Observer the
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Students for Disability Advocacy: Make Room
Holiday Closures Confuse Freshmen
February 21, 2019 VOLUME XXXVI, ISSUE 3
Fordham London Center Costs, Dissected
By JEFFREY UMBRELL Features Editor
By SOPHIE PARTRIDGE-HICKS Asst. News Editor
Cristina Pardo, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’19, and Lucy Clancy, FCLC ’19, responded bluntly when asked if they thought Fordham was accommodating to students with disabilities. “No,” Pardo said. “No, I do not,” Clancy agreed. Pardo and Clancy are president and vice president, respectively, of the Fordham Students for Disability Advocacy group (SDA). SDA’s mission is to create a community for students with disabilities and to increase accessi-
Over the course of their semester abroad, students in London take classes at the new Fordham center in the attractive neighborhood of Clerkenwell. The new center is equipped with state-of-the-art classrooms, a modern performance floor, two student lounges and a rooftop terrace. Back in New York, Fordham’s Lincoln Center campus is cramped for space. Though the wcost of tuition for studying abroad is the same $25,642.50 (the general fee without financial aid) that students on Fordham’s NYC campuses pay, study abroad students pay additional costs that are built into the program they are attending. Students living in McMahon on the New York campus pay $8,300 for housing per semester. The cost of housing varies depending on the program students studying in London attend, but all students pay a lower fare for housing. Students in the London Liberal Arts Program and Gabelli School of Business in London pay $7,350 for the semester. Fordham works with Anglo Housing, an organization that Fordham has been working with for the past 15 years, to supply these apartments. see LONDON pg. 2
Accessibility is a civil right for students under the Americans with Disabilities Act. All Fordham students are guaranteed equal access to education. bility on campus. Clancy said that she wanted to create “a safe space for students with disabilities to come and communicate, because there’s a lack of support systems here at Fordham.” The two formed the group in fall 2017, although Pardo said that she had been thinking about forming a club like SDA since her sophomore year. She was encouraged by a professor to reach out to the Office of Disability Services (ODS) and gauge student interest. Feedback to Pardo’s inquiry was so positive that branches of SDA were formed at both Lincoln Center and Rose Hill. The Rose Hill group, however, is still in the process of becoming an official club. Pardo identified a surprising lack of wheelchair accessibility on campus. “I’ve never seen a person with a wheelchair in the Lowenstein elevators,” she said. “They’re so crowded that I feel like if you’re in a wheelchair you probably would feel uncomfortable.” Many of the buildings at Rose Hill lack elevators altogether. “If you can’t walk up stairs, you can’t get to class,” Pardo said. Even students without disabilities complain about the efficiency of Fordham’s elevators. Pardo stressed that increased accessibility regarding things like elevators “helps everyone.” “If you have better elevators, then people with wheelchairs could use them,” she said. “Plus we’d get better elevators. Winwin.” see DISABILITY pg. 16
AMINA VARGAS/THE OBSERVER
After the McKeon closures over winter break, students face housing uncertainty as spring break approaches. By GABRIEL SAMANDI Asst. News Editor
As Fordham continues to become a more competitive institution, it draws more students from across the country and the world. First-year students who travel far from home often flock to McKeon Hall, Fordham’s 22-story, multi-million-dollar residence hall sitting atop the law school. Despite some issues earlier this year in accommodating Fordham’s growing class sizes, most resident freshmen at Fordham Lincoln Center are often ecstatic to call McKeon their home. Those who do are treated to stunning views of New York City, but some freshmen are stunned by another aspect of living in McKeon: being barred from the building during Fordham’s seasonal breaks. Rosa Schembari, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’22,
recalls being sent an email early in spring semester that alerted her to McKeon’s closure in mid-March. “All it basically said was ‘McKeon will be closed for the week of spring break,’” she recounted. “My first thought was, ‘Well, now I need a place to stay.’” The Office of Residential Life sent this email on Jan. 18. The entirety of it reads: “Dear McKeon Resident, McKeon Hall will be closed for SPRING BREAK starting SATURDAY, MAR. 16TH at noon and will re-open on Sunday, MAR. 24TH, 2019 starting at 10am. Sincerely, The Office of Residential Life at Lincoln Center.” Nearly a month later, on Feb. 14, the Office of Residential life sent a follow-up email with more detail about spring break. According to the email, only international students may apply to stay in McMahon over spring break. Applications
will be either accepted or denied on March 5. March 16, the day McKeon closes, is the day after classes end for spring break. March 24, the day McKeon reopens, is the day before classes begin again. Matthew Chen, FCLC ’22 and an international student, recalls being frustrated when he saw the first email in his inbox. “It’s relatively short notice, to do something like that,” he said. “I live 16 hours away by flight, and tickets to Taiwan aren’t exactly cheap.” Chen suggested that notifying freshmen about McKeon’s closures further in advance would be more helpful. “I feel like they should give one comprehensive schedule at the beginning of the year, so I can book my flights in August,” he said. “Or the very least, they should explain our housing options in the [first] email.” see MCKEON pg. 4
ANDREW BEECHER/THE OBSERVER
Juul Popularity Soars on Campus By RUBY GARA and SOPHIE PARTRIDGE-HICKS News Editor and Asst. News Editor
ZOEY LIU/THE OBSERVER
Juuls are a common sight on Fordham’s campuses.
On Jan. 1, 2018, the state of New York passed a Smoke-Free Air Act, criminalizing the use of e-cigarettes in public and workplaces where smoking is prohibited, including restaurants and offices, parks and beaches. John Carroll, associate vice president for public safety, confirmed that Fordham University enforces the law, saying that “in accordance with New York State law, smoking is prohibited inside all buildings” on all campuses. Fordham’s student handbook states that failure to comply with these rules “will result in verbal or written warning, educational sanctions or fines ($50).” Repeated violations could lead to expulsion from the residence halls.
However, even with a strict ban against e-cigarettes and vaping, nicotine devices are prolific within the Fordham community. Specifically, the use of Juuls — small e-cigarettes known for their high nicotine content — are incredibly popular on campus. Empty Juul pods (the devices’ nicotine cartridges) are often found scattered around the residence halls, and students can frequently be seen exhaling vapor on the Outdoor Plaza . . . sometimes even in class. Though Juuls were only introduced by PAX labs in June 2015, they have skyrocketed in popularity and now dominate the vaping industry. With a net value of approximately $16 billion, the company made more than $1 billion in revesee JUUL pg. 3 nue in 2018 alone.
NEWS
OPINIONS
ARTS & CULTURE
FEATURES
SPORTS & HEALTH
CDO Rafael Zapata talks faculty diversity.
The cups and downs of Fordham finances. PAGE 9
Meet sophomore costumer Alyssa Rosenberg.
Tails and tips from New York’s dog walkers.
Fordham sports’ first championship win this year. PAGE 20
Diverse Hires PAGE 5
Cups Conspiracy
Off-Stage Spotlight PAGE 13
Wag Walking PAGE 16
THE STUDENT VOICE OF FORDHAM LINCOLN CENTER
Squash Team Win
2
News
February 21, 2019 THE OBSERVER
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McKeon Closings Lead to Tough Choices
AMINA VARGAS/THE OBSERVER
Students often claim there is a lack of communication from Residential Life about McKeon Hall holiday hours. MCKEON FROM PAGE 1
Schembari expressed a similar frustration about understanding the options for housing outside of McKeon. “The information is not very accessible, and freshmen don’t always know where to look.”
McKeon residents faced similar time cutoffs during winter break. Any resident still inside McKeon Hall after the mandated time risked facing a fine of $75. Fines both accrued and increased the longer residents stayed in the
building. There was no general application or waiver for freshmen residents wishing to remain in McKeon, but all freshmen residents were able to stay with a host in McMahon Hall over winter break if they submitted an application. This application is only eligible to international students during spring break. “I was lucky that my dad came to pick me up when the hour came,” Schembari, a Pennsylvania native, said. “But my sister, who also goes to school in the city, got out on a different day so my dad had to make two trips,” she said. “That’s a long drive. If they let me stay for a few extra days, he wouldn’t have had to.” Chen arranged for a flight out of New York without much difficulty but faced a stressful situation flying back into the city. “On the flight, I learned McKeon wasn’t open yet, so I had to look at hotels,” he said. Chen expressed that had instructions been more clear, he would not have booked his flight for the Saturday before the building opened. While he was eventually able to find a place to sleep for the night, he was exasperated that Fordham had such a short window for students to move back in. “You can’t just expect people to come in on Sunday and not be jet-lagged on Monday. At the very least, have the building open the full weekend before.” However, some residents of McKeon were not able to find reasonable accommodations during winter break. One student, who asked to remain anonymous because of her embarrassment about the experience, explained her difficulty finding a room the weekend before school started in January. “I’m not an international student, but my parents are living abroad,” she said. “I don’t have a home to go back to in the U.S., and it’s not like I can fly over the Pacific whenever I want. It’s inconvenient, and it costs a ton of money.” She ended up visiting hometown in the U.S., opting to fly domestic and stay with a few friends rather than book an international flight. To save money, she booked the return flight for a few days before McKeon reopened. “Week-
end tickets are so expensive,” she said. “I asked myself, do I spend money on tickets or housing?” She resolved she could save money if she was able to stay with friends who commuted to campus. “I had to house hop, but I didn’t have any friends to stay with,” she explained. “I asked my two friends who had places in the city and neither of them could host me — sometimes that just happens.” Her solution was less than comfortable. “I solved that problem by sleeping with two different hookups over two nights,” she said. “I spent the day between those nights just wandering around the city,” she remembered. “I was tired, and I wore the same outfit all weekend because I didn’t have a place to change. I didn’t get to shower either. “It felt like I had to trade sexual favors for a place to sleep,” she said. All three students — each having mentioned they gladly would have stayed in New York over spring break, if given the option — are currently working on solutions for housing in March. Schembari is planning to fly out to California with a group and stay with a friend instead of paying for bus tickets to and from her small hometown. However, since she is financing her trip on her own budget, purchasing cheaper tickets resulted in a less-than-optimal compromise. “We could either spend $200 more and get back in time for class, or we could save money and skip our Monday classes,” she said, explaining the difficulty with purchasing an affordable Sunday flight. “It’s almost like Fordham wants us to make bad decisions.” Chen, who has not arranged a living situation yet, noted that “every solution to this problem costs money.” “Now I’m stuck with the problem of either flying back or staying with someone, which means I’d have to convince my parents that it’s okay,” he said. The third student was simply annoyed she faced a similar dilemma to last break. “It feels like Fordham expects us to have all these options, but not everyone has them,” she said. “Not everyone has money for
weekend flights.” Nick Wai, FCLC ’22, is a programming coordinator with the Residence Hall Association (RHA). Wai said that students raised “many concerns” about McKeon’s closure policies during RHA’s freshmen-exclusive meeting on Feb. 6. “We have relayed this information to the Residential Life staff members and are continuing a conversation,” he said. Despite the fact that only international students may stay in McMahon over spring break, Wai reported the Office of Residential Life informed RHA that all freshmen “students can relocate to McMahon if they chose to stay in the city.” The Office of Residential Life has not yet provided comment to The Observer. This is a developing story. Visit www.fordhamobserver.com for updates.
Corrections In Issue 1, a photo of Cafe Lalo was credited to Zoey Liu. Joe Rovegno took the photo. In Issue 2, a photo of Fordham University Health Services office was credited to Amina Vargas. Candice O’Neal took the photo. In “Perfect 10: Meeting Women’s B-ball Team’s Newest Phenomenon,” guard Bre Cavanaugh was identified as freshman from Fordham College at Rose Hill. She is a sophomore. In “The Color-Changing Landscape of the Oscars,” Nick Vallelonga is identified as Tony Lip’s nephew. Vallelonga is his son. The article also stated that Don Shirley’s family was consulted, when it was Shirley himself. In “SAGES Defies Fordham’s Sex Policies” Rachel Silang was identified as a Lincoln Center student. She attended Rose Hill. The article also stated SAGES provides birth control to students. SAGES is not a medical provider and does not distribute birth control.
www.fordhamobserver.com
THE OBSERVER February 21, 2019
Vaping Poses New Health Concerns
News
3
JUUL FROM PAGE 1
Dubbed “the iPhone of the vaping world,” the sleek and modern design of the Juul enables users to smoke them discreetly. The device is small enough to conceal inside a person’s hand and resembles a flash drive. With its slim rectangular shape, the Juul looks nothing like the traditional e-cigarettes, as most are much larger and have a box-like structure that holds a liquid-filled tank. Peter Thomann, Fordham College at Lincoln Center ’20 (FCLC), said, “I feel like it’s hard to monitor the use of Juuls because they are virtually unrecognizable as any kind of e-cigarette.” He continued, “That’s why so many people get away with using them secretly.” Carroll said that “we have no record of an incident where a complaint was made” regarding vaping. Even with rules in place, students can still be seen vaping and Juuling throughout the school’s hallways, in the dorms and even in classes. However, the challenge of monitoring the use of e-cigarettes is not just limited to the Fordham community. Schools and colleges across the country are struggling to address the popularity of Juuls. Juul Labs, the company that sells the cigarette substitute, has been accused of marketing to younger audiences, notably the high school and college student communities. Subsequently, on April 28, 2018, the Food and Drug Administration announced an investigation into Juuls and their popularity among younger people. Most concerning to consumers is that the health effects of vaping are not fully understood by its primary demographic. Sophia Mazurowski, FCLC ’21, warned of the dangers of Juuling that are not immediately obvious. “The way I started, and the way it
COLIN SHEELEY/THE OBSERVER
Juuls are prolific within the Fordham community. The device’s design enables students to smoke it discreetly.
seems most people start, is that it seems fun and harmless at first,” she said. “If you’re not careful, it’s easy to become addicted.” While it is commonly thought that e-cigarettes are less addictive, the devices deliver nicotine faster to users and in higher doses compared to traditional cigarettes. According to National Center for Health research, this makes the
Juul device incredibly addictive. Thomann added, “If you’re smoking a cigarette, you have to go outside, but with the Juul you can use it all the time. I think Juul users probably have more nicotine in their systems compared to cigarette smokers purely because they are just so easy to use.” E-cigarettes, in some cases, have been linked to an irreversible
lung disease, otherwise known as “popcorn lung.” The life-threatening condition first started in the 1990s at a popcorn factory, when employees inhaled the chemicals that enhance the buttery flavor. Though suspicions rose concerning the Juul’s “creme brulee” pod, the company emphasized on their website they do not use the chemical as a flavor ingredient.
