Ryan's Blog

Profiling a DePaul Professor: Erik Peterson

2009-03-30T21:20:00.000-07:00

For our third assignment I profiled one of my professors. Erik Peterson is the professor in my journalism class, writing for broadcast. The first photo was taken in the middle of one of our classes. Professor Peterson was taking questions from students on one of their upcoming writing assignments.

After our class ended I followed Professor Peterson to his office on DePaul’s loop campus. When we arrived in his office he proceeded to enter grades into his computer for the students in my journalism class.

One of my fellow students from my writing for broadcast class came in to go over her rough draft of an upcoming assignment with Professor Peterson. Professor Peterson has told me many times that he gets the most out of teaching when he can work one on one with students on their work.

I decided to let Professor Peterson look at my writing assignment and out came the red pen. I had to make a few improvements but the advice he gave me was helpful as always and I think I'll get a good grade on the assignment when I turn the final draft in.

It was time for me to leave when Professor Peterson had to make some important business calls. Professor Peterson is a professor who wants to help students with their writing in any way possible and it can be seen through my profile of him

SLI Workshop

2009-03-30T21:17:00.000-07:00

Throughout the quarter I have been submitting blog postings regarding DePaul’s Student Leadership Institute or the SLI. The last workshop I went to had a speaker who knew more than enough about leadership and had some very impressive credentials such as working with NBA teams on their motivation and confidence. On March 6^th in room 220 from 2-5 p.m. of DePaul’s Lincoln Park student center there is going to be the last SLI workshop for the quarter entitled Leadership as Service. There will be a key note speaker like each workshop the SLI puts together and you will be given the chance to get to better know fellow students through group activities.

Although you cannot get credit for attending the workshop in order to attain the leadership certificate I have attended these workshops and I have not registered before going. I have learned a lot of valuable information through SLI and their workshops so I encourage anyone who wants to learn something outside of class periods to stop by the workshop. For more info on SLI you can visit their website at http://studentaffairs.depaul.edu/sli/

Almost Alumni Fair

2009-03-30T21:14:00.000-07:00

On Thursday March 5^th from 12-6 p.m. in the student center of DePaul’s Lincoln Park campus their was an event entitled “Almost Alumni Fair.” When I entered the student center I saw balloons and bright flashes from photos being taken and I was curious as to what was going on, and as soon as I stepped foot into the middle of the student center their were booths set up with a large number of students making their way around to each station. Thursday’s weather was surprisingly nice which meant that a lot of students had decided to venture out of their dorms and apartments and into the student center which brought them directly to this event.

There were many different stations but there were a few that stood out to me as I walked by and took a closer look. One are of the fair had students dressing up in graduation gowns and taking graduation photos which would explain the bright flashes as I walked into the student center. The second booth that stood out to me had to do with graduation rings. I walked up to the booth and spoke to the woman running the booth and there were many different types of stones and ring bands that were laid out on the table. Students were trying on different sizes and colors and making decisions on which combination to use for their graduation. Although college is great for meeting new people and working toward a profession and a career I feel like it should be about time for me to graduate.

Alternative Transportation Fair

2009-03-30T21:12:00.001-07:00

Fairs have been a common occurrence on the DePaul campus which has given me the ability not to stray away from my beat that I was given at the beginning of the quarter. On March 6^th in the student center of DePaul’s Lincoln Park campus there was an Alternative Energy Fair which was held from 12:00-3:00 p.m. There were many representatives from different facets of transportation systems that are trying to bring “green” values to transportation. I walked up to the main information booth they told me that you can fill out a small survey and make your way around to each of the booths. After you have made your way a round the booths they would give you a Luna bar, bike lights, and other prizes.

One of the booths was for the CTA which is probably the most familiar mode of alternative transportation to people in Chicago and especially students at DePaul. Another station was represented by I-GO Cars which allows people to use and share hybrid cars with others only when they need them which eliminates the need to buy or lease a vehicle. I left the fair and I was handed my Luna bar and a list of tips of ways to make the world “greener.” This fair was much better than getting hounded by people working for organizations trying to talk to you on the street asking to help save panda bears from extinction. This fair was relevant to our times and especially to the Chicago land area.

Final Exams Approach

2009-03-30T21:08:00.000-07:00

With finals week approaching I decided to take a photo of my roommate for our final multi-media assignment. My roommates name is Drew Olson and he is a junior at DePaul and like most students at DePaul during this time of year, he is studying for finals. When I asked Drew how he felt about spending all of his free time studying this week he said, “I feel like I just took mid-terms last week and I’m already taking finals." I believe that this photo tells the story of every DePaul student in these last few weeks before spring break.

