Tag Archives: NECC

Campus Life

Domestic Violence Hotline

 

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.

Campus Life

Multicultural Student Alliance

 

It may seem like a small sentiment, but something as simple as having flags from multiple cultures present on campus can help students feel welcome, said Admissions & Academic Counselor Courtney Newman.

Newman is one of three faculty members helping coordinate the new Multicultural Student Alliance, an organization dedicated to helping provide a safe space for students of all ethnicities, nationalities and cultural backgrounds.

“What we’re trying to do is bring a multitude of different students together in one space so they can connect with the college, connect with each other, experience some events and really have a support system,” said Newman.

Welcoming though the MSA may be, NECC is a place of learning. Fiona Edwards said the MSA will primarily be looking to encourage students academically. Like Newman, Edwards also works in the Career Planning & Advising Center and serves as a Designated School Official for international students.

“The MSA isn’t just geared toward being a safe space for people of different cultures,” said Edwards. “It’s a retentional tool for the student population. Statistics show that students are more inclined to stay on campus if they have some sort of extracurricular activity to do.”

Extracurricular activities generally make students feel more connected with their school and to the college experience in general. In a survey conducted by the North American Colleges and Teachers of Agriculture, 91% of respondents indicated that “participation in extracurricular activities positively contributed to their college experience.” In addition, most students who attended extracurricular activities rated their interactions with other students highly.

Edwards hopes that participation in the MSA will help prepare students for a career in their chosen field by incorporating the college’s Core Academic Skills. “Public speaking, initiatives in the community, the ability to network, the skills they will take out into their field — these will help them put these into practice.”
It’s important to note that the idea of multiculturalism is also about celebrating different ways of life. As part of this, the MSA plans to hold and attend plenty of events both on-campus and elsewhere in the area.

Currently, the off-campus events include a first generation student summit at Wellesley College that happened on March 7 and an upcoming lunch with the Haverhill Kiwanis Club on April 7. Both of these events reflect the MSA’s mission to help students learn about networking and foster inclusivity.

Newman says some of the events being considered include potluck dinners, a flag day and possibly an on-campus parade.

“I’m a movie person, so I’m hoping for a cultural movie night,” she said.
According to CPAC counselor and MSA coordinator Ana Fraden, one of the most exciting things about the MSA is its desire to collaborate with other student organizations. “We’ve been asked to collaborate with the Gay/Straight Alliance on its pride parade, and … we’re currently helping the Community Outreach Group with their bake sale,” she said. Since the values and mission statement of the MSA and many other clubs coincide, Fraden said she sees an immense amount of opportunity.

As of press time, the MSA coordinators have not yet pinned down the date of the next meeting. Students who are interested in more information on the MSA can contact Fiona Edwards at fedwards@necc.mass.edu, Courtney Newman at cnewman@necc.mass.edu or Ana Fraden at afraden@necc.mass.edu to be added to the email list.

Newman encouraged students who might be afraid to branch out to at least give the MSA a try.

“Just come once,” she said. “It’s not going to hurt anything, and if you stay, it looks great on your resume.”

Features, News

Spurk Building Renovation

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David Gingerella speaks about the NECC Spurk Building renovations.
David Gingerella speaks about the NECC Spurk Building renovations. | NECC Observer
The 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.

Opinion

NECC Students Discuss Wearing Makeup

 

Erica Almonte, 21 majoring in Nursing says she’s always searching up new beauty tips and tricks to make her life a bit easier. “In between my daughter, school and work, it always seems like I never have time to pamper myself. So I’m always looking for little beauty hacks to save me some time and money.”

Almonte says she’s been wearing make-up ever since she was a freshmen in high school.

“I started experimented little by little and started to notice what works for me and what doesn’t. I think it’s important for women to understand that, like not everyone can wear a red lip.”

Almonte says she has learned a lot of great tips from the internet and is always sharing her new tricks with friends. “I learned this one trick that I swear by … Take some Vaseline and glide it across your front teeth, it stops lipstick from transferring!”

