the-robo-tigers-and-a-night-in-harlem

4 WEEK OF 3/6 - 3/13 FEATURES Jerrel Floyd Features Editor jfloyd134@gmail.com During the past couple years in the month of Feb the students of the Atlanta University Center journey to Morehouse College campus to be serenaded by the sweet sounds of artists like Billy Holiday and to become lost in the immortal words of writers like Langston Hughes A Night in Harlem is an evening of reverence to the success, innovation, and artistry of the Harlem Renaissance For viewers it can literally be seen as an experience of Harlem Renaissance music, poetry, dance, and drama all portrayed by students of the Atlanta University Center For participators in A Night in Harlem however, the event is more than a complex black history showcase For them A Night in Harlem is an awakening into emotional and artistic expression Beginning as a program in the lobby of Wiley A Perdue Hall with student Quinterrence Bell and Residential Director Jeff Murphy, A Night in Harlem eventually moved to George Sale Hall and has since grown into a massive production that was one of the first student productions to pack out the Ray Charles Performance Arts Center and also one of the first student events that Morehouse College President John Silvanus Wilson Jr attended Though through the years many students have been rewarded with the privilege of serving on the executive staff of A Night in Harlem, each individual had to go through the process of directly being a part of the presentation whether as a performer or in production The present director of the show, sophomore Brandon Abreu, was a performer his freshman year at Morehouse College “It felt comfortable, being involved” Abreu said “It felt like family.” On top of creating an entertaining and artistic production, the A Night in Harlem team manages to bring in emotions, and family into their performances as well as their interactions with one another Distinctly this results from the breakthrough or emotional breakdown process of the rehearsals Every year prior to the actual showcase, the performers and executive staff gather together and attempt to open up emotionally so that the performers are more raw and personal when they walk on stage in front of the crowd This involves performers sharing emotional experiences and finding a relationship between their personal life and the piece they plan to perform “Allowing people to feel that trust is important” Artistic Director Tatiana Hobson said “It truly is a family; it is truly a safe space.” Though attempting to get people to open up is a massive task alone, there are still immense amounts of logistics that go along with finalizing A Night in Harlem Thankfully Morehouse College alumnus Terrence Pryor II came in as a Show Consultant for the new executive staff “As we coached the actors, he coached us” Hobson said “Terrence came in like a father figure and picked us up and kept us moving.” Starting off as a stage manager and transitioning to a codirector, Pryor has been with A Night in Harlem since its beginnings in Perdue Hall and has remained as a helping hand to ensure that the tradition of a great show remains intact “A Night in Harlem is an experience” Pryor said “It is blackness, family, truth, homage.” Falling under the umbrella theme of “black lives matter,” this years’ A Night in Harlem highlights self-worth and selfidentity “I hope they feel more of a strong sense of self through the whole course of the show in total” Hobson said “I hope they leave with a stronger value of self.”Special Thanks to: President Wilson, Dr Leah Creque, Mrs Anita Whatley, Mr Jeff Murphy, Terrence Pryor, Britny Horton, Ulato Sam, QuinTerrence Bell, Jireh Holder, Mike Gary, Dean Washington, Chauncey Moon, Tony Larkin, and Miss Maroon and White and her court The Morehouse College RoboTigers Jerrel Floyd Features Editor jfloyd134@gmail.com Stepping into the first floor hallway of Claude B Dansby Hall on a Monday night, faint murmurs of conversation can be heard echoing down the hallway originating from room 110 Consisting of students almost filling up all of the open tables in the long spacious laboratory, it is during this hour that Associate Professor of Physics Dr Aakhut Bak’s evening lab takes place On the right side of the room however, a table covered with various small green gears, mechanical parts, a laptop, and a Chick-Fil-A bag, seems to host an above average amount of students in comparison the rest of the lab tables This specific collection of students all seem to be gathered focusing on a suspended green four-wheeled exposed wire object sitting directly in the center of the table with a giant claw This two meter long and half meter wide green table covered with a clutter of objects serves as the present but temporary meeting space for The Morehouse College RoboTigers “I’m interested in robotics and I knew I couldn’t be the only one on campus who was” junior Physics major and founder of The RoboTigers Terrell Glenn said During the 2014 spring semester, after hosting an interest meeting in room 200 of Dansby Hall Glenn became inspired while being confronted with an impactful amount of potential robotics enthusiasts “It drove me to want to try to turn it to something that was possible” Glenn said Now Glenn finds himself consuming Chick-Fil-A while simultaneously facilitating the building of a remote controlled robot, or Claw-Bot, that will be used in the Skyrise portion of the VEX Robotics Competition Spending several weeks working on the construction of the competition robot, the team faced challenges like issues with the use of the remote control “We spent a good two-three weeks working on it” junior Chemistry major Montez Joseph said “But we looked online and finally found a way to it.” With finally reaching the closing coding process of the construction of the Claw-Bot, the team attempted to a test run of the robot on the cluttered green table “Why isn’t the arm working” Glenn said Though the wheels were fully functional, the actual claw that would be used during the competition was not moving on command However after a few minutes of reexamining the codes on the laptop and the wires that protruded out of the robot, the claw eventually began to move on command “I like being able to run into problems” sophomore Applied Physics major Joshua Pulliam said “I have a deep appreciation for teamwork and problem-solving.” After hours spent bonding over STEM courses, integration, Calculus II, and life experiences in general, the teamwork and genuine brotherhood in the building process of the robot allowed for the Claw-Bot to come off of its position on the table and to an actual test run on the floor of room 110 Laughing with each motion of the claw, the team could barely contain their enthusiasm as their time consuming project went into action during the closing hour of their Monday meeting “These guys are the ones who really have invested a lot of time.” Glenn said “I appreciate them.” Though the club has come a long way since its interest meeting in room 200 of Dansby Hall, thanks to the influence of the chair of the Physics department Willie Rockward the team still hopes to establish a lot more success “Five-ten years down the line I want to see the robotics team go abroad” Glenn said Only time will detail just how successful the Morehouse College RoboTigers will be However, the amount of genuine friendship that exists within the club will more than likely compensate for the time spent transforming the team’s hopes into reality