The Confluence | April 22nd | Spring

Confluence YOUR OFFICIAL COLLEGE MAGAZINE

The

06

From Cook to English Major:

A not so success story.

April 23rd, 2019

It’s the Chief - Editorial Our journey here at CNC is soon coming to the end of a chapter. The 2018-2019 year is ending, and those of you who have completed the essays, presentations and exams will hopefully have gained positive memories about the last year. I am fortunate to have gotten to know many of you, and if you are leaving, I sincerely wish you luck.

It is very easy to get wrapped up in the small things when you’re continually pushing yourself forward. This is especially true when you’re near the end of a semester. Every snag on your journey can feel like it’s a mountain instead of a pebble. These pressures can make it seem like everything is out to get you, and it’s essential to realize to yourself that you have made it. While our journey to this point may not have been as clean as we would have liked it to be, you can at least tell yourself that you have made it this far.

Going forward, The Confluence will still be developed and distributed by Myself and the CNC Students’ Union. Unfortunately for me, Paige Riding has spread her wings and is looking to move on to do greater things down south. I would like to formally wish her well and say that she has contributed a lot to what The Confluence is today. Wjhile it’s sad to see her go, there are more exciting times to be had. We have given a prominent student here at the College an opportunity to show her stuff to the world. Raegan is a student who was recommended to me in high regard, and I have to agree with their thoughts. I am excited to see what she does under the Confluence banner.

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On a positive note, there are some really cool changes that will be coming in regards to The Confluence. One big thing that will be happening is our move to have a more substantial online presence. This doesn’t mean we’re not going to print copies for you to pick up anymore; instead, it means that anything that is published in the issue and potentially more will be hosted on the soon-to-be-revamped CNCSU website. You will see these changes begin sometime in May, as I will be doing a lot of work to get The Confluence to be known as one of Prince George’s staple magazines. This is my effort to get the quality submissions from our students out to the greater public and gives myself and potentially others a broader stage to inform you all.

This is an exciting opportunity, and I want to thank the Students’ Union for assisting me in developing this soon to be a more comprehensive platform for our students here at the College of New Caledonia.

- Damon

Cheers!

Damon Robinson Editor-in-Chief, The Confluence

Hey Dudes- Editorial

Raegan Cote Interim News Editor

Hello, fellow CNC students! My name is Raegan, and I’m pretty new to this. I ask for your patience with me as I become moulded into the Student Union, but so far, so good! As intimidated as I am, I can’t express how excited I am to begin this journey. I get to write with you all through intersession, as well as going into the fall and spring semester if all goes well! So feel free to say hi, I like to think I’m pretty friendly.

My history with CNC goes way back to 2017. I completed my Level One Pro Cook Certificate, with dreams of becoming a famous Chef and restaurant owner—that is until I worked in a kitchen. It turns out I am not so cut-out for the chef life, but hey, I can butcher a cow and make a mean eggs benny, so it wasn’t a total loss.

So now I’m back here to take University Transfer courses. I just completed my first year, and boy, did I ever learn a lot. From failed assignments, to perfect scores, the college has brought me some high highs and low lows. I am terrified for next year, and patiently awaiting the results of my Calculus exam.

Here’s hoping I never have to look at derivatives again!

Anyways, thanks for reading my very first blurb. Can’t wait for the next!

Confluence Staff and Contributors

Harman Dandiwal Owner of Organizer, CNCSU

Chintan Gohil Intern, CNCSU

Karm Shah Photographer, Cover Artist

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The

The Confluence is produced biweekly at the CNCSU office on CNC’s Prince George campus

by Damon Robinson and Paige Riding.

Submissions, inqueries and requests can be made to editor@cncsu.ca, in person at the CNCSU office room 1-303, or mailed to “The Confluence c/o CNCSU 3330-22nd Ave. Prince George, BC. V2N 1P8”

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All submissions are welcome, the authors of edited works used in the confluence receive a $20 cheque upon publication.

Advertisement rates are available upon request.

