A Warm Welcome to Delta Sigma Pi: Brotherhood Panel

I walked slowly up to my friend, clearly in the middle of a conversation with someone else. We had agreed to go to some fraternity meeting before. As I walked toward him, the person he was talking with turned to me, almost in sync with my approach. She enthusiastically advised me join Delta Sigma Pi, I explained how I was actually on my way there, and after a short conversation, I headed off with my friend. To be frank, I wasn’t the least bit interested in actually joining. I had went to another frat’s meeting a few days prior and I was more keen to join that one, however I had forgotten to get a picture, which I needed for the blog; this was just a means to that end. As I waited for meeting to begin I ran into Mina and Irene from my block, and in the midst of  our waiting a member came to speak to Mina, mentioning they had met from a previous event. Her friendly personality seemed rather inviting.

Walking inside, we again waited for everything to set up, and yet another member approached me and introduced herself and told me a little about the fraternity. I felt welcomed, though I had not met any of them previously nor gone to there other events, they showed an interest in getting around to meeting the people attending. It was strange, but nice; I had been accustomed to generally being responsible for initiating conversations in most situations- either that or sit in silence, yet that wasn’t the case here.

The particular event was about the more experienced members of the fraternity talking about there internships and moreover their most favorable escapades in the fraternity. Interesting in its own right, I noticed not only did only they seem to have the same prestigious internships as the other frat, if not more, but also came off more like a family as well.

 

Delta Sigma Pi

My name is Irene Kerpelev and I am currently a freshman undergraduate student at Baruch college. Many of the older students and teachers started off the semester by saying how important clubs were in Baruch and how different the students’ college experiences would be if they became part of at least one. A commuter school by nature, Baruch makes it simple to attend classes without creating bonds. However, with clubs friendships and community participation flourishes.
A friend of mine, also a freshman student, told me about a business fraternity, Delta Sigma Pi (DSP). I decided to attend a meeting and see if I liked it. The meeting involved free food (always a bonus!) and a panel of older students discussing their successful internships. They talked about choosing their majors, applying for internships, and how much help they had received from DSP. Each member had their own unique stories, experiences, and advice. Well fed and attentive, the potential new members sat in silence and took in their words seriously. Many of the things the older members talked about felt very relatable to me, and certainly to most, if not all, of the audience.
I really felt like I understood Baruch and its students more after the meeting, and every member was extremely nice and approachable. I remember the names of several of the older members and I felt the bonds and strength of the beliefs they shared. After the meeting, I understood what older students meant when they said a club would make Baruch a completely different experience. I can say with certainty that I will attend more meetings and become a full fledged member of DSP, because I am truly interested in the club and the people who are part of it.

A New Twist on an Old Classic

My First Writing WorkshopI had my first writing workshop ever yesterday! Even though it was fairly foreign to me I actually enjoyed it. When I saw what I signed up for I thought, “this wont be anything new”. I attended the “Compare and Contrast Workshop. We compared different ads and I learned that comparing and contrasting was more than meets the eye. We discussed gender roles, female empowerment, and objectification of the female body just by observing three images. I enjoyed the topics we discussed and the various comparison techniques we learned. We learned how to use a Venn diagram three different ways. we learned how to a symmetrical and asymmetrical Venn diagram to compare and contrast the similarities and difference in the advertisements. This overall will help me in my first year at Baruch because I have to write a few comparative papers this semester. The techniques that I learned will actually make my writing process go by quicker and more efficiently. This will also help me in the future when I have to draw comparisons between three or more things such as three pieces of writing, images, or the combination of the two.

what seemed like a boring and simple workshop at first turned into something more deep and meaningful. Reviewing how to write a proper thesis statement was also one of the main elements of this workshop. I gained a few more valuable resources for proper thesis writing and added then to my repertoire. I enjoyed this workshop and hope to attend more in the future that spark my interests like this one did. Thanks Baruch for providing this valuable resource. I’m used to figuring things out as I go, but this really cut the work time in half of the assignment that I have due in a few weeks. As usual Baruch Academic help  is there right when I need it.

Beta Alpha Psi

Beta Alpha Psi Icebreaker’s was a very entertaining workshop. It is a business fraternity and I know they all put emphasis in connections and brotherhood. I was unsure if I wanted to join, and went solely for the interest of seeing what it was like. I went with a couple of friends just to see what the environment is like.

