Throughout this semester, I have learned so much through my class readings, lectures, and blog posts in varying topics, such as the importance of copyright, some fun web design tools, and even about screencasting! I am very proud of all the hard work I have put into this class, and I hope you, my audience, have found my work has paid off to provide you with an comprehensive resource to learn more about Rutgers sorority life.

This class definitely taught me the importance of making sure to schedule each aspect of a larger project, and really use varying sources to create a comprehensive final product. I have always prided myself on my time management skills, although that coupled with the layout of the class, meaning breaking down each segment of our projects by week, really allowed me to flourish by planning out detailed aspects to my projects-such as interviews with key sources, or detailed videos.

My favorite part of this class and definitely the most memorable “takeaway” from the course would have to be creating my screencasting video demonstrating to my audience about the varying benefits of joining Rutgers University Panhellenic women, as well as how to register for Spring 2019 recruitment. I was very proud of all of the work I put into this project in order to keep my audience engaged, and well-informed. I made sure to perfect my script, create a cohesive Powerpoint, and then perfectly time and cast the video for the final product. I found that creating this video was quite fun for me to design and edit, and I know I have gained an invaluable tool to be able to screencast and provide videos or tutorials for future endeavors. I hope you all enjoyed the video and found it informative, as well as inspiring you to get involved with Rutgers Panhellenic today.

My second favorite part of this class had to be this experience of creating and updating my very own website, and even better, I felt so excited that I was able to create this informative resource for the Panhellenic community and give back to an organization that has given me so much throughout my college years. When first deciding what I wanted to dedicate my website to, I was trying to think of what had really inspired me at Rutgers, and all of the amazing women I have met through my chapter, as well as the opportunities the Panhellenic community has provided me, gave me that clear answer.  Creating this website has added to my journalistic portfolio, and I am very proud of all of the content I have cultivated here. I hope you have enjoyed this journey as much as I have, and signing off on my very last blog post, thank you for your support!

Found on Know Your Meme, the above meme ( https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/facebook-privacy-notices)  relates to the topic of privacy online as discussed in class. After reading Nissenbaum’s work, “Privacy as Contextual Integrity,” I realized in a perfect world we would all have a much more online guarded presence, but sadly that is not the case. I think most of us realize that posting online either pictures or status updates about ourselves, is simply surrendering or compromising that information to be stored forever on the Internet, and filed away on whichever platform we may use.

This meme is poking fun at the fact updating your Facebook status will not protect your personal information from being hacked, stored, or even used against you-which would be considered the concept of the meme, or the ideal. The behavior of this meme is the picture was manipulated using software online to edit the captions onto the photo, and though it may have originated by a single individual, the Know Your Meme database ie helping to categorize, and help spread the meme all over the Internet as friends share, repost, etc. Lastly, the manifestation of this image, the observable quality, is a photograph, or screenshot, of a famous actor delivering a line from a movie, although the photo is accompanied with a caption to convey the new, “meme-ified” message to the audience.

This can appeal to my target audiences because I feel that millennials and college-age women would appreciate this witty way of poking fun at the attempt to protect your privacy on Facebook. My site is targeted toward younger women, normally active users of social media, who would understand the futility of attempting to maintain your privacy online, and would appreciate how this meme pokes fun at that concept.

I actually created the above meme using the app on my Iphone, MemeGenerator, so finding the above image online, and then captioning the photo myself would be considered the behavior, or the actions I took to create the above final product. This meme concept is quite popular and so I did not come up with the original intent or drawing, I know my meme or any similar concept would spread online via friends sending the meme to one another, or through social media sites.

The ideal of this meme, or overall concept, is supposed to be making fun of the stereotype that most sorority bigs and littles are so in love with one another, and often will excessively emphasize to anyone who will listen how close the two are. As a Panhellenic woman, I do find this quite comical because there is an underlying truth, at least within my own chapter, about how much sorority women love to talk about how close their sorority families are.

The manifestation of this image is the “happy derp face” taken from the app Meme Generator, with my own creative caption poking fun at how expressive sorority women can be. I think this manifestation perfectly aligns with my target audience, young women looking to join the Panhellenic community, and deals with one of the stereotypes about sorority women. Learning to laugh at and even embrace this notion will help my audience to more closely identify with the Panhellenic community. This meme will help them to learn from a cultural perspective more about how sororities may be perceived.

