16
by Maria Bonello KCC Bookstore Lifts the Burdern of Purchasing Textbooks 10 Student Government Election Results 3 You Said it: KCC Experience How to Start a Club 4 45th Commencement Ceremony On This Island Review 5 Goodman’s Path to Valedictorian Success 7 Cyclists Take KCC Campus By Storm 14 Fashion Department’s Fashion Show Review 15 Meet Your Professor: Marvin Williams 16 Ribbion Cutting of KCC Field Last Fall, Follett, the parent company of the campus bookstore, introduced their preliminary book rental project at seven colleges, resulting in saving students roughly $2 million on books. The positive response of the program has prompted an expansion of Rent-A-Text. “We had a teleconference with the vice president of the college and we found out that it was pretty successful. It is tak- ing off nationally and we want to offer it, because it is a cost saving thing for stu- dents. I would say that less than 50 percent of students actually buy textbooks, be- cause they can’t afford it. That’s not good. With rental they can use financial aid to rent the books,” said Associate Provost and Assistant Vice President for Academ- ic Affairs Dr. Reza Fakhari, who also hap- pens to be the chair of the bookstore com- mittee. The concept of the program is quite simple to grasp and is no different than the way online book rental sites like Chegg.com operate. Students must be 18- years or older to be eligible to join in the rental process as there is a contract be- tween the student of interest and Follett that is to be signed. The purpose of the age restraint is that a credit card or debit card must be present- ed as collateral for any late fees, damages or loss of the books. However, a parent can provide the security if necessary. All these terms are discussed in the contract, which is straightforward and brief. “Rent-A-Text is based on a very sim- ple rent, read, return model. Students can shop in-store or online. For any rental eli- gible title, students expect to save 50 per- cent or more compared to the new book price – huge upfront savings. Students enter into a rental agreement – simply, they agree to return it by deadline in a us- able condition,” said David Abdelmasieh, manager of the KCC bookstore. The price of renting books varies de- pending on the original cost of the specif- ic book you choose to lease or if the book is new or used. When renting a new book the cost is 50 percent off the new book price and when leasing a used book the cost is 50 percent off the used book price. The rental period is as long as one semes- ter with a deadline following finals week. The programs seems to be more fit- ting than trying to sell back your books at the end of the semester when at that point the face value of the text has depleted. “Rental provides the lowest up-front cost. Sometimes, buying used books and selling them back to the bookstore might yield a total out-of-pocket (net) cost, but depends on the value of the book at the end of the term. The rental option provides all savings on the front-end of the transac- tion,” said Abdelmasieh. The cost of renting the books may be cheap, but abiding by the contract and re- turning the materials by due date in the same condition you received the book is no joke. The fees are hefty and will cost 82.5 percent of the book price on top of what you already paid to rent the book. There are no excuses for lateness as Fol- lett will send a reminder email as the end of the term draws closer. “The rental model only works if the books can be reused and in-stock for the next term. Non-returns will be charged 75 percent of the new book price, plus a 7.5 percent processing fee (used to source a replacement book for the next term’s rental inventory),” said Abdelmasieh. Another downside to Rent-A-Text is not all textbooks professors assign as re- quired reading are qualified to be rented. These include books sold as bundles, meaning if the text comes with a CD, DVD or workbook. It must be a stand alone book. “Follett has a master list nationally. There are thousands of context on it. If a book is on the master list already, it is eli- gible for rental. But if it is not, then the in- structor has to commit to use the book for one year. Then they put it on the master list and it become eligible for rental other- Photo by Maria Bonello Scepter Kingsborough Community College September 2010 The City University of New York Continued on pg. 2 12 Waveman Comic Strip

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The September 2010 issue of Kingsborough Community College's award winning monthly newspaper Scepter

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Page 1: Scepter September 2010

by Maria Bonello

KCC Book s to r e L i f t s t h eBurdern of Purchasing Textbooks

10 Student GovernmentElection Results

3 You Said it: KCC ExperienceHow to Start a Club

4 45th CommencementCeremony

On This Island Review

5 Goodman’s Path toValedictorian Success

7 Cyclists Take KCCCampus By Storm

14 Fashion Department’sFashion Show Review

15 Meet Your Professor:Marvin Williams

16 Ribbion Cutting of KCC Field

Last Fall, Follett, the parent companyof the campus bookstore, introduced theirpreliminary book rental project at sevencolleges, resulting in saving studentsroughly $2 million on books. The positiveresponse of the program has prompted anexpansion of Rent-A-Text.

“We had a teleconference with thevice president of the college and we foundout that it was pretty successful. It is tak-ing off nationally and we want to offer it,because it is a cost saving thing for stu-dents. I would say that less than 50 percentof students actually buy textbooks, be-cause they can’t afford it. That’s not good.With rental they can use financial aid torent the books,” said Associate Provostand Assistant Vice President for Academ-ic Affairs Dr. Reza Fakhari, who also hap-pens to be the chair of the bookstore com-mittee.

The concept of the program is quitesimple to grasp and is no different than theway online book rental sites likeChegg.com operate. Students must be 18-years or older to be eligible to join in therental process as there is a contract be-tween the student of interest and Follettthat is to be signed.

The purpose of the age restraint is thata credit card or debit card must be present-ed as collateral for any late fees, damagesor loss of the books. However, a parentcan provide the security if necessary. Allthese terms are discussed in the contract,which is straightforward and brief.

“Rent-A-Text is based on a very sim-ple rent, read, return model. Students canshop in-store or online. For any rental eli-gible title, students expect to save 50 per-cent or more compared to the new bookprice – huge upfront savings. Studentsenter into a rental agreement – simply,they agree to return it by deadline in a us-able condition,” said David Abdelmasieh,manager of the KCC bookstore.

The price of renting books varies de-pending on the original cost of the specif-ic book you choose to lease or if the bookis new or used. When renting a new bookthe cost is 50 percent off the new bookprice and when leasing a used book thecost is 50 percent off the used book price.

The rental period is as long as one semes-ter with a deadline following finals week.

The programs seems to be more fit-ting than trying to sell back your books atthe end of the semester when at that pointthe face value of the text has depleted.

“Rental provides the lowest up-frontcost. Sometimes, buying used books andselling them back to the bookstore mightyield a total out-of-pocket (net) cost, butdepends on the value of the book at theend of the term. The rental option providesall savings on the front-end of the transac-tion,” said Abdelmasieh.

