CAMPUS
A frog plus a toad equals true friendship in Richland play Joyce Jackson Copy Editor
A frog and a toad took over Richland’s small Arena Theater stage May 3. They didn’t croak and they didn’t hop. Instead, the friendly duo mingled with birds, squirrels, one feisty snail and a variety of other small creatures. It was all part of the Drama Department’s production of “A Year with Frog and Toad,” a children’s musical based on the books by Arnold Lobel, with lyrics by Willie Reale and music by Robert Reale. Directed by drama professor Gregory Lush, the 90-minute afternoon musical entertained a theater full of adults and children with delightful songs, simple humor and some sassy dance steps. What fascinated the audience in “Frog and Toad” was how enthusiastic the actors were as they played animal roles convincingly to show the true meaning of the musical, which was to demonstrate the loyalty and true friendship between Frog and Toad, a great theme for young and old. Kevin Dang had the lead role as Frog and Cody Samples, Toad. Their characters as frogs were complimentary, which made the musical so enjoyable. The story followed the four seasons over a year’s time, resembling Lobel’s books. It began at the end of winter, just as Frog and Toad are coming out of hibernation. Frog (Dang) continuously portrayed optimism throughout the performance while Toad (Samples) was excellent at being the worrywart. The difference in their characters was evident from the first scene. Toad became upset over breaking his alarm clock and oversleeping in hibernation, until Frog calmed him down.
Staff Photo Ashling Han
The cast of “A Year with Frog and Toad” entertain a mix of adults and children.
Three energetic birds, played by Zack Jones, Ashley Mullings and Madison Rey, provided plenty of song and dance, especially when they sang about the delights of spring. Ryan Nelson added some great comedy in his performance as the Snail, whose motto was, “I’m carrying a letter. I’m a snail with the mail.” In every scene, the audience couldn’t help but laugh as he trudged along in slow motion, taking giant steps across the stage on his way to deliver the letter to Toad. In one key scene, he sang a nice rendition of the song,
“I’m Coming Out of My Shell” – and he did just that by taking it off his back. Ten-year-old Mason Bowling made his debut on the Richland stage as a tadpole who had a frightening experience with a Terrible Frog (Zack Jones), who was quite tall and towered over Bowling. Frog tried to tell a scary story during a dark and stormy night. As usual, Toad was scared and Frog related a story of a young frog (Bowling) who lost his parents and escaped from a horrifying creature, the Terrible Frog, before the little frog got
eaten. Other student actors who played other delightful creatures as a mouse, mole, turtle, lizard and squirrel were: Harley Gonzales, Bridget Condra and Bismark Quintanilla. After a few more episodes, the Snail finally arrived with the letter in which Frog admited that he couldn’t be happy unless Toad was. Frog’s gift to Toad? A new clock. This production clearly captured the essence of Lobel’s characters in its simplicity to show the true meaning of friendship. That’s a worthy goal for any children’s musical.
Richlandchronicle.com May 13, 2014
Emeritus director devoted to community service
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For the last 14 years, Susan Holloway-Snider has been self-employed. She operated a business that provided continuing education (CE) courses for health care professionals. For the last two years, she has provided online and onsite state-mandated HIPAA training. As of April 21, she took on a new challenge – as director of Richland’s Emeritus plus 50 Program. “Every person that touches a medical record must have some type of medical training,” Holloway-Snider said. “I had a very hectic schedule the last year or two, so I wanted a more structured environment. This (Richland) fits within what I’ve been doing with the CE coursework.” Originally from North Carolina and now in her 50s, Holloway-Snider has lived throughout the United States. She’s been a faculty member at two community colleges, administered CE and workforce courses at the University of Texas at Arlington, was a clinical instructor at UT-Southwestern Medical Center and taught health promotion and disease prevention to physician assistant and allied health students.
