One Last Freshman Experience

By: Rachel Masselle '14

As my freshman year draws to an end I think about all the wonderful first experiences I had here at Elmira College. My first dorm experience; my first college classes; my first all nighter; my first job (or in my case – jobs); and my first mental meltdown. There is, however, one experience I was not anticipating this year and that was going to the Elmira Drive-In.



For those of you who are as ignorant as I was about Drive-Ins, they are places where you can watch movies from your car! Apparently they were big in the 50’s, but lost popularity and are now scarce, or in my area non-existent. At any rate, my friend, Danielle, and I had been talking about things we could do to celebrate the end of our freshman year and we decided to see Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (cause once wasn’t enough) at the Drive-In.

We pulled up and saw this old concrete entrance, painted purple (of course!), and it just reminded me how historic Elmira, New York really is. Between Mark Twain, the Drive-In, the actual town of Elmira, and let’s not forget Elmira College herself there is so much history existing here. For someone like me, who has always had an interest in history, it literally made me have an epiphany. In that moment I knew I was in the right place. In the car, sitting next to one of my best friends, and putting another experience under my belt I knew I was where I belonged. Out of all my choices in life Elmira College has been by far my best one and I am so blessed to be a student here.

As for the Drive-In I can’t wait to go again next year. It was so nice to be able to lay back in the passenger seat, put my feet up on the dashboard, and get a good dose of the quirky Captain Jack Sparrow with one of my best friends. It was an absolute great way to end the year and a wonderful, yet surprising experience. Plus, it’s cheaper than going to an actual theatre (bonus!).

And so my freshman year ends, leaving me both happy and sad. I’m happy that I am done with freshman writing, core, community service, and my first year of encore. Now, I can look forward to really diving into my majors. I’m also happy to be going home to see my family. After six weeks away from them I always miss them terribly and feel like I have to go see them. And yet I am sad to say goodbye to the friends I have made here, especially the Seniors, who will not be coming back next year.


This year has been a whirlwind. I’ve had ups and downs, joys and sorrows. But one thing is for certain I will never forget my first year at EC.

The Fountain

By: Paige Kleinfelder '14


For the past few days the temperature has crept higher and higher, causing EC students to try to find ways to keep cool. The Campus Center and Library are always good places to consider because these two buildings have air conditioning. But, with meal card amounts dwindling, staying in the Campus Center can lead to buying extra snacks and having no money for the last few days. The library poses problems, as well. First there is the problem that if you don’t have anything academic to do, you feel out of place. Then, if you are anything like me, warmer weather has brought out your louder side, which is not well accepted in places that are meant to be quiet and reserved for studying.

However, my friends and I have found a refuge from the early summer heat while still enjoying being outside. The Elmira College Fountain!


There have been dozens of class gifts, going back to the beginnings of the college, but the fountain, the class gift of 1951 and 2001, is by far my favorite. Whether I just want to sit and read a book with my feet cooling off in the water or need a place to meet up with friends, the fountain is the perfect place.


Everyone enjoy the last few days of Term III and I will see you in the fall!

Term III

By: Paige Kleinfelder '14


Every Elmira College student makes Term III their own. Some take two classes while others only take one and some do internships while others go on trips around the world. I fulfilled my six credits by taking Art Furniture Design where I designed my own table. Now, after cutting out and sanding legs, aprons, and a top for my table, I get to put it all together and oil it. I have developed a strange appreciation for handcrafted furniture, not only because of the skill it requires, but the persistence needed to sand every piece for hours.

Even though I am in class for over 3 hours every day, I have plenty of time to hang out with friends and do things I like. Since the weather has gotten nice, I find myself spending more and more time outside. The lawns on campus are often cluttered with students laying out, and while that is fun with friends, sometimes I venture alone off campus to local parks. I always take with me my camera and a book to read, but one day I brought along Josh as well. He spent most of the afternoon trying to find a tree that he could climb.