Michael Finnan, Gabelli School of Business ’21, said, “I don’t think anyone knows the effects of Juuling on health. So many people use them that they have become normalized, but I know a lot of users who complain about their throats hurting or feeling nauseated if they smoke a Juul too much.” For now, the popularity of the Juul continues to rise.
Master of Arts in
Urban Studies • Using New York City as your classroom, study urban life in a program shaped by your own interests.
Learn to tackle the challenges facing modern cities in Fordham’s 16-month master’s program.
• Engage in fieldwork and build a strong foundation of applied research in contemporary urban issues. • Explore research, work, and study abroad opportunities with our international partner universities. • Gain practical experience with public agencies, community nonprofits, museums, architectural firms, economic development firms, and more. Courses offered at Lincoln Center and Rose Hill in the evening to accommodate fieldwork. Accelerated master’s available for Fordham juniors with a GPA of 3.2 or higher.
Visit fordham.edu/urbanstudiesma to learn more.
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News
February 21, 2019 THE OBSERVER
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The Price Students Pay to Study Abroad
LONDON FROM PAGE 1 Anglo’s flats are located in central locations across London and are all within walking distance to public transportation. The flats are fully furnished and equipped with wireless internet access, TVs and washing machines in-unit. The flats provide kitchens that are fully equipped with crockery, utensils and microwaves that are all provided for students. In comparison, residents in McMahon and McKeon — who pay nearly $1,000 more for housing — are only supplied with beds, desks and wardrobes and must provide everything else themselves. Further, in the London apartments, weekly cleaning and laundry services are available to students. Cleaning ladies will come to clean the floors and kitchens and will wash bed-sheets provided that students have stripped their beds in advance. In contrast, over 1,000 McMahon students share three communal laundry rooms.
ANDREW BEECHER/THE OBSERVER
Kitchen and Living Room in Praed Street Flat off of Edgware Road, London.
Students in the London Dramatic Program pay a reduced fee of $6,525 to live in Kamen House, which is only five minutes walking distance from the campus. Zack Clark, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’21, is
a student at the London Drama Academy this semester and shares a apartment with three other students in Kamen. His living room boasts views of St. Paul’s Cathedral and the Shard, two of London’s most iconic buildings.
Clark said that “I honestly cannot believe that I wake up and look out my window to see St. Paul’s Cathedral and the Shard each morning. I was not expecting to be living in such incredible housing, and feel unbelievably lucky to live in such an amazing location for my study abroad,” about his apartment this semester.
ANDREW BEECHER/THE OBSERVER
Students in London also pay a program fee of $650 for London Dramatic Academy, $1,350 for London Liberal Arts, and $2,250 for Gabelli School of Business in London. Dr. Joseph Rienti, director of International Study Abroad Programs, explained that this fee “covers the cost of orientation, transportation from Heathrow airport, one long weekend trip to a city outside of the U.K, in-
surance and other student affairs arranged activities throughout the semester.” As a part of their orientation program, London study abroad students were invited on an allexpense-paid boat trip down the River Thames. For incoming freshmen in New York, Office of Residential Life offers social programs (snacks, video-games, movies and board games) on campus as part of their orientation.
Student Affairs also offers subsidized excursions for students in London, which are included in the program fee. Tara Doty, Fordham College at Rose Hill ’20, went on one of the excursions to the Roman Baths and Stonehenge on Jan 19. The trip cost her only 20 pounds, the approximate equivalent of $25, including transportation and admission costs to the two sites.
COURTESY OF SABRINA PULEO
Over the course of the semester, students also attend mandatory trips to different locations around Europe. On Feb. 9, London Liberal Arts traveled to Lisbon, Portugal. Over the weekend, students had to attend mandatory walking tours but were otherwise given free time to explore the city independently. Sabrina Puelo, FCLC ’20, said, “We stayed in an awesome 4.5star hotel right in the heart of downtown Lisbon.” “Fordham did a great job showing us the city and its hidden treasures in just a couple of days,” said Doty about her time in Lisbon. On Apr. 4, Gabelli students will travel to Rome.
COURTESY OF TARA DOTY
Weekend trip to Portugal
Excursion to the Roman Baths and Stonehenge
Instead of a weekend trip, students in the London Dramatic Academy go on a day trip to Stratford-upon-Avon. They also attend weekly performances, such as plays and operas, over the course of the semester. On Jan. 11, Clark attended the opera “Akhnaten” at the famous Coliseum venue in Leicester Square. For the semester, students in all programs also pay $570 for a study abroad fee and $406 for general and technology fees. Without taking into account fi-
nancial aid and scholarships, the average student at the New York Campus pays $33,942 for their tuition and housing for their semester. London study abroad students are billed up to an additional $3,000 for their semester. However, with that $3,000, London students enjoy a semester that is far from the New York City campus experience. With all-expense excursions around England and Europe, and high quality housing opportunities, many believe that extra fees are worth it for their semester abroad.
www.fordhamobserver.com
THE OBSERVER February 21, 2019
News
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CDO Aims to Improve Diversity Hiring Processes By ALEJANDRA CARRASCO Staff Writer
Fordham’s administration has long been working towards creating a more diverse faculty and student body. Chief Diversity Officer Rafael Zapata believes that process starts with diverse hires, if the university will allow for the time that takes. Zapata’s focus is to improve the infrastructure surrounding diversity at Fordham. Although he has only been working at the university for roughly a year, he has already hit the ground running with initiatives and a vision for the future of diversity at Fordham. One of Zapata’s main goals is to build on the momentum of the action plan outlined by university President Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J., in November. The plan, named “Response to the President’s Task Force on Diversity,” outlines specific diversity initiatives the university implemented in 2017 regarding “people, curricula, community engagement, and policies and procedures.” The “People” section describes, for example, Fordham’s changes in how they go about recruiting more students of color. The university has seen that supplying more financial aid has been insufficient in increasing the number of people of color at Fordham; Zapata will be an instrumental part of making changes like these happen. Zapata recognizes that the work he does is a long-term process which will “take continued efforts and happen over time.” He specifically highlighted that, in
ANDREW BEECHER/THE OBSERVER
Chief Diversity Officer Rafael Zapata hopes to support departments to diversify their hiring process
relation to faculty diversity, it is necessary to “design policies that will enhance diversity in the candidate pool.” He aims to generate candidate pools with more people of color and “structure processes that increase the likelihood of having outstanding, diverse pools of candidates.” New hire searches at Fordham typically take seven months to a year and they all go through the same general process. Requests for new hires come early in the
spring semester, decisions are made before summer break and searches take place during the fall of the following year. Zapata explained that one of the biggest factors that impact biases in searches is time. His ultimate goal is to develop a process in which departments have a longer window to conduct their searches because, when decisions are made late, it can disadvantage departments in their ability to hire diverse faculty. He also
emphasized the importance of addressing this and other influential factors to “reduce stress, provide more time, and more clarity” for departments. Furthermore, Zapata wants his office to provide individual support institutional support to all departments in their hiring processes. “They shouldn’t be left alone to do this by themselves,” he said. Zapata mentioned implementing a program in which his department will train people
to provide workshops for search committees with the goal of them “becoming more familiar with best practices,” tentatively named the Equity Advisors program. Zapata believes diverse hires begin with “how we talk about diversity in the job advertisement.” He notes that, although each discipline goes about posting job ads differently, he wants to implement a more active outreach towards potential candidates instead of relying solely on passive job ads. Zapata noted that people of color can still be underrepresented because of not having relationships or networks with potential employers and, because of this, his active outreach would be to take the time to cultivate those networks. Zapata recognized that it is not easy to implement such a personal approach. “Sometimes you get as many as 500 applications,” he said. However, giving more attention to the university’s hiring process opens up a broader conversation about how new, diverse hires could affect the future of departments, students, or even fields of study; it is important to consider how new diverse hires may supplement or bolster the strengths of each department. “[It] depends on how intentional departments are in seeking diversity in their candidate pools,” Zapata said. “This is where leadership, preparation, support comes in.” Zapata’s vision gives the Fordham community a positive outlook for the future of diversity at Fordham. He affirmed that, “We need to look like this country” and represent the diversity in it.
McMahon Fitness Center Shuts Down for Upgrades By JORDAN MELTZER News Editor
The fitness center in McMahon Hall is closed temporarily while it undergoes renovations that will improve both the quality of the equipment and the appearance of the rooom. Located on the second floor of McMahon Hall, the fitness center is the only option that Fordham Lincoln Center students have for a proper exercise facility on campus. According to Gardy Jure, a McMahon Hall security guard, it is open to all current Fordham students: residents of McMahon as well as residents of McKeon Hall, commuting students and students based at the Rose Hill campus. Senior Director of Residential Life Jenifer Campbell explained that the fitness center is cur-
“ I think some of the
equipment there has needed some upgrades for a little while now. A good amount of the machines in there are showing decent age.” JON UY, FCLC ‘19
rently being treated to several improvements, including a new paint job for the space. In addition to the cosmetic upgrade, the center is receiving a substantial amount of updated Precor and Concept-brand equipment. Five new treadmills are replacing the five that are currently
COLIN SHEELEY/THE OBSERVER
Fordham students will not be able to use the Lincoln Center Fitness Center from Feb. 18-26 as it undergoes renovations.
there, both rowers are being replaced, and four stationary bikes — two upright and two recumbent — are replacing the four old ones. In addition, seven new elliptical machines are replacing two old ones for a net total of five more elliptical machines. Jon Uy, Fordham College at Lincoln Center ’19, typically exercises at the fitness center four to five times a week. He noticed some of the machinery needed an upgrade and is glad that it is
now happening. “I think some of the equipment there has needed some upgrades for a little while now,” he said. “A good amount of the machines in there are showing decent age.” Uy still expressed disappointment with the small size of the room. “Unfortunately, at least as I understand it, we’re not getting more space for machines,” he said, “which I think is the more pressing issue in the grand scheme of things. But this reno-
vation should be a good step in the right direction for folks that don’t want to spend the money or the travel time for a YMCA membership.” Uy was referring to the West Side YMCA, a popular option among Fordham Lincoln Center students, located at the corner of West 63rd Street and Central Park West — a five-minute walk from campus. One-month student memberships are available for $85. Fordham students
are also offered a semester-long membership option for $110, partially subsidized through the university. For those hoping to stay active but not looking to purchase a membership, current YMCA members are given several guest passes for non-members. An alternative exercise facility that students may utilize is the Ram Fit Center at Rose Hill, which is open from 6 a.m. until midnight on weekdays and 9 a.m. until 9 p.m. on weekends.
Opinions
Opinions Editor Owen Roche - oroche2@fordham.edu
E
EDUCATION HINGES ON ACCESSIBILITY be opened with a student ID. Students unable to use the turnstile need to travel across the building to the main McKeon entrance — where the elevator banks lack automatic doors. The fact that Fordham is a dense and vertical campus makes improving accessibility challenging, but all the more essential. If the university is the world-class institution it claims to be, it should provide equal accommodations to all students.