Staff photo
Susan Holloway-Snider, Emeritus director
Holloway-Snider has several degrees, including a master’s in health education from Texas Woman’s University and is certified as a health educator. She has a passion for mentoring in both education and the community. “I enjoy working with seniors and volunteers,” Holloway-Snider said. She has been involved with volunteer organizations for the
last 30 years. “I started in my 20s with the Cancer Society. I volunteered for a position. I worked for a company that worked with the Ronald McDonald House system wide across the U.S.” Holloway-Snider hopes to improve the Emeritus Program by expanding on what it already offers, and she is concerned with health and other issues related to seniors. She is still looking at the current schedule. “There might be some changes in expansion,” Holloway-Snider said. As far as the five retirement centers who work with the Richland Emeritus Program, she said she is looking into topics of interest regarding health. “I’m relying on individuals who have participated in the past,” she said. She would like to know what Emeritus students like and what they don’t and believes this program is really important for seniors. “Anything where you are giving a valuable service back to your community provides a value,” Holloway-Snider said. “It gives those members of the community an avenue to en-
rich their lives, educate themselves and often times it gives them an opportunity to give back as well. They, in turn, often times become volunteers or participate in that program. I see that in every community. This is my first area where I’ve done this kind of work.” Holloway-Snider also said Richland is a beautiful campus. Seniors are able to interact with other students, keeping themselves active physically and mentally. “I love the campus,” she said. “The people are very nice.” Besides taking over the Emeritus Program, Holloway-Snider has a few hobbies on the side that she enjoys. “I do a lot of landscaping and help with pet rescue groups. It’s a Scottish Terrier rescue group,” she said. “I sew and sing. I sing in my community and in my church. I sing anything. I’ve been singing my whole life.” Holloway-Snider said her husband is also excited about her new Emeritus position. “He thinks it’s right down my alley,” she said. — Joyce Jackson
Campus
Korean student’s goal – medicine is key Other international students urged to connect and communicate Doris Brogan Staff Writer
These are the two final installments in a series of articles featuring international students at Richland. Heejeon Kim, 21, is an international student from Seoul, South Korea, whose major is environmental engineering. Her ultimate goal is to become a doctor. Kim has currently been in the U.S. one and a half years. This is her second visit to Dallas. She was previously here in 2008-2009 as a foreign exchange student at Hillcrest High School. When Kim returned home, she didn’t want to study in her native Korea. “Schools are more like factories,” she said. Most students spend up to 12 hours a day studying. There are a lot of suicides among middle school and high school students who fail to get the highest grades. Competition is fierce and Kim said, “I didn’t like the competition. I didn’t think it was productive.” “One thing about a lot of Asian students … they’re very motivated. Education is almost everything to them. Going to school, getting a degree, that is everything in life. A lot of parents push their children to-
Staff Photo Doris Brogan
Enviromental engineering major and international student, Heejeon Kim
wards higher goals and accomplishments. “For me, I always push myself a lot. I always have a higher set of dreams and goals. “I always wanted to live overseas,” she said. One of her goals was to expand her views
and experiences by living abroad. After her exchange student experience here, she discovered that attending high school in the U.S. would be extremely expensive. After some serious research, she discovered, “School is very cheap in South Africa.” So when she was 16 and her younger sister was 13, off they went to Stellenbosch, South Africa, for the next three and a half years. When she graduated from high school, she briefly attended a South African university. Unfortunately that didn’t work out for personal reasons as well as security concerns. It was very dangerous there at that time. After a brief visit to Korea, Kim returned to Dallas to live with the host parents from her time as a foreign exchange student. She initially came to Richland College because it was close to where she was living. “I heard about other community colleges,” she said, “but I think Richland is the best.” She describes Richland as “a student-friendly school.” “There’s so many international students in Richland. It’s like half of them are foreigners which is very interesting for me.” Kim said, “I love learning new languages. It’s one of my passions.” Her native language is Korean, of course. She said in addition to that, “I can speak English, Chinese and German. Even though I
have been trying hard, I still have an accent and sometimes it is hard to understand [English] idioms or phrases.” She still has trouble with strong Southern accents and accents from places in the Northeast, especially Boston. Kim’s father is a missionary and her mother is a college professor. Her father’s calling as a missionary has influenced her future direction, she said. “My ultimate goal of my life is to go back to Africa to live with the people who need me.” Her younger sister also wants to become a doctor and go to northern or central Africa where there is a great need. After she finishes her homework, Kim likes to hang out with her friends. She doesn’t have many Korean friends and she thinks that may be a good thing. She has more of an opportunity to improve her English and work on losing her accent with her American friends. She also likes to play the piano in her spare time because she says it helps her to relieve stress. Kim would like to urge international students, especially Asians, not to be so reserved, to reach out and make new friends, to connect and to communicate. “You can just be open to anyone,” she said.
