Made it Through Finals!

Ahhh so first semester is officially over!! My last final was on Wednesday, I'm so glad to be done with tests. This semester flew by so fast though! So many things go on here, you just lose track of time. But I had a really great semester and a lot of fun. Studying for finals was pretty stressful, the hardest part was just staying focused. Going to the library really helps! With everyone leaving at different times depending on when their finals are over, it is really hard to focus in the dorms with people moving all their stuff for break. Although I am sad that the first semester is already over, I'm really glad to be done with tests for a while! Next semester doesn't start until the end of January, but I will be going back Jan. third for inter-session to start practicing again. Our season starts really soon, I cant wait! Well I wish everyone the best of holidays! :) See you next semester.

Brockport Times

It's been a while since my last post, so I decided to put up some assorted pictures that show what I've been up to at Brockport.

These are my two roommates playing video games in the dorm. In case you've forgotten, I'm living in a triple, which is why I have two roommates. Darrel is the one on the left and Tyler is the one to the right.

This is some of my friends skating at the ice rink in Tuttle. We often go on Wednesdays, and though most of us are rather poor skaters, it's always a fun time.

These pictures are from one of our late night Walmart runs, at around two or three in the morning. If you're ever bored, a late night Walmart trip always has potential for entertainment.

Here's some pics of our Broomball team, the Hard Bananas. We had a very unsuccessful first season; we didn't win any games. In our second season, however, we were undefeated in the regular season. We failed to win it all though, as we lost in the semifinals in the playoffs.

Logan Marks

Home stretch of the first semester!

My roommates and I were commenting the other day about how fast this semester has gone. We have two more weeks of classes and then finals week. Thanksgiving break was a nice break from all the hectic tests my professors decided to give me right before break. It was nice to see family after a month or two of not being home.

So much has happened over the semester though. The Keith Anderson and Kellie Pickler concert was very memorable. Working for The Stylus paid off because I got the opportunity to interview them! Halloween was a blast - I dressed up like a cowgirl all weekend long! Time definitely flies in college. I'm meeting with a group of students in one of my classes for a presentation soon, so until then - hope the college search is going well!

Back From Thanksgiving

So we had our first day of classes since returning from Thanksgiving break. Now it is time to refocus on school and crack down for finals. Finals are in two weeks, so school is still a bit stressful. But the good news is... my roommates and I won a gingerbread house making contest a few weeks ago! It was a lot of fun building our own house while eating all the candy. But I can't wait for winter break to start so this semester is over and I can begin my new set of classes in January. Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

-Natalie

The Freshman Nerves

On move-in day, I was very surprised to see how small my suite room was, but the move-in crew was very accommodating and once I finally organized everything, I quickly adjusted and it started feeling like home. My suitemates and other freshman in my hall made me feel very welcome and made the goodbye to my grandma and mom so much easier.
Before I came to college, I was also very worried about gaining the "freshman 15" (which I refuse to do), but there is a gym open to all students free of charge and the food in the dining halls has been rated number one in the SUNY system for the past five years. the food staff is very friendly and the popular dining hall, Harrison features many healthy foods.
In addition, before I started my classes I was a little nervous because my course load included Human Evolution, Intro to Philosophy, Movement and Self Awareness (I didn't realize this was a dance class until the first day of classes!), Protest and Public Opinion, Fundamentals of Media and Academic Planning Seminar. In my Human Evolution class, there is a woman who is deaf and Brockport is very accommodating for people with any kind of learning disability. Most of my classes are general education classes, but I am getting a taste of journalism through my Fundamentals of Media and Protest and Public Opinion classes. In addition, the Academic Planning Seminar is very important for freshmen because it's a class that gets students acclimated to the college. The class has students in it with similar majors to mine and if I ever need help with any of my journalism classes, I have a whole class of students to get help from. Also, my advisor of the class is the chair of the communications department, which is good if I ever need help with anything journalism related and I will eventually turn to her for recommendations when I am job hunting or applying for a scholarship.
There are many opportunities to get involved with activities on campus. Although I didn't know it before I came here, Brockport is known, especially by the students and professors, for advertising campus activities all over campus including on sidewalks (with chalk, of course). As I walk out of my residence hall, I look down to see a plethora of different groups promoting meetings to join clubs, advertising sororities and fraternities or selling tickets for the upcoming concert.
The local movie theater hosts midnight movies (that Brockport students get into for $1!) and Zonies, a restaurant on Main Street has the best (and most fattening!) calzones. Although I don't participate in any of the Division 3 sports teams, club sports or intramural sports, they are fun to watch (and Brockport students get in free).
Although the Brockport Web site is very easy to navigate, you can't tell by looking at a website where the best place for you to attend college would be. I believe its crucial to attend an open house to experience the campus. During my college search, I knew I wanted to wake up every morning and walk to my classes on a beautiful, welcoming campus (and I do!). Take a campus visit, try the food, introduce yourself to as many people as you can, check out the dorms and clean out your mom's wallet at the college book store. Try not to get too overwhelmed with the college search - you WILL find the perfect college for you!

