Welcome to October, the season of pumpkins, presidential debates, and potentially predatory clowns. For Penn State Learning, October brings Parents & Families Weekend events, a plethora of exam reviews, and a pleasant climate in 220 Boucke. According to astrohealing.com, "October looks quieter than September in that there are no eclipses and no planets changing direction." So THAT's a relief. It looks quieter for PSL, too, with September's scramble behind us and the holiday break still too far away to feel real. It's a time to settle in and do the work. You can break the tedium with a pasta dinner for THON, a movie about hate, or an advertisement for the Squatty Potty that features unicorns pooping rainbow soft-serve (details below).
Caption Contest!Send captions to [email protected] by November 1. Prizes possible. Winner announced in November issue.
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AccomplishmentsLiam Neigh just wants to sing. A senior French tutor and IST & French major, Liam is a member of the co-ed Penn State a capella group The Coda Conduct. The group released an EP called “Out of the Dark” on Spotify and Apple Music earlier this year. Liam is in the middle of the back row; his arm is around the guy in shades.
Christie Lui, writing tutor and junior World Languages Education/French major, was hired for an internship as the editor of The Dangling Modifier, a national newsletter written by and for peer writing tutors. Got tutoring stories, poems, comic strips, or works of genre-defying brilliance? Contact Christie at [email protected]. The pictures above are of receptionist Sally Ngo when she studied abroad in Japan this summer as part of her minor in Japanese. She writes, "My childhood basically consisted of pokemon, sailor moon, and the Hayao Miyazaki films, so I thought it would be fun to visit the country that created those shows. I also love making cute packed lunches (called kyaraben short for character bentos), and me being obsessed with all things cute, Japan was the perfect option." We hope Sally notices the cuteness at the end of this newsletter.
Russian tutor Natalia Nigay, a sophomore Aerospace Engineering major, was recently accepted into the Presidential Leadership Academy at Penn State. In addition, she received a FLAS (Foreign Language & Area Studies) fellowship, which provides a generous (as in REALLY generous) stipend and the opportunity to engage in "formal, full-time modern language and area studies coursework at Penn State, including the international aspects of professional or other fields of study." If you'd like to know more about FLAS or PLA, contact Natalia at [email protected]. |
Gettin' Down with Dr. Jon Olson
Dr. Jon Olson, Scholar in Residence for Writing & Communication at Penn State Learning, knows a lot about writing. He earned his Ph.D in Rhetoric, Linguistics and Literature from the University of Southern California and has made his life work "the study of how people learn to read and write and what that means to them." At Penn State Learning, he teaches ENGL 250, the 3-credit course required of all potential writing tutors. Jon also mentors tutors, teaches for the English department, directs the Graduate Writing Center, and is faculty advisor to the Public Writing Initiative. His classes have one goal: "to connect activities in the classroom to practices of citizenship outside the classroom that will sustain a social ecology within a deliberative democracy."
To his students and peers, Jon is known for his excellent ties, his long, rambling, funny emails, and his genuine interest in everyone he meets. He knows writing, but he also knows music, pens, and good bathroom postures. Read on!
What do you love about (or about working with, if that's easier) writing tutors?
I love the individuality within community of Penn State Learning peer tutors, not just writing tutors. They all dance differently with their tutees, but everyone dances to the same groove. They all feel the surge when the bass drops.
What's P-funk got to do with it?
P-Funk reminds P-tutors to do serious work but not take themselves too seriously. Have fun(k). That's fun multiplied by knowledge. Not everyone knows that Dr. George Clinton's sci-fi cosmology is about writing tutoring: Afronaut writing tutors, led by Starchild (Dr. R. Neill Johnson), land the Mothership (Penn State Learning) on University Park in order to funkatize unfunky writers who haven't felt the fun(k) of dancing with discourse.
When I've introduced this extended metaphor of tutoring to the Peer Tutoring in Writing class (ENGL 250) the past few years, I've said the Starchild character is our Penn State Learning Director. Come to think of it, the Dr. Funkenstein character might be the better fit.
What are you usually thinking about when you wake up in the morning?
I wake up singing about solving problems: "So wide you can't get around it ... / So high you can't get over it ... / Here's a chance to dance our way out of our constrictions ... / With the groove our only guide / We shall all be moved / One nation under a groove / Gettin' down just for the funk of it / One nation and we're on the move / Nothin' can stop us now" (George Clinton, Garry Shider, Walter Morrison).
You are somewhat of a pen connoisseur. Describe the ideal pen.
The ideal pen is small enough to fit in a little pocket and is flat above the clip (no push button) so a pocket flap can button. It doubles as a P-Funk bop gun that shoots at the feet of sluggish prose so sentences will do the dance of discourse.
If you could change anything about yourself, what would it be?
I wish I weren't such a stereotypically anal-retentive English professor who shudders at mess in writing. I compensate by celebrating process, nonconformity, and scatological humor. Sometimes I wonder if I over-compensate. Surely not.
How many songs do you have on your phone? What's at the top of your playlist right now?