I also created the above meme using the app, Meme Generator, which helped me to locate the infamous meme image, entitled “All the Things,” and then I created my own sorority-specific captioning to accompany the image-these actions I took would be considered the behavior to make this final product. Once again this is a very popular meme although I wanted to convey my own specific caption, and so I believe this would spread mostly through friends messages, and perhaps posted on a platform like Facebook.

The ideal of this meme is once again mocking the enthusiastic and over-the-top stereotype associated with most sororities on a college campus, especially the hype surrounding a sorority’s bid day, or the large campus event welcoming new members to the chapter. I think this manifestation of the popular excited drawing, matched with the caption, perfectly targets my audience. Once again it is addressing a common stereotype about Panhellenic women which helps to educate my audience so they are approaching recruitment with a well-rounded view of how society and culture perceives sororities to be like.

Thank you!

Above you will find a link to my first podcast, CapsChat!, which aims to educate audiences about the free mental health services available to Rutgers Students through CAPS, or Counseling, Alcohol & Other Drug Assistance Program and Psychiatric Services. My goal is to help spark the conversation about mental health, and break down the barriers still surrounding seeking help for yourself. Specifically focusing on CAPS ADAP, or their Alcohol, and Other Drug Assistance program, this podcast urges audiences to put their mental health first. For more information, please visit the CAPS website at health.rutgers.edu/. (Counseling Services-Student Health. (n.d). Retrieved November 27, 2018 http://health.rutgers.edu/medical-counseling-services/).

The image displayed, entitled “Science Abstract Biology Cerebrum Icon Brain Star,” is licensed under Creative Commons Zero-CC0 found on Max Pixel.

This podcast begins with a public service announcement crated in collaboration with my wonderful group members, Molly, Julianna, Keith, and Simon, all who are also linked with their own websites  below as well-feel free to have a look! I was also able to interview administrative assistant for CAPS, Victoria Herman, who helped to highlight why it is important to value your own mental health, as well as promoted their services, which I also discuss on the podcast. Lastly, I was able to sit down with Manohar Tripathi, a Rutgers student who is currently undergoing therapy at CAPs, specifically for their ADAP services. Manohar was able to divulge details about his own journey to recovery navigated by CAPS, as well as how therapy has changed his life.

Please feel free to listen to the PSA played at the beginning of the podcast again by clicking the following link, https://soundcloud.com/keith-dinkl/caps-psa-keith-marissa-molly-simon-julianna.

To visit any of my partner’s websites who helped me work on the PSA, they are also listed below and feature varying, engaging, and informative topics-check them out!

Simon Chuo: autosafrecwordpress.com

Julianna De Sousa: Music for Queers: https://forgays.music.blog
Keith Dinkl: Venting to Strangers: venttostrangers.wordpress.com
Molly Bachman: MakeupbyMe: makeupbyme.wordpress.com
This Podcast is supplemented with background music provided by the Free Music Archive, created by the artist, DEE Yan Key, and entitled “Goodbye”-http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Dee_Yan-Key/years_and_years_ago/Dee_Yan-Key_-_12_-_Good_Bye.

Works Referenced:

“NAMI: National Alliance on Mental Illness” Retrieved November 27, 2018. http://www.nami.org/

MentalHelp.Net, “Mental Help On College Campuses,” Retrieved November 27, 2018.  https://www.mentalhelp.net/aware/mental-health-on-campus/

Thank you!

Above you will see a link to the following PSA, which is encouraging Rutgers students to contact CAPS for any of their mental health needs. Though CAPS offers numerous services for students, I decided I will be creating a podcast which will delve into the Alcohol and other Drug Assistance program.

     I felt compelled to choose this facet of the CAPS program because it aligns with the culture and issue of under-age drinking, and binge-drinking that may often be promoted by Greek-life or the panhellenic community here at Rutgers. My website, RUGreek, aims to educate students and their families about the benefits and positive effects of joining one of the Panhellenic organizations at Rutgers, and though I have never personally felt peer-pressured or coerced into participating in something I did not feel comfortable with, hazing and the culture of binge-drinking is an issue that many Greek-life and sorority members deal with across the country.  My aim is that my future podcast will be able to educate students to recognize the signs if their peers may be struggling with drugs or alcohol, and how they would be able to find help. 

