TPC Alumni Spotlight | Issue 3
Fall 2013

Greetings TPC Alumni!  

 

We've had an exciting semester so far and we hope you enjoy reading about Quammie Semper's life after TPC, our work with the digital liberal arts, and our current students' adventures. And finally, we'd love to see alumni based in the Greater New York and Philadelphia regions on November 14, at the Public House in Manhattan, for a networking happy hour! (RSVP by November 8 to [email protected])

 

-- TPC Faculty, Staff, and Alumni Board

Helping Others
Alumnus Profile: US Army Captain Quammie Semper attended The Philadelphia Center during the spring of 2003. He graduated from Oberlin College in 2004 with a degree in sociology and received an MBA in Public Management in 2011.

 

US Army Captain Quammie Semper attended The Philadelphia Center during the spring of 2003. He graduated from Oberlin College in 2004 with a degree in sociology and received an MBA in Public Management in 2011.

 

CPT Semper was kind enough to respond to TPC's questions via email while stationed in the Middle East. As a contracting officer for the military, he is responsible for taking care of the Soldiers by providing food, billeting, internet, water, and any other essential services necessary while they are deployed.

 

"The most rewarding part of my job is knowing that I have a direct effect with the Soldiers on the ground who are really carrying out the critical missions," Semper wrote. "Obviously, the most challenging thing for me is just being away from my family. I am able to cope with it because they continue to support me in every manner."

 

While participating in our program, Semper worked at the now defunct Woodrock school, facilitating diversity, leadership, and peacemaking workshops for underprivileged children.

 

"The Woodrock experience was one of a kind. It helped mold and shape my views and my love of helping people. I am so thankful for that opportunity because I was able to plant seeds with some of the kids I taught and tutored. Hopefully those seeds sprout and grow into something beautiful one day."

 

When asked about the seemingly unusual leap from attending Oberlin and TPC and working with at-risk youth to joining the Army, Semper responded, "My path was one I did not guide. The Lord knew what he was doing with that. I just knew I wanted to help people and eventually go into the military. I was supposed to go to West Point out of high school, but I was an immigrant from Trinidad & Tobago. I did not have my citizenship when I graduated from high school and the only school that waited on me to at least become a resident was Oberlin College. Oberlin allowed me to study off-campus at The Philadelphia Center. TPC allowed me to see that my calling in life was truly to help people and be a servant in whatever aspect of life I choose. I get to do that in the military. I get to serve my country and serve the troops at the same time. One thing I have learned in life: when you encounter people, what matters is the lasting impression you leave with them."

 

It's no surprise, then, that over a decade removed from his semester in Philadelphia, it's the personal connections that he made here that stand out. "Some of the people you see grow as a person while they are in this program. The experience of TPC and living in Philadelphia help, but the faculty and staff play such a valuable role in that too. They encourage you to go discover the city and within that you will discover things about yourself that really steer you to what you think your calling is in life. You're able to grow, mature, and experience life in a different way."

 

Upon his retirement from the Army, CPT Semper plans on continuing to help people, but he'll turn back the clock and focus on kids once again by becoming a teacher and football coach. And in keeping with his personal mission of helping others, Semper encourages TPC alumni to reach out and support our wounded soldiers, visiting and supporting them in any way you can.

TPC and DLA
By Madalyn Muncy, Fall 2013 DLA Research Fellow
 

The digital age is upon us and it's taking over the liberal arts.

 

As technology continues to permeate our work and daily life, students are finding ways to bridge traditional study with digital technology. This emerging field, called the Digital Liberal Arts (DLA), helps to reinvigorate the liberal arts with exciting, cutting-edge digital research and projects, giving students the digital skills needed to be successful in the 21st century.

 

Simply, DLA (also known as digital humanities) uses technology to investigate and/or present findings, creating a new type of medium that involves interaction, accessibility, and encompasses many disciplines in one. Fusing the traditional liberal arts with new digital mediums is the major focus of DLA. DLA projects include digitalization of artifacts/documents, textual analysis, documentaries, podcasts, websites, and more.

 

How does TPC fit into this new field?

 

Partnering with Hope College's Andrew W. Mellon Scholars Program, TPC is introducing Digital Liberal Arts in the Workplace, an opportunity for students to gain hands-on experience with digital projects and fields, all while expanding their professional skills.