Vinh Lu, who goes by the Americanized name Victor, is a 20-year-old fashion merchandising major from Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. In his native Vietnam, Lu is already an accomplished fashion designer. He won the Aquafina Pure Fashion 2011 competition, a Vietnamese version of the U.S. TV reality show “Project Runway.” He was awarded the top prize of $30,000 in U.S. currency. “After high school I didn’t plan to join the fashion industry,” Lu said. “In Vietnam the fashion industry is just starting to get popular.” Lu wasn’t sure what he wanted to do with his life when a friend urged him to join the fashion competition because he had a flair for drawing and fashion. The rest, as they say, is history. Lu entered the competition, though he didn’t expect to win. “When they announced my name in the top 12, I [couldn’t] even believe it,” he said. They continued to eliminate one person each round until they reached the top five. They eliminated two people in that round. “Suddenly I am in the top three. I’m excited.
I’m shaking,” Lu said. He had one month to prepare for the final show. The design theme was to be clothes for the future. Lu was pragmatic during the finale. “I’m in the top three so I’m happy. I don’t want anything more … All of a sudden they called my name and I was jumping like a kid on the stage.” Lu used his prize money to attend the Vietnam campus of Raffles International College of Design in Ho Chi Minh City. Raffles is an Australian international school specializing in various design degrees. After studying courses in imagination, final sketching, presentation and marketing, Lu received his bachelor’s degree in fashion design. When Lu leaves Richland he plans to go to New York City to attend Parsons The New School for Design. To Lu, New York City is the ultimate fashion mecca. “I love New York … for fashion I would go to New York,” he said. Lu has been in the U.S. for two years. “Coming here I’m just like a small ant in a [big] zoo,” he said, overwhelmed with the reality of the United States at first. “I didn’t believe the U.S.
Image courtesy of Huynh Minh Chanh
Vinh Lu with the trophy he won for first place in fashion design at the Aquafina Pure 2011 competition in Vietnam.
really exists. It’s like heaven, you know,” he said. “In America you have your own voice in society.”
Adjusting to life here was a bit of a struggle for Lu initially. Being an only child from a wealthy family, he wasn’t used to taking care of himself. At home in Vietnam he had maids to deal with cleaning up life’s messiness. Here he had to learn to clean up after himself. “Coming here helped me take responsibility for myself … helped me to grow up,” he said. Lu’s favorite thing about the Richland campus is the naming scheme of the buildings. He also appreciates Richland’s diversity. He’s made friends from many different countries, and he thinks that has given him a little better understanding of the world. English is his fourth language, Lu said. His father is Chinese and his mother is Vietnamese, so he can speak fluent Chinese and Vietnamese. In addition to those languages, he is also fluent in Japanese. He’s been studying English since the third grade and thought he could speak it until he came to the U.S. “I’m pretty sure I can speak English in my country,” he said, “but not here.” Lu has already designed a men’s clothing line in Vietnam. But what he’d really like to do one day is design clothes for Lady Gaga. — Doris Brogan
Richlandchronicle.com May 13, 2014
Vietnamese fashion student wins $30,000 prize
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Campus
The semester in photos
Dancers give a breathtaking performance during the Richland production of Shazaam on April 16.
