The spring new student orientation is held four times during winter break, with two sessions being held on the Haverhill campus and two on the Lawrence campus. The orientations are held so students know all that is offered on campus, from class information to counseling services.
Kadee Tapley, a programming assistant in the Student Engagement Center, said, “I think it’s important so the new students can see what resources are available to them. It also helps them to meet new students, so when they do start classes they have some friendly faces on campus.”
New students are often anxious about starting college and a new school. The students seem to relax a bit when they realize, that students who have experience on the NECC campuses are holding the orientation.
Joseph Meli, a communications student felt that because of the direct experiences of the student orientation leaders it made it more enjoyable Meli said, “It’s nice to hear it from students.”
The orientation starts out with an icebreaker called “Human Bingo.” The object is to get up and work the room and try to find fellow new students with qualities that relate to them on each others board.
Elfie Grusing, a general studies student and an orientation leader, said, “This is a great icebreaker as the bingo game progresses you can see the connections being built between the students.”
The students then come upon their very first pop quiz as college students. The pop quiz is meant to be fun and the table that answers the most questions correctly wins a prize. The quiz is basic NECC information, such as when classes start and where the campuses are located. It also goes over specifics on a syllabus, dates of finals, where the grading system be found, and professors contact information.
Orientation Leaders go over time management with a small exercise in which a volunteer from the orientation is handed a pile of cash.
The entire room gasps and wonders why they did not volunteer. The student is asked to count the money and let everyone know how much is there. The money totals $24, to signify 24 hours in a day.
The students are then asked about different activities they do throughout the day. When they are asked how long they sleep, work, prepare and eat meals or hang out with friends, they have to hand over that dollar amount. At the end the student ends up with no money left in their hand, but they do get a prize for participating.
Students also learn about things that are less exciting, but seemed to have generated the most questions such as, paying for college, requirements both in and out of the classroom and what to expect when you do not follow the student code of conduct.
Angelina Gard, an education major, said, “The orientation was pretty cool, I liked it a lot. They were very informative and it was very easy to get through.”
The students had a chance at the end to ask any questions they had. Meli said, “All the questions I had before I came to orientation were answered before I could even ask them. I feel ready to start school next week.”
Tag Archives: Student life
Are tattoos acceptable in the workplace?
Art has been around longer than any other human creation. From decorative hand axes to cave paintings, from the Renaissance to modern art to postmodern art and beyond, humans have always been driven to express themselves. Some like to paint or draw their art while others like to express their art on their body.
Tattoos have also been around for centuries. Tattoos are their own kind of art form, one that you can’t take down from your wall if you get tired looking at it.
The world is full of opinions, and when it comes to tattoos in the workplace you can expect both good and bad reactions.
In America we expect to get judged by our appearances, and I find it to be normal nowadays that when it comes to a job, if we don’t fit in to what the “norm” is, then our chances of getting hired are diminished.
I myself have four tattoos. I love every single one, and it is my way of expressing beauty. But my career path leads to a conventionally professional workplace — you don’t see many news anchors flaunting tattoos. For that reason, when I choose to get a tattoo, I hide it with clothes.
I can understand a boss not wanting to hire someone who has vulgar tattoos, but I don’t see the problem with showing of non-vulgar art.
For example surgeons, police, firefighters and EMTs are usually always covered up with their gear. These are people who save thousands of lives every single day. They should not be looked at differently because they have tattoos
The old saying “don’t judge a book by its cover” should always be in the back of your head before you judge someone.
Justin Guy of Lowell, Mass., had some things to say about this matter. “Simply put, tattoos do affect your chances of getting a job you want, if they are visible. It is seen as ‘unprofessional’ to have visible tattoos, no matter what it is,” Guy said.
“You also have to take into consideration where you work and what you’re trying to do. For example, I work at UPS as a supervisor. When I was a package sorter it didn’t matter whether I had tattoos or not, I’m not around customers so they could care less. But now that I have a supervisor position [so] I’m not allowed have tattoos that are visible — because, as I said earlier, they see it as ‘unprofessional.’
