Tag Archives: News

Arts and Entertainment, Campus Life, News

Summer Music Festival

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The harmonious sounds of the 5th Annual Summer Music Festival, directed by Christina Dietrick, permeated TC103 in the Hartleb Technology Center on August 14. Dulcet melodies drifted into the hallways as parents proudly watched their children demonstrate their musical talents.

The festival this year was held from Aug. 9 to Aug. 15. The artists presented their hard work after a grueling but enlightening week of musical camp. What started as just a fun program for aspiring musicians to hone their talents has turned into an annual music festival event.

Director Christina Dietrick became a part of NECC through Michael Kramer, a previous faculty member of NECC who performed as a guest pianist for the festival. He brought Dietrick to NECC after a change of direction in his path, by becoming a mathematics teacher. Leaving his piano class expertise, he chose Dietrick as his replacement.

“I wanted my class piano course to go to somebody who I knew was very competent, and I graduated with Christine from Boston University,” he said.

We both did our master’s and doctorate’s there at the same time,” said Dietrick.

The rest is history. Dietrick has been the piano teacher at NECC since 1994, as well as the music faculty at Mount Wachusett Community College, Indian Hill Music, and is the founder/director of the Chopin Conservatory of Music on the North Shore. Her other notable accomplishments include her performances both in the United States and Europe as a soloist in concert, as well as with orchestras performing on a plethora of stages including Jordan Hall, Alice Tulley Hall at Lincoln Center. She regularly performs at the New York Public Library and Chopin Society of New England.

The Annual Summer Music Festival began 5 years ago when Dietrick received the opportunity to organize a music festival from chairman Kenneth Langer. “First it started with just being a piano camp, but then I said, why don’t I make it chamber music? So therefore I brought in two colleagues. First it was Alice Holstrom, then it was Caroline Reiner-Williams, and then her husband Angel Hernandez-Dominguez joined us 3 years ago,” Dietrick said.

Both Reiner-Williams and Hernandez-Dominguez performed alongside the students at the festival, adding even more life to the pieces. Both artists are of the highest caliber in their musical talents. Reiner-Williams, who plays the violoncello, received her undergraduate degree in cello performance at age 19, and has gone one to complete her master’s degree in cello performance at the Longy School of Music. Having toured Canada, England, France, Russia, Spain, and Portugal and being a member of the Boston Youth Symphony, she now spends her time as a faculty member at Brooks School in North Andover, Fay School, Indian Hill Music Center, and Joy of the Music Program. Reiner-Williams also founded the Nashaway Trio with her husband Hernandez-Dominguez and pianist Roy Imperio.

Her husband Hernandez-Dominguez graced the stage with his exceptional talents on the violin and viola. His accomplishments include his studies of violin at Manuel Saumell Conservatory in Havana. From there, he has been a part of the Aguascalientes Symphony Orchestra, the Queretaro Philharmonic, and performed as a soloist on many occasions. He currently teaches violin and viola at Brooks School in North Andover, Cushings Academy, and the Shrewsbury MA Public schools. He also builds and repairs violins.

From Brahms to Mozart, the artists’ renditions of classical music transformed TC103 into a music hall. The performers varied from all ages, from 4 to 14.

“I put on (Disney’s) ‘Fantasia’ . . . one of the days we had camp, and all the kids ran to the practice room because they were so eager to practice their skills,” said Dietrick.

News

The Financial Adviser

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With college comes new friends, new experiences and new responsibilities. It also comes with several new expenses that can affect a student’s quality of life and lead to long term debt and confusing credit issues. Whether you are a returning student, or if this is your first year, now is the right time to familiarize yourself with all of the financial resources that are available to you. Even if you don’t need them right now, it’s never too soon to prepare.

Scholarships and grant money are available for a variety of things and from a wide variety of sources. Far too many are available to try to list them here.  In fact, according to the NECC website, 216 NECC students received over $200,000 for the 2014/2015 academic year alone.