In addition to exploring Elmira, I am spending time working on my long board. Over Spring Break I finished constructing my long board, but I brought it back with me to paint.


When I go home, I will put on the trucks and wheels which are awesome lime green, and ride off.

While I was on campus, I also spend hours playing Frisbee and KamJam, watching all of Season One of Glee outside, and having Audrey Hepburn movie afternoons. But I also make sure to go to the campus events, including the Radical Raft Race, where my roommate and her teammates came out to represent the Elmira College Women’s Soccer Team.


Just when everyone thought they would make it across The Puddle, their cardboard and duct tape raft tipped completely over.

Now there is only one week left to finish my table, pack up all the stuff in my dorm room, and spend time with friends… so that’s all for now!

Musings of an Overworked College Student

By: Sarah Schwadron '14

Who ever said that term III was an easy term should be shot.

That’s just my personal opinion, but I just cannot see why everyone calls it easy. It’s a fun term for sure, but I would never call it easy. I have class from 850 in the morning to noon on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. On many days, I usually go straight to work right after class. Then I hole myself up in my room until my reading or homework is done. Then its dinner, and hanging out with some friends. And then bed to start the whole sequence over again tomorrow.

Don’t get me wrong, I love my schedule. I’m just saying that it’s not easy. Especially on days like today when I am running on five hours of sleep, having to deal with many emergencies down at the IT Desk, while also being in a little bit of pain due to my cartilage being infected.

I also don’t think that the constantly dreary weather helps anything. I’m thinking that the gorgeous spring fever inducing weather of last week was just a trick.

One thing that helps me keep a smile on my face is the idea of the summer coming up. As it stands, this summer is shaping up to be a hard one, but one that could be very fulfilling.

The week after I get home for summer, my mom is going in for some surgery. So I will be helping her recover from that. No big deal. Then I also have many applications out for being a camp counselor this summer. The one I really want to work at is an 8 week sleep away program for underprivileged children. Besides earning a great deal of money, I get to be around kids, and sometimes even act like one myself. I seriously cannot wait for that. I do hope I get that job.

But for now, I need to concentrate on the tasks at hand—dealing with resetting the internet in McGraw Hall, studying up on memory…. And a good nights sleep.

Not A Typical Weekend

By: Paige Kleinfelder '14

Just one week ago, Elmira College students hurried to make sure their mothers would have a long distance Happy Mother’s Day. For me, it was easier, my mom just wanted to come up for the weekend and go to Ithaca. Friday afternoon I packed a bag and we headed to Ithaca. There were open studios and art events taking place throughout The Ithaca Commons, along with some interesting street performers, including a couple girls singing Ke$ha songs to an acoustic guitar. The State of the Art Gallery had the opening for its members show, including works by our very own Elmira artist, Jan Kather.

Towards the end of the night my mom and I stumbled upon an empty store front with a great deal of activity going on in the dimly lit space.


It was Arcades Project, the event that kicked off Spring Writes. More than a dozen tables filled the space, piled with books of poetry and short stories, miniature books, art prints and posters. I made sure to pick up a few prints by the local artist, Kaleb Hunkele. There was also video art playing on the walls and literary inspired installation art.


Saturday morning began early with a trip to the Ithaca Farmer’s Market.


My mom and I ate fresh breakfast pastries as we walked along the dock behind the Farmer’s Market. There were long rows of booths filled with everything locally made, including pastries, clothes, vegetables, and pottery. There was also live entertainment for the morning crowd, as one man filled the space with songs.


After we left with bags filled with fresh vegetables, loaves of bread and chocolate chip cookies, we headed back into Ithaca. There we came upon another unexpected sight. A portion of the road going into The Commons was blocked off by large red barriers. Upon closer look, it was a track lined with hay bales set up for a race. The Red Bull Chariot Races were taking place that afternoon. Of course I had to stick around to see that! Each team had two members pulling their homemade chariots, hauling the third member, around the track. There were a few chariots that collapsed and a lot of chariot riders that toppled out, but that certainly added to the event.