“But I do in fact have tattoos, that my work shirt covers up, so they can’t really say anything about it ‘cause its not visible.
“Moral to the story: get tattoos. Just be careful of the placement, and you can get any job you desire.”
Another student who has strong feelings about tattoo judgment is Jess Palmer of Haverhill, Mass.
(Disclosure: Jess Palmer worked for the NECC Observer from Fall 2012 to Fall 2013.)
When I first met Palmer the first thing I noticed was her strong personality. She’s such a sweet and caring girl, I came to find out one day that she has nine tattoos, and she is very proud to show them off.
Palmer says, “Although I am an advocate against stereotyping against tattoos, it’s the world we live in nowadays. People in a professional setting see tattoos as rebellious and could possibly make a bad name for their company.
“I think it’s ridiculous. Tattoos are pieces of art, but if you don’t cover them you could lose your job.
“Many workplaces make it a policy that employees cover their tattoos, and it’s sad quite honestly.
“Just because I have tattoos on my body doesn’t mean I am not educated or a well-rounded worker.
“I am ambitious, kind, and a leader but because I have tattoos I am labeled as inadequate.
“So yes, I do believe that having tattoos affects your chance of getting certain jobs when you are compared to someone who doesn’t have any tattoos or any visible ones. Do I agree with it? No. But that’s the world we live in.
“However, I am hopeful that at some point in our lifetime tattoos will become more acceptable in the workplace and society as a whole.”
Palmer has recently gotten into the photography business. One of her current projects is about tattoo stereotyping.
Palmer said, “As of December 2014, we decided that we wanted to capture photos of tattoos to help spread awareness of tattoo stereotyping.
“Many judge the art on the bodies of others because they are blind to see the stories they hold.
“Our goal here is to share those stories through artistic and tasteful black and white photos of these pieces of work.”
If you are interested in joining this project and stopping tattoo stereotyping please contact Jess Palmer at
jesspalmerphotography@gmail.com.
Ski and snowboarding trip available
The NECC atheletics department is offering a ski and snowboarding trip to NECC students.
The trip will be Sunday, Feb. 8 and students will be skiing Gunstock Mountain.
The cost of the trip, including transportation and lift tickets is $35. Students going on the trip may bring one 18+ guest for an additional $50.
Tickets are limited and will sell quickly. To purchase, please contact Maureen Saliba at msaliba@necc.mass.edu or stop by the Sport & Fitness Center, room 104.
Texting in class can be a distraction
By Rachel Sarcione
Although many NECC professors request that students refrain from using their electronic devices during class, texting and social media continue to be a distraction during lectures and exams.
“I feel bad for the professors,” said NECC student Melissa Dow, 37. “They spend all that time preparing lessons and then people are texting the whole time.”
Social media can be fun. However, it is social grace that could be the deciding factor in landing your dream-job.
Laurie Yennaco, 48, a salon owner said, “the time for good ethics is before you enter the workplace.”
Yennaco has employed more than 20 stylists and said she “has never seen a stylist stop cutting hair to return a text” because her employees keep their phones in the break area.
“Texting in class is ignorant to the people that want to learn,” said Bruce Augustonavich, a returning NECC graduate. “It’s rude the person teaching.”
Unfortunately, the classroom is not the only campus location where social media is disturbing NECC students and staff. The library has computers available for students to do research and writing assignments. However, some students are using the computers for purposes other than academics.
“It’s difficult not to be distracted,” said Gail Stuart, Head of Research Services at NECC’s Bentley Library. “It’s important to focus on one thing when you’re trying to absorb information.”
End of semester blues
By Eduardo Souza
To students, the end of the semester can feel like a mixed blessing.
On one side, it’s almost over. Students are almost done and winter break is coming. However, there’s still so much to do. There are papers to write. There are final exams to study for. There’s a multitude of work still to be done and it seems like it all falls on the same week.