Financial aid can help students with much more than the cost of classes and is available from a variety of sources.  Financial aid can also be used to pay for books, transportation and even participation in special programs such as the study abroad program.  Since some programs are on a first-come, first-served basis, it is advisable that you apply as early as possible.

Your student ID itself can also be a huge source of benefits and savings.  Follow the link on your blackboard account to download microsoft office for free instead of paying for expensive software.  Print homework from the computer lab, eat free lunch on campus several times each semester, rent blockbuster movies from the Bentley Library and get discounts around town on everything from florists to restaurants to dental care.  Get to know the full list of benefits and discounts to save money on everyday items.  Every little bit really does add up.

More information about scholarships and grants can be obtained through any of the following resources:

 

Alumni Association

Lindsey Mayo, Director of Alumni Relations

978-556-3621

lmayo@necc.mass.edu

Enrollment Services/Financial Aid

Alexis Fishbone, Director

978-556-3615

afishbone@necc.mass.edu

Office of Institutional Advancement

Lindsay Graham, Assistant Director

Scholarship Management & Donor Stewardship

978-556-3629

scholarships@necc.mass.edu

Pathways to Academic & Career Excellence (PACE)

Kristen Arnold, PACE Program Transfer Advisor (TRiO-SSS)

978-556-3418

karnold@necc.mass.edu

from: http://www.necc.mass.edu/getting-started/financial-aid/types/scholarships/

 

For more information about your financial aid options:

 

For general financial aid questions, please email aid@necc.mass.edu or visit the One Stop Student Services Center in Haverhill or Lawrence. Our front desk team will be happy to answer your questions

 

Financial Aid Office Hours                 

Day Haverhill Lawrence
Monday 9:00 am to 6:30 pm 9:00 am to 6:30 pm
Tuesday 9:00 am to 6:30 pm 9:00 am to 6:30 pm
Wednesday 9:00 am to 6:30 pm 9:00 am to 6:30 pm
Thursday 9:00 am to 6:30 pm 9:00 am to 6:30 pm
Friday 9:00 am to 4:30 pm Noon to 4:30 pm

 

from: https://www.necc.mass.edu/getting-started/financial-aid/contact/

 

 

 

See the full list of student discounts here:

 

Business Address Discount
A-1 Deli Inc. 92 Merrimack StHaverhill, MA978-372-7951 10%
Angelo the Florist 197 Winter StHaverhill, MA978-372-0270 10% Cash and Carry
Buchika’s 340 BroadwaySalem, NH603-893-5534 10% off accessories
Capitol Lighting Get 15% off lighting for your dorm or office fromCapitol Lighting – 1800lighting.com COUPON CODE at Checkout: CAP15-NECC
Cedardale Heath & Fitness 931 Boston RdBradford, MA978-373-1596 No Registration Fee (Plus)
The Comic Book Palace 620 Primrose StHaverhill, MA978-372-1477 10% off comic books
A+ Computer Solutions 334 Common StreetLawrence, MAPhone : (978)566-9747

http://www.smileywork.com

 10 – 15% on computer repair and tablets and smart phones. Discounts to NECC students with an ID
Cut Above 127 S Main StBradford, MA978-374-9742 10% off retail products
EnterpriseRent-A-Car 31 River StHaverhill, MA978-374-1020 10% off on Corporate Account
Family Affair Salon 292 Main StGroveland, MA978-372-9011 20% off wash/cut/style
Holland’s Flower Shop 577 S Main StBradford, MA978-373-1700 10% off Cash and Carry
Paper Potpourri 95 BroadwayHaverhill, MA978-372-3861 10%
Shear Magic 620 Primrose StHaverhill, MA978-521-8900 10% off retail products
Smile Braces 76 Merrimack StHaverhill, MA978-521-1999 10% off orthodontic treatmentMonthly payment available
Texas Road House 424 BroadwayMethuen, MA978-975-5588 10%
Yokohama Restaurant 313 S BroadwayLawrence, MA978-689-4047 10% discount with NECC student ID (only on food, does not include drinks).