There were basically several bonding getting to know people games. The first one was sharing our embarrassing stories, fun facts, and dreams and goals with each other. We had to get a skittle and based on its color we would answer a questions. Second there was a egg breaking challenge, where we had to create inventions that would stop an egg from breaking after being dropped 10 feet. We used bubble wrap and cotton balls, as did everyone and it still didn’t work. Lastly, we all wrote fun facts about ourselves on a paper, and tossed it around the room. The goal was to find whose it belonged to

You need to attend a specific amount of meetings to join. I will see if I am still interested but I really did enjoy this workshop. It showed me a new side to what Baruch has to offer in terms of social life.

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Find Your Place

One of the most stressed things during the college application process is diversity. Every campus tour, every college fair, every scholarship program, the first thing a representative would say is “We have a diverse campus community. “. After spending a semester taking a course at Columbia university I looked around the room to realize what “diverse” meant. Being the only student in a classroom of skin tone other than causation the feeling was different. I didn’t feel like an outcast but during conversations they would ridicule things about my culture. The common perception that all South Asians are associated as being indian . The amazing fact that a Muslim man can be married Four times, and everything from the way my beard was lined to why do I have a beard. “Is it religious?” ( No I just look like a kid without facial hair)  “ What happens when you decide to shave?” ( Nothing what type of question is that). None of that ever bothered me but the feeling of being under someone’s finger being questioned didn’t feel appropriate.

 

I had some bad perception that college life at baruch would be the same until last spring. Before entering baruch my bestfriend from highschool Auchal invited me to come to a BSA ( Bengali Student Association) event. With all the dancing loud music and friendly smiles the environment felt hospitable and I enjoyed being apart of the bigger bearcat community.   Going to the event In an awkward way I felt at home. Some of the people around me had similar backgrounds while others weren’t and it was completely fine. It showed me that Baruch offered diversity. With this exposure and ability to be comfortable around everyone in the club I sought this as a place for me.  My Freshmen seminar mentor told us that we were supposed to join a club this year. With the warm and open invitations from my friend and her colleagues I felt comfortable joining this past Tuesday. Not only to be around older baruch students who have advice and offer support to us younger students but because they also offer many ways to help not only my community but the international community. BSA does fundraising events to support different causes. From care packages to syrian refugees who have recently moved to New York to  students in bangladesh who can’t afford books for school because they are orphans. I joined among various other freshmen to become a bigger part of the baruch community and hopefully find my place in this institution.This image requires alt text, but the alt text is currently blank. Either add alt text or mark the image as decorative.

Suicide Prevention gives you balls, when you actually need ice cream.

It was a mere 36 hours before my blog posting was due for Freshman Seminar and I still hadn’t gone to an event. Luckily my friend, Dung, saved me. She was going to a suicide prevention event and I tagged along. Once we arrived I was bombarded with all types of statistics about suicide in college. One man said that “8 percent of students in college have thought seriously about suicide.” It was at that very moment I realized I was part of the lucky 92%. Another woman told me about how she is trying to break down the stigma associated with mental health. She told me that the stigma is that we look down upon people that have mental health issues, but when someone has a physical issue most people are understanding. She told me her goal was to get people to think of mental health in the same way we think about physical health now, and to understand that there is nothing wrong or weak about asking for someone’s help. She then offered me a red stress ball, which I politely declined. I also didn’t understand how that small squishy ball would prevent someone from committing suicide, since a majority of suicide victims commit suicide as a result of depression rather than stress or anger. I think a pint of ice cream would be more helpful at that point then a cheap red ball made in china. However, I learned a lot from the experience and  now have a new outlook on suicide. I will be now be keeping my eyes peeled for those 8% that struggle, and hand them some ice cream, when and if I find them.

 

 

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BAP: Brotherhood, Community Service, and Professionalism

On Thursday September 7th Victor and I went to the second GIM of Beta Alpha Psi. We first heard about this professional fraternity from a promoter on the second floor handing out flyers. The GIM went well and I began to understand that this was not a typical fraternity but a lifelong “brotherhood” that would bring me valuable insight and connections. Their three principals: brotherhood, community service, and professionalism struck a chord with me. I have always enjoyed connecting with people from many different regions and cultures and BAP being one of the most diverse fraternities made it a more appealing brotherhood to join. Their focus on community service was also something that I did not expect from a fraternity, even less so from a business fraternity but this set of values is what is needed to be a happy individual. I remember some of the most gratifying moments in my life were when I would tutor students struggling in high school and then see their grades shoot up a week later. The last but not least focus of BAP is professionalism, members who join the fraternity as Freshman are obligated to go through a RUSH program. This entails an extensive study of what one must be fluent in for success in the business world. This includes working in Excel, learning mannerisms needed for a successful interview, and general knowledge and connections that open up new horizons. I knew this was the right fraternity for me as it allowed the perfect balance between having fun and professional work.

