

Deciding how we move on from that trifecta of trauma leaves no doubt that this is the most important election of our lifetime.

Editorial logo design by Mark Fantonial

Have an opinion?

We want to hear The Opinion pages are where The Echo encourages perspectives on different points of view. Here’s how to get involved.

Letters to the editor: We welcome letters of up to 250 words on campus issues and current events of national and international interest.

Please include your name and phone number for verification.

Letters that are respectful and civil will be given priority. Letters will be edited for grammar, clarity and conciseness.

Guest columns: We also welcome guest columns on important public issues. Ideal length is up to 600 words.

Send letters and columns to rctcecho@gmail.com or handdeliver them to the Echo office at Art Hall 402. We encourage letter writers to include a photo for use with their letters or guest columns.

RCTC coach reflects on season after cancellation

By Tim Galvin Editorial Assistant Fall semester at RCTC is in full swing amidst the coronavirus outbreak.

One thing that is not back, however, is sports. As detailed in the September 2020 issue of The ECHO, fall sports were cancelled, and the effects of it were felt everywhere, none more so than the football team, coached by head coach Derrick Hintz.

“They took it the best they could. We put in a plan for them to focus on their academics… It was tough.

“You gotta grieve the loss of your season,” said Hintz about the plans for the football athletes.

Unfortunate as it is, this pandemic has caused multiple business and operations to change their business hours, and for schools, this means all-distance learning.

While RCTC offers a hyflex system, where classes are both on Zoom and inperson, with seats arranged to follow social distancing standards, sports cannot simply be Zoomed. They must be done face-to-face for obvious reasons.

It would be difficult to follow social distancing standards when football players are tackling each other. And students aren’t

the only ones feeling a loss of normalcy.

“I think one thing is everybody has lost a bit of normalcy.

This online schedule is killing everybody,” said Hintz.

Indeed, it’s not easy, being half on campus, half online.

While some courses are face-to-face only, instructors must adjust their rooms for social distancing standards and get used to using Zoom and other delivery methods for students to learn and get their assignments in.

As students come back to the campus and learn via alternate delivery methods, Hintz hopes that next fall semester, things will return to normal so that the Yellowjackets football team can win a NJCAA champion-

Photo courtesy of RCTC Athletic Department

Earlier photo of the Rochester Regional Stadium at RCTC’s campus. ship.

“It’s not as easy as it sounds. It’s something we strive for,” Hintz said.

The Yellowjackets have only won a NJCAA title twice in 15 years, according to Hintz.

If he could change anything about the pandemic, there are few things that Hintz

would change.

“The ability to coach football, obviously.

Hang out with the guys [and] hang out with the coaches.

“Football is more than just a game. If I could change that, I would change the [inability] to coach, practice, play, all of those things,” said Hintz.

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RCTC’s Plaza Courtyard welcomes you Photos by Kristin Mork

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Financial lessons learned from Halloween habits E M BARK ON YOU R PATH.

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By Shannon Sullivan Reflecting back on the trick-or-treating days, after you got your haul of candy, what did you do?

Did you eat most of it right away? Did you ration it out so you could make the supply of chocolate and sour candy last until Thanksgiving? Did you give it away to friends or family?

Or did you have the chance to resell it to those dentist offices that were always trying to be proactive in fighting the cavities.

Perhaps you divided it all out into like categories and had the opportunity to trade for the better pieces someone else received.

Did you ever get the elusive full-size candy bar?

Substitute the candy for money, and this allows you an interesting perspective on your spending habits. Do you find that you spend it as soon as you get it? Do you have enough to get you to the next paycheck or financial aid disbursement? Are you a financial contributor for your family or friends?

Do you trade and invest? Do you ever get unexpected financial bonuses?

As we approach Halloween and the start of the spending season, take a moment to reflect on your money spending/candy habits. If you feel like you are tricking yourself and disguising your spending habits in a way that is causing stress, please reach out.

There are resources available that can help you manage your spending and allow for treating yourself.

Shannon Sullivan is a Student Services Specialist at Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science.

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Teresa Brown, Ph.D., appointed RCTC’s permanent vice president

By RCTC staff Teresa Brown, Ph.D., has been appointed permanent Vice President of Student Affairs at Rochester Community and Technical College effective Monday, October 19, 2020.

Dr. Brown has been serving the college in an interim role since 2019, following the departure of Michael Anthony, Ph.D. Dr. Brown has served RCTC for over 20 years, most of which as a chemistry instructor and then later as an interim dean of sciences and health professions.

