It’s finally Friday and everyone is ready to relax and catch up with those friends they really didn’t get to see during the week.  The only question is what do they want to do this weekend?  There are several options and no one really wants to choose.  Of course there are the typical routines of doing homework and just hanging out with friends and maybe watching a movie.  Although these are great options, there are other things to be done.  Every Friday night, students ranging from freshman to seniors pile on school buses to the Solomon Pond Mall.  This allows students to grab some dinner, do some shopping, see a movie or maybe even all three.  Also each Friday in Charlie’s we have Live At Charlie’s, a different event is held.  It could be a karaoke night, a magician, a guitar hero competition or even Assumption’s version of American Idol.  Not only do these provide for pure entertainment but you could walk away the winner of a new Wii or even a TV.

Then Saturday roles around, the choices still remain unlimited.  Almost every Saturday a trip has been planned to go somewhere.  Right around Christmas time my freshman year, a trip had been planned for New York City.  We all hopped on a bus at nine o’clock in the morning and drove straight into the city.  We had the day to explore, shop, take in a show or just enjoy all of the Christmas decorations that had been set up.  Last year, my roommates and I went into Providence, to the Providence Performing Arts Center where we were able to see Wicked.  In a few weeks, a trip to the Mystic Aquarium is planned.  If none of these sound interesting then there is plenty to do in the city of Worcester.  If it is hockey season, then several students enjoy taking in a Worcester Sharks game at the DCU Center. 

Though I have only touched upon a few things that could be done on a weekend in Worcester, there are hundreds more that have not been mentioned.  There are museums and parks that can all be visited as well!

One of the greatest things about Assumption is the close and personal relationships we as students can develop with our faculty. In fact, it was one of the many appeals that drew me to Assumption in the first place. The faculty is really great at AC and wants to see you succeed in all your endeavors. Now although I could rattle off the typical statistics that I am sure you are all familiar with in order to get my point across, I have chosen to take an alternative approach because I don’t think repeating them to you would even remotely get to the core of what I am trying to get across to you all. But don’t get me wrong, I don’t think the statistics are unimportant, I just feel as though a more personal account would truly let you just how awesome the faculty are here at Assumption.

I would like to start my story in Political Issues for Americans, an introductory Political Science class that I added during my first week of classes freshman year. It was just a random section, but little did I know it would have such a profound effect on me. The professor teaching the course was Professor Dobski, and I am not going to lie, he scared the life out of me the first time I spoke with him in his office. But it didn’t take me long to be fascinated by what he had to teach me, the way he taught it, and his approach to his students. Although he has a reputation for being tough (and trust me his blue book exams are not easy), you actually, in some weird way, don’t mind it. Yes you may want to pull your hair out from studying too much, but then you realize he has given you all the tools and excellent notes in order to succeed on the exam. And you understand that he doesn’t want you to fail, he just wants to make sure you push yourself to the best of your abilities.

Now, to make a long story short, I have continuously gone back to Professor Dobski’s classes. I am now in my junior year and I have just signed up for my fourth class with him. I guess I can jokingly say that I have a minor in Dobski since I keep coming around for his courses. I also have completed two interest circle discussion groups as part of the Living/Learning Center with Professor Dobski and he is now my academic advisor.

So, you may ask why in the world would I keep coming back to this one professor, but I cannot answer that with a simple sentence because I myself do not know. There is just something that Assumption faculty have that makes you want to get to know them. It could be because they want to get to know you as well; they want to see you succeed; or they invite you to their offices. Faculty here at Assumption are people who you see eating in Charlie’s, working out in the Plourde, and cheering on sports teams or advising clubs and organizations. They are truly involved on this campus staying until 6, 7, 8, 9 o’clock at night. And they have even invited students in their classes to their homes for dinner.

It really does astound me as to how dedicated the faculty is here at Assumption. I know I could walk into any one of my professors’ offices and it would be totally fine. Actually, I still see professors I had my freshman year around campus and they always say hi to me and ask how I am doing. The professors remember you and are always willing to help you out. I know I have been able to develop close relationships with certain faculty members and I will be able to obtain excellent recommendations from them for graduate school. You get to know them on not only an academic level, but on a personal level as well and this is one of the greatest aspects of academic life here at Assumption.