It was an event that could have benefitted from a few Purple and Gold Elmira College togas pulling a chariot. Maybe next year… we just have to keep the costumes from this year’s May Days theme.

In Memoriam

By: Rachel Masselle '14

When I got into work Monday morning I was shaken by the news that a beloved Professor of mine, Dr. Michael Kiskis had suffered a heart attack over the weekend and had died. To the Elmira College Community and myself it was a complete and utter blow. Dr. Kiskis had been in fine health the last time I saw him at Thursday’s class and was making big plans for both our class and a book he was working on about Mark Twain and domesticity. Finding out about his death seemed unreal and to be honest I felt like someone was playing a sick joke; and a part of me wished that’s all it was: a sick joke. But it wasn’t and my peers and I had to face the reality of the situation.

We attended class that day to make a plan about how we were going to finish out the rest of the course. The Professors all felt that they did not have the knowledge that Dr. Kiskis had about 19th Century American Literature to take over the class. Therefore, we were each assigned to different English Professors who would collect our papers and grade them as best as they could. They decided we would not formally meet as a class and instead would take on this course as sort of an independent study.

We students, however, felt that it was a shame to not meet formally. Especially because Dr. Kiskis had believed that an important aspect of the class was a student driven discussion. It was then we made the decision to meet informally. We decided to take on the class discussion ourselves and explore the books that our Professor would have wanted us to read. My peers and I will do our best to carry on the “vision” that he had for the Kindle Class. I hope we will make him proud.

Though I only met Dr. Kiskis in Term III, while taking his “Kindle Class” I instantly grew attached to him. He was warm, funny, intelligent, unique, and he genuinely cared about his students. He evoked a love for literature in all his students and stressed how important it was that people not only read novels that were considered timeless and classic, but also novels that we just liked to read. He was a truly unique Professor who believed that teaching people to read for pleasure was one of his most important tasks. I only had him as a Professor for three weeks, but he touched my life in so many ways in that short amount of time. He was truly one of a kind and I don’t think any of my peers will mind me saying for them that we will certainly never forget the impact he had made on our lives.

You know you’re an Education Major when…..

By: Emily Oshinskie '14

6:53am seems a little early for the average college student, but during this Term 3 that has been the time that my alarm goes off. So you’re thinking…well, maybe she’s a morning person, she likes to get up early, go for a jog, read the paper, savor the Cappuccino instead of gulping down some caffeinated liquid that burns the average American’s throat….well, not exactly. (However, the more I wake up before the majority of campus, the more I am turning into a morning person….well, I like the perks of being one of the first three people to delight in the freshest pineapple in the dining hall). Since I am an Education Major, I have been spending 4 hours Monday through Friday at a local middle school to observe classes and see if teaching is right for me. Fieldwork is kind of like Darwin’s “survival of the fittest” approach to training for education majors at Elmira College. So far, so good. As far as I can tell, I’m on the right path….I’m still debating whether to teach middle or elementary school, but it’s a work in progress.

Every morning my two friends and I enjoy some oatmeal and contemplate the adventures of the day. When we return back to campus, we sprint to the dining hall since we are famished from the four hours each of us has spent interacting with Kindergarteners, 1st graders or 6th graders. I have been placed in a Tech Ed class with 6th graders and I will occasionally observe a 6th grade English class. This Monday, I am at the 2 week mark and I have already learned so much about teaching and the American School System. It is an exhausting experience, but honestly, one of the most worthwhile opportunities I’ve had over my freshman year. Yes, I want to go to bed at like 9:30pm every night-which also unusual for a college student- I am absolutely loving working with these 6th graders. Even though we have weekly seminars to discuss our observations in the classroom, my learning time is those 240 minutes that I spend assisting 6th graders navigate technology programs and listening to non-fiction book report presentations. When some intelligent individual stated that “experience is the best teacher”-they weren’t kidding!