A newspaper I worked for at Kean University

4. A Night Not Soon To Be Forgotten The Senior Formal was one last time to celebrate with the Class of '07 Ryan Matthews Issue date: 6/18/07 Section: Campus Life This year's senior formal, in which the senior class celebrated all their hard work over the past four or five years here at Kean University took place at the Sheraton Hotel in Parsippany. The night started off with reminiscing and laughing during the cocktail hour. Afterwards, everyone moved into the beautifully decorated ball room for the main event. Every senior and guest seemed to be having the time of their lives, whether they were dancing or more simply sitting down enjoying a couple laughs with their friends, at this senior formal there was not a sad face to be found. Although not every senior made it to the formal, there were enough of them there to make the night a memorable one for all those in attendance. If you were there you could not help but notice how everyone showed up in their best dresses or suits to start the night off in style. As the night went on, the DJ started to heat things up by playing some of the hottest music from around. To make the night more special, many seniors requested songs and dedicated them to their friends, whom they had worked or had classes with for most of their Kean careers. The senior formal was definitely an event many seniors will remember forever. Most of the memories of that night were captured by digital cameras both on and off the dance floor. Everywhere you looked, there were camera flashes going off and people smiling and laughing. And if you didn't have a digital camera of your own and wanted a photo of you and that special someone, there were professional photos being taken outside the formal. The senior formal was a night many will not forget for some time. It was one last time to say 'see you later', 'Congratulations', and 'it was the best years ever!' This night was also the time to celebrate the accomplishment of graduating from Kean University and one final time to say 'Good Bye'.

5. Kean And Ocean - First Open House Together Issue date: 6/18/07 Section: Campus News Ocean County College and Kean University had there first joint open house on Tuesday April 17, 2007. The open house began at 7:00 p.m. at the Ocean County College (OCC) campus in the Fine Arts Center. Many high school students and their parents filled the Theatre to hear from speakers Don Doran, Vice President of Student Affairs for OCC; Dr. John Larson, President of Ocean County College; Dr. Dawood Farahi, President of Kean University and Ryan Matthews, alumnus of both Ocean County College and Kean University. Dr. Farahi spoke about Kean University being one of the best and most afford four-year universities in New Jersey, and how he is happy to bring Kean University to Ocean County students. Ryan Matthews talked about his college experience at Ocean County College and Kean University. The one thing he wanted everyone in the theatre to remember was, "college is what you make it." The open house then moved in to the gym, where there were both Ocean County College and Kean University faulty and staff waiting to meet eager high school students.

6. UC Music Fest Issue date: 4/23/07 Section: Campus Life You may have noticed on Thursday, April 12th that the University Center looked a little different, when our cougar statue was replaced by a stage, cameras and lights in the atrium. If you were wondering what was for the cause of this transformation, it was for the live show from Mike Peters of the British rock band, The Alarm. The show began at 4:30 p.m. with many faculty, staff and students around the stage in the middle of the atrium anticipating the concert excitement. After a short break at 5:30 p.m. Mike Peters, along with entertainment executive James Chippendale, discussed the formation of their new charitable organization - LOVE, HOPE, STRENGTH FOUNDATION and their partnership with Union County's MUSICFEST '07. Mike talked about how he survived leukemia, and how he was inspired to create the foundation. The foundation is a support network for cancer patients worldwide. They also discussed MUSICFEST '07 which is a free outdoor concert and family event entering its tenth year. The concert will take place at Nomahegan Park in Cranford, NJ from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on September 15, 2007. The day will feature many activities, such as Kids Kingdom Traveling Jubilee and an entertainment show featuring rides and amusement for children. The event closed with performer Mike Peters playing two last songs. Many of the students, as well as faulty and staff, enjoyed the music and signed up for MUSICFEST '07. If you would still like to sign up for MUSICFEST '07, you may do so online at www.ucmusicfest.com and for more information about the foundation you can visit them online at www.lovehopestrength.com .

