Monthly Archives: November 2020

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How NECC students are feeling about the 2020 election results

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Millions nationwide have anxiously awaited and anticipated the final deliberations of the 2020 presidential election between current President Donald Trump and Former Vice President Joe Biden. As the last ballots were finally counted, Biden and his Vice President elect Kamala Harris were officially announced the new leaders of America for the upcoming term of 2021. After speaking with many NECC students about the concluding results and aftermath of the election, most remain hopeful for the future of this country.

Victoria Martinez, 19, a health major from Haverhill, explained how despite her not being a very political person, she did have hope for Biden and Harris to win the election — surprised that they actually did. She continued to explain that as she still does not expect for much change to occur during this upcoming term, she is hopeful that things will change eventually — especially concerning the recent, on-going social and political justice issues in America.

When asked about her feelings regarding Harris becoming the first African American woman Vice President, she explained that “Having a woman of color in office could bring much peace for Women’s Rights and racial equality.” She stated, “I think she’s [Harris] a really good influence for women—especially of women mixed-race. If Biden doesn’t do anything for America, Kamala will.”

Jeremy Isabelle, 20, a journalism and communications major from Haverhill, stated “This was the first election I was eligible to vote in. I thought it was my civic duty to try to inspire the change in the country that I wished to see.”

When asked about his wishes for the future of America, he explained that he’d like to see “A revaluation of the immigration system in this country and a thoughtful reconstruction of the Supreme Court — so that it doesn’t always dominate one political party’s agenda.”

Isabelle also desires a socialized healthcare system, because “It has been proven to work in other countries that are not entirely socialist states.”

When asked about which social/political problem he would change or fix in America if he could choose any, Isabelle explained, “I would probably change the healthcare or education system. I feel like both healthcare and education prices are at exorbitant rates. Both strike home for me because I have celiac disease and also wish to raise a child in a system that doesn’t view education as a commodity.”

Isa Grullon, 34, a journalism and communications major from Lawrence, said that although she believed Biden would win, she was “flabbergasted at how many people voted for Trump.”

When asked whom she would personally choose, living or dead, to be the next president of the United States, she decided on Trevor Noah — a famous South African comedian and political commentator. She explained, “I enjoy his sense of humor and view on life. His perspective is very thoughtful, and his zodiac sign is a cancer.”

The Presidential Election of 2020 was, and still is, a highly controversial topic and source of much debate and discontent for most. However, as the new year quickly approaches, many NECC students seem pleased with the results of this year’s election and the elected future leaders of our country.

Martinez, Isabelle, and Grullon all remain encouraged and optimistic for a major change that will positively impact the future of American citizens — potentially beginning with Biden and Harris.

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America in the aftermath: Unpacking the outcome of the 2020 election

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The 2020 election finally came to an end on Nov. 7, four days after Election Day. It was called by the Associated Press, and all other large election desks. Needless to say, the buildup to the final result was extremely intense. In the end, it came down to a few states, mainly Nevada, Arizona, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Georgia, and North Carolina. Going off of the Associated Press, Former Vice President Biden managed to flip Pennsylvania, Arizona, Michigan, and Wisconsin, which led him to victory. He and Kamala Harris are now the President elect and the Vice President elect respectively.

After the election was called, people all over the country took to the streets in celebration. Supporters of incumbent President Donald Trump were not so happy, however.

Since the beginning of the election, Trump has been warning about voter fraud. So, after the election was called in favor of Biden, he continued to dispute the results, and still has yet to concede.

He and his campaign are arguing that the election was fraudulent and corrupt, despite there being no obvious evidence of this.

Even so, many Republican officials are agreeing with President Trump. Trump has filed lawsuits in many of the states where Biden won and there is a recount in the state of Georgia, which Biden pulled ahead in. A Biden lead in Georgia, albeit small, was and is quite shocking, as the state has remained red, but the flipping to blue is not necessarily a result of voter fraud. In fact, it can probably be attributed to people like Stacy Abrams, who rallied and encouraged everyone to vote, and dedicated their time to this important cause.