Staff photo Saya Metoki
Staff photo Blanca Reyes
Richland’s freshman guard, Robert Hall, makes a break up the court.
Courtesy photo Paul Knusden
Richlandchronicle.com May 13, 2014
Chronicle staffers flash smiles at the Student Success Awards on April 29.
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Staff photo Ashling Han
Dr. Michael Crawford enjoys directing at the Richland Choral Concert on April 25, in the Fannin Performance Hall.
Staff photo Melanie Brandow
Phares Corder plays a trumpet solo with the Richland Faculty Jazz Group.
Staff photo Ashling Han
Richland third baseman Rickey Garcia suffers through a foul tip.
Staff photo Melanie Brandow
Flags from many different countries displayed in the campus library.
movies
ricky miller Entertainment Editor
Here are my top 10 event movies for this upcoming summer of 2014: Mind you, I had to narrow the list down from at least 50 contenders. 1. “X-Men: Days of Future Past” (May 23) Logan aka Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) must travel back in time to gather various members of the X-Men team to save this planet from an impending disaster. Assembled are the young Professor X (James McAvoy/Patrick Stewart), Ian McKellen as Erik Lehnsherr (aka Magneto), Michael Fassbender, Halle Berry, Jennifer Lawrence and Nicolas Hault. New in the mix are Quicksilver (Evan Peters) amd Blink (Bingbing Fan). I have faith this will be a solid flick, since the director of the first two entries, Bryan Singer is at the helm yet again. Peter Dinklage of “The Station Agent” and “Game of Thrones” is government higher-up Boliver Trask, who wants to get rid of mutants altogether. 2. “A Million Ways to Die in the West” (May 30) When a trailer makes you laugh, you know you are in for a treat. This one comes courtesy of “Family Guy” creator Seth McFarlane. He stars alongside Charlize Theron, Sarah Silverman, Neil Patrick Harris and Liam Neeson. Looks like it’s going to poke fun at all the
Old West clichés and the fact that people constantly die from the most mundane things (on the trailer they said a woman died from a splinter infection.) 3. “Chef ” (May 23) One of my favorite American directors, Jon Favreau, helms this tale of a professional chef who branches out of his current restaurant to fly solo and present classy fashionable meals in a food truck. Even his mediocre stuff like the based-onthe book “Zathura” is better than 90 percent of the refuse that is out there. “Chef ” also stars Bobby Cannavale (“The Station Agent”), Robert Downey Jr. (“Iron Man”), Dustin Hoffman (“Wag the Dog,” “Rain Man”), Oliver Platt (“Lake Placid,” “X-Men: First Class”), Sofia Vergara (TV’s “Modern Family”) and Scarlett Johansson (“The Horse Whisperer,” “Iron Man 2”). Looks like Favreau will splash “Chef ” with some dry wit and everyday sitcom-like predicaments and shenanigans. Should be a lot of fun. 4. “Godzilla” (May 16) The not-so-jolly green giant gets another reboot, courtesy of director Garth Edwards. He helmed the interesting monster flick no one saw titled “Monsters,” wherein America fell to an apocalypse of sorts. This one has a nifty cast with the assemblage of Aaron Taylor Johnson (“Kick Ass,” “Savages”), Bryan Cranston (TV’s “Malcolm in the Middle,” and “Breaking Bad”), Elizabeth Olsen (“Oldboy,” “Martha Mae Marcy Marlene”) and David Straithairn (“L. A. Con-
fidential,” “Good Night, and Good Luck”). Looks like dumb fun coupled with end-ofthe- world destruction and various monsters aplenty. 5. “Guardians of the Galaxy” (Aug. 1) Here’s another Marvel franchise in the making with the story of a group of superheroes who know their place in the world. Chris Pratt of TV’s “Parks and Recreation” headlines as Jason Quill aka “Star-Lord.” Rounding out the ensemble cast are Zoe Saldana (“Avatar,” “Colombiana”), John C. Reilly (“Boogie Nights,” “Step Brothers”), and the voices of a tree-like character named Groot, played by Vin Diesel (“xXx,” “The Fast and the Furious”) and Bradley Cooper (“Wedding Crashers,” “The Hangover”) as Rocket Racoon. I have faith because this one comes courtesy of James Gunn, who did the underrated and overlooked “Slither” in 2006. 