7. THE IMFAMOUS AWAY MESSAGE Ryan Matthews Issue date: 9/19/05 Section: Campus Life Instant Messages are one of the most popular ways for college student to communicate on and off campus today. It's the simplest and quickest way to drop a note like, "R u going to class?" or "wanna get some food?" These phrases and many others like them are used all the time back and forth between friends everyday. The most popular abbreviations like "brb", which means "be right back", are used when you don't have the time to explain your absence and "lol" (laugh out loud) is used when you find something funny but feel like a silly typing "hahaha". Another popular feature that many internet savvy students are taking advantage of is the infamous "away message", many of us leave our computers to attend to other things, and find it convenient to have a note posted letting everyone know where they are or what they are up to for the next couple of hours. It can be anything from "In class" or "sleeping" and the away message can be personalized by a little picture or symbol that represents you! An away message can always be as personal or impersonal as you want it to be. You might want to say, "Call me, party in Downs Hall" or "at the Cougar's Den" if you want your friends to meet up with you. The away messages can also be read by all the people on that person's buddy list, and it's a quick way of telling all 100 or more of your friends where you are or what you are doing without having to actually call all of them. When college students get bored, some will run down their buddy list and check everyone's away message to see what is happen on campus or in there hometown, so be careful what you post up there! The best part is that many instant messengers are free of charge, and students love anything that's free. So maybe the next sometime you feel like stepping away from the computer, you might want to leave "In the University Center reading the Cougar's Byte" so all your friends can know exactly where to find you!

8. ONE GREAT NIGHT Issue date: 9/12/05 Section: Campus Life The second annual LollaNObooza was a giant success last Wednesday, September 7, 2005 here in Cougar Country. The night started off with students filing into the campus, coming out from the resident halls and even from their homes; they weren't even coming here to go to class, but to have fun. There were many things to do this year. The "Kean Strip" was filled with numerous activities, such as many students who got to make their own music video on the Dougall Hall patio, where you get to choose the song and then dance and sing to it while being filmed like a rock star. There was tons of free food, with the BBQ that kicked off the night of fun in the new Reflections Garden. Snacks, like freshly popped popcorn and sweet cotton candy were given out by Resident Life. Ice cream was passed out to everyone, courtesy of Greek Senate. One of the biggest events that night was the dance contest in front of the clock tower, which got a lot of the students pumped to show off their moves and grooves on the stage. Although it wasn't on the schedule of events, a fun filled game of volleyball was started across from the basketball courts where the group Fusion performed one of their awe inspiring dance performances. LollaNObooza was a great way to kick off the fall semester for all the new and old students. Can't wait to do it again next year!

9. KEAN UNIVERSITY CELEBRATES EARTH DAY Issue date: 5/3/05 Section: Campus News On Friday April 22, Kean students and faculty members went to Elizabeth Marina to celebrate Earth Day. Down at the marina they took a look at our waters and in an effort to learn more about our waters and the environment, our students took samples of water to test. In addition to learning about the waters, boat rides where also made available so that our students could learn more about the land-water relationship. Many students took advantage of this opportunity, had fun and learned a great deal. Accompanying the students was Dr. Dobosiewicz, a professor in Kean University's Professor of Geology and Meteorology Department. He was there to also learn about the water and to help answer any questions the students might have. Also in attendance for the trip to Elizabeth Marina was Congressman Menendez. He was happy to be there for the students and was glad that they were able to learn about the environment during the trip. Overall, all the participants of the Earth Day celebration had a lot of fun and enjoyed an incredible learning experience. Media Credit: courtesy of Kean University Geology/Meteorology Department (l-r) Chimaobi Odumuko, Congressman Robert Menendez, Mike Danglovich, Kean University President Dawood Farahi, Lisa Rivieccior, Karen Carlough and Dr. John Dobosiewicz.

10. A VISION IN MOTION Issue date: 4/12/05 Section: Campus Life The S.A.G.E workshop, "A Vision in Motion", held on Friday April 1, 2005 in the University Center Little Theatre was hosted by Bob Danzig, a highly successful corporate executive for The Hearst Corporation and a terrific motivational speaker. Growing up in five foster homes, he managed to earn his college degree at night and on weekends. Bob opened the workshop by saying "You are worth while!" and "You are full of promise." As a kid, he heard these sayings and they made him feel like a person because the individual that said them to him was taking interest in him and he was not just a name. He continued to talk about leadership, and what leadership is. He said that "leadership is tomorrow" and "management is today," meaning that leadership is about a noble purpose and management is simply a process. True leadership is about thinking ahead and seeing where you are going in the next five years of your life, while management is simply managing with what you have now. Everyone has a vision and the mindset to do anything. He said "leaders do more than is required of them." He also talked about how when people talk to us, we need to "listen, understand, and encourage that person," and this can be in school, at a job, or anywhere else. He closed by stating that we all need to share our gifts, personally, work-ethic, good math skills, etc., because we all have different gifts that we bring to this world and we need to share those with others. Bob Danzig is truly a great motivation speaker. Media Credit: Ryan Matthews Janet Dodd with Bob Danzig during the S.A.G.E. Workshop, A Vision in Motion.

