Stockton News - Sept. 29, 2023 - University Relations & Marketing

Stockton News - Sept. 29, 2023

WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT

Hemp Growing Class Tries to Dispel Stigma Of Cannabis

In the back of Stockton's 1.2-acre Sustainability Farm is a section some call “sin corner.”

Just a short distance from a row of 20-foot-tall hops vines and next to a line of tobacco plants is a 62-foot-long plot surrounded by a fence and a locked gate. Inside are about 150 cannabis hemp plants — believed to be the only ones grown outside by a New Jersey university.

“When it comes to universities, I would definitely say we stand out by doing what we are doing right now,” said Rob Mejia, a teaching specialist in Stockton’s Cannabis Studies program.

Hemp is a botanical class of cannabis sativa grown specifically for industrial or medicinal use. The plants have little to almost no THC — the major psychoactive component of cannabis.

It’s the second year Stockton has grown the plants as part of its Cannabis and Hemp Research Initiative (CHRIS), which was created in 2021 to conduct agricultural and nonmedical cannabis and hemp research. This fall is also the second time Valentina Fiero, a 2021 Stockton graduate with a degree in Science and Environmental Science, has taught a class in hemp cultivation.

Student Research Finds Free Materials Could Replace Books

Replacing expensive textbooks with free educational resources could reduce high college costs, but more professors and administrators need to promote the option to have an impact, according to student research published today by the William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy at Stockton.

The National Center for Education Statistics estimated that college textbooks and materials for the 2021-22 academic year cost an average of $1,326 per student nationally. Over the last 50 years, prices increased at three times the rate of inflation, a research paper by Stockton senior Jessie Nash reported. Textbook costs have increased by 7 percent since 2020, outpacing increases in tuition, fees and housing, the report found.

“Textbook costs are a financial barrier to higher education that disproportionately affects minority, low-income, first-generation and food-insecure students,” said Nash, a Social Work major who produced her research as part of a Hughes Center internship.

📰 In the News: The Press of Atlantic City, Insider NJ

Support in New Jersey for building wind turbines off the coast has plummeted over the past four years, especially in shore towns, according to a Stockton Poll released on Sept. 28.

📰 In the News: The Press of Atlantic City, WPG TALK Radio, NJBIZ, NJ.com, Downbeach.com, New Jersey Globe

SPOTLIGHT ON: MARY LOU GALANTINO

Mary Lou Galantino, distinguished professor of Physical Therapy, continued her ongoing work and research in South Africa this summer through a six-week Fulbright Specialist opportunity.

This trip focused mainly on cancer rehabilitation training for students, clinicians and interprofessional colleagues across the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits, host institution), at local hospitals and throughout three different rural provinces.

“This has been a long-standing relationship since my first Fulbright experience in 2014 and 2017. This next step required hands-on training, and we have established foundational education and research projects in areas that needed resources and implementation of the 2017-2024 National Strategic Plan for Palliative Care and the 2017-2022 National Strategic Plan for Cancer Care,” Galantino said. “While these policies exist, clinical training was lacking and resources sparse in rural areas our team visited.”

PHOTO: Galantino, right, with Dipuo Nasoro, after completing a cancer walk this summer in South Africa.

FRAME-WORTHY

Four Years of 'Glowing Up' at Stockton

The Glow Up Opportunity Fair, which represents another opportunity for Stockton students to get involved, was originally created in 2018 to expose underrepresented students to different on-campus leadership roles and job opportunities with informational tabling.

Since then, the program has expanded to include Fred Talks (inspired by TED Talks) by fellow students, raffling for prizes with the use of “boarding passes” and more, as evidenced by Thursday, Sept. 21’s event.

Although Yesenia Pacheco, coordinator for Student Transitions, Access and Retention, didn’t create this event, she does consider it one of her passion projects that continues to grow and change.

📸 View more photos on Flickr.

WHAT'S TRENDING @ #STOCKTONU

whats trending Sept. 29, 2023 Facebook: Sometimes, you just need to take a good physiological sigh to remind yourself of the good times ahead. #StocktonU's chapter of Active Minds held their annual Out of the Darkness Walk on Friday amidst a little bit of wind and rain and a lot of sunflowers! 🌻

Instagram: Feels like Fall here on campus 🍂🍃

FROM THE SIDELINES

Volleyball Team Cruises to Sweep of NJCU

The volleyball team cruised to a 25-18, 25-18, 25-12 sweep of New Jersey City on Sept. 28 for its seventh win in the last eight matches. All 16 healthy Ospreys saw action in the victory.

Camille De La Torre and Nicole Palmer led Stockton with seven kills apiece, followed by Rileigh Wilson with five kills.

Stockton Blanks Etown for Eighth Straight Win

The field hockey team extended its winning streak to eight consecutive games with a 3-0 victory over Elizabethtown on Sept. 28 at the Stockton Turf Field. The eight-game win streak is the second longest in the program's 21 seasons.

Kirsten Bailey scored two goals for the second straight game. Allie Palumbo tallied one goal and one assist.

🗓️ View the full schedule of upcoming athletic events here.

OSPREY NOTES

Reminder: New Wordmark System

University Relations and Marketing would like to kindly bring to the campus community's attention the implementation of a new wordmark system instituted at the beginning of last school year. This updated wordmark system aimed to address inconsistencies and offered a third tier of branding, allowing schools and departments to showcase specific programs and establish connections with institutes and centers.

Tier 1 – the Stockton University official wordmark
Tier 2 – Individual school, division, department, or office
Tier 3 – Center, institute, or department within a school or division

The Stockton brand was consistently represented in tier 1 while a heavier font, caps formatting and increased size were used to establish between tiers 2 and 3.

These minor changes streamlined the design process by consolidating options and eliminating inconsistencies by keeping the tree icon in all wordmarks. Further, using a horizontal logo and the centering of type oﬀered greater design consistency across multiple naming conventions.

The new wordmarks became effective on Sept. 1, 2022. At this point, all departments should have transitioned to the new wordmarks. If you haven't done so, please contact the Graphics Department to request an update for your wordmarks here.

Changes to the 2024-25 FAFSA

The U.S. Department of Education is implementing a major overhaul of the processes and systems that offer federal student aid, starting with the 24-25 aid year.

As our faculty and staff work closely with our students, we want to make sure you’re aware of the updates being made to the FAFSA, not only to inform students but also because these updates could affect some of your processes.

📅 Join Financial Aid staff from 6-8 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 29, for a virtual presentation detailing the 24-25 FAFSA changes and how these changes may impact faculty and staff. During the presentation, questions faculty and staff may have after learning about the new changes to the FAFSA will be answered. All faculty and staff are invited to attend. For those unable to attend, the presentation will be recorded. Register for the event here.

Visit stockton.edu/fafsa to view a list of many of the changes you can expect to see on the 24-25 FAFSA.

Please note that the 24-25 FAFSA will not be available by Oct.1, 2023, due to the updates being made. Students and families can expect that the 24-25 FAFSA will be available on or before Dec. 31, 2023.