Navigating My First Year at an HBCU

By: Kevin Pernell, Digital Content Creator/ Analyst

Entering my first year at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University in the Fall of 2023 was quite the challenge. However, I took it on by improving my habits and learning what I needed to be successful. Explore a glimpse into my journey!  

Navigating Campus

After taking the 2-and-a-half-hour drive to Greensboro, North Carolina, from my hometown, I was excited to move into my dorm room. For my decor, I brought all of the obituaries of loved ones that I have lost and hung them up on my wall just as a reminder that I have people who had high expectations of me. 

The day after I moved in on campus, I took it upon myself to familiarize myself with the buildings I did not tour during my college visit and also during new student orientation. Although I did not understand which buildings were for which department, I read the signs. I also walked my schedule to ensure that I timed out how long it would take me to go from class to class to be sure I was not late. Then, when the semester started, my Freshman 101 class taught me more about navigating the campus. My professor gave us many resources, such as apps and flyers, to let us know how to find out about campus events. 

Some of my favorite spots on campus during my first year were the student center and library. The student center was enjoyable because it was a good place to meet new people and socialize. The library is where I went when I needed time to myself to just focus on my studies. 

During this year, my favorite class was English because I had a good relationship with my teacher; she was very understanding and dedicated. Lastly, I enjoyed going to events on campus, such as the organization fair and the talent shows.

Improving My Study Habits 

Throughout high school, studying diligently was something that I did not do as much as I should have, but when I entered college, those habits changed. Due to complications with my Math class and Business Technology class, I had to determine study habits that worked for me. However, a crucial factor that prevented me from studying was the setting I was in. In my dorm room, I had difficulty focusing on studying because of loud noises. After time, I learned that going to the library at night offered me the quiet time I needed to retain information.  

Discovering My Major

Initially, I chose Business Information Technology as my major because I intended to work in the data analytics industry. However, I knew deep down that this career choice wasn’t where my heart wanted to be and that I only wanted to be in it for the money. I took Math 103 during my first semester, and as time progressed, I noticed that math would be one of my struggles, and it continued into my classes during the second semester as well. After discussing these challenges with my mentor, she suggested that I change my major to something that I am more passionate about. 

Over the summer, I thought more about my career and my interests. I’ve always loved sports. I attended many sporting events growing up, was a student-athlete in high school, and always enjoyed watching games such as football and basketball with my friends. Watching sports also makes me excited and eager to learn more about the sport. Therefore, in the fall of 2024, I changed my major to Journalism and Mass Communications with a focus in Mass Media Production in hopes of pursuing a career in sports journalism! 

Getting Involved and Moving Forward 

As I reflect back on last year, I think about how I wasn’t as involved as I should have been.  But so far in my sophomore year, I have joined more clubs such as Men On The Move and Lewis Gives to volunteer in the Greensboro community. I have volunteered at elementary schools and nursing homes for Bingo night. Joining clubs has also helped me to make new friends because I am more social while volunteering. Getting more involved on campus is something that I am glad I made the decision to do, and I am looking forward to making more memories during my time at NCAT. 


How to Prepare for Classes Over the Summer

By: Mikayla Clapp, Public Affairs Writer/Editor

Whether you are a recent high school graduate about to start your college journey or a second-year PhD student, using your summer break to prepare for the upcoming school year can help you both succeed in your coursework and feel more confident in your academic skills as you start a new semester. 

Practice Your Writing Skills

It can be very easy to switch off our brains entirely during the summer, but it is important to continue exercising our creative and critical thinking processes to not lose them entirely. Therefore, practicing your writing skills over the summer can make the transition back to coursework and academic writing much smoother come the start of the semester. Taking time to write does not have to be laborious or dull. It can be as fun and easy as setting aside 10-15 minutes a day to journal or respond to interesting writing prompts such as these! A daily practice such as this will ensure that you continue to exercise and build upon the writing skills you’ve developed over your academic journey.