 

from: https://www.necc.mass.edu/student-life/activities/center/services/

News

Please don’t feed the geese

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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/.

News

Introducing the Observer staff:

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For more than 50 years, the Observer has been the forum for the very best of the journalism students here at NECC to showcase their talent and obtain real-world work experience.  Unlike that “real world,” the Observer begins each year with a large percentage of new staff members who need to learn the ropes.  This includes learning photo and design software that may be previously unfamiliar to them and cultivating new relationships with sources.  Sometimes, this leads to a rocky start for the first few editions of the year and has made it difficult for our paper, and our website, to reach its full potential.

In response to this, veteran members of the Observer staff have been on campus all summer following important news and changes.  New staff has been hard at work training and a web editor has been added to ensure the most up to date content on our social media sites.  We are bringing back a Campus Life page and a page that is Just For Fun, and we look forward to running your cartoons, pictures, letters to the editor and story ideas.  This newspaper is for you.  Look for all of the changes and let us know what you think.

I am honored to work with this talented team of journalists.

Features, News

LGBTQ+ Milestones

 
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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, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice and family. In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than once they were.”

Prof. Kristi Arford said she was at her computer first thing in the morning when she read the headlines about the ruling. “That was a really important moment!” she said. Colby Patrie was getting ready for an anime convention when he heard the news. “I ran into the living room to watch the news and watched President Obama’s speech,” he said.

The trans community made some strides of their own, continuing to get more and more time in the spotlight. On a smaller scale, the Massachusetts Trans Political Coalition started a bill to give trans people protections not already promised to them. Protections against harassment in public places, discrimination in the workplace and protection in general of their well being. Mike Givens, public relations for the MTPC said that the bill met some difficulties town by town and so they decided to take it to the State House. On Sept. 17 the MTPC and supporters will hold their “Lobby Day” on the grand staircase of the Massachusetts State House.

“I Am Jazz,” a TLC show, debuted July 15. The reality show depicts the life of Jazz Jennings, a 14-year-old trans girl who came out to her parents at the age of 2 and to the rest of her community at her 5th birthday party when she made the bold decision to wear a one-piece rainbow bathing suit.

Jennings came out to the public back in 2007 and has since co-written a children’s book to help younger kids–and anyone else who cared to read it–understand what it means to be transgender. She is a major spokesperson for the trans community doing panels, speaking at ceremonies and keeping up her own YouTube page.

Caitlyn Jenner created a media frenzy when she came out as trans during an April 25 interview on 20/20. The fire was further fueled when she revealed her postoperative appearance on the cover of Vanity Fair’s July issue.

Jenner fielded a lot of hate during this time. When she was awarded the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the ESPYS on July 15, many took to social media to voice their displeasure. Facebook and Twitter were abuzz with criticism that called for a reevaluation of the meaning of courage. Different memes on the internet juxtaposed Chris Kyle with Jenner with the caption, “Hero. Not a hero.” Some memes went as far as to slander people for judging Michael Jackson for his plastic surgery and praising Jenner for hers.

In contrast, Some Internet users fought against hateful language with loving messages, creating memes positioning pictures of Jenner back in her Olympian days and her Vanity Fair cover with the caption, “American hero.”

Patrie the second-year art student, reached a milestone of his own this summer.

“I spent my whole life wondering why I had to wear these stupid dresses … It wasn’t until years later when I learned what transgender was and everything fell right into place,” said Patrie who came out publicly as trans on July 29. He names Jenner as his biggest influence. “She was once known as the manliest man you could ever be, tough, strong, an olympian. For her to come out was the bravest thing she could have ever done. and you see the difference in photos. (Bruce was) always frowning, covering their face, you could see there was pain.”

NECC’s own LGBT presence is known as the Gay-Straight Alliance and is overseen by Arford. Arford has been teaching at the school for seven years in the areas of anthropology, world religions, sociology and sex and gender. Three or four years ago she took on the role of GSA faculty adviser.

