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Index From the Director’s Chair pg 1 The Music Scene pg 5 4Addressing the Myths of Schizophrenia pg 1 Hot Pop pg 6 Addressing the Myths cont. pg 2 Landscaping News pg 7 Warning Signs , Symptoms, and Facts pg 2 Literacy Week pg 7 For More Information pg 2 Staff Spotlight pg 8-9 UAEC Cares pg 3 Halloween Festivities pg 10 Parkland Seminar pg 3 Glimpses of UAEC pg 11 Thanksgiving News pg 4 The Cultural Exchange pg 12 A Note of Appreciation pg 13

From the Director’s Chair Talking with Samuel Byndom

__________________________________

Dr. Byndom Director of Urbana Adult Education

Getting to Know Dr. Byndom (and the new APL curriculum!)

By Elizabeth Ferguson and Kristen Sweeney

Q: Can you describe how the new APL

curriculum differs from previous

years?

A: It is more closely aligned to not only

Common Core standards, but the

Urbana High School Curriculum. The

new APL curriculum will provide

students with more opportunities for

enrichment, such as language classes

and workforce or career experience.

Now for some fun questions:

Q: What are some of your hobbies

outside of work?

A: I like to go to the gym, play tennis,

and listen to stand-up comedy. I like to

laugh.

Q: What is your favorite food?

A: Anything spicy!

Q: What kind of music do you like to

listen to?

A: These days, I mostly listen to old-

school rap. Every once in a while I’ll

listen to pop music.

Q: What is your favorite holiday?

A: My birthday! I know it’s not really a

“holiday,” but it’s my favorite.

Urbana Adult Education

Vol. 8 Fall, 2016

Addressing the Myths about Schizophrenia By Caitlyn Irvin-Sprague

Schizophrenia is a mental disease, and it’s a very serious

issue. Stressful emotional situations can become overwhelming at

times, and for people who are schizophrenic, can lead to an

episode of illness. Some people confuse auditory hallucinations

with schizophrenia but they are very different illnesses in many

ways.

Characteristics of auditory hallucinations are psychosis

features such as localizations of voices outside the brain. They have

greater linguistic complexity, and they have a greater emotional

response. Also, auditory hallucinations can be so-called “cured”

with a form of therapy called DBT (Dialectical Behavioral Therapy).

This therapy is based on people’s behavior and emotional

responses to things. People who are in this therapy learn to focus

on their emotions and behaviors to better be able to control the

Auditory Hallucinations. Experiencing auditory hallucinations is

very different from a schizophrenic experience.

Schizophrenia has some serious symptoms for someone who

has this disease. Some signs include social withdrawal,

oversleeping, insomnia, depression, and also poor personal

hygiene. Whereas auditory hallucinations can be “cured” or strictly

managed, schizophrenia can only be mildly managed with

medications and therapy. Schizophrenia is a rare disease but along

with the normal symptoms of it, like disorganized speech, it also

increases the person’s inability to do normal daily activities, it

increases the suicide risk and can also increases the alcohol and

drug abuse rates.

- Continued on page 2

The Class Act

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Most people who have these diseases are

more likely to have a higher suicide rate and drug

and alcohol abuse rate because all they are trying

to do is mask the pain of having one of these

serious diseases. Coming from someone who has

been through “hearing voices”, I not only used

drugs because of the voices but also because of

the bullying that came with it. People in general

are cruel; but, when you have one or many

mental diseases, I believe it is worse because

they call you crazy and treat you differently. I

know personally all I want to do is to be treated

like a human being, just like everyone else. Yes, I

do have certain limits and I can’t do things as fast

or as adequately as some others, but I try my

hardest.

I hope that this article helped some of

you who wanted to know more about mental

health issues that people with schizophrenia and

auditory hallucinations face. A lot of teens and

adults all around the world deal with mental

health disorders like these. Mental diseases

should be taken with as much seriousness and

compassion as medical diseases of the body such

as cancer. Check out the facts about

schizophrenia and auditory hallucinations that

follow.

Early Warning Signs of Schizophrenia

Social withdrawal

Hostility

Poor personal hygiene

Expressionless gaze

Inability to express joy

Depression

Inability to show joy

Oversleeping/insomnia

Irrational statements

Forgetfulness, inability to concentrate

Extreme reactions to criticism

Strange word usage while speaking

Symptoms of Schizophrenia

Delusions (e.g. of persecution)

Disorganized speech

Disorganized behavior

Absence of normal behavior

paranoia

Facts about Auditory Hallucinations

Localizations of voices outside the

head

Stronger linguistic complexity

Greater emotional response

If any of your family or friends is experiencing

these symptoms of auditory hallucinations or

schizophrenia, please encourage them to get

professional help. And, please treat them

kindly.