I don't know how to find the count, but I have De La Soul's and the Anonymous Nobody on my Apple watch. One of my favorite songs is their funky homage to P-Funk. I contributed to De La Soul's Kickstarter campaign for their first studio album in twelve years. As I've listened to it while driving to and from campus and while reading tutor evaluations Friday afternoons, I've been trying to figure out what they're going for with the title. Maybe it's a call for antihero individuality that loves the nobody and finds solidarity with the anonymous. What do you think?
Do you want to take a moment to endorse the Squatty Potty?
Happiness in life is a matter of knowing the angles. The anorectal angle is particularly important. "Healthy colon: happy life." [editor's note: **THIS IS THE POOPING UNICORN VIDEO**] Thank you for asking.
You have three grandchildren so far. Tell us a funny grand-kid story.
They had given me a Squatty Potty for Father's Day, and they had another good idea for Grandma's birthday last week. I should give her the Swoosh Your Tush bidet by Squatty Potty, a toilet seat attachment to help Americans catch up with people from other countries in the cleanliness department: "Get civilized. Get clean." [editor's note: THIS IS OKAY BUT NOT AS GOOD AS THE POOPING UNICORN VIDEO] They said I should install it, put a birthday bow on the seat, and give G-ma that happy surprise when she came home the night of her birthday after having spent two weeks lecturing in Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. (She's an English professor on a research sabbatical.) They were sure she'd like a squirt of cold water from the right angle.
They were wrong. Go figure. I had to uninstall it after G-ma went to bed.
The youngest grand-kid has a birthday this month. Can you guess what I sent her?
Dr. Jon Olson, Scholar in Residence for Writing & Communication at Penn State Learning, knows a lot about writing. He earned his Ph.D in Rhetoric, Linguistics and Literature from the University of Southern California and has made his life work "the study of how people learn to read and write and what that means to them." At Penn State Learning, he teaches ENGL 250, the 3-credit course required of all potential writing tutors. Jon also mentors tutors, teaches for the English department, directs the Graduate Writing Center, and is faculty advisor to the Public Writing Initiative. His classes have one goal: "to connect activities in the classroom to practices of citizenship outside the classroom that will sustain a social ecology within a deliberative democracy."
To his students and peers, Jon is known for his excellent ties, his long, rambling, funny emails, and his genuine interest in everyone he meets. He knows writing, but he also knows music, pens, and good bathroom postures. Read on!
What do you love about (or about working with, if that's easier) writing tutors?
I love the individuality within community of Penn State Learning peer tutors, not just writing tutors. They all dance differently with their tutees, but everyone dances to the same groove. They all feel the surge when the bass drops.
What's P-funk got to do with it?
P-Funk reminds P-tutors to do serious work but not take themselves too seriously. Have fun(k). That's fun multiplied by knowledge. Not everyone knows that Dr. George Clinton's sci-fi cosmology is about writing tutoring: Afronaut writing tutors, led by Starchild (Dr. R. Neill Johnson), land the Mothership (Penn State Learning) on University Park in order to funkatize unfunky writers who haven't felt the fun(k) of dancing with discourse.
When I've introduced this extended metaphor of tutoring to the Peer Tutoring in Writing class (ENGL 250) the past few years, I've said the Starchild character is our Penn State Learning Director. Come to think of it, the Dr. Funkenstein character might be the better fit.
What are you usually thinking about when you wake up in the morning?
I wake up singing about solving problems: "So wide you can't get around it ... / So high you can't get over it ... / Here's a chance to dance our way out of our constrictions ... / With the groove our only guide / We shall all be moved / One nation under a groove / Gettin' down just for the funk of it / One nation and we're on the move / Nothin' can stop us now" (George Clinton, Garry Shider, Walter Morrison).
You are somewhat of a pen connoisseur. Describe the ideal pen.
The ideal pen is small enough to fit in a little pocket and is flat above the clip (no push button) so a pocket flap can button. It doubles as a P-Funk bop gun that shoots at the feet of sluggish prose so sentences will do the dance of discourse.
If you could change anything about yourself, what would it be?
I wish I weren't such a stereotypically anal-retentive English professor who shudders at mess in writing. I compensate by celebrating process, nonconformity, and scatological humor. Sometimes I wonder if I over-compensate. Surely not.
How many songs do you have on your phone? What's at the top of your playlist right now?
I don't know how to find the count, but I have De La Soul's and the Anonymous Nobody on my Apple watch. One of my favorite songs is their funky homage to P-Funk. I contributed to De La Soul's Kickstarter campaign for their first studio album in twelve years. As I've listened to it while driving to and from campus and while reading tutor evaluations Friday afternoons, I've been trying to figure out what they're going for with the title. Maybe it's a call for antihero individuality that loves the nobody and finds solidarity with the anonymous. What do you think?
Do you want to take a moment to endorse the Squatty Potty?
Happiness in life is a matter of knowing the angles. The anorectal angle is particularly important. "Healthy colon: happy life." [editor's note: **THIS IS THE POOPING UNICORN VIDEO**] Thank you for asking.
You have three grandchildren so far. Tell us a funny grand-kid story.
