Who Is Michaela Poulard?

     Hey, my name is Michaela Poulard and I'm 18 years old. There is so much I could say about myself and who I am but I'll just give the basics. I was born on May 26, 1998 in Long Island,NY. I've never been a fan of New York ever since I was younger so I was relieved when my family decided to move to Pennsylvania. I grew up in a Haitian household and it most definitely was different compared to how my friends' parents were with them. My siblings and I were not really allowed to do many things other kids our age were doing, but today I have grown to appreciate and understand why my parents were very strict with us.  The way I was raised really has shaped me into the person that I am today and I know I'll never settle for anything less than what I want in my life.

    Deciding on a career and who I want to become has always been an ongoing decision for me till this day. At first I wanted nothing more than to become a teacher but as I entered high school, that plan started to change. In high school I started to realize how much of a social person I was and I also was just good with all people in general. I became the announcer in my school and that then gave me the idea to do something in radio or television. Being a freshman in my third semester here at Bloomsburg University, I still want to do something in media but I'm just not too sure where or how to go about it. I know in time it will all come to me but regardless of the job I want to be doing something that I love and that is reaching out to individuals and keeping them content. 

Hello, my name is Jacquie Burke and I am from Shenandoah PA. I graduated from Shenandoah Valley with a total of 72 kids in my class. In my school, high school was considered 7th through 12th grade. 7th and 8th grade I was into a lot of sports, i was a cheerleader, ran cross country, played softball and basketball. I took a break my freshman year and started playing softball again my sophomore year and then became a cheerleader my senior year. i graduated in 2015 and got accepted into Bloomsburg's summer start program which was the most stressed out I've been considering i never had homework in high school and we didn't have mid terms or finals so i didn't know how to study. I ended up passing the summer with a 3.86 and took the year off. I restarted last semester and as a new freshman!

Bio

Biography of Sam Kambesis

Hello, my name is Samuel Alexander Kambesis I was born in Chicago, IL. Where I lived for 13 years until I moved to Elizabethtown, PA. I graduated in the year 2015, but decided to take a year off and do some community college before choosing to go to Bloom in the fall of 2016. During my high school tenure I played three varsity sports baseball, basketball, and football. Also, English/writing is by far my worst subject in school! 

New Era Semi Final 2014

My life

My family has 8 members in PA which include our three dogs. I have an Airedale terrier Rose, Schnauzer Zeus and a Vistula named Maggie. Also, my family which is very close because my brother and I are 13 months apart and my sister is two years younger than me. My brothers name is Peter, my sisters Sharri, and mom/dad's name are Christ and Nichole.  

Chase George

Hi, I'm Chase. I am from Montoursville, Pennsylvania. I've lived there my entire life. I have 4 sisters and a little brother. I enjoy being with my friends, my family, and i enjoy peoples company for the most part. I also enjoy fishing, comic books, and watching movies.


Heres a picture of my favorite movie!

I listen to music a lot, heres a link to my favorite song, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s1tAYmMjLdY. This song isn't everybodys first choice but its mine.

I've learned a lot from being at Bloomsburg University and I hope to learn more. I've met a lot of great people too and I don't think I'd rather have anybody else than my new best friends to go through life with. I hope to give back to Bloomsburg as much as Bloomsburg has given me. 

Bio of Kyle Spaulding

       Hi, my name is Kyle Spaulding.  I was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pa.  I am currently enrolled as a freshman at Bloomsburg University. I recently completed my first semester, majoring in Business Administration. I graduated from Central High School in Philadelphia PA in June 2016, with a 3.85 GPA and earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree, as well as several accolades from Central High School. Every single one of my classes at Central High School were advanced as well.  Overall I have been an honor roll student most of my academic career. Upon completion of my first semester at bloomsburg, I finished with a 3.07 GPA. I participated in four varsity sports throughout my time in high school. I played football, baseball, basketball and golf.

                                                               Basketball senior year

Introduction

Hi! My name is Nicole Kompas. I am twenty years old and currently a sophomore at Bloomsburg University. I have one older brother who is 33 years old and we grew up being very close, although we have a 13 year age difference. I enjoy eating and cooking food, watching Netflix, and spending time with my friends and family. I hope to graduate with a degree in Medical Imaging in two years!

