Traffic comes to a stop on Kenoza Street more and more often these days to let the geese cross the road.
“There’s a good amount of geese. I think there’s two main groups,” says Steve Shepard, who works for the NECC Grounds Department on the Haverhill campus. Shepard thinks that the problem has gotten worse this year.
A group of geese is actually called a gaggle. According to the Mass Wildlife website, gaggles of geese have been passing through for centuries along their natural migration route. Throughout the ’60s and ’70s, a relocation project was begun to move the geese further inland, apparently for hunting purposes.
Since then, the availability of secondary food sources and changes in weather patterns have caused a change in the behavior of the geese. While some groups still fly south for the winter, many geese have found that is no longer necessary and have become year-round residents of many of the nesting grounds that they populate.
Since each full grown goose can produce as much as a pound of droppings each day, sanitation problems can develop in areas where the population is particularly large or bold, and once geese become established in an area, they are reluctant to give it up.
“The geese have been causing trouble with [the athletic fields], too,” said Shepard. “They seem to be getting used to our tactics. Like, even the decoys don’t work, they just walk right by them sometimes.”
Evidence of this can be seen in the form of droppings all along the athletic track, just mere feet from where a styrofoam coyote watches on. “We’re trying everything, everything short of air horns,” said Shepard.
When asked about how they prepare the athletic field before a game, Shepard said that they use leaf blowers for both the grass and the sidewalks, but sometimes they have to resort to shovels to clear the mess.
The geese make their home at the Haverhill reservoir just across Kenoza Street but they have found abundant grazing available on the NECC grounds. “It’s between here and around where the reservoir is. I believe they have some sort of sound cannon that they can use to push them, and then they usually come back here… so it’s kind of us sending them back and forth to each other.” Shepard laughed.
Shepard said that he thinks the school will have to do some research to find out what other people are doing. “We definitely have to change our tactics. They’re getting used to everything,” he said. “We don’t want to hurt them, but we don’t want them in places where they cause a problem, or traffic, too.”
Currently, there is only one chemical treatment on the market approved to deter geese. One company in Everett provides a dog handler and a border collie to patrol the grounds and chase the geese away for a starting rate of $10,000.
The hope is that with the beginning of the school year bringing an increase in human activity around campus, the geese will be more reluctant to spend their days here. Shepard asks that you please do not feed them.
Shepard said, “I’ve been here two years now and I didn’t think we were going to be at war with geese. That wasn’t in the job description.”
For more information about geese, visit the MassWildlife website at http://www.mass.gov/eea/agencies/dfg/dfw/.
Northern Essex, as a community, has experienced hot weather, summer classes, and construction this past summer. The stairs for the main entrance at the Spurk Building are pearly white, classy, and ready for the upcoming semester. Adjacent to the Spurk Building is the newest addition to the NECC’s community: Opportunity Works.
In 1974, a group of Greater Newburyport-area residents began to discuss their concern about the lack of support services available to adults with developmental disabilities and their families.
According to their website, Opportunity Works began with “the vision of empowering people with disabilities to experience the freedom to live, work, and enjoy a valued role in society.” Thirty nine years later, their vision is continued through dedicated workers like Melissa Merrow. Melissa Merrow, Director of Program Operations, has been with Opportunity Works since 2009. She started off as the Day Habilitation Manager, then was promoted to Director of Specialized Day Services a year later. Just this past June she was promoted again, this time to Director of Program Operations. She has a Bachelor of Science in Psychology, Business Minor from Salem State University.
“We partner with many people in the greater National Board Professional Teaching and Merrimack Valley area,” said Merrow. “For example, our individuals volunteer at various churches and food pantries in the area. Volunteering gives them a sense of giving back to the community and also the confidence they need to obtain jobs in the community versus the volunteering.”
“We also visit local nursing homes monthly as a ‘Random Act of Kindness’ day! We go over and play cards, talk, enjoy their company, fulfilling for both agencies! By our individuals getting out into the community more it also gives the public a better understanding of who Opportunity Works is and what we do. We ensure people are reaching their maximum independence through personal and professional interests.”
Their vision, according to the website, is to set “leading standards of excellence among individual service providers in supporting people with disabilities and their families, empower the people we serve to fully achieve personal growth and a valued role in society, promote a positive and supportive work environment for employees, realize planned growth of existing programs, while ensuring our commitment to our core values, engage the community in supporting Opportunity Works to achieve our mission.”
