Student Involvement
OTTER FACT: Newborn pups cannot sink or dive.
Good morning Otters,
Welcome to another week!
This week we have a special student section written by a member of the United Student Association, Marketing Officer Hannah Mae Cox.
I’d also like to remind you all that we have information on how to get involved and different student opportunities listed in our “this week” section, so make sure to read up on these events after checking out Hannah Mae’s short story!
Student Section: Short Story by Hannah Mae Cox
SHORT STORY - The 101 (originally written for Hannah Mae’s creative writing class)
Jodi was seated on the bus, towards the back of the 101 on the window side like usual. Her faded backpack rested on the aisle seat next to her, close enough to her body that it couldn't be easily snatched up but far enough that it indicated her hopes of no one plopping down beside her. “Mayonnaise” by the Smashing Pumpkins played through her wired earbuds. Fool enough to almost be it. Cool enough to not quite see it. As she gazed out the window she wrapped her fingers around her phone and prepared to turn the volume down. Perhaps today would be the day.
He stood where he always stood, eight stops after where she got on every day to go to the wealthier side of the city for her nannying job. He was wearing a combination of things she’d seen him in before: emerald green hoodie, black cargo pants, corduroy jacket, muddy black Converse. He looked just right against the bright yellows and oranges and reds of the turning leaves, and something about seeing him standing there with his frizzy brown hair made Jodi’s heart ache with more wistfulness than was usual most mornings.
He got on the bus, settled in two rows in front of her like normal. Jodi peeked at him with what she prayed was subtlety. She had to have her few glances.
From inside his worn canvas tote, he pulled out a book. He was reading something new every few days, a spooky horror book or a historical-looking novel or a tiny classic that was falling apart at the spine. She watched the shiny film of the library cover on today’s edition reflect the rays coming in from the window as he shifted in the seat. She should really start reading again, like him.
Jodi spent a fair amount of her time thinking about the boy on the bus. When she was making lunch for Penelope and Teo, the young siblings she nannied, she concocted images running into him at a restaurant or the corner store. She fabricated his destination, imagined him getting off on Magnolia and stepping into the cafe where all the college students did their writing. She envisioned him riding till he got to the north end, where he would clock in at Trader Joes and charm customers all day long. She watched him flip a page and touch his nose, and she was once again filled with longing.
They never made eye contact. He was always glued to his book, and she was always staring out the window listening to her music, dreaming up his story and daring herself to sit next to him or say hello before getting off the bus without follow-through. But today, when Jodi stole another glance, he was staring right at her. He had shifted his body so he was leaning against the side of the bus and his knees were pressed against his chest. His eyes were slightly narrowed, his head tilted a bit to the right, and a very small smirk of amusement colored his face and revealed his dimple.
Her face got hot and she immediately darted her eyes elsewhere, pretending to think intensely about something while sweeping her gaze back out the window.
He finally noticed me. This moment of eye contact was revolutionary. A wealth of possibilities had just revealed itself. Maybe this could finally be the day, after three months of peeking at him reading his books, that they finally had an encounter.
One more peek. Jodi felt the blush coloring her cheeks as she turned to him again. The boy caught her eye again, with that same expression of amused analysis. She felt like he could see straight through her, through her new haircut and the sweater underneath her coat that she’d finished knitting two days earlier.
She continued on the bus, cycling through her morning playlist of the Pumpkins and Mad Season and Hole. She continued to feel observed, like she was a butterfly in a biology lab. She could feel his occasional glances, the ones that hadn’t been mutual until now. They were nearing her stop, where she would get off and walk the five blocks to Penelope and Teo’s house and spend the day playing with them and reading to them and feeding them tangerines and fruit snacks, just as she did each weekday.
The driver was one stop away from Jodi’s, and she readied herself to pull the cord and exit the bus. Jodi’s heart had sprouted wings and begun fluttering. She threw on her backpack, straightened out her sweater. She had decided she would meet his eyes just as she left, give him a slight smile and walk away mysteriously, keep him thinking about her until she saw him again tomorrow.
“17th and Pine.”
She rose from her seat. Met his eyes, gave him a quiet smile. He smiled back and a glimmer of something - was it admiration? decision? humor? - flashed across his beautiful face.
Jodi was melting. She stepped off the bus, tried and failed to contain the grin he had summoned. Her shoes hit the concrete, and she heard another pair of feet behind her. Could it be?
“You look lovely.” She whipped her head around to see the boy. His voice was perfect, and it was directed at her. She blushed.
“Oh, thanks, you do too,” she bit back her smirk. He started walking, and Jodi joined him. This cannot be real. “I’m Jodi.”
He grinned. His dimple appeared again. “I’m Cole. I’ve been watching you, you know. On the bus. I’ve noticed you.” The pink of her cheeks deepened. She found that very hard to believe.
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.” Jodi was swooning, she couldn’t help it. This was a story pulled straight out of her daydreams. They were walking in the opposite direction of Penelope and Teo, but that didn’t matter right now. Cole had noticed her.
Cole stared into her eyes. That indistinguishable glimmer traveled across his face again. “I’ve been watching you and I think I’d like to get to know you.”