Jeffery Boyd, Ed.D., RCTC President noted, “knowing Minnesota State [is] committed in growing its own leaders, I’m pleased to be able to make such appointment to an RCTC employee who has exhibited strong leadership skills throughout her 23 years at RCTC. “She is well-versed with our history, processes, and culture, and she knows our strengths and weaknesses, allowing her the ability to make informed decisions.”

Teresa Brown, Ph.D.

Dr. Brown earned her bachelor’s and doctoral degrees in chemistry from South Dakota State University in Brookings, SD.

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RCTC OFFICE HOURS:

Schedule an in-person or Zoom appointment by emailing rochinfo@augsburg.edu.

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A spooky flick for every day of the week “The Conjuring”

By Ilwad Salex General Reporter

Love scary movies? Celebrate the season with these spooky flicks.

“Jennifer’s Body” About: A nerdy high school girl (played by Amanda Siegfried) has a hot and popular best friend (played by Megan Fox) who has become possessed by a demon. Its hunger can only be filled by eating boys.

Rating: 7/10 It isn’t the scariest horror movie out there, and the acting sometimes kind of threw me off.

“Us” About: This movie is about a family (the Wilsons) who moves into their beach house for the summer. However, one night, four masked people broke in. The family spends the next handful of hours fighting to survive and get away from the four people who want them dead.

Rating: 9/10 The acting was really great, and the story line was just as good.

About: In 1971, a family moves to an old farmhouse in Rhode Island. Once they move in though, strange ghostly things start happening to them. In desperation they call two paranormal investigators to help put an end to it. The investigator finds that there are evil spirits at the house who have made it their livelihood to torture the family who moves in.

Rating: 9.5/10.

This movie definitely scared me, and the acting throughout the whole movie was absolutely incredible.

“Hush” About: A deaf writer moves into a cabin in the woods for some alone time. Yet, almost as soon as she arrives, she encounters a serial killer who has fixated his eyes on her as his next victim. The movie revolves around her trying to survive and get away from the serial killer.

Rating: 8/10 It was a good solid movie with just as good suspense as horror attached to it.

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About: A young boy and his family move to another town, and he meets a girl whose father was R.L Stine, a famous author.

Looking through her father’s books, the young boy accidentally unleashes all the monsters that were contained within. Now they have to try to overcome their boundaries and put the monsters back where they belong.

Rating: 8/10 This movie was also really good and such a classic. It wasn’t filled with too many jump scares, too.

“Eli” About: A young boy named Eli is stuck in a strange treatment center after battling a rare disease that makes him allergic to everything around him. Because of this he is forced to live in a plastic bubble. His parents take him to the treatment center in hopes of finding answers, only to find something darker lurking in the halls.

Rating: 7/10 The movie was pretty solid; however, it could have also been scarier.

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“Polaroid” About: A young girl finds an old vintage camera at her home, and she decides to take and use it at a party.

After taking photos of her friends with the camera, people who were in those photos begin dying in one way or another.

Rating: 8/10 It was also a pretty solid movie.

The actors did a great job, and the storyline was interesting throughout the whole thing.

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Top 5 books to check out this Halloween season

By Mark Fantonial General Reporter Looking for a book to give you a good scare or a book to cozy up in for the remaining days of October? Here are six Halloween/Autumn books for everyone.

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“I’m Thinking of Ending Things”

By Iain Reid

Synopsis: In this smart, suspenseful and intense literary thriller, debut novelist Iain Reid explores the depths of the human psyche and questions consciousness, free will, the value of relationships, fear and the limitations of solitude. Reminiscent of Jose Saramago’s early work, Michel Faber’s cult classic, Under the Skin, and Lionel Shriver’s We Need to Talk about Kevin, I’m Thinking of Ending Things is an edgy, haunting debut. Tense, gripping and atmospheric, this novel pulls you in from the very first page…and never lets you go.

Personal comment: I love the atmosphere that the author has built in this book. It’s eerie, weird and shivering. The

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narration lets you gather mysterious bits and pieces with an eye-opening revelation at the end.

I’m Thinking of Ending Things is perfect for curious readers who love an unearthly tone. I highly recommend! Trust me; the ending is still stuck in my mind to this day!

“Clown in a Cornfield”

By Adam Cesare

Synopsis: When Quinn and her father move to a tiny town with a weird clown for a mascot, they’re looking for a fresh start. But ever since the town’s only factory shut down, Kettle Springs has been cracked in half.

Most of the town believes that the kids are to blame. After all, the juniors and the seniors at Kettle Springs High are the ones who threw the party where Arthur Hill’s daughter died. They’re the ones who set the abandoned factory on fire and who spend all their time posting pranks on YouTube. They have no respect and no idea what it means to work hard.

