Issue 11, Spring 2016 - The Quadrangle

THE Volume 93, Issue 11

Q

UADRANGLE A Student Publication of Manhattan College Since 1924

April 19, 2016

Government and Politics Club Sparks Meaningful Conversations on the Quad

www.mcquad.org

Young People Overlooked at Fiery Democratic Debate in Brooklyn Stephen Zubrycky & Anthony Capote Editors

The government and politics club held a debate on the quad in light of the New York primaries.

Tara Marin/ The Quadrangle

Tara Marin Asst. Editor

On Tuesday, April 12, the Government and Politics Club held a political debate on the Quad. Since we are in the midst of a heated presidential race and the New York primaries are already upon us, this is a timely event.

Students Kaitlyn Greiner, Michaela Bishop, Jared Boyles and Celena Gonzalez made up the first team, called the “Millennial Falcons”. The second team, called “The Filibusters”, was comprised of Lisa Angeles, Liam Moran, Alannah Boyle, and James Irazarry.

Lisa Angeles, senior psychology major, emphasized that debates like this are important to increase awareness and get young people active and involved.

“Students are the future leaders of our nation, and if you get the students engaged, you get the future engaged. I think it’s really important to cultivate that,” said Angeles.

Of the many issues, the topics the club picked to debate were the minimum wage, immigration laws, and government surveillance.

On the topic of minimum wage, the Millennial Falcons were against raising the federal minimum wage, arguing that the cost of living fluctuates throughout the United States, and argued that the minimum wage should be based on each area.

The Filibusters felt the opposite, arguing that it’s the government’s job to ensure that citizens are being paid fairly.

When it came to immigration, the Millennial Falcons leaned towards immigration laws that were less strict, where the Filibusters contended that immigration laws are critical for the well being of our country.

Jodie Rohrer, a sophomore Peace Studies major, was one of the students watching the debate on Tuesday.

“I think the debate flowed really well, and I agreed with what the Filibusters were saying about minimum wage but then I also agreed with what the Millennial Falcons were saying about immigration,” said

Rohrer.

Each of the members of the board of the Government and Politics club headed an event this year. This one was headed by Haley Herkert, junior government major, who also moderated the debate.

While Accepted Students Days and other events made it difficult for Herkert to organize, it turned out being a success, as a handful of students on the Quad gathered to listen to the arguments.

“Just because we’re not known as a politically active campus, we want people to know that it’s important to register to vote. Our whole mission of the club is for people to not be apathetic about government because it affects everything,” said Herkert.

Herkert also stresses that the club, advised by Professor Margaret Groarke of the Government Department, is not limited to certain students.

“The club is bipartisan and our mission is to defeat political apathy on campus. We’ve been doing registration drives, straw polls, and debate watch parties all year,” she said.

Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont met former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton for a fierce debate at the Navy Yard in Brooklyn Thursday, marking the last televised debate before New York’s Democratic presidential primary –possibly the last such event of the primary calendar.

The two remaining Democratic candidates debated on a multitude of topics – including gun control, the financial system, racism, and foreign affairs. The debate was the most contentious between the two candidates thus far, and opened with a lively exchange in which Sanders tore into Clinton over her judgment.

“I do question her judgment. I question a judgment that voted for the war in Iraq – the worst foreign policy blunder in the history of this country,” Sanders said.

Clinton retorted by denying Sanders’ claim that he didn’t call her unqualified.

“Senator Sanders did call me unqualified. I’ve been called a lot of things in my life. That was a first,” Clinton responded.

“Well, the people of New York voted for me twice to be their senator from New York, and President Obama trusted my judgment enough to ask me to be the Secretary of State of the United States.”

The response summed up Clinton’s strategy for the evening: wrap herself tightly around the legacy of President Barack Obama, and emphasize her career as a hometown politician in New York, even telling C.N.N. moderator Dana Bash “Dana, you know, I love being in Brooklyn.”

Throughout the two-hour debate, Clinton said Obama’s name 18 times, compared to Sanders’ three times.

The candidates also entered a particularly sharp exchange over guns, with Clinton firing on Sanders for his votes against the Brady Bill. Sanders charged back, touting his D-minus voting record with the National Rifle Association.

Sanders also challenged Clinton on her relationship with Wall Street. Clinton charged back and challenged Sanders to release his tax documents in return.

“When everybody does it, OK, I will do it, but let’s set and expect the same standard on tax returns. Everybody does it, and then we move forward,” Clinton said.

Sanders responded, “I am going to release all of the transcripts of the speeches that I gave on Wall Street behind closed doors, not for $225,000, not for $2,000, not for two cents. There were no speeches.”

Sanders released his 2014 tax returns this past weekend.

