Welcome to the University of Acceptance!

People wonder all the time what the best feeling in the world is.  I personally think that one of the best feelings is the feeling of being accepted.  Acceptance can lead to happiness and a feeling of worthiness.  It can lead to improvement as well as a feeling of unity.  If someone is accepted, then he/she is a part of something.  Acceptance can come in many forms as simple as being accepted into a college.

For these two best friends, it was not the easiest being accepted.  Bartleby Gaines and Sherman Schrader are best friends who went to the same high school and stuck together no matter what.  However, all of that changed when college came around the corner.  Schrader was accepted into Harmon College, a prestigious university while Bartleby was rejected from every single school he applied to.  

Instead of accepting the fact that he was rejected, Bartleby decides to create his own college.  He gathers a group of friends who are also in the same boat as him and they rebuild an abandoned institute into a "college."  Even though he is "accepted" into a college now, he still is going through the crisis of finding who he is.  He does not understand what he is going to do in life nor does he understand what the future has for him.  He is constantly being nagged by his parents to make something of himself.  Bartleby is also envious of his best friend for being accepted into a well-known college.  What he doesn't know is that Schrader is having his own acceptance issues as well.

Although he was accepted into college and is sure he is going to have a future, Schrader is having a difficult time finding out who he is too.  When he arrived at Harmon College, he was sure he was going to be having the time of his life.  He was going to enjoy being in college and join a fraternity.  Boy, was he wrong.  Rather than feeling comfort and acceptance, Schrader is ridiculed and taken advantage of by his fraternity brothers. They make Schrader wear a hot dog suit saying that all of the "great legends" that attended Harmon did the same.  Even though deep down Schrader understands the real reason for doing the task, he is compelled to go through with it.  He is misguided by the jokes and bullying and doesn't fully understand his purpose.

Throughout the movie, both Bartleby and Schrader are conflicted with who they are and what they really want to get out of college.  Both of them are going down different paths trying to find and figure out what is it is that is truly important; an education or to look and be the way society wants them to be.  

Bartley decides to create a curriculum that allows students to choose what they want to learn about.  Students are free to take any classes they want and explore their interests.

In the end, Bartleby comes out on top understanding what his purpose is.  At this point, Schrader has brought himself to drop out of Harmon College and follow Bartleby at the South Harmon Institute of Technology.  The both of them don't want to conform and be like students at Harmon College, but rather individuals with their own interests and aspirations.  Bartleby argues with the court to not shut down the South Harmon Institute of Technology and wins the opportunity to continue to attend the university that he created.

What scares students the most is the idea of rejection.  These sheets of paper are considered to "hold the future" of students.  However, little do they know that this is only the beginning.

Many students get accepted to Rutgers each year and choose this university for a college education.  Although a student has technically been accepted to the college, the real feeling of acceptance finally settles in when a student understands why he/she is attending the university in the first place.  It is common among many first year students to feel confused and nervous when entering a completely different environment especially Rutgers because of its large diversity.  It becomes hard for anyone to figure out what it is they want to do.  A lot of the times students come in feeling that college is when they are supposed to find their purpose and to figure out their future.

  However, college is more than that.  It is accepting who you are and using your identity to get you through the next couple of years.  

Congratulations!

WELCOME TO THE UNIVERSITY OF ACCEPTANCE

High School Shenanigans

RU READY FOR COLLEGE?!!

Two years ago I could have never imagined that this is what my life would be like. Thinking back into high school, I was always an upbeat, go-getter involved kind of student.  As the doors of high school were closing, I was ready to embark on a new journey to college. At that moment, I realized I needed to challenge myself to find out what I wanted my legacy to be. As a second year student here at Rutgers University, I have endured some hard times, where I learned vital lessons, and experienced some unforgettable, life changing moments, where I was changed for the better. I've matured in my thoughts, learned by example, and grown as a student leader. Since my arrival here at college, I cultivated my own motto for success. The grand question that I continued to ask myself was

“Was I better today than I was yesterday?”

