AUBURN - An iPod commercial inspired Stefan Nguyen to write his Cayuga Reads essay on Malcolm Gladwell's book “The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference.”
Jason Rearick / The Citizen
The winners of the Cayuga Reads essay contest are, top row: Stefan Nguyen, first place; Miranda Coll, second place; Sean Hogan, third place; Matt Hoey, honorable mention. The winners of the Cayuga Reads poetry contest are, bottom row: Michael Liccion, first place; Kristen Izzo, second place; Eric Bushnell, third place; Erin Savino, honorable mention. The contest consisted of students writing a poetry or essay response to the book “The Tipping Point,” which is this year's choice for the community reading project.
The winners of the Cayuga Reads essay contest are, top row: Stefan Nguyen, first place; Miranda Coll, second place; Sean Hogan, third place; Matt Hoey, honorable mention. The winners of the Cayuga Reads poetry contest are, bottom row: Michael Liccion, first place; Kristen Izzo, second place; Eric Bushnell, third place; Erin Savino, honorable mention. The contest consisted of students writing a poetry or essay response to the book “The Tipping Point,” which is this year's choice for the community reading project.
“I remembered a few years back when iPod first came out,” said the 17-year-old from Auburn, a senior at Auburn High School. “Now they are everywhere so I thought it was a good thing to write about.”
Nguyen is enrolled in Auburn High School teacher Diana Jacob's Cayuga Community College introductory English class at the high school. Jacobs - as well as her fellow high school and CCC English teacher Deborah Rielly - assigned her CCC students to participate in the essay and poem contest. Jacobs assigned the essay; Rielly assigned the poem.
Nguyen got to work one Sunday in September with Sunday night football in the background.
Just last week, Nguyen discovered that he won first prize in the Cayuga Reads essay contest, and will be honored - along with Miranda Coll, second place; Sean Hogan, third place, and Matt Hoey, honorable mention; and poetry contest winners Mike Liccion, first place; Kristen Izzo, second place; Eric Bushnell, third place, and Erin Savino, honorable mention - at a reception Wednesday, Oct. 24, at Seymour Library.
Cayuga Reads is a community reading program in the Auburn area in which people - students, educators and members of the community - are connected in discussion by reading one book at the same time.
“We want people to come together, people from all backgrounds and all walks of life to get together for discussion,” said Carolyn Hirst-Loucks, Auburn Enlarged City School District assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction and Cayuga Reads committee member. “That's why it's so great to have the students participate. It brings a whole different perspective that we might not be aware of.”
“The Tipping Point” is this year's choice, which applies the epidemiology idea that small changes will have little effect on a system until it spreads to a larger mass to epidemics in the social arena. Gladwell traces the spread of social phenomena using the same logic to the contagion of viruses.
Many of the essay and poetry contest winners used their white page to delineate tipping points they have encountered in their own lives.
Hoey, a wide receiver and safety on the Auburn High School varsity football team, chronicled the growing public support after the team won the first playoff game last season in his essay.
Hogan wrote his essay on the storm for Under Armour #) clothing typically worn underneath a sports uniform - on the athletic field.
“The extremely successful epidemic started with the smallest thought to enhance an individual's performance on the football field,” wrote the 17-year-old from Auburn. “It was a mixture of situation and timing that carved the path of this outbreak. Athletes were in need of a change in sports apparel that was both stylish and comfortable.”
He pointed to the advent of Under Armour by an athlete playing for University of Maryland. There are 300 Under Armour products today that culminate in $200 million in sales.
Hogan said that he watched a TV show that delved into Under Armour's beginnings. At that point, Hogan realized that he had several articles of Under Armour.
“It just set my writing off,” he said.
Coll tried something different in her essay, dealing with the idea that unity is easier established in smaller groups. As a recent enrollee in the Auburn School District, she used her experience as a Union Springs High School student #) a school with small enrollment - to contrast that of Auburn. In her analysis, she argued that there was greater unity in Union Springs than in Auburn because of the closeness and community that can be established in smaller schools.
Coll based her essay of Gladwell's “Rule of 150,” the idea in which the size of a group of people can affect the course and direction of a social epidemic. Gladwell suggests that small groups can manage social epidemics easier than larger groups as rules and regulations become obligatory for control.
“I just came across something in the reading I could identify with,” she said.
Michael Liccion, 17, of Auburn never considered himself a poet until his first place win in this year's contest.
“I've never really been good at poetry so I'm really surprised about that,” he said.
His 20 line, five verse, free verse poem expanded upon Gladwell's concept that three groups of people #) the Connectors, Mavens and Salesmen - encourage and create a tipping point.