 

Internship opportunities at museums, cultural institutions, non-profits, public policy organizations, and more will allow TPC students to engage in a placement experience that includes digital work in a professional workplace setting.  Not only will students have the traditional experiential TPC semester, but they will also be exploring the career possibilities of the emerging DLA field.

 

TPC's DLA in the Workplace program is open to any interested TPC student and will begin in the spring 2014 semester.

 

We're reaching out to TPC Alumni to help us build the DLA in the Workplace Program. If you currently work in the field and are interested in connecting with us to help students find placements or to share ideas as we continue to build our DLA program, please contact us

By Katherine Rapin


Katherine is an English and Community & Global Health Studies major at Kalamazoo College. She is taking Dr. Mark Andrew Clark's City Seminar, Power and Authority, and is interning at The Vetri Foundation for Children. She and four of her Fall 2013 colleagues are blogging about their experiences this semester at DiscoverTPC.

 

Every Friday, I get to throw on an apron, play lunch lady, and feed 100 elementary school kids lunch.

 

If you're picturing me in a hairnet, throwing chicken nuggets, French fries and applesauce on kids' trays as they stand in an impossibly long, barely moving line, you're picturing a typical school lunch program. The 'food' arrives in cardboard boxes - processed, packaged and/or frozen - and just needs a few minutes in the warmer before making it onto plates and into the mouths of the hungry masses.

 

Through my internship at the Vetri Foundation for Children, I am involved in a program that is flipping the scene depicted above on its head. Our 'Eatiquette' program focuses on healthy, from scratch, family style school lunch - it's truly a cafeteria makeover.

 

 

Once a week at Community Partnership School in Northwest Philadelphia, I work with chef Maria to give students a tastier, healthier, and happier lunchroom environment. She puts me to work, peeling, slicing, and chopping the fresh ingredients that will make up the days menu. Last Friday we served turkey burgers, roasted potatoes with thyme, tossed greens with carrots, and fresh oranges for dessert. I sliced close to 30 fresh tomatoes for the burgers, cut 50 oranges into wedges, and tossed the greens with the mustard-herb dressing. Maria had mixed and shaped the ground turkey and herbs and prepped the potatoes the day before.

 

When the pre-K and Kindergarten kids came down for the 1st lunch period, we loaded up rolling carts with platters of burgers, and bowls of salad and roasted potatoes. The 'table captains' came into the lunchroom first. They are responsible for setting the table, filling up the cups with water, and bringing the plates of food to their tables. And they get to wear chef's coats. A kindergartner in a mini white chef coat is arguably cuter than a puppy.

 

Once the tables are set the rest of the kids file in and sit down and chef Maria announces the menu.  There are 'oooos' as she mentions each item, and enthusiastic cheers and applause follow "fresh oranges for dessert." In unison the kids say, "Thaaaaank you chef Mariiiiiaaaaa," and start passing bowls and plates around the table. 

 

I know. It sounds too good to be true, cheesy even. When Eatiquette was first described to me, I didn't believe it either. But these kids are the proof.  They eat salad, they try new foods, they interact with one another. I once watched a pre-K girl plow through a fish taco topped with cabbage slaw.

 

"That was the best fish taco I've ever had!" the five-year-old exclaimed when she finished. These kids have learned through experience that this kind of food tastes better and makes them feel better, and they appreciate it.

 

Not to say that they don't struggle, like most kids, with the slimy pink cylinder atop their burger. I watch as the buns come off and the tomato gets pushed off onto the side of the plate, looks of disdain on the kids' faces. The rule is, they have to try at least one bite.   

 

I sit and eat with the kids, and convince them to try a bite of whatever vegetable they might be wary of. I know my persistence is worth it when just one kid says "Oh, that's actually kind of good!" after biting into a tomato for the first time. This spurs the kid next to them to try it, and before you know it, no one's afraid of tomatoes anymore. They might not like them, but at least they know what they taste like.

 

I think that the success of the program could be evaluated solely on the kids' feedback. Sometimes I feel like I'm in a staged, Vetri Foundation commercial when I hear their comments about lunch.