Both Stephen Russell and Nancy Montello felt voting was extremely important for everyone, and they are happy to see that it paid off.

Nancy Montello, who is 71 years old as of today, from West Newbury, was relieved when the election was finally called. She felt like a weight was lifted off of her shoulders.

“I felt happy and joyous,” She said. “And now I feel hopeful for the country. I think we have a chance to rebuild ourselves, and to become better.”

Montello admits that she did not follow state to state results. She was worried about what the outcome would be, so she decided to step back from the computer and the T.V. She was shocked by Trump’s claims of voter fraud, and of his refusal to concede.

“I absolutely agree with the outcome of the election.” Montello said. “I think the only reason Trump is undermining the results is so he can feel better about himself and the mess he has made.”

Montello is still a bit apprehensive of what Trump will do with the time he remains in office.

“I’m afraid he will push for negative changes during the next two months,” she admits. “He’s technically not out of office until January.”

Montello was surprised that Biden did not win by a bigger margin. It shocked her that so many people still supported Trump, despite his abrasiveness and narcissistic tendencies. She did understand that many people had only voted for Biden because he wasn’t Trump.

“They didn’t necessarily think he was the best candidate,” she said. “They just thought he was the better of the two. People weren’t extremely excited about him, but they did pull together.”

The average Trump voter is still a mystery to her. Montello does not understand what continues to draw people to Trump. She just knows that somehow people continue to believe in him, and he manages to get them to come out and vote.

Professor Stephen Russell, from NECC, had been worried about the potential outcome. He followed the election closely, and had been stressed out about what another four years of Trump could do to the country.

“I was skeptical of the polls that predicted a Biden victory,” he said. “ I was following the election pretty closely. I was surprised that Biden won. I was especially surprised about Georgia and Arizona.”

Russell believes the election was fair and just, was run in an extremely professional way, more so than any other election until now.

“Trump’s claims of fraud are totally incorrect.” Russell disputes. “His supporters are using this to get his base excited about the Senate run-off in Georgia. Trump himself is fantasizing and looking for a way out of debt and criminal persecution.”

Russell is unsure if the election proves that American citizens can come together. In fact, he sees the election as proving that the two sides are able to obtain lots of support by pulling away from each other and going in opposite directions. To Russell, the fact that Trump is able to pull so many is an ode to the fact that many people are distrustful of Democrats and liberals in general. These supporters really believe that under Biden, things will be worse for them. They believe Biden will not pay attention to what they find important.

Montello also believes that this election highlighted the widening divide in our country, rather than show how we can come together.

“Trump still has a big following despite what he has done. People still support him. It shows what people are willing to disregard.” Montello said. “Our country is still divided.”

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Teaching during COVID

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Coronavirus has been raging on for a while and most schools have been closed down since March. With 11 million confirmed cases in the United States and with an average of roughly 150,000 cases a day it is perfectly reasonable to assume that classes will continue to be online for the foreseeable future. Obviously, remote learning can be a big shift, especially when teachers have never taught in or are unfamiliar with the online format.

Three teachers here at NECC, Professor Mark Reinhold, Professor Stephen Russell, and Professor Stephen Slaner, gave us some insight on what it was like to have to adapt to a new teaching model during the pandemic.

Mark Reinhold has been teaching for 22 years, 16 of which have been at NECC. He teaches a range of science classes, such as geology, physics, and chemistry. Reinhold talked about the struggles of adapting his classes.

Reinhold said, “Adapting to an on-line format last spring on such a short notice was considerably challenging. I am the type of professor that thrives on interacting with my students and adapting my class to the interests of the class based on those interactions.”

Reinhold also cited the biggest challenge for him as a science teacher was having to adapt labs into an online format, “The biggest challenge was probably adapting labs to an on-line format. I have specific labs I like students to do and without doing this face to face, students tend to struggle.”

Stephen Russell has been teaching for 23 years, 17 of which have been at NECC. He teaches history and government classes and has been conducting his U.S History and World Civ classes online. Russell said that the online format was not particularly new for him, as he has been teaching online classes since 2005.

