Amber Burg's Blog

Paige McKern is what some people might call a social butterfly. Between classes, being the Student Government Secretary, Treasurer of Entrepreneur Group, running the campus post office, an off-campus internship, being involved in MAC, owning part of a company in California, and being involved on the Homecoming Committee, she finds the time to be a big sister to 27 girl residents.

It wasn’t until her sophomore year that she became an RA but not by choice. One of her friends recommended her to try it and she followed suit. “I didn’t think I’d actually get it, but ever since I got it I don’t know why I didn’t think of doing it in the first place. I’ve always thought about being a counselor so it makes me feel like I get to do that. That’s why I like it so much.”

The beginning of her sophomore year, she took the three-week training RA course. There they meet with counselors, take sexual assault training, complete program models, CPR training, and go through problem scenarios. They meet all of the people that they would need to be able to contact if someone under their watch was having problems.

Her first hall was a bunch of deer-eyed freshman. “I was like a big sister to them,” said Paige. She guided them through their first year and enforced the rules to ensure no one got hurt.

“The rules are there for a reason,” said Paige, “to keep them safe.” On her hall there is no drinking if you are under the age of 21, inter-visitation hours are enforced, and quiet hours remain quiet.

“Having freshman that first year gave me the experience needed. I know the rules now, how to handle situations, and how to confront people without making it awkward.”

To Paige, the best part about being an RA is getting to know more faces on campus. It also has financial and housing perks. “It’s pretty nice having my own room. It has also taught me that I can survive on my own after college.”

Besides getting to meet more people on campus, being an RA has helped Paige develop more as a person. When Paige first started college she was shy and homesick for her Illinois home. She was a yes person. If anyone needed anything she would say yes in a heartbeat. Now, she feels as if being an RA has given her the power of understanding sometimes you just have to say no.

“Being an RA has really helped me deal with conflict,” said Paige. “I’ve actually gotten really good at standing up to people. It has definitely helped me confront situations as well as get a backbone. It made me more of a leader.”

“If there is a problem on the hall or a work order that needs to be submitted, Paige is always more than willing to get it done,” said one of Paige’s residence.

When people on campus are asked to describe Paige words like “caring,” “busy,” “a people person,” and “always smiling,” come out. She has a happy can do attitude.

“She has a very bubbly personality,” said another fellow RA.

Even though her schedule is planned out to a T a week in advance she always has time for her residents. “I’m really good at listening,” said Paige. “If they want advice or just someone to talk to, I’m there for them.” Her door is always open for her residents if they need her.

This caught my attention because I rarely hear or see an article about people killing penguins in the news. However, I do not like their lead. They are just saying how everyone loves penguins and that they don’t eat zookeepers. It’s adorable and funny but I feel that it should focus more on why the penguins are being killed.

I would change the second paragraph to be the lead and delete the actual lead. They also have a few grammar errors that need to be fixed. I think they should of moved their ending paragraph information up sooner and moved the information on other animals and whether or not humans can get it towards the end.

I like how they have quotes of doctors and biologists. I like how it includes why and how the penguins are getting and if humans can get it. They also tell how a zoo gets their birds to eat the pills put in fish that was interesting. They report cases from zoos that have had that outbreak in birds and how many have died.

Read it here.

Objective

Two guys walking by, both in cargo shorts but one with a black shirt and the other with a white shirt and hat. Five trees moves from the wind. A shadow from a building covers parts of the grass. Vehicles fill all the parking spots. Two girls, one wearing jeans with a purple shirt the other in leggings and a peach shirt. The sound of a fan blowing air into a room is heard. A car horn honked. A girl in blue shorts with a green stripe on the side and a white t-shirt runs across the grass to a car. Three more girls walked by, one wearing blue shorts with a grey top, another in black shorts with a grey top, and the last in green shorts with a dark grey. A green car drives up and parks on the side of the road and a red truck passes it. The green car leaves driving forwards. The building is made out of bricks of different shades of reds and browns. The window trimming is a brown. There is a stone bench by a tree. A guy in white gym shorts and a green t-shirt walks by on the sidewalk to an entrance door.

Subjective

It is a quiet cool evening, not many people walking by just a few here and there. It is an uneventful evening, slightly boring with the lack of activities. The loud fan nearby is blowing air to cool off the room. Two girls walk slow to the door of the building, like they are tired. They look like athletes with their athletic shorts and cut off t-shirts. A guy on a unicycle rides by, he looks off balance and struggling to keep from falling over. The five tree are pretty for early September, with their purplish red leaves that look cool. A loud girlish scream that hurts to hear is heard. Sounds like some girl just received bad news or was scared of something. There is a bench that looks hard and uncomfortable to sit in near a purple leaved tree. The grass is green  and looks soft. It also looks like it is watered often to keep the lively green color.