As I reflect on my journey thus far I can truly say that I lead to serve others. After identifying my motives, I can proudly say that is the underlining fuel that powers my all of my actions.

For some students high school is a pivotal moment in their lives. This is a time period were many students begin to figure out who they are and what they stand for. It’s a stage in your life where you can completely rebel, mold and change the person you are, conform to others, or just simply be unchanged. The elements of high school are not the most pleasant and challenge students to really find themselves.   Such elements that exist are stereotypes, hormonal teenagers, sometimes violence, he said/she said and many more factors that impact your life. Everyone’s experience of high school is not the same because we all are unique with various differences in socioeconomic backgrounds, responsibilities, and support systems and etc. However, just having these differences does not mean that is our down fall. We need to embrace DIVERSITY (Rutgers’ favorite word). As New Student Orientation leaders, we will be faced with the challenge of making this space in the summer inclusive, united, and a warm welcoming environment for new students. 

New students are going to be coming in with a variety of different expectations and concerns. Now, I’d like to introduce you to a dazzling, ambitious young man who aspires to be a educator, a flight attendant, and a father of 3 someday- Javier J. Nicasio, a high school senior.

Skills USA New Jersey 2011 Regional Elections
 Northern Regional President 

            Javier J. Nicasio attends Passaic County Technical Institute where he is involved in numerous school activities. Javier is a part of the School of Education and Human Services which is the first step he is taking on his journey of fulfilling a career in education.  He is involved in Skills USA where he holds a state position, a member of the National Honor Society, and is a part-time cashier at the Little Falls Shop Rite. In addition, to these extracurricular activities Javier loves spending time with his dog Marley, volunteering at day cares, and imagining he is flying an airplane. 

1. Think about your high school experiences thus far. What have you enjoyed the most? What would you like to change and why? 

"I have really enjoyed my class called Child Development, where I met students with the same passion as me and bonded so much that we are now like a family.  I enjoyed being in the class of my sophomore year English teacher Mrs Bania- who always gave fun projects. I loved playing man hunt my junior year as a class prank in the hallways. Overall, it was been a good time! Things that I would change about high school is the uniform policy and how EVERYTHING was so strictly enforced."  

2. Do you want to go to college? If so, what are you looking forward to about college? 


" Yes, I want to further my education to ultimately become a teacher for middle school students. I cannot wait to get to college so I can pick my own schedule. I would much rather go to class at 12pm rather then starting my day at 8am. I'm excited about being independent and having the freedom that no one in  high school gets. I don't want anyone "holding my hand" through everything."


3. What are some of your major concerns about college? What are your biggest fears about getting there? 


" My fears would be not being able to obtain good grades because I heard that professors in college are so different. I'm also nervous about not getting a second chance if I mess up. I'm also kinda of worried about not meeting the right people. It's really easy to meet people in high school because I've been going to school with them all my life. In college I'm expecting everyone to come from so maybe different backgrounds-I'm worried they won't accept me." 

New students just like Javier are going to be coming to orientation this summer with similar concerns and expectations. After interviewing Javier I highlighted these 3 main questions and responses that are going to help us understand new students! Our job is to make them feel comfortable and give them the tools where they’ll be able to make the right choices when they get her for their first semester. We need to make them feel at home so they can maximize their potentials and breathe, sleep, eat, and bleed SCARLET!!!


I’m proud to be a Scarlet Knight and I want everyone that walks through those doors during orientation to feel that. 

Interview with a First Year at the Tail End of Their First Year

For my final blog I decided it would be best to interview a current first year student.  The student that I decided to interview is named Gabby and she is first year student living in the Livingston towers.  She is from a town roughly 20 minutes away so she had frequented the Rutgers community long before enrolling.  One thing she made clear in her interview is that although she had visited Rutgers multiple times in high school actually going here is a completely different experience, one that she was not completely ready for.

Paige: Tell me about your experience with New Student Orientation?