The Confluence

JANUARY 14th, 2018

11 - Article - From Cook to english major I’ll openly admit, my class attendance is complete garbage. The first semester was rough, the second semester I might as well have dropped off the face of the earth. Dragging my butt to a one-hour lecture, three days a week, was seemingly the closest thing to hell that I knew. Okay, that’s an exaggeration.

Sort of. I know I’m not alone in this, though. I see you, person in the back of the class, I know you don’t know what’s going on. I bet you haven’t even unwrapped your textbook. I bet you didn’t know that we had a midterm today.

It’s okay though, neither did I. We can fail in solidarity.

11 - PRESS RELEASE - OER GETS MORE FUNDING Students are applauding the BC government’s announced funding infusion for the development of open education resources (OERs). The $3.26 million in additional funding for BC campus will enable the agency to create and enhance open resources such as textbooks, online assignments, and practice exams that will be available free for students and instructors at BC post-secondary institutions.

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11 - Poetry - Lights and Serenity

Confluence The

From Cook to English Major: A Not So Success Story.

by Raegan Cote

06 THECONFLUENCE

I’ll

openly

is

make it on time for a 7am start. Monday- Friday, add that to

complete garbage. The first semester was rough, the second

working 30 hours a week at a restaurant, exercising, and still

semester I might as well have dropped off the face of the earth.

somehow, I managed to have the most rambunctious social

Dragging my butt to a one-hour lecture, three days a week, was

life I had had since high school. My attendance was nearly

seemingly the closest thing to hell that I knew. Okay, that’s an

flawless, and I didn’t even drink that much coffee. How did I

exaggeration. Sort of. I know I’m not alone in this, though.

do it, you ask? Am I a superhuman? Perhaps. But there may be

I see you, person in the back of the class, I know you don’t

a more the logical answer to things.

know what’s going on. I bet you haven’t even unwrapped your

textbook. I bet you didn’t know that we had a midterm today.

will make (or break) your grades in this college. Word of

It’s okay though, neither did I. We can fail in solidarity.

advice, do not rely on Moodle. Professor’s love giving away

I wasn’t always like this, you know. I once had

secret details during that cannot be found beyond the

perfect attendance. I once didn’t depend on caffeine like

confines of the classroom. Sometimes Moodle is not available

it was the only source of pleasure. I once had morals about

at all, which can work, but often leaves students with poor

showing up late, or at all for that matter. In high school, I might’ve

attendance hanging. Sometimes I think I’d be better off taking

been what one would call a “nerd.” I like being liked by my

online courses.

teachers. It’s this sense of pride that no one else can hand to

me. A teacher’s pet, maybe. A straight-A student?

students and their bad grades, but that’s not quite what I’m

Definitely.

getting at. This has become a more personal mystery for

This

Can-Do

admit,

my

attitude

class

attendance

transcended

I have learned the hard way that attendance is what

I know this sounds like I am beginning to defend

throughout

me. I am attempting to get to the bottom of how I managed

my trades program I had taken a couple years after high

to go from super-human, to stressed-ridden, perpetually

school graduation. When I reminisce about my days in the

exhausted, broke student with the simple switch of programs.

Professional Cook program, I think about waking up at the

crack of dawn, rarely having time to squeeze in a shower, and

cooking program if I wasn’t there, people definitely noticed. In

speeding my little Kia all the way down foothills, just to barely

a class of twenty-four, if one cook didn’t show up, things fell

My first theory starts with the fact that during the

HOT TOPICS

apart. Each successful day depended on the previous day being

four hours of sleep to twelve hours of sleep and switch nightly.

successful. Skipping out was surely not an option, because it

Do you know what that can do to your body? The answer is

was not only myself that I would be disappointing, it would be

horrible, horrible things. My drive to do anything besides curl

twenty-three other people. I have quite the guilty conscience,

up into a blanket and watch Netflix has never been this high.

and somehow it didn’t matter how hard it was to get up in the

morning, it was harder to let my classmates and Chef’s down.

regarding my lectures. Despite all the negativity, the UT

Not to mention the sound of the Chef’s screaming throughout

program has taught me so much more than just how to write

the first hour of the morning “Where’s Raegan?!” playing in my

an APA paper. I never take this wonderful college for granted,

head every time I missed a day. In the UT program, it is quite

it just makes me want to cry sometimes, that’s all. To sum up,

the opposite. I do not have the weight of guilt if I miss a week

I have a couple words of advice.

of lectures because I’m only screwing over myself. Plus, I know

it’s likely the professor won’t notice. This isn’t high school, and

If you make it to 75% of your lectures, you got this in the bag.

they won’t call home to my mom. Both a blessing and a curse.

