24 minute read
CULTURE
Culture Editor: Katelin Pompa – xzgw@iup.edu Lead Culture Writer: Haley Brown – tbfx@iup.edu
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(Haley Brown/The Penn)
Kelley Thompson hosted a presentation via Zoom and debunked myths of professionalism.
CPDC showcases do’s, don’ts in workplace
HALEY BROWN Lead Culture Writer tbfx@iup.edu @ThePennIUP
Kelley Thompson, the associate director of the IUP Career and Professional Development Center (CPDC), hosted a Zoom conference about professionalism in the workplace Nov. 4.
Thompson went over the “do’s and don’ts” of professionalism and workplace etiquette from professional dress codes to how to foster healthy coworker relationships and set healthy boundaries.
She started the presentation with a short audience poll. The poll involved three questions designed so that Thompson could get a feel for where everyone stood in the preparation process for their professional life.
The poll involved three questions. First was about each watcher’s opinion about their own preparedness for succeeding in a professional environment. Next was whether the watchers knew what professionalism meant. Finally, it was about how important the audience thought professionalism was to their career success.
The audience polled that they were interested in learning more about professionalism to increase the likelihood of success in their future career.
After her short poll, Thompson began by asking her audience members what qualities they thought of as professionals. The audience responded in the meeting’s group chat, and Thompson’s assistant, Jennifer Abraham, read the responses aloud. Some of them included: being calm, cool and collected, being respectful, being an organized and effective communicator, and being confident.
Thompson defined professionalism as an important workplace skill that should be applied in interviews, on job applications and in the workplace itself. She explained that professionalism is one of the biggest factors that might lead to career success.
“This trait in particular involves and impacts every aspect of your job,” Thompson said.
“A lack of professionalism has the potential to cost you a job opportunity, a promotion, opportunities for advancement or bonuses at work, or even put you first in line for a layoff at work. So, it’s something you should really take seriously.”
She went over some common misconceptions that people may have about what it means to be professional. The myths she touched on were how professionalism is not just about dressing well, being nice and saying the right deliver quality work because you’re thing. driven to do so.”
She also spoke about the other Thompson also explained that myths that some of which, included: professionalism has a lot to do with blending into your environment, acting with integrity and being how professionalism is solely about courteous to others. The audience being a kind and pleasant person, was told that workplace etiquette and how it is not only about putting can be thought of as the code that on airs. governs the expectations of social behavior in the workplace and is put in place to respect time, people and processes. Work etiquette can include a wide range of aspects like body language and being conscious of facial expressions, appropriate work behavior, engag(Graphicmama-team/Pixabay) ing in appropriate small talk, your social media and
Thompson shared a slide con- how you portray yourself and hantaining some points about what dle lunch meetings and interviews. professionalism really is and listed The appropriate behavior aspect five key parts of professionalism. can include handling alcohol at
“Professionalism is the conduct, work events, responding to emails behavior and attitude of someone and handling RSVPs and cancellain a work or business environment,” tions. Factors like understanding she said. “It’s also how you carry the dress code, managing healthy yourself. It’s your attitude and the work relationships and the approway you communicate with others. priate use of technology, such as It’s your ability to show you can be being clear and concise with online trusted and taken seriously. It’s the communication. inherent ability to do what is right Thompson shared some profesand what is expected of you, usual- sionalism tips to follow including: ly when no one is watching, and to honoring the commitments you make, being attentive, responsive and proactive, and getting to know and respect the workplace culture. She also discussed how professionals should keep their personal matters to a minimum and avoid the negative side of workplace politics like gossip or making a coworker look incompetent.
The last professional tip was about communicating effectively, which involves not only what you say but how you say it, and to never put anything in writing that you would not say to someone in person.
She even shared a fun clip from “The Office” as an example of how coming to work sick is not only disrespectful to your coworkers, but it can make you look unprofessional as well.
Thompson highlighted some aspects of the professional dress code and asked the audience about their opinions on obligations to be social with colleagues outside of work and whether or not it is appropriate to add coworkers or your boss to your social networking sites.