Almonte says she has always loved makeup and sees nothing wrong with adding to her natural beauty. “I don’t see the problem with enhancing your natural beauty. I love make-up!”

Michael Santiago, 21 says he enjoys seeing his girlfriend with make-up but dislikes when women use excessive make-up. “I don’t have a problem with girls wearing make-up, but if you come to school looking like you’re about to go to the club… that’s another story.” Santiago says he believes women should feel beautiful with and without make-up. “I think it’s great, when a girl can go out without make-up and still feel like she’s pretty… to me, that’s dope.”

Jennifer Castillo, 24 says make-up isn’t her thing. “I’ve honestly tried to like make-up but I just feel like it looks like I’m trying too hard. I think it has a lot to do with my personality, I’m very laid back.”

Castillo is currently studying business and is afraid her choice of career will eventually change her decision to refrain from wearing make-up. “I read an article online, more than two thirds of employers admitting they would discriminate against women not wearing makeup to work. That’s just crazy to me, but this is the world we’re living in. At the end of the day, I’d rather wear makeup than be jobless.”

Campus Life

Bacon Board Gamers Club

 

The Bacon Board Gamers club has been a staple at NECC since 2011. The club was thought up by students in Mike Cross’ chemistry class at the time when one student, David Bowie, got serious and took the reins to make the club a prominent one at the school.

“My students really enjoyed the games I used in class to demonstrate various chemical principles and they wanted a chance to play them more often,” said Cross, who serves as the Bacon Board Gamers’ advisor.

The start of the club was slow but the Bacon Board Gamers didn’t give up. They applied for the Campus Catalyst program and received funding, which they mostly used to buy new games.

“We have around 100 games in a cabinet in my office and I have another 250 or so at home,” said Cross.

With the number of games they have there is a diverse set to choose from. “I love to play Cards Against Humanity,” said club secretary Colby Patrie.

Another member, David, said his favorite game to play is Werewolves.

It’s not all about the games with the Bacon Board Gamers. Members also bring in many different foods to the bi-weekly meeting.

“Despite the name, you don’t actually have to eat bacon to be part of the club. One of our members is even a vegetarian,” Cross said.

There is one special food the club always likes to have on hand though.
“We always order pizza with bacon on it,” Patrie said. Even bacon-cheeseburger pizza has made it into the mix.

Since its inception, the club has won some awards and has been recognized by some big names. During their first showcase to the Campus Catalyst program they won “Most Likely to Succeed.” They have also been awarded the President’s Cup by Lane Glenn and NECC. Local media has not failed to see the club’s successes either. The Haverhill Gazette, Eagle Tribune, Newburyport Daily News, WBZ Radio and the Boston Globe have all had feature stories on the Board Gamers.

The best part about the Bacon Board Gamers is that anyone can join.

“The Bacon Board Gamers is open to everyone – students, faculty, staff, even the general public,” said Cross.

Cross went on to talk about the club’s success and when they meet.

“Attendance at the club varies, but we probably average about a dozen people at each meeting. We have meetings the 1st and 3rd Fridays of each month at 6:30 pm in E260. We meet even during the summer and school breaks. We also hold an All-Day Gaming Marathon twice a year.”

To find out more about this club and its history, they have their own website at www.baconboardgamers.com

Opinion

What is True Beauty?

 

Corina Carmona, 20, who majors in Nursing says true beauty is “a person who is confident and sure of themselves. Someone who knows their value.”

Carmona is a youth mentor at her church and says she often gives self-esteem pep talks to the women at her church.

“So many women deal with this issue. It breaks my heart to see someone who doesn’t see themselves the way God does.” Carmona says she has also dealt with this issue. “One of the exercises I have the women at my church do is to actually have them look in the mirror and tell themselves that they’re beautiful. I know its corny … one of those things you only see in movies, but it works! Words are a powerful tool.” Carmona, sees herself continuing to teach the young women at her church to be confident.

