Daily Archives: March 6, 2019

Arts and Entertainment, Uncategorized

NECC takes on NENPA

and  

Journalism students attend newspaper convention in Boston

Friday, Feb. 15 NENPA the New England Newspaper and Press Association (NENPA) hosted their annual convention in the Seaport district of Boston. NENPA is a professional trade organization for newspapers in the six New England states: Massachusetts, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine and Rhode Island.  NENPA produces a two day convention each year featuringworkshops, panels, seminars and training sessions.  Communication / journalism majors got to experience it firsthand, with  the help of Professor Amy Callahan.

two women standing next to each other. one is older(left). both are of asian
WCVB political and investigative reporter Janet Wu and NECC student Deidre Grant. Courtesy photo

Professor Amy Callahan, also head of the journalism / communication department attends NENPA every year. She has an in for letting students participate in this event to help them gain knowledge and skills towards their future career. Communications Major Bryce Grant said “ I wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to go since college students get in for free, and considering the price for entry I knew it was going to be very informative and prestigious.”

Although Grant was not looking for any connections this year she was able to sit in on a couple of panels to see the kind of networking and exchange of information that these conventions bring. Day one of NENPA focused on the print side of journalism with ongoing events every hour from 9:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.  One panel that students took part of was called “Social Selling” which discussed the advantages of using social media to gain back lost revenue and how to find new advertisers in the use of social media.

Through this experience Lexi Fontaine, communication / journalism student felt like she achieved her goals of networking through attending NENPA by talking during the panels, asking many questions, and handing out her business cards to booths around the convention.  “I felt that it would be a great opportunity to see what was out there” added Fontaine.

Another panel that students sat in on was the College Roundtable, where just college students got their questions answered in regards to their schools’ newspaper and how to better it or find a solution to a problem they are having within their newspaper. This was a great opportunity for our NECC students to sit in on because everyone who participated or sat in on the panel had similar ties and other college students problems that were relatable to ours, as well as our questions being answered by some of the best in the local industry.

three journalism students standing in front of nefac sign. The signs design is a white rectangle with a blue circle at the top, inside the blue circle it says nefac. in the white part thare is more information
NECC students, from left, Bryce Grant, Deidre Grant and Lexi Fontaine at the NENPA convention in Boston. Courtesy photo

Grant took it upon herself to ask a question she felt our newspaper was struggling with. “I wanted to ask a question regarding our school newspaper because I felt it was a good opportunity. The speakers gave some good advice that I brought back,” said Grant

This year students also were able to attend the New England First Amendment Award Luncheon. Stephen Engelberg was honored for his work with ProPublica.  The New England First Amendment Coalition’s mission is to defend, promote and expand public access to the government and the work it does. This years emcee for the luncheon was Janet Wu, a member of the the NEFAC’s board of Directors and WCVB’s NewsCenter 5 Massachusetts political reporter.  Wu has held many awards and distinctions, one of her most prestigious would be her 2013 Emmy. This award recognized Wu’s work on the station’s political coverage during the 2014 campaign season. 

I had the opportunity to meet Wu in person and let her know what an inspiration she has been to journalism. Before Wu’s years as a news anchor she had originally planned to go into printjournalism but during the 1970’s print journalism wasn’t doing so well and broadcast journalism had opportunity to make more money

“For young women who are interested in this industry they need to be aggressive with what they are going after and to not give up,” said Wu.  Although Wu is not optimistic towards to the future of journalism she believes there is a way to help journalism stay alive with visual and audio classes. The NENPA convention  is held yearly and and students like Fontaine and Grant are eager to come again.

“I would definitely go to this event again for as many years as I could get so much experience. You never know who you will meet at these types of events either!” Fontaine explained.  Grant enjoyed the event and she said she feels that it would be more enjoyable the second time around when she gets hands on experience and furthers her education.

According to its website:

“NENPA recognizes the extraordinary achievements of newspapers and newspaper personnel in the six-state New England region by presenting a wide variety of prestigious awards each year. NENPA also supports students by awarding scholarships to college students and high school seniors interested in pursuing a career in the newspaper field.”

Sports

A diamond in the rough

and  

Robbie Quinlan seized opportunities for growth NECC basketball offered

Robbie Quinlan is a 6’4” second year player for the Northern Essex Knights basketball team. He’s an extremely versatile player that splits time between the guard and forward spots, despite being the team’s tallest player according to their posted roster. Upon his graduation from NECC, he intends to attend and play for Plymouth State. That will be his 3rd year playing college basketball, which 3 more years than he played for varsity basketball in high school. Quinlan attended North Andover High and graduated in 2016 with no years of basketball played.

Student standing in front of white brick wall wearing a blue necc basketball uniform
Robbie Quinlan Courtesy photo

The reason wasn’t talent or academics, but rather behaivoral issues and immaturity. He was homeschooled until seventh grade and sometimes did things to fit in that would get him in trouble. This resulted in a suspension at one point and being blackballed from high school sports, despite his obvious talent. Instead of continuing down this dark path, Quinlan decided to rectify his past mistakes.