Biography

A small introduction to the life of Ashley Gorgone

Education and goals:

My name is Ashley Gorgone. I am a second semester freshman in the science and technology college. I am taking this class to be a writing consultant at the writing center. Writing is something I enjoy when I have time to edit and revise at least four times. I plan to be a neonatal nurse some day and have a beautiful full-filling life. 

Hobbies and where I am from:

I come from a family of five. I have two older siblings, one female, one male. My sister is currently 22 and my brother is 23. I grew up in six houses in 18 years. I was born in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. Out side of Johnstown is a small school district called Conemaugh Township where I graduated from. In my primary years of school I played soccer, basketball, ran track, and competed with the marching band. Out side of school I enjoyed playing tennis with my immediate family and bowling with my dad. After I graduated high school my hobbies became running and lifting at the Bloomsburg University recreation center. I also spend most of my time napping. Napping is a serious hobby of mine, because it is a coping mechanism for my highly functioning anxiety. I'm not lazy. When it comes to a large group of strangers, I become anxious and feel like I should be inside of a box. I love to socialize though. I am a waitress at Cracker Barrel and my guests seem to love how great my personality is towards others. 

Me on the left, Reagan on the right during warm ups. 

2015 video. A huge stress reliever for me is flipping tires. 

I have a six month old kitten named Mowgli. Yes, I named him after the boy from The Jungle Book. He looks like a mini bobcat and I love him to death. He loves to cuddle and play, and he is just a chill little kitten. 

Mowgli acting like he doesn't get a lot of attention. 

Bio

Austin....Ian Austin!

Hello, My name is Ian Austin Jr. I go by "Poppie" from my mother to make sure she is not calling my Dad on accident, and overtime my closet friends back home began calling me that. I am nineteen years old and I am from Abington Pennsylvania. I am the youngest of two children. My older sister is 32 years old and is an officer in the United States Air Force. Being the baby of the family so to speak, a lot of my family members spoil me then complain about how I too spoiled. I have lived in Abington for the majority of my life with the exception of living Barbados, A island in the Caribbean for my early infant years. Other than going to school full time my hobbies consists of doing anything that keeps either my brain or my body active, listening to music, and volunteer work or just helping children back home. My goal is to become a 3rd or 4th grade teacher wherever I wind up.I also enjoy talking about sports or anything for that matter whether i know about it or not, I just enjoy the Conversation with one or more than one person.

Bio

Hi my name is Leah Myers, I’m a sophomore at Bloomsburg. A little about myself, I come from a family of 9. I have 3 brothers and 5 sisters (6 girls including me) so family is very important to me. I also have two nieces and a nephew that I adore so much. I also am part of the women’s basketball team at Bloomsburg as well. Basketball and athletics is another part of my life that is important to me. I love my team they are like another family to me. I also enjoy food, shopping, and the beach.

Jared Torres - Bio

My name is Jared Torres. I am currently a second-semester freshman majoring in Marketing. I currently commute to school from home and I live only about 15 minutes away which I have my entire life. In Highschool, I played sports all year round. I wrestled, played baseball, and personally my favorite sport to play was football. My senior year we won a state championship in football and finished with an overall record or 16-0. I currently work at giant but am aspiring to quickly become the first millionaire in my family. Below is a picture of my team and I after we won the State Championship.😄

Intro

Hi! 

      My name is Abby Nocito. I am a sophomore here at Bloomsburg University. I live in South Jersey with my mom, dad, and older brother. I come from a family of sports lovers and my brother and I both play college sports. I've played lacrosse for 9 years and play here for the university. Playing a sport in college is definitely time consuming, but I wouldn't have it any other way.  I am an Early Childhood Education major with a minor is special education.   I chose education for my major because I am very passionate about kids and making a difference in peoples lives. My personality is very happy and positive so I hope to push that on children. 

       My dream job would be to teach first or second grade somewhere warm. I hope to work in a less fortunate school to really make an impact on children. I love summer, being tan, and going on vacations with my family.  Spending time with friends and family is very important to me and I am very grateful for the ones I have.  I hope to get to know you all and that this information helps you to get to know me better as well!