“Connectors, Mavens, and Salesmen/All having a key role in the tipping point/Their ideas affect the thoughts and people around them/Changing the face of time,” he wrote.
Both Liccion and third place poetry winner Eric Bushnell pointed to this win as a confidence builder that can transcend poetry.
“It will give us more faith in ourselves,” said Bushnell, 17, of Auburn, “because we know that we can do well.”
Hirst-Loucks said definitively that the essay and poetry contests are here to stay, though she is looking to get adults involved.
Next year, she will be targeting adult writing groups and organizations to get their perspectives in the next book selection.
Staff writer Alyssa Sunkin can be reached at alyssa.sunkin@lee.net or 253-5311 ext. 239
First place
By Sean Nguyen
12th grader Auburn High School
Running down the street and the music ... is ... skipping. Doesn't it get ... annoying when that ... happens? Those were the old days when those bulky CD players were everywhere. If someone was down at the park going for a jog, you could almost guarantee they were listening to their CD player and it was almost a given that they were having the same problem with skipping music. A few years ago this all began to change. A revolutionary new device came into the market and it was known as the iPod. This handy little mp3 player changed the way music was listened to. Small enough to fit in your pocket and powerful enough to carry up to 30,000 songs, the iPod became the new rage for portable music players. How did this new trend, which we all know has come here to stay, start out?
People were looking for a cheap, convenient alternative to the conventional CD player. The skipping of the music became such an annoyance that people were ready to try anything. A starting feature of the iPod was its great complicated simplicity. It was such a plain looking item that had so many functions such as the ability to play video and simple games along with its music capabilities. Its affordability was also a great determining factor in the tipping of the iPod phenomenon. As more and more people bought into the technology, it grew. Newer generations of the iPod came in different vibrant colors still maintaining its simple image and amazing power within. Now iPods come in all different shapes and sizes. There are the smallest ones without a screen that just clip to your shirt and there are the small ones with screens that fit in the palm of your hand. Apple has kept its original “big” iPod, though with a few tweaks, it remains mainly the same.
I lived through one of the bigger tipping points of the modern era. All it took were some fed-up people that were willing to buy a new quirky piece of machinery that could replace bulky old CD players. The timing was great, the price was right and the people were able and willing to buy this new product. Now look anywhere, especially on your jog through the park. Everyone has an iPod in their ears while they are skipping to their music ... not having their music skip to them.
First place
By Michael Liccion
12th grader Auburn High School
A tipping point,
A mysterious thing
How a change so small
Can cause something so big
It occurs like the snap of a finger
Bringing about a new epidemic
Ranging from a trendy pair of shoes
To a drug spreading like wildfire
Connectors, Mavens, and Salesmen
All having a key role in the tipping point
Their ideas affect the thoughts and people around them
Changing the face of time
Connectors, connoisseurs of social cliques
Mavens, masters of mass knowledge
And salesmen, selling their ideas to everyone they can
This is the Law of the Few
These three kinds of people
Affecting the world around us
Without them, we could have what we call
A tipping point
Nguyen is enrolled in Auburn High School teacher Diana Jacob's Cayuga Community College introductory English class at the high school. Jacobs - as well as her fellow high school and CCC English teacher Deborah Rielly - assigned her CCC students to participate in the essay and poem contest. Jacobs assigned the essay; Rielly assigned the poem.
Nguyen got to work one Sunday in September with Sunday night football in the background.
Just last week, Nguyen discovered that he won first prize in the Cayuga Reads essay contest, and will be honored - along with Miranda Coll, second place; Sean Hogan, third place, and Matt Hoey, honorable mention; and poetry contest winners Mike Liccion, first place; Kristen Izzo, second place; Eric Bushnell, third place, and Erin Savino, honorable mention - at a reception Wednesday, Oct. 24, at Seymour Library.
Cayuga Reads is a community reading program in the Auburn area in which people - students, educators and members of the community - are connected in discussion by reading one book at the same time.
“We want people to come together, people from all backgrounds and all walks of life to get together for discussion,” said Carolyn Hirst-Loucks, Auburn Enlarged City School District assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction and Cayuga Reads committee member. “That's why it's so great to have the students participate. It brings a whole different perspective that we might not be aware of.”
“The Tipping Point” is this year's choice, which applies the epidemiology idea that small changes will have little effect on a system until it spreads to a larger mass to epidemics in the social arena. Gladwell traces the spread of social phenomena using the same logic to the contagion of viruses.
Many of the essay and poetry contest winners used their white page to delineate tipping points they have encountered in their own lives.
Hoey, a wide receiver and safety on the Auburn High School varsity football team, chronicled the growing public support after the team won the first playoff game last season in his essay.