Chipotle and Demon Express

2009-02-23T19:47:00.000-08:00

Chipotle is one of my favorite places to eat and I have been going to the Chipotle located at 2256 N. Orchard St. between Belden Ave & Lincoln Ave across the street from the Children's Memorial Hospital. Like many places in and around DePaul there are some places where students can use their Demon Express money. I only recently realized that this Chipotle allows DePaul students to use their Demon Express instead of using cash or a credit card. This is great because I have found myself low on money in my bank account and without cash like most broke college students, but I did have a few dollars in my Demon Express account so I was able to get some food at Chipotle. There are also two Subway locations one on Fullerton a half a block east of Ashland that lets students use their Demon Express and they also give a small student discount There are many places that offer the same hospitality to students and I hope I can find more.

Non-Violence and Social Justice

2009-02-17T14:13:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday February 17, 2009 on the 11^th floor of DePaul’s loop campus DePaul Center in the student center there was an event held entitled, “Non-Violence and Social Justice Teach In.” This event was carried out starting at 11 am and ended at 2 pm. Starting at 2pm there was an open mic till 3pm and from 3-5 pm there is a scheduled showing of movies and documentaries.

I took the elevator up to the 11^th floor in the DePaul Center which is directly above the library and the event was well advertised and it was actually held in the common area where there are televisions and chairs set up. There was a stage in front of the rooms glass doors which gave those in attendance a good view of the Sears Tower while speakers where making there presentations. The event focused on social understanding and promoted world peace. There was a large amount of food and cake that was arranged for the guests and I can say that this is one of the most welcoming events that I have been to while at DePaul.

Police Torture

2009-02-16T16:19:00.000-08:00

On February 12^th, 2009 in the Schmitt Academic Center on DePaul’s Lincoln Park campus their was an event entitled “Taking on Torture: Chicago and Beyond.” The event was sponsored by the DePaul Students Against the Death Penalty and Amnesty International. Their were special guests that have had first hand encounters with torture and came to tell their story. The list of guests included Darrell Cannon a Chicago Police torture survivor and Father Memo a witness to torture in Latin America.

The purpose of this gathering was to raise awareness on the illegal practice of torture not only within Chicago and the United States but also torture around the world. There was a flyer that was passed around to those in attendance even before the speeches started. This flyer was a political flyer that was in opposition to Judge Lisa Madigan who has supposedly not sought out punishment for Chicago Police officers involved in torturing and beating citizens. The event also promoted a rally and a pack the court on February 20^th at 1 P.M. at 26^th and California.

Use Protection!

2009-02-09T13:42:00.000-08:00

On Thursday February 12 from 10-4 p.m. in the Student Center Atrium there will be an event entitled Concealed Carry and Women’s Safety. This event is hosted by Students for Concealed Carry on Campus and the DePaul Conservative Alliance. As stated in the title of the event it will deal with issues of self protection through the use of a concealed firearm. The Students for Concealed Carry on Campus have been motivated by tragedies such as Virginia Tech and NIU in to try and help students learn how they can protect themselves.

Although concealed carry on campus is not legal these groups are striving to make it legal hoping that this change will bring about a safer campus atmosphere. Having more guns on campus seems to me like it would do nothing but make campuses across America even more dangerous than they are now but I could definitely be wrong. For those who are in favor of this movement or if you are just curious to find out exactly what this event plans to accomplish stop by the student center this Thursday. More information on the group Students for Concealed Carry on Campus can be found at concealedcampus.org and they can be reached at Illinois.SCCC@gmail.com. The DePaul conservative alliance has a website at depaulca.org and they can be contacted through email at contact@depaulca.org.

Student Activist Union

2009-02-09T13:29:00.000-08:00

On February 6^th in the Student Center Atrium there was a dance sponsored by the Activist Student Union. The dance was accompanied by a live DJ, food, and refreshments. The event started at 6:00 and went until 8:00. When I arrived at the event they were still setting up because they were running a little behind schedule. The dance actually started at 6:30 when the DJ had set up his equipment. When the event officially began students periodically stopped by to listen to music and get a few dances in. I noticed that there was not that many people at the dance besides those who had organized the event and this was most likely due to the fact that it was a surprisingly nice night and student shad decided to spend their Friday night else where.

The dance ended out being enjoyable because it was right in the middle of the student center and people where constantly stopping by and talking with one another. Hopefully there will be an event similar to this dance for the students sake especially freshman who need help meeting new people. If you are interested in joining or simply participating in the DePaul’s Student Activist Union they can be reached through email at depaulasu@googlegroups.com.

