April 2013

Do you Believe in Ghosts?

by Carol Anne Pagliotti Do you believe in ghosts? Do you wonder if ghosts exist? Do you possess a healthy sense of adventure and curiosity? Are you skeptical? Skeptics and true be-lievers alike are welcome in the newly resurrected Paranormal Club. The club, now named Ghost Chasers was brought back to life during the fall semester of 2012 by Justin Leach and Rocco Barbera. Ghost Chasers “is open to any-body interested in the paranormal field, even if you don’t quite be-lieve,” says club president Justin Leach. “I was thinking one night around Halloween that I know people at the college who have had paranormal experiences, are interested in the paranormal, or want answers about the paranor-mal. I figured I’d start a club here

at GCC.” The club, which needs more members in order to receive fund-ing from the college for investiga-tions and equipment, meets Mon-days from 1:30-2:30 p.m. in room 420 of the Instructional Center. At meetings the group members dis-cuss results from investigations, share experiences and play Jeop-ardy games to help members learn how to take part in investigations and what pieces of equipment to use during those investigations. Leach says in an email, “I person-ally believe this is a better way to help members understand the prop-er way of chasing ghosts than me standing up there just saying what to do and what not to do. I want this to be a fun club.” At some meetings the group watches videos of the TV

Justin L., Club President, Glen H., Rocco B., Co-President, Stephen D., Brittany L., Candice P., Anna K., co-advisor

show Ghost Hunters. If you cannot make it to the Monday afternoon meetings but still wish to be part of investigations you can still be part of the Ghost Chasers, just email Justin and he will keep you up to date on the club’s goings on. Three members of the group re-cently completed an investigation of the Burlington County Prison Museum, where they recorded elec-tronic voice phenomena (EVPs) and took photos. Two of the three members who visited the museum shared the EVPs they recorded, the photos they took, and their individ-ual experiences during the investi-gation at the April 1 meeting. Other topics discussed included whether it was possible for the sounds they captured on EVP recordings to have been background noises com-ing from outside and whether or not it could be concluded if the mu-seum was or was not haunted based on the evening’s investigation. Once the club has enough mem-bers to receive funding the Ghost Chasers hope to investigate haunt-ed locations like Eastern State Pen-itentiary and Fort Mifflin. The last meeting for this school year is scheduled for May 6 so there is still time to join this semes-ter. Contact Justin Leach at jleach3@students.gccnj.edu for more information.

 

Do you know someone who has cancer?Help us save lives fast-

Relay For Life is:A way to celebrate cancer survi-vors. At every Relay For Life, can-cer survivors are honored for their courage and strength by beginning the event with an honorary lap. The individuals are celebrated in various ways from food and t-shirts, to dances and games! In-vite survivors in your life to attend our special survivor lap & dinner.A way to remember loved ones. Survivors and those who are no longer with us are honored at this one-of-a-kind ceremony. Lumi-naria bags bearing the names of loved ones line a track and are il-luminated with the light of a can-dle. A walk in silence to remember and honor our cancer survivors is the most powerful and moving ex-perience in the Relay event. Pur-chase a Luminaria bag for a $10 donation in honor or memory of a loved one who has battled cancer.

A way to fight back So many of us have been touched by this disease, and at Relay For Life we can learn about actions we can take to fight back beyond the event. We can even make a pledge to fight back before the next relay!How you can take a stand and fight cancer:• Form your own Relay For Life

team• Volunteer at the event• Become a Sponsor• Join the Planning Committee• Be part of our Survivors’

Celebration• Make a DonationFor more information or to sign up for Relay, visit us at www.RelayForLife.org/MantuaNJor contact the Event Chairs at mantuarelay@gmail.comor call your ACS staff partner

Winter has stayed long enough. These warm, spring images are by Gazette staff member, Carol Anne Pagliotti

by Emily Mattson-Barnes With the summer almost upon us, many dream of beach trips, late nights on the boardwalk, and vaca-tions with the family. Summer can be an essential rest period for many of us after a difficult course load during the year leaves us drained. However, there are always opportu-nities to stay active during the sum-mer, intellectually and physically. First, if it is bearable to con-ceive a summer with less than three months of freedom from school, then a summer class is a great way to get ahead. A summer course may prove quite intensive during a four week period, but will definitely pay off. Come fall, the weight of your course load won’t be as exigent, leaving more time for the other three to four classes. Next, reading may not be fun for everyone but it is a great way to expand our vocabularies and im-prove our writing. Simply choosing a piece on a topic that is of inter-est to us can enrich our lives in the summer. Reading can lead to a piece of mind while expanding our knowledge base. Choosing primar-ily non-fiction can do wonders for our writing. Yet another approach to reducing the stress of the impending work load is prepping for a future class in the summer. Chemistry, Eng-lish, physics, whatever challenges