 

"These are like French fries except for better, and better for you!" a third-grader says, holding up a roasted potato.

"Does anyone want more salad? ...because I'm about to finish this."

 

At a table of 5th graders, I mention the after-school cooking class that's starting next week.

 

"I want to learn how to cook, because then when I have my wife... she'll like it if I can cook. Girls like guys who can cook," a boy says with confidence.

 

The girl sitting across from him asks, "How do you know all that stuff?"

 

"Because I know life."

 

He approved of the turkey burger, with the tomato, and he knows life so...case closed.

In This Issue:
Greetings

Alumnus Profile: CPT Quammie Semper, US Army

What's up: TPC and DLA

Student Perspectives: DiscoverTPC: Eatiquette, by Katherine Rapin  


Upcoming Events:

NYC Alumni Networking Event

Thursday, November 14, 6:00 p.m., at the Public House on 140 East 41st Street at Lexington Avenue. 

RSVP to [email protected] by November 8.

 

Alumni Panel Discussion

Who's doing what? Where? Share your wisdom and lesson's learned with this semester's students.
Thursday, December 5, 2013 5:30 p.m., at TPC. To join the panel, please contact us.

 

Annual Open House for Alumni, Placement Supervisors and Friends: Friday, May 2, 2014

 

Reunion: TPC's 50th Anniversary, 2017  


Stevens E. Brooks Memorial Fund

Thanks to generous donations from folks like you, the Stevens E. Brooks Memorial Fund helps students close the gap between their resources and the costs of city living during their semester at TPC. We've also been able to offer a few housing grants that allowed students to attend who would not otherwise have been able to do so. 

Please consider helping us continue this good work with a tax-deductible contribution.  All donations directly support students attending TPC.

Donations can be made online or via check payable to The Philadelphia Center.

 

 

 

Stay in Touch:

Please join us on LinkedIn!

 

Email:[email protected]

215.735.7300

 

121 S. Broad Street

7th Floor

Philadelphia, PA  19107

 

If you have story ideas for future issues of TPC's Alumni Spotlight or if you'd like to update your alumni profile, please let us know.

 

Pitch In!

Our Spring 2014 students arrive in January, if you live nearby and would be interested in helping out during orientation, please let us know!

 
New Placements 
We are always working to expand our internship placement opportunities, and if you work in the Greater Philadelphia region, we hope that you'll share our information with your friends and colleagues. For more information visit our website or contact our placement director.

 

Alumni Stories
Visit our website to read up on your fellow alumni and see what they have been doing. If you'd like to add your story to the mix, contact our marketing director.

 

About the Board:

TPC Friends Committees:

Recruitment

Engagement

Networking

  

If you're interested in learning more about TPC Friends or getting involved, please contact us.

 

TPC Friends Board Members:

Ryan Arey (Albion, Summer 2010)

 

Charles Catania (Hartwick, Fall 1998)

 

Theresa (Miller) Doggett (Alma, Spring 2003)

 

Viviana Gordon (Whitman, Fall 2005 and Spring 2006)

 

Peter Kellepourey, President (Hope, Fall 2000)

 

Bryan Kerr (Hanover, Fall 2008)

 

Marisa McClellan (Whitman, Spring 2000) 

 

Josh Merchant, Vice President (Albion, Fall 1995)

 

Thomas Poole (Whitman, Spring 2007)

 

Michele Porterfield, Secretary (Kalamazoo, Fall 1987)

 

Yashika Krutik Shah (Ohio Wesleyan, Spring 2010) 

 

Maeesha Saeed (Earlham, Fall 2010)

 

Scott Travis (Hope, Spring 2005)

 

Staff list

Rosina S. Miller, Executive Director

 

Ilene Baker, Director of Information and Student Affairs 

 

Ruth Bottoms, Office Manager and Director of Alumni Relations

 

Mark Andrew Clark, Faculty Advisor

 

Michael Edmondson, Director of Marketing and Adjunct Faculty

 

Deborah Leibel, Faculty Advisor

 

Madalyn Muncy, Fall 2013 Digital Liberal Arts Reserach Fellow  

 

Emily Nemeth, Marketing and Recruiting Assistant

 

Char Vandermeer, Placement Director 

 

Diana Waters, Faculty Advisor