Jodi held his gaze. He had such nice eyes. “Oh yeah?”
Cole’s hand shifted ever-so-slightly in the pocket of his corduroy coat. His eyes narrowed. “Yeah.”
Jodi had a sudden, terrible thought. She broke his stare for a moment and scanned her environment. She hadn’t been on this street before, couldn’t see anyone around.
She was struck with an impending doom, like maybe the boy on the bus of her fantasies and the Cole who had followed her weren’t the same person.
She turned her eyes back to Cole’s and her daydreams instantly crumbled as his knife cut through her newly knitted sweater and into her chest. With the same fingers he’d flipped through the pages of those tattered classics, the same ones she’d imagined on her waist someday, he clamped down on her mouth and twisted the knife just left of her tender heart.
As she laid there, pinned to the concrete and losing air under the weight of Cole’s knee on her stomach, she stared with horror into his brown eyes and watched his grin twist into something sinister.
“You really do look lovely.”
This week:
Join South students at Oregon State University for the annual Washington/Oregon Sustainability Conference, March 6-8.
Students will attend workshops to discuss environmental justice, decarbonization, Indigenous knowledge and more.
All travel, hotel and registration fees included. Application deadline: January 26.
For more information, contact Zoe.Schuman@seattlecolleges.edu, our United Student Association Sustainability Officer.
Conference website: https://wohesc.org/program/
Exciting Events for International Students!
Weekly Meeting
All SSC students are invited to our weekly USA meetings, every Tuesday from 1:30 - 3:00 pm. Discuss your concerns as a student and get involved in student leadership. Meet us in JMB 128, the conference room inside the student life building!
Environmental Activism Group
Want to get involved in community building, work towards environmental change, and have opportunities to earn volunteer hours? Join the Environmental Activism Group! Zoe, our sustainability officer, will be hosting every Thursday from 2:00 - 3:00pm in JMB Student Life 128. See you there!
Sign up link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdHyeY6a6Utmj2xNma0y39ePy4Ujr4S-AO0aoTXYp_6spp4Ww/viewform
Interested in starting a student club?
Student organizations are a big part of building communities on campus. USA is focused on getting student clubs off the ground this year, after the loss of them due to COVID.
First, let’s clarify what a student organization is, it’s a group of students that come together to meet, hold events, and support other students. Student clubs can be created over majors, advocacy, culture, hobbies, special interests, and more. There are many benefits to being a part of a club, and each club will have different benefits depending on its focus.
The problem USA is facing right now is we are lacking enough student leader interest in starting a club. So, if you are interested in becoming a student leader and starting a club do not hesitate! I know students already have a hefty load to carry with school, work, life, and more so USA is here to help you get the club started and running smoothly. This is an opportunity you can put on your resume to show leadership skills and to network with your peers.
If you are interested in starting a club please email yana.goddard@seattlecolleges.edu.
WSA Student Advocacy Sign-Up Form
The Washington Student Association is the official, nonpartisan, statewide representation for students in higher education. As the largest student-run, student-led organization in the state, their mission is to make higher education accessible and affordable for everyone in Washington.
This Winter, the WSA is working to pass several bills whose goal is to address the impact of increasing cost-of-living expenses, and lack of basic needs resources. These include initiatives around affordable housing, food insecurity, campus mental health resources, childcare, financial aid, and more! The only way these bills will succeed is through direct advocacy efforts by current students. By sharing your story and your experience as a college student, legislators can be convinced to pass legislation that will benefit hundreds of thousands of students.
Use this form to sign up to be a part of these historic efforts! By filling out this form, the WSA will know to contact you with opportunities to testify during the 2023 legislative session, as well as future chances to get involved.
Student Advocacy Interest Form
Check out WSA’s website at www.wastudents.org to find out more about the bills they are working on this Winter, as well as more about their organization and history of advocacy. If you have any questions, please email the WSA Organizing Manager, Molly Walker at molly@wastudents.org.
Interested in meditation?
Come down to the Food Pantry!
The food pantry is open to everyone, come down for snacks/groceries and toiletries.
Resources:
On-Campus Operations Hours: Monday - Thursday, 9 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.
Phone/Voicemail: 206-934-5387
Counseling: If you are currently experiencing a crisis situation, please call 988, 911 or contact CRISIS CONNECTIONS: 1-866-427-4747 (24-HR Crisis Line)! Requests for consultation and/or non-emergency educational and personal counseling appointments should be sent to southcounseling@seattlecolleges.edu.
Hours are Wednesdays and Thursdays 11 am - 2 pm.
LOCATION: Jerry Brockey Student Center Office of Student Life, room 134 (same building as Bookstore but at the south end).
If you are in urgent need to access the pantry, please visit the Office of Student Life in JMB 125 or email Monica.Lundberg@seattlecolleges.edu to schedule an appointment.
Hours: 5:30 A.M. - 10 P.M (Monday through Friday)
Location: Robert Smith Building (RSB 50)
Primary Phone: 206-235-0911
Secondary Phone: 206-934-0911.
Additional:
If you want more information on the newsletter, or have any requests/suggestions, you can reach me at ashwak.samatar@seattlecolleges.edu.