Much like probably most students this past week, I went away for Spring Break. The English Department hosted a trip to England and I was able to go along. We got back late Saturday night so that left me with one day to get settled in and ready for classes on Monday morning. Some of my professors gave midterms but there were some who held off until after Spring Break…not a good idea. Studying while in England was not an easy task; it actually never happened. Every day was filled with things to do and places to go. So much so that my index cards never made it out of the suitcase. My midterms weren’t scheduled until the Tuesday and Wednesday after break so I’d have some time left to study when I got back.

After I got back to campus on Saturday night I threw my clothes into my hamper, organized everything around my room and made sure everything minor was done for the night and hit the sack early. I didn’t set my alarm the next morning because I knew from experience that jetlag doesn’t get along well with an alarm clock. I woke up around noon and had absolutely no motivation for anything. I set out to start on some work and studying for the day…and I fell asleep instead. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to get to bed early that night because I signed up for duty on Sundays and that’s exactly the day it was.

Like some students at Assumption one thing I’m not very good at is motivation, but I’m really good at organizing! Since I basically had no desire to work on any homework or study for my midterms when I got back from Spring Break, I made a list of the things I needed to do for the week; which turned out to be a lot shorter than I thought it would be! I worked my way down my list of things to do and had a productive and relaxing day. I took a little break on duty so that I could keep some of my sanity but I managed to get most of my work for the week done! Sometimes all it takes is a little organization for you to see things in a new perspective and get motivated.

Assumption’s Campus Activities Board (CAB) has been very busy so far this semester! We started off the semester with our Welcome Back Week. This year’s theme was Smile: You’ve Got CAB Events! We started off with everyone’s favorite event Bingo on Tuesday. It was “Bingo on the Go” with prizes like a portable DVD player, a gps, a summer fun bundle, an iPod with iTrip, a digital camera, and luggage. On Wednesday we were provided with comedic relief with comedian Andy Hendrickson. Singer/ songwriter Lesley Pike graced us with her sweet tunes on Thursday night. And to conclude our Welcome Back Week on Friday, we had “A Night on Ice.” Many students and faculty bundled up to ice skate on an artificial rink, watch some great fireworks, enjoy some nice warm hot chocolate and cookies, listen to some jams, and get their picture on a snowflake magnet.

Right after Welcome Back Week, we had some great programs all lined up and ready to be enjoyed by all! On Friday, February 6th, there was Casino Night. There was a chance to play a bunch of different casino games like roulette, poker, black jack, a big wheel, and chuck a luck. When you came in, you got poker chips, you played the games with your chips, if you won you got more chips, and at the end of the night you turned your chips in for raffle tickets. You then entered your raffle tickets in to win prizes like a gps, a gift card bundle with movies, a 19” HD TV with DVD player, a desk chair and iHome, and a digital camera. CAB has had ticket sales for the annual Spring Ball for Juniors and Seniors. This year the theme of the ball is “Botanical Ball.” On Wednesday, February 18th Live @ Charlie’s brought a different type of music to campus. We had alternative rock band Stealing Jane! There was also a chance to win a Wii if you attended.  And on Friday, February 20th, we had comedian Robbie Printz. It was a pub night and everyone had a great time.

For the rest of the semester CAB is very busy with events! This weekend we have Siblings Weekend! We have Bingo followed by an ice cream social and a viewing of Wall-E on Friday Night. On Saturday, we have a carnival during the day with a moon bounce, laser tag, hair wraps, tie-dying, and more! On Saturday Night we have magician Nate Staniforth. We are anticipating a great weekend!!! On March 19th, CAB is having is Ticket Bingo. This bingo will include tickets to different places, events, and concerts. Then we have the “Botanical Ball” on Friday, March 27. We have our Spring Concert on Saturday, April 18 followed by CAB’s Spring Fever on Saturday, April 25. So as you can see, CAB has a very busy rest of the semester! But we hope that all these events bring great times and even better memories to all who attend!