Below I have created a screencast video to teach my audience about all of the active Panhellenic chapters currently on campus at Rutgers University-New Brunswick, as well as show my audience how to register for sorority recruitment! My video covers all topics from defining what a sorority is, what chapters are available, resources you may utilize to compare and contrast the chapters, the benefits of joining a sorority, and how to begin the process of getting involved.

My video is perfect for those interested in joining a sorority on campus, or as an informational tool for parents and families to learn more about the organizations offered. As a first-year student, I was overwhelmed with the process of finding my forever home, and I wish I had a resource such as this to educate myself more, as well as explain to my family what exactly I was attempting to join.

In my video above, you will notice I used several images and a video to show my audience about what their potential sisterhood could look like.

One of the images displayed of the Rutgers hedge is actually by Tom W Sulcer, licensed under CC0 Universal Public Domain Dedication ((https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi…).   The image was layered with other pre-approved photos, such as the image displaying Delta Gamma sorority girls showcasing their signature hand gesture. This is by Roanoke College, uploaded by Albert Herring, and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic License ((https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Fi…)

The image of the Phi Mu sorority girls smiling in pink t-shirts is also by Roanoke College, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/26254305@N08/6731893681).  The image displaying the Alpha Gamma Delta chapter and their letters, is by Erik Drost, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (https://www.flickr.com/photos/edrost88/8084400898/in/photolist-bMKMfH-8LxgAn-CiGpQ1-dqtmSq-78Kof-5AFdjH-djoEJo-bMKG6P-aqJQpp-nvVyKQ-231fNhG-22kBE67-JtrPwV-nxRGLn).

Also, the brief segment of the video I had included to showcase some Panhellenic women is currently featured on the Rutgers OFSA youtube channel, and can be found at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-eGzj5TwMo.

I expect users to find my video while they are on Youtube researching about sorority life in general, or more specifically looking up information about Rutgers Greek life. I expect the audience who stumbles upon my video would be very similar to myself because according to Wolf’s article “DIY Videos on YouTube: Identity and possibility in the age of algorithms,” “homophily plays a role in how individuals assess the credibility and utility of user-generated content.” Basically, this would mean users would assess if they could relate to my concept, sorority recruitment, and perceive that I am knowledgable and similar enough to themselves to able to help them, without coming across as intimidating. Also due to personalized algorithms for each user even though “many individuals are unaware that their online experiences are algorithmically curated,” my audience may believe they found my video themselves, but they actually may have subtly been suggested the video to watch. I believe my audience will find my video worth watching because videos allow “participants to configure who they are, who they might be, and who they want to be,” and my video is perfect to allow individuals to learn about Panhellenic chapters, imagine themselves in that role of a sorority sister, and then  register!

The header image conveys that my website is going to be introducing and explaining information about the varying sororities and all of Panhellenic greek life present here at Rutgers University. I knew it was important to maintain the image of the Rutgers hedge because this website is catering to an audience interested in joining an prestigious organization of women specifically located here at Rutgers University-New Brunswick, but I also wanted to be able to actually showcase these women as well. By including an iconic image of the Rutgers logo, as well as displaying a select few of the organizations I will be discussing, immediately from my header photo my audience is aware that I will be posting about the benefits of becoming a Panhellenic woman at Rutgers.

By utilizing the Creative Commons outlets, such as Flickr and WikiMedia Commons, I know that I am utilizing and displaying licensed, pre-approved photos, and also through  crediting them, I am able to properly reuse them.  The first image displayed of the Rutgers hedge is actually by Tom W Sulcer, licensed under CC0 Universal Public Domain Dedication (). The image was layered with other pre-approved photos.

The farthest right image, displaying Delta Gamma sorority girls showcasing their signature hand gesture, is by Roanoke College, uploaded by Albert Herring, and licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic License (). I slightly cropped and blurred the edges of the image. The image in the center, of the Phi Mu sorority, is also by Roanoke College, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 (https://www.flickr.com/photos/26254305@N08/6731893681). I edited the image by cropping it and blurring the background slightly.  Lastly, the image on the far left, displaying the Alpha Gamma Delta chapter and their letters, is by Erik Drost, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (https://www.flickr.com/photos/edrost88/8084400898/in/photolist-bMKMfH-8LxgAn-CiGpQ1-dqtmSq-78Kof-5AFdjH-djoEJo-bMKG6P-aqJQpp-nvVyKQ-231fNhG-22kBE67-JtrPwV-nxRGLn). The image was also cropped, and I blurred the background.