“Accepting yourself the way you are, forget what everybody else thinks. No one is perfect … you may think someone else is beautiful, but I bet you that that person also has insecurities…” says Ashely Rivera, 20 who studies Respiratory. Rivera admits she has also had self-esteem issues at one point of her life, “Every girl goes through it — it’s part of life, you know.” Rivera says she has learned to ignore other people’s negative comments on her appearance.

“People will always have something to say about you, but you gotta keep it moving. I’ve learned to not let people rain on my parade.”

Eddie Hoar, who studies journalism and communication at NECC believes true beauty is far beyond the physical.

“It’s not superficial. It’s about how you carry yourself, how you present yourself to other people.” Hoar believes the media has put too much emphasis on physical appearance. “Outer beauty should matter little or not at all. A lot of that is genetic. Either you’re lucky or you’re not. Inner beauty is always going to be with you, you know. Is Gisele (Bündchen) going to look beautiful forever? No.”

Features

NECC student visits out-of-state schools

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What does a student at NECC do when they want to transfer out-of-state? It is well known that NECC is a great gateway to 4 year colleges in state, but what about the students who want to branch out of New England and explore other parts of the country?

Kelsey Terry, a biology, psychology and philosophy major exemplifies dedication to her education and desire to leave New England for grand plans. She is the student representative of the Finance Committee and Executive Committee, president of the Phi Theta Kappa Honors Society, student trustee and will be graduating with high honors. She has been accepted to Stephens College, Columbia MO, Stetson University, DeLand FL, Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne FL, and is waiting on University of Arizona, Tucson AZ, and University of California Davis, Davis CA.

Over winter break in January, Terry visited 3 schools that she extensively researched and planned to go see on a solo trip. The first leg of her journey began from Boston on January 4, she took a train from Boston to Orlando FL, which was 27 hours!

“Seeing the view of the country of the east coast was awesome. It’s just great being away from New England are for a little while,” said Terry. The first school visited was New College of Florida, in Sarasota, FL. “They are primarily the school that would give me the most money efficient package,” said Terry.

The college is small, with class sizes that have a maximum of 55 students per course, with only 850 total students. It is what is considered a ‘no common core’ college.

“They do not have GPAs, or A-F grading. They are all based off of narrative evaluations. They’re an honors college — they have honors diplomas given and when you’re admitted you have to commit to being an honor’s student. It has master’s level expectations, but extremely flexible,” said Terry.

The next part of Terry’s trip was from Orlando to Davis CA to the University of California Davis on a train for 80 hours, due to layovers in Washington DC and Chicago.

“I stayed there for 3 nights, I wanted a chance to mosey around the area, and visit the whole school and see all the apartments,” said Terry. She had a profound interest in this particular school due to her passion for animals, more specifically the animal biology major offered. She is more focused on animal biology as opposed to human biology, and University of California Davis has the best program for that field.
“They already have an animal biology as bachelor’s in science so I’m not focused on the general bio, I’m focused on animals,” said Terry. This year, University of California Davis was voted the number one veterinary school in the country surpassing Cornell University, for the first time making someone like Kelsey a very good candidate for veterinary school which is her dream.

The third leg of Terry’s journey was from Davis CA to Tucson AZ to visit the University of Arizona.

“I was there for two nights, and that school was beautiful. It’s massive, but Tucson is a beautiful area I’ve never seen more cactuses in my entire life. They’re a large university but they have the best for supports based off the large size,” said Terry. At both University of California Davis and University of Arizona the class sizes are a minimum of 150 people, which can prove challenging for someone coming from a smaller class sized community college like NECC. It is important to know things like that when applying to any four year college, and especially a school that it out of state. Terry took the time to visit these schools she showed a vested interest in to see how they may or may not fit into her goals academically.

Terry then went from Tucson back home to Boston with much more to consider for her upcoming spring break college visitation plans.

Over the spring break, Terry took a second solo journey visiting more out of state colleges. The first one she visited was Stephens College located in St. Louis, Mo.