Sources for more information: http://www.psychiatricims.com/schizophrenia/auditor

y-hallucinations-psychiatric-illness

http://www.helpguide.org/articles/schizophrenia-

signs-types-and-causes.htm

For help, contact Community Elements or one of

our local clinics specializing in mental health

services.

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Parkland Seminar

By Trevon Ayers

On Wednesday, September 28th,

Parkland College sent us one of their advisors,

Ms. Mary Kay Smith, to speak with us about

registering for college at Parkland. She told us

about all the benefits of college and what they

can do for us when we enroll at Parkland.

She talked with us about how to afford

college and about the different kinds of financial

help available. Ms. Smith informed us about

grants and scholarships which do not have to be

repaid. So, it’s always worthwhile to search for

grants and scholarships. She talked to us about

the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student

Aid) which is the program that decides how

much aid a student qualifies for. She reminded

us to fill out the FAFSA application in October of

the year before we plan to attend. Aid is given

on a first come, first serve basis.

We heard about specific programs

Parkland has such as the CNA program and how

to get stackable credentials in the medical field

by going on to LPN and RN programs after CNA.

She gave advice about college careers for

photography, business, and computers.

Did you know that Parkland College has

many ways to support student success like

writing, math, and computer labs? They also

offer assistance for students with learning

disabilities. We learned this and much more. So,

if you want to go to college but don't want to be

rushed into a four-year college, go to Parkland.

They have a lot to offer.

UAEC Cares

September was Suicide Prevention month.

The Class Act staff and yearbook staff want to

be advocates for awareness, support, and

acceptance for our fellow students, friends,

and family that may experience depression or

be at risk for suicide. The 24-hour crisis line

number is 217.359.4141. Help is available for

the asking.

_____________________________________

__

Mary Kay Smith, Parkland College

advisor gets students college

dreaming.

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Thanksgiving News

Please note the dates of UAEC’s Thanksgiving Break which will be

November 21st -25th. During that week off from school we hope you

will take the time to reflect on the things in your life for which you are

thankful. Do you have good health? Be thankful! Do you have a

family? Be thankful! Are you working to complete your high school

education? Be thankful! Do you have a job? Be thankful! Do you

have clean water to drink and safe food to eat? Be thankful! Do you

have a roof over your head at night? Be thankful! So much of life

revolves around the attitudes we choose for ourselves each and every

day. Choose well.

Thanksgiving Basket Drive 2016

With the “Giving Season” just around the corner, we want to remind

everyone that there are UAEC students and their families who are in

need of a good Thanksgiving dinner. The Yearbook and Journalism

students are sponsoring a Thanksgiving Basket Drive in order to collect

items for 10 complete meals (although we would welcome more).

If you are able, please bring any of the following items to one of the

“donation stations” (marked boxes) located around UAEC:

Canned sweet potatoes

Canned corn, beans or other vegetables

Boxes of dressing/stuffing

Boxes of macaroni and cheese

Packets of gravy

Cans of cranberry sauce

Pie crust mixes

Cans of pie filling

Cake or brownie mixes

$10 gift cards for last minute items like milk and butter

Money donations for turkey purchases

* Please check the “count-down” poster in the front office to see how

much of each item we still need.*

The last day to donate items will be Friday, November 18th. Donations

of turkeys and greens will be last-minute requests due to storage

issues. Thank you for your kindness and support!

How to Receive a

Thanksgiving Basket

Would a basket of

Thanksgiving food

help you and your

family to celebrate

this traditional

American holiday?

All you need to do is

sign up with Mrs.

Anderson, our

counselor, and

arrange a ride to

UAEC on the

morning of Friday,

November 18th to

receive your basket.

The first 10 to sign

up will have a

Thanksgiving feast

ready to cook.

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The Music Scene

By Clint Freeman

Music = Life. Many people don’t realize

how much music affects our lives. Music is the

foundation of who we are, how we act, how we

feel, and how we dress or go about our days.

Everyone is affected in one way or

another, whether by the lyrics sung or the

rhythmic patterns created by the instruments.

All the music we listen to comes from talented

people from all over, and all have one thing in

common – they all had to start somewhere, and

that “somewhere” was in a local music scene in

and around their home towns, gaining support

from people locally to get a fan base and make

enough to go on the road. Here in

Champaign/Urbana the music scene needs more

support from the community and not just the

people who run places that can put on the

shows in their bars or other venues.