I could go on and on about all the great things the Assumption faculty possess and do, but I could be here for days. I really cannot say enough good things. I realize this article is not super long, but I do hope it has given you some insight into how awesome the faculty truly is at here at Assumption.

The Mighty Ducks. Duck Tales. Rubber Ducky. Duck-duck-goose. Duct tape?  I think it is safe to say that everyone loves ducks.  If it isn’t, it is definitely safe to say that I love them.  That is why Monday was one of my favorite events on campus. DUCK DAY!  This is the day where we role out the red carpet, literally, and welcome our feathery friends back from their winter vacation (professor Moynihan’s house).

The ducks are the first faces we see when we enter campus so it is only fair we give them a big homecoming.  Students, faculty, administration, and even classes from the local elementary school are invited to this annual celebration complete with duck noise makers, duck themed music and tons of free cupcakes!  Mother Goose even showed up this year to tell a story, maybe Donald had a previous engagement or maybe Mother G. is just easier to understand.   At any rate, I am, as I am sure many other students are, glad the ducks are back at AC.

So, it’s that time of year again here at Assumption College. You may ask yourself what that time could possibly be - SGA elections? Springtime? Open House? Well, although these are good guesses, you would be slightly off. It is however, course selection time here at AC; a time that means a new semester will be among us before we realize, a time that brings us new classes, and a time that could seem stressful, but done correctly, is not.

It all starts when the Registrar’s office posts the course offerings for the next semester online. Students can see which classes are being offered, at what times, and with what professor. We can basically pick whatever classes we want, just so long as we are chipping away at the gen ed requirements and the courses for our majors. The next step comes when the official course sheet comes out in our on campus mailboxes. These sheets of paper break down course registration by class; so, the class of 2009 picks first, 2010 second, and 2011 third. Each class has two days to register. Once we get this packet, we meet with our advisors so they can help make sure we are taking the courses we need in order to graduate on time. Our course registration is online and if you want to make sure you get your first choice classes, you must register at 7 a.m. Which, I know, sounds awful, but it is quick and easy and you can go back to sleep, no problem.

With this basic format in mind, I thought I would give you an example of how I picked my classes for my first semester senior year (which by the way I still can’t believe I had to pick first!). When the courses came out, I immediately went to my major (English) to see what courses were being offered. I only needed one more elective and then my senior seminar. Well, the fall seminars do not really apply to me seeing as though they are for education or mass com concentrators, so I picked two elective courses. The first one being Irish Drama with Professor Shields because he is one of my favorite professors at Assumption and his 20th Century American Drama class is pretty great right now, so I figured this class would be great as well. I also chose to take Women in Lit with Professor Ramsey, who will be returning from a yearlong sabbatical. She is an excellent professor who I have had once before and I am anticipating having her in class again.

The next class I searched for was Ethics, because I still need by second philosophy course to fulfill my gen ed requirements. I had been putting off this course for as long as I could because philosophy is just not my thing (no offense to all those potential majors or minors out there, it is a great topic to pursue, just not for me). So I signed up to take an Ethics class at 10 AM Tuesday and Thursday with Professor Colvert. He comes highly recommended to me by my longtime roommate, who happens to be minoring in philosophy and is constantly after me to take more classes, but that’s a story for another time.

Another class I knew I was going to be taking was a new class being offered through the Political Science Department, called Terrorism and the Modern World. Poli Sci happens to be my minor and although I have completed the requirements for it, my all time favorite professor here at Assumption, Professor Dobski, is teaching the course, which was enough of a cause for me to sign up for this class. Not only is the title fascinating, but everyone was talking about it, wanting to sign up; so, hopefully that means it will end up being a great course.

For my last course, I had no idea what I wanted to take. I was basically done my major, I was set up to finish the gen eds, and I had completed everything for a minor. So, having elective credits to play around with, I found out two of my roommates and some friends of ours were taking Painting I. Well, having already taken Drawing I, painting seemed to be a lot of fun and the next logical step. So, I signed up for Painting I with Professor Read. I am actually looking forward to it because though it may be tough at times, it won’t be as high pressure as an upper level course in the major.