“I left on Sunday, and this was by plane from Manchester NH to St. Louis Mo. From St. Louis an hour after arriving I went on the Missouri Express Shuttle to Columbia to see Stephens College. It is the most pet friendly school in the entire country, obviously that is what attracted me to them. There is only 850 students, they have an agreement with the University of Missouri and Columbia College, so I could take classes from those schools too,” said Terry.

Similarly, NECC has agreements with UMASS Lowell.

“I liked this school because of the small class sizes, they have a max of 10 people per course. They’re the school that contacts me the most, they seem like they want me,” said Terry. It suits students who do well in small classes, much like NECC’s smaller class sizes. “Downtown Columbia is beautiful, it’s like a piece of graph paper. Street attached to street, there’s stores connected to bakeries. It’s everything you need within a radius and walkable to the other two schools it’s affiliated with,” said Terry.

The next school on the list to visit was Stetson University in DeLand, FL. “This school was nice too because it was pet friendly, I want to bring my cat Mikey and my satin rabbit Snickers. I did a thing called shadow day, when you commit to going on campus, getting an information session, then you get a campus tour, after the tour you talk to your intended major advisors. I talked to the biology advisor, and I also talked to a psychology advisor too just in case,” said Terry. She got to opportunity to attend a bio II class.

“I was kind of shocked, because it varied from NECC’s version of bio II. NECC’s version focuses more on genetics and ecology/evolution, and I was surprised that at a university, there’s was like, focused more on anatomy and physiology,” said Terry. Interestingly, Stetson University is a private institution which may explain the difference in curriculum.

The next day Terry visited Florida Institute of Technology (FIT), which is in Melbourne, FL.

”This school I really liked because it is known to be a school that is worldly respected, especially when you’re trying to get into really competitive fields, like veterinary school. It is even more competitive than medical school,” said Terry.

On Terry’s visit to FIT, she attended what is called ‘Exploration Day’ which includes the information session, a tour where students are paired up with a tour guide, and where students talk to intended advisors for specific majors. After that, students get a tour of the appropriated centers of primary use.

“I got to see the microscope lab, and the biology labs I would be working in,” said Terry. Students are admitted directly to a major at FIT. “I don’t need to apply to biology and then apply again to pre-med, I would be admitted directly into biological science pre-med.

All coursework begins in the major so there’s none of this preparation stuff — all STEM students are involved in undergraduate projects right away, all have access to professors and funded research at the undergraduate level, so they purposely don’t have the graduate school interactive with the undergraduate school,” said Terry.
Based on the factor that half of the school is consisting of engineer majors, Terry is a little skeptical that she will like it, as that is not her niche.

Terry is also a tutor at the tutoring center at NECC and would have the opportunity to work in the tutoring center at Steven’s College and FIT, due to her experience with NECC.

“I like the fact of helping people in something that I think I academically excel in. I want to help improve graduation rates, I don’t want people to let the fear of math stop them from graduating,” said Terry.

“I would say, number one, look at the field you’re going into because you need to weigh out the particular field, how much you’re going to be making in reference to the value of what your education is. I know in my field, veterinary clinical pathology is not popular, so the fact that I am a female in a unique field I am going to most likely be hired easily. Having a 12 year degree isn’t bad, it’s in my favor. In general, I would say people need to start early, I mean, I was looking into these schools my 2nd year at NECC, which was two whole years prior to me even graduating.

“I think is some ways staying in state you’re only looking at financial, and I’m not looking at financial as a priority, I’m looking at what does the school offer me. Based off of a student preparation, I think you should make it a commitment to visit the schools — don’t just stay within the mass transfer agreement, it is a benefit to have all these schools open to us but you really should look outside what this world has to offer us,” said Terry.

Editorial

NECC Releases New Mission Statement

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In 2014 NECC began developing a new mission statement to replace the previous one which has been in place since 1992. The new mission statement has been finalized.