For the kids, it’s the other way around, and now Kettle Springs is caught in a constant battle between old and new, tradition and progress.

It’s a fight that looks like it will destroy the town until one homicidal clown with a porkpie hat and a red nose decides to end it for good. If your opponents all die, you win the debate by default.

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By Sylvia Moreno-Garcia

Synopsis: After receiving a frantic letter from her newlywed cousin begging for someone to save her from a mysterious doom, Noemí Taboada heads to High Place, a distant house in the Mexican countryside.

She’s not sure what she will find.

Noemí is also an unlikely rescuer. She’s a glamorous debutante, and her chic gowns and perfect red lipstick are more suited for cocktail parties than amateur sleuthing.

But she’s also tough and smart, with an indomitable will, and she is not afraid. Not of her cousin’s new husband, who is both menacing and alluring; not of his father, the ancient patriarch who seems to be fascinated by Noemí; and not

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even of the house itself, which begins to invade Noemi’s dreams with visions of blood and doom.

Her only ally in this inhospitable abode is the family’s youngest son, but he, too, may be hiding something. There are many secrets behind the walls of High Place, as Noemí discovers when she begins to unearth stories of violence and madness.

Noemí, mesmerized by the terrifying yet seductive world of High Place, may soon find it impossible to ever leave this enigmatic house behind.

Personal comment: Mexican Gothic is the lovechild of H. P. Lovecraft’s work and Emily Brontë’s writing. It delivers the

chilling tales of Lovecraft’s books and the aesthetic atmosphere of Brontë’s imagination. If you can’t explore haunted houses because of COVID, let the haunted house come to your imagination. This is for fans of haunted houses, creepy families and unexplainable events.

“And Then There Were None”

By Agatha Christie

Synopsis: Ten strangers are lured to an isolated, island mansion off the Devon coast by a mysterious “U. N. Owen.” At dinner, a recorded message accuses each of them in turn of having a guilty secret, and by the end of the night, one of the guests is dead.

Stranded by a violent storm and haunted by a nursery rhyme, counting down one by one… as one by one… they begin to die.

Which among them is the killer,

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Personal comment: There are two things that scare me in the dropping temperature of October: clowns and walking through a cornfield. This book starts with a warm and welcoming entrance, but as the story leads on, it gets dark and bloody (literally).

The two words in the title, “clown” and “cornfield,” gave me a hint of Stephen King’s novels, namely “It” and “Children of the Corn.”

Adam Cesare’s debut novel is perfect for fans of slasher movies and psycho killers.

“Mexican Gothic”

and will any of them survive?

Personal comment: Agatha Christie was crowned as “The Queen of Mystery” and has lived up to that name after writing at least 77 books. This book has inspired a lot of mystery books in the current century because of how the thriller concept is delivered. This book will give you trust issues (not to be overdramatic but…), and this will keep you on the edge of your

seat because the murderer could be breathing on your neck right now.

“The Year of the Witching”

By Alexis Henderson

Synopsis: In the lands of Bethel, where the Prophet’s word is law, Immanuelle Moore’s very existence is blasphemy.

Her mother’s union with an outsider of a different race cast her once-proud family into disgrace, so Immanuelle does her best to worship the Father, follow Holy Protocol and lead a life of submission, devotion and absolute conformity, like all the other women in the settlement.

But a mishap lures her into the forbidden Darkwood surrounding Bethel, where the first prophet once chased and killed four powerful witches. Their spirits are still lurking there, and they bestow a gift on Immanuelle.

It is the journal of her dead mother, who Immanuelle is shocked to learn, once sought sanctuary in the wood.

Fascinated by the secrets in the diary, Immanuelle finds herself struggling to understand how her mother could have consorted with the witches. When she begins to learn grim truths about the Church and its history, she realizes the true threat to Bethel is its own darkness. And she starts to understand that if Bethel is to change, it must begin with her.

Personal comment: Here are three reasons to fall in love with this book: Hocus Pocus, its Salem Witch Trials’ vibe and that this book is very dark.

If you’re into witchcraft, then this should be a HEX-cellent book to read before the witching hour, but be careful because there are horrifying things that are lurking around the chapters.

10 Arts & Entertainment

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Rochester Community and Technical College | The Echo

The best technology for online school in the COVID era

By Connor Vlasity General Reporter

As a student here at RCTC, navigating online school since the start of the COVID era hasn’t been the easiest thing, but with time, I have mastered it.