Merrow also mentioned how Opportunity Works has many volunteer sites. These include things like the new “Special Stars” dance program this month. There’s also an annual International Week, where each program room is a different country, allowing members to “travel the world,” and a Holiday Bazaar, where donations received help the individuals make crafts and buy gifts for their families for the holiday season.
“We offer the Project Search program, there are only two in the state of Massachusetts. We are now offering college classes at NECC (Northern Essex Community College) for our individuals,” says Merrow. Opportunity Works has two locations, in Newburyport and Haverhill. The Newburyport location is at 10 Opportunity Way, Newburyport, and the Haverhill location is located at 671 Kenoza Street, Haverhill.
NECC’s parking permit policy is in its third semester of employment and it is still stirring up controversy. The passes themselves cost $8.50 for students and adjunct faculty per semester and $17 for full-time faculty for the academic year. Although they are inexpensive when compared to other colleges’ parking passes, some faculty, staff and students still dislike them based on the principle of the matter.
Lt. Dan Tirone, operations commander of security for the Haverhill campus, said that the permits are disliked but very helpful. In situations where someone has left their lights on or has gotten into an accident, the permit system makes it easier to locate the owners of the cars involved and handle the situation. Tirone said, by administration’s standards, the main purpose of the permits is to keep tabs on who is on campus.
If a student, staff or faculty member gets a new car or has to take a car that isn’t theirs to the school, they have to notify security that there is a vehicle in the lot that belongs to someone with a permit, without a visible permit. “It’s imperative to come in if you have a different car and let us know so we can give you a temporary pass,” said Tirone.
Tirone said that there are two or three rounds a day in the different lots to look for violators of the parking policy, depending on how busy campus is that day. Weather conditions rarely affect rounds.
“I’m not going to put my people in harm’s way but weather doesn’t matter. That would be unfair to people paying for permits. People without permits could be taking those spots closer to their building that they’re actually paying for,” said Tirone.
“We see more people going for free parking more in the fall in Haverhill,” said Tirone. The nicer weather makes the walk from the Tech Center to wherever people are heading a lot easier.
The Buckley Garage in Lawrence isn’t a very far walk no matter the weather. Lt. Tirone said, “Lawrence [security] has to be more careful because they’re downtown with meters. More people try to sneak in.”
The only people exempt from buying permits are those with handicap placards and plates. State law states that as long as these drivers are parked in handicapped spots, they cannot be ticketed.
When cars without permits park in permit-only areas and get ticketed, they can be issued a fine. The fines collected throughout the year do not disappear but can be appealed in person at the security office or online where the permits are sold. Unpaid fines do not affect your ability to sign up for classes, petition to graduate or anything else having to do with academics, but they do accrue interest.
For those still against paying for permits, Tirone says there are roughly 300 or 400 non-permit parking spots next to the Hartleb Technology Center in Haverhill, and the Buckley Garage offers free parking for the Lawrence campus.
“This is big news,” said NECC President Lane Glenn, referring to the upcoming expansion of the Lawrence campus. “We expect to be welcoming two new college partners.”
Having these new partners will enable students to get a bachelor’s degree in several majors right on the Lawrence campus.
Regis College, a private college in Massachusetts, will offer students a BA in nursing, public health, and health science. Lyndon State College will offer a BA in Information Technology, a BFA in Graphic Design, and a BA in Visual Communication and Music Business. This is the first time bachelor’s degrees in these majors will be available in Lawrence.
The college is also hoping to open a Regional Public Safety Center in the next few years, and are currently looking for funding for the building. According to Glenn, the facility will be a “new police center for the city of Lawrence as well as a training center for college students.”
The opening of this center would make Lawrence the “premier location for police training in the Northeast,” he said.
The Lawrence campus will be offering “more tutoring services and more developmental coursework, replicating what’s happening on the Haverhill campus,” said NECC Dean Chuck Phair. NECC hopes to create more opportunities for students at Lawrence High School to become involved with dual enrollment.
Glenn also expressed interest in rehabilitating some of the facilities themselves. “We’re hoping to renovate the Dimitry building and the library on the Lawrence campus,” he said.
The college has been working with the city of Lawrence to improve the Buckley parking garage. As part of this, increased lighting in the garage will help students walking to and from their cars feel more safe and secure.