Every student has their own reasons for pursuing an education at NECC, and at times like these it’s important to remember what those are and keep focused on your primary objective.
NECC has a diverse student population. Some of the students here have recently graduated high school; some haven’t stepped inside a classroom in years and have decided to give it try. It can be a daunting experience coming back to the classroom. It takes courage to step out of one’s comfort zone and give something new a chance.
“I came to NECC because it provides a good education at a low cost compared to other colleges and universities,” said Jensy Veras, a sophomore majoring in human services. Veras plans to transfer to Merrimack College after getting his associate’s at NECC.
“My goal is to get involved with human services,” said Veras. “In this area, there are many paths I can take. I can work with kids. I can work with at-risk youths. I’d like to do something where I’m helping to better the community.”
Melanie Fortin, a student at NECC majoring in radiology, said she’s happy with the school and is impressed at all the different programs the school offers. Fortin said to succeed at NECC, a student needs to try hard and be engaged.
“You have be really motivated and engaged here,” said Fortin. “You can’t just go home and do nothing. You have to try.”
As with Veras, Fortin said her education’s not ending here. “I’ll probably continue to a four-year program,” she said. “I’m thinking of going to the University of New Hampshire.” Fortin plans on pursuing a career in radiology and NECC provides the first step into that path.
Some students have spent decades outside of the classroom and have just come back to pursue a different career path. Duane Sherman, a freshman majoring in liberal arts: writing, has spent the last thirty years working in radio broadcasting. After leaving radio behind, Sherman decided it was time to go back to school.
“This is the first time I’m back in the classroom in thirty years,” said Sherman. “I’m happy and I’m proud that I’m doing well.”
Taking that first step to go back to school after so many years can be a difficult decision.
“I was skeptical going in on some regards,” said Sherman. But Sherman gave it a try and is now looking forward to his future. “I would like to be a writer of books,” said Sherman. “I’d like to write a memoir. Write some fiction and non-fiction… My goal is to make a living off my own words.”
GSA holds trans awareness workshop
On Friday, Nov. 21 the NECC Gay Straight Alliance held a trans awareness workshop.
Three students spoke to educate students, staff and faculty about the issues they face every day, and the proper ways to talk about it so no one gets hurt.
At the beginning of the workshop, Kelly Schwing, the president of the GSA, asked everyone to ponder a thought. They were asked to think about how many trans students they interact with every day?
The panel started off by reading a slide giving a description on what it means to be transgender.
The slide said, “transgender people are individuals who have a gender identity that does not match their sex they were assigned at birth. Typically people who are transgender have a self-image that varies from the body or gender role they were born into and wish to take steps to change that. Some people opt to identify as transgender as opposed to transsexual. The two words are similar in meaning however, some people find the term transsexual very offensive so it is always better to ask them what they want to be called.”
When they were finished giving that information, student presenter Emily ______ said, “I feel like it’s a good rule to keep in mind with anything. If you do not know what someone wants to go by, just ask them.”
“People will be more offended if you guess rather than say, ‘what do you want to be identified as?'” said student presenter Jake_____.
Emily ____ also made an important point about the dangers of outing a transgender student. She explained that many trans people are in the closet to family, coworkers, employers or strangers because of a real risk of mistreatment, harassment or abuse.
Colby, who is a genderqueer student, said, “Although they are out, if you were talking to your friends out at a bar and your friends ask about bottom surgery or what is it like being trans, the wrong person could hear that, and in this day and age, it could be very dangerous.”
“You would never ask about certain medical procedures other people had. So don’t ask what [a trans person] has,” said Emily _______.
The presenters also discussed misconceptions about trans people. There are a lot of misconceptions of what it means to be transgender, and the panel wanted to give the guests the correct information to combat stereotypes.
“What transgender people are not are creeps, perverts or abominations. We are not aliens or inhuman. We are just people, really,” said Emily _______. “It is not a fetish for us. We are just trying to be comfortable in our own skin.”