The cost of renting the books may becheap, but abiding by the contract and re-turning the materials by due date in thesame condition you received the book isno joke. The fees are hefty and will cost82.5 percent of the book price on top ofwhat you already paid to rent the book.There are no excuses for lateness as Fol-lett will send a reminder email as the end

of the term draws closer.“The rental model only works if the

books can be reused and in-stock for thenext term. Non-returns will be charged 75percent of the new book price, plus a 7.5percent processing fee (used to source areplacement book for the next term’srental inventory),” said Abdelmasieh.

Another downside to Rent-A-Text isnot all textbooks professors assign as re-quired reading are qualified to be rented.These include books sold as bundles,meaning if the text comes with a CD,DVD or workbook. It must be a standalone book.

“Follett has a master list nationally.There are thousands of context on it. If abook is on the master list already, it is eli-gible for rental. But if it is not, then the in-structor has to commit to use the book forone year. Then they put it on the masterlist and it become eligible for rental other-

Photo by Maria Bonello

S c e p t e rKingsborough Community College September 2010 The City University of New York

Continued on pg. 2

12 Waveman Comic Strip

Page 2: Scepter September 2010

22 SScceepptteerr

Scepter2001 Oriental Boulevard Room M230

Brooklyn, NY 11235Telephone: 718.368.5603

Fax: 718.368.4833

Editor-in-ChiefMaria Bonello

Managing EditorShauntey McFarland

Production EditorAlan Hawkins

Business ManagerSam Salganik

Fashion EditorRyan Muir

PhotographersBernard SiregarConroy WalkerYaakov Yedeyev

Chief PhotographerAbe Ginsberg

IllustratorKenly Dillard

Staff WritersKim Gill

Russell KruzhkovBernard SiregarKamika Tucker

AdviserLevy Moore

Scepter is a publication of the studentsof Kingsborough Community College.It is not a college publication, therefore,

the college is not responsible for itscontents.

All articles in Scepter remain the sole property of Scepter. To obtainreprint permission, please contact

the editors.

Web DesignerYaakov Yevdeyev

E-Mail: [email protected]

Sports EditorRobert Kohl

Scepter welcomes letters to the editors and opinions from the entire

Kingsborough Community.

September 2010

Letter From the Editor

Kingsborough’s Spring2010 semester brought aboutmany first-time functions forthe college and it’s students, un-fortunately Scepter was unableto provide a summer issue tocommemorate such events. Aswe settle into a new semester,Scepter and it’s new editorialstaff has taken the time to lookback at the past term and ac-knowledge a few of those af-fairs including the revival of thefield located by the main en-trance and the start of an annual

student/faculty baseball game,the relatively new fashion de-partment’s fashion show and theopening of a KCC play. Scepterhas also paid tribute to the 45thgraduating class of KCC andtheir valedictorian.

Even though the staff hasincorporated the past, it is alsolooking to the potential and fu-ture of Scepter by encompass-ing a few new sections. Thepaper has added a comic stripwith the protagonist beingWaveman, KCC’s mascot, in

which he battles villains in hisadventures. We have a “MeetYour Professor” section whereevery month a different profes-sor will be featured as a way toget students familiarized withtheir instructors to build strongrelationships. We have includedthe results of the student gov-ernment elections while also re-membering four members of thecommunity that passed awayduring the past semester.

The commencement of anew semester brings about

changes, new experiences andopportunities. Along with thoseexciting factors, comes thestress of juggling a family, workand school work. In the mist ofwriting essays and scramblingto meet deadlines, it is easy toforget why it is that you attendKCC. It is important to yoursuccess and sanity not to losesight of the driving force that issteering you towards a highereducation in order to satisfyyour goals.

To An Inspiring Past And New Beginnings by Maria Bonello, Editor-in-Chief

wise it can’t,” said Dr. Fahkari.To find currently rentable

books, students can eitherbrowse the online site, where el-igible titles are flagged or in thestore, where the shelves aremarked with a rent tag. Within ayear or so, students will be ableto know the price of books andif they can be rented as soon asthey register for classes due to aHigher Education Act that wentinto effect last July, but gaveCUNY a year exemption.

KCC is working on piecingtogether an impartial softwareprogram to make this informa-

tion accessible on e-sims. At themoment, we are researching thesoftware used by Baruch andHunter Colleges.

“The new federal law thatis kicking in essentially saysthat when you go to E-sims toregister for a class the bookshave to be listed and their priceand whether they are availableas a rental. It’s informing con-sumers what they are purchas-ing. We are working on the soft-ware to do that. Follett book-store has the software we couldutilize, but then it would advan-tage them and we’ll get a law-

suit from Kings. We have tohave a software that is inde-pendent of Follett,” Dr. Fahkarisaid.

Besides cutting textbookexpenses in half, the programoffers students many other con-venient services competing re-tailers aren’t.

“Anchoring a rental pro-gram here with our bookstoregives some advantages, likepayment with financial aid dol-lars, the ability to convertrentals into a traditional sale, oreven allowing highlighting andwriting in the margins. Having

a convenient rental option alsoprovides a little assurance to thestudent,” said Abdelmasieh.“We have relationships with theschool and faculty so we’ll havethe right book, guaranteed. Ifnot, we’ll make it right quickly.Shop online, pick up in-storesaves time and dollars. And bestof all, we’re here as a studentadvocate. Things change oncampus, students add and dropclasses, we’re right here to rem-edy those situations.”

KCC Bookstore Continued from cover.

OdysseyThe Kingsborough Community College Yearbook

Needs: Designers, Photographers, Writers, Editors and other volunteers for the 2011 Yearbook

Come to room M-230 and sign up!

AntheonThe Kingsborough Community College

Literary and Arts Magazine Is now accepting submissions for the 2011 edition

E-mail submissions to: [email protected]

Contributing WriterRuby Ryles

Page 3: Scepter September 2010

There is a misconception thatcollege is a 24/7 party. Peopledon’t realize the many pres-sures that coincided with thecollege experience such as thepressure to meet deadlines, fi-nancial pressure and the pres-sure to ace all exams. Respon-sibilities reach a higher levelwhen students are faced tojuggle school work, a job anda family. Time management,organization and available re-sources are key components insurviving the circumstances.Acquiring the knowledge andskills needed to bring an edgeto the workforce, however,makes the many pressures col-lege students face all worth-while in the long run.

How has your experience atKingsborough been so far?

Sara Yomotov, Liberal Arts:“I love coming here as a sen-ior. It gives me an opportunityto study things that I never hadtime for while I was workingand raising children. I thinkthe professors are really great.They are very accessible andwilling to help you if youshow an interest, especially.”

