Observer Department: News


TikTok faces ban in the U.S.

On Tuesday April 23 the U.S. Senate approved a bill that would ban TikTok. The United States House of Representatives already passed a bill April 20, that would give “TikTok’s Chinese owner ByteDance about six months to divest the U.S assets of the short video-app, or face a ban”. The…


Speechapalooza to return to NECC

Poster created by Matthew Scharn Northern Essex proudly announces today that in April Speechapalooza is coming back better than ever.  The event is organized and hosted by the Principles of Public Relations class.  Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic Speechapalooza was attended by students who wanted to share their ideas to…

A flyer advertising Speechapalooza event.


Get inspired by PTK alumni

On Thursday, April 25, at 5:00 PM. is the 14 th Phi Theta Kappa Induction Ceremony, in the Lecture Hall, C-Building, on the  Haverhill campus. Mostly known as PTK, it is the world’s largest honor society for community college students. It offers great opportunities to access scholarships “to help you…

A man and a woman talk on Zoom.


Observer staff members win NENPA awards

The New England Newspaper and Press Association (NENPA) recently honored two student staff members of the Northern Essex Community College Observer student newspaper. Observer News Editor Daniela Valdivia-Terres of Chelmsford won first place for best news story and Editor-in-Chief/Opinion Editor Kim Zappala of Haverhill won second place for best opinion…

A woman holds an award certificate


Total Eclipse: Students take a trip to view rare event

On April 8, 2024, the college’s PACE program organized a field trip to take their participants to St. Johnsbury, Vermont to experience this year’s total solar eclipse. Days leading up to the event, the PACE program held a workshop hosted by Northern Essex Community College Professor of Earth Science Mark…

Students wearing eclipse glasses stand on a hillside in Vermont and look at the eclipse.


Food programs in jeopardy?

Students create petition about food, housing, civic engagement resources. On April 2, there was a petition spread by Student Government Association SGA about food and housing insecurity titled Saving Civic Engagement. It called for students to sign up on behalf of the services the Civic Engagement, Service-Learning, and Community Resources…

The text of a petition.


Trip of a lifetime: Student will study in the Netherlands

Maria Cubias, a criminal justice student, was selected among 20 students nationwide to attend a summer program in the Netherlands, and The NECC Fund granted the costs of the program. Mostly known as “Ampa” short name for Amparo, her middle name, she is a hardworking and committed student. Her full…


NECC athletics hall of fame inductees announced

On Jan 25 Northern Essex announced the representatives for the 2024 hall of fame class. The inductees include Larry Fowle, Colby Maiola and Sercan Fenerci. The three former athletics members will be inducted on March 20.  This will be the fifth annual induction ceremony at NECC.  The ceremony will be held…


Thinking globally: Courses connect with students abroad

NECC students are connected with international peers virtually to team up on projects together. There are around seven courses with a special component, the International Virtual Experience IVE and Collaborative Online International Learning COIL where NECC students are paired with students at universities from Canada, France, Mexico or Palestine, to…


Exploring emotional support animals

NECC students and faculty believe having a balance between academics and mental health is important and having an emotional support animal on campus will help them thrive in finding that stability.  Mental health has become a popular topic in the U.S. that affects “approximately 77%” of college students according to…