They were young, all in their early twenties. Two were from the North, one from the South. Like so many people, mostly college students, of their time, they believed they could make a change, which is what brought them to Mississippi in 1964. They were part of a nationwide civil rights movement to help register African Americans to vote and, in the process, to challenge Mississippi's racist laws and practices.
Working for racial justice in Mississippi was a dangerous activity back then, inviting threats, harassment, and violence from members of the Ku Klux Klan and others opposed to change. Aware of the risks, the three volunteers, Andrew Goodman, James Chaney, and Michael Schwerner, pushed on anyway, encouraging Mississippi's African-American residents to register to vote and helping to set up local "Freedom Schools," which would educate African Americans about their rights.
For this they were killed.
Fifty years ago this month, Goodman, Chaney, and Schwerner were shot by members of a faction of the Klan known for its violence and ruthlessness. The killings took place at night along a dark Mississippi road; the victims' bodies were dumped in a nearby dam and not discovered until 44 days later.
The killings of Goodman, Chaney, and Schwerner helped focus national attention on racial violence and racial inequality, especially in the South. Some point to their deaths as having played an important role in the passage of national civil rights legislation later that year.
Probably so. But for me, the LIVES--not the deaths--of Goodman, Chaney, and Schwerner are what we should be remembering this summer. All three believed in justice--in particular, in the need for everyone to work toward making a just world. All believed in Martin Luther King, Jr.'s words that injustice anywhere was a threat to justice everywhere. And all were willing, at a young age, to act on their beliefs.
This isn't an invitation to young people (or anyone else) to follow blindly in Goodman, Chaney, and Schwerner's footsteps. The world continues to be an unfriendly, sometimes even hostile place for those intervening on behalf of others or trying to level the playing field. As always, those lobbying for change have to be careful.
But being careful doesn't mean being indifferent. Never has there been a greater need for people to try to make a difference in the world. And often, some of the most meaningful changes are those supported by young people, whose idealism, energy, and tenacity prove too strong for the status quo to resist.
So whether you're starting NCC this fall or beginning your next semester here, you need to step back (now and then at least) from your own concerns and look at the big picture. There's probably a cause or issue that's important to you and that deserves your time. Learn about it and think about what you can do to become involved. Plenty of young people from previous generations have made their voices heard, usually with positive results; now it's your turn. Think of it as a "thank you" to Goodman, Chaney, Schwerner and others who came before you--and a "you're welcome" to those who'll benefit from your courage and convictions.
Monday, June 30, 2014
Monday, June 23, 2014
High School is History
Who out there is feeling funny about graduating from high school?
Who's sad about leaving behind friends, classmates, teammates, teachers, and a world that's been with you forever?
If saying goodbye to high school suddenly seems strange, you're not alone. Moving on is tough. It's especially so when you're replacing the old familiar terrain with a new and uncertain one. Change can be scary.
But it can also be exciting. And if you give college a chance, it will be one of the most interesting, inspiring, enlightening, and thought-provoking experiences of your life. It will also be personally fulfilling and--ready for this?--even fun, in different ways than high school ever was.
More freedom, more choices, more say in your education, more chances to be yourself (or to figure out who you are): College promises all of these things. It also promises more personal responsibility; get ready to start asking more questions and paying more attention to school than you've probably done previously. But that's adulthood for you--lots of heavy lifting in the maturity department.
So as you say your farewells in the days and weeks ahead, it's okay to feel a little nostalgic about high school. Its good times hopefully outnumbered the bad and its lessons--about education, people, and life--will hopefully stay with you. But make no mistake: high school is over, finished, done, part of your past. Time to look ahead to college, which will be here before you know it and which (if you let it) will enrich your life more than you can right now ever imagine.
Who's sad about leaving behind friends, classmates, teammates, teachers, and a world that's been with you forever?
If saying goodbye to high school suddenly seems strange, you're not alone. Moving on is tough. It's especially so when you're replacing the old familiar terrain with a new and uncertain one. Change can be scary.
But it can also be exciting. And if you give college a chance, it will be one of the most interesting, inspiring, enlightening, and thought-provoking experiences of your life. It will also be personally fulfilling and--ready for this?--even fun, in different ways than high school ever was.
More freedom, more choices, more say in your education, more chances to be yourself (or to figure out who you are): College promises all of these things. It also promises more personal responsibility; get ready to start asking more questions and paying more attention to school than you've probably done previously. But that's adulthood for you--lots of heavy lifting in the maturity department.