Maurice Diggs, Graphic De-sign major: “We have a lot ofhigh quality professors. Be-cause Kingsborough is a com-munity college, it has that stig-ma to it, but really you get alot of stuff private collegesdon’t give you. Its like a hid-den gem. A lot of professorshave experience in the fieldthey are teaching in. They arevery diligent and down toearth. Because of Professor

Green, I decided to be agraphic design major. He hasoffered me internship oppor-tunities since he works in themass media field. The onlything I don’t like is the cafete-ria; The pizza doesn’t lookright.”

Sheila Severe, Liberal Arts:“I don’t care for Kingsbor-ough. It reminds me too muchof high school; The day class-es especially. Its different ifyou go to school at night be-cause its more of a collegiatecrowd because they go towork during the day; They aremore adult.”

Lenny Markov, Pharmaceu-tical major: “I fulfilled all myprerequisites here to get ac-cepted to pharmacy schoolwhich is great. You can’t beatthe price; Its a lot cheaper herethan the four-year schools. Iwas in Baruch before andthere you’re on your own. Theclasses are bigger; A lot morelecture halls. Here the profes-sors go out of their way, espe-cially if you show some inter-est in the class.”

Angela Jackman, Early-Childhood Education:“There is a lot of pressure anda lot of work from all the pro-fessors at once. When youtake a lot of subjects its veryhard to focus on one particularsubject because you keepjumping from one thing to an-other due to a high demandfrom the professors. Its ex-hausting especially when Iwork all day and attend class-es at night.”

You Said It: SScceepptteerr 3

I N M E M O R I A MI N M E M O R I A MScepter would like to acknowledge four members of the Kingsborough Community, who have contributed to the

college and will be missed. On behalf of Kingsborough Community College, we send our condolences to their families in hopes that they will be able to find comfort during this time of sorrow.

Lloyd Banks JR.Lloyd Banks JR. Isaak GarberIsaak GarberAndrew GambardellaAndrew Gambardella Arthur FishbeinArthur Fishbein

September 2010

by Maria Bonello

KCC ExperiencesFind yourself wanting to bemore involved with schoolactivities, but can’t seem tofind a club that sparks yourinterest. Ever thought theremight be students who feelthe same and share yourhobby? With drive and passion, youcan launch your own club byfollowing these quick andeasy steps. Desire to start a club: Itis recommended that youexpress a great deal of pas-sion for the topic the clubwill be based on. It isn’tenough to have a small inter-est. Know what your doingand love what you do. Asfounder, the club will be areflection of the kind of per-son you are. A lot of sparetime will have to be devotedto the club, be sure you real-ly enjoy it. Be mindful of thetype of club you establish,remember to cater to bothyour interests and those ofothers. What’s the Deal: KCC has83 student clubs. The clubyou aspire to start may al-ready exist. Think outsidethe box; Find somethingthat makes the purpose ofyour club unique among allthe others. Name It: Once your pur-pose is set, choose a namethat illustrates what the clubis about. Let those createjuices flow. It could bestraightforward and simple

or an acronym. Recruit Members: Stu-dent Life in room C123, willgive you a copy of Petitionto Organize and Establishan Organization. Theremust be at least 10 studentswho want to join the club.To get the most out of theclub, members should shareyour love of the topic andassist in exerting knowledgeof it. Most importantly, re-cruit students who are easyto get along with and knowhow to have a good time.Get a Faculty Memberon Board: Every club musthave an advisor to be pres-ent at all club meetings andevents. The role of an advi-sor is to advise. They aren’tthere to teach. It’s a plus ifthe advisor does haveknowledge of the topic. Itdoesn’t necessarily have tobe a professor, any full-timefaculty member will do. Know Your Rights: Eachclub is required to writetheir own constitution.Sounds like a lot of work,but its quite simple. Threearticles are done already (thename, purpose, members).All you have left is appoint-ing club officials (president,vice president, secretary andtreasurer); the roles of theseofficials; set up a budget andmeeting days; affiliationsand how to amend the con-stitution if need be in thefuture.

Gain the Upper Hand:After the first draft of theconstitution is completed,meet with the Coordinatorof Club Activities in roomC123. The coordinator willedit it and quiz you aboutyour club. Use this to youradvantage. The coordinatoris there to prepare you forthe next step. Deciding the Fate of theClub: All is determined ata meeting with the StudentActivities CoordinatingBoard (SAC). The charter-ing committee will askquestions based on the con-stitution. SAC will notifyyou right there and then ifyour club as been approvedor not. If the board feelsyour club will be an asset toKCC and it’s students it’sapproved. If not they willtell you what needs to im-prove, giving you anotherattempt.Tying it All Together:Congratulations, you havesuccessfully established aKCC club. There’s threemore quick things that needhandling. SAC will presentyou with sufficient funds,which a budget will need tobe set for. Officials willneed to be elected, accord-ing to the constitution. Asignature certification cardwill need to be signed byeach official verifying theclub. You’re all done; Goodluck and have fun.

How to Start a Student Clubby Maria Bonello

Page 4: Scepter September 2010

4 SScceepptteerr September 2010

KINGSBOROUGH CELEBRATES 45TH COMMENCEMENT CEREMONYby Kim Gill

TAKING A LOOK BACK

Family, friends and faculty of thegraduating class of 2010, came together bythe large white tent in the amphitheater towitness the forty-fifth commencement cer-emony. The Brooklyn Wind Ensemble con-ducted by Dr. Raymond Wheeler playedthe entry song as the graduates made theirway into the ceremony by order of degree.Reverend Roberto Robinson of the RefugeTemple Apostolic Church of Christ openedthe proceeding with a prayer in hopes thatthe graduates will accomplish their futuregoals.

Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY),stressed the importance of making the right

decision in his address. He emphasized thatthe decisions we may want to choose,might not be the right ones and we must be-come wiser. Congressman Anthony Wein-er (D-NY), took the time to recognize thefamilies who had children that were thefirst college graduates and also the gradu-ates whose families came from differentcountries as well as the graduates and par-ents of single parent households. He want-ed to make sure that everyone acknowl-edged our major accomplishment and thatwe remember the ones who helped us tomake it.

The most interesting address of the

ceremony was that of Valedictorian Som-mer Goodman. She expressed her likenessof the campus, emphasized it’s beauty, butsaid that Kingsborough offered more thanaesthetic value. It provided her withtremendous opportunities to pursue hergoals.

The Commencement address wasgiven by Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos.com,which is one of the top online shoppingsites in the world. He spoke about his col-lege experience and starting his career. Herecalled being a student at Harvard, wherehe said he would bake pizzas with hisfriends and then they would sell them by

the slice. He also spoke about his career atLinkExchange, which he co-founded andlater sold to Microsoft for $265 milliondollars. He later on joined Zappos as an ad-visor and investor, becoming the CEO.

