If You Want to Vote in November, Make Sure You Register in October!
The race is heating up as across the country, everyone is gearing up for the 2016 presidential election. While we are still just about a month away from hitting the polls, it’s important to know that if you want to vote on November 8th, you have to be registered by October 11th to meet the PA voter registration deadline.
As a resident student at the College, you can register to vote under your school address, which is:
Chestnut Hill College
9601 Germantown Ave
Philadelphia, PA 19118
Registration is easy and can be done entirely online by visiting PA Voter Services. Follow the instructions, answer some basic information, and you will be on your way.
You can also register in person by picking up and filling out a form at the local county elections office (address below) or through U.S. mail by sending your completed form (which can be downloaded from the website), to:
Greg Irving, Acting Voter Registration Administrator
520 N Delaware Ave
5th Floor
Philadelphia, PA 19123
As are all elections, this one is too important to stay home, so take the 10 minutes to complete your registration today and then exercise your right to vote on Election Day!
Winning Poster
Andrew Conboy ’18 and Robert Schmidt ’17 of Cabrini University presented a winning poster during the annual Howard Hughes Medical Institute Science Education Alliance Phage Hunters Advancing Genomics and Evolutionary Sciences (HHMI SEA-PHAGES ) Symposium in June.
Their poster presented research from two years of study that is helping the scientific community understand more about viruses that can infect bacteria. It showcased an isolation technique for Arthrobacter phages, a family of viruses known for their involvement in environmental remediation.
The poster was developed during an intercollegiate research course at Cabrini that is sponsored through the Southeastern Pennsylvania Consortium for Higher Education (SEPCHE) and part of HHMI’s internationally recognized SEA PHAGES undergraduate research program, a network of more than 100 institutions whose collective research findings are pushing the field forward with their research discoveries.
Theirs was one of only three posters awarded first place out of more than 90 submitted from around the country.
“This research has been the greatest experience of my undergraduate years thus far,” says Conboy. “It taught me so much about the scientific process of lab research, has brought me to several universities and facilities for presentations and has led to my first scientific publication. And it was incredibly humbling for us to place first among so many intelligent students from around the country.”
CHC and AmazonSmile — the Gift that Keeps on Giving!
Research has shown that the benefits of smiling are numerous as smiling can improve your mood, help reduce stress, make you more creative, increase your productivity, and now, feel good about your online shopping.
When you make your next online shopping run, consider using AmazonSmile and designating Chestnut Hill College as the recipient of 0.5 percent of your total purchase price. Since 2013, Amazon has allowed shoppers to enjoy their products while donating a percentage to their favorite non-profit, and CHC has recently partnered with them.
If you already have an Amazon account (or even if you don’t), signing up is easy! Just visit smile.amazon.com. The one-time process allows you to choose your non-profit (Chestnut Hill College of the Sisters of St. Joseph) and you’ll receive a confirmation email. Follow the link that says “Install Amazon Assistant,” which will take you to AmazonSmile anytime you click on an Amazon link.
So as you continue to shop for back-to-school goods or begin your holiday wish list, consider smiling back at Chestnut Hill College!
Rocking the Vote: Engaging the CHC Community as Faithful Citizens
Various campus groups will sponsor events now through the presidential election on November 8. The goal is to have everyone exercise their voting privilege in an informed way. Voter registration and education about the candidates and the issues will be offered throughout the month. A compilation of events is listed below: 
- 10/9 - Second televised presidential debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump.
- 10/18 - Debate with your Feet (walk and stand on the issues that matter most to you). Event takes place from 7-10 p.m. in Fitzsimmons Lounge and is sponsored by SPSA.
- 10/19 - The College welcomes Sister Connie Trainor from the SSJ Welcome Center to speak on one of the key election issues, immigration. Event takes place from 2:30-3:30 p.m. in the East Parlor and is sponsored by campus ministry.
- 10/19 - Let's Talk Real Talk: An open and comprehensive conversation with Dr. David Contosta and Dr. Jeffrey Carroll on the hot-button election issues. Event takes place at 4 p.m. in the East Parlor.