So as you say your farewells in the days and weeks ahead, it's okay to feel a little nostalgic about high school. Its good times hopefully outnumbered the bad and its lessons--about education, people, and life--will hopefully stay with you. But make no mistake: high school is over, finished, done, part of your past. Time to look ahead to college, which will be here before you know it and which (if you let it) will enrich your life more than you can right now ever imagine.
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
Learning from the Spurs
You have to hand it to the San Antonio Spurs. Not only did the Spurs win this year's National Basketball Association championship in convincing fashion, they did so by demonstrating the importance of selflessness, consistency, composure, and teamwork.
The Spurs won more than sixty games during the regular season, finishing with the best record in the NBA. And they had little trouble in the playoffs, defeating even the talent-rich Miami Heat to claim their fifth championship in fifteen years.
Clearly, the Spurs have game. They're a talented team, featuring several future Hall of Famers and a terrific coach.
But they also have other habits that serve them well. They play smart, thoughtful basketball. They stress fundamentals. They play as a team. They keep their egos and emotions in check, even when things on the court are not going their way. And they learn from setbacks, as they obviously did after losing to the Heat in last year's finals.
These are behaviors that everyone--especially new college students--would be smart to learn early on. College asks you to be serious about school and to come to class ready to "play" (note my quotes!). It calls upon you to use your support (help centers and student services) when some timely help from others can make a difference. It insists that you show up regularly--and keep up over the long haul--and that you stay calm and composed during stressful situations. College also encourages you to learn from mistakes, including those moments (in or out of the classroom) that are disappointing and that you wish you had back.
Going to college may not seem as exciting as playing in the NBA finals (no chance of your being interviewed by ESPN or making the cover of Sports Illustrated after acing a test), but the two activities are more alike than you might think. Both require intelligence, commitment, tenacity, patience, and initiative. Both also encourage dependence on others, at least at times, along with the ability to control emotions and impulses.
What's more, they share a commitment to delayed gratification (think of all those hours spent in the gym and/or the library) en route to the big moment--championship games or graduation.
Even if you stink at basketball (like I do), know that you're in good company when you work as hard as Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, and the rest of the Spurs. There's plenty to be said for dedication and discipline, no matter where they make their presence felt.
The Spurs won more than sixty games during the regular season, finishing with the best record in the NBA. And they had little trouble in the playoffs, defeating even the talent-rich Miami Heat to claim their fifth championship in fifteen years.
Clearly, the Spurs have game. They're a talented team, featuring several future Hall of Famers and a terrific coach.
But they also have other habits that serve them well. They play smart, thoughtful basketball. They stress fundamentals. They play as a team. They keep their egos and emotions in check, even when things on the court are not going their way. And they learn from setbacks, as they obviously did after losing to the Heat in last year's finals.
These are behaviors that everyone--especially new college students--would be smart to learn early on. College asks you to be serious about school and to come to class ready to "play" (note my quotes!). It calls upon you to use your support (help centers and student services) when some timely help from others can make a difference. It insists that you show up regularly--and keep up over the long haul--and that you stay calm and composed during stressful situations. College also encourages you to learn from mistakes, including those moments (in or out of the classroom) that are disappointing and that you wish you had back.
Going to college may not seem as exciting as playing in the NBA finals (no chance of your being interviewed by ESPN or making the cover of Sports Illustrated after acing a test), but the two activities are more alike than you might think. Both require intelligence, commitment, tenacity, patience, and initiative. Both also encourage dependence on others, at least at times, along with the ability to control emotions and impulses.
What's more, they share a commitment to delayed gratification (think of all those hours spent in the gym and/or the library) en route to the big moment--championship games or graduation.
Even if you stink at basketball (like I do), know that you're in good company when you work as hard as Tim Duncan, Tony Parker, Manu Ginobili, and the rest of the Spurs. There's plenty to be said for dedication and discipline, no matter where they make their presence felt.
Tuesday, June 10, 2014
Talking About Race
Race. It's the most sensitive subject in America, one many people think about but few are comfortable discussing.
Yet it's clearly a topic that demands attention--and not just from a handful of socially conscious "others." Many believe that if America is to truly come to grips with this complex and often contentious issue, all of us will have to participate in these conversations, awkward as they might be.
So what better place for such a dialogue to take place than in the theatre, where playwrights are forever getting in audiences' faces about issues that make everyone squirm?
Bruce Norris's "Clybourne Park," which opens next week at NCC, will make many squirm in their seats. But it will also make them laugh, at times uproariously. And with good reason: Norris's Pulitzer-prize winning play takes aim at racism and prejudice in ways that are at once thoughtful and hilarious.
