When Sleep Becomes Optional

-Michelle Skowronek and Jillian Rubin

The simple things in life are free, but the labor is not. Behind every dollop of whipped cream on top of frappuccinos, collated and stapled packet of papers, and email messages returned, there is a student worker.

Ithaca College employs over 500 students to work in a variety of job centers ranging from office assistants to pastry bakers in the dining halls. Without the average 10 hours a week that these busy students put in, Ithaca College would not be able to function.

Across the county, student workers are the backbone of colleges and universities.

Cornell University employs about 700 of its 13,000 students. These workers are expected to fulfill an average of 4-8 hours of work per week. At TC3, students work an average of 15 hours per week, and when classes are not in session, they are eligible to work up to 37  hours.

Most on-campus jobs at IC expect students to work an average of 8-12 hours per week. IC employers try to break up these hours by creating 2 or 3 hour long shifts in certain facilities. No matter the time of the shift, however, student workers typically struggle with balancing a job, schoolwork, and extracurricular activities around exam time.

Kevin Thornton, Manager of the Multimedia Production Facility, said he deals with stressed students often during finals week.

"Somebody came in Monday asking why the labs weren't open all day for exam week," he said. "She seemed really stressed out, and I had to tell her that with the schedule revolving around finals times there would be no point in having the labs open for one hour at a time."

Thornton said scheduling workers for finals week depends on exam times.

"Underclassmen can't be forced to work during finals week," he said. "I have to post a sign-up sheet based around the students' finals in order to get workers to cover shifts."

The personalized pizza in La Vincita, the repair of a broken keyboard, and the ripped stub of a theater ticket are little tasks provided by student workers. To the everyday passerby these things are expected and taken for granted. To a student worker they are the fruits of labor.

Other students, like Christie, spend their day devoted to schoolwork and on-campus jobs...

Budget Baggage

By: Michelle Skowronek and Jillian Rubin

"God Bless America" and Its Politicians?

- Michelle Skowronek

In Depth Politics Story

Short, tall, large, tiny, medium, average, young, old, dark-skinned, light-skinned, foreign and domestice congregates file into churches, synagogues, and other places of worship once a week.

They come to read scripture.  They come to reflect.  They come to center their lives. They come to escape from their hectic schedules, the screeching sound of tires at red traffic lights and the millions of advertisements that are thrown in their faces on a daily basis.  The everyday American does not go to Church looking to hear who to vote for - at least not in Tompkins County.

Recently in the news, congressmen have been speaking out against pastors who have been endorsing political candidates while on the pulpit.  Labeled as non-profit organizations, religious places of worship receive a tax exemption code from the IRS.  To keep this exemption, churches must stay out of politics; however, with so much controversy surrounding this year's presidential election some pastors have crossed the line between church and state.

Dr. James R. Henery, pastor of the First Presbyterian Church in Ithaca, strongly disagrees with clergy members who speak for or against a specific candidate while in church.

"Weaving politics and faith and church into a compatible relationship is not something that Presbyterians historically have accepted," Henery said in his Sept. 14 sermon.  "We believe in separation."

Ithaca College Jewish Chaplain, Michael Faber, agrees with Henery.

"As a chaplain, I am obliged to stay out of politics," Faber said.  "I am a very firm believer that religious leaders are making a gigantic error if they enter the political fray.  Religious leaders who do, perform a great disservice to their followers."

Lee Imbriano, Ithaca College Catholic Community assistant and correspondent to off campus Catholic affairs, submerged himself into this issue on Oct. 9.  Imbriano spoke at the discussion entitled "Who Should I Vote for as a Catholic?" downtown at Ithaca's Immaculate Conception Parish.  The reason behind this gathering was to discuss the importance of making educated, conscious decisions when voting in any election.  By the end, the panel, of which Imbriano was a member, simply told the attendees that it is their job as faithful citizens to get informed, research the issues, and pray.  The Catholic Church could not tell them who to vote for.

To hear what else Imbriano had to say on the matter, check out this video:

Ithaca, as most know and agree, is a very liberal and politically enthusiastic place. With Ithaca College and Cornell University sitting on its two peaks, the general population cannot help but give off an intelligent aura.  Henery agrees by saying his congregation is too clever to let him get away with telling them who to vote for. 