They had given me a Squatty Potty for Father's Day, and they had another good idea for Grandma's birthday last week. I should give her the Swoosh Your Tush bidet by Squatty Potty, a toilet seat attachment to help Americans catch up with people from other countries in the cleanliness department: "Get civilized. Get clean." [editor's note: THIS IS OKAY BUT NOT AS GOOD AS THE POOPING UNICORN VIDEO] They said I should install it, put a birthday bow on the seat, and give G-ma that happy surprise when she came home the night of her birthday after having spent two weeks lecturing in Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. (She's an English professor on a research sabbatical.) They were sure she'd like a squirt of cold water from the right angle.
They were wrong. Go figure. I had to uninstall it after G-ma went to bed.
The youngest grand-kid has a birthday this month. Can you guess what I sent her?
October Birthdays
Genevieve Stafford, Writing Tutor, October 7
You can tell from this picture that Gen has a serious relationship with music. She writes, "I played flute and sang for many years. Though now I focus more on listening to music; everything from Korean R&B to Panic! At The Disco to Kendrick Lamar." Gen is junior majoring in Psychology and Spanish; she plans to attend graduate school for Counseling Psychology.
You can tell from this picture that Gen has a serious relationship with music. She writes, "I played flute and sang for many years. Though now I focus more on listening to music; everything from Korean R&B to Panic! At The Disco to Kendrick Lamar." Gen is junior majoring in Psychology and Spanish; she plans to attend graduate school for Counseling Psychology.
Lyndsay Goldfarb, Writing Tutor, October 21
After graduating with her CSD and Spanish degrees in 2018, Lyndsay hopes to travel the world and find ways to help others. As if that weren't fascinating enough, Lyndsay writes, "This summer I spontaneously got my first tattoo at the Ecuadorian 'Jersey Shore,' in celebration of earning my TESOL certificate. It's a blue seashell on my lower back and it represents my feeling 'at home' at the beach."
After graduating with her CSD and Spanish degrees in 2018, Lyndsay hopes to travel the world and find ways to help others. As if that weren't fascinating enough, Lyndsay writes, "This summer I spontaneously got my first tattoo at the Ecuadorian 'Jersey Shore,' in celebration of earning my TESOL certificate. It's a blue seashell on my lower back and it represents my feeling 'at home' at the beach."
Julianna Azzizzo, Italian Tutor, October 26
Julianna is a Communication Sciences and Disorders major; after she graduates in May, she plans to attend grad school for Speech Pathology. Fun fact: Buddy Valastro Sr., Cake Boss Buddy's father, learned how to bake in her grandfather's bakery. Julianna also loves to bake: "Ever since I was little I always loved to help my grandfather make cakes and cookies and all kinds of treats for holidays and special occasions!" Julianna's the one who's helping organize the Pasta Dinner for THON (see above). She's a good person to know when you're hungry.
Julianna is a Communication Sciences and Disorders major; after she graduates in May, she plans to attend grad school for Speech Pathology. Fun fact: Buddy Valastro Sr., Cake Boss Buddy's father, learned how to bake in her grandfather's bakery. Julianna also loves to bake: "Ever since I was little I always loved to help my grandfather make cakes and cookies and all kinds of treats for holidays and special occasions!" Julianna's the one who's helping organize the Pasta Dinner for THON (see above). She's a good person to know when you're hungry.
Sally Ngo, Receptionist, October 28
Sally, a Biobehavorial Health major with minors in Japanese and Health & Human Development, traveled to Japan this summer (see "Accomplishments" above). After she graduates in May, she hopes to join the Peace Corps or another volunteer program before going to grad school for Public Health. Fun fact: "I was captain of my volleyball team in high school despite being only 5ft. :) I still play occasionally, but I just watch and admire the PSU women's volleyball team's skill and height." [Editor's note: Should we form a PSL intramural volleyball team? Anyone? Anyone?]
Sally, a Biobehavorial Health major with minors in Japanese and Health & Human Development, traveled to Japan this summer (see "Accomplishments" above). After she graduates in May, she hopes to join the Peace Corps or another volunteer program before going to grad school for Public Health. Fun fact: "I was captain of my volleyball team in high school despite being only 5ft. :) I still play occasionally, but I just watch and admire the PSU women's volleyball team's skill and height." [Editor's note: Should we form a PSL intramural volleyball team? Anyone? Anyone?]
Alexandra Jubault, Receptionist, October 30
Alexandra, a senior Psychology major with a business option, hopes to do market research after she graduates. Fun fact: she lives in a house with 10 other women. This fact inspired a google search of women-only communities, which led to this project by a journalism student at Bournemouth University: nomenallowedblog.wordpress.com/. The project "examines the relationships between women when men are taken out of the equation." Girl power!
Alexandra, a senior Psychology major with a business option, hopes to do market research after she graduates. Fun fact: she lives in a house with 10 other women. This fact inspired a google search of women-only communities, which led to this project by a journalism student at Bournemouth University: nomenallowedblog.wordpress.com/. The project "examines the relationships between women when men are taken out of the equation." Girl power!