Growing up Arford said she didn’t know any trans kids but, as previously mentioned, she teaches a course on sex and gender and uses her knowledge to try and explain the taboo still surrounding transgender people, “Our culture’s ideas of sex and gender are based on an ‘essentialist’ binary, with roots in religion.  If you believe that God created males and females, and only males and females, with very distinct characteristics and ‘natural’ roles to play, then you most likely believe a person cannot choose to change that, and that one’s assigned sex cannot be wrong. One problem with this thinking is that it doesn’t recognize the difference between sex and gender, and does not acknowledge gender roles as social constructs that vary widely across time and place.” Patrie adds, “People are afraid of what they don’t know, and start thinking the worst.”

As the world continues to turn and change, Arford said, “People are becoming more aware, and more people are challenging the gender binary. I guess that’ll probably be the next big cultural shift we’ll see, a move away from the binary understanding of gender, toward more fluidity and variance in gender expression.”

Campus Life, News

Opportunity Works

 
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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.

News

NECC to Commemorate Abraham Lincoln

 

NECC will commemorate the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln 150 years later on Tuesday, April 14 at the Hartleb Technology Center, Room 103A on the Haverhill campus.

The program will run from 9:15 a.m. to about 12:30 p.m. with a variety of events, which are free and open to the public. This program is part of the 2014 – 2015 Speakers’ Series, “Movers, Shakers and Opinion Makers,” that is supported by the NECC Fund as well as Academic and Student Affairs.
Activities include the following:
-9:15 a.m.: Opening ceremony will be held with a welcome from President Lane Glenn, remarks on Lincoln by Richard Padova and a reading of the Gettysburg Address by Theater Professor Jim Murphy.
-9:45 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.: Guest speaker Dr. Heather Cox Richardson, Professor of History at Boston College, an expert in 19th century America and the Civil War and the author of five books about American politics, will give a presentation entitled “Abraham Lincoln and the Meaning of America.”
-10:45 a.m. to noon: A panel discussion featuring Professors Stephen Russell (“The Merrimack Valley in the Civil War”); Andrew Morse (“Lincoln and the Legislature”); and Thomas Greene (“Stake of the Union: Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter”) will be held.
-noon: A staged reading of Act 3, Scene 2 of “Our American Cousin” will be held, followed by a moment of silence and conclusion of the activities.
-9:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.: A special display of Lincoln-related items from Richard Padova’s private collection will be available for viewing, which include a ballot that was cast in Ohio for President Lincoln’s re-election on November 8th, 1864; a playbill for “Our American Cousin” that was printed on the morning of April 15th, 1865 and circulated on the streets of Washington, DC to drum up ticket sales, after Mary Todd Lincoln informed John Ford that she and the president would be attending that evening’s performance at Ford’s Theater; and a handbill that was printed announcing Lincoln’s assassination with a memorial poem written by George DeWolfe, the Wandering Poet, of Nashua, N.H.

For more information, contact the organizer, Richard Padova, faculty member in the Global Studies Department at 978-556-3297 or rpadova@necc.mass.edu.

News

Brian Williams Suspension

 

By Duane Sherman

Here at NECC, Journalism students are stressed two facts from the second they land in that classroom seat. “Accuracy! Accuracy! Accuracy!” is one. The other is “your credibility is all you have.” It’s pretty straight forward advice. This is nothing new. It’s been the same since news became a way of communicating with one another. The truth is important. The truth does matter.

It’s tough enough to report the news, but it’s even tougher to be the news. NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams did just that, but it wasn’t overnight. It took 12 years for it to come to light that there had been some embellishment on the part of Williams.

Williams had conflated events regarding his proximity to conflict in a warzone.

This embellishment has forced one of America’s most trusted newsman to spend the rest of his career sporting a metaphorical black eye.

NBC News president Deborah Turness released a statement saying, “We have decided today to suspend Brian Williams as Managing Editor and Anchor of NBC Nightly News for six months. The suspension will be without pay and is effective immediately. We let Brian know of our decision earlier today. Lester Holt will continue to substitute Anchor the NBC Nightly News.

