![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.ramapo.edu\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/10\/2025\/04\/LesterMayers-1-scaled.jpg\")
<\/a> Justice” about HIV and AIDS.\u00a0 He\u00a0referenced how it affects the life he has lived as well as how HIV and AIDS are being impacted in society today.\u00a0 These topics are close to Mayers heart and during his talk he moved many students with his compelling words.\u00a0 To read more about his unique story and mindset, full coverage is below.<\/p>\nBy: Miranda Frisbee \u201826<\/span><\/p>\n HIV and AIDS are serious conversations that many avoid.\u00a0 They find it hard to talk about, uncomfortable, or overall shamed by what implications can come along with those words.\u00a0 But the reality of the situation is that talking about HIV and AIDS shouldn\u2019t be something that is hidden but needs to be in the forefront of people’s minds.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n What is currently taking place when it comes to HIV and AIDS is the snatching of resources and funding that is causing an immediate impact on research.\u00a0 Clinics in South Africa were closed so now many can\u2019t get their medicine and a large population can\u2019t get the help they desperately need.\u00a0 In less than 24 hours, things were ruined which begs the question: was it worth it \u2014 was it worth anything if everything can be undone with a snap of a finger?<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Lester Mayers is an inspiration to countless people when it comes to this topic.\u00a0 He has an emotional connection to this which makes it tough sometimes.\u00a0 Beyond losing his mother to this and being a HIV and AIDS research child, Mayers finds one of the hardest challenges being the possibility that so many people are going to pass away because they don\u2019t have the research or resources to know their status.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Mayers knows that despite the hardships faced, there are positives to his work.\u00a0 Mayers tells stories and encourages folks to be an ally to those who are positive for the disease.\u00a0 Mayers explains \u201cYou do not have to be infected by something to care\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Mayers turns sadness into inspiration and helps others because he has had to do that his whole life.\u00a0 During his discussion with the group, he talked about all the struggles and factors that made him who he is today.\u00a0 Everyone was so moved by his words and some even started to cry.\u00a0 The emotions and connections he conveys is like no other.\u00a0 Mayers believes in art that risks life in a way that\u2019s going to remind people they aren\u2019t alone.\u00a0 If 150.1 million Americans don\u2019t read above the 4th grade level, it’s important that we create art.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n In the book Mayers has created, it\u2019s not just poetry but also short stories, plays, and other pieces of work; everything has a purpose in art.\u00a0 This piece of literature has a bright future ahead as it won\u2019t just be published but made into an audiobook, a play to be performed, and in other forms to get it out there to show people they aren\u2019t alone.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The important thing that Mayers wants to share with his audience is to know your status when it comes to HIV and AIDS.\u00a0 Mayers recalls a quote from someone within his book, \u201cThere is life after a positive HIV result\u201d.\u00a0 There is hope and life after.\u00a0 When everyone was going through stages of positive test results, all they were thinking was just make it to tomorrow.\u00a0 Tomorrow was always the goal.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Mayers wants any students in similar situations or students who are afraid to open up and tell others, to know that peace is an inside job.\u00a0 Mayers shares \u201cGo internal, sit with it, don\u2019t deny yourself any emotions and when you are ready (<\/span>cause you already started<\/span><\/i>) you will begin sharing, asking for help, and not blaming yourself\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Up until the \u2018Visions of Social Justice\u2019 guest speaker event, Mayers didn\u2019t talk about his work.\u00a0 He had some shame in the work he does because it goes against the rules of institutions.\u00a0 As an artist he wanted to keep it separate from his work at the school.\u00a0 Eventually, students wanted to know who he is and through their curiosity it helped him to liberate and share work more.\u00a0 Conversations share the message.<\/span><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The biggest takeaway Mayers wants people to know is that <\/span>tomorrow is possible<\/b>.\u00a0 Mayers book, <\/span>Tomorrow – 12:01<\/span><\/i>, will be out December 1st, 2025 (which is World AIDS day) .\u00a0 All funding will go directly to various research that supports HIV and AIDS.