IN THIS ISSUE WOMEN IN STEM MAIL-IN VOTING HALLOWEEN SPOOKY PLAYLIST HOW TO DEAL WITH A MESSY ROOMMATE MASKED OCTOBER 2020 Volume 3 | Issue 2 ISSUE CONTRIBUTORS EDITOR’S STATEMENT Jennifer Serrano | What’s It Like Being Happy Spooky Season from INKED! This A Female STEM Student? month’s theme, Masked, is represented Kelleigh Stevenson | Mail-In Voting: throughout the issue in so many ways. Just What Do PSH Students Think? take a look at Shaina Maclaren’s story “Mas- Chris Sebastian | Temperature Drops... querade,” a magical short story that keeps COVID Rises? you intrigued until the very end. Looking Cailey Greenwald | How To Still for something spookier? How about my own Celebrate Halloween story “How to Still Celebrate Halloween” Cayla Garman | Messy Roommate Yes, you can still safely celebrate Halloween during COVID-19. Shaina Maclaren | Masquerade Speaking of COVID-19, have you ever Emily Dempsey | Post-Pandemic Account wondered what life will be like after the pan- of a Masked Market demic is over? Emily Dempsey’s poem will give you a fascinating insight into how our world may change once we have a vaccine. ISSUE PHOTOGRAPHERS Cailey Greenwald Halloween isn’t the only big event com- Managing Editor ing up, however. Election season, anyone? Julia Slezak | Brad Shover With mail-in voting becoming more popular this year due to the coronavirus, we Kristina Rezkalla | Devon Linville decided to see how our students felt about this issue. Check out our Inside PSH section to find out what Kelleigh Stevenson discovered. INKED STUDENT STAFF Thank you for reading our issue. We at INKED hope everyone stays safe and enjoys the upcoming holiday season. If you haven’t followed us on Instagram yet, Managing Editor | Cailey Greenwald follow us @inkedpsh_. Tell us which stories you liked best! Art Director | Devon Linville Photography Editor | Julia Slezak We are calling for new staff members and submissions! INKED accepts stories, Promotions Director | Lauren Lopatic poetry, artwork, comics, and photographs. Get published in our paper and add it Advertising Specialist | Kaylee Fuller to your portfolio! Story Content Editor | Kelleigh Stevenson We are also looking to add writers, reporters, editors, photographers, artists, and promotional assistants to our staff. Get real-time experience and earn college SCHOOL OF HUMANITIES credit for accepting a significant role. Catherine A. McCormick INKED is published by the Penn State Harrisburg School of Humanities. Faculty Media Coordinator For information on contributing or advertising, contact Denise Saunders, Denise Saunders Communications Program Assistant at [email protected] or 717-948-6596. Communications Program Assistant Opinions expressed are not necessarily shared by the college or the editors. ADVISORY COUNCIL Jadrian J. Klinger, President PA Interactive LLC, UX Content Strategist Click here to go to the Media Insti- Amy Peiffer tute website, where you can listen to Penn State Health, Social Media Mkt. Specialist MIXED, the PSH School of Humanities Justus Humphrey, M.F.A podcast, and stay up to date with the Assistant Teaching Professor of English latest issue of INKED. Denise Saunders The next episode of MIXED drops on Communications Program Assistant October 12th. Broadcast Media Specialist Make sure to follow INKED and MIXED COVER PHOTO on Instagram to keep up with the latest news at Penn State Harrisburg! Brad Shover, 2020 2 SCIENCE BYTES WHAT’S IT LIKE BEING A FEMALE STEM STUDENT? By Jennifer Serrano students. In her engi- many disadvantages. She cause she plans on hav- her with a male worker neering lab, only three does feel that she will be ing a family one day and that does not have to take The STEM (science, out of thirteen students discriminated against will need time off to take care of kids. She hopes technology, engineering, are females. She says she when she is out in the care of her kids. She feels that this does not happen and mathematics) field gets very happy when she actual field. Mikhail be- that they will discrim- to her because she wants is mostly dominated by sees other females in the lieves that she will prob- inate against her while to be a female that works males. Per 2018 data classes, so she doesn’t ably have issues with she is gone taking care and can have a family at from the National Sci- feel alone. future male workers be- of her family and replace the same time. ence Foundation, women Mikhail’s typical day make up half of the total as an engineering major U.S. college-educated is very busy. Tuesday’s workforce but only 28% are her long days. She of the