Get Organized

Getting and staying organized is key to academic success. Summer is the perfect time to sort or discard notes and papers from previous semesters, plan out your day-to-day schedule for the upcoming semester, tidy up all of your study spaces, and sift through your digital files and messages. Doing so will ensure you start off the new semester with a clean slate, ready to absorb and take on all of the new information and tasks that will come your way. 

Establish a Self-Care Routine

It is important to stay both mentally and physically healthy to do well in your academic coursework. Summer is a great time to check in with yourself to see if your current self-care practices are meeting your needs. If not, over break is the perfect time to adjust your self-care practices and even try something new. Check out this list of 50+ self-care practices for some ideas! Getting enough sleep, movement, and nutritious foods, as well as time for engaging in activities that you enjoy, will help you feel the best that you can.

Look Ahead–Start Planning for Your Professional Life

Summer is an ideal time to evaluate your professional goals beyond academia, and to see if your current path is aligning with your future career objectives. This is also a great time to update your resume, build your resume with volunteer work or a summer internship, and create a detailed plan for how you will achieve your future career goals. 

Rest

Although putting in work to prepare for the start of a new semester can be extremely beneficial, it is also important to allow yourself time to rest over the summer. It is essential to give yourself time to rest both physically and mentally during breaks so as to avoid burnout. Spend time doing things you enjoy and relaxing with friends and family so that you will feel recharged and ready to take on a new semester come fall. 

Intentionally preparing for the start of classes over summer break will help you feel more ready to take on a new semester and will ensure that you are setting yourself up for success in all areas of your life. Use your summer break to rest, reset, and ready yourself for all that is to come in the fall. 



Perspective from a Former Writing Tutor

By Mikayla Clapp, Public Affairs Writer/Editor

Writing center work is extremely valuable to the success of students in all disciplines. As a former writing center tutor myself, I can attest to the satisfaction and enjoyment that comes with working in a writing center space. Working part-time in my university’s writing center was one of my favorite parts of my undergraduate studies, and my time as a tutor benefitted me in a multitude of ways.

Tutoring Helped Me Become a Better Writer 

One of my favorite aspects of being a writing tutor was that writing center work helped me become a better writer. As the saying goes, “The best way to test your knowledge of a subject is to try and teach it to someone else.” Writing center work required me to put this principle into action and use my personal knowledge of writing conventions to help others improve their writing. Not only was this immensely satisfying, but it also allowed me to test my own knowledge of grammar, sentence structure, literary analysis, and research and organization methods. This helped me discover areas where I could improve my personal writing, analysis, and research skills. 

Tutoring Allowed Me to Learn from Others 

In addition, being a tutor allowed me to form relationships with my peers and learn from the students I worked with. For example, during my time as a tutor, I worked closely with a nursing student on her doctoral thesis. I met with this student virtually on a weekly basis for several semesters as she wrote and refined her thesis on polypharmacy in older adults. Although I was unfamiliar with her subject matter, I was able to assist her with different elements of writing, like grammar, diction, and organization. I built a close working relationship with this student and learned from her more about how to write and report data and research. From this experience, I learned that forming relationships in my professional life proved to not only make my job more enjoyable but also to make me better at my job. 

Tutoring Prepared Me for Many Career Paths 

Lastly, my time as a tutor prepared me for a variety of career paths since I worked one-on-one with people. In my role as a tutor, I developed interpersonal and communication skills that will serve me in a variety of roles. I have considered working in fields like education, health care, law, and social services based on my experience working in a writing center. In addition, the interpersonal and communication skills I gained have helped me post-graduation, particularly in relation to communicating with potential employers and volunteer work. I currently volunteer as a literacy and reading tutor for several hours weekly. My experience working in a writing center has been invaluable to my success as a literacy tutor because I am familiar with different learning styles and teaching methods. I am thankful that my time as a writing tutor allowed me to develop transferable skills that will aid me in a variety of career paths.