- 10/24 - Speakers, Julia de la Cruz of Coalition Immokalee and Patricia Capollitti of Fair Food Alliance, will talk on the topic of labor trafficking. Event takes place from 3-4 p.m. in the Redmond Room and is sponsored by campus ministry.
- 10/27 - "Voting as Faithful Citizens: Interfaith Perspectives on Critical Questions." Event takes place from 4-5 p.m. in the East Parlor.
- 11/1 - "Catholic Social Tradition and Campaign Issues in Election 2016," Panel discussion and audience participation. Event takes place from 6-8 p.m. in the East Parlor and is hosted by TAK/SPSA.
- 11/2 - Mock Election/Pez Poll. Event takes place from 11 a.m.-6:30 p.m. outside of the cafeteria.
- 11/8 - The College will be offering transportation to polling places. More information to come.
- 11/8 - Election Night Watch Party. Event takes place starting at 8 p.m. in McCaffery Lounge and is sponsored by SPSA.
Brent H. Benefit Concert
Music Department students and alumni performed and members of Griffins Against Cancer provided baked goods for purchase during the third recital in memory of Brent Hostetter, a music major and percussionist who passed away in December 2014 due to testicular cancer. The event was held October 3 in the Rotunda.
Juvenile Justice
Kevin Bethel ’08 SCPS, former Philadelphia Deputy Commissioner of Police, spoke to juvenile justice classes in late September. According to Sara Ellen Kitchen, J.D., professor of criminal justice, Bethel, currently Senior Policy Advisor and Stoneleigh Foundation Fellow in the Juvenile Justice Research Reform Lab at Drexel University, has been speaking nationally about the issue of juvenile justice.
“Former Commissioner Bethel presented his leadership work in changing the culture of policing in juvenile justice so that law enforcement will not add to the trauma in young people’s lives but interrupt the school-to-prison pipeline,” says Kitchen. “His current work is motivated by his personal and professional ethic of ‘respecting people at the level where they are.’ His example of service and change was an inspiration to my juvenile justice classes.”
Club on the March
Members of CHC's LA Voz Latina club recently marched in Philadelphia's Puerto Rican Day Parade on September 25th.
Quidditch Team Teaches the Game at Franklin Institute
As part of the Franklin Institute's "Science After Hours" program, members of the CHC Quidditch team were on hand to help teach the game during the most recent event, "Wizard School."
"There were probably close to 2,500 people there and they were all really excited to see the demonstration games and to learn how Quidditch is played in the muggle world," says Elena Ramos '16, captain of the CHC Quidditch team. "The team really had a lot of fun."
According to Ramos, the Franklin Institute contacted the team, thanks to all of the press that has been surroung the upcoming Philadelphia Brotherly Love Cup and all of the other Harry Potter themed events happening in town and on campus during the weekend of October 20-22nd. Always wanting to grow the sport especially in the local community, Ramos and her teammates were happy to be a part of the event.
"We had to put teams on a waiting list, the stories are spreading in Europe and Australia and Asia, the coverage is just mind-blowing," says Ramos. "It's exciting though because Quidditch and what we're doing here at CHC with the tournament and the conference, it definitely deserves all of the attention it is getting."
For more information on the upcoming Harry Potter weekend events, please visit our website.
Joan Chittister Speaks to Packed Sorgenti Arena
Joan Chittister, OSB, an advocate for justice, peace and equality spoke to a full house in CHC’s Sorgenti Arena on September 25. The event, “Scarred by Struggle,” was sponsored by CHC’s Institute for Forgiveness & Reconciliation.
Sister Joan has focused her work on the development of contemporary spirituality, a redefinition and renewal of Benedictine life for seekers today and justice for the oppressed and marginalized, especially those in prison. Her column for the National Catholic Reporter is widely acclaimed. She holds a master’s degree from the University of Notre Dame and a Ph.D. in speech communication theory from Penn State University.