Introduction

Hey! I'm Hailey and I'm from Painted Post, New York, a small town about two hours south of Brockport. I live with my grandparents, my 16-year-old sister Whitney and my 3-year-old brother Ryland. I spend my free time hanging out with friends, scrapbooking, reading and writing.

During my four years at Corning-Painted Post West High School, I was on the newspaper and yearbook staff; played the clarinet, trombone, mellophone and french horn in marching band, concert band and pep band; and actively participated in Class Council, Student Council, lacrosse and softball. I also had an internship with my hometown's local newspaper, The Leader which finalized my decision to become a journalist.

Honestly, I became interested in Brockport accidently. I attended a campus visit at Brockport as a last resort and fell absolutely in love with the school while I was here. My tour guide, Brynn, really showed me what campus life and academics was like, but I was still unsure about coming here because it wasn't my first choice college.

It's been less than a month since I've been here and I have adjusted very well; I really love Brockport and wouldn't have chosen any other college. I live in a suite in Benedict Hall and I love my roommates and other students in the hall; everyone is a big family and I'm right at home. There are so many activities to pursue on campus as well. I already have a work study job in a computer lab which I really enjoy and I just started writing for The Stylus, the student-run newspaper that recently received the fifth place "Best of Show" award at the Associated College Press National College Newspaper Midwinter Convention. In addition to Brockport's beautiful campus, I decided to attend college at Brockport because of their excellent academic reputation. I can understand and learn from all of my professors and they are very willing to teach students the best way they learn. Also, the class size of all of my classes is 40 students or less, so I'm not just another number in the classroom.

I am very excited about getting involved in more activities and making the most of my experience at Brockport and hope you enjoy reading about my first year!

November! Already??

So, now it's a little over halfway through the semester. I'm still in shock it's November. Seriously, wasn't yesterday September? Now it's practically Thanksgiving break! Right now things are still going really well. I survived my first college mid-terms! Not as scary as I thought they would be. Tennis is over for now, which is a nice little break. For right now I'm just trying to focus on my school work... finals are getting close! :/ One thing I have to say is that I really loved my first college halloween. The campus has a lot of great activities going on throughout the whole Halloween weekend. People here really got into the holiday. I was really impressed with a lot of the costumes! One of my favorite costumes that night was definetley Sarah Palin and John McCain. So good job to Rebekah Fuller and Garret W. Roe. Well I should go study now, I love Oceanography exams! Haha... until next time.

-Carolyn

Moving In!!

Moving into my college dorm room was my most anticipated event all summer. It was often very scary to think about, considering it involves temporarily moving away from my family and all my friends from home. It’s the first time I would be living on my own in a totally new place. I knew I would have to take on many new responsibilities, like waking up for class on time, washing my own laundry, and learning how to balance my life between school, gymnastics, and social events. Leaving my friends who I have grew up with and shared so many memories with was not something I wanted to do. However I knew there was no way around it, it was time to move on. It was time to make new friends and start a new chapter in my life. Although moving away from a very familiar and comfortable place was fearsome, at the same time it was exciting to think about all the new opportunities that would open up to me. It is a time for me to grow up and be independent form my parents and find out who I am as an individual. After a fun and relaxing summer, August 27th finally came and it was time for me to pack my bags and go.

Being in the Honors Program, I was given the opportunity to move in a day before everyone else. This was very helpful because it wasn’t as crowded when my other suite-mates moved in! The move-in helpers provided by the college were very helpful, I was able to bring all my bags right up to the door and I was given a cart to lug all my belongings from the car to my dorm. After four days of moving me in and setting up my room, a bit longer than most students, my parents finally took off. I was very satisfied with how my room turned out. The dorms are a nice size and I'm able to fit all my possessions in here comfortably. I am an organized person, so the way my dorm room turned out was very important to me. Living in the suites, I have three other suite-mates in which we share a bathroom and a common room where we have our fridges, microwave, and television.

So far living in the dorms have been a blast! First off I have wonderful suite-mates so we have a lot of fun together, but we have also met a lot of cool people on our floor and in the dorms. We all hang out a lot; we play games, watch movies, and cook in the kitchen together. There are also many events that go on in the dorms. So far there have been volleyball tournaments and hall parties that consist of ice cream and pizza! Despite all the fun I have, my suite-mates and I are also very studious and spend a lot of our time in our dorm studying and getting work done. Although we have to lock our door to get peace and quiet, it is not necessary to go to the library to study, I often do homework right in my room.