someone can be studied indepen-dently prior to the start of class. Study guides can be purchased online or at bookstores, or often be checked out for free at a local library. Over-preparing is always better than starting a class without any foundation. Additionally, while focusing on the realm of learning, why not try to learn a new language? Spanish, French, German, or whatever inter-ests someone can be impressive to employers and schools alike. Finally, while some of us intend to transfer and/or attend graduate school eventually, this means ex-tracurricular activities play a role in our future success as well. Hold-ing down a part-time/full-time job in the summer, volunteering at a library, animal hospital, hospital, or a church are all great ways to dem-onstrate a grasp on responsibility and commitment to giving back to the community. Summer is considered a period of rest, however, showing some initiative when it counts is impor-tant. Just putting forth a few hours a week to the endeavor of choice will prove to be gratifying.

Making the most of summer

Relay For Life of Mantua May 17-18, 2013

Chestnut Branch Park

The Gazette April 2011

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT April movie previewCourtesy of: IMDb

+GazetteApril 2013

by Genevieve Melanson

Professor Daniel Simon is one of GCC’s own public writer and photographer who has had 30 years of experience dedicated to his work and is not afraid to share his work with others. Professor Simon has written half a dozen books on pho-tography and photographic equip-ment, many as part of the David Busch family of camera guides. His published works include the Digital

Photography Bible Desktop Edition (John Wiley and Sons Publishing), Digital Photography All-in-one, A complete desk reference for Dum-mies (contributing author, John Wiley and Sons Publishing), and Digital Photos, Movies, and Music Gigabook for Dummies (contrib-uting writer, John Wiley and Sons Publishing). He is currently an adjunct at Drexel University in Philadelphia and at Gloucester County College. Professor Simon started getting his first taste in journalism and photog-raphy by joining his high school newspaper. Later, he furthered his education by attending GCC from years 1994 to 1996 and earned a Computer Graphic Arts degree,

Faculty Member Spotlightthen transferred to Drexel Univer-sity with a goal in mind to obtain an B.S in General Studies with a concentration in Design Arts and an M.S. in Public Communication. “I get most of my inspiration from various places. I love the outdoors and Mother Nature, human beings, landscapes and color,” said Simon. He displays his photography and his latest written work on blogs and websites so that it would be much easier and more universally acces-sible for people to see his sense of style as a feature writer. “I have a facebook photography page—Dan Simon Photography and a word-press blog, dansimonphotography.wordpress.com which includes fine art nudes, and my images appear in the books I write. I will be starting a column for a new macrophotog-raphy website in the coming weeks too.” said Professor Simon. It would be hard to say what isn’t his favorite written work, Professor Simon loves all his projects equality. “I don’t think I can pick a favorite image. I have a portfolio of images from Zion, Bryce and the Grand Canyon that I think represents my best work and there are many im-ages in it that I love. Perhaps my favorite is a shot of Wotan’s Throne made from the North Rim of the Grand Canyon at sunset.” quoted Professor Simon. “I also have an image I made of the Trans Antarctic mountains from Ross Island off the coast of Antarctica I love. Finally, I have a portfolio of female nudes that includes several images I’m quite proud of. As a photographer I delete my mistakes so I really can’t say I have a specific least favorite. Certainly as someone who’s made a living from photography, I’ve taken jobs that were all about production

42(Biography, Drama)Director: Brian HelgelandStarring: Chadwick Boseman, T.R. Knight, Harrison Ford, Nicole BeharieAbout: The life story of Jackie Robinson and his history-making signing with the Brooklyn Dodgers under the guidance of team execu-tive Branch Rickey.Rating: PG-13Release Date: April 12

Scarie Movie 5(Comedy)Director: Malcolm D. LeeStarring: Simon Rex, Ashley Tis-dale, Charlie Sheen, Lindsay LohanAbout: A couple begin to experi-ence some unusual activity after bringing their newborn son home from the hospital. With the help of home-surveillance cameras and a team of experts, they learn they’re being stalked by a nefarious demon.Rating: PG-13Release Date: April 12

To the Wonder(Drama, Romance)Director: Terrence MalickStarring: Ben Affleck, Olga Kurylenko, Javier Bardem, Rachel McAdamsAbout: After visiting Mont Saint-Michel, Marina and Neil come to Oklahoma, where problems arise. Marina meets a priest and fellow exile, who is struggling with his vocation, while Neil renews his ties with a childhood friend, Jane.Rating: RRelease Date: April 12