There are so many different types of

music in the local music scene that everybody

can enjoy. You have The Canopy Club that has

its DJ nights, along with other nights that are

more for heavy metal, rock-n-roll, or punk rock,

and even dub step shows. We have Cowboy

Monkey, which does karaoke night for people to

show what they got and also do country music

and cover bands mostly.

Musicians come from all over to put on

shows with other bands for people in our area

and a lot of the time they only play for a small

group of people and don’t even make enough to

cover their gas expenses, not to mention other

possible expenses like car trouble or a broken

string or cracked cymbal.

So, next time your friends invite you to a

show, go with them! You’ll be supporting the

music for future generations and you never know

who will come up with that next lyric or beat that

will change your life. You don’t have to be famous

to come up with well-structured songs and beats.

Give it a chance and get into something

new! On the weekend, go find a show and give

these guys support. You and your friends might

just get to see the next big band in music history

play and can say you were there and saw them

before they became famous artists.

Music=Life

Isle Nine Asylum

Isle Nine Asylum is a local melodic

death metal band formed by

musicians Nikulas Bearcrusher,

Kevin Miller, and Clint –aka

Thundercrusher – Freeman in

2007. Clint likes to call their music

war metal or Viking metal.

“Music = Life. Many

people don’t realize

how much music affects

our lives. Music is the

foundation of who we

are, how we act, how

we feel, and how we

dress or go about our

days.” Clint Freeman

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Hot Pop

By Donnika Caldwell

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Editor’s Note: We are pleased to introduce Donnii Caldwell who is one of our latest Class Act contributors. She will be helping us stay on top of trends in the pop culture scene through her “Hot Pop” articles. Donnii choose the name “Hot Pop” because that’s “like when pop sits in the sun and develops a culture of its own.”

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

Clowns, Frowns and Being Upside Down? Hot Pop has you covered on the latest Pop Culture topics. We’ll talk about

the crazy clown reports , the Jolie and Pitt divorce, and Solange’s new album after 2 quiet years.

Class A Clowns

Recently, Professional clowns have been afraid for their safety due to the clown sightings and arrests. Starting in

Greenville County, South Carolina near an apartment building, parents and children reported sightings of clowns in

the nearby woods luring children away from their home. Coaxing kids with cool toys and money, candy must not be

working anymore. Clowns might even up their game with wifi passwords! Many believed that it was a weird way to

advertise the new remake of Stephen King’s It but police officers have since denied it, and a statewide increase in

patrolling of wooded areas has occurred in many states, such as North Carolina, Kansas and even upstate New York.

People continue to disbelieve the reports, calling them pranks, myths, and even a short film advertisement. As

internet tradition has it, memes and tweets are going viral, making this terrifying event funnier than it should be.

Clowns are out to play, and the circus is in town. How’s that for clowning around?

I Now Pronounce You Divorced?

Hollywood’s hottest couple, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie-Pitt, has taken a turn for the worse. Angelina filed for divorce

this past month and for custody of the children. The trigger? Alleged violent behavior towards the kids, alcohol abuse

and angry outbursts from Brad. The power couple has been on rocky grounds even from the beginning of their ill-

fated love. When they first met on the set of Mr. and Mrs. Smith (2005), Jolie was just out of a 3-year marriage with

Billy Bob Thornton, who took charge of what media call Jolie’s wild child years. Brad was still married to Jennifer

Aniston, who still holds a grudge according to her response to a TMZ source, “That’s karma for you.” (TMZ; Fashion

Style Mag.Com) Due to the intense nature of the divorce, there has been an investigation and since then we’ve

learned a few things. Pitt and Jolie may not even be on speaking terms as DCFS has implemented a separation safety

plan, which was confirmed by ET. (Entertainment Tonight.) The Federal Investigation as of October 11th is still open

and continued. It is likely that this investigation will be carried all the way through. (Entertainment Tonight.) Up until

now, Brad Pitt has not seen the kids, and by the evidence being report by different sources, it’s likely to be a while

before he can. Both Jolie and Pitt have asked press and media outlets to respect the privacy of the children and their

affairs. Can Lara Croft climb out of this Pitt of a marriage?

The Knowles Knows Best.