After Hseih’s address, the graduatescollected their degrees. Afterwards, Presi-dent Peruggi asked all the graduates andfamily members to stand for the turning ofthe tassels; right to left. The ceremonyended with a benediction from Rabbi EliGreenwald of the Torat Israel SephardicCongregation of Manhattan Beach, whoprayed for the graduates, their families andtheir future endeavors.

Photo by : Bernard Siregar

This past May saw the opening ofKingsborough Community College’s“Once on This Island,” by Lynn Ahrens.Directed and choreographed by RyanMcKinney, the play’s leading role of TiMoune was played by the gracefulFrancesca Mars with Kenneth Bailey asDaniel Beauxhomme Jenelle Valle asErzulie and Kurtious Loney-Walsh asPapa Ge.

The stillness of a darkened tropicalforest is broken by flashes of lighteningand the booming of thunder. A child wan-tonly cries, the storm scaring her and ush-ering her mother, father and fellow vil-lagers to congregate around her and abateher fears. “Do not worry,” they tell her,“for there was a storm much greater thanthis one long ago.” This is how the tellingof the story of Ti Moune begins.

“Once on This Island,” is the story ofa girl named Ti Moune, in the French An-tilles where racial segregation exists be-tween the dark-skinned natives and thelighter-skinned French. Seemingly chosenby the gods to survive, Ti Moune falls inlove with a critically injured youngFrench man and nurses him back tohealth. Able to communicate with the

gods, Ti Moune is manipulated into ajourney that may end social segregationon the island depending on a single choiceshe must ultimately make.

The scenic design of the play was ab-solutely beautiful. Even before the playstarts, the sight of the dark tropical jungleof the stage in conjunction with the al-most too thick mist of the jungle and theoccasional flash of lightning and crack ofthunder, it was easy to forget you were inthe MAC Playhouse. The ambiance was

tangible, so much so it almost seemed likea character itself. Though the play hadsome microphone issues and off-key cho-rus moments there were a few perform-ances that were surprising and redeeming.

Yvonne King as Asaka, the Mother ofEarth, was amazing in her soulful rendi-tion of “Mama Will Provide.” Though sheonly had one solo, her performance wasone of the more memorable parts.

Even though her performance was

minor, Andrea played by Lori Elkerdawyhad a perfect pitch when singing makingher character standout. The play wouldhave benefitted greatly if she had a moresubstantial part in the play.

All in all, “Once on this Island,” hada charming, albeit nervous opening night.With the amazing set, lighting and per-formers, the play would do better with fu-ture performances. Though the set and ef-fects outshine some of the actual perform-ers, it was still worth seeing.

by Bernard Siregar

KCC’S Play, ‘Once on This Island’ Review

Photo by : Bernard Siregar

Page 5: Scepter September 2010

September 2010 SScceepptteerr

One diligent student, well deservingof the prestigious Valedictorian Award isacknowledged every June as the top of theclass representing the best of the best atKingsborough.

June 2010 Valedictorian, SommerGoodman, is a more than worthy pupilwith her straight A’s resulting in a perfect4.0 GPA and her active role in the KCCstudent body community. Ranking num-ber one among the many graduates for thissession, Goodman worked hard andachieved the unthinkable making thishonor so much more enjoyable for her.

With the intention of graduating earlyafter beginning her college career at KCCin Spring 2008, Goodman had marriedand became pregnant, putting college onhold ‘til Spring 2010. Despite these minorsetbacks she finished her two-year degreein speech language pathology with highhonors.

“It was unexpected, because that wasnot my goal; my goal was to get a degree.It kind of imparts on my valedictorianspeech, but my plan was to just be hereeveryday and to give a hundred percent ofmy effort and just try. My efforts paid offI guess. I just wanted to be a good personso being valedictorian is surreal,” saidGoodman.

After taking a nine-year break fromher first attempt at college at Lamar Uni-versity in her home state of Texas, she wasdetermined to do it right this time. Re-gardless of her doubts, she considers col-lege to be her full-time job, putting all hereffort into attending every class.

“I tell people that don’t have a job,this [being a student] is your job. Youhave to show up everyday. Being here ishalf the battle. This is my second go atcollege. My first go around I was 18, Ididn’t go to class; I made bad grades,” shesaid.

“I was nervous when I came here. Iwas afraid I may not be able to keep up,everyone is younger than me. I’m fromthe south and the cliché thing is northern-ers are more intelligent than southerners.I was like these people are going to knoweverything and I’m just going to be dumb.Showing up everyday is the one thing Idid different this time. I missed maybethree classes my whole two years here.”

Initially a liberal arts major, Good-man wanted to become a secondary Eng-lish literature teacher to spread her lovefor all types of literature onto students.After contacting a few New York Citypublic school teachers, she became disap-pointed being told, “don’t expect the stu-dents to inherit your passion.”

Goodman wanted to think up a way tohave a positive impact on the lives of chil-dren even if it wasn’t through literature.Her mother-in-law, thinking Goodman hasa “brilliant mind” suggested speech thera-py pathology.

Transferring to Brooklyn Collegewhile in the process of completing a late

NYU application, Goodman is planningfar beyond her Bachelor's Degree bygoing after her master’s and even consid-ering a doctorate degree.

“I have two options. I haven’t decid-ed yet, because I have a little time, but I’meither going to do early intervention withspeech pathology. I’ll be working withyoung children probably starting aroundthe age of one maybe even earlier if theyhave some type of disability or there’ssome type of language problem diagnosedearly. I’ll be working with them to helpimprove impairments they may have,”said Goodman.

“I think that’s what I’ll probably endup doing, because I have a passion forchildren, but I’m also interested in acci-dent reduction. I would be working morein a corporate setting, and they have letssay, an employee that’s moved here fromIndia and they have a very strong Indianaccent. I would help them to have a moregeneral American accent and again it’shelping people and that’s really what Iwant to do.”

The secret to all of Goodman’s suc-cess is quite simple, time management. Byscheduling her time wisely on an orangeagenda, she is able to stay organized, ded-icate eight to ten hours a week to eachclass, be a mother and a wife and still findthe time to be an active member in studentorganizations.

Volunteering her time three days aweek at the Sun Rise Assisted Living Fa-cility on Emmons Avenue, to logging in anumber of hours as a part of the NationalSociety of Leadership and Success, to thisday she visits the 100 year-old woman shenow calls a good friend. Also a member ofthe Speech Club where guests come tospeak about her profession, the HonorsClub and a new inductee of Phi ThetaKappa, Goodman participated in Eco-Festand the Campus Clean-Up.