Mir's Biography

Hi guys! My name is Miranda Nish. I am a sophomore at Bloomsburg University looking to study Speech Pathology with a minor in Spanish. I was born in Montgomery County, PA and graduated from Hatboro-Horsham Senior High School. During my free time, I like to hang out with my friends, play soccer when I get the chance and go to the gym. I am the oldest of 5 kids and also have a house full of animals so my home life is never really boring. During the summer I love going to the beach and just enjoying the sun and sand 🌞

My friend Alyssa and I at the Tim McGraw concert in Wildwood, NJ. 

Introduction

Hello,
 My name Kyra, I am currently a sophomore in Bloomsburg University. My major is medical imaging. I was born in New Jersey and moved to Pennsylvania when I was in the fifth grade. I instantly fell in love with rural area. I was surrounded by the beautiful peacefulness of the trees and animals. The beauty of nature inspired me to pick up hobby in photography and hiking. I often go hiking with my boyfriend (it was our first date). Aside from photography and hiking I also enjoy spending time with my family. I have two brothers and a sister that I am very close with. I aspire on being a good role model for my younger siblings, and show them to always put their best foot forward and have a positive outlook in life. I am looking forward to this class!
Below is a picture I took during one of my hikes :)

Introduction

Hello!

My name is Chris Leone. I am 20 years old and I am attending Bloomsburg for the first time. Following my high school graduation I attended Pace University in New York City for one semester and made the decision to leave that school to enter the work force. After two years of working and gaining real world experience I have decided to attend this school and start on a journey toward a career of my choosing.

I am looking forward to this semester, and at this point in time I am enjoying the university as well as the surrounding area. I am living on my own in an apartment for the first time in my life which has been a great experience so far. My semester goals are to treat my classes like a full time job while balancing my life in terms of hobbies and relationships. My hobbies include baseball, hiking, fishing, working out, and gaming.

Below is a picture I took when visiting the campus late last summer.

Chris Greim's Blog

My name is Christopher Greim and I'm from West Chester Pennsylvania. I am one of four and I'm the second oldest. I was a three sport varsity athlete at Henderson High School before deciding I wanted to attend Bloomsburg University.  As of right now I am an accounting major and debating whether to switch or not. I enjoying traveling, splaying sports, and napping. I have been to many places within the US and a couple outside of it including Jamaica, Haiti, and Mexico City. Over winter break my family took a vacation to Saint Thomas Virgin Islands.

My Pocono House

My family on Vacation

Along with traveling, I enjoy taking weekend trips up to my Pocono house. There's something to do up there year round whether its swimming, hiking, atv'ing, golf cart rides, boating, tubing, water parks, skiing, sledding, and more. I like to go there to relax and hangout right by the lake.

My Bio

Kyle Butts

       Hello, my name is Kyle Butts. I am a freshman here at Bloomsburg. I am from Clarksville, MD and attended Archbishop Spalding High School in Severn, MD. In high school I played on the football, baseball, and basketball teams. I am the kicker on the football team here at Bloom. I am currently majoring in Marketing.  


       Growing up I played a variety of sports such as football, baseball, and basketball. My father Kevin, grew up in Maryland and attended Shepherd University, where he also played football as a receiver. My mother Laurie, grew up in Maryland as well. She attended Towson University and Allegheny College where she studied Dental Hygiene. My younger brother Cory who is 14, is like me as well. He plays a variety of sports such as football, wrestling, and baseball. He will attend Archbishop Spalding High School just as I did. My family has implemented the idea of nothing is greater than hardwork. As someone who is not as gifted as others, I need to work harder than most in order to get good grades. I can't wait to start this new semester and look forward to taking this class and hopefully will become a better writer!

      My Grandmother and I after the victory against Shippensburg 

My Bio

Julia Cinquanto

Hello I am Julia Cinquanto and I am a freshman here at Bloomsbrug majoring in Medical Imaging. I live in Douglassville, Pennsylvania. I have two sisters and I am the middle child. I graduated from Daniel Boone High School class of '16. In high school I played basketball and was involved with student government. I love spending time with friends and being on the beach. My family and I take a two week vacation to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina every year. I also love animals,I have two cats named Milo and Snifffles. I waitress at a Island Pizza back at home. I also am a huge fan of Big Brother. 

