
The one thing I am looking forward to once the quarantine is over is being able to step outside and at least interact with people face-to-face.
Jake Baloyi
Program Director
![]() My favorite memory from this semester, although it was a short one, was the Rockland Candy Factory. I enjoyed watching everyone enjoy what was being offered, it was like a child's dream come true for many students, it was a good night. The one thing I am looking forward to once the quarantine is over is being able to step outside and at least interact with people face-to-face. Jake Baloyi Program Director
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Being a senior has been a very bittersweet time. I am looking forward to graduating, finding a job, getting my own apartment, not having homework, and many other things. However, being at college has been such a fun experience for me that I will definitely never forget. Coming into college I was super shy and was worried about leaving my home, my family, and my routine. Going to Stevenson turned out to be so amazing! I met my best friends, my boyfriend, made new connections, gained professional experiences, and so many other great things!
One experience that has helped me grow during these four years has been MAP. I joined MAP in my first year as a volunteer and I loved being in the club. From that, I decided to jump out of my comfort zone and apply for the executive board. I was a programmer for two years where I got to create and execute so many amazing events like Food Truck Rally, Carnival, Homecoming Bash. My last year, I changed positions to be the Social Media and Marketing Chair. Being in MAP for four years has helped my become who I am today and provided me with so many professional experiences that will be able to help me in the future. Unfortunately, as I will now be graduating, my time in MAP is coming to an end. I will always thank MAP as being a great experience that helped me open up and become a leader. I hope MAP can continue their success and provide more experiences like mine to many other people as well. Jess Lewis Social Media and Marketing Chair Saying good bye is never easy so I won't.
I choose not to say goodbye. I choose to relish in memories and say hello to new opportunity. I've gone through a lot and grew a lot during my experience with MAP and I wouldn't trade it for the world. Four years ago I was super upset about missing MAP meetings because of marching band Fridays at 3. One day I saw an email for volunteers for Wet N Wild field day who were needed at 12 and the event starts at 2. Now you're probably wondering did I really 1. risk being screamed at 2. run down the hill to a football field soaking wet just to ride mechanical shark and get my face out there as a volunteer. Yes. Yes I did. From that moment I knew where my priorities were. As I continued to march in my soaking wet clothes nearly hitting a teammate with my flag. I couldn't wait until spring Semester to join MAP officially. My next MAP memory was the talent show. It was my first time being on stage after my theater program in high-school was cut short due to the death of my teacher. That performance helped me through the hurt of being back on stage and gave me the opportunity to act again after deciding to switch majors. Through this event I fell more in love with the variety of events offered and knew I wanted to help make it happen. I remember my roommates Jess and Yina going to the Swinter party and I was like dang thats so dope wish I could go 😩 I was ready to go to map socials so spring semester could not come soon enough. During the last weeks of fall somehow we actually got to leave band practice early so I rushed to see if I could make it to the map meeting. As I arrived they were wrapping up talking about eboard applications. I stayed after to talk the membership Chair Taylor and Programmer Amirah and explained to them how I had a background in event planning and was hoping to continue through MAP but should I even apply considering i couldn't be involved this semester. They assured me that if you try the worse you could happen is a no and you can always try again which Amirah did. I was too scared of rejection so I didn't. I said ill do it next year and prove to them based on how great ill be spring semester. Spring semester My best friend Covir and I volunteered for Midnight Breakfast and it was a blast. We handed out flyers and were thought we looked so cool in our MAP shirts. The MAP president Kris was super positive hyping us up and was impressed and even asked us if we wanted to volunteer again for the Moonlight Movie night collab. We did and it was great 👍 After a few events where the eboard got to see my energy and passion for helping with events; they were in need of more programmers and I was personally asked to apply and I assured them I was already planning on it! 😊 Sometimes its not what you wish for but what you work for! Ecstatic to start my new position on map eboard I was even more surprised when I was given the Stevenson Community award at the Map Banquet for helping promote MAP events and all around spreading positivity. I was so happy ! Sophomore year came around and as a new programmer I knew I had to shine since I was given a second chance I didn't want to let anyone down. During my first year as a programmer I managed to get my events nominated by NRHH, win multiple events of the month at map events, make a ton of new friends, and implement a new event/MAP tradition for national poetry month called Laugh Cry Love. During my first year I did hit some bumps in the road I made a lot of accomplishments but also made some mistakes. Working with a new group of people, you will always run into issues but this helped me grow as in individual and to continue to push to be better no