Wellness Fair

2009-02-04T15:47:00.000-08:00

On Thursday, January 29^th from 11:00 – 2:00 p.m. in room 120 of DePaul’s Student Center there was a Wellness Fair to educate students and staff on how to live a long healthy life. When I arrived I was greeted at the door and my name was entered in a raffle that would have been held at the end of the fair. I walked to the first booth I saw and I was greeted by Ashley Nicole who is a DePaul student. She was running the Physical Wellness booth. She showed me manuals on physical health that stressed a healthy diet and regular exercise like we have been told by our gym teachers in grade school and high school.

There were six components of wellness that the fair highlighted and they were environmental, emotional, intellectual, spiritual, social, and physical wellness. It seems that overall wellness would be important to students that have to deal with school, work, and family all at the same time. So if you are looking to get in better shape or you might want to participate in an organization that benefits environmental causes DePaul has events that are geared toward these needs.

Student Leadership Institute Workshop

2009-01-27T20:49:00.000-08:00

On January 27, 2009 at 6-8 p.m. in DePaul’s Lincoln Park student center room 314B, the Student Leadership Institute (SLI) hosted an interactive workshop entitled, “Strategic Planning and Personal Goal Setting.” The guest speaker was Sandesh Bilgi, who is a former Assistant Director in Student Affairs at DePaul University. Bilgi has worked with professional athletes and companies to help with teambuilding and motivation.

The workshop was similar to the last SLI event that I covered. The audience was composed of DePaul Students looking for useful information. The students are also looking to complete two hours of a workshop, after a certain amount of workshop hours have been completed these students can obtain their leadership certificate which looks great on job and internship applications. Bilgi used a slideshow to supplement his workshop. Bilgi had students focus on setting realistic goals that can be reached and also talked about procrastinating which was a popular topic among students.

The SLI are hosting there next interactive workshop entitled, “Global perspectives on Leadership” on Wednesday, February 4th from 5:30-8:30 p.m. in the Loop Campus’s DePaul Center room 11013.

DePaul Students for Entrepreneurs

2009-01-26T21:30:00.001-08:00

This is a photo of Casey Clark. Casey is a General Manager for a business called College Pro. The DePaul Students for Entrepreneurs hosted a presentation for Casey to tell students interested in being Entrepreneurs how College Pro could help them in developing necessary skills needed to become a successful entrepreneur. Becca Berkenstadt is the president of DePaul Students for Entrepreneurs. She organized the event and was in attendance while Casey gave his presentation.

Upon arrival I was welcomed immediately and I told both Casey and Becca why I was attending their event and they were more than happy to let me listen, snap a few photos, and participate in the presentation. The presentation Casey gave was extremely interactive. Rather than just listen to someone talk Casey involved all those in attendance and actually asked everyone what their name, year, major, and interest in entrepreneurship was before the presentation started. College Pro is a painting company that offers vital experience in marketing, business management, and in basic entrepreneurial skills. The DePaul Students for Entrepreneurs group can be contacted through email at s4edepaul@yahoo.com and College Pro has an internet site at collegepro.com.

Global Aid---(Multimedia Assignment # 1)

2009-01-25T16:46:00.000-08:00

This is a photo of Ranald Sylla, a DePaul Student who was participating in an event put together by the DePaul Humanities Centers on Friday, January 23^rd. The event was held to raise awareness for human rights in response to recent tragedies such as the Gaza and Israel conflict. The event was held in the Student Center Atrium at 12:00-3:00p.m.

Ranald was using her booth to ask students and staff members to donate any school items that they may have in order to help fund and provide for schools in Africa. While I was at the booth she instructed me to sign a mailing list that would provide me with all of the donation locations and days that these locations would be taking donations. When I receive this information I will make an update to this Blog with the correct info.

This is a photo of Samantha Kaminski and Andrew Olsen. Samantha and Andrew are both students at DePaul and their booth had two main focuses. They wanted to both raise awareness and discussion on the current fighting in Gaza, and they had a petition that would be sent to Senator Hillary Clinton in order to shut down the S.O.A. The S.O.A. which stands for School of America’s, which is a group that trains Latin American military officers through the United States Army. The S.O.A. has been protested by many civil rights activists and Samantha and Andrew are only two of them

This is a photo of Frannie Boehnlein (left) and Daviree Velazquez (right) who is the president of UNICEF’s Chicago Chapter. Frannie and Daviree were representing UNICEF’s first and only Chicago chapter. UNICEF stands for the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, which helps bring aid to children who are in need across the world.

Daviree showed me one of their flyers that was advertising their upcoming event at DePaul. The event is on Wednesday, January 28, 2009 from 6:00-7:00 in Munroe Hall Rooms 114 & 115. This events purpose is to introduce UNICEF to other DePaul students and staff and to show how it can benefit DePaul and the world. The upcoming event has a Facebook group and the URL for the event is http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=38970611877 . If you have any questions they can be reached at unicef.depaul@gmail.com or Deviree Velazquez can be contacted at dvelazq1@students.depaul.edu .