Sanders is trying to make up ground in New York, a state where he needs to do well in order to close Clinton’s lead in pledged delegates. Sanders has struggled thus far in

Continued on page 3

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The

Notes from

opinions & editorials

Quadrangle www.mcquad.org

Vol. 93 Issue 11 April 19, 2016

Ally Hutzler Editor-in-Chief Sean Sonnemann Managing Editor Anthony Capote News Editor Kyleigh Panetta Jack Melanson Asst. News Editors Kieran Rock Features Editor/Managing Editor Tara Marin Asst. Features Editor Lindsey Burns Arts & Entertainment Editor Victoria Hernรกndez Asst. Arts & Entertainment Editor Daniel Ynfante Sports Editor RikkiLynn Shields Asst. Sports Editor Kristie Killen Social Media Editor Taylor Brethauer Asst. Social Media Editor

April 19, 2016

The Editor

Last week, The Quadrangle was able to send two editors, Stephen Zubrycky and Anthony Capote, to the Democratic Debate held at the Navy Yard in Brooklyn. Hosted by CNN, the debate kicked off at 9 p.m. and saw a fiery face-off between Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders just days before the primary election in New York. In their debate, both candidates overlooked higher education costs and young people in general.

Our editors reported from the spin room, live-tweeting the event on our twitter account: @mcquad. Shortly after the debate ended, we hosted a Twitter poll which asked our followers to vote on who they thought won that night. 117 votes were cast, with 18 percent in favor of Hillary Clinton and 82 percent in favor of Bernie Sanders.

Earlier this semester, The Quadrangle emailed all employees and students at Manhattan College a political survey. The results, which were published in the newspaper and on our website mcquad.org, showed that students preferred Bernie Sanders, while employees favored Hillary Clinton.

With the New York primary election taking place on April 19, it will be interesting to see how the state views the two democratic presidential candidates. The NYC Board of Elections will be set up in the Kelly Commons 5A from 5 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. for registered Republicans and Democrats to vote.

Sincerely, Ally Hutzler

Vanessa Sanchez Photography Editor Leony Anne McKeown Asst. Photography Editor Kelly Burns Melissa Gallardo Abbi Kirollos Production Editors Daniel Molina Stephen Zubrycky Web Editors Tom Callahan Faculty Adviser

A tradition since 1924, The Quadrangle is a news organization run by the students of Manhattan College. We strive to cover news around campus and the greater community, publishing weekly in print and daily online. Our goal is always accuracy, relevancy and professionalism.

The staff of The Quadrangle meets every Tuesday at 4:00 p.m. in room 412 of the Student Commons.

Contact The Quadrangle at thequad@manhattan.edu The opinions expressed in The Quadrangle are those of the individual writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editorial Board, the College or the student body.

John Abbatangelo/The Quadrangle

3 News College Costs and Young People Overlooked at Fiery Democratic Debate in Brooklyn

Editors Stephen Zubrycky and Anthony Capote attended and reported on the Democratic debate from the Navy yard in Brooklyn.

Screenshot CNN/Courtesy

Continued from page 1 large, diverse states. Clinton has triumphed in all of the five largest contests thus far, in Texas, Florida, Illinois, and Ohio. The Sanders camp disagrees, and attributes Clinton’s successes to an age gap, not a racial gap.

“What you’ll see is that our base, with voters of every color, are young voters,” said former C.E.O. of the N.A.A.C.P. Ben Jealous, a Sanders supporter. “The biggest divide amongst voters in the democratic party in this race is not black and white, it’s young versus old.”

But the Sanders camp is still downplaying expectations before New York votes.

“This is her home state. She’s going

to do well. Independents can’t participate in the Democratic primary, and that’s the group we’ve done best with,” said Tad Devine, a chief Sanders strategist.

Regardless, both sides came out of the debate finding fault with the other, and declaring victory.

“Sen. Sanders raises some important issues, but it’s not clear to me how he’s going to get some of these issues resolved,” said Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of Brooklyn.

Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz, Jr. expressed similar concern, saying of Sanders that “I don’t think he has an answer as to how he would dissolve the banks, and what he would replace them with.”

Higher education went unmentioned in the debate for the first 94 minutes, when Sanders brought it up, but there was not a

single question on the topic during the debate.

Another topic of discussion that was not mentioned during the debate was New York State’s closed primary, which requires that voters register a full year before the election. The law could bar young voters, who make up Sanders’ primary fan base, from registering and voting him on Tuesday.

D.N.C. Chair Debbie WassermanSchultz, who spent much of the evening before the debate talking about voter suppression, had little to say about the law.

“That’s a state law that has been on the books for I don’t know how long,” she said. “That’s not voter suppression, that’s just the rule that’s been in place for a long time.”

been more involved with the survey and are being educated on what it is actually used for.

“When there is a Map-Works survey we make sure everyone on our staff supports and promotes it,” Andrew Weingarten, director of residence life, said. “During the last survey I know that many of our RAs put nice notes and reminders on students’ doors encouraging them to set aside a few minutes for the survey. Others had brief programs where they served some snacks and invited residents into the lounge with their laptops to take the surveys.”