Inclusivity means more than just compliance with the law. We need to open Fordham’s doors as wide as possible. Accommodations for students with disabilities should be a basic right. In grade school, if teachers noticed a student was squinting to see the chalkboard, they would send a note home saying the student needs glasses. And then the student would get glasses. Accommodations are as simple as that. According to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Fordham must provide reasonable access to students with disabilities. Although Fordham’s campus meets basic ADA regu-
Observer the
STAFF EDITORIAL
qual access to education is a right. But for those with disabilities, physical or otherwise, the pursuit of education has been made significantly more difficult due to lacking accommodations. An education at Fordham is meant to open doors for students — but for some, there are many doors that remain shut. At Lincoln Center, if a student wants to enter or exit McMahon Hall, they must push or pull. If they cannot do so, there is no button to open the doors automatically. This missing accommodation is just one of many that are not only an inconvenience to Fordham students with disabilities, but an evident disadvantage. For example, there is only one elevator in Lowenstein that travels to the street level. Those unable to take the escalator up to the indoor plaza are consequently forced to wait even longer in a building already known for its crowded and slow elevators. All other accessible elevators to the plaza put Lowenstein-bound students on the wrong side of non-automatic doors. In Fordham’s newest facility, the turnstile at the entrance to McKeon Hall dorms near the Community Dining Hall is similarly inaccessible to students with physical disabilities. While there is a glass door adjacent to it, that door cannot
February 21, 2019 THE OBSERVER
lations, inclusivity means more than just compliance with the law. We need to open Fordham’s doors as wide as possible. Fordham has room for improvement, and it can and must swiftly implement changes to benefit students with disabilities. Necessary accommodations entail only reasonable adjustments and modifications to an environment, like providing a note-taker for students or installing a ramp. Even basic changes on a small scale would have a transformative impact. Fordham has a substantial budget allocated to improve the university, and rising enrollment numbers make expansion at our campus inevitable. The administration should prove its commitment to accessibility by keeping students with disabilities in mind when choosing which parts of Lincoln Center to renovate. It is challenging enough for people with disabilities to live in and navigate New York City. From cramped coffee shops to apartment buildings without elevators to an infamously inaccessible subway system, the city is often hostile to people with physical disabilities. Fordham does not have to mirror New York City’s failings. Our university is home to many and a place of inclusion and care, and should open the door to all students.
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Revelers dance in the Year of the Pig at the Lunar New Year parade on Feb. 17 in Lower Manhattan.
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THE OBSERVER February 21, 2019
Opinions
Schultz 2020: Tall Order, Grande Problem
PATRICK RIZZI Staff Writer
Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz shocked the U.S. political world with his recently expressed interest in running for president in 2020 as a “centrist Independent.” He argues that the two-party system is irreparably broken, pointing to both the damage Trump has caused to the country while in office as well as his fear that the Democratic Party may be moving too far to the left. Schultz’s remarks have sparked intense backlash from many, especially those on the left side of the aisle, who fear that him entering the race as an independent could help Trump in 2020. While I sympathize greatly with these concerns, I do not suspect a Schultz candidacy would help Trump politically. No independent in modern times has come close to winning a presidential election. Even Ross Perot failed to win a single state either of the two times he ran for the Oval Office, despite winning more than 19 million votes in 1992 and more than 8 million votes in 1996. But the point is moot: Schultz would be regarded by much of the American electorate, left and right alike, as an unappealing candidate, and thus should not run in 2020. A Schultz candidacy would
likely increase the very worst possible scenario in 2020 (which is, of course, four more years of Trump). In the most literal sense possible, Schultz may be the most anti-Trump candidate running for President in 2020 so far. This statement sounds absurd at first, given Schultz will likely not endear himself to “The Resistance” like a progressive Democrat would. But when we look at Schultz and Trump on concrete policy grounds, we see that the two billionaires are diametrically opposite from each other. Trump ran in 2016 on a fiscally not-so-conservative but socially far-right platform. While he has pursued some economically conservative policies in office that do not stray from the GOP orthodoxy, such as the tax cut bill signed into law in December 2017, he also displays a shocking disregard for many aspects of “financial responsibility” that much of the right has sounded the alarm about for a long time. He has little understanding or concern for the increasing national debt, even allegedly asking his chief economic advisor behind closed doors just to print more money to alleviate it. (No, that’s not from The Onion.) And, of course, he has no problem demanding $5.7 billion for his border wall. As a result, Trump is able to reach voters who are fiscally moderate but socially conservative, which describes the profiles
GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY ESME BLEECKER-ADAMS
A latte is going to have to happen to make him president.
of many Midwestern swing voters who were drawn to him in 2016. It’s certainly possible that a message of left-wing economic populism could appeal to some of these voters, even if they may not be enamored with social progressivism. However, Schultz would be less appealing to these so-called swing voters than either Trump or virtually any Democratic candidate. Schultz
claims he is planning to run as a fiscally conservative yet socially liberal candidate without straying terribly far from the political center. Normally, political consultants think of the electorate in two camps: base voters, who may be either strongly committed to the Democratic or Republican Party, and swing voters, who are not strongly committed to either party. While Schultz
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would have exceptional difficulty appealing to swing voters, he would have an even harder time appealing to base voters of either party. Schultz is too fiscally conservative for Democrats, too socially liberal for Republicans and not fiscally conservative enough and/or socially liberal enough to appeal to Libertarians. In a deeply polarized time when political divisions extend from our civic life to our daily lives, base voters on both sides will feel unprecedented pressure to support their party’s nominee rather than any Independent candidate. There may be a few conservative Democrats who might balk at an increasingly progressive Democratic primary, and we know that there is a small but mildly significant “never Trump” movement within the GOP. Neither of these two factions are large enough to genuinely create enthusiasm for an Independent candidate. I understand Howard Schultz’s discontent with the increasing partisanship and divisiveness of politics today under the two-party system and empathize with many of these concerns as American public discourse continues its dangerous and corrosive course. However, a Schultz candidacy would not only do little to fix this social ill but would have no real purpose or wide appeal to the American electorate.
We Need to Diversify Specialized High Schools AIZA BHUIYAN Staff Writer
In a June 2018 effort to diversify the specialized high schools of New York City, Mayor Bill de Blasio and Schools Chancellor Richard A. Carranza proposed to expand the Discovery program created in the 1970s. The Discovery program was initially created to give low-income students more opportunities to enroll in specialized high schools, but the pair planned to alter the criteria for enrollment in order to restrict selection to students in high-poverty schools. De Blasio and Carranza also intended to allocate 20 percent of seats in the specialized high schools to these students to ensure the percentage of black and Hispanic students in these schools increases from nine to 16. In addition, their plan eliminated the admissions test used to filter out and accept students based on exam scores. Instead of reserving spots in the specialized high schools for students who score the highest on the exam, spots would be held for students who perform the strongest academically in their middle schools. To eliminate the admissions test, de Blasio will have to enact legislation to repeal laws in effect since the ’70s. If passed, the population of the schools will finally reflect the populace of the city. Currently, black and Hispanic students make up 67 percent of the student population in all NYC public schools, however, only a fraction of these students are offered spots in specialized high schools. Upon complete implementation, the plan will increase the offers given to black and Hispanic students to 45 percent. This announcement to diversify schools has been greeted with hostility and retaliation. In
ETHAN COUGHLIN/THE OBSERVER
Under Mayor Bill de Blasio’s plan, the make-up of New York City’s specialized high schools would better reflect New York City’s demographics.
December 2018, news broke that advocates for Asian-American students were suing the mayor, claiming that this proposition to change the admissions process is discriminatory. One of the attorneys for this case argued that to only target high-poverty students for enrollment in the Discovery program would make many Asian-Americans lose eligibility for those seats. Wen Fa says that de Blasio wants to “racially balance” the schools according to his preference. He compared this plan to “gerrymandering,” although this plan would actually increase the representation of its constituents rather than undermine them. This plan is not meant to racially balance the schools, but rather to desegregate the school system. There is a stark discrepancy in the achievement gap between white and Asian-American students in comparison to
black and Hispanic students as a result of maldistribution of resources. Historically, the quality of education in metropolitan areas across the United States has been unequally distributed among racial groups. Black and Hispanic students are more likely to receive older books, lesser-qualified teachers, older technology and have liberal arts program cuts because they are more likely to live in high-poverty neighborhoods. NYC schools, in particular, are profoundly segregated. In fact, studies from 2010 show that over 90 percent of black students in NYC attend schools where the majority of students are racial minorities. Six decades have passed since the Supreme Court decided that schools could no longer be “separate but equal.” Since then, there has hardly been an attempt to diminish the residential segregation that still dictates the
quality of education students in impoverished areas receive. Additionally, former remnants from Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s initiatives still impact the school system in NYC. In 2002, he bullied his way into gaining control over the NYC public school system. A self-made businessman began treating schools like more of his businesses. Although many of his reforms were beneficial when they came to fruition, the results were bittersweet. Under his administration, the number of charter schools allowed in the city increased exponentially. These schools were heralded as superior alternatives to the traditional public schools, but to this day they come with many strings attached. Studies show that the results of these charter schools generally show an upward trend in grades, however, the research
on these institutions is limited to schools that are performing well. Because these charter schools are federally funded, they take away funding from traditional public schools. Additionally, they perpetuate the segregation of education since many of the charter schools that are high-performing do not have students from high-poverty disadvantaged backgrounds. In fact, the ones that do usually do not produce test scores that compare to advantaged students. If we expect students from underserved backgrounds to be restricted to underfunded traditional schools and ineffective charter schools, what chance do they have to bring themselves out of the vicious cycle of poverty? If there are plans to subdue the systemic superstructure of racism in our education system, we should support it rather than scrutinize it. That is not to say that Asian-Americans are undeserving of spots in these schools — they are. But as citizens, we owe it to these disenfranchised and overlooked students to have the opportunity to pursue their own American Dream. New York City students in economically precarious situations are still forced to endure de facto separate and unequal education institutions. These students face residential segregation, unorganized zoning policies and lack resources to a quality education. What we need to do now is to rectify the wrongs of the past. By allowing students of black and Hispanic backgrounds to have a fair chance of gaining entry into these specialized high schools, we would be painting a picture of progress for the city and the nation. These changes will show disadvantaged groups that their history, present and future matters. And most importantly, that they matter.
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Opinions
February 21, 2019 THE OBSERVER
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Free the Pimple: Puberty Chic Going Through Changes OWEN ROCHE Opinions Editor
Being American and going through puberty is a unique tradition of ours. It’s an experience that unites across religion, color, creed and privilege — up to a decade or more of awkwardness, mental and physical, is indeed the single greatest instance of evolutionary hazing — and rightly the bedrock of our nation. And it sucks. Anthropologist Margaret Mead took a look at adolescents on faraway islands and told us about as much — that the moody, angsty, self-conscious and sexually-repressed youth given hours of homework a night over in the land of the free aren’t exactly the gold standard of formative human development. No citizen is safe. Sooner or later, we get pimples. Everywhere. Our voices change. We get lumps in weird places. Sometimes, we want everyone to die. Sometimes, we feel like dying ourselves. We try to blend in and stand out at the same time like camo pants in a K-Mart: poorly on both accounts. Oh, and we’re so unbelievably horny. As American bodies transition from childhood to adulthood, the imbalanced brains that pilot them are just as developmentally wonky and even more vulnerable. Sadly, barring the collapse of capitalism and a collective change of heart in the next couple of years, kids and teens in America will be treated the same way their parents were, and their parents before them — knowing that they’re changing, knowing that they’re disproportionate and never being equipped
OWEN ROCHE/THE OBSERVER
COURTESY OF JON HALL/NETFLIX
Left: the writer at 16. Right: Asa Butterfield, 22, masquerading as a 16-year-old in “Sex Education” (2018).
with enough information to handle it. And they’ll continue to have that unshakable feeling that no one understands them or what they’re going through until they’re old enough and have clear enough skin to pretend like it never happened. Where do brace-faced, tent-pantsed American pubescents turn for validation? It’s too risky to depend on parents. Their knowledge of labia and scrota too often calls into question their very parenthood. When bad grades and weird hairs get them down, kids and teenagers need a distraction. So, they turn on the TV. They go to the movies. They open Netflix. The depiction of high school life on screens big and small is perhaps an equally American tradition.
Nostalgia, our national pastime, drives us to seek out representations of our past — the “That ’70s Shows,” the “Greases” and the “Goldbergses” of our time provide us with just such an outlet. They give us a taste of the past — our past, perhaps, with an accuracy more rosy than rosacea. Do you picture it in your mind yet? Do visions of 30-year-olds pretending to be teenagers dance through your head? America has been crushing on puberty chic big time. “Pretty Little Liars” would perhaps be more accurate if the actors were shown going out for drinks after third period or filling out rental car forms. Jason Earles, a 39-year-old man, played Hannah Montana’s co-star Jackson Stewart. Did we hear about his character’s nocturnal emissions? His struggle with sexual identity? Did we see a
single pimple? Nobody put Baby in a corner, but they certainly cast her 17-yearold character with a woman 10 years her senior. It’s spelled out plainer than a TV show teacher’s name underlined on a green chalkboard: we’re ashamed of what we looked like in middle school. We cringe at what we did, how we dressed and whom we crushed on in high school. Instead of looking back and laughing, we go to great lengths to convince ourselves and everyone around us that high school wasn’t like that for us. We were cool, wore leather jackets and had a fully-settled facial bone structure. Puberty chic is so ingrained in American pop culture — we’re so ashamed of our first periods in first period — that we risk passing our revisionist habits on to the next generation. Alas, we’re not out of the woods
yet. Contemporary shows like “Sex Education” on Netflix get the second part right — that growing up doesn’t have to be a taboo subject — but the message falls flat when it’s told by a 22-year-old. It’s discouraging to walk the line this way, implying that the validation of kids and teens is valuable but that they’re just too unfit to deliver the message themselves. Is it too much to ask to have a movie called “Eighth Grade” played entirely by actual eighth graders? However, the trend could be starting to reverse. Only now have we started to dab the Tretinoin gel of reality on the angry, swelling zit of puberty denial, or so I hope. “Big Mouth” is the biggest ray of hope for such a counter-movement. The smash Netflix hit, two seasons in and going strong, chronicles in vivid detail middle school kids fighting mood swings, questioning their sexualities and getting their first periods at the Statue of Liberty. Though their voice actors are far beyond their pubescent years, the animated characters are undeniably, often grotesquely teenage. That the brash, vulgar lessons of the show have resonated so much with audiences suggests that it’s now as cool as ever to talk about sex and growing up in a genuine way. The people who need to hear it most get the message, and those who’ve been through it already might even crack a smile as they begrudgingly relate. This representation and validation are long overdue. We’ve made steps in the right direction, but we have a ways to go before facing the ugly truth goes completely mainstream. Puberty chic isn’t cool — and neither are America’s adolescents — but representation certainly is.