Barack Obama Inauguration Poetry

2009-01-20T19:47:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday January 20, 2009 the DePaul Humanities Center hosted a poetry reading in commemoration of President Barack Obama’s inauguration. The poetry reading was held in room 314 in DePaul’s Student Center.

Upon arrival I grabbed a huge amount of the free food that was offered to everyone. I was then greeted by a student at the entrance and I was handed a book of poems entitled, A writers’ Congress: Chicago Poets on Barack Obama’s Inauguration. This book of poems was the material used throughout the reading. Most of the poets that were within this poetry collection were at the reading themselves and recited their own poems for those in attendance. The poems spoke of hope, change, adversity, and optimism which were all ideals used throughout the Obama campaign. There was also a camera man in the middle of the room representing CAN TV which would be broadcasting the poetry reading.

I had watched the inauguration earlier in the day and I can say that the people who were at the poetry reading were deeply inspired by the achievements of President Obama. Everyone had a smile on their faces from ear to ear as if they themselves had just been inaugurated. It was easy to see that Obama was more than just the first African-American President to those in attendance by rather someone that would lead us out of difficult times.

With so many horrible things are happening in the world today it was refreshing to be in a room with people who were filled with optimism. If anyone would like to hear the reading in its entirety it can be found at http://www.chicagopublicradio.org/program_amp.aspx.

The Office and 30 Rock

2009-01-15T14:17:00.000-08:00

Today, January 15^th, there will be an event in the DePaul Student Center starting at 8:00 p.m. At this event DePaul students have organized a viewing of the TV shows, The Office and 30 Rock on NBC. Personally The Office is one of my favorite shows so this event is right up my alley and anything with Tracey Morgan or Steve Carell is sure to make anyone laugh. There will be free food and a raffle plus it is in the Student Center so if you don’t like the free food they offer you can always grab something from the cafeteria.

This event gives students especially freshman and transfer students the chance to get to know some fellow students by helping them network with others within the university. Free food, free entertainment, and a raffle should be enough to get the student bodies attention. So, if you have become depressed due to the fact that it gets dark at 4 in the afternoon and it is colder than Alaska, walk over to the warm and comfortable DePaul Student Center and get to know some other DePaul students while you have a good time laughing.

DePaul Geographical Society

2009-01-14T20:55:00.000-08:00

On Saturday January 10th in the Schmitt Academic Center room 154, I attended an event that was organized by the DePaul Geographical Society. The event was called, “Poetry, Politics and Possibilities- A Scottish Journey.” The key note speaker was Dr. Euan Hague who was himself born and raised in Edinburgh, Scotland. The event was organized to commemorate the 250th anniversary of Scotland’s national poet Robert Burns which is on January 25th.

Dr.Euan Hague discussed political, economical, and social aspects of Scottish life. A main talking point for Dr. Hague was the relationship that Scotland has with England and their struggles to become independent and to ultimately become a completely separate from the UK. Along with these points Dr. Hague talked about the various Scottish traditions that families have kept alive through the ears such as Tartanry which is the wearing of the plaid Kilts. Dr.Hague also showed the various ways that figures in Scottish history have affected literature. For example, the novel, “Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” was based on Edinburgh’s city councilor Deacon William Brodie of the 1780’s, who led a split personality and robbed and killed at night. Even the myth of the Loch Ness Monster was jokingly discussed during the presentation.

This event definitely peaked my interest in Scottish history to say the least. The DePaul Geographical Society is having an upcoming event that is opened to the public on Saturday, February 7, 2009, at 1:30 p.m. in the Schmitt Academic Center room 154. The event is entitled, “Land and Identity—Struggle for Power on the Zimbabwean Plateau.” The DePaul Geographical Society can be reached by phone at (773)-325-7871 for further information.

Student Leadership Institute (SLI)

2009-01-13T17:15:00.000-08:00

On Monday January 12th 2009 in room 314B of DePaul’s Student Center the Student Leadership Institute (SLI) held an interactive workshop on successfully requesting letters of recommendation. The speaker throughout the workshop was Vicki P. Klopsch, Assistant Director of Alumni Sharing Knowledge. There was an informative slide show that was covered by Vicki as well as interactive exercises that helped those in attendance get to know one another.

The main focus of the workshop was to learn some tips and tricks on how to successfully get a letter of recommendation. This should be of great knowledge to students who are looking for a job and need that extra edge or a student who is looking to attain an internship. After leaving the workshop I had felt more than educated on how to properly get a letter of recommendation. So for all those who who find this subject interesting you can email the Student Leadership Institute at sli@depaul.edu or call (773) 325-4658.