He did however, state that he greatly altered the way he taught classes, specifically U.S History I and II. Russell said, “I considerably revised my U.S. History I and II on-line courses during the summer, partly to accommodate students who had not taken on-line courses before, but also to take into account the turmoil that the U.S. has been going through since the killing of George Floyd, the injustice that the COVID-19 pandemic has exposed and the challenges posed by the Trump movement.”

Stephen Slaner has been teaching for 37 years, 14 of which have been at NECC. He teaches history and government classes, two examples being American Government and Politics and The Vietnam War. Like Stephen Russell, Slaner has also had experience teaching online. He mentioned however that he has never taught completely online before.

Slaner talked about his biggest challenge with the online schooling was keeping students interested, he feels that it is more the stress of being in a worldwide pandemic than the on-line classes that causes students to lose focus. Slaner said, “The main challenge for me is to sustain student interest in the face of the pandemic. I don’t think the online aspect is as much of a problem as the pandemic.”

When talking about the disadvantages and advantages there was some overlap between answers. All three teachers agreed that one such advantage was flexibility.

Reinhold said, “There is a lot more flexibility especially for those who have to juggle jobs, families, and school. Being able to work when it’s convenient for the student is a huge asset.”

Similarly Russell said, “The advantage for the student is convenience. With the asynchronous format adopted by NECC, students can log into the class at their convenience within time frames set by each class.”

Slaner thinks that while the flexibility can be an advantage for students, it can also be a disadvantage for them. He said, “That also is a disadvantage in a way, because if students are unrealistic in their time management, they may fall behind in the course to the point where they drop out.”

This is a very scary time right now and clearly a lot is going on in the world. On-line classes are a change for many people, both student and teacher. However, for students it is important to not get frustrated as most teachers are new to an all on-line format. It is important to maintain good time management and communication.

Campus Life

Students share tips on how to keep your immunity up during finals stress and cold winter months

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Why is self-care imperative for students during the winter of 2020?

A 1982 study from the Ohio State University College of Medicine found that stress weakens the immune system.

Three students recently shared personal tips on how they plan to stay healthy and untroubled while finishing off this fall semester strong.

As the weather changes, students continue their studies, and the holidays are approaching, it is important for everyone to remember to partake in activities that help boost the immune system.

Emmanuel Baez, a freshman at Northern Essex Community College, gave insight largely on how he tries to keep a healthy lifestyle: “I think that the three main things that help me feel my best is a good diet, good exercise, and a good amount of sleep. I drink a lot of water and eat foods that are high in vitamins, I exercise when I can, and even though I can get really busy with school, I think it’s really important to prioritze a healthy sleep schedule.”

He followed this up with the words, “Sleep is really important because it determines the mind-set you’ll have the next morning when you wake up.”

When it comes to health, a healthy diet is not the only thing that contributs to feeling your best. One’s mindset greatly determines their immune system as well. When it comes to Finals week, students may observe that their mindset fluctuates based on their worries due to their schoolwork. According to a study conducted by MentalHelp in 2016, Thirty-one percent of students surveyed said that finals were the biggest source of their stress.

Rose Alvarez, a freshman at Northern Essex Community College, added to this concept of the mind affecting the body due to school related stresses: “Finals week can be difficult for students because there is a lot of work that needs to be done in such a short span of time. I find that meditating before I start my work helps me when I over-analyze or stress for no reason. However, it’s all about finding what works for you and helps you relax best. It could be dancing, singing, drawing, listening to music, yoga, or even just taking a quick break.”

Luis Lopez, a freshman at Middlesex Community College, took a joyful and spirited approach to how he plans to keep calm during finals week: “I think that it’s always good to give yourself something to look forward to when you’re working or studying too much. So, I might do a study session, then reward myself with a treat. Then maybe I’ll complete a couple assignments and afterwards watch a Christmas movie. I might even do a study session through FaceTime if I think that the company will help me.”

Lopez added with ueful advice: “If you find yourself drained or unable to complete your work without constant negative thoughts at the back of your head, then that’s when you need to take the time to recognize that you may need to step back and take a moment of self-care.”