6. “Lucy” (Aug. 8) Writer/director Luc Besson does what he wanted to do with Mathilda (Natalie Portman in “The Professional”) by having Scarlett Johansson steer the ship as a drug mule who has exceptional assassin skills. She gets help courtesy of Morgan Freeman as Professor Norman, a scientist who aids Lucy in her quest. I’ve been a Besson fan, even back to his pre“La Femme Nikita” days to his first project, a French silent flim titled “La Dernier Combat” (“The Last Battle”) made in 1983. He even had his regular Jean Reno starring in this intriguing little flick.
7. “The Rover” (June 20) Looks like this is what Robert Pattinson wanted to do before he got sucked into playing Edward Cullen, the shiny vampire that glistened in those teeny soap opera “Twlight” flicks. Here, he’s a brother who gets connected to Guy Pearce’s Eric, since the pair are stranded into the Outback together. 8. “The Giver” (Aug. 15) Two names make me excited about this: Actor Jeff Bridges, an underrated talent who finally won his first Oscar for starring in “Crazy Heat” (2009)and director Phillip Noyce, whose last substantial effort was “Salt,” released the same year as “Grit.” Based on the novel by Luis Lowry, this one follows a tale where most people see the world in black and white, but one person sees the entire color spectrum. Significant because it also co-stars Oscar winner Meryl Streep. 9. “Jupiter Ascending” (July 18) The Wachowski siblings helm this tale of a hotel room sanitation worker (Mila Kunis) who is actually queen of the galaxy. It’s notable because it co-stars flavor-of-the-month star Channing Tatum. It shows promise, even though as of late the duo gave us the mess that was “Speed Racer” as well as the mixed bag stylings of “Cloud Atlas.” 10. “The Signal” (June 13) Looks like this one is going to deliver what “Transendence” tried to be in that a storyline involves a ridiculous amount of backstory. Laurence Fishburne is Dr. Wallace Damon, a person trying to aid a group of college students.
Richlandchronicle.com May 13, 2014
Staff illustration Melanie Brandow
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feature/Column
Each one teach one: B Project blanca reyes BE SAFE BE KIND BE COURAGEOUS BE MORE Staff Writer
Richlandchronicle.com May 13, 2014
This semester Richland has a new club: B Project. The B Project is a program of the Family Place, a community agency, and a major element of the Richland Counseling Center. The group works closely with the counseling center. According to Ellicia Money, one of Richland’s advisers, one out of four college students are involved in an abusive relationship by the time they graduate. Because of this high number, the need was there for qualified advisers to be able to talk about the problems without students being judged or ignored. All students are invited to join the B Project, even if there are not current issues. It is a way to be informed, Money said. “If you are prepared to help your friends, then you can kind of spread this knowledge.” Money said that one of the biggest mistakes people make when somebody needs help is to blame the victim. She said that people have to take the “why” question out of their vocabulary while talking with a victim. Simple but crucial things like that can be learned at the club and save lives. One of the most important concerns on college campuses and for the general public is sexual assault. The B Project informs and helps people to understand their rights. “Always, you have the right to say no,” Money said. “Even if he is your husband, it is still your body.” Money explained that all men and women have the right to decide when and where they want to have sex or even change their mind once they’ve started but then decide not to do it. She also said that in Texas people cannot consent to have sex when they are under the influence of any substance.