One of the first techniques I had to learn how to use, also discussed by Manovich, was how to layer my images. I utilized several different layers, since I had four photos to edit and work with, so having four different layers simultaneously open allowed me to “work on one element of an image without disturbing the others,” to quote Photoshop Help. As Manovich discusses, this layering option greatly helps the photo editor, in this case myself, since I was able to “work with a collection of separate elements. She can play with these elements, deleting, creating, importing and modifying them, until she is satisfied with the final composition,” according to Manovich. At first I was overwhelmed with attempting to crop and blur three separate images while also maintaining the Rutgers logo, but having four distinct layers greatly helped me to organize my work. Also, briefly discussed by Manovich, was my use of the blur effect, which he quotes as being essential to any “image editing program.” I knew that when working on my final header image, I wanted to include a few pictures of organizations while also maintaining the background of the Rutgers hedge, and so I think the blurred option, allowed all images to shine through. Manovich also discussed the use of the wave option, which unfortunately I did not get to utilize, although as he stated, it seems in the future I may be able to use this option if I ever need such an “abstract pattern,” according to Manovich.

Immediately, I think the biggest difference between Davison’s single-layer bitmap image and my multi-layered photoshopped image has to be that Davison’s software normally only produces “rough irregular curves that make it easy to see the jagged line quality of images produced with MS Paint,” according to Davison, while Photoshop allowed me to produce a much more pleasing, smoother display to see. As seen in my image, Photoshop allowed me to produce a rather smooth and clean overall image that easily flowed, while in Davison’s discussion of the “Rage Guy” meme, he dissects the reasons why the image appears so much rougher. Bitmaps allow you to depict “visible traces of technique and devices unique to digital computers,” according to Davison, while the overall purpose of Photoshop, if done at the expert level and not really displayed in my image, is to have photo that appears cohesive and hardly altered. Overall, the production process utilizing a bitmap seems more like an outdated, and basic version of creating your image, as Davison tells us the “recognizably rough visual character of images produced with MS Paint is not general or arbitrary, but rather a specific consequence of the way in which the program defines digital images and the tools it provides to interact with them,”  and so if that is the look you are aiming for, by all means, utilize MS paint and single-layer bitmaps, although in my production experience to create a clean and aesthetically pleasing image such as my header, I would stick with Photoshop.

With 13 different Panhellenic-recognized sororities on campus at Rutgers University-New Brunswick, it can be overwhelming to try to find the perfect fit, and your new home. As a member of any one of Rutgers’ fine organizations, you will find lasting friendships, academic excellence, and the highest qualities of character exemplified through our student leaders. As you attempt to navigate through all of the different, active chapters and learn about which organization you feel could be a potential fit, RUGreek, is here to help you be able to find your new home not just for four years, but for life. 

As a member of the Greek Community, a past leader in my chapter, Delta Gamma, as well as a current resident in my sorority house, I have been able to observe and participate in multiple Greek life events on campus. I would love nothing more than to be able to pass this knowledge along to my fellow peers, in hopes they may find an experience as enriching and fulfilling as the one I have had. My intended audience for this website are all those women who are very similar to myself freshmen year. When I first stepped foot on campus, I was unsure of myself and intimidated by such a large university. When I first thought about becoming a member of the Greek community, I wasn’t sure how to approach this process. What does it meant to be a part of Greek life? How would I explain this to my parents? What chapters are even on campus and would align with my values? RUGreek is intended for any Rutgers student beginning their journey of trying to understand what Panhellenic Greek life truly is here at the University, as well as an interactive and informative website for students or parents to easily navigate and educate themselves. RUGreek is meant to answer questions for students and parents beyond just what one can observe on member’s social media. The commitment you make is for life and this website aims to help you make an informed choice.

After reading “What is Creative Commons,” I had a deeper understanding and appreciation for the system helping me to locate images and these sources of creativity  to aid my website, through their free legal tools. Both of images pictured above were obtained using this free nonprofit organization that helps to “provide a simple. standardized way to give the public permission to share and use creative work.” My header image is actually entitled “Rutgers University College Avenue Campus hedge spelling out Rutgers in Green” by Tom W Sulcer, licensed under CC0 Universal Public Domain Dedication ().  The picture included in this blog post is entitled “Murray State University” by Murray State licensed by CC Attribution 2.0 Generic license ()