Beyoncé and Solange Knowles are the first sisters to top the charts in the same year, and everyone is going crazy for

them. With A Seat at the Table, it seems everyone is sipping Lemonade on the topic of racial equality and pro-

blackness. Solange pleads everyone, Don’t touch my hair, while Beyonce screams for Freedom. With the social praise,

come the Madmen of conspiracies. And as Queen Bee said it best, “Ya’ll haters corny with that Illuminati mess.” The

sisters ain’t Sorry about their proud heritage and claim with pride that they will Rise. With the sisters on their solo

careers, they are definitely pushing the same message: Don’t you wait for others to accept you, Don’t hurt yourself

over opinions. The Knowles are flipping the game upside down and we’re all along for the ride.

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Landscaping Assistance

By Donna Clark

Urbana Adult Education would like to thank Mr.

Mike Brunk, City of Urbana Arborist, for donating

two cubic yards of supreme mulch. We

appreciate your assistance. Thanks also to

UAEC’s Rob Lang, Donna Clark, and Christina

Gaston for unloading and spreading the mulch.

UAE Celebrates Adult and Family Literacy

Week

Urbana Free Library Tour and Scavenger Hunt Is a

Hit! Thanks, Edwin Vega.

More Fun at Urbana Free Library

Favorite Book Board

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Staff Spotlight: Getting to Know…

Jherilyn Hutton: Administrative Support and American Sign Language Teacher

Interview by Elizabeth Ferguson and Kristen Sweeney

Q: When did you first learn sign language?

A: I learned sign language as a very young child (it is my first language) due to the hearing loss which is hereditary on

both sides of my family. I later lost contact with one side of the family who primary used sign language and I learned that

the saying, "use it or lose it" is very accurate! So, I began taking American Sign Language again at Parkland before I

graduated high school because I felt that it was important for me to ensure that the language was firmly ingrained. I

later transferred to Northern Illinois University and took American Sign Language. While there, I worked as a dormitory

advisor for the Program for Hearing Impaired (even though I do not prefer to use the term “Hearing Impaired”), where I

assisted students who were transitioning from high school to a program that prepared them for work, vocational

training, or college training. I was also a teaching assistant for American Sign Language Classes at Northern Illinois

University, AND I was a Rehabilitation Counselor for the Deaf, Hard-of-Hearing, Late Deafened, & Deaf-Blind for

DHS/Division of Rehabilitation Services for 7.5 years.

My education and training has primarily been in sign language, disability etiquette, Disability in Society, and providing

advocating services/education of empowerment to persons with disabilities.

Q. What are some things you think people should know about Sign Language or the Deaf Community?

A: American Sign Language (ASL) has a very unique grammar and syntax, which is different from English.

-ASL is not a universal language--every country has its own unique sign language.

-ASL does not have a written language. However, you'll see written, or glossed, words in curriculum. Glossed letters are,

for the most part, capital letters indicating a specific sign instead of the actual word. Some examples are:

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-ASL utilizes special symbols called grammar markers. Grammar markers communicate what you are to do with your

eyebrows and body as you sign.

-Within ASL, there are regional differences, gender differences, and perhaps generational differences between language

users.

-There are a variety of sign languages (also referred to as Manually Coded Language) used in the United States alone.

Examples are:

Cued Speech: a hand/mouth system to render spoken language phonemes visually intelligible.

Fingerspelling: alphabetic signs to represent the written form of a spoken language.

Manually Coded English: variety of visual communication methods expressed through the hands which attempts

to represent the English language Unlike deaf sign languages which have evolved naturally in deaf communities,

the different forms of MCE were artificially created and generally follow the grammar of English.

Signed Exact English (SEE): strives to be an exact representation of English vocabulary and grammar. It models

much of its sign vocabulary from American Sign Language but modifies the handshapes used in ASL in order to

use the handshape of the first letter of the corresponding English word. The four components of signs are

handshape (static or dymamic), palm orientation (the direction of the palm), location (where the sign is

performed relative to the body), and movement of the size.

Things to know about the deaf community:

-It is most appropriate to use the whole encompassing identifier of “Deaf/Hard-of-Hearing” to refer to a person with

hearing loss, rather than using the term, “Hearing-Impaired.”

-IF YOU CAN SEE IT, YOU CAN COMMENT ON IT. For example, if a person has changed their hair, make-up, gained or lost

weight, etc., you are expected to comment on it. If you don’t, it’s considered rude. So if a person doesn’t like your new

haircut or make-up, they are expected to comment on it and tell you that they liked it better the way it was before. Or, if

someone has gained weight, you are supposed to make a comment like, “Oh my goodness. You’ve gained a lot of

weight. Are you OK? Or “Wow, you look terrible. Are you feeling sick?” It is seen as rude to not comment on it.