Not only contributing to KCC bybeing involved in many organizations andevents she is contagious with her positiveattitude, her willingness to help others andeagerness to learn. Inspired by her latebrother, Goodman gets all of her energyand drive to strive higher and tackle moreand more each day.

“My brother who is a year youngerthan me, he died in 2008 of colon cancer.He was an amazing artist and an allaround good person. I just hate that hislife was cut short. When I came here toNew York and I was starting Kingsbor-ough, he called me up one night and hesaid, ‘What’s up homie? What are youdoing?’ I told him I was studying and hesaid, ‘That’s right girl get your education.Do what you have to do.‘ And that juststuck with me. I think about him when I’mtired; He would be so disappointed. Thisis for him because he wasn’t able to do

anything; Have a family or go to school. Idream of him telling me go to school anddo good. He’s really a driving force,” shesaid.

Being a proud graduate of Kingsbor-ough, in spite of the two-year communitycollege stereotype and transferring to an-other CUNY, Goodman is delighted withall the relationships she has formed herewhether they are with fellow students orprofessors. Determination, dedication anddesire all play key roles in achievinggreatness and receiving the most out ofyour college experience.

“Give of yourself, give to others ofyourself, give your time and be caring ofother people. I think that was really a de-termining factor in whether or not I re-ceived the award. There were other stu-dents who have a 4.0 GPA, but the civicengagements I participated in really madea difference.” said Goodman. “I madetime for other people, I care about otherpeople. You must be accountable foreverything that you do.

Take responsibility, take matters intoyour own hands; don’t let anything fall bythe [wayside]. If you know you have aproject due in three weeks why not get itstarted the first week. Put it down in yourplanner, say I’m going to put my name onthis paper and save it. It’s the small littlesteps that count. You create mountains bylittle pebbles.”

Goodman’s Path to Valedictorian SuccessTAKING A LOOK BACK 5

by Maria Bonello

Photo Provided by Sommer Goodman

Page 6: Scepter September 2010

6

VETERANS GO CRUISING WITH KINGSBOROUGHSeptember 2010 SScceepptteerr

The Veteran Affairs Officeheld an event in which veteranscame together for a boat ride thispast May. The vessel set off fromKCC, sailing to Coney Island andback. The veterans were thera-peutically comforted by theocean waves while conversingover lunch; many were reminisc-ing with one another about theirtime in the service.

Compared to the previousyear, there were fewer veteranswho attended the event, perhapsbecause of the weather. Never-theless, it did not seem to damp-en the spirits of these proudAmericans.

Taking place a week awayfrom Memorial Day, the veteransbegan to speak about how impor-tant it truly is.

“It’s a day to reflect on thosewho passed on and those who’veserved this country,” said VladIorsh, a four-year U.S. NavySeal. “It’s just something thatshould be honored and respect-ed.”

Rhoda Cohen, a My Turnstudent at KCC and wife of a warveteran found it difficult to have

both a husband and brother-in-law in the service. Reminiscingof her brother-in-law who diedduring the Battle of the Bulge,Cohen does not take MemorialDay or Veterans Day lightly, shemakes time to honor both meneach year.

“It’s clearly about honor foreverybody who has done theirshare in the service, whether itwas in war, at battle or even ifthey took time away from theirhome,” said Cohen gingerly.“Veterans deserve to be re-spected.”

Richard McLaughlin, a dec-orated war veteran who was anescort for the prime minister ofIreland during our bicentennialand a commanding officer atFloyd Bennett Field felt thatAmericans are not honoring theveterans the way they deserve tobe, not only on Memorial Day,but on Veterans Day as well.

“A lot of people don’t honorthe veterans the way they should.People don’t attend the paradesanymore,” said McLaughlinsteadily. “It would be nice if peo-ple put the American flag outside

their homes, it would be nice ifsome people said prayers. Amer-icans don’t have the feelings forveterans, whether it’s current vet-erans or veterans in the past, thatthey really should have.”

Remarkably, not many peo-ple have a clue as to what Me-morial Day is, which makes themapathetic towards it. To JoshuaMartel, a KCC student, being leftin the fog about the holiday is themain reason for which he doesnot acknowledge it.

“Memorial Day is not a bigdeal to me, because I do not havea clue as to what it’s about,” saidMartel. “Most holidays we cele-brate are [explained] in schooland Memorial Day was never oneof them for me.”

For Mahdee Najjar, also aKCC student, the popularity levelof Memorial Day shows thedearth of patriotism amongstAmericans.

“Americans are less patrioticabout Memorial Day,” said Naj-jar. “Considering it is not as rec-ognized as any other holiday suchas the 4th of July or VeteransDay.”

Although it seems as if ourgeneration is forgetting aboutMemorial Day, Navy Seal veter-an Peaches Diamond, along withthe Veteran Affairs Office ofKCC, will never forget his Me-morial Day. Diamond and com-pany took part in a CUNY-wideevent that represented KCC, forthe first time, at the MemorialDay Parade in Washington D.C.

“CUNY has 17 sister col-leges and they all go to Washing-ton D.C. [to] march in the parade.This was the first time Kingsbor-

ough was represented in the pa-rade,” said Diamond. “We hadbeen offered an opportunity,through a grant by the City Uni-versity of New York, to take stu-dents there on a bus. They wereprovided hotel accommodations;and not only that, but we weregiven an opportunity to go to theWhite House and ArlingtonCemetery, where we saw thechanging of the guards. Thisbrought about camaraderie be-tween the veteran students whoattend.”

CAMPUS NEWS

by Christopher Rivera

The Veteran Affairs Office hosts a crusie to honor fallen war heroes.

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7SScceepptteerrSeptember 2010 CAMPUS NEWS

As the 2010 school year ap-proaches more students at KCCchoose the alternative commute: cy-cling. Nevertheless, this means oftransportation is not entirely met withopen arms, as tension mounts.

Cyclists are like flowers and theirpetals blossom noticeably once theseason changes. These flowers flour-ished on KCC’s campus immediatelyas the temperature rose and nowpleasantly enjoy their stay year round.

“I love riding in the warm weath-er. How can you possibly not?” asksKCC student Jeremy, who has beenriding to school for two-years. “It's somuch fun, especially when you jumponto the bike lane.”

