Sunday, September 18, 2011 THE DALLAS POST PAGE 11 PSU film lecture series is set for » Theaters Movies 4 By SARAH HITE shite@mydallaspost.com The Penn State University Wilkes-Barre campus will pre- sent its annual film lecture se- ries beginning in October at R/C Theaters Movies 14 in Wilkes-Barre for the first time since the program began nearly 10 years ago. This year’s film series, titled “Celebrating Five Decades of Thrillers,” will feature the films “The Sixth Sense,” “The Exor- cist,” “Rosemary’s Baby,” “The Changeling (1984),” and “The Ghost & Mrs. Muir” beginning on October 6. Participants can register through the college’s Continuing Education depart- ment, and the five-week event is open to the general public. Bill Bachman, instructor of communications at Penn State Wilkes-Barre, will conduct the movie and lecture program, which he hopes will change the way viewers watch films. “I hope people come out and ... become wiser consumers of mo- lies and begin to ask questions and come up with some new an- swers,” he said. Bachman said the weekly class consists of a pre- and post- screening discussion which will help participants look for points of conversation within the mo- vies to expand upon afterwards. The movies are not just typi- cal seasonal scares. Bachman called some of them love stories, some compassionate stories and others entertaining on a deeper level. “I think ‘The Exorcist’ is a re- ally challenging piece of film be- cause it deals with demonic pos- session and has some pretty ma- ture themes associated with it, but I think it’s a unique, almost one-of-a-kind film from back in the 70s,” said Bachman. This isn’t the first time the campus has offered this kind of class. The program started as a cul- tural offering on campus, with films being screened in the audi- torium in the Science Center. Over time, the college has been able to offer the course for one credit for students and a contin- uing education credit for the general public. MORE INFORMATION Contact the Penn State Wilkes- Barre campus Continuing Educa- tion department at 675-9243 for more information. Registration forms are also available at R/C Theaters Movies 14 in Wilkes- Barre but must be returned to the Continuing Education depart- ment on the campus in Lehman Township. Registration costs $40 for all five sessions, which will be held on Thursdays at 7 p.m. The class does feature a syl- labus and Bachman said, be- sides active participation in the discussions, an essay will be part of the course requirements. Choosing the films is a pains- taking process, said Bachman, explaining he aims to choose five of “the best of the best” to present and further discuss. He tries to provide an overarching theme that might reflect current events or the time of year. “Two years ago, when we were going to be invaded by a pandemic...I did a whole series on diseases,” he said. “I opened that series up with a general practitioner from the Back Mountain to give us just a gener- al background (on this issue).” When the program first start- ed, Bachman credited its suc- cess to the fact that the film se- ries reflected local interests, such as movies that featured ac- tors who hail from the area or dealt with subject matter that re- lated to the region’s history. “This film series thrived on trying to find films that had a lo- cal tie-in,” he said. “I canremem- ber the very first movie we ever did in this, and it wasn’t that it was a local attachment based in the historic sense, but there was a local attachment and this area loved it to death because it repli- cated a lifestyle here, and that was ‘How Green Was My Val- ley.” “How Green Was My Valley,” released in 1941, is about the hardships workers and residents faced in a Welsh mining town. As luck would have it, this year’s series fits in well with that local theme, too. Scranton na- tive Jason Miller played the role of Father Damien Karras in “The Exorcist.” @:CHOOL BRIEFS Lock-In Committee sells hot dogs The Dallas High School Lock-In Committee will sell hot dogs, drinks and baked goods at today’s Dallas Har- vest Festival. Cruise and gift basket raffle tickets will also be for available for purchase. All proceeds help fund the all-night party held for seniors after graduation. Donations of baked goods would be appre- ciated. PTSO sells gift cards The Dallas High School PTSO is selling $50 & $100 gift cards for Thomas’ & Weis Markets. Proceeds from the sale of the gift cards will help fund the 2012 Lock In held after graduation. Gift cards will be available at the Dallas Harvest Festival or by calling Ann Manganello at 675-9516. Dallas Soccer Club sets craft show The 28th Annual Fall Craft : | Show sponsored by the Dallas Boys Soccer Club will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sun- day, Oct. 2 at the Dallas Mid- dle School, 2000 Conyngham Ave, Dallas. A variety of craft vendors, homemade baked goods and lunch will be available. Admis- sion is free. Festival will benefit local ski club Matt DeAngelis and Dave Margary will conduct the first-ever Lehman Autumn Festival from 1 to 6 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 15 at the Lake- Lehman High School grounds to benefit a local ski club. Admission and parking are free. There will be live enter- tainment, food, vendors, yard sale marketers and more. Anyone interested in the yard sale, vendor space or sponsorship may contact 262- 6275. MU schedules three open house programs Misericordia University is offering an open house pro- grams on the Back Mountain campus to give students and their parents an opportunity to spend a day touring the 124- acre campus and to meet with students, faculty, coaches and admissions and financial aid counselors. The open house will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sat- urday, and Oct. 29. Regis- tration will begin all three days at 9 a.m. in the Anderson Sports and Health Center at the north gate of campus. The open house schedule includes registration, refresh- ments, campus tours, a faculty session and lunch