Overall, after all the stress of moving in and living on my own, I am very content with how everything turned out. My RA (Resident Assistant) is very friendly and helpful in making sure everything runs smoothly in our hall, I am not too overwhelmed with schoolwork, my gymnastics team is a lot of fun, and I love hanging out with my suite-mates!

-Natalie

New Beginning

Hello, my name is Natalie Fiorilli, and I am a freshman here at The College at Brockport. My hometown is Solon, Ohio, there I live with my two parents, my two sisters, Emily and Katie, and my brother Timothy. My sister Emily is currently enrolled as a junior at the University of Illinois in Chicago, my brother attends The Ohio State University, and my younger sister just started her first year of high school. The first time for everything is filled with a mix of emotions, people are often scared to break out of their comfort zone, but at the same time excited to start a new chapter in their life. My younger sister and I are currently starting this “new chapter”.

I first found out about Brockport when I was recruited for the gymnastics team. Not many people from my hometown have heard about The College at Brockport, considering the percentage of “out of staters” is pretty low, that isn’t unreasonable. Although I have only been here for a few weeks, I am really glad I was introduced to Brockport, it has so much to offer!

I am majoring in Biology, and hope to be a pharmacist someday. With school starting up, and practices for gymnastics beginning, my everyday schedule is pretty busy. However, I would love to share with you my experience here at The College at Brockport. I am really excited for my first year here and hope you enjoy reading about my freshman year! : )

-Natalie

Brockport: The Beginning

Hey everyone my name is Logan, and I come to The College at Brockport from the central NY city of Cortland, which is about two hours from here. I have lived there for most of my life, though I was actually born in Colorado, and didn’t move to Cortland until I was two. Being the oldest child in my family, I am the first to head off to college, leaving behind my parents and two sisters. Though I tend to miss them every so often, college life is amazing. It’s an important step in becoming more independent and discovering who you really are. Being a college freshman is a great experience, something everyone should have in their lifetime.

There were several reasons why I chose to attend Brockport. The campus here is amazing for one. It was one of my favorite from all the schools I visited when I was trying to make my decision. Another reason was all the possibilities here. I’m coming in as an English major, however I have absolutely no idea what I want to do, so I wanted a school with a lot of different choices. Brockport is just such a school. They have the Creative Writing program within the English Department, yet if I wish to switch majors I know I will have many options to pick from. Lastly, Brockport was a good choice for me because of it’s location. My home is about a two and a half hour drive from Brockport. Its not too close and not too far. Just how I wanted it. When I need to go home its not too much of a hassle, yet my mom can’t come and annoy me every time she misses me. Sorry mom.

Anyway, on to life at college. I’ve only been here for two weeks yet it seems like a year has passed already, so much has happened. I was nervous about meeting my roommates but they turned out to be both be good guys. And yes, I did say roommates, as in more than one. I signed up to be tripled in a double because it saved me around $800 this semester. However I got the luck of the draw and was put in McFarlane Hall, which was the recently renovated, so my room is pretty spacious and new. It gets kind of cluttered sometimes because my one roommate, who was going to sleep on the top bunk, decided he was afraid of falling off. So we moved his mattress to the floor and that’s where he’s currently sleeping. It works out though because we made the top bunk into a shelf, and I don’t spend a ton of time in my room anyway.

Aside from worrying about meeting my roommates, I was worried about meeting new people. However, I’ve made so many new friends in my short time here. I knew very few people here when I first arrived, but now I know many people and have made several good friends. I feel like I’ve known them far longer than just two weeks. We’ve already had numerous adventures, and made more than a few good memories. For instance one Saturday a group of friends and I decided to go to Walmart at two in the morning, just because it was late and we had nothing better to do. We piled seven people into my friend’s small car (one person actually had to go in the trunk), and drove to Walmart to have our late night adventure. Or there was the time when I was chilling with friends in the third floor lounge of McFarlane at night, and we looked out into the hall and saw torrents of brightly colored balloons being pushed and kicked through the hallway. Someone had randomly decided to blow up 500 balloons, and then released them. We proceeded to have a late night balloon party in the lounge, with all the students who were still awake. Another enjoyable experience I had with some friends was competing in the McFarlane volleyball tournament. There is a sand volleyball court right outside of McFarlane, and six different teams participated in a friendly, six on six tournament on a beautiful, sunny day. My team didn’t end up winning it all, but we made it to the second round and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves.