Gabby: I thought orientation was pretty cool overall.  I remember it being really hot and it really took me awhile to get into it but by the end of it I was honestly really happy that I went.

Paige: Do you think going to orientation affected your experience here, especially your first semester?

Gabby: Well, I’m not sure.  I know a lot of people that didn’t go to orientation and they are doing pretty well and have plenty of friends but I also know a lot of people in the towers that met some of their good friends here at orientation.  I live really close so I came in with a lot of friends from my own town and I could always go home if I really wanted to but going to orientation gave me the chance to meet new people that weren’t the same people that I was used to seeing all throughout high school and stuff like that.  But one of the main reasons why I am so glad that I went to orientation is because I learned a lot of really cool tips that helped me out when I got to college.  For example, there is no way that I would have known that the DCC allowed you to use meal swipes for things like drinks and breakfast at the Rock Café.  I know a lot of my friends were really surprised when I told them those things.

: Do you think orientation was missing anything?

Gabby: I mean, I think orientation was pretty cool, but I wish there was more of a chill time period.  Like a time where we could just hangout with all of the people there and just mingle.  I know there was like a two hour time period at the end of the first day but I wish there was more throughout the days.  I don’t think I would have been as tired by the end of it.  I also wish I got to see more than just one campus but I understand why that might be hard.

Paige: Well you’re almost done with your first year, knowing what you know now, what would you do differently?

Gabby: I think I had a pretty successful freshman year, I joined a sorority, did well in my classes but there are a few things that I do think I would do differently. I think I would not let the little things effect me and I definitely would have made a much larger effort to find out about a lot of the different things going on around campus.  It’s easy to hear about the big concerts and shows but there was a lot of little stuff going on around campus that I didn’t even know about.

Paige: Do you think orientation added to your success this year?

Gabby:  I mean I think orientation gave me a really great place to start.  I learned a lot of great skills and information that were honestly the stepping-stone for a successful year.  It’s also nice to have an orientation leader that you can contact anytime you have a question.  That was especially helpful in the summer before actually moving in. 

That concludes my interview with Gabby and I found a lot of her answers very interesting.  What I found especially interesting about Gabby is that while her first year was different she did not necessarily have a unsuccessful year which is one of the main reasons I chose to interview her.  Many students end up having a hard time adapting to college and while it Gabby's transition from high school to college wasn't perfect it was successful.  I'd like to consider Gabby an orientation success story.  She took the information offered to her at orientation and put it into action.  

Sorority Boys

 Many times people give bad reputations to funny movies. They say that they have no meaning and are just there to poke fun at a group of people, but in some cases they do have great lessons behind them. The movie I watched this past week was called “Sorority Boys”. This movie is a comedy about three fraternity guys who get kicked out after being accused of stealing fraternity funds. With nowhere else to go these boys become girls and join the sorority they always made fun of because they offer them room and board. These boys know they were framed and look to show that it was the president at the times doing that got them ousted from the fraternity. While these guys figure out a way to get back into their fraternity, they also learn many life lessons along the way.

I really enjoyed this movie because you can always get a laugh out of ridiculous movies about
Greek life like this one. Fraternities and Sororities get good and bad reputations, but you never really notice them until you come to college. Since all colleges have different Greek life it is interesting to see how their school has two sororities and we have over seven. Also, one thing I do not like is how fraternities and sororities are resembled in the movie because even if a fraternity or sororities mess up, they still have a bond that cannot be broken. This is also shows the struggle to understand what we want at college and how to grow as young men and women.

For example, the three main characters go through many struggles. Spence even had issues with his body, which is a hard subject to talk about. His friends supported him when he was pretending to be a girl. He decided to eat right and work out, like how we hope to do throughout college so we don’t put on that freshman 15 pounds. A major theme was how guys should treat girls. I feel like that it is a lesson you learn in college which is how to treat a girl right. The fraternity guys at first disrespected both sororities in different ways. At the end of the movie the three main guys had a mixer with the one sorority they joined and got to know them instead of just partying with them. It is a life lesson for young college men trying to become men. Adam actually was one guy who never liked the party seen and actually liked to get to know a girl. Little did he know that he would have to talk to girls he might never would have talked to to find her in what the movie calls the “ugly” sorority. Fred actually was a super super senior and never thought about where his life was going. He thought if he stayed in school he’d be fine, but you cannot do that forever. It took finding great friends in the sorority and going to class that got him into school to do well. Everyone needs a little motivation sometimes and places like career services and going to class are the start. When you are struggling people need others to point them in the right direction.