From the left: My oldest sister, Maria, my step dad, Tony, Me, my mom, Anne, and my youngest sister, Erika

Alexis Hoy - Intro

Hello!

My name is Alexis Hoy but you can call me Lexie. I'm a freshmen and my major is Secondary Education. Mifflin county, which is in the middle of Pennsylvania, is where I grew up. Lewistown is a small town where everyone knows everyone. There isn't much to do there, but some outdoorsy activities such as kayaking and hiking are what I enjoy doing. Others in my hometown like to hunt, fish, and go on "mountain rides." If you don't know what that is, it's when you drive (normally) your jeep or truck up through the back roads of mountains. Usually I have to explain to people what mountain rides are because few had heard about them.

One thing I love more than anything is cooking. My grandmother is 100% Italian so she taught me all her tricks. She use to cook a three course meal that could feed an army all by herself, but now I am happy to help her out. Everything is homemade at my house, pizza, ravioli, spaghetti and meatballs with her homemade red sauce. Her cooking is what I miss most at school. However, my all time favorite quality about my gram is her height. Don't be intimidated, but she's 4 foot 6 inches tall. She has always been my biggest supporter and she is the reason I'm here today.

A Little About Me

Hello I'm Kaitlyn Floyd I am a freshman here at Bloomsburg and I am undecided in my major, but I am looking towards business or mathematics. I am also a student athlete and I am on the swim team🏊! I've been swimming since I've been 8 years old. I am a middle child with an older sister who is a junior in college and a younger brother who is a freshman in high school. I have a cat and a dog.

Julia Stein

"In order to move forward, you must have setbacks."

I'm a freshman, writer for the Odyssey Online, a painter, musician, special FX makeup artist and an animal lover. I do a lot of volunteer work with animals and also humans. I work in retail at a mall back home, I live right outside of Philadelphia. I come from a diverse family of step brothers and sisters. I graduated from Abington Senior High School in 2016. I was apart of choir, National Honor Society, Key Club, and I started The Crayon Initiative Club at my school. I have two miniature schnauzer puppies, Dashwood and Hetfield, they are the loves of my life.



I love Bloomsburg University and all that it offers, I decided to commit before I even toured (risky, I know.) I am currently on my way to becoming an OWL, I was inspired by some amazing people here, and its one of the reasons I continue to push myself harder. I'm looking forward to spending this semester getting fit and spending more time in my studies.

I am an Anthropology major, with an Archaeology minor, and a wide range of interests in life. its hard to pin point a focus when everything is just so fascinating. I would love to travel the world unearthing its hidden treasures, and once I'm too old or cant seem to do it anymore, I would love to open up a cupcake shop somewhere.
I'm just a mix of interests!

one of my recent paintings

Introduction Biography

   My name is Cally Clossen. I am local to this area; I live about twenty minutes from Bloomsburg, which makes this is my home. This is my freshman year at the university, and I am currently undeclared. Next year, I am hoping to enter the American Sign Language program, and then later continue into the other Audiology programs offered here at Bloom.

   This past summer, a group of my close friends and I took a trip to Cape Cod Massachusetts. The trip was amazing! We took a whole day and traveled to Martha's Vineyard where we rented bikes and biked the island. We also we able to shop in the small town that is on the island where we were surrounded by very friendly locals. The picture below shows the road right after the dock that lead us to the shops and the rest of the island.

   Another small fact about me is that I love animals. I have an extra special place in my heart for dogs. I personally own a beagle and a red heeler terrier mix. The heeler is like my little baby. I love any size dog and any breed as well. Below is a link that shows the twelve most popular dogs, and I would just love to have them all!

12 Most Popular Dog Breads In The World

Biography

Biography

"Biographies are but the clothes and the buttons of the man. The biography of the man himself cannot be written." - Mark Twain. I'm Samantha Elizabeth Smith. I was born on January 20, 1998, which makes me 19 years old. I'm from a small town called Shamokin about 40 minutes from Bloomsburg. I attended an even smaller Catholic high school and my graduating class consisted of 28 kids, including myself. 