However, college isn’t all about having fun (sadly). Being on my own now I have no nagging parents to tell me when I should do homework, so time management is very important. You need to figure out how to have fun, yet save time for homework and studying. It can be tough sometimes when you want to go hang with friends instead of doing schoolwork, but if you manage your time the right way you should have time for both.

So how has my Brockport experience been so far? Amazing. My first few weeks here have been great, and I have high expectations for the rest of the year. I look forward to making more memories with my newly made friends.

-Logan Marks

Brockport : )

It’s really awesome here at The College at Brockport. Now I know I’m probably a little biased, but really, the campus is beautiful. Definitely one of the prettiest I’ve seen, if not the prettiest. But the amazing campus is not the reason I chose Brockport, only one of the many helpful factors. I chose to attend Brockport for two main reasons. The first being the awesome journalism program they have here. I’ve known I’ve wanted to do some sort of writing since I was really little. Then as I got older I decided I wanted to do journalism. As of now I'm considering a career in the magazine journalism field, but who knows where I’ll end up. That’s actually one of the reason I chose Brockport. They offer so many different classes and programs that can help me to decide exactly what kind of journalism I’m interested most in. Brockport has everything from newspaper and magazine journalism to broadcast journalism. So for me, that’s perfect. I’ll get to explore a little, experience some new things to see exactly what it is I want to do. Which, to me, is exactly what college should be about. The second reason that I chose Brockport was for the tennis team here. I’ve been playing tennis since about 7th grade. Having tried practically all sports at one time or another, I can honestly say tennis beats them all. No offense to any other sports… I do love the occasional softball and soccer game as well, but tennis pretty much kicks butt. When making that super important decision on exactly what college I should go to, tennis played a huge part. I knew I wanted to play in college, but as all other athletes know, a lot of factors go into choosing. The team, the coach, the talent, all really important things to consider. But after all that debating I chose to play at Brockport, obviously. My coach, Ed Gonzalez, is awesome and all the girls on my team are great. We just had our first match a few days ago, and although we lost it was still really good. Joining the tennis team was great; it practically gave me an instant group of friends who I love being with. Plus, being an athlete I got to move into the dorms a week early, so I got to choose my side of the room first. I can say already though, that it’s a lot of work being on a sports team and having classes. Between practices, games and then classes and work, I sometimes find myself wondering where the day went. But it’s something I want to do, so I know I’ll make it work.
The first two weeks here went by really fast. The first week for me was actually just pre season. Tennis, tennis, tennis and then… oh yeah, more tennis! But I did love almost every second of it. Then came Welcome Weekend. The people who put on the Welcome Weekend activities really did a fine job. Clearly a lot of work and effort was put into making this weekend such a success. The College filled the weekend with activity after activity. Along with all those activities came even more hilarious ice breakers. I mean, who doesn’t love super awkward ice breakers that require you to hug random freshman? Or actually I think the best one was when we all had to sit on each other. Yes, literally sit on each other. Thank you, Saturday's Playfair! All jokes aside however, those awkward ice breakers really do pay off. It’s a crazy, silly and sort of stupid way to get to talk to people. During that one weekend, I feel like I met practically every freshman. But after that weekend, the fun ended. Haha, sorta. Really, just classes began. I know everyone says, “Ooh College the workload is so hard blah blah”. In all honesty, those people are right. The workload already is a lot. Yet, it’s also nothing that so far, I can’t handle. One thing that everyone will stress to you that’s so true: it’s honestly all about time management. Don’t spend six hours on face book when you should be studying for Sociology!
So all in all college is a success! So far that is. But really, I don’t anticipate my love for Brockport going away anytime soon. This is an awesome place that I look forward to being at for the next four years. So, until next time!

-Carolyn

Intro

Ah, so I’m finally here, The College at Brockport. It feels good to finally be able to say the sentence “I’m a college student”. My names Carolyn McMenemon and clearly, I’m a freshman here at Brockport. I’m from a small town way downstate, Pine Bush, New York. Most people have never heard of it, although it is pretty well known for UFO sightings to some people. Sorry, but I’ve never seen one. It’s about five hours from Brockport, yeah I know…long car ride and pretty far from home. Which, is kind of hard considering that I am really close to my family. I live with my parents and my younger sister Kellie, whose 16. Then I have an older sister Marybeth whose 24 but lives in Manhattan. Yeah, being the middle child rocks. Leaving home was a very odd experience. Aside from the normal school field trips and overnight sleepovers, I had never been away from my family for an extended period of time. But there I was, leaving my family and friends for about two and half months. Which, doesn’t seem like that long, but if you think about it... it sort of is. But, it all ended up being okay. After a few tearful goodbyes and strict instructions from my mother to call in a day or two, I was on my own. Officially a freshman college student at The College at Brockport. Which is both exciting...and terrifying.

-Carolyn