Robert's Journalism Blog

The mics have been checked, the sound board is set, producer Johnny Ericson mouths out a countdown. Five, four, three, two, one, and all at once fiery passion, raw emotion, and lyrical flow erupt from the small closet made to be a soundproof recording booth. “The weapons are many, the people are few, Lord give me the strength to trust you. I can’t do it alone, I can’t even stand, my mind is the weapon that’ll kill me again.” A small sample of the song “Weapon,” by Alex Nelson, a communication major at LBCC, and an aspiring Chiristian hip hop artist. Nelson, 20, recently got the opportunity to work with Ericson to produce his first song. Ericson has a portion of his home set up to be a studio. “It wasn’t until I walked in there that I realized this was happening,” Nelson said. They talked, got all set up and Nelson walked into the somewhat cramped recording booth. Ericson had a headset to use to communicate with Nelson while he was inside. “We ran through the song, did some...

Students, faculty and staff alike filed into the LBCC boardroom with anticipation Tuesday night, as the college’s Board of Education was about to make history. A constant chirping filled the room, which sounded like the spring birds we’ve all been hearing in the last few weeks, but was merely feedback coming from the speakers of board members on the video conference call. Who would be the seventh president of LBCC? LBCC Board Chairman Jim Merryman’s face took up three screens at the start of the meeting at 6:30 p.m. sharp. “I am so pleased to announce that our choice for LBCC’s next president is Dr. Lisa Avery .” He went on, “Dr. Avery has a proven track record developing and maintaining key community partnerships, navigating the legislative landscape in Salem, and championing important diversity, inclusion and equity initiatives.” After Merryman had finished, he called for a motion to name Avery LBCC’s next president. After a motion and a second, the board voted unanimo...