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Courtesy www.familyplacebeproject.org
Money explained that in order to break this kind of relationship, the victim has to be smarter than the people around her or him think. “It is all about power and control,” Money said She explained that if the victimizer feels that he or she is losing control, he or she might do something more extreme, sometimes even elevating to murder, to regain control. That’s why everybody should be informed and aware of the red flags of a violent relationship. Some of the signals that people should pay attention to are extreme jealousy, controlling behavior, quick involvement, unrealistic expectations, isolation, blaming other people for their own problems, blaming others for their own feelings and hypersensitive behavior. There are a lot of resources available at Richland to prevent abuse or educate and help students to break out of any kind of abusive relationship.
One of the newest resources is a gamebased simulation in which students can learn how to identify a friend who needs help, how to talk to a friend they are worried about and where to find help. To have access to this game visit kognitocampus.com/students and use the enrollment key Richland48. Also, you can visit www.richlandcollege.edu/ cares to get information about how you can help a student or faculty member that you suspect is in need of help through the CARE team. This team is formed with several staff and faculty members of different departments that are trained to help anyone in crisis. In addition, anyone can show up every Wednesday at 4:15 p.m. in El Paso Hall, E-091 to attend a B Project meeting. For more information about of the sources mentioned here, stop by the Counseling Center at El Paso Hall, E-082 or call 972-238-377 and speak with one of Richland’s advisers.
The truth about Cinco de Mayo celebration Last week, one of my best friends texted me and said, “Happy Cinco de Mayo, Blanca.” Also, over the weekend before, without previous planning, I found myself at a party with people of different cultures celebrating this day. Although I have spent half of my life in the United States, and I feel this country is my own, being born in Mexico, I can’t fully understand the celebration of Cinco de Mayo as it is celebrated in this country. I remember as a little girl, I was taught about it at school. Classes were canceled and government offices and banks closed for the day. However, there was never a celebration with guacamole, chips and beer by the pool. There were not parades or advertisements around town wishing people a happy Cinco de Mayo. First, I want to explain what the day is
about. According to www.5demayopuebla.mx/historia, after Santa Anna’s dictatorship, Mexico was bankrupt and was not able to pay its debts to creditor countries. Armies from Spain, Great Britain and France landed in Veracruz, Mexico, in 1862 to collect on their loans. A representative of the Mexican government convinced Spain and Great Britain to withdraw their troops. However, French Emperor Napoleon III wanted to establish a monarchy and dissolved the Mexican Constitutional government that was set up in 1810 during the Mexican War of Independence against Spain (5demayopubla.mx/historia). Mexican President Benito Juarez ordered General Ignacio Zaragoza to stop the advance of the French army, which was already in Puebla, Mexico. It was an unequal battle because there were only 2,000 Mexican men in Puebla. They were not as well armed as the
French troops, according to 5demayo.mx/historia. The Mexican army won the battle and 1,000 French soldiers were killed. Despite this victory, the war was not yet won. Mexico suffered defeats at the hands of French troops. However, this date is symbolic for Mexicans because it represents the great courage of the Mexican army against France, one of the strongest and well-organized fighting forces of the time (5demayopubla.mx/ historia). Although I am not used to the colorful and folkloric celebrations in the United States, I would lie to you if I denied that it is the perfect excuse to be with your friends or family enjoying delicious guacamole and having a party. So, from now on, happy Cinco de Mayo! — Blanca Reyes
Richland Chronicle STUDENT MEDIA LEADERS Editor-in-Chief Managing Editor Layout Editor Online Editor Sports Editor Entertainment Editor Radio News Director Copy Editor
Kisten S. Chetty Jonathan Lee Lora Advincula Melanie Brandow Blanca Reyes Ricky Miller Carla Davis Joyce Jackson
ON THE COVER Last issue of the Chronicle this semester; check us out online, and on Twitter and Facebook. See you in three months!