Suicide Prevention

Hi! My name is Noor and I’m a freshman here at Baruch. I recently visited a workshop that was for suicide prevention. They had this event on the 2nd floor to advocate suicide prevention. Last Sunday was National Suicide Prevention Day, so the people were trying to educate students and explain to them that there is help if you need it. This years theme for NSP day was “Take a minute, Change a life”. Basically what they are trying to say is that anyone can help. Even if you’re a super busy person, you can still help someone out. You don’t need to pay a ton of money or physically lose something to help a suicidal person. Sometimes all people need is a few uplifting words to give them hope. Sometimes they just need someone to listen to them so they don’t feel alone. Some people don’t realize how much of an issue it is because they have never been in that place or they never knew someone that was or lost them because of suicide. Sadly, suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in The United States for all ages. Around 105 people die EVERYDAY in America from this. In the event they talked about Baruch’s counseling center. They really help people out in general. You don’t have to be suicidal to go there. They help if you are feeling depressed or angry or an bad feeling. You can even just go in to vent if you need it. They are a great place to know about while in college and I strongly advice people to go there whenever they need it. Statistics show that of the people that seek some sort of therapy for depression, eighty to ninety percent of them get cured. If you can at least get a person that’s depressed to seek some sort of help from therapy, they most likely succeed from it and it will help them in some sort of way. So remember, spare a minute or two whenever you find the chance. You can save a live.

Blog Post #1 Attending a Heritage Month Event. (Student Life)

Something that should be known about me is how much I love to travel. With traveling comes being introduced to new culture, making me super excited to know that Baruch had heritage months. Heritage months mean being able to travel while staying close to home. With that being said, Iwas beyond excited to attend Baruch’s “Latinx Heritage Month.” The opening ceremonies took place last week, on Thursday, September 7th; which I knew would be taking place based off the newsletters sent out weekly as a courtesy of Baruch Student Life. The opening ceremonies included a wide array of activities, which surprisingly were able to fit in the second floor area.

Let’s begin with my favorite things, THE ENERGY! It was honestly lit, in simple common slang. The energy of the people regardless of if you’re apart of the Latin community or not was high-spirited and lively. Everyone came out to have a good time, and it was welcome to everyone. There was multiple tables of the various cultural clubs that were present with great people who open themselves to make everyone feel welcome. Like the picture of me below, with the promoter of the “Ecuadorian Club” whose mottos were centered around the concepts of “never [stopping] exploring.” The Ecuadorian club also showcased their culture through bringing dishes that are familiar to them, such as Empanadas, and their version of rice and beans. There was also free “Mamitas” ice cream, which I got in the flavor of coconut cream– only further verifying the emphasized point of free campus food. Throughout all this there was a D.J who did not fail to let himself be heard as the whole building felt the music of Latinx’s opening ceremonies. There was a dance off, which I did not take part in but had the joy of watching to the popular song “Bodak Yellow” by Cardi B, however the one including Spanish lyrics. Which if you follow her on Instagram have been heard before. Along with this there was only a photo booth!! Who doesn’t love a photo booth ?? Ultimately, this was the perfect timing and very much needed as a moral booster in light of discontinuation of former President Obama’s DACA program by current President Trump (president CACA). Baruch won’t be robbed of their dreamers, wherever they are from and these heritage months continue to emphasize Baruch as a school of great diversity, I look forward to what each month has offer.

Trip to Museum of Modern Art

For my first blog post, I went to the Museum of Modern Art, or MOMA, and went through some of the exhibits. The first exhibit I went through was based on Frank Lloyd Wright and it was titled, “Frank Lloyd Wright at 150: Unpacking the Archive.” This exhibit focused on many of his achievements as an architect and designer, with many pieces on his most famous works including the Guggenheim Museum and other works of his from across the country. Also, there where were pieces of his from the 1890’s to the 1950’s and they included drawings of his works as well as models of the buildings that were later made. Another exhibit I saw was “Robert Rauschenberg: Among Friends.” This exhibit focused on an open dialogue among people and on an openness of ideas. It also went into great detail with dance and many of the exhibits pieces were in the form of video and of dances made by groups. Both these exhibits relate to my time at Baruch College by relating the ideas of freedom of expression and an openness in sharing ideas and thoughts. Also, these exhibits have helped me at my first semester at Baruch by helping to reinforce ideas on society that I have learned in anthropology and also in English. These ideas are about how society works and runs as well as how interconnected the world is. Besides this, the museum also displayed some of the ideas I am learning about in my art class in a more realistic manner. Many of the ideas that my teacher has taught us including about lines and materials used for paintings and drawings were displayed there and it helped me visualize what she has been teaching us even more. Overall, the museum was great to go through and I am very happy I went there.