Oblivion(Action, Sci-Fi)Director: Joseph KosinskiStarring: Tom Cruise, Morgan Freeman, Andrea Riseborough, Olga KurylenkoAbout: A veteran assigned to ex-tract Earth’s remaining resources begins to question what he knows about his mission and himself.Rating: PG-13Release Date: April 19

The Lords of Salem(Horror)Director: Rob ZombieStarring: Sheri Moon Zombie, Meg Foster, Bruce Davison, Jeff Daniel PhillipsAbout: Heidi, a radio DJ, is sent a box containing a record -- a “gift from the Lords.” The sounds within the grooves trigger flashbacks of her town’s violent past. Is Heidi go-ing mad, or are the Lords back to take revenge on Salem, Massachu-setts?Rating: RRelease Date: April 19

Pain and Gain(Action, Comedy)Director: Michael BayStarring: Mark Wahlberg, Dwayne Johnson, Rebel Wilson, Ken JeongAbout: A trio of bodybuilders in Florida get caught up in an extor-tion ring and a kidnapping scheme that goes terribly wrongRating: Not Rated YetRelease Date: April 19

and satisfying customers and that weren’t particularly creative. Even with these though, there was usu-ally some kind of technical chal-lenge to overcome. I guess all the award ceremony photos featuring grip n’ grins I had to do when I was a Navy journalist would be my least favorite.” Professor Simon’s main advice to an person who thinks that they have what it takes to become a better artist or is simply wanting to publish their own work stated: “Look at art, and not just in your discipline. Find artists whose work really appeals to you. Ask yourself how they tackled the challenges of creating that art. Develop the habit of looking for ideas and inspira-tion. It doesn’t happen by magic. It happens because you’re always looking for something to say as an artist. Once you’ve been doing this a while, it does become second na-ture and may seem like ideas come magically. They don’t, you’ve just laid the groundwork for it. Practice your art. Don’t be afraid of failing and don’t worry about what others think of it,” said Professor Simon.

by Genevieve Melanson

Professor Joan Hanna is one of GCC’s own faculty writers who isn’t afraid to show off her collec-tion of works with others. She has published creative nonfiction, po-etry, fiction, and book reviews in various online and print journals. Currently, Hanna is an adjunct English instructor at GCC and a crative writing adjunct professor at Rowan University. Hanna is also the assistant managing editor for River Teeth, a Journal of Nonfic-tion Narrative and the assistant ed-itor, Nonfiction/Poetry for r.kv.r.y. Quarterly Literary Journal. Her poetry chapbook, Threads, is avail-able from Finishing Line Press. (finishinglinepress.com). Professor Hanna also has an MFA in Creative Writing from Ashland University. Hanna’s inspiration for writing first came to her when she was very young, and she has been writing poetry of various genres even since. “My poetry is mostly autobio-graphical. I write about women’s issues and touch on topics such as domestic violence but I also write about many facets of family life,” said Hanna. “Finishing Line Press has just published my book of poetry,

Threads. Threads is an autobio-graphical collection of poetry. Al-though the collection deals with personal experiences it also ex-plores many universal topics,” said Hanna. Hanna’s main advice to any person who thinks that they have what it takes to become a better art-ist or is simply wanting to publish their own work explained, “To be a good writer, or any type of art-ist for that matter, you have to first read and study everything you can in that genre. Studying helps you to understand and adopt various craft techniques so you can apply them to your own writing. Then you must spend as much time as pos-sible writing and revising so you can hone your craft and develop your voice.” said Hanna. She is planning a book launch at Rowan University for the middle of April. Along with the launch this month she is also planning to read at The Rosemont College Book Festival in May and the Collingswood Book Festival in October. If you are interested in know-ing more about Hanna’s published book titled Threads or would like see her other work from A Journal of Nonfiction Narrative ( w r i t i n g t h r o u g h q u i c k s a n d .

Faculty Member Spotlight

blogspot.com) and nonfiction/po-etry for r.kv.r.y. Quarterly Literary Journal (rkvryquarterly.com). You can also visit her website at www.joanhanna.com and her personal blog at www.writingthroughquick-sand.blogspot.com for more infor-mation and further details on her new book.