Catch up or get ahead this summer! • Finish core requirements. • Begin a second major. • Set yourself up to graduate early.
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Session I: May 28–June 27 Session II: July 2–August 6 Choose from more than 200 available courses! Register via my.fordham.edu starting March 25.
Learn more at fordham.edu/summer.
Introducing the Opinions section’s severance with seriousness:
The Rubberneck
THE OBSERVER February 21, 2019
Opinions
Fordham Dining Hall a Food Lover’s Free-For-All
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NICOLE PERKINS Staff Writer
Out for a pleasant stroll a few evenings ago, I found myself hopelessly lost in the bowels of Fordham University. I took several elevators (both up and down), an escalator and eventually discovered myself to be in a dumbwaiter that had popped out of thin air. When I was finally able to take in my surroundings, I was standing in front of the finest Fordham dining establishment on this blessed campus: the freshman dining hall. Upon entering, I was excited to discover that it was buffet-style — I could eat to my heart’s delight for only one dining swipe. Overwhelmed with choices, I spent approximately 40 minutes lying in the fetal position on the floor, unsure of what to order. Where to start? My options were limitless: I could have ice cream, bread, bread and more bread. I despaired over the options before me. But then, the fog miraculously cleared and I knew just what to start with: pizza. I picked up a simple slice of cheese and got to work. The notes of basil and sage in the sauce were extremely subtle — I could almost believe they weren’t there. The cheese, which I’m assuming was an aged fontina or perhaps a smoky edam, had a chunky texture that I definitely wasn’t expecting. This bold choice was truly not one to be missed. Even the crust, which had a strange mealiness dissimilar to every slice of pizza I had ever had in my life, was likewise an unexpected take on a familiar food. Hoping to discover another fine delicacy, I went back and merrily assembled a bowl of cheerios with whole milk. The Cheer-
GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY ESME BLEECKER-ADAMS
Courses at the freshman dining hall never cease to amaze — kevlar ham, deconstructed pizza and room temperature cereal among them.
ios were incredibly crisp and the milk an invigorating room temperature. The decision to keep the milk just barely chilled enough to pass health standards but not enough to make it reasonably cold was a courageous decision that I stand behind. After getting up to for a short second to grab a spoon, I returned to my bowl to find that the cheerios had become completely dissolved in the milk. I shrugged my shoulders and decided it was time to move on. There was still
something missing. Feeling edgy and ready to try something new, I ordered pork from the hot station and prepared myself for the best cut of meat I’d ever had in my life. Although I initially broke six knives trying to cut into the meal, I eventually succeeded with a chef’s grade electric knife and got to work. The pork was an extremely chewy, oatmeal-consistency delight, and as soon as my dentist fixes the four teeth I chipped eating it, I fully intend to order it
again. Would I have been able to identify the substance as pork had I not been told prior? Not at all. But mystery truly spices up life and I loved the rocky ride the pork took my palate on. To balance it out, I accompanied it with mac and cheese, which perfectly offset the pork with its baby-foodlike consistency. I tried to go back and eat more in the dining hall, but I truly could not. I shoved two bagels and a handful of jam packets
in my pockets to save for later, wishing I could eat the delightfully fresh baked goods right at that moment. With great strength, I wrenched myself away from that blessed place. All in all, my experience was wonderful if not remarkable. Before this, I had had no idea that such a beacon of the New York City dining experience existed mere floors below me. I look forward to dining there again — assuming there are any open reservations.
Liquid Cash: the Fordham Cup Conspiracy GRACE GETMAN Asst. Opinions Editor
There is a major drinking issue at Fordham, and, surprisingly, it has zero connection to Rose Hill. Due to continued grievances, such as black mold in McKeon showers and the quality of the dining hall food, many students have questioned where Fordham spends its budget – it certainly isn’t on them. No disrespect to my colleagues, but they’re looking in the wrong places for where Fordham’s endowment is spent. Rather than point fingers across the pond, they should look in Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J.’s kitchen cabinet. Fordham’s budget isn’t going to its London program; it’s funding the creation of thousands and thousands of elegant plastic cups decorated with the logo of our fine institution. Big Ben? More like Big Gulp. Rather than invest in creating a world-class university or even a world-class study abroad program in the U.K., the land-owning Rose Hill patricians have decided to buy our love and awe with glossy, monogrammed plastic cups. It’s an easy argument to swallow. Honestly, who cares that Fordham pays for dorm maids in London when they have been buying students’ affection by keeping them hydrated this whole time?
GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY STEPH LAWLOR
If a cup tree grows in a forest, does anyone notice where their tuition is going?
You know the cups I’m talking about. You see them everywhere, mocking you with their maroon logos, telling you that you will never be as crisp or as successful as they are. You know where you see those cups? At events held for the upper-crust, for open houses and club fairs. They’re the cups of the Jesuit bourgeoisie. I’ve done the math, and the numbers check out. According to the internet, a bastion of accuracy and helpfulness, a
monogrammed hard plastic cup costs approximately 50 cents. With a $739 million endowment, that equates to 1,478,000,000 cups, which is a number that makes perfect sense when you look at any trash can after an open house or club day event. I’ve also heard rumors that Dean of Undergraduate Admission Patricia Peek, Ph.D., seeks to improve our Wall Street Journal/Times Higher Education survey rankings by becoming a
cup stacking champion. Athlete Patricia “Y’all Are Weak” Peek is said to have set the speed stacking world on fire with a record time of 18.41 seconds, a time she earned from long practice sessions with Joseph “Bring the Pain” McShane and student government president Demetrios “OG of USG” Stratis. I don’t disagree with Fordham’s choice to spend their entire endowment on monogrammed plastic cups. In fact, I love it. I will happily drink
the Kool-Aid from my glossy, monogrammed cup, as everyone loves a good Jesuit Jammer. And you know, we do all need a good way to satisfy our thirst beyond Googling “young Leon Lowenstein.” Most of all, the cups lend us humble Lincoln Center plebeians a sense of pride that the sports program does not. Barring Pizza Fridays, these cups are the only things holding school spirit together. But now that we know what’s really going on in Fordham’s financial offices, we have the right to get in on their hustle. To seize the means of pro-cuption, if you will. We all deserve our own glossy, monogrammed plastic cup. After all, there are hundreds of millions of these cups at Fordham as we speak. We have to rise up and grab our own goblets. Every open house, every club fair, we will take our future back. For the environmentallyconscious, the cups can hold students’ tears for later re-use. For Rose Hill students who become lost at Lincoln Center, the cups will help them start their own bar so they can feel at home. For literally any student at Fordham, the cups can hold the pocket change you have left after paying your tuition. All Fordham students have a moral duty to redistribute the wealth by stealing as many cups as they can carry. The cups are stacked against us, but we must spill the truth.
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Arts
February 21, 2019 THE OBSERVER
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Fordham, But Make It
Fashion By ROXANNE CUBERO Staff Writer
Let’s be real, Fordham Lincoln Center: We don’t have school spirit. Despite many attempts to rile up some “ram-thusiasm” in the student body, it just isn’t there. What happened to the brighteyed, bushy-tailed enthusiasm you had when you got your acceptance letter? What happened to your Ram Fan shirt? Is it in the back of your closet, looking as new as the day you got it? Or did you cut it up and use it as your
gym shirt, like many have unabashedly confessed? The way people show their lack of school spirit is borderline boastful.) This sounds naive and freshman-y, but I have a lot of school spirit. The food is subpar and the guest policy is wack, but there is no place I’d rather be. It disappointed me to find that the fanatical facade put on display during orientation was exactly that: a facade. By the first day of classes, maroon was desaturated from the campus, with the exception of the occasional hoodie and sweatpants.
ROXANNE CUBERO and MARINA VERGARA/THE OBSERVER
My love can’t be bought by lukewarm pizza. College students will do anything for free food; it’s not hard to pass around a maroon hat among the friend group. I needn’t a half-ton metal ram to inspire me. I use the underground tunnels for the majority of the year, so I barely remember what it looks like. While appreciated, (especially by students that wish to save their swipes) these attempts to rouse school spirit are ineffective. I may be wrong, but free food and metal statues can’t possibly be a source of passion
for anyone. Perhaps, if these attempts tried to get in touch with students’ passions, students may begin to show some school spirit. I’m not saying that I will single-handedly fix the school spirit situation, but perhaps I could offer my humble opinion as to where we could start. Lincoln Center certainly has no short of fashionistas, so why aren’t our hallways flooded with maroon? I can think of a couple of ideas. Truthfully, the hoodies in the bookstore aren’t exactly ready for the runway. Or the hallway, for that matter, unless
you’re serving the just-rolledout- of-bed-a nd-t his-was-t hefirst-thing-I-could-grab fantasy. While you can simply dress up the overpriced Champion hoodie your mom bought when you were accepted, it’s not your only option. Peruse thrift shops and your parents’ closets for retro pieces, and scour the sale section of fast fashion stores for maroon basics. You’d be surprised at what you’ll find. Here’s the bottom line, you don’t have to sacrifice fashion for school spirit.
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THE OBSERVER February 21, 2019
Arts
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Arts & Culture
Arts & Culture Editor Marielle Sarmiento - msarmiento3@fordham.edu
February 21, 2019
THE OBSERVER
Hypebeasts — The Other Side of Streetwear
By DUNCAN TAYLOR Contributing Writer
We’ve all seen it. On campus, on the subway and in the streets, it seems that logo is inescapable. Its incredibly simplistic design features the brand’s name, Supreme, in Futura Bold Italic font inside a red rectangle. That’s really all it is. But this same simple design has spawned a global phenomenon which has stretched across cities and campuses alike. Fordham Lincoln Center is one of those campuses. Brands like Supreme, Balenciaga, Gucci and Louis Vuitton are seen adorned on shirts, hats and bags all over the place. But just how much of this highend clothing is too much? The answer to that question might be a little more complicated than you’d think. For any fashion-forward student who enjoys dabbling in streetwear style, the dilemma when picking an outfit is ever-present: do I wear that Supreme top? What about the Gucci belt? The Louis bag? Whether you’re familiar with the term or not, you might be afraid of being labeled a hypebeast. In popular culture, a hypebeast
is somebody who lacks a personal sense of style, and, rather than dressing for themselves, buys expensive (often designer-brand) items to try and fit in with the hype and trends. Hypebeasts often create entire outfits consisting solely of these designer items, perhaps something like a Balenciaga hat, Supreme jacket, Balmain jeans and Gucci shoes. But just where is the line drawn between hypebeast and streetwear connoisseur? A lot of that difference is seen in the price tag. Most hypebeast items, whether they’re Supreme’s coveted $500 North Face jacket or Gucci’s $650 embroidered sneakers, are typically much more expensive than those commonly worn by streetwear fans. A popular streetwear shoe, the white FILA Disruptor, retails for around $70, which makes it much more affordable than other sought-after items. On campus, Fordham students have also come to understand the distinction between what’s streetwear and what’s hypebeast material in their own ways. When asked about his perception of hypebeasts on campus, Paolo Estrella, Gabelli School of Business ’20, said, “Hypebeasts are everywhere. Not gon-
NAZIL ARDITI/THE OBSERVER
A comparable item’s price is the defining line between a streetwear connoisseur and a hypebeast.
na lie, I see a ton of international students dressed in hypebeast ’fits. I think it’s just a flex of wealth and is pretty shallow.” While most hypebeasts’ outfits consist of designer smacked on top of designer, it’s not necessarily a bad thing to own some hyped-up items. In fact, mixing hype brands with more casual
low-end streetwear can actually work out well. As Zoe Mader, Fordham College at Rose Hill ’22, explained, “It doesn’t matter who or what brand you’re wearing as long as you actually style it with taste.” The line between streetwear and hypebeast territory is a thin
one, but when crossed over tastefully, it can yield interesting and creative results. At the end of the day, one of the greatest aspects of streetwear is its room for self-expression and creativity. By dabbling in both ends of the spectrum, you can find new ways to achieve a unique style with personal flair.
Treat Your Wallet with Downtown Dining Discounts By SAMANTHA VOGEL Staff Writer
Living in one of the most expensive cities in the world can be difficult, even downright torturous, especially for a college student. Expenses hit you left and
right: your MetroCard needs refilling, you want to see the new movie everyone’s raving about, you’re from a warm area and have to purchase winter clothes. And you must contend with the most tempting drainage of your
money: food and drink. It’s impossible to live in New York City and not sample its world-renowned food scene. As a college student, it’s even harder to avoid the appeal of cozying up in a coffee shop and studying
with a change of scenery and an artisanal beverage. However, food expenses and frequent cups of coffee add up. What most Fordham students don’t know, however, is that quite a few Village-area estab-
lishments offer lower prices and more student discounts. These places are only a short walk or subway ride from campus, and would be a boon to any student operating on a shoestring budget.
