A Successful Term II And A Much Needed Term III

By: Rachel Masselle '14

The end of Term II not only brings the end of finals, but also the end of Freshman Writing, Core, Community Service, and my first year of Encore. It brings a feeling of accomplishment and relief from the stresses that every freshman faces at Elmira College. But with these joyous feelings there comes a hint of sadness. The completion of all my freshman requirements means the end is near for my freshman year at Elmira, which means only three more years to make the most of my undergraduate college experience.

The second Term was very successful. I raised my GPA from a 3.2 to a 3.4, worked 3 jobs, made RA Alternate, lost some weight, and most importantly had the best time of my life! Yes it’s true, freshman year is a lot of work and you really need to step up to the plate in order to succeed. But mixed in with some of the craziness, are memories that you will never forget and a feeling of accomplishment that you can never replace. I worked hard Term II and even though I didn’t get everything that I wanted I feel confident in the knowledge that I did my best and it can only go up from here.

Despite how fun Term II was I am very happy for the upcoming Term III. This Term there is only six credits worth of classes and most of the day you are free to enjoy the beautiful weather and atmosphere that Elmira has to offer. Sure I’m working twenty hours during the week, but it will enable me to be able to save up some cash for summer and spend a little here and there at Elmira. Plus there’s so much to look forward to: the May Days Carnival, building a boat made of cardboard boxes and racing it in the puddle, and spending time with all my friends. Yes, I will still be enrolled in classes and working, but Term III allows me to take time out of my busy schedule to build relationships with my friends, make some money, and appreciate the life I am blessed to have!

The Wonderful Life of a College Student

By: Sarah Schwadron '14

Oh finals week. How I adore you. Oh wait. I actually don’t. Bummer for you.

Finals Week at the end of the winter term is probably worse than Finals week in the fall term. Then, the weather is horrible and all you want to do is curl up with a nice hot beverage and comfortable blankets and pillows and stay inside with a group of wonderful friends. Of course, this usually leads to more talking that actual work or studying, but hey. Studying through osmosis is a college student’s best friend.

Now, with the nice weather on campus (ok… so maybe not today with the rain we’ve been having) no one wants to stay inside. Walking over to work at the GTL on Monday was horrible. I got to see so many people outside on their laptops, chatting and laughing with their friends while had to go sit in the dungeon for the next two and a half hours.

My friends were among the groups of people spread out about campus, and they said they all got no work done. I didn’t either, but I earned money. So maybe it evens out?

Since we all have not been getting any work done, we have implemented a rewards system to basically bribe ourselves into studying. Whenever we are all done with studying for a night (usually coincides with someone yelling out curse words across the room, somebody else curled up in the fetal position, another person asleep UNDERNEATH a bed, and one other person making lewd gestures with a couple of stuffed animals) we’ll go out for meal. And it’s not just any meal. A big Denny’s dinner at 1 in the morning.

Since when do college students do anything at normal hours, anyway?

It’s always fun being there when the rest of the normal population is asleep. They don’t look at you weird when you start singing show tunes in the restaurant. Or throw things at each other. Or take out your laptop to finish the paper that was due at midnight (for my mom, who is probably reading this, no, that was not me =]).

Any which way you slice it, it was a great time. And a tradition for us now.

The only fun thing was not being able to open up my room when I got back to campus. My key would literally not fit into the lock. Thankfully, my RA was up and unlocked it for me (I have no roommate, by the way).

I guess there is a bright side to finals week after all…

Finals Week!

By: Paige Kleinfelder '14

It is typical for college students to be stressed during finals week, but, for me, the week before finals is much more demanding. I spent last week editing my freshman writing portfolio, putting together my philosophy of education paper, and completing two drawings. That meant spending a lot more time in the library… I finally figured out how helpful study rooms are!

So, last Wednesday, after going to Simeon’s with some friends for dinner, we all went over study room one in the library with laptops and stacks of books. After working for a few hours, I found myself writing lists of things on the side of my notes to put in my blog… I recently came across this list and thought I should share what I found:

As I write this it is 12:23am and I have spent the last two and a half hours working and laughing. My favorite three things about doing work with friends:

1. We can test insane ideas like, “What if you had to walk with your knees stuck together?” as mini-study breaks. (And in case anyone is wondering, if you try to run with your knees together it looks exactly the same as walking, but you will have a more determined look on your face.)
2. Rather than holding conversations with my laptop and assignments after having too much caffeine, I have real people to talk to.
3. I actually get more work done. (Don’t ask me how, I have no idea)

Next time I have papers to write and tests to cram for, I will be found in the library having way more fun than anyone should ever have doing homework.