Self-care comes in many forms and it can be either physical or mental. Sometimes, self-care can just be about being honest with yourself or taking time that is exclusively for yourself. Nonetheless, self-care is extremely crucial during the coronavirus pandemic as it can be a dominant factor that keeps a community of people safe.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Arts and Entertainment, Slider

The futile endeavor: Purchasing Sony’s next gen console

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After years of speculating, months of teasing, and hours of waiting, we finally got an official release date for Sony’s Playstation 5. The Playstation 5 released here in the U.S. on Nov.12, and people have been going crazy. Following the release of its predecessor 7 years later, the Playstaion 5 has already made a massive impact with the world, and to those lucky enough to have had the opportunity to purchase one. I am not one of those people.

I remember being 17, and always keeping up to date on new video games and new consoles that were releasing. I would always check for updates and news articles on multiple websites, to make sure that I didn’t miss anything. Now that I am older (and I mean much older) it seems as I don’t have much time anymore to keep updated on any of those things, so I find out about things late, like the old man that I am.

Although I don’t quite keep up with news regarding video games, I still play video games on my free time. The older I get, the less free time I have, hence why I don’t know anything, about anything anymore.

About a week ago, a friend contacted me saying “Are you planning on purchasing the PS5 ?” Which I responded with “I didn’t even know it was releasing.”

His question sparked excitement inside of me, as I began to remember what it was like to own a gaming console, and what it was like to be excited about a video game again. 7 years ago, I stood in line at a Best Buy until it hit midnight, so I could purchase the Playstation 4.

I was so excited that I thought about doing the same again. I planned to go the night of release to Best Buy again, as I assumed they’d have plenty in stock.

I was wrong.

I called a Best Buy and to my disappointment, they told me that they only have a handful in stock, and there were already people waiting in line outside, rain and all.

I was confused as it was Tuesday, but the console didn’t release until Thursday. In a sad, and tired voice, the Best Buy employee says to me “Yea, they’re going to camp outside until Thursday morning to purchase one.”

My hopes of waiting in line outside for the sake of nostalgia went straight out the window, along with the Best Buy employee’s patience.

My next move was to attempt to purchase it online, as my friend told me that they were going to be releasing them online as well via Target, Walmart, and Best Buy’s website.

I waited until that morning, surprisingly anxious for this release. 2020 has been nothing but stressful, and it felt nice to have something to look forward to.

The morning came and I had my laptop, my phone, my mother’s phone, my mother’s iPad, my girlfriend’s iPad, my girlfriend’s phone, and my girlfriend’s laptop, all open and ready.

Safe to say that I was prepared.

30 seconds into my mission, and I am already starting to lose hope. Best Buy and Walmart’s website weren’t loading at all, and Target’s page was completely frozen. But I refused to give up.

I kept refreshing the page in hopes that something would work, but everything continued frozen. About a minute had gone by now.

Target’s website finally brought me to the page where you can make your selection and add things to your cart. I successfully added the console to my cart, skipping through all of the other offers they try to throw in your face as a last-minute sale.

I do not want protection. I’ll be extra careful.

Seems like my efforts are being rewarded, as I have successfully added the item to my cart, and I am on the “My cart” page where it still shows my item ready to be purchased. I hovered my little white cursor over the “Checkout” box, and I triumphantly clicked it, with a smile on my face.

Nothing happens.

Maybe I didn’t click it hard enough. I clicked it again, waiting for the page to change.

Nothing happens. Again.

I continued to click on that tiny little red box as if my life depended on it. Nothing was changing, and that little box was just staring back at me, refusing to let go of this webpage, as if mocking me.

10 minutes went by, and nothing changed. I go on Twitter, to see if anybody else is having the same issue as me, and to my surprise, the topic is actually trending on Twitter nationwide. Over 15 thousand tweets, regarding the #SonyPS5 .

I decided to read through some of the top tweets, and I was shocked to see that even some of the bigger verified pages were having the same issue. There was anger and frustration all over the country, and it felt nice to not be alone.

About an hour later, Target and other companies alike all went on social media to address their server issues, and they all apologized for the inconveniences.

Apologizing does not get me a new Playstation 5.

