Resolutions and Revolutions

 Vol 5 No 8   

Well, here we are again - the start of a new semester.  A semester that is already strange.  It's day three and we've already had a snow day and a delayed start day.  We are still largely remote.  The pandemic is still ongoing, though there is hope in the form of vaccines.  We may be around the corner, but there is still a ways to go.  The future continues to be uncertain and yet spring WILL come.

A new semester, a new year, a new president.  We don't know what the future will hold, but I can tell you at least one thing that is coming.

I'm going to be better.  Honors is struggling a bit, as many of you may know.  Colleges in general are struggling.  We are not really designed for this kind of learning and community can be hard to build when you spend each day at home and your classmates feel like just a square on a screen.  But we are still here and I plan to work harder to keep this blog updated.  To find ways for us to 'gather' and see one another and learn outside of the classrooms.  Your Honors faculty remain committed to the mission of Honors and what it means for the students in it.  We are going to have speakers once more.  We are going to have new ways for you earn Honors points, starting with an opportunity this Friday evening.  We are going to get you a T-shirt if you don't have one.  We are going to have a virtual Convocation this semester, because we missed it so sorely last fall.  We are still here and we will endure.  Thrive, even, if we can.  Will YOU be part of our endeavors?

Please do, because we need you.  And maybe you need us, too....perhaps in ways you haven't even considered yet.  

Welcome to the Spring 2021 Semester.  Let's roll up our sleeves and see what we've got, eh?

-T

This Friday is the first opportunity to earn an Honors point! We have an artist's work on display at FLCC's ArtSpace36 and said artist will be giving a virtual talk and hosting an opening reception this Friday at 5:00.  Click on this link to find out all the information, including WebEx information needed for the event.

Gender in Gaming - Let's Talk About It

Here is a short bio, so you know a bit more about Ro before we get started… 

Vol 5 No 7

This Monday at 3:00 (password 2020), I’d like you all to come to a talk wherein my good friend and fellow nerd Ro will be virtually piping in to us from California to talk about Marginalized Genders in Gaming. Ro has been actively working in the gaming community for over six years. Prior to that, they studied English at California State University, Northridge. I have to point that out, because I may be a little biased when it comes to English degrees!

Rowan is a narrative writer for Legends of Runeterra, responsible for expanding on Runeterran lore and making a whole lot of new characters tied to the champs people love from League!

Rowan's first endeavor at Riot just went live with the release of the Targon set, Call of the Mountain. Prior to working at Riot, they were a narrative designer at Telltale Games working on branching narrative. Some of Rowan's more notable titles include Batman: The Enemy Within and Minecraft: Story Mode for Netflix. 

As part of the LGBTQ+ community, diversity and inclusion is a big part of Rowan's day-to-day. They are always striving to include more and more diverse voices in LoR and bringing authenticity to the work they create.

Outside of work, Ro is an active gamer, including tabletops and board games. They dabble in some arts and crafts on the side, but haven't taken too many embarrassing WIP pictures to show their progress along the way. 

With Great Power....Physics Power!

 Vol 5 No 6

Our talk this week is taking a much different turn!  This is what Dr. Johnson-Steigelman has to say about the topic…

(Classic) Spider-Man is known to be an excellent chemist, producing the formula for web fluid on his own.  His physical strength and agility came from a radioactive spider bite.

However, he learned physics the hard way.

In this presentation, you will learn about kinetic energy, potential energy, impulse, and momentum using examples from comic books and movies featuring Spider-Man.

This should be an amazing talk with lots of opportunity to learn new things and ask questions.  Our speaker certainly knows what he’s talking about….

Dr. Trevor Johnson-Steigelman received a B.S.Ed. degree from Clarion University of Pennsylvania.  After teaching high school physics and working at a private tutoring center for several years, he received his M.S. and Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2004 and 2007, respectively.  His work for his master’s degree included research on high dielectric insulators. He was awarded a patent for a method of producing hafnium silicate by depositing Hf metal on silicon oxide.  For his doctorate, he studied the growth of cobalt thin films on magnesium oxide.   

He uses examples from both real-life and comic books to illustrate physics principles in his classes at Finger Lakes Community College.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12 from 11:30am to 12:30pm. (password 2020)

My God... and Yours...

Vol. 5 No. 6

We are on the verge of an election which is perhaps more divisive than any other presidential election in the history of our country. We are in the midst of a pandemic that is raging across the globe. Our children are staring at screens trying to learn and our teachers and parents are struggling to maintain education in a time of crisis. Civil unrest is rocking our cities and it feels like nothing will ever be the same again.

And maybe it shouldn’t be.

As we look ahead to the future, it may sound irrational to say, but one of the things which should not be dividing us is religion. As strange as it may sound, religious beliefs should not be something that separates us, because at their core, many (if not all) of the world’s religions share the same basic tenets. Somewhere along the line, we have forgotten that. Religion is used is so many detrimental ways and belief systems are attacked and weaponized in ways that threaten to tear us apart as painfully as any other form of intolerance. And it should not be this way.

It just shouldn’t.

Lori Vail, Associate Professor of English, holds a Masters of Arts Degree from Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity school, invites us to a conversation about how “God is Not One.” Perhaps, in the process, we can all be reminded of our own humanity and the humanity of those around us. We need unity now more than ever and if we can set aside some of the most powerful barriers that separate us, maybe we can move forward together to ease the ills of the world and improve the human condition for all. Our gods, our beliefs, and our spirituality can, and should, be used to heal all the world instead of adding to its division. There is strength and power if we work together and this conversation will highlight why this is not outside the realm of possibility.

I will be there not just because I’m hosting, but because I want to learn. Join me.

