page 6
On Campus
Travis Johnson
The whistles will blow, the
ball will be tipped, and another
season of Mont Alto men’s
basketball will be underway on
November 16. The Nittany
Lions will travel to Beaver to
take on their rival Penn State
team in their season opener. If
this year follows the same trend
as seasons in the past, the
Nittany Lions are in for quite
a successful ride. Under current
head. coach and athletic
director Marty Ogle, the men’s
team has won two Campus
Commonwealth Athletic
Conference titles and has made
finals appearances in four of the
last five years.
. The men’s team will be led
by seniors Urick Lewis and
Jacquet Scott. Lewis, who is a
human development major, is
a center at 6’4". Lewis has been
.a part of the team’s past
victories including the 2002
CCAC championship. Hailing
from Philadelphia, Lewis was
named the CCAC’s defensive
player of the year for his shut-
down tactics last season. Scott
is also a human development
major and will play shooting
guard at 6’0". He is from
Pittsburgh.
Mont Alto also welcomes
back two returning
sophomores, 5’9" Luke Oyler
and 6’1" Jeff Banks. Both Oyler
and Banks are from
Chambersburg, Pennsylvania.
Assistant Coach Ed Lowry
has seen good things from some
promising freshmen new to the
roster this season: Earl Hewitt,
a point guard from
Waynesboro, Pennsylvania;
Jason Molzhan, a forward
from Red Land, Pennsylvania;
Dan Baker, another forward
from Chambersburg; and big
man 6’6" Drew Hosler from
James Buchanan. These
freshmen add solidity and
reliable depth to the team.
The men will open with
three consecutive away games,
and then return to Mont Alto
for their home opener against
Hazelton. This much
anticipated home opener will
be held on November 30 at
7pm. With success in the past,
good coaching, and a talented
roster, the men look primed to
win another championship title
this season.
Approximately 30% of the
students on campus are
considered nontraditional
students; that is, they are 24 and
over or have adult
responsibilities. The purpose of
this dialogue is to break down
any barriers between
traditional and nontraditional
students, and to provide a sense
of unity because we are all here
with the same purpose. We can
ideally learn from each other
and help each other through the
difficulties of college life.
Student A is 19, a full-time
student holding down a part-
time job, and a past participant
in the early-to-college program.
Student B is 26, a full-time
student and single mother of
one.
Student A: How does your
role as a mother affect your role
as a student?
Student B: Being a mother
inspires me to be a better
student; I am setting an
example that I want her to
follow. When I am at home, I
am a mother first. Not until she
is asleep do I resume my role
as a student.
Student A: What made you
decide to go back to school?
Student B: In the kind of
competitive job market that
exists today, it is nearly
impossible to comfortably raise
a child on the income level of
a high school graduate’s. I
didn’t want to spend the rest of
my life in customer service or
retail.
Student A: Have you found
any similar interests with
traditional students?
Student B: My priorities
differ greatly from those of a
traditional student. There's little
that we have in common
outside of the classroom. But I
love to hear about their
experiences, concerns, fears,
and thoughts. It wasn’t too
long ago that I was having
similar experiences. There’s a
lot that I can relate to with a
traditional student. We may
not have many similar interests,
but our differences definitely
make for interesting
conversation.
Student A: Now that
you're attending college, what
are your anticipated
achievements after you
graduate? :
Student B: My greatest
achievement would be to pay
back all of my student loans. I
haven't yet decided on an
occupation. Going to college
opened up many doors for me;
I want to do something that I
will enjoy — no more retail. My
first priority will be to start a
college savings plan for my
daughter so that she doesn’t
have the same financial burden.
nontraditional student, do you
ever experience peer pressure
from traditional students?
Maybe making you feel that
you shouldn’t be here?
Student B: I’ve never felt
that I shouldn't be here.
Certainly, I have felt left out.
Hopefully, this will start to
make everyone feel more
comfortable and conversation
will come a little easier.
Student B: Do you feel that
you were prepared for college
emotionally? Academically?
Student A: I was actually
enrolled in an “Early to
College” program with my
High School. I attended one
class per semester. The three
classes I attended seemed
simple enough but I realized
the work load was a lot heavier
than in High School. I feel I
was academically prepared for
college, having succeeded
in High School.
However, I didn’t realize the
time management skills needed
to succeed in College. I didn’t
realize the amount of time I
actually needed to study. High
School was a breeze, so I
thought College would be as
well. I’ve been stressing out a
lot more than in High School
with due dates and exams. I feel
prepared both emotionally and
academically; I knew College
would be a lot different than
High School
Student B: What advice can
you give parents to prepare their
child(ren) for college?
Student A: Definitely
support your child’s dream.
Progressively let them realize
the importance of studying and
working hard to achieve goals
through learned life lessons of
your own or even just in
general.
Student B: Describe your
experience as a high school
student in a college class. Do
you recommend the early to
college program?
Student A: My Women
Studies and Trigonometry class
went smoothly. I understood
everything in both classes and
interacted with students on a
normal setting. No one
particularly knew I was an
Early to College student and
didn’t have a bias towards me.
The Honors Microeconomics
class was a little different. I
never had an Economics class
before and being that it was
Honors, the pace was quite fast.
However, I pulled through all
my classes and had great
learning experiences on the
way. I do recommend the Early
to College program for its
learning experiences; it also
helps you prepare yourself for
the actual College experience.
Student B: What factors
influenced your decision to
attend college?
Student A: It was all in the
motions. Go to High School,
go to College. I really didn’t
believe I would be able to have
any better education than at
college. A vocational school,
maybe. But I knew a University
education would be better-
rounded as a whole experience.
I also knew college would