Observer Department: Features
Over 4,000 attend NH Democratic Party State Convention
By Richard Padova and Andrew Morse Special to The Observer Two Northern Essex professors, Andrew Morse and Richard Padova, were among more than 4,000 delegates and guests, respectively, on Saturday, Sept. 19 when New Hampshire Democrats held their annual state convention at the Verizon Arena in Manchester. These gatherings provide…
Elections are Coming, and Your Vote Matters
The Presidential Election is coming next year, which brings about some important questions. Are you registered to vote? Are you aware of the history of voting? Do you know why it’s so important to our democracy? Voting has been part of our political history for over 200 years. After the…
Opportunity Works’ Justin Sanchez
Walking into Opportunity Works, you hear classical music playing from the welcome desk. The staff instantly greet you, and quickly help you get to where you need to go. The building may be new, but the bonds between the staff and students there are richly rooted. Each person has a…
“Haverhill’s Archie” – Fact or Legend?
Local legend holds that artist Bob Montana created the Archie comic strip and based the characters, at least in part, on his Haverhill High School peers. The truth of this claim has always been somewhat of a mystery; it seems to be contradicted in a few places, including by the…
Campus Accessibility
Accessibility at Northern Essex has long been a hot-button issue. The outdated elevators, the cracks in the ramps, the ice and snow in the winter — it all falls under the umbrella of accessibility concerns. With the Spurk Building being renovated this upcoming year, some may wonder what upgrades are…
NECC Students Make Road Trip out of College Visit
NECC students Christian Doyle, Tarah MacGregor and Geehae Moon went on a road trip this summer to visit two colleges in Florida. The road trip was initially the idea of MacGregor, a Liberal Arts major in her fifth year at NECC. She wanted to visit her to top choice schools:…
ArtSpace Dedication
Over the summer, the ArtSpace located in a remote corner of the Bentley Library received a new name and some well deserved attention during a dedication ceremony on May 15. So did Linda Hummel-Shea, for whom the space was renamed. Hummel-Shea started at NECC as a part-time librarian 35…
LGBTQ+ Milestones
The LGBT community reached some historic milestones this summer. On June 26, the United States Supreme Court ruled same-sex marriage a constitutional right with a 5-to-4 vote. In his decision, Justice Anthony M. Kennedy stated, “No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love,…
Tarah MacGregor: A Face of NECC
23-year-old Tarah MacGregor has been a student at Northern Essex for five years. Her ready smile has made her popular among the students and faculty, and you can often hear her laughing in the hallways as she goes about her many projects. McGregor has taken her college experience to a…
Professor Dave Fagerstrom
Professor Dave Fagerstrom, who served as an instructor of economics and college success for nearly six years at NECC, passed away on Friday, April 24, 2015 at the age of 68. Fagerstrom was born in Stamford, CT and later moved to Massachusetts with his family, where he graduated from Watertown…