Friday, October 30th from 6:00 – 7:00

(password: 2020)

Note: I reserve the right to remove anyone from the WebEx room who is clearly not there in good faith. FLCC and FLCC’s Honors Studies strives to be an open, inclusive, welcoming, and judgement free space and we will not tolerate the presence of those who are counter to that.

You know what they say...

 Vol 5 No 5

Three things to talk about this week.

First, tomorrow is Laker Day and I encourage everyone to do something for yourself that might fall under the category of self-care.  In my classes, I’m inviting students to participate in a Laker Day activity if they can, and if they can’t, to engage in something they don’t always make time to do.  Bake cookies, read a book, talk a walk, go for a drive, draw a picture, call a friend, paint, draw, compose, sculpt, go to a pumpkin patch and pick out a pumpkin, meditate, practice yoga.  Something that doesn’t involve WebEx or homework, school or work.  Take time for you.  Celebrate who YOU are and recharge your internal batteries.  The world is demanding so much strength and resilience and persistence from us right now and I hope you are all doing that each and every day.  But we must remember to also breathe and relax.  It is so important to our ability to sustain our strength.  Time off can help you make the most of the times you have to be on task.  Here’s a few ideas…

• Free online yoga classes – for all levels and body types
• De-stressing activities - compiled by our own FLCC library
• Sepiatown – Go explore your local history via old photos.

Second, last week Vera led five students, myself, and AVP Cassy Kent in a fascinating discussion about all the things that ‘coming out’ might mean to those in the LGBTQ+ community.  We chatted from multiple perspectives and I, personally, learned some very important things about how to be a better Ally to my friends in the queer community.  Including the friends I have not yet met!  It was a great conversation and I think those who were there would agree with me.  It was the first major talk in our series this semester and that leads to the third thing.

Third, this week’s talk is on Wednesday from 5:00 – 6:00 (password 2020).  Invitations have gone out and I hope that we will see lots of faces that evening.  April is a librarian here at FLCC and, specifically, they are the Honors librarian.  There has been much made of pronoun usage of late and many who bristle at the use of ‘they’ as a singular pronoun.  Many of those who bristle are my own colleagues in the world of English education.  I myself am someone who had to train myself to stop ‘correcting’ student papers when I saw ‘they’ used in the singular.  I am happy to say that I learned, somewhere along the way, that they as a singular pronoun has been around for….well…come to the talk to find out!  You may be surprised!  I have retrained myself and broken the habit and I can’t wait to talk about that and other things at our gathering.  I bet I will learn even more things that will help in my ever-continuing quest to be a better member of the world around me.  Things are changing – and some things that never should have changed are changing BACK and it is a wonderful thing.  We may still have a long way to go, but we are making strides forward and talks like this will only help.  And so, I encourage you to join us for an hour and feel free to bring a friend.  Furry friends also welcome (so long as they are not too disruptive to our chat!).  I cannot wait for this one as I know that April not only has anecdotal and lived experience to share, but they also have that librarian’s love of great information and resources!  Oh, and it is not accident that this talk is taking place on International Pronouns Day.

International Pronouns Day

Note:  I reserve the right to remove anyone from the WebEx room who is clearly not there in good faith. FLCC and FLCC’s Honors Studies strives to be an open, inclusive, welcoming, and judgement free space and we will not tolerate the presence of those who are counter to that. 

 

Annie Talks and Our Next Talk...

 Vol 5 No 4

Hi there!  A two part blog this week - the first part is from Annie Black, an FLCC Honors Studies student who wants to share a few words with you.  Read on for what she has to say - and who she is!  Then read about our next talk - next week!

Annie Talks!

Hello everyone!

For those of you that do not know me, allow me to introduce myself.

My name is Annie Black and I’m about a full semester away from graduating from FLCC with my Nutrition and Dietetics A.A.S. Honors has been apart of my life since beginning at FLCC. No matter how far I am from campus, Honors has been there for me.

Earlier this year I had to take a break from academics for my mental health. It has been a long year full of all kinds of change and growth. I am anxious to be back in classes this Spring 2020 semester, and to get back to some sort of normal since this pandemic began.

So what does FLCC Honors mean to me?

Honors is knowing I’m not alone, no matter how isolated the pandemic has made me feel. Honors is knowing that I still have even more support from my FLCC family. Breaks from anything can be difficult, but for me it’s school. It’s something that

Annie and I, Pre-COVID

challenges me like no other, and something that I can proudly say is earned through my hard work and dedication. Honor’s helps give me that sense of pride and adds to the challenge in all the best ways. Honors is why I know I’ll be able to get back on track with my education and continue to learn and grow. Honors teaches me that there is a place for me, and it’s the most amazing place to be. There’s going to be a lot of roads to travel down throughout my educational path. I’m going to be working for a Master’s degree. Honors program, at FLCC is preparing me for this journey, and I couldn’t ask for better help. Honors is home to me, like I hope it is for you. 

I want to wish everyone good luck on their journeys in life.

Stay healthy and safe my friends!
-Annie Black

Our Next Talk!

Second, our next talk is Wednesday, October 14 from 3:00 - 4:00.  Entitled "'Hi, I'm gay' - Coming out in 2020," this talk will be hosted by Sociology professor Vera Whisman.  Come along whether you are out, not, curious, or just want to learn more about what this even means. Click here for the meeting link - password is 2020.  Feel free to bring your friends!

Get Comfy, Get Inspired...

Vol 15 No 3

Honors Talk Series

Get Comfy, Get Inspired. Stay Home. Stay Informed.

More information on each talk as we get closer...events can be used to earn Honors points.  trista.merrill@flcc.edu for more information

These events will be offered via WebEx.  Links to come!

TBA : 

An Evening with Brockport Honors - early to mid-November.  Stay tuned!