"Clybourne Park" is a sequel of sorts to Lorraine Hansberry's 1959 "Raisin in the Sun," which looks at an African-American family's struggles to make their way in an America steeped in prejudice. Hansberry's play ends with the family preparing to move to a home in Clybourne Park, a white community that's resistant to the idea of having a black family in their midst.
Norris's play begins in the living room of the white couple planning to sell their home--unknowingly--to the African-American family of Hansberry's play. Casual dialogue soon gives way to revelations and tensions, many involving attitudes toward race.
The emotional intensity of the drama increases in the second act, set fifty years later in 2009. Like the rest of America, Clybourne Park has changed, as have the identities of the residents of the house and the surrounding community. But the characters--white and black alike--are as uncomfortable and uneasy about race as their predecessors. In fact, they're in many ways less subtle about their prejudices, especially when their buttons have been pushed by others. It's at these moments that the play's message becomes clear: For all of our efforts to get along, we're still incredibly ill at ease around people whose skin color differs from ours.
You'll laugh a lot at the actions and words of the characters in "Clybourne Park." Norris's humor is caustic, even raunchy at times. But his play is deadly serious about its subject and will jolt you out of your comfort zone and (as good theatre often does) make you reflect on your own attitudes and behaviors.
That's why you should make it your business to see this play, which will not only leave you with much to ponder but perhaps inspire you to take part in that long overdue conversation about race in America. If it does, score a victory for EDUCATION, which at its best is a catalyst for change.
* * * *
"Clybourne Park" runs at NCC from June 19-22 and 25-29. For ticket information, call 572-7676.
Yet it's clearly a topic that demands attention--and not just from a handful of socially conscious "others." Many believe that if America is to truly come to grips with this complex and often contentious issue, all of us will have to participate in these conversations, awkward as they might be.
So what better place for such a dialogue to take place than in the theatre, where playwrights are forever getting in audiences' faces about issues that make everyone squirm?
Bruce Norris's "Clybourne Park," which opens next week at NCC, will make many squirm in their seats. But it will also make them laugh, at times uproariously. And with good reason: Norris's Pulitzer-prize winning play takes aim at racism and prejudice in ways that are at once thoughtful and hilarious.
"Clybourne Park" is a sequel of sorts to Lorraine Hansberry's 1959 "Raisin in the Sun," which looks at an African-American family's struggles to make their way in an America steeped in prejudice. Hansberry's play ends with the family preparing to move to a home in Clybourne Park, a white community that's resistant to the idea of having a black family in their midst.
Norris's play begins in the living room of the white couple planning to sell their home--unknowingly--to the African-American family of Hansberry's play. Casual dialogue soon gives way to revelations and tensions, many involving attitudes toward race.
The emotional intensity of the drama increases in the second act, set fifty years later in 2009. Like the rest of America, Clybourne Park has changed, as have the identities of the residents of the house and the surrounding community. But the characters--white and black alike--are as uncomfortable and uneasy about race as their predecessors. In fact, they're in many ways less subtle about their prejudices, especially when their buttons have been pushed by others. It's at these moments that the play's message becomes clear: For all of our efforts to get along, we're still incredibly ill at ease around people whose skin color differs from ours.
You'll laugh a lot at the actions and words of the characters in "Clybourne Park." Norris's humor is caustic, even raunchy at times. But his play is deadly serious about its subject and will jolt you out of your comfort zone and (as good theatre often does) make you reflect on your own attitudes and behaviors.
That's why you should make it your business to see this play, which will not only leave you with much to ponder but perhaps inspire you to take part in that long overdue conversation about race in America. If it does, score a victory for EDUCATION, which at its best is a catalyst for change.
* * * *
"Clybourne Park" runs at NCC from June 19-22 and 25-29. For ticket information, call 572-7676.
Friday, May 23, 2014
Reading = College Success (Seriously!)
So maybe you're looking at the title of this post and thinking, Reading? Doesn't this dude know we're in the digital age? Hasn't he ever heard of Youtube, Instagram, Twitter, etc. etc.?
Trust me on this--I know all about digital. But I also know that being able to read and understand a piece of text, be it an online article, a selection from an etext, or a chapter in one of those clunky print textbooks, is vital to success in college and almost every profession you can think of.
It's also the key to a satisfying and fulfilled life.
I'm not the only one who believes in the power of reading. New York Times's columnist Frank Bruni recently reported on research that indicated a connection not only between reading and intelligence (no small thing) but--for readers of fiction--between reading and empathy. Coming to grips with the complexities of human behavior makes people, in Bruni's words, "more adept at reading people [and] sizing up the social whirl around them."
