The Berkeley Beacon
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Emerson and Berklee connect via dance
Students anxiously looked on as Berklee College of Music alumna Katalin Matyus sashayed across the room. “Slow, quick, quick, slow,” said Matyus as she demonstrated a dance move during her four-hour lesson. Matyus — who studied performance and professional music — has been instructing free dance classes to Berklee and Emerson students twice a week since 2007.
Procrastination Station
An all-nighter like this sounds all too familiar for many college students who have mastered, or at least practiced, the art of procrastination. Studies conducted in the last six years have shown that 70 percent of college students procrastinate and 50 percent admit that it is a real problem for them, according to Tracy McLaughlin-Volpe, an assistant professor of psychology.
Earth Emerson hosts Recyclemania
Emerson College’s growing green community is increasing eco-friendly advocacy. Piano Row features the third floor Living Green learning community, and the dining hall has banished trays to reduce dishwater. Now, Earth Emerson — the college’s largest group of eco-activists — is encouraging students to recycle more by participating for the first time in “Recyclemania,” a nationwide contest.
Students begin to organize 2nd service trip to Nicaragua
In the center of the village of Chacraseca, Nicaragua stands an old, unused well. Senior Paige Trubatch, who volunteered in the town last summer with a group of Emerson students, said the well is the result of organizations pouring money into projects they can’t sustain.
Literary magazine hosts launch-party spelling bee
he audience grew silent as freshman Mackenzie Kuester approached the microphone. “Platypus. P-l-a-t-y-p-u-s. Platypus.” She passed the first round of Stork Magazine’s second annual spelling bee. “I got it right,” the writing, literature, and publishing major said, “which made me feel confident heading into the second round.”
Miss Manners
While you’re casually spritzing those three extra sprays of perfume on your cleavage or ironing out your good slacks, there’s only one thought going through your mind: God, I hope this date doesn’t suck. Compatibility and personality traits will determine if there’s a second date or not, but a few key etiquette tips can ensure that the date is not a downer.
Nerding Out
After making the case for video games at Emerson College, I looked to other schools to find student leaders in established game programs and inquired about their experience.
The ups and downs of Mission Hill
For junior Jordan Koluch, life on Mission Hill has its peaks and valleys. Her most notable gripe, she said, is the inconsistency of the E train on the Green Line, which she takes to school every day. “The E line sucks. Sometimes it takes me 45 minutes to get to school. Sometimes I’m standing in the street, waiting for the T in the torrential rain,” said the writing, literature, and publishing major. “There are beautiful days when some sort of spirit is smiling upon you and the T is there, and it [only] takes 20 minutes.”
Emerson named #3 Hipster Campus
Walking through Emerson’s campus, over-sized flannel, under-sized skinny jeans, thick glasses without lenses, and outdated cameras abound. These are just some of the reasons Emerson has been ranked the third most hipster school in the nation by College Magazine.
From studio to stage: Senior eyes Miss Boston title
“I really like the fact that there is a required amount of money that you have to raise,” said Russo. “It’s taking my love for singing, karaoke, and my new-found love for pageantry and mixing it together, which is kind of cool,” she said. Rosengard praised Russo’s enthusiasm for fundraising as many contestants prefer to ask for donations rather than host a fundraiser, he said.
“S*** Girls Say” spinoffs reach Emerson, twice
An idea struck freshman Erin Arata over winter break. After watching the “shit [fill in the blank] say” phenomenon unfold, the writing, literature, and publishing major decided to create a video specific to her school: “Shit Emerson Girls Say.” Videos have cropped up on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter, initially with “Shit Girls Say,” a parody portraying stereotypes of things girls may say. Variations of the video range from “Shit Boston Guys Say” to “Shit Nobody Says.” The original video was posted Dec. 12, 2011 and went viral, with 14,182,488 views as of Wednesday night.
Student Spill provides anonymous support through website
Sometimes it is easier to tell a complete stranger a secret. That is the philosophy that the Emerson chapter of Student Spill, an anonymous email-based college support network holds. The organization was launched in 2009, but came to Emerson last fall. President and founder of Student Spill at Emerson, Sarah Benkendorf, said she first read about the organization on HerCampus.com last spring and immediately connected to it.
Chinatown holds a ceremonial parade this past Sunday
Chinatown holds a ceremonial parade this past Sunday.
College’s oldest dept. proves to be small but mighty
A piece of brain dropped on the floor. Associate Professor Vinoth Jagaroo, joked “Don’t worry, I’ll pick that up,” and the crowd laughed, eager to break the tension of a cerebral dissection. Jagaroo moved on to the next step. He steadied the scalpel in his gloved hand, ready to make a careful incision.
Freshman forms secular organization
Stewart and two other freshmen spent seven hours on two afternoons last week tabling in Piano Row, inviting students to help develop an Emerson branch of the national non-profit Secular Student Alliance.