Hogan wrote his essay on the storm for Under Armour #) clothing typically worn underneath a sports uniform - on the athletic field.
“The extremely successful epidemic started with the smallest thought to enhance an individual's performance on the football field,” wrote the 17-year-old from Auburn. “It was a mixture of situation and timing that carved the path of this outbreak. Athletes were in need of a change in sports apparel that was both stylish and comfortable.”
He pointed to the advent of Under Armour by an athlete playing for University of Maryland. There are 300 Under Armour products today that culminate in $200 million in sales.
Hogan said that he watched a TV show that delved into Under Armour's beginnings. At that point, Hogan realized that he had several articles of Under Armour.
“It just set my writing off,” he said.
Coll tried something different in her essay, dealing with the idea that unity is easier established in smaller groups. As a recent enrollee in the Auburn School District, she used her experience as a Union Springs High School student #) a school with small enrollment - to contrast that of Auburn. In her analysis, she argued that there was greater unity in Union Springs than in Auburn because of the closeness and community that can be established in smaller schools.
Coll based her essay of Gladwell's “Rule of 150,” the idea in which the size of a group of people can affect the course and direction of a social epidemic. Gladwell suggests that small groups can manage social epidemics easier than larger groups as rules and regulations become obligatory for control.
“I just came across something in the reading I could identify with,” she said.
Michael Liccion, 17, of Auburn never considered himself a poet until his first place win in this year's contest.
“I've never really been good at poetry so I'm really surprised about that,” he said.
His 20 line, five verse, free verse poem expanded upon Gladwell's concept that three groups of people #) the Connectors, Mavens and Salesmen - encourage and create a tipping point.
“Connectors, Mavens, and Salesmen/All having a key role in the tipping point/Their ideas affect the thoughts and people around them/Changing the face of time,” he wrote.
Both Liccion and third place poetry winner Eric Bushnell pointed to this win as a confidence builder that can transcend poetry.
“It will give us more faith in ourselves,” said Bushnell, 17, of Auburn, “because we know that we can do well.”
Hirst-Loucks said definitively that the essay and poetry contests are here to stay, though she is looking to get adults involved.
Next year, she will be targeting adult writing groups and organizations to get their perspectives in the next book selection.
Staff writer Alyssa Sunkin can be reached at alyssa.sunkin@lee.net or 253-5311 ext. 239
First place
By Sean Nguyen
12th grader Auburn High School
Running down the street and the music ... is ... skipping. Doesn't it get ... annoying when that ... happens? Those were the old days when those bulky CD players were everywhere. If someone was down at the park going for a jog, you could almost guarantee they were listening to their CD player and it was almost a given that they were having the same problem with skipping music. A few years ago this all began to change. A revolutionary new device came into the market and it was known as the iPod. This handy little mp3 player changed the way music was listened to. Small enough to fit in your pocket and powerful enough to carry up to 30,000 songs, the iPod became the new rage for portable music players. How did this new trend, which we all know has come here to stay, start out?
People were looking for a cheap, convenient alternative to the conventional CD player. The skipping of the music became such an annoyance that people were ready to try anything. A starting feature of the iPod was its great complicated simplicity. It was such a plain looking item that had so many functions such as the ability to play video and simple games along with its music capabilities. Its affordability was also a great determining factor in the tipping of the iPod phenomenon. As more and more people bought into the technology, it grew. Newer generations of the iPod came in different vibrant colors still maintaining its simple image and amazing power within. Now iPods come in all different shapes and sizes. There are the smallest ones without a screen that just clip to your shirt and there are the small ones with screens that fit in the palm of your hand. Apple has kept its original “big” iPod, though with a few tweaks, it remains mainly the same.
I lived through one of the bigger tipping points of the modern era. All it took were some fed-up people that were willing to buy a new quirky piece of machinery that could replace bulky old CD players. The timing was great, the price was right and the people were able and willing to buy this new product. Now look anywhere, especially on your jog through the park. Everyone has an iPod in their ears while they are skipping to their music ... not having their music skip to them.
First place
By Michael Liccion
12th grader Auburn High School
A tipping point,
A mysterious thing
How a change so small
Can cause something so big
It occurs like the snap of a finger
Bringing about a new epidemic
Ranging from a trendy pair of shoes
To a drug spreading like wildfire
Connectors, Mavens, and Salesmen
All having a key role in the tipping point
Their ideas affect the thoughts and people around them
Changing the face of time
Connectors, connoisseurs of social cliques
Mavens, masters of mass knowledge
And salesmen, selling their ideas to everyone they can
This is the Law of the Few
These three kinds of people
Affecting the world around us
Without them, we could have what we call
A tipping point