Looking Back

By: Paige Kleinfelder '14

This past Saturday, I somehow got out of bed at 6:00am. Not because I am crazy and like to get up early, but because it was Honor Scholar Day. Having just received my congratulatory Gold Key letter in the mail a few weeks prior, I was on my way through the steps of training which included decorating for and working during Honor Scholar Day. So, I managed to get up, get dressed in my purple polo and khaki pants and walk to the campus center to meet up with other sleepy-eyed Gold Keys. Luckily, there were donuts and coffee.

Everyone was slightly more awake after breakfast and assignments were given out. I, along with half a dozen other people, was given the task of tying balloons together for the balloon arch. We were shown how two balloons had to be tied together. Then, the pair of balloons were to be twisted with another set. Sounds easy right? But try it while still not fully awake. There were a few balloons that tried to make a getaway, but, in the end, the arch was completed, the balloon centerpieces were perfectly tiered, and the posters were up.

Then came the difficult part: Mingling.

Okay, it isn’t that difficult, but when you have to approach high school seniors who are so nervous they can barely give one word responses the mingling can be intimidating. I just kept thinking back to last year when I was standing there surrounded by 150 other students as my mom teased me about trying to get me to take a picture with the Soaring Eagle. I was terrified of college. So, I understood the students who stood, looking around without saying anything. I let them take it all in and then asked them simple questions, like what award they received, what they planned to major in, or where they were from.

By the time lunch rolled around, everyone was more comfortable. I stood by my assigned table and waited to greet the families who would be sitting with me. Two girls sat at my table and for a while it felt like I was the only person talking. But I just kept going, asking questions and talking about my experiences at Elmira College. Then, all of a sudden, everyone started talking to each other. The students were talking, the parents were talking, and I was able to answer any questions they asked. It felt good knowing that I had an influence on one of their first experiences at EC.

By the end of the day, after decorating, cleaning up, going to lunch, answering questions, listening to speeches, and shadowing a tour of campus, I wasn’t sure I could manage to walk back to my dorm before falling asleep. As I sat in my room later that night, I thought about the day and how it was a refreshing view of EC. I was able to remember all the reasons that I talked about Elmira College constantly to my friends and family last year. In the midst of the stress and anticipation for Spring Break, it was nice to see so many students eager to come here.

Survival List for Finals Week or Week Before Finals Week

By: Sarah Schwadron '14

1. Caffeine
Cause some people don’t like straight coffee
2. Candy
Sugar makes everything better
3. A Brain
Enough said
4. Mac and Cheese or Ramen
Quick, cheap and filling food
5. A fluffy animal to cuddle with (And ducks do not count towards this)
For when the break downs start to happen (And the duck comment is for my friends who wanted to get a duck)
6. Sweeney’s open to a later time
For snack runs to help keep you up
7. Unlimited music
To help a student concentrate
8. Ear plugs (to drown out your friends)
Cause everyone has that one friend that just needs to be quiet more often.
9. Facebook to be down for the next two weeks
Every college student will tell you that Facebook is close to the devil when it comes to distractions. Unless you’re me. Then it becomes Stumbleupon.com
10. The guarantee of great grades
I’d better not be doing all of this work for nothing!

And this is my fluffy animal. Her name is Coco and I will be stealing her from the mall as soon as I can get the chance =]

Kiss a Cow!

By: Emily Oshinskie '14

At the 46 hour mark of the 60 hours of community service required for every freshman at Elmira College, you’d think that nothing else could surprise you. Well, I was wrong. Since September, I have been volunteering at George M. Diven Elementary in Elmira, NY. It has been an enriching experience, assisting 4th grade students with their reading and writing skills in a city school environment. Even as a kindergartener, I knew that I wanted to be a teacher and told my parents that when my kindergarten teacher retired, I would gladly take her job. This experience working with fourth graders at Diven has allowed me to realize that I want to work with students anywhere between 3rd and 6th grade. While I agree that it is more challenging to do community service off-campus because of transportation, I would not regret my choice to volunteer at Diven for a second. I am not only interacting and assisting students but also I am learning teaching methods and instructional designs. But enough of this teacher jargon…back to my point about surprises…..

As I drove to Diven with my friend who also volunteers at the school, and we started contemplating the possibilities of the day. When I arrived in the 4th grade classroom, I noticed written on board was a schedule of the day and next to the 1:45pm-2:30pm spot was: KISS THE COW. I didn’t know if this was some sort of game or something and initially I did not know what to make of my supervisor’s explanation. According to her, all the students in the school read way over 3,000 minutes as a whole school and because the principal had challenged them and achieved their goal, the principal had to kiss a real cow….or in this case a calf. As we stepped outside onto the blacktop, I saw swarms of young kids –most of them in green, in honor of St. Patrick’s Day. They all wildly and ecstatically chanted as their principal kissed a cow. It never ceases to amaze me what amuses kids. But I guess I’m the same way, which is why I’m going into the right career. Oh Education.