One misconception or stereotype that transgender people have is they are perverts and are greedy. They want both sex organs to have sex with as many people as they can.
“We just want to be ourselves,” said Colby ______. “We are not perverts. Not trying to have as many genitalia as we can so we can have sex with as many people as we can.”
Jake said that he hears, “you’re just a confused gay man or a confused lesbian,” which is not true. This is harmful language that perpetuates trans erasure, or the idea that trans people do not actually exist.
The panel also wanted the guests to know the differences between cross dressers and drag queens and kings, as opposed to transgender people.
“Cross dressers are people who like to dress in the opposite genders clothes,” said Colby. “Drag queens and drag kings are usually performers. … for most it is not their entire life.”
The panel did say that some transgender people to choose to perform in drag shows.
Emily read some statistics and said that between 2 and 5 percent of the population is transgender. The trans population is difficult to quantify because not everyone is comfortable with coming out or is safe to come out, so not everyone is counted.
The slides also stated that 20 percent of all murders in the United States between 1985 and 1998 were murders of transgender people and that one out of 12 trans women are murdered.
Fifty percent of trans people have been victims of domestic violence and 41 percent have attempted suicide.
NECC holds security seminar
On Friday, Oct. 31, select NECC faculty, staff and students met with NECC’s presently contracted security company, EIS inc., Haverhill police and other local security institutions to spend a day overviewing safety procedures and scenarios for NECC.
“We’re doing a drill with our public security department, and the company that supports them, Eagle Investigative Services, who is the company that we hired to do that work, along with the local police, fire departments, state police,” said David Gingerella, CFO for NECC. “And so if we had an incident on campus, in this case, it’s a fire, how would we respond to it? What are the things we would do, and demonstrate what we did well and what we might not do so well on. [We’d] correct things things we didn’t do so well and hopefully be prepared if we ever have an emergency on campus.”
“Our plan is to then have an actual test of doing this in June. We will physically have the fire departments, police departments be on campus as if we’re having the event actually occurring, and again find out what we do well and what we don’t do well on,” said Gingerella. “There is nothing more important for this administration than the safety of our students, faculty and staff. That is the utmost importance for us, and we are continuing to do that to work with all the other administrations on campus to make sure that any holes we have in our ability to continue to make people feel safe, [and] that we continue to fill those and are prepared for any kinds of emergencies.”
“We’ve gotten great feedback from students today,” said Dina Brown, head of Student Engagement. “I think it was really good to hear from students in getting their feedback and input about how to make it better.”
Dancing with Nina Cabral
By Shaina Richards
With big brown eyes and a bright and bubbly personality, NECC dance major Nina Cabral easily grabs and holds her audience’s attention, even when she isn’t dancing. At only nineteen years old, Nina just started getting offers from dance companies in Boston and is going to perform as the lead in Slutcracker, a Burlesque version of the Nutcracker, at the Somerville Theater in early December.
Very petite, energetic, and always onto the next thing, Nina radiates confidence, especially when she dances. Nina is described by fellow dance member Zany Dwight, a freshman at NECC and fellow member of the dance club, as having “a quick wit and extremely talented, and never a show off, but carries herself in the beauty and grace of a good and genuine person.”
Even those who have only worked with Nina for a short amount of time are left with a positive impression as someone who is not only a success with their dancing career, but also with maintaining modesty and a real consideration for others. Zany also said, “she has become a person I look up to. She is totally herself and she is very accepting of others. She encourages me when we dance, even though she is obviously the shining star.”
Nina’s passion for dance started when she was 13 years old, and she has been in love with it ever since. Although she took classes when she was very small, she hardly remembered any of it.
“My older sister, who I looked up to, decided that dance was lame and so neither she nor I would be doing that activity anymore,” Nina said. “After my sister went to high school, I had a large chunk of time to figure out who I was as a person. I might have never started dancing had my older sister not gone to the public high school since I was very much living in her shadow.”
Now, Nina works every day to improve her dancing and intends to pursue a career in it.