She brought her presentation to a close by introducing Lorrin Rishell, a representative from CNB bank. Rishell spoke briefly about the company and all of the job opportunities they have available across the tristate area.
IUP’s CPDC is working remotely due to COVID-19. You could email them at career-development@iup. edu or call them at (724) 357-2235.
(mohamed_hassan/Pixabay) The Six O’Clock Series Nov. 2 showcased the process many immigrants take to live in the U.S.
Six O’Clock Series sheds light on immigration process
HALEY BROWN Lead Culture Writer tbfx@iup.edu @ThePennIUP
IUP hosted another of its Six O’Clock Series titled “The Long Road to Immigration” Nov. 2, which included presenters who spoke about their personal immigration to the U.S.
The event was hosted by the Six O’Clock Series coordinator, Brianna Drylie, on Zoom. About 60 people from the IUP community tuned into the Zoom call and listened to each of the five panelists. The event ran from 6 to about 7:40 p.m. with an open questions and comments portion at the end to allow the viewers to chime in on the conversation.
Presenters who participated spoke about their own immigration stories as well as the immigration stories of others, and they offered a window into the grueling process of immigrating to the U.S. They each spoke of their own journeys from Iraq, Thailand, Nepal and Canada. Additionally, they talked about the legal immigration process from student visas to tourists to the special immigrant visa.
The first panelist was Sara Burhan Abdullah who is now an
immigration lawyer in Pittsburgh, and an adjunct professor from the University of Pittsburgh. She briefly spoke about U.S. immigration laws as well as the different types of visas. She also told viewers about her own immigration from Iraq to the U.S. with her fiancé.
The four major immigrant visas that Abdullah spoke of included family immigration, employment visas, lottery visas and asylum, which she pointed out is different than being a refugee.
Abdullah explained that family immigration is usually involved with immediate family members. Employment visas are required when an employer requests a specific skill set, and the employee has to come to the U.S. to work. Fifty thousand lottery visas are randomly assigned by the U.S. each year to qualifying individuals who must come from a certain country and be a certain age with a certain educational background.
The following panelist was Sameer Hameed who came to the U.S. from Iraq. He told the story of how he was led to immigrating. He began to work with the U.S forces in Iraq as an interpreter in 2003, and he did not know any English, so he had to use hand signals to communicate.
Later, once he had learned English in school, he aided the forces helping his local people and applied for a position with the U.S. forces. He had to cover his face and go by a nickname to protect himself from the Iraqi people who saw him as a traitor.
Hameed got his visa for the U.S. and needed specific papers and a strict background check with a mountain of paperwork as well. After three years of immigration processes, he was finally provided with two months of assistance to help him and his family get assimilated and find jobs in America. He also applied to several universities across the U.S. and was admitted to IUP.
The next speaker, Poom Sunhachawi-Taylor, immigrated from Thailand and spoke about coming into the U.S. with the F-1 Visa, which is the student visa. She came from Israel at the time and applied to IUP, which at the time gave international students in-state tuition, a huge draw to international students. She got her green card from marriage to a U.S. citizen, which put her at the top priority for a visa.
She also helped her parents and siblings immigrate to the U.S. from Thailand and spoke about the grueling process of becoming a legal U.S. citizen with the incredible amount of paperwork involved. Once she became a citizen legally, she brought her whole family over and assimilated quickly.
She came to the U.S. in 1982, and even then, it was an expensive and an extremely time-consuming process at its best.
The final speaker was Sue Dodson, who is currently going through the U.S. immigration process from Canada. Dodson had a long and complicated immigration story and patiently explained all of the issues she had faced and is currently facing while she is still trying to become a U.S. citizen.
She married her husband in 2018 and began her immigration process in January. Dodson researched as much as she could at the beginning of her process and filled out all of the forms she thought were needed.
She spoke about feeling guilty, unwanted and constantly stressed. Dodson also felt like it was impossible to jump through all of the hoops involved in the process.
Dodson was told without her social security number, she would not be able get a driver’s license.
She also struggled getting insurance coverage through her husband. COVID-19 made it that much worse as the offices closed making the process harder.