That's right: Reading fiction makes us more aware, more empathetic (something inhabitants of this planet sorely need), and better able to connect with others.
That's not all. Bruni cites research by Emory University neuroscientists who have found "enhanced neural activity in people who'd been given a regular course of daily reading." Translation: Reading trains our brains and keeps our minds in shape. It helps us become more focused and orderly thinkers. It's the equivalent of regular exercise, only from the neck up.
All this isn't intended to dismiss the value of film, video, and the ever expanding digital universe. They're clearly important in their own right. But so too is the printed word, which can often make us think, feel, and remember in ways like nothing else. Good writing, no matter what its subject, leaves its thumbprint on our minds and hearts long after we've read the last page or logged off our laptop.
So do your brain a favor this summer and read a book. Or several books. Or a good daily newspaper. Being a proficient reader will absolutely help you be more successful in your classes. It will score points with your professors, who'll be impressed by your ability to understand and respond thoughtfully to assigned texts. And best of all, it will make being alive that much more fun and interesting.
Trust me on this--I know all about digital. But I also know that being able to read and understand a piece of text, be it an online article, a selection from an etext, or a chapter in one of those clunky print textbooks, is vital to success in college and almost every profession you can think of.
It's also the key to a satisfying and fulfilled life.
I'm not the only one who believes in the power of reading. New York Times's columnist Frank Bruni recently reported on research that indicated a connection not only between reading and intelligence (no small thing) but--for readers of fiction--between reading and empathy. Coming to grips with the complexities of human behavior makes people, in Bruni's words, "more adept at reading people [and] sizing up the social whirl around them."
That's right: Reading fiction makes us more aware, more empathetic (something inhabitants of this planet sorely need), and better able to connect with others.
That's not all. Bruni cites research by Emory University neuroscientists who have found "enhanced neural activity in people who'd been given a regular course of daily reading." Translation: Reading trains our brains and keeps our minds in shape. It helps us become more focused and orderly thinkers. It's the equivalent of regular exercise, only from the neck up.
All this isn't intended to dismiss the value of film, video, and the ever expanding digital universe. They're clearly important in their own right. But so too is the printed word, which can often make us think, feel, and remember in ways like nothing else. Good writing, no matter what its subject, leaves its thumbprint on our minds and hearts long after we've read the last page or logged off our laptop.
So do your brain a favor this summer and read a book. Or several books. Or a good daily newspaper. Being a proficient reader will absolutely help you be more successful in your classes. It will score points with your professors, who'll be impressed by your ability to understand and respond thoughtfully to assigned texts. And best of all, it will make being alive that much more fun and interesting.
Sunday, May 11, 2014
Taking a Page from Heather
Sometimes you have to push--and even break a sweat--to make good things happen.
No one knows that better than Heather, a promising young writer and former student of mine from another college. A few years ago, Heather and two of her classmates decided to start a women's magazine at their school. Though they'd never produced a publication from start to finish, they took the plunge anyway, developing the magazine's "look," giving it a name, brainstorming story ideas, recruiting writers, photographers and designers, and setting out to see what they could produce.
Like every creative venture, the process had its trying moments. Some people who'd promised to help didn't come through. Others didn't collaborate or communicate as well as they should have. There were occasional missteps, sometimes requiring fixes. There were also ridiculously long production delays (not the students' doing), along with a few campus naysayers who weren't exactly supportive.
Still, Heather pressed on. She could have decided that the hassles weren't worth it and junked the whole project. But she stayed with it and wound up producing an informative and eye-catching publication. Not everyone recognized how much time, thought, work, and heart went into the magazine, but those of us who were rooting for her certainly did.
This post isn't really about producing a magazine--which may or may not be on your goals list--but instead about having the patience, energy, and tenacity to bring your own vision to life. Many students I meet in college have goals and plans for themselves: to enter a profession, start a business, become a writer or artist or performer, etc. etc. But the first time they hit a bump in the road, many become discouraged and give up.
Don't! No matter what you aspire to do in your life, you're bound to encounter at least some obstacles and setbacks. But if your dreams and goals matter enough to you, you can't let circumstances get in the way. You have to keep trying. You have to keep going forward. Quitting doesn't provide much comfort.
So whether you're graduating from Nassau this month, registering for your next semester at NCC, or starting here in September, take a page from Heather. Give your goals, whatever they are, your best shot. Don't worry if you stumble; everyone does. Ignore the doubters; they're not worth your time. And remember that in the end, the only person you really have to worry about pleasing is yourself.