Blue Stripes Cacao Student Discount: 10 percent 218 E 13th St.
Hu Kitchen Student Discount: 10 percent 78 Fifth Ave. Hu Kitchen is a buffet-like restaurant with a number of healthy and delicious options. Their mission is to promote quality food and make it easily accessible with a buffet style selection of sides and main dishes, as well as a coffee and smoothie bar. They cook with fresh vegetables and vary the selections on a seasonal basis. They also have premade and packaged foods and snacks to take on the go. When checking out, show your Fordham student ID and get 10 percent off your order. Not only are you saving money, but you also get a healthy, quick alternative to fast food.
If you like chocolate anything, this is the place for you. This French-inspired cafe is run and owned by chocolatier Max Brenner. Not only is the cafe well-liked for its signature hot chocolates, but you can show your Fordham student ID at checkout for a 10 percent discount. Strawberries dipped in chocolate, cannolis stuffed with Nutella, chocolate mousse whipped to perfection — if you want chocolate in it, on it, with it, Blue Stripes Cacao delivers. If you don’t dream of chocolate everything, you can order their avocado toast, croissant egg sandwich or some tapas without chocolate. However, the establishment’s best seller is its hot chocolate. I opt for the dark chocolate hot chocolate when ordering, but you can also order milk chocolate or Nutella if you’re in the mood for something sweeter — or not lactose intolerant like myself. In addition to great drinks and chocolate foods, the ambience inside Blue Stripes Cacao is an added bonus. The seating is comfortable and the cafe even has a few bookshelves in the back in case you fancy reading a book with your beverage. And, while you’re there, you might be lucky enough to see Max Brenner himself.
The Bean Student Discount: 10 percent 824 Broadway As a student in New York City, you’re bound to spend one of your afternoons or evenings studying in a coffee shop; however, the constant expenses — especially for us coffee snobs out there who refuse to drink the charred coffee-water Starbucks serves — amount to more than you realize. The Bean has several locations in Manhattan’s East Village, its most popular being on 12th Street and Broadway across from The Strand bookstore. Show your Fordham student ID at checkout for a 10 percent discount. GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION BY ESME BLEECKER-ADAMS
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THE OBSERVER February 21, 2019
Arts
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Off-Stage Spotlight: More To Theater Than It Seams By MARIA HAYAKAWA Staff Writer
Theater is a beautiful art. Actors take on a whole different being and create illustrious performances. However, we tend to focus on what is shown on stage rather than the behind-the-scenes work. For every Fordham Theatre production, there is a large amount of work offstage. Whether it’s set design, prop making or tech, it is something we tend to forget. Alyssa Rosenberg, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’21, is a costume design major who has worked on the mainstage shows “Orlando” and “Antigonick” last semester. As of late, she has worked on designs and fittings for the upcoming mainstage show “Satellites.” Rosenberg discussed switching her major, her experience backstage working on Fordham shows and her passion for theater. Originally a political science major, Rosenberg is an internal transfer into the theater program. “I switched to costume design because it’s what I love doing.” Theater was a large part of her middle and high school life. She worked with costumes, makeup and hair in productions at her school, and she knew it was something she wanted to pursue. “In high school, I would always stay after and help with rehearsal or I would help with fittings and makeup … I didn’t take a sewing class until my senior year,” she said. “But I had basic sewing skills from
JOE ROVEGNO/THE OBSERVER
Former political science major Alyssa Rosenberg, FCLC ’21, discovered her true passion in the costume shop.
my grandparents and my mom. In terms of designing a show, I didn’t do a full show design until my senior year of high school.” Through her experiences in high school, she realized she especially enjoys wig design. She has big hopes for her fu-
ture post-graduation. “I would definitely love to intern somewhere doing wig master stuff or at a company that builds wigs. Eventually, I would like to design wigs or be able to design makeup. If there is some way I could combine those things, that
would be the perfect world.” Her favorite production that she has worked on at Fordham was a student-written play, “Erotophobia.” She said, “It was actuAdm_FordhamUniversityAd_002_FA18.pdf ally only the second show I designed at Fordham. It was really different from any show I did. It
was a surrealist play so it was definitely something I wasn’t used to, which was making the costumes fit the world because it wasn’t hyper-real.” It was a challenge for Rosenberg, but she wanted to push her skills and think outside the box. In the future, Rosenberg hopes to see more colorful period and surrealist costumes in regard to Fordham Theatre. “I think there are so many fun things to build when you’re dealing with period costumes and so many fun things to learn. You learn the most, in my opinion, when you are doing stuff that is not necessarily modern, especially with building.” She has the most fun seeing and working with intricately costumed shows and wants to see more of that in the future. For anyone wanting to go into costume design or theater, Rosenberg said, “Try as much as you can, try new things, assist as much as you can and talk to as many as you can in that concentration.” Since she was an internal transfer, she initially had did not know how the productions worked. She is grateful to Elizabeth Ryan, FCLC ’19, who helped her with everything she needed and demonstrated how the shows run when she was new to the program. Regarding the Fordham Theatre department, Rosenberg said, “It’s a really good group. I am lucky to know the people in1 it. 1/24/19 Everybody 1:55isPMunbelievably artistic and creative and talented, and it’s really cool to see how people make art together.”
Witches and Waitlists at Sundance By GRACE TIERNEY Contributing Writer
College is notorious for being a period of supreme business, but that does not mean that we should not have fun. The Sundance Film Festival was something definitely worth going to. My passion for film spurred my family and I to journey to Park City, Utah. It’s a worthwhile experience for anyone willing to let film open their eyes. My family does everything last-minute, so we arrived as the least prepared attendees of the festival. We ended up seeing the only movie still available at that point: a Serbian kids’ film called “The Witch Hunters.” We gave my dad much grief when youngsters poured into the empty seats and Serbian subtitles appeared on screen, but our karma came in the form of a great film. “The Witch Hunters” rocked. It featured two adorable costars, one of whom had partial cerebral palsy and dreams of being a superhero; together they teamed up to take down the evil stepmother. Director Rasko Milikjovic spun a dark narrative around juvenile themes, evident in the children’s plans to stick a pin in the antagonist’s brain stem, or “the core of life.” The film was nonetheless heartwarming, and while I normally pride myself on my stoic expression in the cinemas, the nostalgia and innocence of childhood brought me close to tears. I can condense my experience at Sundance into one word: rushed. We waitlisted every movie, so we had to be at the theater 30 minutes prior to each showing. Sundance regulars might cringe, but I would not have conducted my first film fes-
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tival experience differently. To waitlist a movie, you must learn to navigate the Sundance app with ease. We all had to tap “join waitlist” at the speed of light. Sundance would then randomly assign us our respective numbers that represented the place we would hold in line, and our consequent likelihood of getting into a film. I was frustrated by the waitlist process at first. However, it grew on me as a suspenseful game of trial and error, a source of laughter with my family as they failed to operate technology and a foundation of hope that we could be the lucky ones who had a low enough number to see a sold-out, sought-after film. Our first successful waitlist encounter was “The Last Tree,” a film by Shola Amoo about a
Nigerian boy who struggles to adjust to his ever-changing surroundings. The film is divided into a trilogy as he migrates between living situations, and the audience must question what constitutes a home. A Q&A with the cast and director followed. This session was perhaps the most special part of Sundance. The dialogue with the director metamorphosed into a script the audience constructed: a discovery of symbolic ambiguity, an elimination of cliffhangers, an unpacking of subtlety and an explanation of the casting and filming process. These interactions impressed upon me why Park City takes so much pride in the festival and why people flock to it. Sundance Film Festival truly was a special experience, and I felt lucky to be there.
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February 21, 2019 THE OBSERVER
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Did You See ‘Bohemian Rhapsody?’ #MeToo By ETHAN COUGHLIN Staff Writer
Bryan Singer’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” snagged five Oscar nominations including Best Picture, and Singer himself is set to personally make more than $40 million from his 2018 blockbuster. Singer has directed many other favorites among both critics and audiences like “The Usual Suspects,” “Superman Returns” and a number of “X-Men” films. Up until a few weeks ago, the Division of Cinema and Media Studies program at the prestigious University of Southern California film school was named after Singer. In addition to all these accomplishments, Bryan Singer raped then 17-year-old Cesar Sanchez-Guzman in 2003.
The allegations break the news cycle for a single day and then are promptly brushed under the carpet and dismissed. In 2017, allegations came out from 1994, on the set of Singer’s critically acclaimed film “The Usual Suspects,” which starred the now-blacklisted Kevin Spacey. Multiple crew and cast members said they were uncomfortable with advances from Spacey. However, the allegations were shaken off with, “Well, that’s just Kevin.” Three years later, Singer molested 13-year-old Victor Valdovinos, an extra on the set of Singer’s “Apt Pupil,” and forced multiple other minors on set to fully undress during filming. In the early 2000s, Singer became an investor in the new Digital Entertainment Network (DEN). DEN ultimately ended in pedophilia scandals and allegations from multiple teenage boys who said they were told they would star in digital series. Instead, the
PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY JOE ROVEGNO
Actors and audiences alike must play a part in holding sexual abusers in Hollywood accountable.
boys were used for sex at DEN’s mansion parties. While some of these allegations have only recently surfaced, many have been public knowledge for years. It begs the question: why do Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey get blacklisted while Bryan Singer is still thriving? The answer is simple: Hollywood doesn’t care enough. Every day, it feels like more and more allegations come out against Hollywood actors,
directors and other crew members. The allegations break the news cycle for a single day and then are promptly brushed under the carpet and dismissed. Last year, 16 women came forward saying they had endured sexual harassment and inappropriate behavior from actor Morgan Freeman. On top of that, more crew members and journalists came forward saying they had personally witnessed Freeman sexually harass the women
with whom he worked. However, to find the CNN story online, you must type “Morgan Freeman allegations” into the Google search bar. Freeman has starred in five productions since the allegations came out and is set to star in four more in the future. Freeman never had to make a response to the allegations, and they ultimately didn’t hurt his career at all. That’s where the problem lies: these allegations generally do
not have lasting effects on the actors’ careers. While they certainly aren’t as detrimental as the abusers themselves, part of the blame needs to be put on the actors and industry professionals who continue to work with known abusers, especially those with established-enough careers that they do not have to take any film they can land. Actors like Rami Malek, Timothee Chalamet and Greta Gerwig work with abusers and are let off the hook with a simple tweet saying they stand with victims. It’s pitiful. Unfortunately, the sexual harassment and assault issues in Hollywood are systemic. They extend far beyond the abusers themselves to the point where even the most influential filmmakers and actors are silent about such issues out of fear for their careers. That’s where we audience members come in. When most people hear Hollywood, they think of actors, filmmakers, studios and everyone else involved in making movies. However, many forget that the most influential members of Hollywood are audiences across the country. The dollar ultimately rules Hollywood. Bryan Singer films are still greenlit because they bring in such a high return on investment. We need to stop handing our money to abusers. We need to make sure filmmakers and actors know that sexual assault ends careers. If no one had seen “Bohemian Rhapsody” in theaters, Singer would never direct another film. There are too many fantastic filmmakers whom studios do not acknowledge as they continue to give money to abusers because they know that it won’t affect their profits. While some steps have been made in the right direction by those who are brave enough to do anything, more needs to be done to rid Hollywood of this plague. Next time allegations come out against someone in Hollywood, don’t ignore them. Ignore the abusers and their films.
Ram Jams: ‘thank u, next’ is Sweeter than ‘Sweetener’ By JORDAN MELTZER News Editor
The Deets: In the summer of 2018, I gave Ariana Grande’s “Sweetener” a lukewarm review, much to the dismay of many of my friends and internet connections. Grande herself must have read it; just about every hole I pointed out has been filled, every scratch itched and every song slayed on her new album. “thank u, next” is far sweeter than “Sweetener.” The album opens with “imagine,” a song that is surprisingly intricate from a compositional standpoint. The complex harmonies, unusual vocal rhythms and magnificent whistle tones are difficult to conceive and perform, but Grande and her team of songwriters outdid themselves. It’s hard to believe pop writers came up with this song; it’s far more elaborate than almost any other pop song I’ve heard. On “needy,” Grande shows her soft side, declaring, “I’m obsessive and I love too hard/Good at overthinking with my heart.” The record quickly dichotomizes her emotional and tougher personalities, though, as “NASA” does a complete 180 and depicts the latter. It’s a fast-paced banger with space-based lyrics displaying her control of a relationship: “You
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Grande has a musical and lyrical triumph in “thank u, next.”
know I’m a star/I’ma need space.” The album has its fair share of safe, radio-friendly tunes, but “bloodline” stands out for its Panic! at the Disco-esque horn section and its especially catchy hook. The album’s title track, “thank
u, next,” is especially distinct because of its healthy approach to breakups that is otherwise unheard of in popular music. With the permission of her exes, she displayed genuine gratitude for her past relationships while also
expressing her desire to move on and be her best possible self. “Thank you, next/I’m so f---ing grateful for my ex,” she sings. She also dives headfirst into the hip-hop world on this record. The single “7 rings” is an unapologetic trap song with the flows and the beat of many a SoundCloud rapper dominating the hip-hop charts. Listeners immediately recognized the similarity of the sound to rappers who came before her, like 2 Chainz. She responded by releasing a remix of the song with 2 Chainz. “bad idea” and “break up with your girlfriend, i’m bored” feature prominent hi-hats, an element for which trap music is famous. On all three songs, Grande embraces a bravado that complements her feminine edge nicely; she gives new meaning to the term “bada-- babe.” As she gave a nod to the Manchester bombing on “Sweetener,” so she gave one to her late ex-boyfriend Mac Miller on “thank u, next,” which came out just five months after he died of an overdose. During the weeks that followed, Grande broke off her engagement with Pete Davidson (whose name became the title of a song on her previous release) and wrote and recorded most of “thank u, next,” including its titular track. Miller’s moment comes on “ghos-
tin,” during which Grande sings, presumably to a lover: “Though I wish he were here instead/Don’t want that living in your head/He just comes to visit me/When I’m dreaming every now and then.” It’s a heart-wrenching moment for both the singer and her fans, and it contributes nicely to the album’s lyrical well-roundedness. Though a few numbers on this tracklist aren’t memorable, especially “in my head,” most of it is the opposite. It’s well-performed, well-produced and so much damn fun. I’ll be listening to this album on repeat for quite some time.