During her immigration interview in Pittsburgh, Dodson was told that her birth certificate would not be accepted and that a birth registration was needed instead. After all that, the registration was complete thanks to personal connections.
At the end of the night of presentations, some audience members joined the conversation and briefly voiced their opinions about the frustrating difficulties surrounding the immigration process.
Audience members also mentioned how shockingly roundabout the process seems to be and how stressful it must be to go through and maintain patience with.
Despite all of the struggles, paperwork that immigrants face many have succeeded. We have the voice to ensure that future immigrants do not lose hope for their futures in the U.S.
Even though there is a complicated process, change can be made by educating ourselves on politics and participating in smaller elections. We can put policy makers in places of power so the rules are changed and immigration becomes less of a nightmare for those who need it most.
(Berhane_JE/Pixabay)
Falling leaves are the first sign of fall. Soon after that, the acorns start to fall, too.
Thanksgiving: Stuffed with turkey, pie and a dark past
CAIO GOMES Staff Writer hysbc@iup.edu @ThePennIUP
The end of November approaches and brings Thanksgiving with it.
The holiday is traditionally celebrated on the last Thursday of the month, and it is deemed as one of the most popular American holidays.
According to CNBC, Thanksgiving is the second biggest holiday for spending in America – losing only to Christmas.
Whereas in most holidays a person celebrates something deemed greater than themselves, on Thanksgiving people celebrate the good things in their own lives. This is probably why the holiday is so popular.
Psychology Today listed “being healthy,” “good food,” “having good friends” and “family safety” as some of the reasons why most people are thankful on Thanksgiving. A list that IUP students seem to agree.
“It’s a good day to make food and come together with family and friends and all,” Darius Flewellen (freshman, English) said.
As bright as the holiday might seem at first, its dark history causes many not to celebrate it. Legend says that Thanksgiving started as a fraternal celebration between the Pilgrims and Native Americans. However, history tells that the English colonizers caused one of the bloodiest genocides in history and killed millions of Natives.
Many Americans feel uneasy to celebrate a holiday with such
background. In an interview for the New York Times in 2017, sociologist and author James Loewen points out this historical flaw that many history textbooks “forget” to mention.
“[America was] a lovely place [for the pilgrims] to settle,” Loewen said. “Why was it available? Because every single native person who had been living there was a corpse.”
Some people also point out that Thanksgiving reinforces the idea of American supremacy.
According to Vox, only five countries celebrate some sort of Thanksgiving as we know, and all of them have ties to American invasion and/or occupation. That’s the case of the Philippines—a country that only started celebrating Thanksgiving after American occupation. The same applies to Liberia, the Norfolk Island and Grenada.
Canada is the only exception because it shares its colonization history with the U.S.
Other sources, such as Yahoo Finances, have argued that other countries like Korea, Japan and Germany have their own version of Thanksgiving and only call it a different name. This is not necessarily accurate, however.
Although the practices of the German Oktoberfest, the Korean Chuseok and the Japanese Labor Thanksgiving are similar and happen within the same timeframe as the American holiday, the history behind them and the things being celebrated are different; therefore, making them different holidays.
Some people believe that the dark history behind Thanksgiving is one reason why we shouldn’t forget it and to respect those in mourning of this holiday.
The United American Indians of New England (UAINE) suggested replacing the holiday with a National Day of Mourning, similarly to what happened with Columbus Day.
Others, such as Lakota-born Sean Sherman, winner of James Beard Award for best American cookbook, suggested not replacing the holiday but using it as a way to pay homage to fellow natives.
“No matter where you are in North America, you are on indigenous land,” Sherman said to Time Magazine.
“And so, on this holiday, and any day really, I urge people to explore a deeper connection to what are called ‘American’
foods by understanding true Native-American histories.
“There is no need to make Thanksgiving about a false past. It is so much better when it celebrates the beauty of the present.”
In a sentiment shared by Thomas Valcuckas (freshman, biology), “I understand that the origin is messed up, but [today’s] idea of it is pure.”
