Journalist, Kathleen Webber visited Ursinus College By Seika Ueda

Freelance journalist, Kathleen Nicholson Webber, who works for various lifestyle magazines in the Philadelphia area, visited Ursinus College to talk about her career on Wednesday, Oct. 14. Sharing her knowledge of journalism and advising students on how to plan their futures as a journalist, Ms. Webber encouraged students to make the first step in the world of journalism.

“I never thought I would pursue a career in writing when I was in college,” Ms. Webber explained the opening of the discussion. While she concentrated her studies on Business Administration, she loved writing for the daily college newspaper at Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Indiana. She decided to be a journalist after working as a fashion assistant with designer, Michael Kors. She was first inspired by editors in the fashion world and as receiving an M.A. in Journalism in 1994 at New York University, she began work as a copywriter at Self magazine. Soon after, she started writing articles for W magazine and became a freelance lifestyle writer in 1998 – writing stories about the way we live, including health, house design, wedding, and dieting. According to her web site, she has contributed to Martha Stewart Weddings, Women’s Health, InStyle, Harper’s Bazaar, Country Home and W, and the internet for MSN/AOL and ivillage. She has also written on Philadelphia Magazine’s Home & Garden, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and New Jersey Life. Outside of her career as a professional journalist, Ms. Webber teaches journalism at Temple University and the College of New Jersey, and has also published a coffee table book, Spectacular Homes of Greater Philadelphia in 2006.

Ursinus English professor Dr. Erec Smith met with Ms. Webber this summer at the Philly Spells Writing Center and together they collaborated with the Center on strategies for writing education which eventually led to Ms. Webber’s invitation to visit the Ursinus campus.

Ms. Webber asks students to always keep in mind that journalists should be deeply aware of the scenes they wish to report, and be the eyes and ears for readers. She emphasized the importance that to write an article, a journalist must gain information through reading and listening to people’s stories, research backgrounds, and then ask themselves what the reader wants to hear. Ms. Webber always carries around a dollar marble notebook in which even the littlest story finds constant attention and revision. Yet, she said, “The hard parts still for me is taking all these notes and sitting down in front of the blank computer screen” where she knows that, no matter what, she has to produce something of value.

When discussing her studies of journalism at a college, Ms. Webber stated “I guess here and now is [the time] to get the basics of writing, to really work at the craft of writing and to learn as much technically as you can about how to be a good writer.” She said companies look for eager, young people and especially the person who knows what they have to do for the job. If prospective journalists want to make a first step on their career path, Ms. Webber strongly recommends them to start with internships. She stated technical skills would improve through actual work experience, and networking with professionals in the field would be beneficial for anyone interested in a future in journalism.

A freshman, Joshua Walsh, commented after the lecture through an e-mail, “I was surprised to learn how much the journalism process involved marketing.” Ms. Webber pointed out the strong relationship between the newspaper and magazine industry and the current economic climate. The influence of the recent economic downfall and the growing trend of online media have had a negative effect on the news industry. Ms. Webber referred specifically to Domino magazine, which she had subscribed to and which folded in January. The spokeswoman of Domino, Maurie Perl, talked to The New York Times on Jan. 28 that “The economy just drove the decision to discontinue the publication.” Eventually, Domino changed their field from paper to online and became Lonny magazine. Reflecting on this fact, Ms. Webber said, “I think the wave of the future is definitely new media.” It is important for all future journalists to learn about new media and keep up on the trend. At the same time, Ms. Webber reminded students about the importance of studying: “Learn your craft, don’t take any shortcuts on learning to be a good writer.”

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CIE celebrates 10 years, makes change By Liz Kilmer

In celebrating the tenth anniversary of CIE, professors Stephen Salkever and Paul Franco delivered a presentation last Sunday, September 13, in the Lenfest Theater. The discussion, titled “Thinking About Contemporary Liberal Education: Philosophical Grounds, Curricular Implications,” was presented as a debate- first to speak was Salkever, a Bryn Mawr professor, who distributed an outline of his arguments to audience members. “My assignment is to say something thought provoking regarding liberal education and to do so within 30 minutes,” said Salkever, who went on to describe liberal education as “a practice to which we all return.”

Soon joining him on stage was Franco, a Professor of Government at Bowdoin College, who agreed with much of what Salkever asserted, yet sought to “refute several points for the sake of discussion.”

More than anything, the two seemed to disagree on the role which piety plays or, rather, ought to play within a liberal education setup. The dispute prompted questions amongst audience members- most coming from students, whom both speakers were impressed by, says CIE coordinator Paul Stern.

According to Stern, the speakers were also impressed by “the turnout” – approximately 150 students and faculty members attended – as well as by “the willingness of faculty members from every department to be engaged in teaching CIE.”

But teaching is not the only way in which professors may involve themselves in the program- there is also a CIE advisory board and, as of this year, four CIE coordinators. In years prior, the course had only one coordinator- a position last held by Professor Robert Dawley. However, it was decided that parceling the position would allow coordinators to “expand the separate programs within CIE,” said Cathy Young, the coordinator responsible for organizing evening events.