Once I chose these classes I had to set up an appointment with my academic advisor, who happens to be Professor Dobski. I went to his office hours, he asked me some questions about my requirements and then signed off on my paper. Now, as a student registering for her senior year, not a lot of guidance is necessarily needed. I am basically all done and just have electives to take. However, as a first year student, your advising appointments will be about a half an hour because they want to make sure you are on the track for everything you need. After Professor Dobski signed off on my sheet, I dropped the paper off in the Registrar’s Office in the basement of Alumni Hall.

With that being done, the next step was to wait until my assigned day for registration to go online. When Monday morning rolled around, I woke up at 6:50 in order to register. I logged in without any problems, got the classes I wanted, and was back in bed by 7:15. It was a completely different experience being able to register first because I did not have to worry about classes filling up and having to find an alternate. Everything I needed was open and I didn’t even have any technical problems.

Overall, course registration is not as scary as it sounds. If you wait until the last second to see you advisor, or go into your advisor’s office without having an idea of what you want to take, or switch your major 15 times before you graduate, then it could become a hassle. But, if done correctly, course registration is just a simple process that is more efficient than normal paper registration. I hope this little overview of my course selection process helps you to better understand, even just a little, the procedure of course registration here at Assumption.

  
(Click the thumbnails for the full size)

The first week of March was one of the best weeks of my life.  Rather than going home for Spring Break, I traveled with twenty- five other students and two English Professors to Ireland.  We were doing a cross country tour beginning in Dublin and ending in Shannon, with several stops in between.  This allowed us to see many of the main points in the country.

Sunday morning, we arrived in the city of Dublin.  The two main things we saw were the Book of Kells at Trinity College and the Guinness Factory.  The Book of Kells, is the world’s first example of an illuminated manuscript.  It was written in 800 by Monks at Kells Monastery in County Meath.  This 680 page book was rebound into four volumes, two of which are on display at the Old Library at Trinity College.  Fast forwarding a few years, we found ourselves at the Guinness Brewery and Storehouse located at St. James’ Gate.  The museum we explored was located in a former fermentation plant, where the history of Guinness is explained in a six story exhibit, based around a giant atrium, in the shape of a pint glass.  While on the tour, we learned that when Arthur Guinness bought the factory in 1759 he leased the building for 9000 years because he was so certain of his success.  While also in Dublin, we were able to see Dublin Castle, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the US Embassy and Aras an Uachtarain, the mansion where the President lives.  Ironically, it looks very much like our White House.

From Dublin, we traveled cross country to Galway.  On our way, we stopped at Clonmacnoise, the first monastery built my St. Ciarian around 548.  It was seen as the center of Christian faith, literature and art.  After being attacked several times by both the native Irish and eventually the Normans, it was left in rubbles and later turned into a museum.  The two highlights of Galway were the Aran Islands and Spiddal.  The Aran Islands are three islands located about forty minutes off the coast of Galway.  Here the native language of Gaelic or Irish is primarily spoken. At the very top of the largest island, Inishmore, is Dunaengus, the Fort of King Aengus.  This circular fort is two thousand years old and stands at the edge of a three hundred foot cliff.  We were able to go right up into the fort, and for those that were daring could look over the edge of the cliff.  We of course all looked over and were even brave enough to dangle our feet off the edge.  Spiddal, is a completely Gaelic speaking community located right on Galway Bay.  This community is run completely by locals, who have even set up a craft area where tourists can purchase things such as jewelry and pottery.

The last big event of the week was the last night we were there.  We all attended a Medieval Banquet at Bunratty Castle, which was built in 1460 by the MacNamara family.  At the banquet, we ate in the Great Hall, where we had access to unlimited food and were entertained by Folk Singers and Dancers who sang traditional Irish folk songs.

Overall, this trip was the experience of a lifetime and is something that everyone should take advantage of! Not only did I learn a lot about a different culture, but it has left me wanting to go back in the very near future!!