"Imagine this morning if you had come to this sanctuary, and I had began to tell you whom you should vote for," Henery said in his sermon.  "Imagine I tell you what kind of car you should drive, what kind of food you should eat, where to shop, what movies to watch, all sorts of decisions that I have no business to dictate but used scripture or some faith statement to support my directions.  You should have got up and walked out."

Here is a map of some of the local Ithaca churches:

View Larger Map

The above photo was taken at a Catholic mass at Ithaca College on Sunday Oct. 26.  Father Carsten, the Ithaca College Catholic Chaplain, is giving his homily, in which he mentions making smart and conscious decisions on Election Day.

First Official Halloween Event!

- Michelle Skowronek

Tonight, downtown in the Commons, Micawber's Pub is having a pre Halloween party!

The event especially caters to Ithaca College seniors, but it is open to all those over 21. There will be a costume contest with a $100 bar tab prize for the most creative and hilarious costume. Come in a large group or strut your stuff solo. The party begins at 9 p.m. and goes to 1 a.m.

This Halloween Bash costs $4 to enter and only $2 with a Senior Card. Also, to keep in theme with Halloween there are a number of drink specials:

THE IC DREAM includes pineapple juice for a tropical flavor, orange juice to celebrate Halloween, coconut rum, Grenadine, and a splash of cream --- only for $3.50

Orange Beer --- $2.50 special
Orange Shots --- $2.50 special
Orange Shoote*--- $2.50 special

*A shoote is a mixed drink typically served in a test tube and taken as a shot.

The Pub is expecting over 200 people to show, so this is one event you do not want to miss out on!

For more information check out the Senior Homepage.

(picture courtesy of FrugalLawStudent.com)

Investigative Journalism Exposed

- Michelle Skowronek

Tonight in the Park Auditorium of the Roy H. Park School of Communications at Ithaca College, The Park School Program will be screening Expose: America's Investigative Reports. This documentary, called "In a Small Town," follows the story of a young reporter who discovers a pedophile in his hometown.

Executive producer Tom Casiato and senior producer Scott Davis will be at the viewing and follow up with a Q&A session once the documentary is done. Both men are Emmy-award winning producers who have laundry lists of awards and accomplishments.

The screening is expected to have a large turnout and provoke much discussion. All are welcome and admission is free. Don't miss out on your opportunity to experience a one-on-one chat with the producers!

For any more information on the documentary, Park School Program, or the producers check out the All Things Park blog.

Sustainable Fueling

- Michelle Skowronek

Biodiesel fuel has made its way onto the green scene.  Ithaca's very own Jeff's Towing service has gassed up with this new fuel to help save a piece of the environment. 

The fuel is made from used vegetable oil.  The vegetable oil is donated by local restaurants and then converted into biodiesel fuel.  

The best part is that prices run for about $2.50 a gallon!  That's closer to the price of regular gas than diesel fuel!

Biodiesel fuel can be used to replace any type of gas.  It works in cars, trains, airplanes and as heating oil.

If you are interested in learning how to make your own biodiesel fuel check out this link.

Also, for more information on this particular story, you can check out The Ithaca Journal.

Breast Cancer Awareness Week

-Michelle Skowronek

Starting this week Ithaca College celebrates Breast Cancer Awareness month. Today on the quad Ithaca College students set up an interesting exhibit to grab the campus' attention.

Bras, donated by female students,  were linked together on a laundry line. Posters displayed shocking facts in between each bra.  

Across from this scene was a strategically-placed life-size pink ribbon to represent breast cancer.  The symbol was set up with a domino effect of pink ribbons attached to sticks placed in the ground.

These surprising and carefully placed displays grabbed the attention of anyone who passed them.

The next event in the line up is the First Annual Knock Out Breast Cancer Tournament. The tourney is going on tomorrow, Oct. 21, at 5:30 p.m. in the Fitness Center.  All are welcome, even amateurs.  For registration, email cacithaca@gmail.com, sign up at the CAC table in Campus Center, or just show up before 5:30.  The event is free and expecting to have a big turnout.

Put up your dukes!