No one knows that better than Heather, a promising young writer and former student of mine from another college. A few years ago, Heather and two of her classmates decided to start a women's magazine at their school. Though they'd never produced a publication from start to finish, they took the plunge anyway, developing the magazine's "look," giving it a name, brainstorming story ideas, recruiting writers, photographers and designers, and setting out to see what they could produce.
Like every creative venture, the process had its trying moments. Some people who'd promised to help didn't come through. Others didn't collaborate or communicate as well as they should have. There were occasional missteps, sometimes requiring fixes. There were also ridiculously long production delays (not the students' doing), along with a few campus naysayers who weren't exactly supportive.
Still, Heather pressed on. She could have decided that the hassles weren't worth it and junked the whole project. But she stayed with it and wound up producing an informative and eye-catching publication. Not everyone recognized how much time, thought, work, and heart went into the magazine, but those of us who were rooting for her certainly did.
This post isn't really about producing a magazine--which may or may not be on your goals list--but instead about having the patience, energy, and tenacity to bring your own vision to life. Many students I meet in college have goals and plans for themselves: to enter a profession, start a business, become a writer or artist or performer, etc. etc. But the first time they hit a bump in the road, many become discouraged and give up.
Don't! No matter what you aspire to do in your life, you're bound to encounter at least some obstacles and setbacks. But if your dreams and goals matter enough to you, you can't let circumstances get in the way. You have to keep trying. You have to keep going forward. Quitting doesn't provide much comfort.
So whether you're graduating from Nassau this month, registering for your next semester at NCC, or starting here in September, take a page from Heather. Give your goals, whatever they are, your best shot. Don't worry if you stumble; everyone does. Ignore the doubters; they're not worth your time. And remember that in the end, the only person you really have to worry about pleasing is yourself.
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
Creative Spirits at Work
Say this for NCC students: they're creative.
Visit the Firehouse Art Gallery (whose student art competition runs through May 15) and you'll see what I mean. More than one hundred student works, in a variety of media, are on display.
Ditto for the Music Department's concerts and choral presentations, which are regular events throughout the year, especially in the spring semester. Lots of musical talent here.
At this Thursday night's fashion show in the College Center, you'll see a different kind of creativity, as NCC fashion students model their designs for the campus community. Stop by and get a glimpse of their great work.
And while you're in the CCB, take a look at the terrific artwork produced by Nassau students as part of NCC 101's Student Multimedia Arts and Writing Competition (see this year's winning entries below). Each reflects the student artist's response to this year's college-wide theme, "Speak, Memory." One work is more engaging than the next.
That's not all. Students who participated in this year's competition also wrote poems, shared personal reminscences, and wrote and performed original music, all speaking to the power of memory. You can read, view, and listen to their work on the First-Year Experience's Creativity page at http://www.ncc.edu/studentlife/first_year_experience/creative_competition.shtml
Whether you're a poet, a painter, a songwriter, an essayist, a designer, a photographer, a musician, a sculptor, or someone interested in pioneering new forms, there's plenty of room to stretch at this college. And there's no shortage of people--faculty and others--willing to help you reach in new artistic directions. Just ask the students who've found Nassau a source of inspiration.
Alvin Sumigcay
Second Prize
Visit the Firehouse Art Gallery (whose student art competition runs through May 15) and you'll see what I mean. More than one hundred student works, in a variety of media, are on display.
Ditto for the Music Department's concerts and choral presentations, which are regular events throughout the year, especially in the spring semester. Lots of musical talent here.
At this Thursday night's fashion show in the College Center, you'll see a different kind of creativity, as NCC fashion students model their designs for the campus community. Stop by and get a glimpse of their great work.
And while you're in the CCB, take a look at the terrific artwork produced by Nassau students as part of NCC 101's Student Multimedia Arts and Writing Competition (see this year's winning entries below). Each reflects the student artist's response to this year's college-wide theme, "Speak, Memory." One work is more engaging than the next.
That's not all. Students who participated in this year's competition also wrote poems, shared personal reminscences, and wrote and performed original music, all speaking to the power of memory. You can read, view, and listen to their work on the First-Year Experience's Creativity page at http://www.ncc.edu/studentlife/first_year_experience/creative_competition.shtml
Whether you're a poet, a painter, a songwriter, an essayist, a designer, a photographer, a musician, a sculptor, or someone interested in pioneering new forms, there's plenty of room to stretch at this college. And there's no shortage of people--faculty and others--willing to help you reach in new artistic directions. Just ask the students who've found Nassau a source of inspiration.
Blaine Garde
First Prize
Alvin Sumigcay
Second Prize
Lauren Carbone
Third Prize
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