Cheers!
Heather Hepburn ‘09

One of the most enjoyable aspects of Assumption College life is the plethora of intramural sports available to play. Taking place throughout both semesters, one can join any game from dodgeball to soccer to cardboard boat racing. Of course, if the sport one wants isn’t offered, he can bring the sport to fruition if he can gather enough support across campus.

One of the more popular intramurals is gym volleyball. Played in the spring semester, the activity always has enough teams to create two leagues: one competitive and one recreational. Generally, both leagues will contain anywhere from seven to ten teams, all generally with upwards of eight players. The “season” begins in March and plays out until the middle of April, allowing each team to face each other before the rankings are used to seed teams in the playoffs. In past years teams would need a certain amount of wins to enter the playoffs, but this year every team makes it- provided that its sportsmanship ranking is high enough. That’s right, a new rule (implemented to prevent repeats of past excessive arguing with officials and opposing teams) demands teams to play fairly, being ranked from 1 to 4 (and an automatic 2 for forfeiting) and requiring an average of a 3 to make playoffs. Once the playoffs start it’s single-elimination until only one team reigns supreme.

In past years teams could have up to four girls on the court and no more than three guys on at a time, but now there must be an even three and three (unless the other team agrees otherwise). Also, because there is now a Men’s Club Volleyball team at Assumption (and still a Women’s Varsity team) teams can only have up to three club or varsity players on the court at once (though next year that number will decrease to two). It may sound like a lot of rules, but besides that it is simple rally-point volleyball, the first two games to 25 and the third to 15. Games are scheduled weeknights between 6 and 10pm and often friends will come to cheer on and support the players. If you’re looking for a fun sport to play at Assumption, Volleyball is the one to pick, whether you’ve played the sport before or not. It’s fun, engaging, and a good way to meet new people on campus.

If I could give you one piece of advice to help you succeed in your first year of college, it would be to get involved with any kind of activity here on campus. Assumption offers many types of activities that provide opportunities for every student, but the one I wish to talk about is the Student Government Association. SGA is a great organization to get involved in right away because you will meet upperclassmen as well as other students from your freshman class. SGA also puts on a number of events such as the Fall Sports Pep Rally, Light the Night Walk, Midnight Madness, blood drives, and lectures which will get you involved with other students as well as a lot of important happenings on campus.

I have served on SGA since my freshman year, first beginning as a senator, then progressing to class secretary and senator, and now serving as president of the junior class. I credit a lot of the amazing opportunities I have experienced to my participation within SGA. I have been able to personally meet and get to know members of the administration and staff. I have worked with other students on class assembly to organize and run events and fundraisers for my class. I have learned how to run meetings and oversee a group of people. I have participated in a number of leadership trainings which have helped me tremendously in deciding what I want to do with my degree after graduation. And I have met some of my best friends here at Assumption because of SGA. Student Government allows me to be aware of important issues happening on campus and lets me be apart of changes on campus. SGA was the best possible thing I could have done for myself and it could be great for you too.

To get more specific about SGA, I want to describe a little about the different roles students can hold within the organization. For upperclassmen, typically juniors and seniors, there are five executive positions: President, VP for Academic Affairs, VP for Student Affairs, VP for Financial Affairs, and Senate Speaker. These execs serve as a liaison between the administration and the senate. They also hold office hours and work with senators to deal with issues around campus. For the other students interested in SGA on campus, there are the four class officer positions: President, VP, Secretary, and Treasurer. Then there are eight senator positions for each class. A student could choose to run for either class officer or senator, but a student could also hold both positions. Class officers form a class assembly with other students in order to put on class events and hold fundraisers, and they meet once a week. Senators attend weekly Sunday night senate meetings at 8:20 in the Hagan Campus Center and must also serve on a sub-committee of SGA. These committees have to do with Academics, Policy Review, Food and Auxiliary Services, Events, and Student Affairs, and occur on Monday nights. Sitting on these committees allows senators to be actively involved in important matters while voicing the opinions of other students. 