If the cyclists are like flowers, thebike lane on Oriental Boulevard istheir fertile ground. If you build it,they will ride. That’s the messageconveyed in the annual estimate of bi-cyclists in New York City by Trans-portation Alternatives, finding rough-ly 236,000 New Yorkers riding eachday in 2009, up 28 percent from185,000 daily riders the year before.

“More and better designed bikelanes, that’s clearly what’s fuelingthis growth,” said Wiley Norvell, aspokesman for the bicycling andpedestrian advocacy group, which hasconducted an annual cycling estimate

for nearly two decades.With more than 200,000 cyclists

now rolling around, New York Cityhas more daily riders than any othercity in the country.

However, all this talk of thegrowing number of cyclists isn't ex-actly settling well with those whocommute by automobile. Since the re-cent inception of cycling, drivers ofthe four-wheeled vehicles have oftencomplained about sharing the roadwith their two-wheeled kinsperson.

“I hate bikers,” exclaims Alex, aKCC motorist. “I'm pretty biased, be-cause I've had some bad experienceswith bikers. It takes a lot for me to notwant to hit them.”

These negative sentiments to-wards cyclists are common and canbe felt all throughout New York City.Dating as far back as 1895 followingthe untimely death of Robert Center,who crashed into a coal cart there hasbeen a stigma attached to cyclists, re-ferring to them as “demon of thewheel.”

Anti-cyclist talk is common allover the country: a local radio pro-gram in Madison, Wisconsin, lastMarch reportedly encouraged driversto taunt cyclists, while in Detroit inAugust, a host appealed directly to hisdrive-time audience: “How many of

us drivers are disgusted with how bi-cyclists take to the road?” he asks.“How many of them have seen a bicy-clist and would just love to lob some-thing at their heads?”

This very sentiment was drama-tized in an episode of the sitcom It’sAlways Sunny in Philadelphia. Andthe Facebook page “There’s a perfect-ly good path right next to the road youstupid cyclist” is still adding to it’s40,000-plus fans.

A recent study found that 92 per-cent of New York City cyclist fatali-ties resulted from crashes with auto-mobiles. According to the Depart-ment of Transportation, over 3,000collisions between cyclists and driv-ers occur each year in New York City.

Regardless of the underlying con-flict between cyclists and automobiledrivers, the cyclist will stick to the al-ternative. With the buses often timesbeing unreliable, traffic and the finan-cial woes facing many students re-garding gas prices, it's not a difficultconcept to grasp as to why many gothe path of cycling.

There's a rebellious attitude at-tached to the cyclists.

“I started riding, because I want-ed to get as far away from supportingthe MTA. I couldn't pay $90 a month

to ride a bus that is a pain in the neckto begin with. It's so crowded and un-healthy. I couldn't deal with it any-more,” says Matthew.

With the recent subway cuts andline changes it makes commuting bypublic transportation a hassle for stu-dents.

“The only complaint I have is theuncovered potholes in the street, eventhe landfills themselves can make foran uncomfortable ride,” says KCCcyclist, Gregory. “Sometimes I thinkthey [Kingsborough] should put up asign that says good luck.”

Gregory's concern over streetconditions is relevant to all bikers,not only Kingsborough commuters.In 2005, Noah Budnick crashed onSands Street, an area that has been es-pecially tough on bikers over theyears. As a result he fractured hisskull (while wearing a helmet) and re-ceived many scrapes and bruises. Theblame for Budnick's accident went di-rectly to a pothole.

Whether you like them or not,you'll be cyclists at KCC for some-time; so either join in or get out oftheir way.

“Not looking forward to goingback to school,” says Julian. “But atleast I know I can ride my bike toclass.”

Cyclists Take Kingsborough Campus By Stormby Russell Kruzhkov

Photo by Mashido Eghaghe

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T H E R E S U L T S A R E I NM E E T T H E N E W L Y E L E C T E D O F F I C I A L S O F K I N G S B O R U G H ʼ S S T U D E N T G O V E R N M E N T

THE BUSINESS COUNCIL

President SecretaryJonathan Colon Joseph Hayon Jaimie Best Danielle Falloon

THE NEW LIBERAL ARTS COUNCIL

Vanessa Levine Amabella Lambinicio

SScceepptteerr September 2010

Vice President Treasurer

Joshua Freeburn Sara RichmondPresident Vice President Treasurer Secretary

THE NEW MATH & SCIENCE COUNCIL

DaniloBeaubrun Dennis HamichandPresident Vice President

Frank Fraser Cid DominiqueTreasurer Secretary

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THE NEW EVENING COUNCIL

Steven A. Rodriguez

September 2010 SScceepptteerr

Treasurer

THE NEW PUBLIC & HEALTH COUNCIL

Abigal Pierre Rashad Yarde Niellan Williams Israel AppelPresident Vice President Treasurer Secretary

I regret to announce that the positions for President, Vice President and Secretary have not been filled.

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The newly constructed art majorof fashion design, at KCC is far frombeing perfect, especially when itshows immense lack of imagination,creativity and rounded competencein their own “Annual Fashion Show.”

Fashion is an art and should betreated like all art. Therefore, it can-not be taught; only enhanced. Thesedays, with the heavy amount of nui-sance drama that is portrayed in thereality shows, sitcoms and moviesabout the fashion industry, it hascreated a buzz: a rather negativeone, which now enrolls a wave ofwannabes that want to be fashionjournalists, designers, showroommanagers and PR. The luxury of this“lifestyle” has been so romanced andexaggerated, that the fashion stu-dents at KCC heavily emulate it.This brings out the point that noteveryone can be a designer, or a vi-sual artist for that matter, let aloneparticipate in an event that couldheavily shape one’s career.

The show started promptly atnoon in “the hall of flags” in the Ubuilding, upstairs from the cafeteria.With exactly five rows facing a run-way, that was horizontal to the rail-ing. The runway consisted of fouroversized, fragile, cafeteria tables

with an ugly faux canary-yellow ruf-fled skirt that lined edge, probablyto hide the fact that the models wereactually walking on tables. The showstarting immediately was appropri-ate as nothing should be tardy in thefashion industry. This was the onlygood thing. Professor Theresa Mas-trianni started the commentary,which is in fact never allowed at anyfashion show, and as time went onduring the thirty minute tenure ofthe show, this commentary grewvery annoying, and provocative.