- It is appropriate for a deaf person to ask about pricing information for vehicles/homes purchased by others (deaf

individuals or friends of theirs, etc.) This is because it is typical for deaf individuals to be taken advantage of by a sales

person. In the hearing community, asking about how much others paid for things is typically considered taboo because it

is viewed as personal information. However, in the deaf community it is perceived as sharing necessary information in

order to avoid being taken advantage of.

Q: Do your kids know sign language?

A: Yes, it is also their first language. Second is English, third is a little German, and fourth is Spanish (primarily for the

oldest, as she is in the Dual Language Kindergarten Class.)

Q: What are some of your favorite things about working at Urbana Adult Education?

A: The students/my sign language students, the staff, my supervisor, and being able to teach American Sign Language 3

days a week!

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UAEC Celebrates Halloween

Buulinh

Quach’s

ELL Class

Makes

Jack-o-

lanterns

for

Halloween

Boo!

Guess Who?

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Glimpses of UAEC

Pizza Following Wednesday Speakers

Favorite Sayings Board

Nutrition Class Makes Breakfast Treats

Congratulations, Enrique!

Our first APL graduate of the school year! We are proud of you and all your hard work.

Welcoming smiles

from Josh and Edwin

Dueling

cameras…

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The Cultural Exchange – Appreciate the Differences – Learn a Phrase to Share

by Danny Strowmatt

People from all around the world wind up in Urbana, Illinois, some who

don‘t even speak a certain language such as English; but, we should all be

able to communicate and agree on one thing: Life Is Good. Each

newsletter we will present a common English phrase in several different

languages. The newsletter staff would like to encourage all of our

readers to try out a new phrase, start a conversation with another

student, welcome the visitors and newcomers to our community. This

month’s phrase is: Can I help you?

Language Phrase Pronunciation English Can I help you?

German Kann ich Dir helfen?

French Puis-je vous aider? Spanish ¿Puedo ayudarte?

Polish Mogę ci pomóc? Irish An féidir liom cabhrú leat ?

Croatian Mogu li vam pomoći?

Chinese 我能帮你吗？ Wǒ néng bāng nǐ ma?

Czech Mohu vám pomoci?

Afrikaans Kan ek jou help? Swahili Naweza kukusaidia?

Russian Я могу вам помочь? YA mogu vam pomoch'? Arabic أيمكنني مساعدتك؟ 'ayamkanni musaeadatak?

Greek Μπορώ να σε βοηθήσω? Boró na se voithíso?

Korean 무엇을 도와 드릴까요? mueos-eul dowa deulilkkayo?

Turkish Yardımcı olabilir miyim?

Vietnamese Tôi có thể giúp bạn?

Japanese いかがなさいましたか？ Ikaga nasaimashita ka?

Italian Posso aiutarti?

Theknowledgetree.com

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The Class Act Staff and Contributors for Volume 7 Trevon Ayers, Student Reporter Peggy Buck, Staff Sponsor, Editor Jessica Chapman, Student Participant Alexander Colvin, Student Participant Elizabeth Ferguson, Student Reporter Constance Griffin, Student Participant Gwenda Harris, Student Photographer Dona Hill, Student Reporter, Photographer Kylie Mercer, Student Participant Addy Placido, Staff Sponsor, Editor Danny Strowmatt, Student Reporter Kristen Sweeney, Student Reporter

A Note of Appreciation

Thank you to those agencies that are responsible for providing the funding to make our programs possible. This

year they include the Illinois Community College Board division of Adult Education and Family Literacy, Carle

Foundation Hospital, The Champaign County Regional Planning Commission's Workforce Investment Act,

Illinois Humanities Council-Odyssey Project, Illinois State Board of Education's Truants' Alternative and

Optional Education Program, Orange Crush Foundation, United Way of Champaign County, 21st Century Grant-

US Department of Education, Altrusa International, Champaign West Rotary Club, Individual Donors and the

Urbana School District. A big thank you to all of our sponsors!

Because of you all, we are able to continue to serve our adult education students during this difficult financial

time in our state.

Join the Journalism Fun

We’re looking for students to submit

articles, artwork, photographs, editorials,

and ideas for The Class Act. See Ms. Addy

Placido or Ms. Peggy Buck or join the

elective class.

Don’t Forget to Vote!

November 8th is National Election day and your

vote does matter!