From 2012-2013, Nina spend a year living in New York studying ballet at the Gelsey Kirkland Academy of Classical Ballet, which was great preparation for the upcoming roles she was able to land this year.
“It was a blast! I was in New York for a year, starting first with the ABT [American Ballet Theater] summer intensive and then the Bolshoi (a Russian ballet school) summer intensive,” Nina said.
She auditioned for the Gelsey Kirkland School during the summer intensives and got in. “I had to,” she said. “My dad told me that if I didn’t come back with anything that the summer was going to be my ‘last shebang’ with dance.”
After the year, she felt she had improved significantly. “Something I really enjoyed at my dance school, which was at the cross section of Canal and Franklin, was that one of the studios had a big window that overlooked the street. The street happened to be one that a tourist bus would ride on. Whenever the tourist bust would be at a red light people would gawk at us in amazement and take pictures. I really felt like I was doing it, like I was going somewhere with dance, but in reality I was still paying.”
Last year, a ballet company in Burlington put her on as an apprentice, and she performed for them. It was the first time she was considered part of a company. “I was so excited and happy about it that I cried,” she said. Looking back, she realized it wasn’t even a big company, and she wasn’t even assigned much work, but she was so happy that someone had recognized her work and wanted her. As an apprentice she had the advantage of getting to take free classes and improve her dancing.
This year, Nina also got the lead in the performance of Dracula as the character Wilhelmina. John Ling, who played the role of Dracula, described her as a “true treasure.”
“Working with Nina was a wonderful experience for me,” John said. “I have had numerous partners in the past, most good and some bad. I am happy to report that my experience with Nina was excellent. She is a talented dancer with much to offer anyone. She is considerate, sweet, strong and, most importantly, very humble.”
She was also invited to join two dance companies in Boston after attending the Boston Dance Alliance audition for Slutcracker. A friend of hers, who used to go to NECC, offered that Nina go with her to the audition. Although Nina initially questioned it because of its scandalous nature, she decided that she needed to put herself out there and give her dancing some exposure. “I can’t go anywhere if no one has seen me!” she said.
The BDA audition had different auditions for four different types of dance: ballet, modern/improv, hip hop and jazz. For the modern/improv audition, Nina decided to try something new and pulled her shirt over her head while walking on all fours. Although worried it might come across as silly, the judges apparently appreciated her spontaneity; she was just recently invited to join the Jo-Mé Dance Company and Rainbow Tribe.
“A really close friend of mine told me that everyone has special talents and they were given to us by a higher power for us to use, and if we don’t use what we are given we are pretty much letting the universe down,” said Nina.
Nina’s passion for dance has already taken her further than she ever would have believed, and she is excited to progress in her dancing career as she continues to study at NECC.
The work of NECC art students displayed at the Haverhill campus
This is the last week to view the artwork of Jeff Henriquez in the Bentley Art Space. The work has been on display since the opening reception on Sept. 30, when students had the opportunity to meet the artist and speak with him about his work.
Taking its place soon is the artwork of students who participated in the exhibit previously hosted by the Haverhill Public Library entitled “Art and Literature of the Graphic Novel.”
According to professor Marc Mannheimer, “The students’ work will be up by next Tuesday, Nov. 11 at the latest, and be up until Nov. 30.”
A reception has not yet been scheduled.
Artists and guests attended an opening reception in the Johnson auditorium at the public library on Sept. 11 and the artwork was on display there through the month of September.
This display is the product of students enrolled in the Spring 2014 semester of a learning community class co-taught by Mannheimer and professor Ginger Hurajt. The class is also called the art and literature of the graphic novel and it explores the connection between art and literature.
Students first wrote a short story. They then illustrated them in the style of a comic, relying heavily on the illustration to tell the story. Twenty-one stories were compiled into a 44 page book which was created entirely on the Haverhill campus, called “Tales From the Valley, Volume 1.”