She would introduce the modeland then the gown/designer –if thedesigner had any relevance- themodel would wear. One can noticeimmediately, the skinnier modelsseeemed to try to walk as Beyoncehad instructed to do in the song“Get Me Bodied,” which was not ap-propriate at all. And the heavier setmodels would walk like the Hunch-back of Notre Dame in a slump,while laughing as jackals. The firsttwo models wore gowns made bystudents in the design department.One gown in a dyed white to blue se-quenced fabric was absolutely gor-geous, especially with the modelwearing it with appropriate shoes.While the other was made by Yaza-

lyn Gonzalez, who made a cute or-ange ruffled-cotton dress, vintage in-spired, with a nice finished vintagechain. She, however, added a whitecardigan with a small blue trim,which can be overlooked by any av-erage person, not so much over-looked by someone who is paying at-tention to every detail. It was a veryfalse, and horrendous move, makingthe outfit look ugly and cheap.

And who says first impressionsdon’t matter? In this industry youonly get one first impression.

The next and last outfit to bemade by a student –for some timeat least- was made by Gillian, whomade a nice halter top out of orange- floral skimmed sheer organza,which was breathtaking. Themodel, however, walked so clumsilythat the beauty of the gown was ig-nored. What also was awkward wasGillian’s use of another orange longscarf for the model to wear. Thedress was lovely - not the scarf;absolutely threw the whole outfitout the door.

The remainder of the show con-sisted of prom dresses and littleevening gowns, a total of five weremade from the students at theschool. Over the span of thirty min-utes, the majority of the show con-sisted of store-bought items. Thedesigners were allowed to dress themodels. So who said it was “stylish”to wear a dark blue cocktail dresswith a baby blue pump, to a date? Inall actuality Mastrianni said it was a“mini-dress.” Don’t do commentaryif you don’t know the correct terms.She proceeded to make errors likethis throughout the show.

And she works in the fashiondepartment, how embarrassing.

But aside from the professors,as well as the students’ lack of fash-ion tact, it was also noticeable, howmuch emphasis was placed on high-end designer names. Side commentssuch as “Oh, that’s so Chanel”, “Ar-mani would love this”, was also out

of place and unnecessary. As well asthe models continued “bopping” onthe runways. For once, it would berecommended to go to America’sNext Top Model and learn a thingor two. Everything about the showwas unprofessional and extremelydull. The students who did makethe clothes as well as styled, did nothave a sense of color-theory as wellas what was good for someone’ssize. A model even went as far as toadd butt-pads to her garment, mak-ing her look extremely tacky.

Regarding color-theory, it is notcute to wear a neutral color withjust anything. Playing with color isextremely important, and it grant-ed that neither these students, northe professors who allowed the stu-dents to showcase this have suffi-cient sense on what exactly is color-theory.

There was no preparation forthe show, because if there was, theshow would move diligently. Itwould have many pauses and stops.It also was noticed by the attentiveeye that the students lacked profes-sionalism, as well as the viewers andprofessors. Little side commentssuch as boys doing the notoriouswolf-whistle when a girl wore an ex-tremely short H&M dress, or “toshow more leg”, or even “I’d hitthat,” wasn’t at all needed.

No one was expecting BryantPark, but no one was expectingghetto-trash either. The show du-plicated as well as depicted whatthe people see on television. Therewasn’t any passion for what theydid, only people seeking a few min-utes of glory. There wasn’t any lovefor their art, it cannot even be guar-anteed if any of them sees this asart, so therefore, the show was justlike the students and all the miscon-ception of the media; utter non-sense. And if this is what is beingproduced for the industry, one mustask, what will American fashion belike in twenty years?

September 20101144 SScceepptteerrFASHION

by Ryan Muir

Fashion Department Makes an Unforgetable First Impression

Photo by Conroy Walker

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“Your life starts when you figure out who you are.If you figure out who you are and what you love, yourlife will always be complete,” said Marvin Williams,KCC’s devoted gospel choir coordinator as he recites hisinfluential words of wisdom. Williams is also professorof communication and performing arts, assistant basket-ball coach and KCC sports radio show host.

Williams who came to New York from New Orleans,has made a successful career out of music. He was bornin Mississippi, raised in New Orleans, but spent a largeamount of his life traveling the world as a musi-cian. Growing up in New Orleans life was challengingand many people had to live off of the local economy tosurvive.

Williams was introduced to the music world at avery young age. He began practicing music at seven-years-old. “My adopted family’s band was pretty estab-lished and they’ve won Grammys and American MusicAwards on their projects,” said Williams.

In the south many people weren’t allowed to attendschool, so Williams knew going to school was very im-portant and was a privilege many others didn’t have. Heknew from early on that school is where he wanted to be.

“My mom was the first to go to college, plus Ithought about the south and how much work was doneto stop people from attending school. So I would sit inthe classroom honored to be able to take advantage of theopportunity too many people sacrificed,” said ProfessorWilliams.

Williams received a degree in music from McNeeseState University, a graduates degree from Excelsior Col-lege and the Cuny Graduate School. He is a well-round-ed person and studies multiple disciplines. He is current-ly enrolled in North Central College as a doctoral studentand attending Boston University studying music.

The church played a major role in William’s lifeback then and even now. His mom was in her early teensattending college and his father was in the military in an-other country when he was born.

“The church was where I was raised, my mom hadme very young and I didn’t meet her until later on in mylife. I was taught carpentry, auto-mechanics and evenhow to read in the church,” said Professor Williams.

The most substantial memory he had was the day hegot baptized. He was nine-years-old and decided hewanted to be a minister at the church.

“They had a revival at the church and I was ready toaccept Jesus Christ,” said Williams.

Williams’ childhood hero was the musical directorat his church, Brother Horn.

“He had a way of talking to everyone regardless ofanything. He could talk to anyone and made them feelthey were important to him at that moment,” statesWilliams as he thinks deeply about his childhood.

Williams moved to New York in 2000, but didn’tleave New Orleans fully until 2003. At this time, he wasstill traveling and performing while teaching. Dr. CliffHesse approached him about a teaching job in KCC, oneclass led to him being here for nine years.

“At that time I was actively touring as a musician

and trying to play pro-baseball. Life was busy, playingbasses for Patti Labelle, Janet Jackson and my own bandalso doing records and soundtracks with other people,”said Professor describing his music career.

Williams played on over a thousand records for hisband and other artists as well. He also sings and plays in-struments.

“Most of my work is done with bass,” said Williams.“But I also play the piano and the harp. Williams trav-eled to many different countries and continents includ-ing Japan, China, Australia, Africa and South America.

Williams is a hard-working person who finds inter-est in being the best and making others be the best. Hecalls himself “Voracious, I approach everything I do thebest.” With this ardent attitude, he engages the studentsof KCC in the same manner. Williams states “EverydayI get to see the best of KCC students doing somethingsolely for themselves because they want to.”