"The Roommate"

The roommate, released February 4th, 2011, is a story about a college student, Sara Matthews, who is a freshman in college and finds that her new roommate, Rebecca, has an obsession with her, which quickly turns violent. Throughout the movie Rebecca, the crazy roommate, slowly but surely plots against everyone of Sara's friends making sure that no one got in the way of their relationship.  Several incidents occurred before Sara started to realize that Rebecca was obsessed and was endangering everyone's life.  Rebecca sabotages Sara's fashion design professor's job, kills Sara's close family friend, Irene's, cat, and fools around with Sara's ex-boyfriend.  

When Sara spends the night at Rebecca's house for thanksgiving she secretly hears Rebecca's father hint towards her struggle at making friends.  Later on in the night Sara finds a bottle of  Zyprexa pills, which is used to treat schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.  Sara see's Rebecca getting a tattoo in the same place she has it and she becomes extremely upset.  The tattoo meant a lot to her because it was to remind her of her younger sister who died when she was nine.  Finally, the battle it out in the apartment Sara is staying at.  They fight until Sara ultimately kills Rebecca.  

This movie took me on a spin.  I was a little disturbed when I first saw this movie because I was a senior preparing for college.  I became a bit paranoid and anxious to find out if my roommate was as obsessive and crazy as Rebecca.  Fortunately, my nerves calmed down and my roommate turned out to be an awesome guy.  The main theme throughout this movie was roommate problems.  We see how Sara struggles to find peace with Rebecca once she starts realizing Sara is a little "different" (that may be an understatement.)  Roommate difficulties is often seen on college campuses and Rutgers is not excluded.  I have heard multiple stories from my peers of them not getting along with their roommates.  Luckily, there are multiple resources on campus that can help situations as these.  CAPS is a counseling service that can help roommate relationship.  You can also speak to your RA's or Peer Mentors about any situation that is going on.  Filliing out a roommate contract may be a good idea as well, that way you guys have rules and guidelines set for one another.  This movie is a bit extreme for some roommate problems that people may face on a regular basis but hey, anything is possible.

Star Struck!: Ellen's Stardust Dinner

This is 

Ellen's Star Dust Diner!

And no. By Ellen I do not mean ...

Ellen Degeneres. 

(Even though that was my first initial thought as well)

Last February, Green Movement took the adventure of a lifetime to the Big Apple for our color team excursion. We had to cross dangerous roads filled with heavy traffic and angry taxi drivers, navigate among some of the world's tallest sky scrapers, and fight off pick pockets and bank robbers, all before lunch time at Ellen's. 

By the time we got there we were very tired and very hungry. 

Now this is Sean. 

Sean was our waiter.

After a long day of saving the world, Sean Johnson greeted us with a warm smile, and a comfy booth.  For those of you who don't know about Ellen's, it's no ordinary diner. Here all the waitresses and waiters are singers, actors, photographers, or dancers. You name it! So while you're eating your three cheese omelet, you could be getting serenaded to "Why Can't We Be Friends" by your waiter/ress. No wonder they call it Star Dust! I was even more shocked when we started to talk to Sean about the lessons he had learned about life, work, and teamwork while working at Ellen's. The best part was that the themes he talked about could all be relate back to NSO.  