According to Young, several new common hour events have been added to the curriculum- two of which have already occurred. Perhaps the more extravagant took place first; on the Friday preceding the start of classes, all CIE students partook in a bonfire event, which, according to Young, “took months to plan.” Clusters of faculty members were spread throughout the campus, all reciting “mythical, ancient stories,” said Young. Students, accompanied by their CIE instructor, walked from station to station by way of light. The night concluded with a bonfire and African drumming.

“It was a good chance for everyone to get together as a unified group,” said freshman Brandi Killian, “we talked about [the night’s events] in CIE.”

Each event is meant to “tie into the syllabus and hopefully deepen and expand [the students’] classroom experiences,” said Young. For example, this past Monday, students watched The Matrix, and were asked to recognize similarities between ideologies present in both the film and “Plato’s Cave.”

According to Stern, a main goal within the CIE program has always been “to interweave academic and social life.” And although this is perhaps accomplished through the evening events, coordinators chose to take it one step further this year: introducing Project Delphi.

Project Delphi, a social experiment of sorts, involves two sections of CIE- one taught by Stern and another taught by Dawley. (Dawley’s section will be assumed by Professor Kelly Sorensen during the second semester.)

In seeking to “enrich the conversation that goes on outside of the classroom,” says Stern, students in each of the sections have been placed to live together on the second floor of Stauffer. There they engage, often voluntarily, in discussions centered on various works and topics covered in CIE. Currently the group is planning a hall dance, a picnic to Washington DC, and several other activities.

According to Stern, much of the project is run by junior Patrick Hayakawa, the group’s Resident Advisor. And although the CIE facilitators have met and had dinner with the Delphi students, it is Hayakawa who primarily interacts with the group.

“He’s been great,” said Killian, in regards to Hayakawa, “he pushes us to be proactive and work through things ourselves.”

This perhaps is one of the main initiatives of CIE, standing for the Common Intellectual Experience. Since its start, the program has sought to “generate intellectual curiosity amongst students,” said Young.

“I think of Paul as our mentor,” said Young. The two were both sure to acknowledge fellow coordinators, Professors Rebecca Kohn and Sheryl Goodman, for their strong contributions to the program.

The group, along with the advisory board, has facilitated an additional anniversary celebration, to be held in October. Dr. John Churchill, Director of the Phi Beta Kappa society, will lead a similar discussion to that delivered by Salkever and Franco.

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UC Student Hit By Car; Makes $50 By Abbie Cichowski

“Safety Pays in Every Way”. Or so it says in The Accident Prevention Signs, Labels and Identification Products Booklet.

Math major, Jose DeJesus, would beg to differ. “I made $50 in two minutes,” he boasted, as he recounted his recent run-in – literally - with a car on the morning of Monday, October 5, at approximately 8:55 AM, as he was making his way back from his residence at 424 Main Street to campus to grab a quick bite to eat.

DeJesus admits that he sped up to pass in front of a gray jeep that was pulling out of a driveway, saying it did not look as if the car was going to make an attempt to exit. The driver, described as being in his early 30s, exited the vehicle after the incident and asked the UC student if he was alright.

The UC senior did not appear too shaken. “My first thought was…****, I’m not going to eat before class. My second thought…where’s my cell phone?”

Upon noticing the misplaced chain on the bike, the driver gave DeJesus $50 and a ride back to campus. De Jesus, who walked away unharmed, laughed as he recounted the incident: “It was pretty comical.”

Although this may not seem like the most serious of accidents, one must ask: Does this point to a more pressing issue on campus, in terms of bike and pedestrian safety on and near Main Street?

This incident is particularly pertinent, for the UC Bike Share, a program which was created last year by recent graduate, Laura Ng, has become widely popular on campus. News of the incident reached the heads of the Bike Share program – Ray Clarke and Jay Fetterolf – a day or two after it happened.

Fetterolf, a sophomore who helps with bookkeeping and registration of the program, spoke of the accident saying, “We were surprised…this is one of the first ones we’ve heard about.”

Kim Taylor, Director of Campus Safety, was also surprised to hear of the incident. When asked about what Campus Safety specifically has been doing to ensure safety is upheld, she spoke of the recent decision to decrease the speed limit on Main Street from 35 MPH to 30 MPH. The borough of Collegeville made this request to PennDOT numerous times before it was finally accepted. (The borough must go through PennDOT because Main Street is a state road.) “We can’t just make the decision,” Taylor said. “We’re part of the bigger picture. Lots of voices have to be heard.”

Additionally, Taylor also spoke of efforts to make the crosswalks stand out more to cars passing by campus. This should give Eva Bramesco and others who live on Main Street some piece of mind.

Bramesco, a Sophomore International Relations and Spanish double major, lives in Todd and has to cross Main Street every day. She shares her own comical musings as a pedestrian.. “We do joke sometimes that, at some point this year, we’ll eventually be hit. It’ll stop being funny once it actually happens.”

While Jose DeJesus regards his accident as more laughable than anything else, it is important to be aware of the possible perils of walking or cycling near main roads.

Ray Clarke, a Junior Economics major who serves as the mechanical go-to-guy for UC Bike Share, offers a piece of advice: “Treat a car as hostile….be completely cautious.”

Heed his warning. There are much safer ways to make that $50.

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