The Peaks: “NASA” “thank u, next” “break up with your girlfriend, i’m bored” The Valley: “in my head” The Verdict: 9/10 Rams
Fun & Games
Fun & Games Editor Dan Nasta - dnasta1@fordham.edu
February 21, 2019 THE OBSERVER
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EDITED BY DAN NASTA
Spot the Difference
ACROSS
1. Amble through the shallow end 5. Isolated plateau 10. Tap, almost 13. “What that Priest said! Yas!” 14. Manning pre-hike cry 15. 2012 Affleck film about Hollywood helping out in Iran 16. Retains liquid H20 18. In over one’s head 19. (From the) beginning 20. Record 22. Singer Rita 23. Tyson impediment 26. Modesty spoiler, in a dress 28. Release gaseous H 20 32. Workers who help with Macs, perhaps 36. Continent of Indian and Palestinian 37. Canal in New York State with a mule named Sal 38. Leaf after sunburn 39. Shouted 40. Sublet 41. Sick hibernation 42. Laws 43. Fluid-filled sacs
44. Knock over leaf-steeped H20 47. A Juul, perhaps 48. Ripe, as in trash or memes 49. Field trip locale 52. Nab 54. Clothed 56. Gloat 58. Vanquish solid H 20 62. Diarrhea 63. Bolshevik Revolution leader 64. Stare longingly 65. Sculpted section, perhaps 66. (All) throughout 67. Orange shield
DOWN 1. Controversial Cleveland “Chief” 2. Love, for Jacques 3. Word with Nile or Airlines 4. Aglets, for a shoelace 5. Neck accessory for Sheldon 6. Thurman of “Kill Bill” 7. Ink 8. Blue express train up to Harlem, colloquially 9. “My Name is ” 10. Debuts 11. Decay
12. Superior 15. Student affairs, perhaps? 17. Vends 21. Degrees for psych and chem majors 24. Potato carb 25. Hypothesized 27. Pollute 29. Party of Juan 30. Trend 31. Queens ballplayers 32. Tic , colorful mints 33. Prohibited act for melon 34. Much-maligned whimsical font 35. Mystic cleansings 39. Mouser and meower 43. Baker’s goods 45. Queens Hell on earth: Abbr. 46. Conclusion 49. Khaki color 50. “I yield!” 51. Gird (oneself) 53. Soiree 55. Slice 56. Underwear on top 57. Lightly stroke 59. “The Fresh Prince of Air” 60. Singer Yoko 61. -Manuel Miranda of “Hamilton”
Help the Ram Make his Van
Can you find all eight?
EDITED BY DAN NASTA
Sudoku
CREATED BY CARLA DE MIRANDA
EDITED BY DAN NASTA
Features
Features Editors Jeffrey Umbrell - jumbrell@fordham.edu Lindsay Jorgensen - ljorgensen@fordham.edu
February 21, 2019 THE OBSERVER
SDA Strives for Disability Awareness on Campus
DISABILITY FROM PAGE 1 While elevator renovation or construction would likely be a relatively expensive endeavor, Pardo and Clancy explained that implementing smaller-scale accommodations would require little to no financial investment and would be equally impactful for students. “Professors are not always amenable about accommodations,” Pardo said, citing strict attendance policies that can jeopardize the academic standing of students unable to attend class regularly. She said she knew a
promoting accessibility on campus. Much of Fernald’s work as special advisor focuses on “teaching for the 21st century,” which for her entails “teaching students of all abilities and students with disabilities.” Accessibility is a civil right for students under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and all Fordham students are guaranteed the right to equal access to education, Fernald said. Mere compliance with the law as outlined under the ADA, however, is “the floor of where we want to be,” she stressed. “What I am trying to do is help offer resources
“ The more diverse we are and the more we
learn from each other in all our differences and with all our similarities, the smarter and stronger and better we’ll become.” ANNE FERNALD, special advisor to the provost
student with a chronic illness who was forced to withdraw from a course due to the professor’s unwillingness to alter his attendance policy. “Something like that is so easily fixed,” Pardo said. “You don’t have to pay any money to do anything about it.” Such changes would “help a lot of students get education when they couldn’t before,” Pardo continued. Pardo credited faculty members such as Anne Fernald, English professor and special advisor to the provost for faculty development, for her work in
for faculty to think about accessibility for students in a richer and more aspirational way.” As part of her efforts to educate faculty members on accessibility, Fernald sends monthly emails to faculty that outline inclusive pedagogical methodologies. An email from Jan. 24 stressed that “all students benefit” from such pedagogies. Fernald also organizes faculty workshops that cover similar material. “Faculty at Fordham, by and large, are really hungry for resources to serve our students,”
Fernald said. “There are some faculty, unfortunately, who have been slower to see the value of making this transformation.” Clancy said she once had a professor who refused to allow her to take a test in the ODS and did not provide her with additional time for it. When she reported the incident to ODS, she felt that her concerns were not taken seriously. “They would not listen to me,” she said. “That’s really terrible,” Pardo said of the incident. “You have to give students their accommodations.” In an op-ed published in The Observer in fall 2018, Adriane Kong, FCLC ’22, wrote that a professor would not provide her with copies of her class notes because they contained original research and were considered intellectual property. Kong, who is deaf in one ear, struggled to hear class lectures and take notes herself. She ultimately had to drop the course. Mary Byrnes, director of the ODS, said that in cases like Kong’s, the ODS works with students to provide alternative accommodations. While the ODS “cannot make professors hand over their notes,” she said, there are “other ways of helping a student obtain notes.” She explained that the ODS hires student note-takers to provide copies of class notes and is implementing a software program that both records and transcribes lectures. The ODS cannot provide retroactive accommodations, Byrne said, and if students do not report an accommodation they need, “there’s nothing we can do.” She stressed, however, that
CELIA PATTERSON/THE OBSERVER
SDA Vice President Lucy Clancy (left) and President Cristina Pardo (right) formed the club in fall 2017.
the ODS “absolutely” explores all options regarding accommodations with students. Pardo frequently returned to one word to describe the lack of accessibility on campus: “ridiculous.” She was clearly frustrated, but for her, emotional reactions can be catalysts for change. “We’re trying to inform people,” she said, “and get people angry.” “Fordham needs to change,” she continued, before directing her comments towards the administration. “People are going
to be mad at you if you don’t.” The conversation regarding accessibility on campus is “really just beginning,” Fernald said. “I’m not under the illusion that we are there yet. I know we have a long way to go.” Like Pardo, she stressed that inclusivity benefits everyone at Fordham, not just students with disabilities. “The more diverse we are and the more we learn from each other in all our differences and with all our similarities,” she said, “the smarter and stronger and better we’ll become.”
Dog Days: Walkers Share Stories, Tricks and Tips a matter of convenience rather than cost.” If you’re looking for a parttime job this semester and are considering dog walking, here are some tips for you from fellow walkers:
ZOEY LIU/THE OBSERVER
Many Fordham students turn to dog walking as a source of income. By CARMEN L. RECIO Staff Writer
We’ve all done it or know someone who has. Dog walking has become a go-to job for college students in need of some extra cash. It seems like an easy job, but in reality, walkers need to be vigilant, responsible and physically active. What I’ve learned from my fair share of dog walks is that one can never be too experienced. Once I lost track of an older dog that was both deaf and blind, and before I knew it, he had slipped through the fence of his own backyard and was out wandering the streets. Thankfully, this wasn’t the first time she had run away, and when I contacted the owner he was un-
fazed and helped me track her down. Another time, I forgot to bring a baggie with me and had to steal a newspaper in plastic wrap from someone’s stoop to pick up after the dog. (Failure to remove canine waste can cost you $250 in New York City.) Dog walking has recently become an extremely competitive market. Apps like Wag and Rover appeal to walkers because they find clients for you. “I think these apps are so popular because people in major cities don’t have the resources or time to take care of their pets,” Zelie Anner, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’20 and former Rover walker, said. “Most of the clients have tons of money — it’s
Be vigilant about what’s on the sidewalk. “One time when I was walking a dog in Hell’s Kitchen by the river walk, he got a cut on its paw pad and left bloody paw prints all over the floor. I had to make sure the cut stopped bleeding. I called the owner and explained what happened, and cleaned up the floor. The bleeding stopped super quickly and the owner was really understanding that freaky things like this happen. The dog didn’t even seem to notice, which I’m glad about because then it means it wasn’t super painful. I actually ended up walking the dog again the next week when it was all bandaged up.” - Katie Coombs, FCLC ’19 Be prepared to contact the owner. “One time I arrived at an apartment ready to walk a dog, and there was no dog in the apartment. I looked everywhere and was scared that the dog was hiding from me or that something bad had happened and maybe it had jumped out of a window, but it turns out the owner booked the walk for the wrong day.” - Maria Sepulveda, FCLC ’19 Bring water. “I always bring water because the walks can get physically de-
manding sometimes, and it’s important to stay hydrated.” - Maria Sepulveda, FCLC ’19 Check the fit on the harness or collar before heading outside. “I was walking a husky, he was a puppy. The owner was really nice, gave me concise instructions, and wasn’t being crazy about it either. He had a harness for his new puppy, no older than a year. It wasn’t small enough for the dog, so three to four times during the walk he got out of it. I had to tackle him. It just looked around, didn’t run away from me, but when I went to grab him he freaked out. It was very stressful. I wasn’t sure whether to turn back home and end the walk early. I didn’t want to do that because if you end a walk early enough times they suspend you. At one point there was a lady that freaked out because she saw the dog was off the leash.” - Luke Scales, Brooklyn College ’17 Get out there in the winter. “In the winter, don’t be shy to go out — people always want their dogs to be walked. So bundle up. No one else is out when there’s snow on the ground.” - Luke Scales, Brooklyn College ’17 Consider dog sitting. “I loved seeing dogs, but it took more out of my schedule than it was worth. Sometimes I would have to walk 20 minutes, walk a dog for $12, then walk 20 minutes back. Dog sitting was better.