Sam’s Cannonball

The Western Grand Canyon

The Gazette April 2011GazetteApril 2013

OpinionGetting Stupider

by Sean Wofford We’ve all heard murmurs about the degeneration of America’s edu-cation system. We’ve heard calls for reform from various politi-cians, including our President, and have caught glimpses of statistics from friends and news feeds an-nouncing our worsening scores in reading and math in regards to oth-er developed nations. Apart from this there is something growing in America known as the education gap. It is the division of the educa-tion received from separate parties. Back in the 50’s and 60’s this gap was between whites and blacks; some good news is that this gap has been significantly narrowed. The bad news is that this gap has been replaced by an rapidly grow-ing gap between the wealthy and the poor. “Standardized test scores be-tween affluent and low-income students had grown by about 40 percent since the 1960s, and is now double the testing gap between blacks and whites,” according to Sabrina Tavernies of The New York Times. Her article cites multiple studies which all spell conclusive doom for America’s poor. Not only does Taverines explore the gap of wealth involved in the education gap but the gap in culture which ac-companies it. Taverines references a survey completed by Meredith Phillips, an associate professor at the University of California, stat-ing that “by the time high-income children start school, they have spent about 400 hours more than poor children in literacy activi-ties.” This is in part due to the fact, which the survey showed, that high income children spend about 1,300 more hours outside of the home than do poorer children, before the age of six. To put this into perspec-tive, Linda Darling-Hammond, an education professor at Standford University states “We have one in four children in this country living

in poverty, increasingly children lack housing, healthcare and basic food security in some cases in con-centrated and segregated areas, and then we are spending less money in schools onthe education of those who are the least able to get educa-tion outside of school. This builds up a kind of inequality that doesn’t exist in most of the industrialized nations around the world.” We can see that we have one in four children getting the very worst of the statistics pro-vided by Phillips. It is important to note that Phillip’s data is not in contrast to children living in pov-erty, it is only in contrast to chil-dren poorer than children from high income families. If you have not seen the viral video “Wealth Inequality in America”, look it up. It shows that close to 10 perent of Americans are below the poverty line. And the way that the Con-sensus Bureau measures poverty is such that a family of five making only $28,000 a year can be consid-ered over their specific “threshold” and therefore considered above the poverty line. More bad news. Al Jazeera did a report on the monu-mental number of school closings set to hit the city of Chicago. The piece states that the city of Chicago “plans to close more than 50 pub-lic schools -most of them in poor and minority neighborhoods”. The article goes on to state that these

closings will affect 30,000 students and that these closures are the larg-est in US history. The Chicago teachers union claims that this will cost the district $750m. The stu-dents are being sent from their poor preforming schools and packed into schools which preform on the same low level. Al Jazeera cites a University of Chicago study which found that “only six percent of dis-placed students ended up in high-performing schools.” The article goes on to show that in addition to the 54 schools being closed in Chi-cago, 23 schools will be closed in Philadelphia, and 15 will be closed in Washington D.C. Al Jazeera also reports that the Equality and Excellence report, commissioned by congress, shows that “in no other developed country has the system stacked the odds against so many of its chil-dren.” It seems that education re-form, to be successful, must contain within it, economic and cultural re-form as well. A monolithic task for any government; aren’t we lucky to have such a competent congress running the show? Numbers like these are what keep me up at night. With the way things are going in Washington, it seems I have many sleepless nights ahead of me.

Multi-Cultural Club FestivalDate: Monday, April 29Time: 12:00 noonLocation: Student Life Mini Center

GCC’s Multi-Cultural Club will sponsor a festival where mem-bers will showcase and share their cultural backgrounds and experiences from around the world. Chips and Salsa will be for sale for $2; proceeds will benefit Amnesty International. Please join us!

Stress Free DayDate: Wednesday, May 1Time: 9:30 am – 2:30 pmLocation: Student Life Mini Center and College Center Lobby

Back by popular demand! Come relax and release some of the stress build-up felt by the im-pending semester finals. Enjoy a smoothie from Maui Wowi while you wait for free mini-massage. Three professional therapists will be on-hand during the day to re-lease your tension (please stop by early to set up an appointment). Enjoy lunch or take a break and participate in a Yoga session. Then stop by the cafeteria for some music provided to you by popular singer/songwriter, Jacob Graff, for your listening plea-sure! We hope you walk away feeling rejuvenated and ready to face your finals!

The 2013 April Gazette

Staff

Editor in ChiefRay Miles Jr.