matter what other people think. Despite the late night clean ups, debates, and sugar rushes from eating one too many candies from Kathy's desk. I think my first year on the board I definitely rose to the occasion. I was able to be nominated as Outstanding Leader of the year at my first Student Activities Leadership awards. Being in MAP has taught me a variety of things from month management to how to make the most out of any situation. Junior year I continued as a programmer after applying for President after not getting the position. This didn't discourage me because after growing through everything I realized certain things have to happen in order for you to get to where you need to be. Just like before with me not being able to join due to band. After another year of Success events I ran for President of MAP in order to make positive changes and bring fun and diverse events that the Stevenson student body had been asking for. I was able to plan Wet N Wild field day this year and it was a blast! We got to plan headphone disco and I got to teach our new programmers some tips and tricks to be better planners. As President it has been extremely difficult but I have never been one to shy away from a challenge. I've done what I could and I would to thank the people who have motivated me to continue with MAP. My mustang family. Every time a student personally messages me saying thank you for telling me to come or thank you for organizing i could shed a tear. When I hear about someone meeting their best friend at an event or Wet n Wild being their favorite SU memory it truly warms my heart. I am so grateful to be apart of something bigger than myself and that I got the opportunity to make a difference on my campus. I will never let go of the memories. Our Karaoke nights, dance battles, picking paintball bullets out of my hair, calming down Alyssa after freaking out about her events, cleaning the popcorn machine, and of course being knocked down on every single obstacle course 🙃. This experience has changed me for the better. I am thankful for our Advisor Jenna for all her guidance and being with me through every step. I'm going to miss popping my head into her office and sitting on the couch as we cheer through every check mark on our to do list. I'm going to miss lunch with Kathy and her stories of her grand kids and dog Maddy. I'm gonna miss Britney's smile and readiness to help when I ask for her help or opinion on random subjects. Although this semester as President has not been the easiest going virtual, we have done what we could and brought smiles to our Mustang's faces and that's the motivation for it all. Thank you Stevenson for providing me with the experience of a lifetime. For now and forever Gooooo MAP! Like I said before I choose to say Hello! And I will definitely always check back in with my Mappies and am here if they need anything! Since I've been accepted into the Stevenson Master's Program I wont be too far at all! I'm ready to say hello to new opportunities and to these cherished memories🌐🗺 Happy to have #GotontheMAP 🌐🗺 Krystal Alexis President As an E-board member in the past year, I’ve had many amazing experiences. All have helped me grow as a leader and as an individual. Although I have one semester left at Stevenson, I’ve decided not to continue as a Program Director so I can focus on my internship and Professional Portfolio class in the fall. Here are a few of my favorite MAP memories from 2019-2020.
In November, I went to NACA, a conference for college students to find activities and performers to bring back to campus. It was great getting to know Mappies who I didn’t know well before, and learning more about them. Having influence over which companies, singers, and comedians MAP would bring to Stevenson was fun, too. I think my favorite part was the showcases, where the performers would have ten minutes each to show their talents. The biggest event I planned for the fall semester was Frost Fest. I had a blast choosing which crafts to include, decorating upstairs Rockland, and advertising in creative ways. I also designed the poster, t-shirts, and cookie jar recipe cards. It was amazing getting to see everything come to life on the day of. All of the volunteers did a great job setting up and working during the event, and were instrumental in bringing it all together. Although there were stressful moments, planning and executing Frost Fest was a fulfilling experience that I'll remember for a long time. In January, the MAP E-board welcomed some new programmers, who I got to know better during our training. My favorite memory from that weekend is playing the ERS card game with some of the E-board members. It was a very heated and intense game, paired with plenty of laughter. It sticks out in my mind because of the strong sense of community I felt during those moments. Thank you to everyone who made my year as a Program Director so special. I truly grew as a leader, learning what I’m capable of, but also developed new friendships and strengthened existing ones. I can’t wait to enjoy the rest of MAP’s events in Fall 2020! Cassie Myers Program Director Hey, it’s Cassie Harris, one of your program directors. After a fun year of being a programmer, I decided I want to continue being with MAP next year. Sadly, it will be my last semester because I’m graduating in December. It is definitely bittersweet because there are so many pros to graduating early, but since I’m involved in so many extra curriculars, it’s sad that I only have one more semester to enjoy them. Needless to say, I’m still super excited for my final semester and here are some reasons why:
Cassie Harris Program Director Hey everyone! Here are the links to all of the museums and exhibits I talked about during our Virtual Museum Tours on Instagram. Enjoy!
Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel: http://www.museivaticani.va/content/museivaticani/en/collezioni/musei/cappella-sistina/tour-virtuale.html Guggenheim Museum: https://artsandculture.google.com/streetview/solomon-r-guggenheim-museum-interior-streetview/jAHfbv3JGM2KaQ?sv_lng=-73.95902634325634&sv_lat=40.78285751667664&sv_h=11&sv_p=0&sv_pid=MfnUmHRyOSzMtY3vtYU05g&sv_z=1.0000000000000002 Stevenson School of Design: www.stevenson.edu/graphicdesigncapstone The Met: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JydrKFwSFkE British Museum: https://blog.britishmuseum.org/how-to-explore-the-british-museum-from-home/ National Gallery of Art: https://www.nga.gov/features/degas-virtual-tour.html Cassie Myers Program Director Hi everyone! I hope you are doing well and staying safe during this time! While this is a difficult time, I have been trying to look at the positives of this situation and one of the main things I found was that I have so much more time to properly take care of myself. During college, especially as a senior, everyone is always so busy trying to find the balance between work, social life, and oneself. Usually, there is only enough time for two of those and I typically find myself prioritizing work and social life. While I willingly choose those two things, it is also important to look after personal needs and one good thing about quarantine is that I have more time to be able to practice self-care. Here is a quick list of a few self-care activities that I have been doing. What self-care activities do you enjoy?
1.Watching Netflix and YouTube – Being able to just sit watch shows that I love, or my favorite YouTubers is very relaxing and calming for me. By the way, Grey’s Anatomy is my favorite show, I highly recommend watching. 2.Taking walks – When I was at college, I only ever had time to walk to class, now I have time to actually enjoy longer walks with my dog. 3.Playing games – I have been addicted to Animal Crossing like many others I’m sure lol. 4.Exercising – Before quarantine I maybe went to the gym once a week if I was lucky. Now although the gyms are closed, I have been able to do my own at home workouts a lot more often. 5.Baking – I love baking! My grandma and I used to do that all the time when I would visit her! Jess Lewis Social Media and Marketing Chair Hello everyone, it’s Cassie Harris, one of your program directors. I’ve never been a homebody; I thrive on exploring and being outside. Being in this quarantine, trapped inside without a car to go anywhere has taught me a lot. I’ll admit that being inside all day every day is tough, and anybody should avoid being inside 24/7, if they can avoid it. I haven’t mastered the perfect routine, nor am I licensed to be giving any sort of medical advice, but here are some tips and tricks I use to make the most of quarantine.
Cassie Harris Program Director Now that museums are closed, many are offering virtual tours of their exhibitions. It’s amazing how far technology has come, which now allows us to view 360° panoramas of spaces. Virtual museum experiences are the next best thing to visiting one in person right now.
My favorite museum I’ve ever visited is The Metropolitan Museum of Art in NYC. The architecture of the building itself is beautiful, the artworks it holds are amazing, and their collection is so massive that you could never see the entire thing in one day, even if you arrived at the opening and left at closing time. Simply knowing that one building holds that much precious artwork is mind-blowing. If you want to experience a few of The Met’s open spaces, they have 360° videos on their website: https://www.metmuseum.org/art/online-features/met-360-project. Stay tuned for more virtual museum and exhibition tours, which we’ll post on our Instagram @mapatsu on Thursday, April 23rd! Cassie Myers Program Director Happy April!
It's national Poetry month and usually MAP would host our annual Laugh, Cry, Love event. We would have had a spoken word artist come to SU and perform, and later on have an open mic night. This has been one of my favorite events because we could all come together as a student body and feel all the feels. Its also a great opportunity to hear students perform and our Mustangs are Oh SO talented!!! It's a bummer we couldn't celebrate the 3rd annual LCL in person this year but that's not stopping us! MAP will be hosting an Instagram poetry open mic so that way our mustangs can still express themselves and share stories. This event will be ran by our Programmer, Cassie Harris. It's been really cool to see the event change over the years and this will definitely be the biggest change yet. Although the platform is changing, the message stays the same. As humans we are divided by separate things but we all laugh, cry, and love. Happy to be able to do so again with my mustangs no matter the distance 💓. Krystal Alexis President |
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April 2020
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