It was Sunday evening at about 7:00pm and my friends and I walked into the chapel. We shuffled in and sat together in our usual pew. As I took off my scarf, coat and mittens, I thought how good it felt to come in from the cold to the warmth of the chapel. Not only was it a warm temperature wise, but the atmosphere was always warm and friendly. I waved hello to my philosophy professor, sitting in the pew behind me and to a few other classmates. I knelt down to pray in the peaceful quiet and could softly hear Brother Dinh, one of the new campus ministers at Assumption, leading those serving at the mass in the chapel choir, as lectors and Eucharistic ministers in prayer. A few minutes later the chapel bells sounded 7 harmonious times and Jane Schivick, the conductor of the choir, stood to welcome all in attendance to the mass. The 7:00pm mass is the most popular mass among students at Assumption and you can tell this by those in attendance, those participating in the mass and those who make up the close knit chapel choir. The mass began and after two students read the first and second reading, the presiding priest gave a homily aimed for us college students to relate to. As we moved into praying the Our Father, my friends and I joined hands, like those around us, and when it was time to give peace, everyone was all smiles as I hugged those in our pew and those in front of and behind me.

My freshman year, it was hard for me to adjust to mass at Assumption. I came from a church where we had a strong youth group program called Lifeteen and I was close with many of the students involved in it. Coming to Assumption, the mass style was different. At home we had a lively mass with electric guitars and drums and it was hard coming to church without my friends from home. But I soon grew very fond of the mass in the Chapel of the Holy Spirit. The wooden building encompassing us as we participated in the Eucharist made me feel so safe against the chilling winds outside. The beautiful stained glass windows glowed against the dimmed light after the Eucharist procession. The mass style was so reverent and fervent and has played a large role in helping me to mature in my faith and understanding of and participation in the mass.

As the mass drew to a close, I couldn’t help but smile as the choir lively sang one of my favorite songs. As the choir packed up their binders, I snuck over to give my choir fiend her weekly after mass hug. The friends I came with always tease me about how long it takes me to leave mass after it’s over because I always end up chatting with a few friends about the weekend and am one of the last people to leave. This mass was just what I needed. After forcing myself to stay in my room most of the day to finish some homework, it was so nice to come and take a break from the solitary, productive afternoon to come to mass and be in the community of everyone there.

Wow! Is it almost Christmastime already? School is coming to a close and the late night coffee runs to the 24 hour Dunkin Donuts are increasing—as the hours of sleep per night are decreasing. This time of year, the campus buzz shifts to the later part of the night. More people are grabbing precious nap time during the afternoon to prepare themselves to be at the library until close. Things get especially busy for RAs too. The latest event is the famous Res Life cookie competition at the annual Christmas party. Each staff (of each residential area) is responsible for crafting the ultimate cookie, to be judged by the directors taking into account creativity, taste and presentation. It may sound silly—but it gets intense! There’s also plenty of food, fun and personalized Christmas cards to go around. I guess we really know how to get in the spirit, huh? As a whole, all the resident assistants like to get together for things like this since we don’t all see each other during the year. It’s also the last bit of the semester that we have to hang out with our resident students. A lot of times, RAs will design programs that include late night study breaks with snacks, and sometimes even breakfast food. School can be challenging, so we like to chop it up with a little fun and stress relief. Well, time to get back to studying. Happy Holidays!

Hello! My name is Kristen Miller, and I’m a junior here at Assumption College. Apart from being a student, I’m a resident assistant for West Hall (third floor!). West is located towards the back of campus, and makes up one of the three buildings that earned the nickname “the Village”. This is my second semester being an RA here and I love it! While it takes up a lot of my time, I really enjoy the work I do on behalf of the Office of Residential Life.