Slider

A different kind of Thanksgiving

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As we currently experience an upward trend of new COVID-19 cases, NECC students begin to prepare accordingly with the Mass.gov Safety Guidelines for their Thanksgiving celebrations.

We spoke with NECC students on how their plans have changed for Thanksgiving and if it has affected whether their excitement for the holiday has been greatly altered due to the new set of guidelines in place.

Nisaly Gonzalez, a 22-year-old North Andover resident and fulltime NECC student, typically spends Thanksgiving with a large gathering of family and friends. When asked how COVID-19 is affecting her Thanksgiving plans she had this to say, “Corona has affected my plans by limiting our family gathering to just my parents and my sister.”

Gonzalez also stated that the limitations on their gathering has not diminished the Gonzalez family’s excitement.

Next, we spoke with Robert Smith, a second semester NECC student who typically spends his Thanksgiving with a quaint family gathering at his grandmother’s house.

When asked about his plans for this year, Smith responded, “My Thanksgiving plans this year are to get one of those turkey dinners through the supermarket. It will be the same food, but with less people at my house. I will still call my grandmother and aunt to wish them a Happy Thanksgiving.”

Smith also said he would watch former Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade’s on YouTube to supplement his yearly viewing.

In our final interview we talked to Caitlyn Baker, a 20-year-old NECC transfer student who is usually either working for extra pay on Thanksgiving or at home. When asked whether her plans were changed due to COVID-19, Baker answered back with, “My plans are not going to be changed due to having such a small family.”

Baker had also stated that “I enjoy Thanksgiving, it’s time off from school, extra pay, and time with my actual immediate family, which is hard to find especially since my parents have owned their own business together for 23 years.”

After talking with NECC students and affiliates I realized that people’s plans may have changed, but it does not seem to have subtracted from the excitement for the holiday.

I also noticed that if there was a major change in somebody’s plans, they learned to adapt to the situation at hand and remain excited for Thanksgiving.

Have a Happy and Healthy Thanksgiving!

For more information about the Massachusetts guidelines, visit:

Mass.gov Thanksgiving during COVID-19: https://www.mass.gov/news/thanksgiving-during-covid-19

News

Students weigh in on 2020 election

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Vote button

The election began on Nov. 3, just as it always had. The days following seemed to be longer with emotions running high until finally, a winner was projected on Nov. 7 at 11:26 a.m. That winner being Joe Biden. Many students from NECC watched on.

Erica Shwabe, 22, who is studying the arts at NECC shares what it was like during the election. “I had a lot of anxieties towards it for a while before,” she said via zoom.

As the days passed despite the anxiety her nerves relaxed, she said, stating that she held onto hope.

There was a lot of concern floating about with what a second Trump term could have brought to the USA. Shwabe continued on to say she was concerned about, “Mainly what that would mean for minority groups or the lower income classes.”

Like many others, she was concerned how the coronavirus would be handled under a second Trump term.

She says, “Another thing would be how much longer the virus would last with all the poor handling.”

The election process was also challenging for some, shown by Clara Petry, a 20 year old studying environmental science at NECC.

Petrystates, “It was definitely a challenge to focus on my schoolwork while the election was going on,” via text. The distraction was clear with the ongoing urge to check the results.

Features

Students share how pandemic has affected mental health

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According to a Nov. 11 Boston Globe article, since the pandemic young adults have been experiencing higher rates of depression and other mental health concerns as the COVID-19 pandemic rages forward in the U.S. Some Northern Essex Community College students say they have experienced issues with their mental health as well.

Mariam Saldivar is a student from Northern Essex Community College. Her major is Journalism/communications, and she is from the Dominican Republic and now lives in Lawrence, Massachusetts. Saldivar states how quarantine affected or changed her mental health, saying “The days have started to blur together, and there’s this sense of dread that time is running out. So yeah, it impacted my mental health in a bad way.’’

This is a good example of how most young adults are feeling around this time during this pandemic. Life is an emotional roller coaster. Some days you feel like nothing can stop you, but others can be challenging to our mental well-being.