11. GREEK JEOPARDY Ryan Matthews Issue date: 4/5/05 Section: Campus Life During college hour on Monday, March 22, 2005, Greek Olympics started off with an event called Greek Jeopardy, where the object is to see which sorority and fraternity has the most knowledge in a wide array of subjects. The categories included Athletics, Academics, Where Do You Go For, About Kean, and Fraternities & Sororities. Each sorority and fraternity were represented by one sister or brother who sat at a table and shook mini cow bells to signal that they knew the answer, just like buzzing in on a game show. Each game, one for sororities and one for fraternities, lasted ten minutes and it was surprising to see how much, or how little, each Greek knew. The sororities representative's knowledge was tested and everyone had a great time, especially the winners. Coming in first place was the combined team of Lambda Tau Omega, Mu Sigma Upsilon, Lambda Theta Alpha (LAM). Theta Phi Alpha and Mu Sigma Tau tied for second place and third place went to both Rho Theta Tau and Sigma Beta Chi. The fraternities competed next. Having fun while testing their skills, Zeta Beta Tau took home first place while Sigma Theta Phi came in second. Third place went to Lamda Theta Phi. Media Credit: Rich Lemonie Joe Aubourg, Zeta Beta Tau, and Carlos Miranda, Lambda Theta Phi, ring in. Media Credit: Rich Lemonie Cece Christmas, Theta Phi Alpha; Dena Mirto, Nu Sigma Tau; Kristen Behr, Omega Sigma Psi; and Jessica Bucholz, Rho Theta Tau; eagerly await the next question.

12. TAKE BACK THE NIGHT Ryan Matthews Issue date: 4/5/05 Section: Campus Life Greeks and non-Greeks alike packed the University Center Little Theatre on Tuesday, March 22, for Take Back the Night, a play about Rape Awareness. Presented by Equalogy, PlayRights One Night, written by August Schulenburg and directed by Heather Dyas-Fried, involves four characters - Calvin, Jessica, Maggie and Will - best friends throughout four years of college. As the curtain was drawn, all four characters are seen hanging out in a living room drinking and having a good time because they have just graduated from college. During the evening, Will is constantly talking and joking about sex with Jessica, Calvin's girlfriend. Things quickly took a turn for the worse when Maggie went up to Will's room. Jessica and Calvin didn't think anything of it, because they knew Will would not do anything to harm Maggie. However, to their amazement, Will came down first and was once again joking about sex, but when Maggie came down, she said that Will had raped her. Upset and disgusted, Calvin, Maggie, and Jessica left the living room of the house. This play addressed many issues, including Sexism, Date Rape, Emotional/Coercion, The Red Zone, Gang Rape, and Myth & Facts. The play is a great way for students to learn about rape and the many forms it has. Although some moments were funny, the play got very serious at the end and brought the message home. At the conclusion, the actors held a discussion session where many student asked questions about the educational and enjoyable performance.

13. FIVE KEY AREAS OF GROWTH Ryan Matthews Issue date: 3/15/05 Section: Campus Life Human Services Specialist, Darlene Smith, presented the "Five Key Areas of Growth" during the second S.A.G.E. workshop held on Friday, March 4. The workshop helped me grow as a person as I learned about the physical, spiritual, social, emotional and intellectual areas of growth. Beginning the workshop by pointing out the many different roles we play, Darlene explained how we treat our bodies when we are playing the role of student, brother, sister, mom, dad, friend, significant other, etc. Darlene emphasized "We eat too much to feel comfortable." She continued by giving details of how we sometimes eat more than we should, that the foods we eat may not be the healthiest choices and we sometimes overindulge while we play these roles. Many people eat the same foods every day or even eat a whole bag of chips in one hour. She further stressed that the key to being healthy is not by going on a diet, but rather to eat food in moderation and to vary your food choices every day. Darlene also stated the importance of exercise; "If you don't use it, you will lose it." She adds, "Balance is the key to life," without balance in your life everything will fall apart. This is especially important as we all play many roles every day and if we do not balance them just right, we will feel overwhelmed. To encourage student involvement in the workshop, Darlene had us all count out numbers. She told all the odd numbers to stand on one side and all the even numbers to stand on the other. Then when the music came on, she told us to start dancing and everyone did. It was a great way to get people engaged in the workshop and most people seem to be happy and enjoyed dancing. Wrapping up the workshop, Darlene said, "Density is your relationship." Which means do not let anyone hold you back from your dreams. She also reminded us to ask for help because we can not always do everything on our own. Many of us do not ask for help because we do not want to hurt our pride, but sometime we truly need it. The workshop was truly beneficial as I came to understand the five key areas of growth and learned techniques to try and balance them. For more information about upcoming S.A.G.E workshops, stop by the office of Student Life and Leadership Development located in the University Center, room 219. Media Credit: courtesy of the Council for Part-Time Students, Inc. Manual Donelson discovers his five key areas of growth through his participation in the S.A.G.E. workshop . Media Credit: courtesy of the Council for Part-Time Students, Inc. Darelene Smith involves the students through dance during the S.A.G.E. workshop.