If you have ever been into one of the women’s restrooms at Northern Essex Community College, you may have noticed a paper that describes an abusive relationship, as well as a domestic violence hotline number, and a card for the school’s mental health counselor. If you have only been into the men’s restrooms, you probably haven’t seen this paper.
Why isn’t there a domestic violence hotline number in every bathroom on campus?
According to RAINN (Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network), about 10 percent of all sexual assault victims in the United States are male. While this number may seem slight in comparison to 90 percent of reported victims being female, men and boys are statistically less likely to report having been physically or sexually assaulted.
RAINN also states that 68 percent of sexual assaults are not reported to the police. In turn, about 98 percent of rapists are never arrested. Karen Stone, a Certified Nursing Assistant, said, “Men get abused just as much as we do. Men don’t feel they’re manly enough if they report it. Men can get raped. Doctors never ask a man if they feel safe at home, but they ask females.”
Anyone can be abused or assaulted. If it is reported to the proper law enforcement officials, an arrest or conviction of the abuser is more likely. If you are a victim of domestic violence, regardless of gender, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at (800)799-7233.
David Gingerella speaks about the NECC Spurk Building renovations. | NECC ObserverThe meeting for the plans for the renovation of the Spurk Building at NECC’s Haverhill campus took place on Tuesday, April 2 in Lecture Hall A. David Gingerella was the first to speak after being introduced by college president Lane Glenn. He went into detail about the history of how the renovations came onto NECC’s sphere of possibilities.
In August 2008, the state voted for a higher education bond issue for all state colleges. $550 million was designated to community colleges and NECC was allocated $31.7 million of that. The colleges were then expected to provide a list of priorities, which for NECC was $24 million for the construction of the Allied Health Center on the Lawrence campus. This left over $7.3 million for other priorities.
“One of the things we realizes was that money prioritized for the rest of the community colleges, one college got to do one project at a time, but at the urging of the All College Assembly, specifically the chair people, President Glenn and myself were asked to meet with and get this project elevated,” said Gingerella.
“And so we were able to arrange meetings with a DCAMM commissioners, the Department of Higher Education, and the State Finance Administration. Our request was well received, the president’s done a great job with making that we communicate with them on a regular basis. However, because several other community colleges had not even started their first project, we were basically told that our project would have to wait,” said Gingerella.
Because President Glenn stayed on top of communication with DCAMM, they received a call from the Governor’s office telling Glenn and Gingerella they would release the money despite other projects for other colleges had not yet started. So NECC was granted the fund to begin the second project.
“We got together and formed a group to start talking about what we would be able to do with 7.3 million dollars — it quickly became apparent that the money that would be available would only be able to do very limited work here at the college,” said Gingerella.
After discussing the options and preliminary plans the group decided they would be able to do bathroom accessibility changes, such as wheelchair access and doors opening properly. Other changes could also be applied like a sprinkler system throughout the building for fire safety, tempered air, which means increasing ventilation on the 2nd and 3rd floors and air conditioning for Lecture Hall A and the Chester W Hawrylciw Theater.
The windows would be kept and get modified glass, and the entrances to the classrooms would be widened.
Gingerella then addressed what really needs to be done to the Spurk building. It was basically a plan with the goal of making the building functional for the next 5 to 10 years.
“We’re trying to take the spaces that we have and make them as functional as possible. We would require all life safety accessibility issues, anybody that’s been in this building knows that in the winter it can be drafty and cold and in the summer it can be hot and some of the ceilings leak in some areas. This would fix all of that — we would continue to sprinkle the entire building and maximize the accessibility changes so it would be much easier for individuals that are handicapped. The biggest thing is we would renovate and complete all the bathrooms,” said Gingerella.
This plan would entail the bathrooms being gutted and replaced.
That is the funding that is available right now, which is more than the initial $7.3 million leftover from the first project. Architect Alex Adkins is the project manager of DiMella Shaffer Architects in Boston. Adkins was hired through his firm being approved by the designer selection board to be a house doctor for DCAMM.
“We are qualified and have done a lot of work with academic buildings throughout the commonwealth, and we’re basically on call for quick response to project needs. We were contacted last summer by DCAMM to provide a study of the Spurk Building,” said Adkins.