ESL Students Expose Student Teacher to Diverse Classroom

- Michelle Skowronek
In-Depth Education Story


The sounds of sneakers squeak down the hallway as 24 fourth graders line up to enter the Northeast Elementary School gymnasium. They file into the room and take a seat on the floor framing the circumference of the child-friendly emblems painted on the floor. Boys and girls of all shapes, sizes, and ethnicities plop down on red circles, green squares, blue triangles and yellow rectangles while “Mr. H” lines up rows of volleyballs.

Brian Horner is an Ithaca College undergraduate student teacher. As he finishes up his last semester at IC, Horner teaches physical education at two different public school locations. His first placement is at Northeast Elementary, and his second will be at Charlotte High School in Rochester, NY.

On top of learning basic teaching skills, Horner gets hands on experience working with English as a Second Language (ESL) students. Northeast Elementary alone enrolls students from over 23 different countries. Cornell University plays a large role in the diversity at Northeast due to its assorted population of graduate students and professors. Mr. H has a handful of ESL students in his P.E. classes, most are Asian.

“When most people think of ESL students, they think of Hispanics, but most of my classes are made up of Asian ESL students,” he said. “Majority of the Asian students have parents working or studying at Cornell. Some of them understand English, others do not at all.”

Ithaca College professor of Social and Cultural Foundations of Education, Roberta Wallitt, trains student teachers to be culturally competent with an understanding of the needs of English language learners. Wallitt says classroom teachers often lack this training.

“They may not present in ways that are accessible to ESL students: demonstrating instead of just talking; using pictures; having hands-on activities,” she said. “They may also not know how to connect lessons to the students' experiences and cultures to help them understand.”

Mr. H has experienced the need to make phys ed class even more hands on when working with ESL students. Sometimes he needs to act out an activity with another student while explaining the directives.

“The other day I had to explain the next activity with more than just words,” Horner said. “I had another English speaking student demonstrate with me what the rest of the class would be doing. Then I slowed down and simplified my language until the ESL student seemed to understand.”

Here is a video of Mr. H teaching students how to rotate positions in volleyball.



Wallitt suggests jumping into a foreign student’s culture to better understand the student.

“Attending community events is another learning experience,” she said. “When they [teachers] only view students’ behaviors through an ‘American’ lens, they are likely to misinterpret and not be successful teachers.”

Horner says his experience at Northeast Elementary has greatly prepared him for teaching in multi-cultural settings, but most importantly, it has been an enjoyable experience.

“I love working with younger kids,” he said, “because that’s when P.E. is still fun. Effectively communicating with all the students, foreign or not, is an extra added bonus.”





A student lays exhausted after Mr. H says "freeze", ending that day's activities.

IC Senior Night Happy Hour!!!

- Michelle Skowronek

Watch out Ithaca Commons, IC seniors will be rushing downtown tonight for drinks, bonding, and a top notch party at 2nd Floor Bar.

The Ithaca College Senior Night Happy Hour is a tradition at IC where the Student Government Association (SGA) announces the two top class drinks.  Every year at IC the seniors send in drink names and recipes to call their own.  SGA then uses a system that judges the drinks on popularity and creativity to determine which two drinks will be named the class cocktails.  Senior Night Happy Hour marks the first time the senior drink appears in bars around campus.

Along with this tradition, seniors will receive extraordinary discounts on the Senior Class drink, other drinks and admission.  Pizza will be served all night, and Ithaca College's very own senior DJ, DJ Emerson, will be blasting the tunes.

The event is open to all those who are over 21, but there is a $4 admission fee for those who do not have an Ithaca College Senior Card.  Seniors with the card can get in for only $2.  Doors open at 9PM and close at 1AM.

Tonight marks one of the many Senior Night events planned for the class of 2009.  Whether you are a senior at IC or just a friend of a friend, come celebrate Ithaca tradition down in the Commons!

Taxi:  Green Hornet 607-280-3779

Please drink responsibly.  

Hang in there J-Majors!

-Samantha Allen

As you sit in your class at Park at Ithaca College, biting the end of your Bic pen  and flipping through the newly-issued Missouri Group text "your-career-and-you" book, don't you ever wonder where all of this is going?

As a journalism major, I find at times that I am thoroughly confused. On the one hand, I've got very enthusiastic professors, inside and outside of the classroom, telling me not to worry, that my chosen occupation is important and that I'll go far. And then I've got people from the outside world, forcing down cognac and the bitter truth that maybe the industry is on it's way out, to a very unexpected funeral.

