by Ilyssa Weiner

Oswego, NY- Writer and Humanitarian Kevin Powell spoke at SUNY Oswego’s Sheldon Hall Ballroom on Feb. 16 as part of the school’s “I Am Oz” Diversity Speaker Series.

Powell stressed the importance of education and history to his audience. His mother, who only had an eighth grade education, pushed him to do well in school.

“She kept saying to me when I was a child ‘You’re going to go to college. You’re going to go to college. You’re going to go to college,” Powell said.

Powell went to Rutgers University. However, his love for reading and writing came at an early age when his mother took him to the library.

“She allowed me to roam around the library,” he said. “That’s how I ended up falling in love with books and eventually decided as a young person I wanted to be a writer.”

After his time at Rutgers, Powell joined the cast of the very first season of MTV’s The Real World. At the time of taping, he and the rest of the cast had no idea how successful the show was going to be. Because of the show’s success, Powell was able to dig deeper into the world of pop culture.

“I love pop culture,” he said. “I think it’s a useful tool for reaching people and talking about serious issues.”

In 2011, Powell co-founded Building Knowledge (BK) Nation, a progressive non-profit organization focused on civil and human rights. The organization has worked on several racial profiling cases, including the Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown cases, and was also a deep supporter for the recent Women’s March.

Despite being the co-founder of the organization, Powell doesn’t believe in titles beyond that.

“We’re all equals and all our voices matter in the organization and that’s how we operate,” he said.

Powell’s most recent book, The Education of Kevin Powell: A Boy’s Journey Into Manhood, is available on Amazon.

Powell autographed copies of his latest book after his speech was over.

With the Media Summit just one week away, there are many reasons why students and faculty at SUNY Oswego are anticipating this year’s event. The Media Summit will return to the newly renovated Tyler Hall for its twelfth year. The Summit was founded by alumni Lou Borrelli and Al Roker in 2005, to give students the chance to network with professionals in the media industry.

In years past, there was mainly a focus on connecting students with professionals in broadcasting, but this year, that theme is going to change. This year’s theme is “Digital, Social, Mobile: How Media Trends Impact Theater, Art and Music.”The theme strives to bring the Schools of Communication, Media and the Arts together, to broaden the topics the Media Summit covers. With a more unique and diverse panel than ever before, the Media Summit is now an event that appeals to students not only in the School of Communication interested in media, but also the School of the Arts and the Theater department.

The moderator for this year’s Summit is alumni Sean McAllister, Class of 2001. After earning his bachelor’s degree in Journalism, McAllister joined the Fox5 team in 2005 as News Producer. He quickly moved into his role as Executive Producer in which he launched the Emmy nominated show “MORE.”  He has made a name for himself in Las Vegas as an entertainment reporter. While Sean McAllister serves as role-model for students in journalism, the panelists serve as role-models and mentors to students in the fields of music, theater and the arts.

Panelist George Nick Gianopolous, used his passion for classical music to launch his career as a composer. Now, a multi-award winning artist, Gianopolous travels the world, sharing his love for music with others. His passion for music and the arts is mutually shared with fellow panelist Diana Priesler, the star of the Lifetime Television series “Pitch Slapped”.

After Priesler earned her bachelor’s degree in theatre performance and directing at SUNY Oswego, she used her voice to make an impact in the world of acapella music. Priesler is not only featured on her own television show, but she also is a member of an acapella band Blue Jupiter. When she isn’t using her talent on television or in her band, she hosts “SingStrong,” an international music charity event.

Third panelist Mya Brown also shares a background with Diana Priesler in theater. Brown is an actor, director/playwright and current visiting assistant professor in acting/directing and voice/diction here at SUNY Oswego. She is using her experience and expertise from performing in over 30 regional and national productions to reach the students in theater and music. Her passion for theater and the arts is not the only thing that keeps her going, but her love for technology and incorporating the use of it into theater is something that inspires her to match the advances with technology to theater.

The final panelist for this year’s Summit is former marketing and communications coordinator for SUNY Oswego’s Department of Campus Life, Michael Yoon. During his time at Oswego, Yoon also earned his Bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design. With the skills he developed, Yoon found his passion for working with print and design. After graduation, Yoon moved on to become the communication manager for University Services at Princeton University.

This year’s Media Summit is devoted to including all schools that make up SCMA. The decision to involve all the schools was suggested by Dean Julie Pretzat, to unite all students from the schools at one of the biggest events on campus, the Media Summit. Co-event director Kalie Hudson describes the panelists for this year’s event as being heavily entertainment based, but is hopeful the discussion is something that will engage everyone in communications, music, theatre and art and will be a discussion all can find interest in.

While inclusion of theater and the arts was essential in choosing this year’s panelists, the goal was to have communication remain at the heart of the event. Although the panelists are from different fields, there are overlapping interests in the fields of communication, media and the arts, so the decision to include all three schools was not a difficult decision at all as Hudson states.

The theme of this year’s event, “Digital, Social, Media”, is something that affects all students whether it is in the School of Communication or the School of the Arts; it is a discussion that can engage all students and a discussion in which all students can take something away from and apply it to their own field.

On October 27 at 3:00pm, all students are invited to gather in the Waterman Theater in Tyler Hall for a discussion with current professionals in the fields of communication, the arts, theater, and music. Each panelist has made a name for his/herself in their chosen fields and are prime examples of what students can achieve beyond graduation from SUNY Oswego.