He more than redeemed himself during his two years at NECC. His first year, he was one of the first guys to come off the bench for a very goood basketball team,despite having played next to none high-level organized basketball the previous three years.  He had also changed as a person, making much more responsible and healthy decisions for himself. His second year playing got off to a good start, but a stress fracture in his foot ended his season prematurely.

This was symbolic of the Knights disapointing 10-18 season, that they will look to bounce back from. Unfortunately for them it will be without Quinlan,  as he will be taking his talents to Plymouth State. His growth as a basketball player while at NECC is only matched by his growth as a person while here.  This was evident when he was asked about his experience as a NECC athlete, to which he repled, “Skills such as discipline and teamwork have taught me many lessons throughout my two seasons with this program. Coach Tardiff did so much to develop my ability as basketball player, but did even more to help develop me as a man off the court.”

This well though out and articulate response shows the heightened awareness and character development that Quinlan accrued while at NECC.  No more trying to be the class clown. Instead he is focused on basketball and academics. One would expect that he will continue to develop as man, and as basketball player, at his next stop. If it that turns out to be so, the Plymouth State has found itself a diamond in the rough.

Sports

Baseball team aims for continued success

and  

Team looks forward to 2019 season

District F champions the NECC Knights look to continue their success with this up and coming season. After falling short in the World Series a year ago the Knights are looking for some revenge. The Knights have had very successful teams year after year due to the amount of hard work they put in during the fall season and the winter, training for the spring. They play most of their games right on campus so anybody can come by and watch the boys rip up the dirt. During spring break the Knights will be traveling down to Florida for a week to start off the season.

This is a great opportunity for a program to get a jump start on competition around them due to the cold and snowy conditions in New England. The Knights schedule is posted online for anybody to look up and come see a game. Lots of fans travel to see them play, because of the professionalism that they approach the game with.  Grab some peanuts, water, and your most comfortable folding chair and relax while watching the Knights do their thing.

“We have a really strong returning class coming back from the World Series and a strong incoming class,” said Spencer Balian. “Having some key transfers coming in from other junior colleges and 4 year institutions. I am looking to outperform myself from last season and gain attention from college scouts.”

“I have a pretty good feeling about this year’s team,” said Sulai Guilbault. “We have a solid group of hitters; our defense eats up anything that comes their way. Not to mention our bullpen that consists of about 15 hard working pitchers including myself. I hope to bring home a championship this season before I graduate for NECC this year. We are a great group of athletes with passion and dedication towards the game.” “This year just like any other year the Knights will be a very difficult team to beat,” said Andy Reidy former Knights player

“They are loading from offense to defense, they have no real weakness. While play on the team last year and winning our district and going to the World Series it was an unbelievable experience. I just want all the guys to have the same thrill and success as I did last year. I can’t wait to stop by and catch a couple games this season.” The NECC Knights are ready for a long season and an uphill battle but will anybody stand in their way as they try to repeat for another World Series run?

Sports

Athletics hosts Open House

and  

Future students introduced to NECC

On Feb. 19, 2019, Northern Essex hosted  its very first athletic open house for the incoming freshmen who are looking to come and play for the NECC Knights.  The night was run by Dan Blair who is the director or athletics, and Jeff Mejia who is the assistant director of athletics.  Blair talked about the upcoming sports this coming fall, the sports that they already offer, and what the requirements are if they want to participate in those sports. There was a video project that featured four athletes so that they could give the upcoming freshmen a perspective on what it’s like to compete for the NECC knights.

The video featured Kyle Hawes who plays baseball for the knights.  The video also featured Hawes’s dad who talked about how much money they saved in 2 years just by coming here. About a total of 20 kids showed up that were interested in athletic.  Most of them were boys that were interested in baseball. After the open house was held, students were allowed to go tour the whole campus and come watch the men’s last home basketball game. Blair stated that the meeting was held during Massachusetts’s February vacation so that kids from Massachusetts schools could come without school interfering.

“The main goal for the night was to have possible upcoming athletes get an overview what the athletic life is like here,” says Blair.  “The main focus was to have them talk to the coaches and see if what the season would be like if they played that sport.  “We also wanted to bring the students to campus so they could start admissions early and what else the athletic department offers. The door is always open for students that are interested.”

The main goal for the night was to have possible upcoming athletes get an overview of what the athletic life is like here.
– Athletics Director Dan Blair

Blair also stated that there is a possible chance for another athletic open house but the dates are undetermined as of right now.  The sports that are offered here for men are cross country, track & field, basketball, baseball, and golf. For women sports, there’s cross country, track & field, softball, volleyball, and golf.  As a reminder, NECC is adding men’s soccer, women’s basketball, and esports in Fall 2019.

For any full time, students interested in sports, contact head of athletics Dan Blair at dbalir@necc.masss.edu, assistant of athletics Jeff Mejia at jmejia@necc.edu, or another assistant of athletics Maureen Saliba at msaliba@necc.mass.edu.