Sean's 4 Themes to a Happy Life and Career

   1. Be Happy 

Sean was telling us just how powerful a smile can be. A smile could help turn someone else's bad day into a good day, it can give another person encouragement, and it can empower your team members to give their 110% on a particularly stressful day. Usually every day at Ellen's is jam-packed with people; in this a fast-paced environment it is easy to become overwhelmed or discouraged. For Sean, on particularly stressful days at work, smiles from his co-workers and customers always makes the job less like work and more fun. He also finds this to be true outside the work place. Smiling is contagious, and it is able to bring complete strangers closer together. As OL's,we need to remember that during the summer not every student is going to be ecstatic at what we do during orientation. Or there might even be a staff member who might not be having the best day. But with a smile, even when it seems hard to continue on with the day's activities, we can encourage each other to keep going, and give it our best. 

   2. Making Teamwork, Dreamwork 

Sean explained how it's so easy to feel like some days you're not yourself, and it's those days that make it hard to get out of bed and actually work. But he explained how at Ellen's you have to be prepared to work even when you're feeling off, because you're part of team. From taking orders, to serving food, or singing and entertaining the crowd, you have a role to play. So you're not really allowed to have a bad day if you don't want to let your team down. 

(Sean making it work)

For OL's we have to use the same mind set. From now until the end of the summer we train and work as a team. We learn together, we laugh together, and sometimes we make mistakes together and that's okay. What's most important is that we're doing our best and trying, because we know a team can only perform as well as its weakest link. We have a responsibility to our bosses, co-workers, and even our students that we're always going to give our 110%, whether it's helping facilitate an activity, give a tour, or handle a sticky-situation. This is the responsibility each of us hold as a team member. 

   3. Going the Extra Mile

Sean told us working at Ellen's is a great place for someone to get experience under your belt and put your name out there, while making some extra cash. However, working at Ellen's isn't enough to get your name in bright lights. He said if employees want to make it big in the big apple they have to work even harder; for example, if a waitress is an inspiring actor she's going to have to still go out and audition for shows. They have to be willing to do more if they want to make it. I think this concept is perfect for OL's.  If we're going to have the best summer ever in NSO history, then doing the basics isn't going to cut it. That means it's going take more than just getting out of bed, putting on our polo, standing in front of a group of people and saying, "Hi my name is....". We're going to have to think of fun ways to incorporate ice breakers in our circles. We're going to have to come up with innovative ways to make campus tours more than just a tour. We're going to have to encourage our students to go out there and learn about the organizations we have here at Rutgers. It's this extra mile that separates NSO leaders from all the rest. 

(Green Movement with Sean)

   4. Being Accepting

One of Sean's values is the acceptance of others and their cultures, ideas, traditions, and values. He used the example of being Democratic or Republican; Sean is Republican, but he knows that even though the Democratic beliefs, values, and principals are polar opposite to the Republican's, both parties only want what's best for the security, lively hood, and the future of America. If you were to take ideas and values from both parties and put them together you would have a solution better than the preceding one. This is a idea OL's can apply during the summer. Over the summer, there are going to be times when we may have opposing views on how one should handle a certain situation; but that doesn't mean either is wrong or right. Instead of one person's idea being the "right way" or one's opinion being the "right one", if we work together and mesh our ideas we can come up with solutions that are better than any that we thought of by ourselves.  In order to have a happy and efficient work place, acceptability of all ideas is crucial. Disagreeing isn't wrong, and agreeing to disagree respectfully is sometimes the best solution.

Concluding Thoughts

Walking into Ellen's I didn't really know what to expect. I certainly didn't expect to have such an awesome waiter giving us his views to a happy life and career, and later singing a wonderful rendition of "Journey" to us. But it was definitely one of the best surprise I've ever experienced. I think my group got more than lucky getting paired with Sean. I think it was fate. Because who would've guessed that we would meet such a great guy, who seemed to know exactly what we're going through.

To learn more about Sean visit: www.seandavidjohnson.com

An Interview with a Totally Random High School Senior

To gain a greater insight into the mind of the high school senior waiting to attend Rutgers, I chose to interview *GASP* my sister Eileen! EW.