“At NECC, our mission is to educate and inspire our students to succeed. We provide a welcoming environment focused on teaching and learning—strongly committed to unlocking the potential within each student and empowering our diverse community of learners to meet their individual goals. We are a community college dedicated to creating vibrant and innovative opportunities that encourage excellence and enhance the cultural and economic life of our region.”

Mission statements are an important part of any college — they give prospective and current students and idea of the atmosphere and aims of the institution, and they allow for administration, faculty and staff to maintain perspective of the overarching goals of the college.

NECC is unique because it is a community college dedicated to cutting costs for students, especially in comparison with four year institutions, and it is unique because it has such strong diversity and focuses on creating a comfortable and accessible learning community.

The new mission statement is accurate to the stated goals of the college, and it will hopefully keep driving NECC to keep adapting and improving into the future. A mission statement is only as good as its delegates.

Campus Life

Transfer Student Chooses NECC

 

While NECC is often used for some students as a stepping-stone before a student heads into a four-year university or college, other students find themselves choosing NECC after the initial hype of attending a four-year school dies down.

Molly Fitzgerald, a current NECC communications major, did not have NECC on her radar at the beginning of her college journey.

Fitzgerald, a previous student at Franklin Pierce and Lasell College, struggled to find the perfect mix of academics and student life on both campuses. As a soccer player, Fitzgerald was drawn to both schools because of their sports programs saying, “I chose it (the colleges) mainly for the soccer program and didn’t even focus on the academics, while is the most important part of going away to college.”

Finding the right personal rhythm on a campus allows a student to engage both academically and socially in a way that will help move their college experiences forward.

When asked if NECC was a school she had ever considered, Fitzgerald stated, “NECC was never in my radar when I was first applying for colleges. But I wish it was. I honestly wish I started out at NECC.”

As verified by College Board, “More than 40 percent of U.S undergraduate students attend community colleges – with students who are 18 and 24 years old making up the largest group.”

While Molly did not start out at a two-year community college, she developed the same feelings and thoughts as the 40 percent of U.S students did, “You get the same education at a community college that you get at a four year school,” said Fitzgerald.

To explain the relationship between community colleges and four year schools, College Board argues that “community colleges save money, prepare for transfer to a four year college, help get students ready for a career and take advantage of all the things a four year school offers without the commitment.”

“I feel as though I’m more prepared this time because I’m going away to school to further my education. Without NECC, I wouldn’t feel as confident in a classroom like I am now.”

Students like Molly Fitzgerald have found comfort in the idea that community college allows for educational and personal growth before commitment to a four year school. While Fitzgerald started other universities and colleges, NECC allowed for the continued development of important career and personal goals for this communications major.

Features

Meet Rowan Brick

 

When many people think of gender, they tend to see it as a rather black-and-white issue; to them, there are only men and women. For Rowan Brick, however, things are more complex.

“It’s definitely really complicated,” he said. “I’ve always experienced dysphoria … but I’ve never attached it to my gender until recently. It wasn’t until the last seven months that I’ve identified as fully masculine.”

Brick identifies as transmasculine — he was designated female at birth, but identifies with masculinity.

To people who have only ever thought of gender as it corresponds to the “binary” — that is, the idea that gender is split between masculinity and femininity — these kind of terms can seem impenetrable. Words like “genderqueer,” which reflects a rejection of the binary, have only come into prominence in the last few years; thus, many disregard people’s gender identities as strange, unimportant, and as “exceptions to the rule.”

Brick, 19, is a Psychology major — and recognizes the danger of people’s refusal to accept others for who they are. As part of a project for his class, he researched correlational studies on attitudes within the LGBTQIAAP+ community. What he discovered was sobering: in Canada, one study found that the suicide rates among bisexual women were much higher than those among straight and gay women.

While this may not directly relate to the idea of gender, it does hint at a startling fact about our society: people often angrily expect others to “make up their minds” rather than be multiple things at once — something that people with non-conforming gender experience all the time.