Over September until December, the study was looked over with the billing committee and looked into what the most urgent needs of building were and what changes were required by code. The first obvious need for change was air quality and ventilation in the building, accessibility to entrances of the building, accessibility to classrooms, accessibility to restrooms and fire safety.
“Those three categories became the priority of investigation. Even just to do those was pushing us above the original 5 million dollar budget, we were successful in getting a lot more money to do that sort of baseline improvements. We since then explored that further in a lot more detail to bring us here today and today is the first time that we’re able to share with you what we anticipate happening,” said Adkins.
Adkins presented the floors plans for the renovations. Intense areas of work were outlined in green on the floor plans, which made it clear the building could not have people or classes going on with construction.
“The other thing we looked at initially was can we do this in 2 sections — could we maintain operation in half the building and do construction on the other half and a few things of grave concern emerged after setting that, a) it would extend the construction period and b) everyone was gonna have to move at least once and c) it would be noisy.” said Adkins. The idea to split construction in half was nixed, so the only viable solution would be to vacate the entire building during construction. The expected time for construction is June to June, so about 12 months. NECC is now looking into what is called “swing space,” which is basically where classes and offices would temporarily move to during construction.
A staff only bathroom and a gender neutral bathroom are in the renovation plans as well. Accessible entrance ramps will be added to the north, west and south entrances, and new airlocks which means the doors won’t open directly to outside. There will be an outside door and an interior door to stop drafts from coming inside in the winter.
In Lecture Hall A, the front of the room is going to be raised to be aligned with the first row of seating, and a small ramp will be installed to provide wheelchair accessibility to the room. The ceiling will also be redone in Lecture Hall A to allow for air conditioning and sprinklers, all new seating and work on the doors.
In the Chester W Hawrylciw Theater, renovations are also taking place. The stage is being rebuilt, new ramp and lift installed making both the back of the house and front of the house accessible by wheelchair. A back row of seating is being added to compensate for the loss of the front row.
“The entire third floor extend out beyond the face of the building, which is why the floors in many areas are cold, so we are going to apply insulation to the exterior with a metal covering so there will be some small changes to the exterior,” said Adkins.
The faculty offices will also undergo minor modifications. The offices will lose about 6 inches due to the new insulated wall being built, and there will be no more bookshelves beneath the windowsills. The offices will also get all new windows.
“In the end its going to be minor changes physically to the rooms but there will be a big difference in the comfort level and usability in all the spaces,” said Adkins.
Gingerella spoke again after Adkins, about where possible swing spaces could go. Ideas were presented such as moving the computer lab in the B Building and student lab of Bentley Library to the second floor, using parts of the Technology Center as offices or classrooms or some combination of the two, using the daycare center on campus as classrooms or offices and using parts of the student lounge in the B Building as classrooms. Other ideas like using the Riverwalk campus classrooms and the implementation of express shuttle buses were brought up and utilizing the lower level of Opportunity Works for classrooms or offices too.
None of these swing spaces have been finalized or determined — these were simply ideas for where everyone can go once renovations start.
After the presentation, attendees got the opportunity to ask questions. Some raised concerns over locking mechanisms on classrooms doors, which is a constant struggle between public safety and fire safety codes. Another idea was the potential for more online courses if there are not enough classrooms in the swing spaces to compensate for the amount of classes that will need to relocate.
Amy Callahan, Department Chair of the Journalism/Communication said, “this is more of a statement rather than a question, but I would like to put in a bid that the faculty offices remain close to where the classroom space will be so that the faculty can continue to do their work, keeping in touch with students where they can find a way to.
The Music Department at NECC is a small yet strong department that is searching for a voice and proper space on campus. With countless problems in this program, it can seem that this department doesn’t supply a good education for a music students. However, this program is a stepping stone for young musicians that want to go on and make a career out of music.
Dr. Langer, the Music Department Director, said, “What I want to see happen is that people in the college and the community see that we have an active and engaging program.”
Ingrid Marstaller, 74, attended NECC as a music major from 2006 to 2012, and is now a music theory, aural skills and piano tutor at NECC. She said, “The music department has excellent teachers but is being undermined by the administration through pay cuts and other restrictions. Both Dr. Langer and Professor Dietrich, a piano instructor, work very hard to maintain the quality of instruction.”
Lindsey Michaud, a 20 year old music major, said NECC offers “four semesters of theory, aural skills, applied music, and more. Other community colleges only offer a couple of music classes, not enough to complete a degree. These classes are also transferable to lots of state schools.”