It was a tough decision to make, but as an incoming freshman from a different year and gender than myself, I figured she might hold some fears/expectations that maybe I didn't have when I was in her position two years ago.

In times like this, I reflect on how awesome it must be to have me as an older brother. Back in my day, I didn't have an older brother involved in New Student Orientation ready to make sure I came into the college world comfortably and knowledgeable. Kids these days...so spoiled. But I digress...

Has no idea I'm using this picture.

I begin the questioning with your average query:

What is your biggest fear about coming to Rutgers, besides having to live near me again?

The ensuing rambling was impossible to transcribe, so I'll do my best to hit the highlights. The first thing she mentioned was dining hall food. Naturally she must have heard all of the horror stories that college students bring home (not me of course I love Rutgers dining services with all my heart). I suppose not being served morning, noon and night by your mother is a big shock to the routine that is often overlooked in the face of the larger issues. Adjusting to a new routine is sometimes the toughest part of college. Basic survival tasks like getting food and doing laundry now occupy space in your brain that was formerly vacant or filled with the comfort of knowing somebody else would take care of it for you. Those were the days...

On a more serious note, one concern she does have that can't be overstated is the crime and violence that takes place in New Brunswick, which has increasingly found its way on-campus. Even the tranquil Douglass campus, where she is set to move to in the fall, has experienced muggings, robberies, and threatening behavior.

The Rutgers Police Department keeps thorough tabs on all crime that takes place on campus, and crime usually takes place beyond a sensible hour of the night. I told not to worry about it as long as she uses common sense and keeps out of precarious situations.

What do you expect as far as classwork and workload is concerned?


She basically told me that she felt like Rutgers was going to be as easy or difficult as she chose. Since students pick their own schedules and ultimately the difficulty of their classes, she believes that Rutgers courses will probably be easier than many of her current AP level classes. From my own experience I can say that Montgomery High School classes did challenge me more than many of my current college courses, however, stylistically they can be a little tricky to get used to. Expository Writing I is a mandatory course for freshmen that turns traditional high school writing style on its head. As long as one is willing to work and adapt, then making the transition from high school to college work is no huge challenge.

How do you plan on getting the most out of the college experience?


Having heard the legends of my college triumphs, Eileen is eager to follow in my footsteps on the path to glory. Already accepted to the Douglass residential college program, she is hoping to become a student leader through the experience. She told me that she knows how many varied things that Rutgers has to offer to keep her busy. Radio stations, theaters, newspapers, sports clubs and many organizations that I've had a chance to explore, she's been hearing about. I think it is invaluable that she has had two older brothers go through the college experience before her, so that she could take notes and see what we did right and wrong, so that she doesn't repeat some of the same mistakes. Everyone has a period of discomfort and adjusting. The important thing is minimizing that period and making it as small as you can.

Just a few of the many groups/organizations Rutgers University has to offer

What do you expect will be the toughest thing about attending Rutgers?


Without a doubt she expressed that leaving the comfort of her friends and family will likely be the biggest struggle. When you live with the same people for 18 years, it's surely different to have a roommate and constantly be seeing new faces. Even in a high school as large as Montgomery, after a little while there are many more familiar faces seen each day than unfamiliar. That reality gets flipped upside down at Rutgers. Sometimes you will feel alone, and other times you won't be able to get away from people. The most important thing to know, as I told her, was getting involved in things early and often, so that you can begin to develop relationships and familiar faces.

All in all, a lot of her fears and expectations were not unusual. Despite the fact that we all can come from different schools, communities, ethnicities, genders, etc. we all seem to share common fears and expectations about how things will and should play out once we get to college. If I learned anything from interviewing my little sister, it is that going to college doesn't have to be scary at all. People like myself and the rest of the NSO staff want to help assuage the anxieties that prospective freshmen have about Rutgers, because a lot of the time the rumors they hear are unfounded, and sometimes the media gives college an unrealistic image. My advice is to reach out to as many freshmen as you can, because a lot of the time they are too proud to address their feelings. Especially when they are related to you!