When I'm not busy with other obligations, I enjoy playing basketball. I've been playing ever since I can remember. Just recently I learned how to play the ukulele and I'm slowly but surely getting better. Hanging out with my friends is another favorite past time of mine. My friends play a huge part in my life and I don't know where I'd be without them. 

When it comes to socializing with strangers, I'm extremely shy. Moving to a brand new school was horrifying to me, although it's less than an hour away from my hometown. Before arriving in Bloomsburg, a bunch of questions raced through my mind, "What if I don't meet friends?", "What if I'm awkward?", and the biggest question of all "What if I'm homesick?" Just the thought of any of these things coming true truly put my stomach in knots. My mind was at ease when I met my forever group of best friends. 

Left to right: Myself, Reagan, Valeria, and Ashley

I am a freshman majoring in early childhood education with hopes of being an elementary school teacher at the elementary school I attended. Being a teacher has always been a lifelong dream of mine. I haven't even thought about another profession because nothing else interests me the way teaching does. I like the idea of me being able to positively impact the future generation. That would really make me feel like I'm doing my part to make a beneficial change in the world. With that being said, I'm very excited to finally begin classes again and I anticipate all of the information I will be learning this semester. 

Allow me to introduce myself.

Hi, I'm Kara, this is my first semester at Bloomsburg because I just transferred here! I commute from Laporte, and for anyone who doesn't know where that is, it's in the woods and very, very rural. There isn't much to do there right now, but in the summer it comes alive. There are two state parks in the county I live in and they are amazing to hike and the creeks are incredibly clear. I love being outside, and being active because of how transformative it is. Say you're having an awful day, you feel like a slug and you can't stop eating even though with every bite you take you hate yourself more and more, if you can pry yourself away from the couch for a second and go outside for a walk, no matter how short, at least you did something that day. Anyway, I've been super into watching what I eat (no preservatives, only fresh, raw produce, blah blah blah) and I'm realizing how satisfying it is to be able to cook well! It's seriously like some sort of magic. You take all of these random powders and animal products, mix and heat them, and before you know it you have a cupcake! (I still have a sweet tooth even though I try super hard to be fit.)

In conclusion, this has been slightly stressful and I hope only Dr. Francis reads this but I'm feeling hopeful about my future here at Bloom! Yay to constantly bettering yourself!

Painting by me inspired by the creeks that I live by!

Sultan Bio

I'm Omar Sultan, I'm from Hillsborough NJ and a freshman at bloom. I love to make people laugh, play football and sleep. In the summer my favorite thing to do is drive down the shore and spend the day on the beach. 

More than Sequins and Spray Tans:
5 Reasons to Watch Dancing with the Stars

Heading into its 24th season, Dancing with the Stars, a reality television show that invites celebrities from varying walks of popular culture to work with professional dancers to learn and perform ballroom and Latin dance routines for its audiences, has enjoyed tremendous success. Each week's episode reveals the training process of each of its celebrity guests before their dance performance, which then receives feedback and scores from professional judges. Based on a combination of audience voting and judges' scores, at least one celebrity goes home each week, until the final three guest celebrities compete to win the coveted mirror ball trophy. While a casual viewing of just one episode might dazzle the viewer with spray tanned bodies and glittering sequins, a look beyond the surface will reveal a number of other reasons to watch the show.

To start, Dancing with the Stars devotes a portion of each episode to showcasing the learning process that each celebrity experiences. In many episodes, viewers see a celebrity, such as Rob Kardashian, learning the steps of a new dance from their dance partner.  None of these behind-the-scenes clips of the dance preparation looks easy, and frequently viewers witness the frustration of the celebrities about their inability to master something quickly.  Seeing the celebrities experience these difficulties allows the audience to recognize their fallibility.  Too often famous persons are idealized in unrealistic ways. Their struggle reinforces what June Deery argues is a primary element in reality TV, "amateur status" (63); none of the celebrities that participate are professional dancers. Viewers also catch a glimpse of how much time, effort, and repetition it might take to learn a new step. When the images of hard work are juxtaposed against the final performances, where the audience gets to see a polished dance routine, the show delivers a strong message to viewers about the benefits of hard work.  Few things come easy in life, and the commitment that many of the celebrities show argues for the value of such a philosophy.  Of course, audiences do not see a full training session with any one celebrity, thus the scenes displayed do reinforce the “That’s what we’re looking for” editing that Makkai implicitly criticizes in “The November Story” (78).  Ultimately, seeing a celebrity struggle with learning a new skill, particularly one connected to the entertainment industry, provides a positive model of behavior for viewers, telling them that everyone can and should challenge themselves to try new experiences.