So where am I in all of this? -a very typical Sex and the City, Jessica-Parker sort of question, forgive me. Am I one of those people all dressed in white amidst the dark-clothing mourners, or am I a savior, riding in on my white horse convinced that I'll save journalism?

Today, in a special luncheon-hour presentation made by Dean Dianne Lynch of Park, in honor of the Society of Professional Journalists' (SPJ) JOURNALISM week, that question was answered. And definitely to this student's liking. ;)

Dianne Lynch urged the 15 or so students in attendance that journalism was not on its way out, but rather, enduring a massive change that would yield great opportunity for students in the (duh dum duhhhhh) Future.

Sure, we've heard all of this before, but listen to her reasoning! The market is changing, and we're all just trying to adapt - hence the freak-age by mostly seasoned-journalists of the legacy league.

"The business model [of journalism] is changing, not the industry model," Lynch said.

Think about it. The same thing happened with the introduction of radio broadcasts, and then televised news, and EVEN, with the copier.

Yes, that's my personal example but listen to this: how absurd is it that people actually thought copiers would mean the end of books? Corporate fat-cats who worried about the end of an industry (and that's really all that they are, guys) figured everyone would just start copying text, and no one would by.

But we've seen where radio, TV, and now where the internet is taking us...

To a new audience. 

Our loyal readers, listeners and viewers who have flocked to Internet, to sites like YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook that urge the "it's all about you" mantra, are finally responding. So yes, the format of news has changed, and even its face. We just have to remember to bear our ever-present, and IMMEDIATE, audience in mind.

The point! Us college students have the advantage, we know how to make our NEWS fun, entertaining, interactive and altogether kick-ass. I say, job well done! 

Latin Culture Taking Over Taste Buds

- Michelle Skowronek

Ithaca College observes Latin Heritage Month every year between September 15 and October 15. With the end of this year's celebration approaching, there are a few final events to watch out for. 

Ithaca College's African-Latino Society (ALS) is hosting their final event this Sunday, October 12, in IC Square.  ALS and the H.O.M.E. and Vecinos community will be hosting Noche del Sabor, or Night of Flavor, in hopes of expressing the hispanic influence on American food.

Also this month, Eliana Parro, a co-owner and chef at Moosewood Restaurant, is being recognized for her amazing Chilean contributions to the famous eatery in the Ithaca Commons by Chef's Night Off. 

Chef's Night Off is a social group that selects chefs from the Bin

ghamton area and highlights their signature recipes for the month.  This is the first time the group has opened up the panel to Ithaca and Elmira chefs since the its forming in 2005.

Parro is noted for her outstanding Chunky Guacamole recipe. 

There are plenty of cultures to experience here in Ithaca.  This week go out and get a hispanic taste either at Moosewood Restaurant or IC Square.

Public Safety Stop Sign Patrol

- Michelle Skowronek

Within the past few weeks, Ithaca College Campus Safety Patrol has gotten stricter on driving laws.  I've noticed that Campus Safety is really cracking down on drivers and their tendency to "roll through" stop signs.

Usually talk of the town says around the end of the month police officers become stricter so that they can fill quota.  Then why are they hanging around campus in the beginning of the month?

Two weeks ago, I had been pulled over for "rolling through" a stop sign on the upper end of campus by the football fields.  Mind you it was 1:45 in the morning on a Monday.  The officer let me go with just a warning, but he reminded me that many pedestrians cross there often and we don't want anyone to get hurt.

Since then, I have witnessed three people get pulled over for the same offense.  A friend of mine had supposedly ran a stop sign between the Park School of Communications and Emerson Hall last Friday. I was in the car at the time and began to think I was bad luck; however, my friend received the same warning I had days prior.

Yesterday afternoon, a Campus Safety Patrol SUV cut me off to pull over the car in front of me. I was in the middle of the roundabout at the main entrance to campus when the officer, coming from the opposite direction, turned on his flashers and hit a hard U turn into a visitor's parking lot.  I quickly put together that the girls in the red car in front of me rolled through the stop sign without even seeing the oncoming police officer.

In essence, slow down, come to a complete stop, and be aware that Campus Safety is patrolling even at 2 AM on a Monday in the beginning of October.

Joy's Introduction

Hey Tompkins County!