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Feel the Holiday spirit with these festive drinks
ALEXIS LOYA Copy Editor zphw@iup.edu @ThePennIUP
The Penn does not condone underage drinking.
With Thanksgiving break around the corner, it doesn’t hurt to add some zest to your time off whether you celebrate the holiday or not.
While planning the perfect feast, it’s only right to have the perfect fall drinks to go along with it.
This article contains a list of Thanksgiving cocktails that you can create yourself in the comfort of your own home. Of course, this only applies to those who are at least 21 years old.
Apple Cider Mimosas
Ingredients: 3 ounces apple cider, 3 ounces champagne, brown sugar and apple slices for garnish
Instructions: You want to begin by garnishing the champagne flute. First, take a thin apple slice with a small slit in the middle so that you can place it on the rim of the glass. Then, slide the apple slice around EMILY LOOSE Staff Writer e.d.loose@iup.edu @ThePennIUP
When times may not seem so comforting, comfort foods can be a true source of help, and who doesn’t love carbs?
As Thanksgiving break approaches, students at IUP find themselves prepared to relax for a week and enjoy the holidays with their families.
Most importantly for some, however, is the food that comes with Thanksgiving.
Most families may celebrate with turkey or ham, but the side dishes are varied. Students gathered their thoughts on the best side dishes.
Noah Saylor (graduate, communications media) said that sweet potato casserole is his favorite due to its dual purpose as a side dish and a dessert.
“Slap some marshmallows on top, then put it in the oven,” he said. “You’re golden.”
Potatoes were also an important dish for Amber Uranker (sophomore, journalism).
the rim to dampen the glass.
Remove the apple slice, and then dip the rim of the glass into a shallow bowl of brown sugar. Place the apple slice back on the edge of the glass, and then pour the apple cider followed by the champagne.
Salted Caramel Apple Martini
Ingredients: 2 ounces caramel infused vodka, 3 ounces apple cider, salted caramel dessert topping, kosher salt
Instructions: Fill a martini glass with cold water and ice cubes to chill the glass. Then, spoon enough caramel topping onto one plate to rim your martini glass and add enough kosher salt to another. (JillWellington/Pixabay)
Next, dump the ice water from the martini glass and coat the rim of the martini glass by dipping it into the caramel sauce and lightly into the kosher salt. You want to then drizzle the inside of the glass with the caramel sauce.
Finally, fill a cocktail shaker with ice and mix together the cider and vodka. Shake well and pour the cocktail into the glass.
Apple Cider Moscow Mule
Ingredients: 4 ounces hard apple cider, 4 ounces ginger beer, 1.5 ounces. absolute citron vodka, juice of half a lime and a dash of ground cinnamon
Instructions: In a cocktail shaker, add ice cubes, hard apple cider, ginger beer, citron vodka, lime juice and cinnamon. Shake well, and then poor mixture over a cup filled with crushed ice. You can garnish with apple slices, lime wedge and a cinnamon stick to add some flare.
Apple Cider Whiskey Smash
Ingredients: 1 ounces whiskey, ½ ounces lemon juice and 4 ounces apple cider
Instructions: Add ice to a cocktail shaker. Then add whiskey, lemon juice and apple cider. Shake well until it’s thoroughly chilled, pour over ice and enjoy.
Cinnamon Maple Whiskey Sour
Ingredients: 1 ½ ounces bourbon, 1 ounces fresh lemon juice, 2 to 4 teaspoons maple syrup and a pinch of ground cinnamon
Instructions: Fill a cocktail shaker about two-thirds full of ice. Pour in the bourbon, lemon juice, maple syrup and a pinch of ground cinnamon.
Shake well, and then pour fresh ice into your cocktail or fall themed (annacapictures/Pixabay) glass followed by the Cinnamon Maple Whiskey Sour blend you just created.
Spiced Cider Margarita
Ingredients: 5 ounces spiced apple cider, 1 ½ ounces mescal or tequila, ½ ounces. Grand Marnier or Cointreau, ½ teaspoons fresh lemon juice, lemon wedge and 2 table spoon raw sugar
Instructions: Begin by garnishing the glass. In a small bowl, combine the raw sugar and cinnamon. Moisten the rim of the cocktail glass with a lemon wedge, and then immediately dip the glass in cinnamon sugar.