<\/span><\/p>\n To learn more about Lester Mayers (he\/him) visit his website at <\/span>www.lestermayers.com<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n <\/p>\n Professor Regina Clark<\/a> is an Associate Professor of Journalism. There was an event: A Women\u2019s HerStory Month Q&A, where Professor Clark spoke and shared her insights. She addressed many questions about working at Ramapo and why she chose this school to be where she taught. Additionally covered, was how it feels to be a woman working here and how she is empowering her students through this. To read the full interview and learn more about Professor Clark, click below! <\/p>\n Professor Satarupa Dasgupta<\/a> is an Associate Professor of Communication Arts (Applied Communication) in the School of Contemporary Arts. She has conducted extensive research about various crucial stigmatized topics and challenges the societal norm through her research of intimate partner violence, sex work, and neurodivergence. Professor Dasgupta was awarded the Best Journal Article Award from the National Communication Association Ethnography Division for her paper, \u201cExperiencing, Negotiating and Challenging Stigma in Sex Work: Examining Responses from Brothel-Based and Transient Sex Workers in Kolkata, India.\u201d published in 2023.<\/p>\n Read Full Article\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Professor Gilad Cohen<\/a> is an Associate Professor of Music Performance & Theory. Within his course Shine On: The Music of Pink Floyd and research into a wide variety of musical genres and artists, it allows him to bring a unique perspective to the classroom. This opens doors for students that they would not have considered prior. Through interdisciplinary excellence, Professor Cohen exemplifies not only the liberal arts mission \u2014 but also the necessity for the arts in one\u2019s college experience. No matter what interests a student, there is always a place for them to connect, learn, and grow. Click to read the full interview and learn more about Professor Cohen.<\/p>\n Read Full Article\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The sole criterion for being awarded a fellowship from MacDowell? Artistic excellence<\/em>. Dr. Zachary Layton<\/a>, assistant professor of music production, received the Norton Stevens Fellowship from MacDowell<\/a>, an organization whose mission is “to nurture the arts by offering talented individuals an inspiring residential environment in which to produce enduring works of the creative imagination.”<\/p>\n Read Full Article\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n The film, Life of Crime 1984-2020, e<\/em>xecutive produced by Jon Alpert and HBO won the Primetime Emmy award for outstanding Crime and Justice Documentary.<\/p>\n Paul Pittman, who is an adjunct professor in the\u00a0Digital Filmmaking major<\/a> served as one of the Producers on the project.\u00a0 The film takes place over the course of 3 decades and examines the highs and lows of the vicious cycle of drug addiction and incarceration.<\/p>\n Paul describes the film as, <\/em>\u201ca great character study piece that delves into the psyche of individuals and their struggles with addiction. It is a story of despair, pain and revival.\u201d<\/p>\n Life of Crime 1984-2020<\/a> is available to watch on HBO\/HBOmax. Photo by Carolyn Herring<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Three of our communication students presented their research papers at the prestigious James C. McCroskey and Virginia P. Richmond Undergraduate Scholars Conference at the Eastern Communication Association annual conference in Baltimore on March 31st<\/sup> and April 1st<\/sup>, 2023. Vanessa Espinoza presented on gender as a social construct in Gone Girl. Gabriella Fonseca talked about the intersection of racial identity with ethnic identity. Emily Melvin presented on destigmatizing legal medical marijuana.<\/p>\n Next, seven of our students presented their research papers at the New Jersey Communication Association (NJCA) annual conference at Kean University on April 1st<\/sup>, 2023. Caroline Ungar presented her retail therapy campaign. Graciana Casola\u00a0presented her addiction has no bias campaign. Jacob LoCascio presented his boxing, head trauma and safe boxing practices campaign. Nihar Shah talked about the mental and physical effects of being in the military. Shelley Kerr talked about her women as one campaign. Cristina Navarrete Carpizo talked about adding multicultural food and cross contamination policies to College campuses to ensure diversity and inclusivity. And finally, Tori Waschek presented her campaign to improve athletes\u2019 mental health at Ramapo College.\u00a0Tori Waschek also won the best student paper award at NJCA annual conference among all undergraduate and graduate paper submissions.<\/p>\n During the Summer 2022, Professor John Peffer completed work on an LP record and accompanying 50-page text that examines music recordings censored in South Africa by radio stations during apartheid. That project, titled “Notes on Cuts on Censored Records” is in production with the art\/sound label, Nothing To Commit Records, for 2023.<\/p>\n Photo credit: “The Naughty Boys” c. J. Peffer (2016).<\/p><\/div>\n Professor David Oh\u2019s lead-authored book will release in March 2023 – “Navigating White News: Asian American Journalists at Work” (Rutgers University Press). If you\u2019d like to learn more about this book, please click here.