COVER AND FONTS Staff illustration by Lora Advincula Cover Certain fonts are provided by the following: http://www.nymfont.com - http://www.bvfonts.com
STUDENT MEDIA STAFF Doris Brogan Sayako Metoki Veronica Jacob Joyce Liu Ben Siebel
Raymond Thomas Pronk Pete Shannon Gabriel Flores Majid Abdel-Raziq Ashling Han
STUDENT MEDIA ADVISERS Terry Blend Erica Edwards Jack Fletcher David Goodloe
Tim Jones Steve Noviello Larry Ratliff Marshall Siegel
Spring 2014 ISSUES January 14 January 21 January 28 February 4 February 11 February 18 February 25
March 4 March 25 April 8 April 22 April 29 May 6 May 13
AWARDS ACP Pacemaker Winner, 2000, 2001, 2007 ACP Pacemaker Finalist, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2006, 2007 ACP Online Pacemaker Finalist, 2007, 2008 1st Place - TIPA Sweepstakes, 2005 3rd Place - TIPA Online, 2005 & 2006 Over 150 Texas college journalism awards since 2000
CONTACT INFORMATION El Paso Hall, Room E-020, 12800 Abrams Rd. Dallas, 75243 Newsroom: 972-238-6079 E-mail: chronicle@dcccd.edu Advertising: 972-238-6068 E-mail: advertise@dcccd.edu Fax: 972-238-6037
MEETINGS & POLICIES Staff meetings: Monday and Wednesday 3 p.m. in E-020
Beginining in August Letter Policy Letters to the editor may be edited for space. They will be edited for spelling, grammar and malicious or libelous statements. Letters must be the work of the writer and must be signed. For identification and verification purposes, letters also must include the writer’s classification (grade level), full name, address and telephone number, although address and telephone number will not be published. Editorial Policy The Chronicle is the official student-produced newspaper of Richland College. Editorials, cartoons, columns and letters are the opinions of individual students and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of other individual student writers, editors, advisers or the college administration. © Richland Chronicle 2013
NEWS/COLUMN
New chancellor Dr. Joe May
Celebration time Richland high school and college students celebrate their graduation on May 8. The event was held at Curtis Culwell Center in Garland.
Do something: Join the Richland Chronicle KISTEN S. CHETTY Editor-in-Chief
This issue marks the end of a two-and-ahalf year run for me at the Richland Chronicle. I started as a writer, then advanced to managing editor and finally editor-in-chief. Now standing at the end of this journey looking back I realize the first step was the hardest. In all honesty I didn’t even take the first step. Two of my professors at Richland shoved me through the newspaper’s doors and I almost ran back out. New stuff is scary. New people are scary. I was already an international student, overseas for the first time. Things were scary enough. So there I was at my first meeting, sitting around a large and imposing conference table. I looked around at a bunch of people I didn’t know and who I immediately assumed were more qualified to be there (even though they were students like me). The editor-in-chief asked me to introduce myself and asked me what I would be interested in writing about. I froze. I wanted to say something grand, something important, Watergate maybe? I had heard it was a big deal here. Eventually I just went with the truth, “I like video games, television and movies. I think I could be good at writing reviews.” I expected laughter or snide remarks neither of which I received. The editor said something along the lines of “that’s cool” and the meeting continued. That’s it. If you are interested in joining the Richland Chronicle, the above is most likely go-
ing to be the hardest part. I went on to write many articles for the paper, go on a few conference trips and learn much during my tenure at the Chronicle, but the purpose of this column is not to tell you all the things I did. The purpose is to convince you not that you are the “right” type of person to join the paper but that there is no “right” type. Over these two and half years I have gotten to know such a variety of people, most if not all of them described themselves as “not the newspaper type” at the start. I joined the Chronicle as a creative writer. I thought it would help me work on deadline and improve my atrocious spelling and grammar, which it did. The spelling and grammar are a work in progress. It also gave me a medium to practice writing, reviews, opinions and columns. However, just because I joined to write it doesn’t mean only writers are welcome at the Richland Chronicle. The paper needs photographers, lots of photographers. Something I usually heard with potential photographers was “I don’t take news photos.” The photographers who stuck around learned two things. First, that they had a very warped definition of what a ‘news’ photo was and second, there were a lot of things that needed to be captured. The Chronicle photographers cover the different events at Richland from breaking news to the plays and performances that take place. Don’t let the misconception about a “news” photo stop you from showing up. Yes, there are rules about editing a news photo, but those are things that you will learn, and learn quickly.