Then, pour all the ingredients into a cocktail shaker with ice. After that, pour over ice in the rimmed cocktail glass. You can garnish with an apple slice, cinnamon stick and a dash of ground cinnamon if you’d like.
These cocktails are super easy to make, and yet they’re just as good as you would get at a bar.
Sit back, relax and enjoy your Thanksgiving break with these delicious cocktail recipes. Please
Clash of the carbs: Students favorite side dish
drink responsibly. Corn is often used as ornamental decorations around Thanksgiving.
“Any kind of potatoes,” she anthropology), as well. Though, a popular choice throughout said. “Mashed or sweet, they if given the option, she would campus. have always been a personal prefer dessert. Alicia Smail (junior, biology) favorite.” “Stuffing [is my favorite] be- said that there were many parts
Tristan West (senior, commu- cause my grandma has the most to stuffing that gave it the top nications media) said he also amazing stuffing recipe,” she spot. enjoyed potato dishes, but said. “But pumpkin pie would “It is so good with the butter preferred them to be classic beat it.” and the crispiness it has,” she mashed. Nicki Silko (graduate, com- said. “But not the stuffing from
“I like mashed potatoes,” he munications media) agreed with the turkey. It has to be ones said. “My mom has a recipe she Doyle, even if she had to adjust made outside.” makes. She also makes home- the recipe. “You can’t go wrong with stuffmade rolls, and I like to combine “Stuffing is tryptophan heav- ing,” Madison Weakland (freshthem.” en, but it has to be gluten-free,” man, nursing) said. “There are
Homemade recipes were a she said. so many ways to make it. If we favorite for Casey Doyle (junior, Stuffing, as it turned out, was didn’t have it, that turkey would be nothing.”
Brooke Ippolito (senior, English) however said she hated stuffing.
“It might be a hot take, but I hate it with a passion,” she said.
Her personal favorite side dish was homemade noodles.
“It was something I made with my mimi as a kid,” she said. “It has been a tradition we always share. They are sentimental and they taste so good.”
Kamrynn Wantz (senior, communications media) also chose a side that was made special by her grandmother.
“My grandma had this baked corn recipe, and it is amazing,” she said.
The general consensus among the students came down to the importance of carbohydrates at Thanksgiving. Without them, no matter the form, students said that the holidays would not be the same.
Their choices in side dishes also showed the importance of family and togetherness, as many cited homemade recipes being their top choice as it gave them a sense of nostalgia.
STATIC spells eventful end of the month
The STATIC staff has created fun events to showcase to the IUP community this month.
On Tuesday, STATIC is hosting its third and final monthly Trivia Night of the fall semester. The event will take place from 8 to 9:30 p.m. and does require preregistration.
The link to register can be found on the Trivia Night’s event page on STATIC’s website. Preregistration is required for this event because only 75 people will be allowed to participate, so if you’re planning on attending, register as soon as possible to ensure your team’s trivia night spot.
You must fill out the registration form on STATIC’s page, which includes your team captain’s name, IUP email, banner ID, cell phone number and trivia team name. You must also provide the names of all your teammates and click a checkbox that acts as your certification of eligibility. The checkbox of eligibility is meant to prove that you and all of your team members are of 18 years of age or older and each member has their own active IUP I-Card.
The event will take place by TriviaHub Live, and cash prizes will be available to the winners.
Wikipedia lovers, brainiacs and the casual “Jeopardy!” watchers all are welcome to Trivia Night, which promises an exciting time where anyone can flex their knowledge, have a blast and take a shot at winning some cash.
On Nov. 18, STATIC will be hosting the IUP Spelling Bee. This virtual event is planned to run from 8 to 10 p.m. and joins STATIC’s lineup of IUP virtual
(STATIC/Twitter)
gameshow events.