To anyone that doesn’t know what an RA is, it’s a student who is responsible for maintaining order in the residence hall, running high-impact programs for students throughout the semester, building community, and just being an overall resource to residential students. That sounds like a lot, but it’s totally manageable. I’ve become pretty close to my residents this year, so they’re more like my friends than anything else. I think that’s really important, especially since you don’t want to look at the position as a job, per se. I think that’s when people really get bogged down and stressed out—to be honest, getting involved helps me to stay motivated and on task. If I’m left to sit around in my room all day, I’d probably just watch too much T.V. and go on too many Starbucks runs! Instead, all these extracurricular activities give me structure, so I don’t mind sitting down and getting work done when things come down after dinnertime. Keeping busy during the week also makes me appreciate the downtime I have. Knowing I put in a full day, makes $6 movie nights at Showcase Cinemas North totally worth it on a Tuesday night!

I’m excited for it to be November, since that means Thanksgiving and Christmastime is right around the corner! It’s my favorite time of year to be an AC student—from the tree lighting to Christmas in Charlie’s, there’s really nothing more that gets me in the Christmas spirit!

While here at Assumption, I have had some amazing experiences and have met some fantastic people. One experience in particular or actually three, stand out as I look back on my college years. I have been on three SEND trips, which stand for Service, Exploration, Network, and Discovery. These programs are run through campus ministry, and allow for students to go to different locations and serve people of those communities. Before I had gone on a SEND trip, my only experience in campus ministry had been through weekly mass. This changed completely once I went on my first SEND trip to West Philadelphian. In West Philly as we affectionately call it, I had an amazing experience. We served people who were recovering substance abusers, people in anger management, and children in an after school program. The experiences I had with the people I met, and within my own group were absolutely remarkable. After spending the day serving others, we would always have prayer and reflection after dinner. These times were probably the most powerful times of the whole trip. To hear the other people in my group’s own ideas, reflections, and thoughts about the day, and then feeling 100 percent comfortable in my own sharing, was truly a gift. My trip to West Philly gave me many gifts, just as my other two trips to Washington D.C, and Mexico did as well. The SEND trips are such an awesome opportunity that many students at Assumption take part of, and I am very glad I did too.

When students visit Assumption, they always ask what campus is really like, and what there is to do on the weekends. AC always has something going on, and by the time Friday rolls around, everyone’s just itching do something besides homework. There’s something for everyone here - whether it’s music, sports, art, shows, or games you want, AC has something going on for you!

We have lots of regularly scheduled events throughout the year, including Late Night @ Charlie’s where a local band plays every Friday, athletic events, BINGO, holidays at Charlie’s, like Thanksgiving or Valentine’s Day, movies on Hagan Lawn, and comedians. There are plenty of large events on campus, as well, such as Fall and Spring Fever, Family Weekend, Sibling’s Weekend, Homecoming, Midnight Madness (Basketball pep rally) and Pup Cup. Midnight Madness was just a couple weeks ago and the cheerleading and dance teams performed. There were a bunch of give-aways tossed into the crowd and the basketball teams showed off their skills. Last weekend was Family Weekend, and it was a lot of fun. This weekend, Assumption is holding a Halloween dance, complete with a costume contest!

For those weekends when you feel like getting off campus for a little while, you can take the shuttles or WooBus and check out the different restaurants, movie theaters, and shopping places in and about Worcester. You can see an example of the schedule here.

As you can see, there’s always plenty to do, both on campus and off! You can pack as much activity or relaxation into your weekend as you want. For more about campus life, you check out the other Assumption Blogs.

Hi Everyone! My name is Meg and I’m the comedy executive for the Campus Activities Board. CAB has had a really eventful schedule this past month. In the beginning of October we had comedian Tom McCaffrey here at Charlie’s. Another event we had in October was a drive in movie. We brought a projector and a screen onto Hagan Lawn and watched the movie Disturbia. An big annual event that happens in October is AC Idol. 8 students are given a chance to perform in front of a panel of judges and their peers for a chance to win $500!!! Two finalists are then chosen and they performed at Family Weekend. Speaking of Family Weekend, it is one of the bigger events that CAB organizes. This year it was a blast! We had bingo with some awesome prizes, a carnival, a Beatles cover band and many other things.