and meet- ings with representatives of student services, athletics and financial aid. For more information, con- tact the Misericordia Uni- versity Admissions Office at 675-4449. Brooke North, of Denver; Katrina Kindig, of Mechanicsburg; Giuliana Mucaro, of Howell, N.J.; and Robert Romagnolo, of Cresco, repair areas of the Back Mountain Traildamaged by a summer rainstorm during Misericordia University's inaugural Orientation Day of Ser- vice. he id Dylan Reedy, of Falls, a business major at MU, uses a weedwacker a Be ax to clear high grass at the Dallas Senior Center in Dallas Borough. Student orientation leaders, Kayla Attig, left, of Myerstown, and Dan Zuckerman, of Plainsville, Conn., plant one of 450 seedlings at Frances Slocum State Park. Inaugural Orientation Day held at Misericordia Program allows freshman students to learn how to give back to the community. The inaugural Misericordia University Orientation Day of Service on Saturday, Aug. 27 sought to create a sense of com- munity among the 369 members of the incoming freshman class by having them give back to the communities, people and non- profit organizations in the region. “It was an incredible opportu- nity for our students to get to know the area they now call home,” says Kristen Mitchell Sa- muels, M.S.W., community ou- treach coordinator at Misericor- dia University, who coordinated the service sites. “I was so im- pressed by the feedback. The stu- dents were incredibly positive and open to the experiences and many have come through the of- fice asking about how they can participate in more service activ- ities.” Overall, more than 500 mem- bers of the campus community - freshmen and transfer students, orientation leaders, staff and fac- ulty - fanned out across eight ser- vice locations in the neighboring communities around Misericor- dia University to offer their time and talent. Teams repaired flood-dam- aged sections of the Back Moun- tain Trail, planted trees and erect- ed fence posts at Blue Chip Farms, prepared Camp Orchard Hill for the upcoming season, conducted general maintenance work and planted 450 seedlings at Frances Slocum State Park, prepared a greenhouse for anoth- er planting season at The Lands at Hillside Farms, befriended res- idents at Mercy Center, became wheelchair transports at the Meadows Nursing Center and conducted detailed landscaping work at the Dallas Senior Center. “Without the volunteers, it would have been difficult to have this work done,” said Sherlene Long, director of the Dallas Se- nior Center, as she watched MU students clean out debris-filled gutters, cut grass and use a power washer to clean the building’s vi- nyl siding. “I love to see the younger people volunteer like this. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.” Chelsea Mixon ’12, of Bethle- hem, served as a student orienta- tion leader at Blue Chip Farms, an animal refuge. Fifty-eight freshman students, orientation leaders and Peer Advocates chipped in to ensure that Margie Bart’s labor of love continues to thrive for the benefit of old or un- wanted animals. “Being a senior social work ma- jor, I have had numerous experi- ences volunteering and working with people of all ages,” Mixon acknowledges. “I had a new and unique opportunity to volunteer with several freshman students. All of the volunteers quickly jumped in to complete various tasks around the farm. “One of the things that touched me the most was talking to Mar- gie Bart, the founder of Blue Chip Farms. Her story is truly inspira- tional. She has such a big heart and love for animals. She told us how she dedicated her life to pro- vide a safe and peaceful place where animals can be happy and loved. Thank God for people like Margie. Anyone who loves ani- mals should check out this place. An hour of their time can go such a long way.” Between light showers and overcast skies, Jenny Borton, of Harding, pulled weeds and clear- ed brush around the landscape of the Dallas Senior Center in Dal- las Borough. “I think the service opportuni- ty is good,” she offered. “I enjoy it because I like helping people.” “I think it’s (the day of service) a great idea,” added Victoria Adeyinka, of Maplewood, N.J., who assisted Borton in her land- scaping activities. “We have a chance to help people out and give back to the community. It’s always good when you can do that.” Inside a historic greenhouse, 37 Misericordia volunteers loos- ened and scooped up aged dirt that has been used over the years for flowers and vegetables at The Lands at Hillside Farms. With the soil removed, the volunteers hauled in fresh dirt for fresh plantings. “I've done a lot of community service,” acknowledges Jenna Reel, a freshman from Lancaster, “but this is different than any- thing I've ever done. It’s a good experience. We get to know more of the area and get to know more people in our class. It helps to stay involved a lot because you are going to have to know the community and because a lot of students would probably stop with community service.” Misericordia University’s Ori- entation Day of Service was part of a slate of activities for a four- day orientation weekend. It be- gan with freshman move-in day and the annual Convocation cere- mony, which welcomed incom- ing students to campus and marked the beginning of the new academic year. Officials visit alumni President Thomas P. Leary and other officials from Luzerne County Community College re- cently visited the offices of Back Mountain Dental to meet with LCCC graduates who work there and to discuss the impor- tant role they play in the com- munity. The LCCC Alumni As- sociation presented each of the graduates with a gift. From left, first row, are Bonnie Brennan Lauer ‘87, Shavertown, director, alumni relations, LCCC; Beth Patterson ‘01, Sweet Valley; Do- reen Ackers ‘85, White Haven; and Janine Kravitz ‘02, Laflin. Second row, Thomas P. Leary, Kingston, president, LCCC; James C. DeFinnis, DMD; Leigh Hoover ‘87, Benton; and Terri Dempsey, Dallas.
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