The Gospel Choir is an outlet for students lookingfor something else to do on campus. It is a Bridge gapfor the traditional choir and for people who like singingon their own. Students start the choir with a lot of inter-est, but then have conflicts with the time and how to fitthe choir into thei schedule.Williams was very impressedto see how many students took the time out to involvethemselves in it.

He accomplished most of his goals and would notchange anything or do anything over. “God is good; hemade me who I am right now. I’m living my short termgoals. I want to finish my Phd. As far as long term goalsI want to be better at everything I do, better musician,professor,” said Williams.

He will continue his journey of music through KCCGospel Choir.

“I left the world better than I found it. I left every-one better than I found them,” says Williams describinghow he would like to be remembered.

by Kamika Tucker

MEET YOUR PROFESSOR

Recording Artist Turns KCC Performing Arts Professor

Bill Keller, vice president for Fi-nance and Administration for Kingsbor-ough Community College, has an-nounced that the college food service,Panda House, received an A grade fromthe New York City Department ofHealth, following its annual inspection.

To ensure the food service facilitiesare maintained properly the college hiresan independent consultant to inspect allcampus cafeteria locations including theBeach Cafe, MAC Cafe, Kingsbrew andT2 to go on a monthly basis. Inspec-tions are conducted from Septemberthrough June each year.

“We are extraordinarily pleased withthe grade A received by Panda Housefrom the Health Department. It raisesthe comfort level of students, faculty

and staff alike and I thank the Kingsbor-ough staff who contributed to this ac-complishment.Our strict attention tocompliance with the city food safety reg-ulations has been rewarded,” said BillKeller.

Panda House is implementing sig-nificant changes and improvements inthe service it provides in the comingyear. It has changed the Beach Cafésalad bar from a self-service salad bar toa service bar, ensuring all salad bar fooditems are handled only by trained profes-sionals. It is installing a kosher foodvending machine in room U113, themain vending room near the U-CafeteriaDining Room. The vending machinewill carry hot items such as onion rings,French fries, pizza and mozzarellasticks. A bottle return recycling machinehas been installed on the beach patio toaccept deposit-required, plastic bottlessuch as water and soda bottles. The recy-cling machine will accept plastic bottlesand issue a receipt which can be cashedor used in the U-cafeteria for purchases.

Panda House, at it’s four campus lo-cations, serves more than 10,000 peopleper day during the fall/spring semester.

PANDA HOUSE RECEIVES AN A FROM THE NEW YORK C ITY HEALTH DEPARTMENTby Ruby Ryles

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1166 September 2010SScceepptteerrSPORTS

Neither the ominous clouds, northe cool weather could put adamper on what was a beautiful un-veiling of the Kingsborough athlet-ic field. Spirits were high and smileswere all around as KCC athletes,students, faculty, staff, coaches andcheerleaders gathered to celebratethe ribbon cutting ceremony for thenew field before the inaugural stu-dent/faculty softball game.

There were several NYC ParksDepartment representatives, as wellas many dignitaries including,Kingsborough President Regina Pe-ruggi, Brooklyn Borough PresidentMarty Markowitz and CUNY stu-dent-athlete of the year, AleksandrKopach.

The 181,100 square foot, $2 mil-lion Astroturf field features a com-plex underground drainage systemthat will reduce the cost of mainte-nance and help control the run-offof rainwater. Aside from featuringtwo baseball and softball diamondsand outfields, the field also serves asKingsborough’s soccer venue.

“Isn’t it spectacular?” askedPresident Peruggi, beginning theproceedings as the audience clappedand cheered in approval.

The field and its state-of-the-artdrainage system were developed

over the course of a 6-month peri-od, replacing the old grass field,which required extensive and con-stant maintenance and “unfortu-nately was in terrible shape,” re-marked Peruggi.

President Peruggi described thenew athletic field as “not only an in-tegral part of our health and physi-cal education programs for instruc-tion and team sports, but also willbe used for the college’s continuingeducation and specialized classesand summer camp.” President Pe-ruggi is optimistic that the newfield “will also provide more oppor-tunities for community recreationalevents.”

The funding and developmentof such a large project required ef-forts from many different digni-taries and organizations. The Presi-dent emphasized the importance ofthe construction of the athleticfield, in regards to the budgetdeficits and reductions.

“It demonstrates what can hap-pen quickly and efficiently whentwo public agencies intelligentlycollaborate on a project,” said Pe-ruggi attributing the swift construc-tion of the athletic field to the workdone by the NYC Parks Depart-ment. “Because it took a good deal

of time for the financing of this jobto fall into place, we wanted to dothe actual construction as quickly aspossible.”

The President had many peopleto thank that were responsible forcollaborating and making this proj-ect a reality. Amongst those com-mended were several members ofthe NYC Parks Department, in-cluding David Martin, the teamleader for the project and KCC’s“terrific building and grounds staff.”President Peruggi proceeded tothank Councilman Mike Nelson“who led the charge,” CouncilmanLou Fidler, State Senator KarlKruger and Brooklyn Borough Pres-ident Marty Markowitz among oth-ers.

“The bottom line is, this is agreat thing for Brooklyn and forKingsborough Community College.This beautiful athletic field is takenfor granted by most colleges acrossAmerica. You deserve this and I’mthrilled that under Dr. Peruggi’sleadership, we made it happen foryou today and for all the days tocome,” remarked a visibly happyMarkowitz. He proceeded to saythat not only will the field benefitKCC and it’s athletes, but perhaps“it will give a lot of us an incentive

to get in shape and keep in shape.”Maybe this state-of-the-art field

will give more students the motiva-tionto join one of KCC’s many ath-letic teams. The more studentsthere are to choose from, the betterthe teams will be. One man whodidn’t need any motive to joinKingsborough’s track team is Alek-sandr Kopach, CUNY student ath-lete of the year. Through his hardwork in and out of the classroom,Kopach has received a full ride toSUNY Stony Brook University as amember of their track team.

Kopach was very proud to be apart of the ribbon cutting ceremo-ny for the new field, he spokebriefly and ended with a quote fromNelson Mandela, “Athletics, sportscan quiet racism, they unify individ-uals from far walks of life by laugh-ing in the face of discrimination,” itwas the perfect quote to end theceremony.

There is not enough awarenessabout the importance of athleticson the KCC campus, but this stun-ning athletic facility will go a longway in making people aware.

“As an athlete, you have to stayfocused. And it requires completebalance between athletics and aca-demics,”said Kopach.

by Robert Kohl

The Unveiling of KCC’s Athletic Field

Photo by Alan Hawkin