Overall, SGA is a great organization to get involved in. The opportunities offered through Student Government are outstanding and it really is a great way to get involved. It is easy to move upward within the organization, but you can also join it for the first time, for example, for your junior year. It is a time commitment, but a manageable one. There are many organizations to get involved in, but I would highly suggest putting your name in for SGA for the simple fact that when people look forward to Sunday nights, despite it meaning the weekend is over, you know it is a good organization to be involved with. Hopefully this article helped give a little more insight to life at Assumption and I hope you consider becoming a part of SGA.
See you all around,
 
Stephanie Boucher
Junior Class President

Towards the end of my junior year in every single one of my Human Services courses a professor would visit to explain a unique opportunity for seniors in this major to partake in, the 6/5 Rehabilitation Counseling Program. After a while I knew the speech by heart, but it intrigued me. It meant that I would be able to receive my Masters after only one more year of school and start Graduate courses during my senior year. I knew a few then seniors in the program and decided to talk with them about the program. After hearing about all the benefits I decided to enroll into the program, at the completion of my senior year I could always decide it was not for me and graduate with my Bachelors as is.

As senior year arrived I was also informed that as part of the program I would have to complete an internship of 100 hours for an upcoming semester. I sat down with the professor in charge of placements to determine a placement that would be best. I decided I wanted to work in the population of adolescents with mental illness. She also helped me set up a few interviews and I was able to choose a placement I liked best.

I started in January and I’ve been at the site for over 50 hours and every time I go it’s a unique experience.  The site is a residential program for adolescent males and females ages 8-17. When I first arrived I was unsure of what exactly I would be doing. I figured I would interact with the clients and sit in on some meetings. However I soon found out that it would be much more than that. The first day there I was able to sit in on few different case management meetings and they were a great opportunity to hear the client’s backgrounds and to find out why they were placed here. A lot of the information I heard is bound by confidentially agreements, which cannot be shared with others due to privacy laws. At the meetings I am able to interact with other workers from DSS, and services from Family Therapy as well.

Besides the case meetings I am able to interact with the clients for the couple of hours a week that I am there. This gives me time to reflect on why I wanted to do this career and allows me to know that it’s a path I really want to pursue. One of my favorite days was when I was able to go on a walk with one of the young girls who is not allowed much free time off the unit. We were just able to just get away and she really opened up to me about some things that were troubling her and it was a way for us to create a relationship, seeing that she’s often in school when I am there.

I look forward to going to this site every week and I wish that I could go more. I learn a lot while I am there, about interacting with young adolescents and how they would like to be treated. I think this internship benefited me in many ways and I really appreciate all the first hand experience I gained from it so far. I look forward to the rest of it in the next few weeks.

 Currently there are 81 days until my graduation from college. As I sit and type this I still vividly remember packing all of my belongings into two cars (yup, I brought two cars) and moving into Alumni Hall. From there I moved to the LLC, Wachusett and now I’m in Dion. There are clearly many, wonderful and some sad memories that I have experience on Assumption College campus, all of which I cannot believe will be just that, memories, in 81 days. 

‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the campus,

Not a creature was stirring, except for us in the Maison;

The applications were being completed by the staff with care,

In hopes that February 15th would soon be there;

The counselors were nestled all snug in their offices,

While visions of Spring Travel danced in their heads;

The Dean in her ‘kerchief, and the director in his cap,

had just settled down, to review some apps,

When out on the duck pond arose such a clatter,

I sprang from my office to see what was the matter.

Away to the lobby, I flew like a flash,

Slipped on some ice and to the floor I crashed.

The moon shined down on the Christmas manger below,

surely the apps would come, even though it would snow,

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,

but a Postal Service truck, being dragged by eight tiny reindeer,

With a little old driver, so lively and quick,

I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.

He flung a bundle of apps on his little old back,

I knew that sleep, I would soon lack.

A wink of his eye and a twist of his head,

Soon gave me to know I had nothing to dread;

He spoke not a word, but went straight to his work,

As he filled all the mail bins; he turned with a smirk,

I knew I would be reading apps for quite awhile,

Because on my desk I had a massive pile.

He sprang to his truck, to his team he gave a whistle,

And away they all flew like the down of a thistle.

But I heard him exclaim, as he drove out of sight,

“Send your applications in before Christmas night, and Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good-night.”