<\/a><\/p>\n Unison Arts partnered with artist Jackie Skrzynski as she led an immersive art experience known as the Silent Walks at the River to Ridge Trail in New Paltz, NY. Rather than seeing an image of landscape in a museum or on a screen, viewers physically moved themselves through what they were observing. By framing the walk as art, participants shift their perception of \u201cnature\u201d \u201clandscape\u201d and \u201cart.\u201d<\/p>\n Jackie Skrzynski has led over 20 Silent Walks primarily at two locations, Black Rock Forest and Storm King Mountain. She chose the River to Ridge trail for the view of the Shawangunk Ridge, the farmland, and the open sky.<\/p>\n Skrzynski is planning a second walk as part of her solo exhibition with Unison arts in spring 2023.<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.jackieskrzynski.com\/silent-walks<\/a><\/p>\n The Flats<\/p><\/div>\n Spaced Evenly<\/p><\/div>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n Kaitlin Balasay Balasaygun is a senior double majoring in Communication Arts (Journalism and Digital Media) and Photography. As captain of Ramapo\u2019s women\u2019s swim team, Balasaygun has produced several sports-related news features for her journalism\/digital media classes, including an audio slideshow documenting the struggles faced by college swim teams during the COVID-19 shutdown, and a video profile of Paralympic gold medalist Robert Griswold.<\/p>\n During her junior year, Balasaygun was awarded the 2022 Jules L. Plangere, Jr., Summer Internship with the New Jersey Press Foundation, and completed a summer internship with Gannett USA Today\u2019s Asbury Park Press. She was also a 2021 summer intern with Swimming World, a national aquatic sports publication. This semester, Balasaygun will be working for NBCUniversal as a Strategic Content Intern with CNBC.<\/p>\n https:\/\/nywici.org\/advance\/students\/2022-nywici-scholarship-winners\/<\/a><\/p>\n Big congratulations to Digital Filmmaking ’15 alumnus Anthony Scalia, whose documentary Bendix: Sight Unseen will be playing at the prestigious Montclair and DOC NYC film festivals in the next months. It was a real Ramapo production: Erin Dubee ’15 co-produced, and Chris Komjian ’19 was a camera operator. Check it out if you can — it’s a fun and touching film about a unique man and his family. Well done Anthony, Erin, and Chris!<\/p>\n https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/bendixsiteunseen<\/a><\/p>\n https:\/\/montclairfilm.org\/events\/bendix-site-unseen\/<\/a><\/p>\n https:\/\/www.docnyc.net\/film\/shorts-profiles-2022\/bendix-site-unseen\/<\/a><\/p>\n Communication students Angelina Reyes, Emma Gaglione, Gabriella Fonseca, Hailey Drake, Lucrecia Kleinmann and Luke Tedford presented their research papers at the New Jersey Women and Gender Studies Consortium (NJWGSC) Undergraduate Colloquium on 03\/25\/2022, and at the New Jersey Communication Association (NJCA) annual conference on 03\/26\/2022. Angelina presented on the impact of menstrual stigma on women at the NJWGSC undergraduate colloquium. Emma presented on music and psychology, Gabriella presented on creating awareness about the opioid crisis in New York, Hailey presented on destigmatizing mental health awareness campaigning, Lucrecia spoke on the pitfalls of fast fashion, and Luke talked about his campaign on banning plastic bags at the NJCA annual conference. These research papers were done for the Research and Writing Methods (Comm 266) and Global Communication Campaigns (Comm 318) classes.<\/p>\n Read the full press release here:<\/p>\n Ramapo Design Student Receives Gilman Award for Internship in Japan<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\nCA Professor Regina Clark Empowering Voices: Teaching, Writing, and Women\u2019s HerStory<\/h4>\n
<\/p>\nRead Full Article\u00a0<\/a><\/h4>\n
CA Professor Satarupa Dasgupta Awarded By National Communication Association<\/h4>\n
<\/h4>\nCA Professor Gilad Cohen Interview: Bridging Worlds Through Music<\/h4>\n
<\/p>\nSummer 2023<\/h3>\n
Music Professor Zach Layton Receives MacDowell Fellowship<\/h4>\n<\/div>\nSpring 2023<\/h3>\n
Ramapo Adjunct Professor Paul Pittman Receives Emmy Award for Documentary Film<\/h4>\n
\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/a>CA Students Present at ECA & NJCA Conferences<\/h4>\n
Professor John Peffer: “Notes on Cuts on Censored Records”<\/h4>\n
<\/a>Professor David Oh’s Book, “Navigating White News: Asian American Journalists at Work” to be released March 2023<\/h4>\n
<\/h4>\n
Professor Jackie Skrzynski Leads Immersive Art Experience<\/h4>\n
<\/div>\nFall 2022<\/h3>\n
COMM Student Receives 2022 New York Women in Communications Scholarship – NBCUniversal Scholarship!<\/h4>\n
<\/a>gun was awarded the 2022 Comcast NBCUniversal Scholarship from New York Women in Communications Inc. (NYWICI), the premier organization for media and communication professionals in the New York metropolitan area.<\/p>\n<\/h4>\n
Alumnus Anthony Scalia’s Documentary Playing at Film Festivals<\/h4>\n
<\/div>\nSpring 2022<\/h3>\n
COMM Students Present at the NJWGSC & NJCA Conferences<\/h4>\n
<\/h4>\n
Ramapo Design Student Receives Gilman Award for Internship in Japan<\/h4>\n