Arts in April Blog

Last Thursday, as a part of Arts in April here at the college, Iranian-American Poet Roger Sederat came to do a reading on his poetry and a question and answer session with students and professors.

I will be the first to admit that upon hearing this is what we were doing for my 11 o'clock literature class last Thursday, I was instantly considering who I would text, what blogs I would read, and who I would try to sit next to. To most who know me and my characteristics this is par for the course. But, to shock the masses, my phone didn't leave my pocket till the very end when I had to check to see what time it was. I'm sure your curious why it didn't move and I'll tell you: Mr. Sederat, while everyone was finding seats, was mentioning how Iranians are playing in the NBA. Now to some, this might sound like a small thing. But, it already proved to me Mr. Sederat understood college students and what they are interested in. As Mr. Sederat read his poetry, he referenced his musical background and how he found a big influence in rap music. To everyone's shock, he was quite familiar with Lil' Wayne, and even threw out this Notorious B.I.G.: "Livin' life without fear / Puttin' 5 karats in my baby girl's ears" which open a lot of eyes, proving that his knowledge of rap went beyond one major artist. I for one, have a strong belief that some college professors do not understand the students they are teaching. Mr. Sederat proved this isn't always true.

His poetry was also very good. Although hard to relate to, it was very interesting to learn he, as a passport holding dual citizen of the US and Iran, he has been advised not to return to Iran for fear of government reaction to his poems (which I am told points to several Iranian government officials).

Once again, the college did a great job of bringing in a speaker that challenged and brightened the horizons of the students.

TALENT SHOW: APRIL 2ND ...wait --what!? where?!

Hello everyone,
I've recently been interested in the talent show--- and I know it's going to be a huge success!
I've been at 2 talent show auditions, and all I've seen were great! Unfortunately, not many people showed up... and I personally think not many people knew about it.

When going to classes and walking around the school in my Presidential Scholar shirt, people were asking me what club I was from, and of course, I told them the Presidential Scholars. Then, they asked me what I was doing in the program, and I told them that currently, ---- the talent show auditions. Most reactions were the same, "what? there's a talent show?".

I know the students and faculty advertise and work hard to try and let everyone know of these things, but something is just not working. I would think, that a college of thousands would get more of a response with this type of event. Just in my speech class alone, some students spoke about talents/activities, and hobbies they participate in or do. One student loved to breakdance, and even showed the class some of his skills, while another student's musical talents were impressive considering he has recorded a CD in a professional recording studio, and is considered somewhat of a celebrity in certain parts of South America. Neat, huh?

Honestly, sometimes I'm in a rush, and do not check the Pipeline bulletins, and do not have time to check out signs around the buildings.
What about the Presidential Scholars? Our group could maybe make announcements in classes before class? What do you all think about this? Would students like to be aware about certain major events by word of mouth rather than leaving it up to finding it out?
Sorry if I seem negative, but it's sort of sad that not a lot of people know about certain things. hmmmm...

-Kristen