Something not known to many outside of the Chronicle is that the students also lay out every issue of the paper. This means using Creative Suite software to place stories, pictures and headlines, creating the page on the computer before it goes to print. This is arguably one of the hardest yet most rewarding jobs because the layout person works under a lot of stress to make the writers and photographers look good and ultimately put out the best-looking paper. I’ve seen all kinds of people bring their unique style to the task of laying out the Chronicle, sometimes doing complete redesigns for the better. It’s often believed that the design rules are too rigid to allow for any type of creativity but after what I have seen, layout is an art form unto itself. It’s been said that to enhance your college experience you should get involved. Join a club, make friends or play a sport and I support and agree with all of the above but to me the Chronicle takes it one step further. Unlike a club, at the Chronicle you will have a responsibility to the paper. Sometimes meeting that responsibility requires working with people you may not get along with or avoid like the plague. Learning to deal with people you dislike, for whatever reason, and still get the job done is an invaluable skill. I can’t tell you what your experience will be if you choose to join the Richland Chronicle. Everyone experiences something unique. However, I can promise you that it borders on the impossible to be part of the Chronicle and not learn something.
Richlandchronicle.com May 13, 2014
image courtsey Paul Knudsen
A group of 20 students and faculties were individually greeted with a hand shake and a warm smile from Dallas County Community College District (DCCCD) newest chancellor, Dr. Joe May on May 7. Dr. May took over as chancellor of the DCCCD on February 26, 2014. He replaced Dr. Wright L. Lassiter Jr., who retired this past December. The conference room in the DCCCD District Building downtown was filled with students and faculty representing the district colleges for a luncheon with the chancellor. The chancellor was there to answer all the questions the different campuses wanted to know. Some of the topics included offering a lot of technology for our campuses, such as high end projectors, keeping tuition affordable as much as possible and continuing to meeting the needs of community colleges. “I want to see students succeed to leave with a degree that is a value to you,” Dr.May said. He encourages students to finish at one of the many campuses DCCCD offers with an associate degree and then pursue a four year degree. Dr. Mays stated “those who graduate with an associate then those who transfer without an associate are 12-15 percent different in salary rate.” He is a long time educator and leader in the post-secondary colleges and technical school fields from a number of states such as Colorado and Virginia. Dr. May was once an adjacent professor at Cedar Valley College. The chancellor is excited to be back in his native state of Texas. His focus and goal as a chancellor is to simply want students and faculty to succeed as a community, a symbolic need to be successful. “What we have at DCCCD is really a special place for you.” — Mai Bader
Staff Photo Melanie Brandow
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Richland Chronicle ad. Size 10.125 x 11.5 – black and white
Richlandchronicle.com May 13, 2014
Take the reins to your future.
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Unbridled achievement. There’s plenty to do inside and outside the classroom at A&M-Commerce. At our Equine Center, you can saddle up for a ride, train horses for competition, or board your own animals. The new covered riding facility, 110’ x 180’ riding arena, show barn and smaller arena for obstacles and ground work offer opportunities to improve students’ knowledge and skills. Learn about horse care and health, handling and business-related matters. TAMUC
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