14. RAY Ryan Matthews Issue date: 2/15/05 Section: Campus Life Students continued to pack the University Center Little Theatre right up to 8pm on Wednesday, February 2, for the showing of Ray, the first Big Events Little Theatre event. Admission was free, which everyone was happy to hear, and the movie was liked by many. The crowd enjoyed learning about the life of Ray Charles, including the many ups and downs the artist endured. But with all he went through, he never gave up; he continued to work threw many setbacks. Being blind did not stop Ray from being independent, which made him an inspiration to so many of us in that theatre. Tricia Decker, a senior majoring in Visual Communication commented, "The movie captured a diverse audience, and reflected someone incredibly powerful in the music industry very well." Another student, Phyllis King, a sophomore majoring in Management Science said, "It was exciting to learn new things about his life that I didn't know before." Andrew Cutler, a junior Theatre major, added "The club scene captured the era that would foreshadow the blues transition into rock and roll." The movie Ray allowed us to learn about a great innovator who changed the music we now listen to.

15. SNOW DAY = SNOW FUN AT KEAN! Ryan Matthews Issue date: 2/1/05 Section: Campus Life The blizzard of 2005 hit Kean University hard Saturday Night into Sunday, but that did not stop the students from having fun. Almost everyone went outside to see this powerful snowstorm dump a foot of snow on us. Students went out Saturday Night to do all sorts of fun things in the snow. There was a football game in the quad area of the dorms. The students came up with creative ways to keep warm, I saw one student with socks on his hands. Hey if it keeps your hands warm, who cares what it is. Other students simply layered up with two pairs of everything, such as pants, socks, shirts, etc. One student did not layer; he wore shorts, and played football. I could not believe it, since it was so cold, but he was having fun wearing those shorts. Some other fun activities that happened in the snow were snow angels, tackling students into the snow, and how could I forget, sledding! The excitement did not stop Saturday night. On Monday, Kean had a delay opening until noon. The delayed opening meant that students could now sleep in until 11 am, and would not have to worry about getting up early. With the delayed opening in mind, students again went out to play in the snow Sunday night. This time they had snow hills to play on. The students became creative and began to jump over the snow hills that were right in front of Burch Hall. Some students did flips; other jumped over the snow hills. They jumped over the snow hill and flipped over the hills and into the snow. It was all good and cold fun both Saturday and Sunday night. I bet students can’t wait for the next big snowstorm! Media Credit: Rich Lemonie, Junior Fine Arts in Photography Major Students brave the blizzard and enjoy a game of football. Media Credit: Rich Lemonie, Junior Fine Arts in Photography Major Miguel Camillo wears shorts during the snow day fun!

16. TIPS FOR COLLEGE SUCCESS Ryan Matthews Issue date: 11/16/04 Section: Campus Life I recently attended the S.A.G.E. Workshop, Communicating With Tact and Finesse, presented by Dr. Rob Gilbert, a Professor of Sports Psychology at Montclair State University, on Friday, November 5, 2004. His presentation was great and has helped me in so many ways. He gave the group some great college tips such as, sit up straight in class, ask questions, and look at the professor. All of these tips help keep you alert in class, and staying alert in class will help you get better grades. He also discussed memorization. He suggests that to memorize things better, think of the material as a picture or relate it to yourself. Another interesting point he made was "To keep people interest in what you are saying, just tell a story." In all, he was a great speaker and gave me some great college success tips. For more information on S.A.G.E. workshops go to the Office of Student Life and Leadership Development in the University Center room 219.