science and engi- is on campus by 8 a.m. neering workforce. for her 4-hour engineer- Trisa Mikhail (pic- ing lab class, has a short tured right) is a 21-year- lunch, and then goes to old civil engineering class again at 1 p.m. until major at Penn State Har- 7:15 p.m. with only little risburg. Originally, she breaks in between. enrolled into Penn State Since engineering Harrisburg as a biology is mostly a male-domi- major, but then after the nated career, Mikhail’s first semester changed parents were very upset to civil engineering. A upon hearing about their civil engineer is formal- daughter going into this ly described as one who major. “I was born and designs, constructs, and raised in Egypt,” Mikhail maintains large public says. “In Egypt they think works, especially those this degree is meant for relating to social infra- a guy, not a girl. Most of structure such as bridges, the work is outdoor and railways, tunnels, dams, you have to walk around airports, power stations, carrying things.” Moving and more. Mikhail’s love to the United States a lit- for engineering began tle over seven years ago, when she took an ar- she saw other females do- chitecture class in high ing STEM majors, and it school. “I didn’t feel made her think she could like bio was my thing,” do it too. “I really like Mikhail says. “I am the math, I don’t really like kind of person that likes office jobs, and I would to understand the pro- like to be out moving cess more than to mem- around,” Mikhail says. orize it.” Mikhail has no- She says that while ticed that her engineering she is in college for engi- classes are mostly male neering she does not feel Kristina Rezkalla 3 INSIDE PSH MAIL-IN VOTING: WHAT DO PSH STUDENTS THINK? By Kelleigh save time and vote from pus, shared her fear and a Stevenson home… currently, no one possible alternative: “The has an excuse not to vote, mail is scary, and I prefer When asked about their and we all need to make in-person voting… If you opinions on mail-in vot- sure we’re taking proper ask me if, it should be an ing, most Penn State precautions.” online poll… I’ll vote on- Harrisburg students had What exactly is mail- line so it’s less likely to the same reaction: fear. in voting? In Pennsyl- get lost.” Many students at PSH vania, mail-in voting is Though a small hand- are afraid that mailing-in the process of requesting ful of students expressed will mean that their vote your ballot through the that they do not plan to will get lost and will not mail, receiving the bal- vote in the upcoming elec- count towards the elec- lot in advance before the tion, the overwhelming tion at all. On the oth- election starts, and then majority planned to make er hand, other students completing the ballot and their votes count despite have been using absen- sending it back in. Many their fears and worries. tee ballots for years and places have moved to Multiple students wish stand strongly behind the strictly mail-in voting op- for more options, such choice to have mail-in tions due to the Corona- as online polls, but what Amber Reichwein voting. For example, Alex virus pandemic, hoping Hedly stated rings true- tions/. Many government ing in particular, the time Hedly, a senior majoring to lessen numbers at poll- - voting has never been official websites exist to is now to register to vote in English at Penn State, ing places to reduce the easier. There are many make it easier to learn and get your voice heard. stated that “I’m regis- risk of spreading disease. resources available on- about your rights as a Mail-in ballots need to tered to vote in Maine, Though it seems like a line that students can use voter and clearly explain be requested by October so I’ve been using absen- straight-forward process to learn more about this the guidelines for voting 27 in order to arrive in tee ballots since I started on paper, students are year’s voting process in this year and in other time for the November 3 to vote and I think they still wary because of the Pennsylvania and other years’ elections. election. Whatever your are an underrated way of before mentioned fear. states they may reside No matter what po- fears may be about this voting that more people Julia Wanner, a senior in. One of these sources litical party you are affil- upcoming election, just haven’t taken advantage majoring in Humanities is https://www.pa.gov/ iated with, or what your remember that it is your of. They allow people to at the Harrisburg cam- guides/voting-and-elec- stance is on mail-in vot- voice, your vote. Brad Shover 4 keep the number of cas- es down,” said Joe.