This book is Volume 1 because this is the first year this class was offered. The feedback from students was overall very positive, and Mannheimer said that he is looking forward to many more volumes to come.
“I liked this class and doing this project, but I’ll probably focus on art more than writing in the future,” said Benjamin Pintor. Pintor is one of the artists and an industrial design
major at NECC.
Dane Cecil is an art illustration major at NECC. He was not one of the artists on this project but was there to support his peers and examine their work.
“These pictures are really nice,” Cecil said. “I like the way they use the details in the pictures to tell the story.”
Only the framed first page of each story-board will be on display, but books can be purchased for $5 by contacting professor Marc Mannheimer at mmannheimer@necc.mass.edu.
Meet Phonnara Dy
By Eduardo Souza
Phonnara Dy sits with his laptop open and attentively listens to Professor Diann Cahaly’s biology lecture on cell structure. Dy’s laptop displays the day’s powerpoint presentation, his notebook is open, and he’s ready to take the day’s notes.
Dy is a 32-year-old resident of Lowell who moved from Cambodia in the winter of 2011. Soon after getting a job to support himself in this foreign place, he knew that if he wanted his life to get better he needed a degree. He then enrolled in Northern Essex with the goal of getting an Associate of Nursing degree.
“I really want to be a nurse,” Dy says.
Since Cambodian is vastly different from English, which isn’t his first language, Dy says he needs complete focus in class in order to learn the material.
“The language is really hard for me,” says Dy. “Sometimes I don’t understand what people are saying.”
Dy’s perseverance is evident to anyone who meets him. He not only works full-time, seven days a week, but is still taking fifteen credits this semester. He holds two jobs: one as a machine operator for Vicor Corporation; the other as a CNA for Atria Marland Place in Andover.
Dy has a passion for helping people and hopes to continue helping people as a nurse.
“As a CNA,” Dy said, “I help elderly people. I assist them. I give them medication.”
As a machine operator, he runs many different types of mechanisms.
As taxing as working and going to school in a foreign country is for Dy, his indomitable spirit perseveres and faces challenges head on.
“I work seven days a week,” said Dy. “But I also have to study, because only school can make my life better in the U.S.”
Dy said school is difficult sometimes because he works seven days a week and struggles to find the time to study. But somehow he makes it work.
Dy is trilingual. He not only speaks Cambodian and English fluently, but also French.
“In Cambodia, they teach us French and English,” said Dy. But the English they teach is British and different from the U.S.’s. “The English they teach sounds different from here. When I moved here, I had a hard time understanding people.”
Aaron Labrecque, a classmate of his majoring in physical education, is impressed by Dy’s dedication to school. “Phonnara is friendly and eager to learn,” said Labrecque. Labrecque said it’s amazing that Dy speaks three different languages.
Dy is currently in his fourth semester at NECC and close to getting his degree in nursing. But he also has another degree from Cambodia.
“I have a degree in finance and banking,” said Dy. “But it’s hard to get a job with my degree from Cambodia.”
With his finance degree in his native country, Dy worked as a project manager for Unicef where he wrote proposals and requested money from different organizations to fund Unicef’s projects. He hopes to use his experience as a project manager in this next step of his life.
When Dy came to the U.S. in 2011, he left all of his family back in Cambodia. His two parents and six siblings, five sisters and one brother, all live in Cambodia.
“My parents have their own business and they sell clothes materials,” said Dy. “One of my sisters has her own business. Two of my sisters are at the university for nursing back in Cambodia.”
Many of Dy’s siblings have their own businesses. But he still helps them whenever he can. Dy not only supports himself here, but also sends money to his family in Cambodia and helps support them as well.
According to Dy, there are vast differences between his home country and the U.S.
“To me, the biggest differences are language, weather, cultures, living styles and food,” he said.
Despite all the differences in culture, working two jobs and going to school full-time, living in a foreign place with no family nearby and all the hardships that this 32-year-old encounters daily, Dy still comes to every single class, asks questions when he doesn’t understand something, and gives his all in work and school every day.