Kirstie Alley in training with
Maksim Chmerkovskiy

As an educator, another reason to find value in the show lies within its teaching and learning structure. Each celebrity is paired with a different pro dancer, so audiences watch the teaching and learning styles of at least 12 different pairs each season. While audiences cannot view the entirety of any one training session, the fact that the show lasts for at least three months emphasizes the importance of developing a relationship with a teacher. Those teachers/students who build trust demonstrate greater growth and a stronger acquisition of the skill being learned. Pro dancers can often be heard asking, "How long did it take you to become a medal-winning gymnast . . . or a pro-football player  . . . or an award-winning singer?" The answer is always inevitably . . . years. Thus audiences are frequently reminded that learning takes time and teachers' expertise has value. The professional dancers are artists who have worked  for many years to become the experts that they are, practicing the art form of dance. Living in our current culture of immediacy, it's not bad to be reminded that things of value take time and effort.

All of the time and effort pay off in other ways, namely the physical health of the contestants, and more importantly the psychological attitude toward their bodies. Underneath the glittering sequins and spray tans, celebrities are shedding pounds. While this is more evidently seen for celebrities like Kirstie Alley or Joey Fatone, better physical strength happens for all contestants. The ability to maintain a strong frame in a ballroom dance like the waltz directly correlates to the core strength of the dancers' bodies. Even model thin celebrities have received direction from the judges to work on their core strength. While the training regimen helps improve those bodies, the positive reinforcement of the pro dancers and the judges' commentary help the contestants to value how they look, no matter their size. Judge Carrie Ann Inaba is particularly good about commenting upon the confidence, sex appeal, and strength being shown on the floor. In an article with People magazine, contestant Ginger Zee remarked, "I found a pride in myself that I'd never had before," even though she had only lost a net of two pounds during her run on DWTS (Gomez 100). Her past battle with anorexia makes this comment that much more telling. Sexy comes in every size on Dancing with the Stars.

Deaf contestant Nyle DiMarco

A stronger core and greater stamina are not the only ideas connected to the body that find discourse on DWTS. Even more importantly, through its selection of celebrity contestants, the show has also been able to highlight the challenges of those living with disabilities. From blind to deaf, little person to amputee soldier, the competition has showcased all walks of life. For example, deaf contestant Nyle DiMarco won the mirror ball trophy in Season 22. Completely unable to hear the music, his success can be attributed directly to the teaching skills of his partner Peta Murgatroyd, and his own determination not to let his disability define him. Here's a link to a video of his freestyle performance: Nyle Dimarco's Freestyle. In Season 20, Noah Galloway, an amputee of both left arm and part of his left leg, made it into the finale, finishing in third place. As Noah Galloway himself remarked in American Fitness, "Dancing with a prosthetic leg was challenging, but I showed up in great shape. I heard the music, I had rhythm, but the process was mentally challenging” (Viti 42). Their successes can be seen as inspirational to others in similar circumstances. DTWS provides a national platform for these kinds of stories to come front and center.

At the end of the day, Dancing with the Stars provides great live entertainment. Clips of Marie Osmond fainting and fans protesting Ryan Lochtee make for good TV. However, beyond the glitz and glitter, DWTS is making a good case for being active, for pushing yourself beyond your limits, and for celebrating the artistry and storytelling of dance.

Works Cited

Deery, June. Reality TV. Malden, MA: Polity Press, 2015.

Gomez, Patrick. "Good Morning America's Ginger Zee: Learning to Love Myself." People, vol. 86, no. 1, 4 Jul. 2016, pp. 99-102.

Makkai, Rebecca. “The November Story.” Crazyhorse, vol. 78, 2010, pp. 77-86.

Viti, Lucia. "Noah Galloway." American Fitness, vol. 34, no. 1, Jan.-Feb. 2016, pp. 40-42.