It’s really hard to balance with school. I would recommend Wag for walks and Rover for overnights only if you can manage that kind of extra responsibility.” - Zelie Anner, FCLC ’20 Get to know your client. “When I first got to Fordham, I wanted to make some extra money, so I signed up with Wag. There was this adorable pomeranian from the Trump Towers that the lady wanted walked several times a day and it seemed weird. She looked only a few years older than me and she just gave me her dog while she was doing face masks or something. Like why couldn’t you take the elevator down and do it yourself? And the doormen would always tell me stories about how that dog eats better than we do. “So I get a real job as a waitress eventually and it takes me a minute to delete the app, and I’m still getting requests from this lady. I’m very curious as to what she does because I want to have that amount of money in five years. So I google her name and there’s a Wikipedia page for her whole family. Turns out they’re the richest family in Turkey, ranked by Forbes, and they’re worth about $20-30 billion. I totally felt like in that scene from Forrest Gump where he says ‘Dang it! You mean I’m sitting next to a goddamn millionaire? Well I’ll be.’ I guess my best advice is establish a relationship with the customer. If you’re likable and reliable, they will call you back every time.” - Helen Kollarik, FCLC ’20
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Features
February 21, 2019 THE OBSERVER
Park Risks Erasing History
www.fordhamobserver.com
Officials at Van Cortlandt Park plan to pave over the graves of 18th-century slaves By EMMA SEIWELL Contributing Writer
Sitting on a bench beside the lake in Van Cortlandt Park, I watched the passersby — some walked alone, some with friends and others with their dogs. I wondered if they knew the history beneath the grounds they walked upon. Van Cortlandt Park seems ordinary, with its vast fields and towering gnarled oaks, but it holds a historical magnitude that’s difficult to perceive. Each step one takes in the park holds some kind of historic importance, with paths that the Lenape created hundreds of years ago, a lake that was built by 18th-century slaves and fields where battles of the Revolutionary War were fought. The probable slave burial grounds along the lake, however, were of most interest to me. A lack of records on formerly enslaved African-Americans will allow the New York City Parks Department to pave land in Van Cortlandt Park, which may contain the remains of Bronx slaves. Based on circumstantial evidence and minimal records currently available, historians suspect the graves of enslaved laborers owned by the Van Cortlandt family and their neighbors resided in this area of land. In the 1930s, Robert Moses — who built much of modern New York in the mid-20th century — directed the construction of the Henry Hudson Parkway and the Mosholu Parkway, which divided the park into six separate sections. The Putnam Greenway is one of many that the Parks Department plans to construct in an effort to weave the fragmented parkland together. Construction of this $2.7 million project will begin in March. Its goal is to provide greater accessibility for pedestrians and to encourage the community to enjoy the proximate natural oasis. Nick Dembowski, president of
EMMA SEIWELL/THE OBSERVER
Historians believe that slaves are buried along the pathways of Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx.
the Kingsbridge Historical Society in the Bronx, explained that the site’s historical importance was not even a consideration when plans were drawn. “The site pretty much fell off the radar of everyone,” he said. The Kingsbridge is the Bronx’s oldest historical society and aims to preserve the rich history of the area. Federal and State Historic Preservation Laws require that developers assess possible effects on historic archeological or cultural property only when sites are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This particular area of land is not registered, so, the historical review was neglected in the planning process. Dembowski explained the difficulty in providing primary source evidence on enslaved African-Americans, a population about whom very little was written. “You have to look at what’s available and aggregate with each specific case,” he said. Census figures and other re-
cords prove that the Van Cortlandts and other families who lived in today’s park were slaveholders. Fragments of weathered headstones can still be found haphazardly sticking out of the ground in one area of the park that is believed to be the cemetery of one of the first families who owned the land. Local historians believe that just east of these headstones, where the path is being paved, is another cemetery for the enslaved. According to a 1905 article in the Mount Vernon NY Daily Argus, skeletal remains were found and exhumed when a railroad was being constructed in the 1870s. Historians of the time thought the remains belonged to slaves who worked on neighboring properties. The Putnam Greenway will occupy the same path of the former New York Central Hudson Line commuter train, which ran from the Bronx up to Brewster, New York. The line has since been retired, and the park plans to pave over the remaining natural rail
trail. Historians believe there could be more human remains left untouched from the 1870s in this area. Multiple parties have expressed deep concern about the possible disruption and dishonor of this potentially historical site. Any opportunity for excavation or archaeological study is eliminated by laying down asphalt above. Archeologist and Fordham Anthropology Professor Allen Gilbert explained that a similar case in the past produced rich historical learning. “The bodies that came out of the African burial ground in southern Manhattan,” he said, “have been very instructive about the lives of slaves in those days.” Archaeologists could then compare these remains to those in Van Cortlandt Park. “This would have real historical importance,” he said. Gilbert explained that archeology does not wish to stand in the way of progress — he does, however, insist that progress be executed in a way
that is respectful and non-disruptive to the archeological record. “What seems important to me,” Dembowski said, “is not that the project not be allowed to go through, but rather that the area that has this important history be somehow marked, acknowledged, talked about, studied and learned.” “It’s upsetting that any sort of dishonor could be done,” Aidan Donaghy, president of Fordham’s Humanitarian Student Union, said. “These are people that built New York City, so it would be wrong to do anything that would diminish their memory.” In recent weeks, the Parks Department brought in scientists to assess the land with ground radar sensing technology to detect any remains. They are currently finalizing data and will announce their findings in the near future. Dembowski is optimistic that tests will yield positive results, but Gilbert thinks otherwise. Based on Gilbert’s own archeological experience, the deteriorated wooden coffins would remain undetected by radar technology. “Wherever the path is going to go,” Gilbert said, “you better do some preliminary work in addition to the radar surveys.” This work might include digging small shovel pits or trenches across the path, but these tests seem unlikely to take place. Fordham students similarly worry about the potential erasure of history. “By refusing to do the adequate archeological research beforehand,” Rylie Sollars, Fordham College at Lincoln Center ’21, said, “they’re quite literally paving over history simply because they wish not to address it.” “Any plans to pave the mile-anda-half-long greenway near the site will not detract from the history,” Parks Department spokeswoman Anessa Hodgson said, “or our ability to honor the grounds if there are in fact human remains of formerly enslaved African Americans.”
Fordham Murder Case Resurfaces after 22 Years By LEO BERNABEI Contributing Writer
On the 23-degree evening of Feb. 16, 1997, when Patrick McNeill, a junior at Fordham College at Rose Hill, left campus, his family had no idea that they would never again hear from their son. By the late ’90s, the Dapper Dog, a bar on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, had established itself as a popular watering hole for Fordham students where a lack of ID checks and laissez-faire bartending policies created the perfect environment for underage drinking. Neighborhood residents had issued countless public drunkenness and noise complaints against the bar. On the night of McNeill’s stop at the bar, one of his fellow classmates was bartending. McNeill’s roommates described him as “a real ladies’ man,” adding, “we’d tease him about his clothes, his cologne, how he had to be perfect.” Fordham professors praised his work, and McNeill himself wanted to one day join the FBI. In the early hours of Feb. 17, after throwing up in the bar’s bathroom, McNeill announced to his friends that he would be taking the subway back up to Fordham. He waited outside for one of his friends, but when she failed to appear, onlookers noticed him start to stumble up Second Avenue. A double-parked van followed him up the avenue, stopped when he stopped
and turned on East 90th Street when he did. After that, no one saw Patrick again. That is, until after over a month of canvassing Upper Manhattan and hanging up missing person signs, his body was recovered floating next to a Brooklyn pier in the East River. The medical examiner who performed McNeill’s autopsy classified his death as “undetermined.” His blood alcohol content was determined to be 0.16. The NYPD’s official consensus is that Patrick drunkenly stumbled his way over to the East River, fell in and drowned. Retired NYPD detective Kevin Gannon does not believe this assessment. Gannon was one of the detectives who investigated Patrick’s case. He promised his parents that he would find their son’s killer. Or killers. Twenty-two years later, he hasn’t given up on this promise. Today, Gannon and his team of private investigators travel from city to city, investigating, case by case, the Smiley Face Killer theory. He suspects that an individual or group stalks, abducts and ultimately kills young college-aged men. The name of the theory derives from one chilling clue: graffiti of a smiley face found near where most every body has been discovered. In McNeill’s case, Gannon holds that he was “stalked, abducted, held for an extended period of time, murdered and disposed.”
NIGEL ZWEIBROCK/THE OBSERVER
McNeill was found dead near a Brooklyn pollution control plant.
While this theory may seem like a stretch, a look at the evidence suggests otherwise. To end up in the East River from 90th Street, one would have to cross the notorious FDR Drive, a limited-access expressway with fencing on both sides. It seems nearly impossible that anyone sober, much inebriated, could stroll over one of Manhattan’s busiest highways unimpeded. Further oddities presented themselves during Gannon’s investigation. Patrick’s autopsy suggested that he was bound and burned before being placed in the river. Fly larvae were found on Mc-
Neill’s body — flies do not lay eggs in cold temperatures, such as the night that Patrick ostensibly drowned. Gannon’s team did not respond to a request for comment. Most eerily, Larry Andrews, another young college-aged man, was discovered floating deceased in the same location as McNeill almost exactly one year later. However, Andrews didn’t go missing on the Upper East Side. He was last spotted with friends on 42nd Street near Times Square on New Year’s Eve. Since then, hundreds of college-aged males have been found
dead in bodies of water across at least 25 cities in the Northeast and Midwest United States. The causes of their deaths were reported as either accidental or undetermined. Is it really this cut-and-dry? Are all of these 20-something-year-old men, many star athletes, drowning accidently after a night of drinking? Today, many Fordham students are unaware of such a sinister event surrounding the university, but were shocked upon learning about it. “It’s crazy to know that such a strange series of events involved Fordham,” Corbin Gregg, Fordham College at Lincoln Center ’22, said. Another student, Liam Leahy, Fordham College at Rose Hill ’22, views the deaths as a lesson to college students. “If one is going to part, go with friends. There is strength in numbers,” he commented. “Use pack mentality.” While we may never know for sure the truth behind these mysterious deaths, the evidence does not suggest that these young men are simply falling into rivers and drowning in hordes. With a new TV series to reinvigorate public interest in the case, Gannon’s team hopes that more police departments will reopen their suspicious drowning cases to allow for further investigation. To this day, McNeill’s death is still classified as an accidental drowning by the City of New York’s Medical Examiner’s Office.
www.fordhamobserver.com
THE OBSERVER February 21, 2019
Inside Fordham’s Halal Cart
Features
18
Owner explains how he finds success in an intensely competitive market
SHAMYA ZINDANI/THE OBSERVER
The halal cart made its debut in early September 2018 and is a popular spot for many Fordham students. By IZZI DUPREY Managing Editor
I sat down with Elprince to discuss business, life and halal.
Mohammad Elprince has owned his halal cart for two years. This past semester, he started selling from the corner of 60th Street and Columbus Avenue, just outside the entrance of Fordham Lincoln Center. The cart sits on the sidewalk, and the men inside serve food from around 8:30 a.m. to 3 a.m. every day of the week. The Halal business is a tough one to get into — it takes passion, hard work and long hours, but there is a pride that comes along with serving the beloved food. And it is beloved, by New Yorkers throughout the city.
How did you end up working in the halal business? I worked eight years ago in this field first working in the delis. Then I have a friend — he has experience with halal carts — and he offered more money for me and more opportunities. I followed him and he taught me everything. Then, I worked for myself. That is a difficult process. Because every day after we work we pull the cart to wash it and throw away the old stuff. You prepare for the second day — new and fresh stuff — everything, you know? You do the sauces, it’s hard. Not easy.
And it’s difficult to own a cart? Of course. Nobody can do that, you don’t see that in New York. The other carts work with nothing. I file my taxes, I do everything. I work with everything legal because I love New York. What time do you get up? We start here in the spot from like 8:30 in the morning, but before 8:30 — from 6 a.m. — we have to be in the warehouse to prepare everything. Where are you commuting from? We live in Astoria and our warehouse is near our home in Astoria too. Jennifer, my wife, and I have
two kids — two boys actually. I met her five and a half years ago.
money, just give him whatever he wants.”
Your day ends at 3 a.m.? My partner, drives to the warehouse for the guys to wash the cart, of course, every day. If we have the old stuff we wait, we know the places for the homeless. We do some plates that are left over. Sometimes they come here to the cart at 2:30 or 3 a.m. We do not throw the food away. We give them food — we throw the food away if we do not see them.
Has it been hard for you to be able to stay in New York? So-so. The business has helped. That’s not bad. Not bad because I do good food, thank God, and good recipes. And I am not expensive — I am not taking a lot of money, like some of the people outside. Because mostly my customers, they are students, you know, I try to help them.
Is that something a lot of the halal carts will do? Some people, they don’t do that — most people they do not. But I live here, I know how it is hard to live in New York. That’s why that came in my head, me and my partner and my wife, too. She does not work with us but sometimes she gives us the ideas. Because we are friends — me and my partner and her — we were friends before we started the business. But yes, sometimes, I talk to the homeless people if I’m here. They know me because I work in the street a lot so they will say, when I walk with the Starbucks — I get the coffee for the guys in the carts — “Oh, Mohammed how are you doing?” I tell him that is my location, if you are hungry. And I tell him follow me because sometimes the worker, he won’t know him. I say, “Take care of that guy when you see him. Don’t ask him about the
So you have your own recipes? What are some of your favorites? Actually that’s a good question, but mostly the chicken. It’s different, our chicken, very different. The recipe, the seasoning, how we do the marinating. From my family and from me too, and I know where I get the marinade — I know the places, it’s expensive but the quality — grade A, perfect. That’s why my spot is going up. Your spot is getting more popular, then? Of course. I know myself, I keep going. I take card or cash because I own my corporation — my own small business. When I work I know how I do it. How I do something tasty that’s why I have heavy competition — behind me here, on the other side too — but, thank God, I’m the top here. This interview has been condensed and edited.
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Sports & Health
Sports & Health Editor Luke Osborn - losborn1@fordham.edu
February 21, 2019
THE OBSERVER
FUEMS Envisions Expansion To LC
By LUKE OSBORN Sports & Health Editor
Fordham University Emergency Medical Services (FUEMS) provides aid to the Rose Hill community through the help of student emergency medical technicians (EMTs). Acting as the first-responders to campus emergency situations, FUEMS is registered as a basic health support emergency response agency with the New York State Department of Health. One hundred and seventy students volunteer for FUEMS, and the staff operates two ambulances stationed on campus.
In the future, student EMTs could act as the first responders to emergencies on the Lincoln Center campus.
ANGELA CHEN/THE OBSERVER
FUEMS serves the Rose Hill community, providing emergency medical services through student EMTs.