Intersession kids, listen to this even more carefully. You might

have to skip a couple beach days, and it’s going to hurt, but it’s

To the students: show up to class, for Pete’s sakes.

procrastination. The amount of homework and studying

for the best.

that was required for my trades program was significantly

less than that of UT. With the insane amount of reading and

show interest in them. I understand this isn’t high school, so

studying that is required from a student, it quite literally is

babying us is out of the question. On the contrary, this also is

never-ending. If I can’t see the end of studying, it leaves me not

not a University. We are very blessed in this College of New

wanting to even begin. It is an undefeatable task that ultimate-

Caledonia with our small class sizes. There is wiggle room. The

ly seems pointless, and doomed. The take-home tasks required

students here are not inmates, and you have the privilege of

of me while in the trades program were very simple, very

learning from them too.

straightforward, very achievable. Each day I left the kitchen,

I felt accomplished; each day I leave a lecture, I feel defeated.

and at the end. Instead of spending the first two weeks of each

My third and final theory merely is just the fact I have

semester drinking and sleeping in, perhaps organize your time

absolutely no routine in place for myself. I have classes at 8am,

more wisely. Once you fall behind, it’s a long way to get back

and I have classes that un until 9:30pm. I range between getting

up. Don’t let that happen, girl, please don’t.

To the teachers: learn your students’ names,

To myself: study at the beginning, and in the middle,

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My second theory comes from the ability of

I know I haven’t taken a very optimistic view

STUDENTS APPLAUD OPEN EDUCATION RESOURCE FUNDING VIA THE BCFS PRESS RELEASE: Students are applauding the BC government’s announced funding infusion for the development of open education resources (OERs). The $3.26 million in additional funding for BCcampus will enable the agency to create and enhance open resources such as textbooks, online assignments, and practice exams that will be available free for students and instructors at BC post-secondary institutions.

In 2012 the BC government tasked its agency BCcampus with creating the Open Textbook Project with $2 million in funding for the initiative. Since then, OERs have saved students more than $9 million by creating free and openly accessible textbook options.

The BC Federation of Students has advocated for the creation and use of OERs for three years with its Open Textbooks Now! campaign. Most of the ad“These days it’s common to pay $200 to $300 per vocacy work has focused on students raising awaretextbook – but it doesn’t have to be that way. This ness on campus and working with faculty to adopt infusion of funding will lead directly to an increase OERs in their classes; provincially the BCFS has in the availability of high quality and free course called for an infusion of funding to further expand materials for students of all backgrounds – creat- availability, particularly in under-resourced areas ing a level playing field for everyone to succeed.” such as trades.

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– Aran Armutlu, BCFS Chairperson The cost of textbooks and course materials has long been a financial challenge for students: between 2002 and 2012 textbook prices rose by 82%. These costs have a real impact on student success: 65% of students report opting to not purchase an assigned textbook; 49% report taking fewer courses to reduce the cost; and 27% report that they have dropped a course because of the cost of the textbook.

“Students are excited that this government has listened to their concerns about textbook prices and is taking action. This investment of $3.26 million will launch the open education initiative forward leaps and bounds and will save students millions of dollars over just a few years.”

– Phoebe Lo Patigdas, BCFS Secretary-Treasurer

www.wearebcstudents.ca

MAY 2019

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Change Is Around e Corner.

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Brooke Sinclaire

Lights and Serenity Christmas lights strung along the walls They cast a glow upon your skin They fade behind The serenity Of your slumber How can a man look so beautiful?

A busy mind

Always churning

Always whirling

Running from the gloom.

Has come to standstill.

Has come to transparency.

Gaby Sandhu

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And as the silence fills within my ears, Tiny, warm fireflies dance upon my heart.

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