Contributing WritersEmily Mattson-Barnes

Genevieve Melanson Carol Anne Pagliotti

Sean Wofford

AdvisorPrf. Brooke Hoffman

Special thanks toCheryl McBride and

Diane Hare in Student Life

The Gazette is always look-ing for talented writers,

photographers, or artists. If you are

interested in joining the staff or contributing email us at Gazette@gccnj.edu

Sequester by Sean Wofford

Two students of Nuclear Medicine Technology program, Jenna Ambro-sino and Erica Payne, won the student research contest with their presen-tation on Brain Amyloid PET Imaging on March 8, 2013. The students won $300.00, and competed against schools throughout New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

The Student Assistance Center staff has moved to a new location on cam-pus! They are no longer located in the library. The new center is located on the second floor of the College Center Building in Room 200 near the CAP center. They are open and welcome you to stop by and see the new digs!

Get involved

National Day of Silence Sponsored by the GSA Club and the Student Assistance CenterDate: Wednesday, April 17Time: 11:00 am - 1:00 pmLocation: College Center Mez-zanine

Be respected. Be inspired. This is a day of action and motiva-tion for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer students and their allies. Partake and share in a presentation, enjoy refreshments and fellowship. For more information contact Bryan Buttler at bbuttler@gccnj.edu.

Student Life

The Gazette April 2011

Local EventsGazetteApril 2013

Courtesy of www.FunNewJersey.com Compiled by Genevieve Melanson

April 19 - 21stFairy Tale WeekendCall 609-624-3437 Pine Haven Camping Resort is call-ing all knights, princes, princesses, dragons and fairy tale fans in New Jersey and the surrounding area for a weekend of everything that has to do with fairy tales! Fairy Tale weekend kicks off their 2013 camp-ing season, so whether you want to celebrate the opening of your fa-vorite campground or you really love fairy tale culture, you won’t want to miss out on this event! There will be a number of activi-ties to celebrate fairy tale culture including making magical potions and much more!

April 20thBritish Car Show615 E Moss Mill Rd Absecon, Absecon, NJCall 609-748-8999Bring the whole family down to Historic Smithville and Village Greene for an afternoon of his-tory, unique cars and fun! Kids and

adults alike will be in awe over the unique cars that came all the way from Britain! The cars featured at the car show are fully restored, vintage British cars you can’t find anywhere else! If some people in your family aren’t that into cars, not to worry! Historic Smithville and Village Greene have dozens of shops for an afternoon of explor-ing! Great way to spend the day with the family!

April 21stMillburn Street Fair & Craft ShowMillburn Ave., Millburn NJCall 908-654-1400

The Millburn Street Fair & Craft Show is one of the largest craft shows in New Jersey! They feature more than 200 artists, crafters and vendors showing off their skills! Come out to buy unique arts and crafts you will not find anywhere else! This is a great way to sup-port the local artists of New Jersey. Bring the whole family to the Mill-burn Street Fair & Craft Show for a day of arts and crafts, food and fun!

April 20thArt Walk615 E Moss Mill Rd Absecon, Absecon, NJCall 609-652-7777Come out to Historic Smithville and Village Greene to support lo-cal New Jersey artists! Artists from Smithville and the surrounding ar-eas will line the village showing off their latest original works of art. Everything from paintings, pot-tery, jewlery, crafts and more will be featured at the Art Walk. Come out for the day and stroll the streets of Historic Smithville and Village Greene and support your local New Jersey artists!

Springtime in new JerseySponsored by the Japanese Anime GuildDate: Saturday, April 20Time: 1:00 pm - 4:30 pmLocation: College Center and out-side on the Plaza (weather permit-ting)

Come join the JAG Club and participate in a variety of fun events during the first Kotori’s Cherry Blossom Festival. This is a small relaxing event where everyone is welcome to attend. Enjoy music, karaoke, open mic opportunities and a cosplay picnic, all included in the admission fee of $10.00. Interested in gaming? Then come and participate in the video game tournaments which include Soul Caliber V, Tekken Tag 2 and Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3! Please bring your own controller. Cash prizes awarded to the win-ners, a $10.00 separate registration fee will be collected at signups be-ginning at 12:00 noon. Join the Magic the Gathering tournament which will also be a $10.00 cash fee required at the door. Discounts offered for pre-reg-

istration by visiting Kotorispring.eventbrite.com. Tickets are also available on Wednesdays at the regularly scheduled JAG meetings. Proceeds from this event will benefit Mother’s Matter, Lauren Rose Albert Foundation, a lo-cal organization whose mission is to encourage mothers to achieve economically and educationally brighter futures for themselves and their families www.laurenslegacy.org and LiNK libertyinnorthkorea.org which is the only full-time grassroots organization in North America devoted to the North Ko-rean human rights and humanitar-ian crisis.

Kotori’s Cherry Blossom Festival