Alexis Verwoert acts as the director of FUEMS and is also the “second-most qualified caregiver.” Verwoert oversees the scheduling and shifts of the joint staff, or e-board, which is comprised of the student volunteers. She and Chief of Medical Staff Logan Clair run the day-to-day activities of the organization. Students can assume the roles of ambulance drivers, basic
EMTs,
crew chiefs and student attendants. Crew chiefs are fully EMT-certified and act as primary carevers. According to Verwoert, student attendants are roles for individuals wishing to “dip their toes” into emergency medical services. Student attendants take vitals and assist the crew chiefs in emergency situations. Basic EMTs, drivers and crew chiefs participate in two shifts a week.
In terms of certification, Fordham offers an EMT course to FUEMS volunteers once a semester at Rose Hill. Through this program, FUEMS members can progress through the ranks of volunteers and gain first-response skills. Verwoert emphasized that students of all majors participate in FUEMS — not just pre-health students. “Knowing how to stay calm and get your point across when
it’s not an ideal scenario is a great skill,” Verwoert said. Mira Bhattacharya, Fordham College at Rose Hill ’21, is a psychology major and pre-health student who volunteers for FUEMS. Bhattacharya is crew chief in training, and she joined FUEMS as one of her pre-health extra-curricular activities. “A lot of people in my classes were telling me what an amazing opportunity it was,”
Bhattacharya said. “It’s been great to get hands-on experience early on.” When Verwoert became the director of FUEMS, she recognized the need to expand FUEMS to the Lincoln Center campus. Some Lincoln Center students commute to Rose Hill to participate in FUEMS because there are no volunteer EMS positions for Lincoln Center students to assume. However, Verwoert is spearheading the expansion into Lincoln Center. Seeing that it was a trek for Lincoln Center students to participate, Verwoert said, “I think it’s a shame that more [Lincoln Center] students aren’t involved, so I made a push to get them certified at John Jay.” Starting this semester, FUEMS-sponsored EMT certification courses have become a reality for Lincoln Center students at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, which is just two blocks away from the Lincoln Center campus. Currently, four Lincoln Center students are taking the course. Both Verwoert and Bhattacharya envision FUEMS volunteer positions on the Lincoln Center campus. Verwoert said, “I think it’s important, but in order to get established, we need EMTs who are Lincoln Center students to get qualified here. I don’t envision an ambulance, but I do see stationing first responders at Lincoln Center with first-response equipment.” In that vision, student EMTs could act as first responders to emergencies on the Lincoln Center campus.
Meditation: More Than a Pose in a Silent Room By LENA WEIDENBRUCH Asst. Sports & Health Editor
For the past few months, I have seen many people on social media talk about meditation — so much that I might even say it is trending. Some people talk about using it as a way to clear their minds in the morning and start their days off on the right foot. Some use it for anxiety, some for sleep. I wanted to see what the hype is all about, so I tried meditating once a day for a week. This is what I learned. At first, incorporating meditation into my daily routine was a struggle. I have been wanting to work on my sleeping habits, so I thought I would try using meditation to wind down and get myself ready to go to sleep. I recently downloaded the meditation app, Headspace, which has an annual fee of $9.99 for students. I searched the app for guided sleep meditation. There were many different routines to choose from, most ranging from three to 20 minutes. I chose a basic 10-minute exercise intended to “create the conditions for a restful night’s sleep,” put my headphones in and laid down on my bed. The overall experience of the guided meditation for sleep was tranquil because I didn’t have to do anything but listen to the voice of an Australian man on the recording. The guided meditation would have been more successful with no distractions and if I was more tired or experienced with mediation. It was hard because I live with roommates and we aren’t always all on the same page about winding down for the evening. I decided to try meditating at a different time the next day. On my second day, I started meditating in the morning, but I quickly learned that next time I would need to try meditating af-
NIGEL ZWEIBROCK/THE OBSERVER
Individuals should meditate in the pose they feel most comfortable.
ter having some coffee. One of the main things I learned in my week of daily mediation was that it is almost impossible to focus on meditating when you would rather be sleeping. Meditating right after waking up or right before going to bed is going to end in you falling asleep. I also quickly learned to not force meditation. When I tried to squeeze mediating into a busy morning routine or even at night — when what I really needed was just to go to sleep — I could not focus on meditating. The goal of most of the guided meditations I used from Headspace or found on YouTube was to focus on deep breathing, getting rid of negative thoughts and how my body felt in the moment. When I was rushing around trying to finish an assignment, eat breakfast and get ready all before
class in the morning, I was not able to accomplish any of those goals while meditating. My mind was elsewhere. During the last few days of daily meditation, I stopped scheduling it in and meditated when I needed a break or when I had some down time during the school day. I found meditation to be most beneficial for me when I approached the practice in this way. I meditated when I felt stressed out or had gotten overwhelmed from sitting at my computer cranking out assignments. These instances are when I was able to get into the meditations the most. Throughout the week I stuck to guided meditations because I am still a beginner, but realized I could use the techniques from guided meditation when I didn’t have time to find one. This routine is what I will continue to do based off of my experiences
this week. I liked using Headspace when I had a specific reason I wanted to meditate, like when I felt anxious, restless or stressed out. Since I have the yearly membership now, I intend to keep using it. Some of the breathing techniques and overall mindfulness I learned from the guided meditations are aspects I will try to incorporate regularly into my day-to-day life. To complement my week of meditation, I spoke to Kate Hoover, an intern for the Office of Counseling and Psychological Services at Fordham, where she is also pursuing her master’s degree. Hoover has been practicing Zen Buddhist meditation for 10 years. This meditation, called zazen, is typically a 30-minute seated silent meditation. Hoover said, “the core practice is counting the breath, noting when you become distracted and
then starting over at one. It’s rare to reach the goal of 10, and that’s okay — the practice is really in learning to continue coming back to the breath with compassion.” Meditation does not have to be that complex, though. I asked Hoover for some tips for people interested in beginning to meditate. “Start small,” she said, “start with what’s realistic for your schedule. If you have five minutes, take the five minutes; you don’t need to jump into this massive 30-minutes, three-times-a-day plan. Just do what makes sense and you can build up from there.” Meditation does not have to be complicated. It can just be taking a few minutes to focus on breathing. Hoover used a metaphor that I really liked when it comes to starting out in meditation. She said, “Treat yourself like you would treat a small child that you like. If thoughts come up, don’t scold yourself. Don’t pretend like it’s not happening. Just gently say, not right now, let’s come back to the breath.” The last and biggest realization I had from my week of meditation was to be more mindful and take more time for myself overall. Hoover summed up the importance of this as well. She said, “It’s helpful to learn how to take a step back and check in on how you’re doing. It lets you notice if you’re feeling stressed or worked up, which helps you see when self-care is needed.” For students interested in trying meditation, the Office of Counseling and Psychological Services is sponsoring a Koru mindfulness and meditation course. Hoover described the course as “a good way to manage stress and gain focus with classes specifically designed for college students.” Beginning on Tuesday, Feb. 16, the course will run for four weeks and meets on Tuesdays from 2:15 to 3:30 p.m.
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Sports
February 21, 2019 THE OBSERVER
www.fordhamobserver.com
Fordham Squashes Competition to Win Chaffee Cup By PATRICK MOQUIN Asst. Sports & Health Editor
Though the sport may be unfamiliar to most, the situation is common to all sports and life beyond. Fordham Squash had been in the same place the year before and had come up short. This year, the Chaffee Cup was once again within their grasp, and the victory that had eluded them previously was now once again a reality. They would have to fight the last few inches on the biggest stage of their careers to secure the hardest win of the weekend, which up to that point had been nothing short of astounding in itself. In an odd twist of fate, Fordham found themselves with an old demon to exorcize in the first round against New York University (NYU). The rivalry between these two teams goes back decades, but recent history had proved bitter for Fordham. In the 2018 Championship Final, NYU defeated Fordham 6–3 in a shocking upset, as the Rams had been widely considered the favorite in the tournament. This year, they faced their rivals in the first round, revenge undoubtedly playing into the mindset of every player. Fordham’s four players at the lower positions buoyed their team’s performance significantly. Justin Deckoff, Fordham College at Rose Hill (FCRH) ’21, Justin Esposito, FCRH ’19, and Winthrop Reed, FCRH ’22, dominated their games, taking nine sets out of 10 and securing three wins for their team. With four victories on the day, a win by Will Beatrez, FCRH ’19, over his NYU opponent would secure the victory for Fordham Squash. In the first set, the pair found themselves tied at 10 for the first time, before Beatrez scored two points in a row to win 12–10. In the second set, his opponent took the lead early on the way to an 11–5 win, tying the game at one set apiece. In the third set, the two tied at 10 again, and
Sunday
PHOTO COURTESY OF VINCENT DUSOVIC/FORDHAM SPORTS INFO
Justin Deckoff, FCRH ’21, attempting a forehand stroke while warming up on the Lombardi Squash Courts.
this time neither player would yield. The game went deep into overtime before Beatrez could finally secure a 15–13 victory. In the fourth and final set, Beatrez bested his opponent in overtime once again, winning the set 12– 10 and the game 3–1, advancing Fordham to the second round. After winning an important game against NYU, Fordham’s second round against Hamilton College came much easier. The Rams jumped out to an early lead after wins by Deckoff, Patrick Rodden, Gabelli School of Business at Rose Hill (GSB) ’22, and Dylan Panichello, GSB at Rose Hill ’22. These would be followed
Monday
by victories from Reed, Esposito, and Will Pantle, FCRH ‘’19, allowing Fordham to cruise to an easy 6–3 win. Once again, Fordham’s bottom four players came through, with Deckoff, Reed, Esposito, and Panchiello all winning their matches when called upon. The Rams had finally fought their way back to the dizzying heights from which they had fallen last year, and Northeastern University was the final hurdle on their journey to the top spot. Fordham jumped to an early 2–1 lead, with wins from Deckoff and Beatrez once again providing their team with a strong start. In the next wave, Esposito
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Upcoming February and March Events 24
25
W’s and M’s Track at Atlantic 10 Championship, 9 a.m., Mason Field House, Fairfax, Va. Baseball at North Florida, 1:05 p.m., Jacksonville, Fla.
26 Baseball vs. Sacred Heart, 3 p.m., Bronx, N.Y.
and Pantle extended their team’s lead to 4–2. The Rams were one win away from the record books, and the win came swiftly. Douglass won his game in the top spot in three straight sets, and an additional win by Winthrop Reed secured a 6–3 win for Fordham over the Northeastern King Huskies to win the Chaffee Cup. In an interesting turn, it was not the players at the top positions that secured the championship for Fordham. In positions six through nine, Fordham players went undefeated in three games, providing depth that other teams at this level could not compete with.
Fordham was never an underdog and was never faced with insurmountable odds over the course of the tournament. The story of this team performance is one of reclamation. Last year, the Rams were denied an honor they deserved, stunned by an inferior rival on the biggest stage. This year, Fordham overcame that old rival and did not lose focus, defeating two more stout opponents to realize the dream that had for too long been put on hold. In a university lacking in competitive sports teams, the driven success of Fordham Squash should stand as a shining example for other teams to follow.
Friday
Saturday
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22
W’s and M’s Swim at Atlantic 10 Championship, Spire Institute, Geneva, Ohio
W’s and M’s Swim at Atlantic 10 Championship, Spire Institute, Geneva, Ohio SB vs. Morgan State, 12 p.m., Diamond 9 Citrus Classic I, Orlando, Fla.
23 W’s and M’s Track at Atlantic 10 Championship, 9 a.m., Mason Field House, Fairfax, Va. SB vs. Notre Dame, 12 p.m., Diamond 9 Citrus Classic I, Orlando, Fla.
SB vs. Iowa, 2:30 p.m., M’s BB vs. St. Bonaventure Diamond 9 Citrus Classic I, U, 4:30 p.m., Bronx, N.Y. Orlando, Fla. Baseball at North Florida, 6:05 p.m., Jacksonville, Fla.
27 W’s BB vs. Dayton, 7 p.m., Bronx, N.Y. M’s BB vs. Saint Joseph’s U, 9 p.m., Bronx, N.Y.
W’s BB vs. UMass, 2 p.m., Bronx, N.Y.
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1
W’s Tennis vs. George Wash- W’s and M’s Track at ECAC/ ington U, 12 p.m., Cary Leeds IC4A Championships, 9 a.m., BU Track & Tennis Center, Tennis Center, Bronx, N.Y. Boston, Mass. SB at Georgia Tech, 1 p.m. and 3:30 p.m., 1-75 Challenge, Atlanta, Ga. Baseball at Maryland Eastern Shore, 2:30 p.m., Princess Anna, Md.
SB vs. UAB, 9 a.m., Diamond 9 Citrus Classic I, Orlando, Fla.
2
Baseball at Maryland Eastern Shore, 12 p.m., Princess Anne, Md.
W’s BB at Saint Joseph’s, 12 p.m., Philadelphia, PA
M’s BB at Davidson College, 1 p.m., Davidson, NC
Games You Missed Feb. 16 - Men’s Basketball Fordham: 66 Rhode Island: 63
Feb. 16 - Softball Fordham: 5 Utah Valley: 3
Feb. 16 - Baseball Fordham: 6 Texas A&M: 19
Feb. 16 - Women’s Basketball Fordham: 53 St. Bonaventure: 44
Feb. 16 - Softball Fordham: 3 BYU: 11
Feb. 17 - Baseball Fordham: 1 Texas A&M: 3