I have used multiple devices for my online class work such as my iPhone 11, a Google Chromebook and a recently purchased Macbook Air. Investing my money into good reliable technology has proven to make things much easier for me to do my online school work and navigate through my courses.

I will be diving into the top choices for what has worked best from top to bottom for college students technologywise in this new world of online classes.

According to TechRadars article “The best student laptops 2020: all the best options for school,” the Google Pixelbook Go comes in at #1 due to its mostly affordable price of $649, its long life span, a 1080p webcam and its impressive keyboard.

These are all necessities for online classes, especially for Zoom meetings, which require a webcam. The long lasting battery would allow you to work on school work for a very long time.

Coming in at #2 is the HP Chromebook 14. Its very affordable price of $249.99 is a reason it is so highly ranked.

It also displays a very crisp picture and

Photo courtesy of Unsplash

Navigating online school makes having reliable technology a must. has a very nice keyboard and trackpad to go along with it.

Coming in at #3 is the Microsoft Surface Go 2. For another pretty affordable price of $399, it adds to the reason for its high ranking.

It also offers a sleek design and can run Windows 10, which is needed for many pieces of software that teachers may have you download.

Following along the line of the top three laptops/tablets, we move on to the bottom three.

Starting at #8, according to TechRadar, is the Acer Swift 3. At an average price of $655, it offers a very lightweight and portable computer.

Along with that, it is also easy to multitask on it and do multiple things at the same time.

At #9, we have the Dell Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-1. At a pretty affordable price of $589, this computer offers the ability to be a laptop or a touch screen tablet.

It is an average computer, but it gets the job done. It is versatile, too, in the way you

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may want to use it.

Coming in at #10 is the Macbook Pro 13-inch screen. At a price of $1,300, it may not be the best choice for college students needing more cheap and affordable items.

It sets off a great picture. The keyboard is nice, and it can allow you to do many things on it such as call, FaceTime or message if you have an iPhone already.

Numbers 4-7 include Dell XPS 15, Acer Spin 5, Asus Chromebook Flip C436, and Macbook Air respectively.

Now after looking at all of these, everyone will have something different they’re looking for in their search for a laptop, whether that be affordability, laptop and tablet capabilities, screen resolution, battery life, memory capacity, etc.

For myself, I have a loyalty to Apple and their products, so it was an easy choice for me to pick the Macbook Air. Being able to do things on it such as FaceTime or message people was a big plus.

It has also been much easier to find things, to have multiple pages open and to be able to download softwares I need for my Graphic Design class.

If you’re in need of any technology support from RCTC, their services are located in Goddard Library GL100.

You can also call them at 507-536-5555 or email them at tech.help@rctc.edu.

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Arts & Entertainment 11 Rochester Community and Technical College | The Echo

Overwatch: A video game for avid gamers

By Amaya Travis General Reporter There are a lot of games that dominate the video game market. Overwatch happens to be one of those games, with an approximate 40-50 million players worldwide.

Blizzard, the mastermind behind Overwatch, is also the creator of another popular game, World of Warcraft.

Overwatch is a team-based first-person shooter game and is played with two teams of six players. There are three character classes you can choose from: Tank, Damage and Healer/Support.

Recently, I had the pleasure of playing Overwatch for the first time. I played with two others in an Xbox party call, both of them being quite experienced with the game.

I played tank characters for about 10 rounds, as I am usually more comfortable with tank roles.

Outside of me not really knowing what to do, the game went smoothly for the first few rounds. In round three to four, I started to experience a lot of lag, which severely impacted my ability to play the game.

I also crashed two or three times over the course of an hour. I’m still not sure why it did that, as my game was brand new out the case.

Despite the technical difficulties I experienced, I really enjoyed playing the game.

The controls were a bit tricky to get used to, and I am still getting used to them if I’m being honest.

The first couple of rounds I played the tank character, D.Va, one of the game’s most notable characters. I really like her special mech ability.

Throughout the match, as you deal damage to enemy players, it charges D.Va’s special ability bar.

Once fully charged, you can call your mech for extra protection. If destroyed, D.Va ejects from the mech.

However, you can call another mech once that special ability bar is fully charged, again. I don’t think D.Va was a good choice for a new player, as she is a difficult character to play when you have zero in-game experience.

I need to do some more research and run some more practice rounds before I really get the hang of the game.

Overall, it’s a fun game, and I definitely suggest it to anyone who enjoys first-personshooter games.

Although many RCTC classes are online due to the COVID-19 pandemic, music students are finding safe, on-campus solutions to continue their lessons.

Photo by Kristin Mork

Image courtesy of Playoverwatch.com

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