Next month and in December we have many more great events happening on campus. We have comedian Ryan Reiss coming and we’re raffling off $1000 of prizes. We are also having “Are You Smarter Than a Freshman” which is a spin off from the T.V show “Are You Smarter than a Fifth Grader.” Towards the end of November singer/songwriter Adam Day is coming to Charlie’s. In December we are having a Christmas themed bingo called “Rock Around the Bingo Tree,” and we have the Winter Ball which is themed “Winter in the City.” If you have any questions check out our web site or im us at AC CAB EVENTS.

<3 CAB

It was Tuesday night, September 16th at 10:00pm and my roommate and I, along with several other students, were sitting in the chapel. Soft piano music was playing and all around us the dark was illuminated by a decorative arrangement of candles. The chapel bells began to ring out their chimes and after the tenth ring a voice welcomed us to Candlelight Prayer. This week the theme was Searching.

It was the third week of classes and I was still getting used to my new schedule. I was still learning how to manage my time and get in the swing of my homework and extracurricular activities and I was already feeling tired at the beginning of the week. I was searching. I was searching for rest and peace and for time in prayer that I hadn’t had in busyness of the past few days.
My roommate, a year older than me and a senior this year, was also searching. She was in the process of applying to grad schools, making resumes and looking into jobs. She was searching for guidance for her future.

We both sat next to each other in one of the pews listening to the volunteer readers as they read a reflection they had written about the week’s theme. After three reflections; each written by students, for students; a single song chosen by the reader was played. I closed my eyes and listened to the readers soothing voices and reflected on the lyrics of each of the songs.

The first song, “Have a Little Faith in Me” by Joe Cocker struck me the most. Even though I had heard the song before, the lyrics really touched me that night. I realized that I couldn’t try to take everything on by myself this year. Yes it was busier than the previous year and yes my classes were more challenging than the previous year, but that was even more of a reason to turn to God instead of running myself into the ground trying to do it all without Him. I needed to stop searching for ways to cram everything in to one day and instead have a little faith in God to help me through my days.
My roommate also had a moving experience that night. She also had a lot on her plate this year and didn’t know what was yet to be in store for her next year. I heard her sniffling as she quietly prayed and reflected and I reached over and started rubbing her back. She looked up and smiled at me and then we held hands and prayed with and for each other for the remainder of the twenty-five minute service.

That night was so beautiful not only because my roommate and I connected with each other through prayer, but I also learned a lot about myself and how I needed to take more time out of my busy schedule to quietly reflect and spend time with God.  If you are at all interesting in coming to Candlelight Prayer come check it out! All are welcome. The next service is offered Tuesday, October 7th at 10:00pm.

Students for Safe Choices is a student run group that advocates students making safe choices regarding alcohol and other drug use. SSC supports students who chose not to drink or those who choose to consume responsibly. We are dedicated to educating students, faculty, and staff about issues and trends surrounding the use and abuse of alcohol. We also offer social networking to students who are interested in alcohol-free activities on campus and in the Worcester community.

This is SSC’s third year being an SGA recognized group. There are general members and three elected chair people in the group. We meet every Monday night at 7-8pm.

In this blog you will hear from two of the chair people; Jaleise Bouley and Cara Noyes. My name is Jaleise Bouley and I am the programming chairperson. I am in charge of bringing speakers to campus and coordinating the events. Cara Noyes is the educational outreach chairperson. This committee interacts with the community through workshops and education opportunities, both on and off campus. Grace Kennedy is the chairperson for public relations and recruitment. She is in charge of advertising and marketing, as well as educating the community through articles in the Provoc, bulletin boards, webpage and other special events on campus.

SSC has many exciting events planned for this semester, such as a DUI Simulator, BAC Stick Giveaways, a Pub Night with karaoke and prizes, speakers, and our Take a Break event with games, activities and massage therapists. We are doing a lot more planning to bring fun activities to campus for the students. Who knows what we’ll come up with next!