Brick has experienced a difficult time coming out to many people — as part of this, his recent adoption of the name “Rowan” has not extended to everyone he knows quite yet.

“The name is definitely a recent thing,” he said. “I’m not out at home and probably never will be … I’ve been very selective about who I come out to, but I don’t fear violence here as much as I would in a place like Tennessee.”

Violence and discrimination are major problems in the lives of trans people; last year, on Dec. 28, 17-year-old Leelah Alcorn took her life; on Feb. 15 of this year, Zander Mahaffey, just 15 years old, committed suicide. Both teenagers’ gender identities were rejected and stigmatized by their families; in both cases, support from loved ones might have saved their lives.

Cases like these are tragic, but have provided the most worldwide attention for the community in history.

“It’s a difficult battle. This is the highest visibility we’ve ever had, but we need more,” said Brick.

For those interested in finding out more about these issues, Brick said, one has to be careful to ask the right questions. Many times, people get so caught up in their curiosity that they forget that they’re speaking to a human being — with feelings just like anyone else, and a right to reasonable privacy.

“There are always questions you should never ask, like asking a trans person how much they hate themselves or what their genitals are,” he said. “It’s dehumanizing.”

For LGBTQIAAP+ students at NECC, it’s important to note that a safe space is never too far away. Brick is a member of the Gay-Straight Alliance at the school, which provides a space for people of all sexualities and gender identities.

GSA student president Kelly Schwing said, “Rowan is a beautiful soul. Nothing he could say about who he loves or how he loves could change that. We’ve grown really close and knowing that he’s happy with himself and listening to him talk about his partner, Charlie, is one of my favorite things. The smile and the excitement beaming from him is amazing. It’s the kind of feeling you want everyone to have on their faces all the time.”

Brick said that Professor Kristi Arford’s “Sex and Gender” class can also be a wonderful resource for NECC students both familiar and unfamiliar with more complex gender ideas. Arford is also the faculty adviser for the GSA.

“Professor Arford knows what she’s talking about,” he said. “A lot of the time you have the chance to talk about your own experiences, and most of the students there are people who are interested in taking it. Students who will be vocally ignorant are a vast minority.”

Thankfully, Brick’s support is not just limited to within the walls of NECC — as previously mentioned, his datefriend, Charlie Morris, has been wonderfully supportive.

“Rowan and I knew each other were queer more or less as long as we knew each other, long before we were in a relationship,” said Morris. “We came out to each other as nonbinary at essentially the same time … He didn’t come out as transmasculine until later but, of course, if Rowan’s more boy than girl then good for him. We went through a list of names trying to find him one he liked before he independently found and selected ‘Rowan.’ Of course I support Rowan in however he identifies.”

Morris said that communication can be difficult with society’s current understanding of gender; he and Rowan often have to refer to themselves differently depending on who they’re talking to.

“Unfortunately we live in a world which barely acknowledges the transgender community, let alone the nonbinary one. I refer to Rowan with his given name around my parents as well. It’s a pain and it’s wrong, but for the time it’s what has to happen.

“When I visited him, I used traditionally feminine pronouns and his given name for his parents’ sake. He’s talked about transitioning eventually, but the problem always cycles back to his family; they seem like perfectly nice people, which is what makes it so hard.”

Despite the difficulties, Brick continues to work hard and find success — he’s currently an honors student at NECC. After finishing here, he hopes to transfer to a four-year school to get a degree in psychology. After that, he said, he wants to use his knowledge and experience with sexuality and gender in a career — hopefully working as a psychotherapist with teenagers and young adults in the LGBTQIAAP+ community.

Considering this, Schwing said that support is a critical part of any LGBTQIAAP+ person’s success. “The best thing we as loved ones can do is accept people as they identify. They are the ones waking up every morning in their bodies, with their thoughts. We have to let them know we support them. As long as their hearts are happy and their souls can flourish, you should be able to set aside whatever ‘societal norm’ (you currently believe), because you do that for people you care about. You let them be happy.”