“While on Nightly News on Friday, January 30, 2015, Brian misrepresented events which occurred while he was covering the Iraq War in 2003. It then became clear that on other occasions Brian had done the same while telling that story in other venues. This was wrong and completely inappropriate for someone in Brian’s position.
“In addition, we have concerns about comments that occurred outside NBC News while Brian was talking about his experiences in the field. As Managing Editor and Anchor of Nightly News, Brian has a responsibility to be truthful and to uphold the high standards of the news division at all times.”

This is not the first time that an anchor has gone down in flames over a news story. Just ask former CBS Evening News anchor, Dan Rather. He was let go at the pinnacle of his career over a false story regarding the as-yet-to-be-elected President George W. Bush.

The troops that were in the actual helicopter that was shot down, are the real story and should have been the focus, not Williams himself.

Alexandra Cote of Bradford, herself a graduate of Journalism studies, now at NECC for a degree in Psychology said, ” I don’t think that he will be back. Most do it, but he got caught. There are different perspectives, but it didn’t really hurt anyone.”

Lisa Hernandez, a freshman at NECC who resides in North Andover said, “I think that it (the punishment) is too harsh. It’s not right what they are doing to him. He’s not the first guy to say something not true, but not everyone gets that type of punishment.”

At least one freshman on campus echoes the sentiments of the journalists code, referenced at the beginning of this article. Victoria Sheperd of Amesbury said, “The news doesn’t always tell the whole story. Telling us what we only want to hear takes credibility away.”

News

Market Basket strikes cause strife

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With the Demoulas family fighting and the Market Basket chain coming to a near halt, it has affected some students here at NECC.

It was early July when the Market Basket board of directors headed by Arthur S. Demoulas fired Arthur T. Demoulas who had been serving as president of the company since 2008 according to an article in the Boston Globe.

An uproar took place when employees walked off their jobs and customers boycotted the stores. The loss of Artie T, led to both customers and employees going to the Market Basket headquarters in Tewksbury and protesting.

Within a couple weeks, Market Basket’s profits were falling sharply. With no food coming out of the warehouses and stores slowly emptying of merchandise, the Market Basket Board of Directors decided it was time for the stores to cut all hours to part time employees and schedule employees to the store’s needs.

Viviana Padilla, a NECC general studies student said, she has worked part time in the Lawrence store for 5 years.

“It was my first job,” said Padilla. In Padilla’s store they started scheduling part timers one day a week then eventually told her do not not bother looking at the schedule as there were no hours for her.

With school starting around the corner and hours being cut, Mariah Cruz, a liberal arts student who worked part time in the Haverhill store started to worry. She lives at home with her single mother and siblings. She helped her mom out with bills and food for her family. She also worried about the added cost that was coming due to starting school. 

“I now have no income,” said Cruz.

Some students were not given the official word they were laid off. Matthew Gagnon, a business transfer student who works part time in the Haverhill store said he technically still has a job but would not be given any hours. 

“I have not been able to pay bills, and I usually help my dad out with bills. It has been a little bit of a struggle,” said Gagnon. 

Gagnon also said he will be given hours for this week.

For weeks there were assurances that Market Basket was moving closer to a deal, but there no deal until last week, causing students to look elsewhere for work and shoppers other places to shop in the meantime.

Jasmine Montilla, a radiology student works at Stop and Shop and is seeing the influx of customers that once shopped at Market Basket. It has affected her in a different way by putting stress on her.  “I am getting complaints from customers about the pricing and how expensive Stop and Shop is compared to Market Basket.” Montilla understand the customer’s anger but does not understand the complaints that are coming her way being a cashier.

The Market Basket saga of the summer of 2014 came to an end last week when Arthur T. Demoulas bought the remaining 50.5 percent of the company giving him soul ownership with his three sisters.  This deal could not come soon enough for some students, as they want to get back to work and start helping out with their families.