I Am Grateful for My Time as a Tutor 

I will always recall my time as a writing center tutor with much fondness and appreciation. The students I worked with and my fellow tutors truly made the experience worthwhile, and I benefited in many ways from having had this role. My hope is that everyone discovers a job or career that is just as fulfilling for them as being a writing tutor was for me. 



Why Jazz Music is the Best Writing Music

By Daniel Holloway, Media and Copy Editing Intern

As an English Major and college graduate, I have written my fair share of essays 一long essays, short essays, reading analyses, journal entries一and, after a while, the process grows monotonous. I have searched for effective ways to focus on my work, but after trying them, none last more than a few days before I begin to find flaws. For example, television shows, as well as movies, have ongoing plots, characters, and visual motifs to follow that a casual watch won’t allow me to catch. This issue is most prominent with first-time viewings, as my brain simultaneously tries to learn about new characters and their stories while also thinking of what to write. Sporting events also require a high level of investment, as I always want to see which team will win and how. Upbeat genres of music such as rock, hip-hop, and pop often grow to be too melodically intense for writing. Very energetic songs or the climaxes of certain songs don’t lend themselves to the peace of mind needed to come up with an idea. However, jazz music continuously shines as the best distraction for my work. It is light and soothing while still having enough variation to keep me attentive. Another potential candidate fails in the latter criterion, but I will write more on that later.

The type of distraction one needs resides in the individual, so I will refrain from calling television a completely invalid aid in focusing. However, writing is a visual medium in itself, so I do not see the need to overload my visual palette while still trying to listen for what is being said or, worse yet, further stretch my ocular capacity by reading the subtitles. Conversely, music needs only the ears to be effective.

Jazz music, or at least the best kind to write to, typically has a consistent drum pattern and an accompanying bassline paired with one or more solos.  Piano, saxophone, trumpet, and even drum solos are among the many instruments whose solos help to make jazz songs gradual without being overwhelming.  A great example of such progressions is arguably the greatest and most popular jazz album of all time, Miles Davis’ Kind of Blue.  My favorite track, “Blue in Green,” features two of the greatest jazzers of all time, Davis and John Coltrane, taking turns on the trumpet and saxophone, respectively, soloing on the bass and drums.  The piano work of Bill Evans underscores, then intercedes the wind sections, moving the track along beautifully.  Works like these make writing a joy, as I always find my words flowing just as naturally as the playing of Davis’ band.

Another key element of jazz’s fit for writing is just that一words一or, rather, its lack thereof.  Most other genres of music have words, which, especially in the case of more lyrically inclined genres like rap or some pop, impede my ability to form diction of my own.  While expressing myself isn’t impossible, why allow the chance of hindrance when artists like Herbie Hancock, Thelonious Monk, and Bobbi Humphrey exist?

Any modern piece about auditory distractions would be remiss not to mention the current juggernaut of the topic, which is lofi hip-hop.  It is a worthy adversary to jazz.  It is easy on the ears, is very rhythmic, and many beats even use jazz songs for samples.  I have two concessions, though, that keep the genre from being the best to write to.  For one, the most popular channels that stream lofi hip-hop are often live, meaning that writers are stuck with whatever happens to play as they write.  Admittedly, this is a minor complaint, as one could create their own playlist on Youtube.  My major gripe with lofi is that the beats are much more repetitive than jazz music.  As I’ve mentioned before, though the drumming in jazz can sometimes be very simple, the playing works in tandem with the solos and other instrumentation to make the constant stream of creativity that lofi hip-hop merely borrows in parts.

With a perfect combination of creativity, easy listening, and rhythm, all without being a multi-sensical disturbance, jazz music stands above all other contenders as the best complementary medium while writing.  If you are wondering which records best serve this purpose, here are 5 albums I recommend for any writer looking for something to help them along:

●      Floating Points, Pharoah Sanders, & London Symphony Orchestra - Promises

●      John Coltrane - My Favorite Things

●      Herbie Hancock - Fat Albert Rotunda

●      Wes Montgomery - A Day in the Life

●      Thelonius Monk - Underground

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