Ariana MacNeil, a reporter for the Boston Globe wrote in the NOv. 11 article that experts have found that young adults, ages 18 to 24, throughout the country, are experiencing higher rates of major depressive symptoms

Saldivar states what she does to make her feel better, “either write, read, or listen to music.” These strategies are great to use when you feel depressed to uplift your mood. Listening to music especially is a great strategy that helps you feel better if you are sad or feeling down that day.

Young adults have experienced anxiety and depression since being in quarantine. Saldivar said she has “absolutely’’ felt the same way. The Harvard and Northeastern study was a follow-up to one released in May 2020, which saw higher instances of depression that spanned across young adults — depression was up 27 percent compared to in the past, according to the Boston Globe. That’s a high percentage of depression among young people.

Communicating with anybody when you feel sad or lonely like a friend or a family member can help people feel less isolated. Salividar reaches out to others explaining, “yeah, I play video games with my friend. That way we can talk, and we spend lots of time.’’  Having a person there for you to cheer you up is very great as well and surrounding yourself with positive activities as well.

Sleep has a huge impact on mental health, so having a good sleep schedule or sleep habits is important during the pandemic to prevent mental health issues.  Saldivar says, “Yeah, it’s all over the place, I sleep whenever.” Having a good sleep schedule is good and developing good habits is important because it can really affect your body.

Mirroajah Metcalfe is another student from Northern Essex Community College.  Her major in Journalism/Communications. She is from Las Vegas and currently lives in Haverhill, Massachusetts. When asked how the quarantine affected or changed her mental health, Metcalfe stated that she, “became more isolated.’’ Being more isolated is a symptom of worsening mental health. There are easy ways to help isolation such as staying active and setting structure in your life and self-care.

Metcalfe stated ways that have helped her do better in that issue. ”I spent time trying to figure out who I am and learning how to be alone.’’ Spending time with yourself and getting to know who you are is also important.

Experiencing depression and anxiety is common during the quarantine. Metcalfe stated, “Yes I have felt depression sometimes.’’

Most young adults have been struggling with this feeling, especially young women. They are at a higher risk to experience mental health problems.

Communicating with somebody when you feel sad or lonely, like a friend or a family member is helpful. Metcalfe stated, “Yeah I have one best friend, but he lives in another state so it’s always over Facetime, unfortunately, but it’s still nice having someone to call and rant to.” Having a friend to be there for you is great and you feel like you can express yourself too, so that is great for mental health.

Having any changes in your sleep schedule or sleep habits can affect your mental health, Metcalfe stated, ‘’My sleep schedule was very erratic and random, so I had to really discipline myself.’’ Maintaining a good sleeping schedule is very important, like setting alarms and making a list of

Arts and Entertainment

My picks for top four albums of 2020

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2020 has been a hectic year full of sadness, loneliness, and disappointment.

We have been trapped within our houses with dwindling forms of entertainment to pass the time. Video games have been completed, television shows binged, and movie credits have rolled.

One consistent form of media that has consistent replay value is music. You’re cleaning your house and no matter how many times you have listened you are always up for throwing on a good album.  Even though we are in a pandemic, artists have been able to consistently put out amazing albums. These are the albums that have kept me going through these “trying times!”

  1. “Feet of Clay” (deluxe edition) by Earl Sweatshirt

Earl Sweatshirt is the Edgar Allen Poe of the rap game. Ever since the release of his debut album “Doris,” Earl has addressed dark topics in his lyrics such as themes of depression, mental health, broken families, and rising to fame at a young age. Dark undertones have been a constant in his music but only recently his sound has started to take an experimental change. On his most recent album “Feet of Clay,” Earl samples jazz music and distorts it to fit the dark vibe of the album. He also changes the way he used to rap to more of a spoken word form. Throughout this album you start to see what a tortured sole this man is and how much loss he had to go through. The best song of this album is the single EAST. The song uses this accordion sample on loop and Earl slightly distorts his vocals to create this uncomfortable feeling. In the lyrics of the song Earl addresses the relationships he lost, the death of his grandma, and the overall hopelessness he has.