The spelling bee will take place on Zoom, and no preregistration is required. The Zoom link to participate will be available on the STATIC event page. STATIC encourages the IUP community to attempt to spell some of the most difficult words during different themed rounds in the event.
On Nov. 19, there will be a Netflix and Chill Watch Party. During this event, watchers will be virtually viewing “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” and enjoying the story of the ever wholesome and charming Fred Rogers.
The virtual stream of the documentary will begin at 8 p.m. and does not yet have a defined end time. It will be streamed through the Swank Online Portal.
To use the Swank Online Portal, viewers must either be connected to the IUP on-campus network and follow the link that STATIC will provide, or if you don’t have access to the on-campus internet network, you must utilize the link to be redirected to the Keystone Library Network page. Once redirected, you will be asked to input your IUP Web Sign-on login credentials, and the film will automatically launch. “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” consists of a combination of interviews with Rogers colleagues and family members, and it explores Rogers ideals, life’s work of providing quality entertainment and a safe space for children of all backgrounds.
The film also explores some of Rogers insecurities surrounding his work, and it delves into some selfdoubt he experienced throughout his life to become an outstanding and beloved television career.
Check out STATIC’s Twitter and website to keep up with these events. (Wokandapix/Pixabay)
Taking care of yourself mentally is very important when practicing self care. The Penn discusses self care with students
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues, we know that mental health issues have also increased over the world since the start of this madness.
Dr. Melanie Duncan, assistant professor in the sociology department, came up with the idea to host this presentation for students while Emily Jackson from the counseling center ran the event.
The event consisted of a PowerPoint presentation on the impact of COVID-19 on mental health.
To begin, the PowerPoint addressed three main points. This included the impact on mental health, taking care of ourselves and supporting others.
COVID-19 has threatened mental health in a variety of ways. Some of which that were mentioned in this presentation included: the massive interpersonal loss, fear of contagion, uncertainty or lack of control, social distancing, conflicting messages from government, interruption to daily life, burnt-out and Zoom classes.
Jackson said that 53 percent of people from a study in July found that their mental health has been impacted negatively since the shutdown.
The next point talked about
how we can take care of ourselves by using the “Self-Care SPIES,” which is an acronym for Social, Physical, Intellectual, Emotional and Spiritual ways to help.
Social includes staying virtually connected, reaching out to important people, being open, and asking someone to check in on you and pets.
Physical includes maintaining a healthy lifestyle such as exercising, eating well, not using drugs and doing what you can to protect yourself.
Intellectual includes avoiding the “what ifs,” and following a daily routine, reminding yourself of things that are certain, and using a self-care accountability system
Emotional includes limiting media exposure. Jackson recommends unplugging, living in the moment, practicing meditation, picking up a hobby, giving yourself permission to feel what you feel and seeking professional help if needed. There is an app that will help you practice meditation and is free for 6 months called “10 Percent Happier Meditation.”
Spiritual includes practicing religious coping strategies, seeking spiritual support, considering what gives your life meaning and purpose, writing in a daily gratitude journal, self-reflecting and connecting with nature.
In the third part of the presentation, they talk about supporting others. They list possible warning signs that someone is in need of help such as poor performance, far removed emotional response, disruptive behavior, really fast speech, hygiene change, weight change, losing touch with reality, depression and anger. Signs of injury may include withdrawing, expressing feelings of helplessness and talks about suicide and disturbing content.
The last part of the presentation included ways to help by using “Watch, Ask, Listen, Support and Refer” techniques. If you notice someone is in need of help, ask them about it. Listen to what they have to say and offer them your support. You can then refer them to professional help resources.
IUP Resources include the Center for Heath and Well Being, Academic Success Center and the Counseling Center. Some resources in Indiana include The Alice Paul House, Campus Police and The Open Door.
The COVID-19 pandemic hasn’t been an easy thing to live through. Some people’s jobs are gone, lives are lost, social interaction is almost cut entirely, and much more.
We must learn to take care of ourselves first before we can take care of the people around us.
Please remember to practice these tips and to call for help if you or someone needs it. Nothing is more important than your health and wellbeing.