It isn’t the program that needs expansion — music majors need the room to play and sing comfortably, along with proper equipment.
“My goal has been to produce the best quality program that we can possibly offer with what we have. Students that come here to major in music should be able to transfer successfully to any four-year institution they choose because they have been well prepared,” said Langer.
Michaud is observing the conditions of the department as a student, and said, “The pianos are incredibly out of tune which is due to the lack of climate control in these rooms. The air is dry, breathing in to play an instrument or sing dries your throat.”
Marstaller says, “We have to (ask) for money to replace defective keyboards and benches, getting pianos tuned and keeping computers running. Our hardware is outdated and
several of the practice room pianos don’t always work.”
The classroom TC220 is all the department has for ensemble rehearsals. Michaud said, “The walls and ceiling are not constructed with the proper acoustics so the sound we produce is
pretty crappy honestly. We also do not have a proper performance hall or auditorium.”
Feelings of being isolated from the rest of the school is a consistent tone in this department as well. Marstaller said, “It has always seemed to me that the music department was an afterthought and not considered important.”
“Being a music student, I don’t feel included as much as students of different majors,” said Michaud. “Some of the faculty on campus even seem to not take us seriously because we choose to major in music. If we had a performing arts center, I think people would recognize us more and realize that we are just as important as any other student.”
Langer says that students “often have to take more classes and are expected to be active as students as well as developing and performing musicians both individually and within groups.”
Michaud said, “I am so glad to have actually been able to be a music student, taking 6 or more music courses each semester, and receive a fantastic education at an affordable cost.”
Funding is an issue for all the departments on campus, but Marstaller said it’s more than that. “I would like to see the college administration support the music program both financially and by promoting it throughout the campus as well as in the advertising. Flyers don’t usually even mention that it exists.”
Michaud said that the department needs high schools to know about the department.
“None of us knew about this program before deciding to go to NECC. I didn’t know until browsing through a course catalog. By the time I graduate with a Bachelor’s degree in music education, I will only have about $15,000 in loans to pay off. Anyone who went to a 4 year university right away is probably looking at over $80,000 they will have to pay off. That is what this program has done for me.”
Summer semester is over and NECC is preparing to welcome new students and old into the Fall 2014 semester.
There has been construction re-paving areas by the Sports and Fitness Center and Spurk (C) building on the Haverhill campus, and Lawrence has seen considerable progress over the last year in expanding campus and construction of the El Hefni Allied Health and Technology Center.
NECC is freshly landscaped and ready for a new semester. Photo by Faith Gregory
New students: check out the Follett Bookstore on the second floor of the Behrakis Building (also known as the One-Stop) on the Haverhill campus as well as the Nexdine Cafe in the Spurk building.
The NECC Observer has seen some changes as well. We welcome three new editors: Mike Alongi in Sports, Kim Whiting in Arts and Entertainment and Rebecca Westerman in Features.
We’re also saying farewell to last year’s Editor in Chief, Matt Gingras, as well as Kathryn Gagnon, the Campus Life Editor, Everson Taveras, the Features Editor and Esther Nieves, the Sports Editor.
Faith Gregory has moved from Arts and Entertainment to the position of Editor in Chief, and is excited to step into the role and attempt to fill Matt’s shoes.
We’re also excited to announce the launch of our new website. We’ll be posting stories from the print paper edition, as well as exclusive extended and advance content. It’s a high priority of ours to add new value to our readers’ experience on the website, not just duplicate the print content. Particularly, we’re looking forward to more comprehensive event tracking and breaking news.
Lastly, the NECC Observer would like to announce that we are looking to hire a new Lawrence Campus Editor. The Lawrence Campus section will be replacing the Campus Life section, because we’ve noticed that, for the purposes of our paper, ‘Campus Life’ and ‘News’ mean the same thing, so we figured we could make better use of that page and job opening.
We’re looking for a student who has taken at least Journalism 1 or is in enrolled in it for the Fall 2014 semester, and who would be interested in focusing their coverage on events taking place on the Lawrence Campus. Contact the NECC Observer’s advisor, Mary Jo Shafer, at mshafer@necc.mass.edu if interested.
We’re also always interested in a dialogue with the students of NECC: submit letters to the editor to observer@necc.mass.edu.