  1. “Alfredo” by Freddie Gibbs and The Alchemist

Freddie Gibbs has had an interesting evolution in his overall sound.  He has gone from generic underground hood anthems to this new refined sound. Not to say he hasn’t always been talented it’s just ever since 2014 album “Pinata” he has found a very consistent sound. The album itself is amazing, throughout my multiple listens of the album I could not get myself to skip a single song. The album feels like a Scorsese crime film where you follow the protagonist throughout his journey in the criminal underworld. It also has the same immaculate swagger of a Scorsese film. I must give The Alchemist props for the production of this album. I extremely enjoyed the different samples, especially how at the end of some of the songs they sample dialogue from old movies. The best song on the album is “Something to Rap About” featuring Tyler the Creator. The whole song has this chilled laid-back vibe which is complemented by Tyler and Freddie rapping about their come up and how they are currently living in luxury.

3. “Tickets to my Downfall” by Machine Gun Kelly

Machine gun Kelly or MGK as a rapper is a second-rate rapper at best. If you asked me to name you one of his previous albums, I could not. To be completely honest, I only know him from his public feud with Eminem. The transformation he has made on this album is crazy, he has gone from B list rapper to A list pop punk star. He masterfully captures that late 90s early 2000s Blink 182, Green Day type sound while also making it his own. I am really hoping to see more of this style from him because it just works so perfectly.

  1. “The P.U.K.E Mixtapes” volumes 1&2 by payday (favorite new artist)

Payday is a 16-year-old female rapper from Seattle. She has just released 2 mixtapes called the P.U.K.E tapes. The best way to describe her and her sound is that she is Billie Eilish if Billie Eilish could rap. Her sound is unique because it trades off from being melodic singing/rapping to boom bap style of rap. Her beat selection which can range from these slowed down kind of lo-fi beats to these fast tempo upbeat musical beats. Besides her beats she also demonstrates this extremely verbose vocabulary in her lyrics. Please don’t be surprised if she blows up in the next couple of years.

Campus Life, Slider

The new student life

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Student life is something that is talked about a lot to new students applying for colleges.

Usually they have fun events, they help people navigate this new experience and answer any questions students may have.

Student life has very many things to offer to each student.

But how has that changed with COVID?

I spoke to the  student life coordinator at NECC, Stephanie Haskell, via zoom about how the program is working under these new rules.

There have been a handful of events this fall, such a smeetings for several clubs.

Student life has also planned out a ton more for the future!

All the advertising for these events is now online as a result of the virus.

“We usually do a lot of advertising on campus for events and offerings like on the boards, on the digital screens, on doors, and tables but we can’t so I’m trying to get more students to follow us on Facebook, twitter, Instagram andTik-tok,” said Haskell.

She also feels that reaching out more on social media is having a slight impact in student awareness of events.

The school has varied ages in its students, and this seems to be a way to reach out to most of the students.

Following the move to social media, all of the club registrations have been moved online as well.

Haskell stated “I think it’s easier just because if it’s on the computer, I used to work in Lawrence and Haverhill so, if not I would have to wait until I went to Haverhill to get the paperwork or Lawrence if somebody dropped it off there. So now I can access it anywhere.”

The fact that this has been made virtual also gave the department the opportunity for a revised club form.

The paper forms had not been redone in about five years, this gap has made it so the information on those sheets is no longer relevant or not as specific as it should be at the current time.

The paper form made it hard for specific questions about club meetings to be answered.

Another plus to this switch is now anyone can submit their form atany time, rather then waiting till you are on campus and have the offices be closed.

Haskell said she does feel that it is harder to make connections with the students.

While there are still meetings via zoom and other platforms, it does not give the same feel as being surrounded by classmates and faculty.

It is not harder to make a lasting connection with the students she does meet with.

“I go with a mission, like I need to ask a question about NSLS or something and then it gets into being ‘my daughter did this or I did this at myfriend’s house this week,” she said.

While the switch from a normal campus life to virtual has shifted many things, the Student Life office is still finding many ways to have fun and connect with the students of Northern Essex, and they will continue to make plans for events according to what will work.

For more information about Student Life activities at NECC, visit https://www.necc.mass.edu/experience/