While the survey helps other departments on campus, for students to be involved with this program is extremely important to residence life because it helps them be better acquainted with the students and how they feel about living on campus.

“Just in Residence Life alone the program has already helped us identify and assist students who struggled with housing/ roommate concerns that we didn’t other-

wise know about,” Weingarten said.

Residence Life staff really pushed students to take this survey in order to better understand and identify the culture of specific residence halls, and used the RAs to personally encourage residents to take the survey. Now that this has been accomplished, some staff are not as satisfied with the results.

“As RAs we have really limited access to the results. It would really be more useful if it were more comprehensive and not just geared towards freshman. While this may be a program that is supposed to be looking towards the future, it seems non inclusive of other class years that may have valid concerns as well. In general it just seems like a reactionary program and not necessarily preventative,” RA Michelle Beltran said.

Older resident students had little knowledge of the program and in many ways feel disadvantaged that they were not necessarily part of the target market

Wasserman-Schultz said she was pleased with the overall outcome of the debate.

“Our debate, like the previous eight, focused on the substance,” WassermanSchultz said. “We shouldn’t focus so much on the edginess, as we should on the substance, which I’m quite proud of, when it comes to the issues they spoke about.”

She sais that she was proud of the overall tone of the Democratic primary as opposed to their Republican opponents.

“You contrast with the chaos that’s going on the other side, and I think the choice, after each debate, has been more and more clear that the Democratic nominee, regardless of which two of these candidates it will be, will be the forty-fifth president,” Wasserman-Schultz said.

Student Retention Software Update Lauren Carr & Luke Hartman Senior Writers

Last fall a survey went out to the students that asked them to answer a few questions and they would be entered for a chance to win a gift card. Student reactions to this leaned more on the negative side due to them feeling like they were being mislead by this survey.

The survey was created by a company called Map-Works to help with student retention on campus. If students answer certain questions about how they like living on campus, particularly the dorms, the information helps departments throughout the college with how students feel about living on campus.

Residence Life works with students to help promote the survey and to get them involved with the program. By conducting different events and reminders throughout the five residence buildings, students have

for the survey. Transparency seemed to be a big issue within the entirety of the survey process as well as what the program was aimed to do.

“I get that the school is interested in keeping retention rates for future students in a good range, but the incentivizing of the survey in the way it was done just seems questionable. Also I don’t understand why the school had no interest in the attitudes or responses of older students. More than just freshman transfer out, or leave the college for whatever reason, so I just feel like it could have been a more comprehensive process if there was a wider base surveyed,” Senior Deanne Griswa said.

Residence life will continue to use Mapworks and the information it provided to better serve students in residence halls as well as make the campus living experience the best it can be. How well Map-Works will influence this is yet to be determined.

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news

April 19, 2016

James Patterson Scholarship Selection Underway, Reciepients Will Be Announced this June Amy Cardoza Staff Writer

April 22nd marks the deadline for the upcoming James Patterson Scholarship submissions for the 2016-2017 year.

Since it’s inception in 2012, famous author alum James Patterson awards select Manhattan juniors and seniors with a five thousand dollar scholarship based on leadership potential and academic merit.

“The James Patterson Scholarship is for students that show dedication and a passion for their future career,” said Amy Oliva, a former recipient. “It reflects in their grades, their involvement on campus, and their plans for their future careers” Chosen students will be asked to write a 3-5-page essay that Patterson himself will read. He will ultimately chose the ten winners.

Past winners have been selected from a vast array of majors, including, but not limited to, engineering, biology, education, English and communications. “[A good application] should stand out from the crowd and it should really embody the potential that you are thought to have as a Manhattan College Jasper,” Chris Hoey, another recipient of the scholarship, said. “A good candidate is someone who can express their motivations and aspirations clearly and in a way that stays true to their own character.”

According to “New York Daily News,” Patterson hadn’t intended to be a Jasper. In a strange mix-up, Manhattan was the only college his principal sent his application to. Still instead of transferring to his first choice, Harvard, after the first year he decided to remain at Manhattan the rest of his college experience.

“Manhattan really was, I think, the reason that I have the desire to give back as I do,” Patterson told the “Daily News.”

“The hope is that [the recipients] will be even more motivated to take what they’re learning out into the community.

James Patterson ‘69 gives out roughly 16 scholarship awards to Manhattan College students every year.

Creative Commons/Courtesy We want someone to run Morgan Stanley in a very moral way, and teachers to come out of there and really go into NYC schools and make a difference. We’ll do it on the bigger scale as time goes by” In addition, Patterson donates to other

colleges as well as starting the James Patterson Minority Scholarship in 2006.

“I think it’s a noble thing for highly respected alums to give back to their community,” Kaelin McHale said. “For someone as famous as Patterson to find the time and

money to give back to a school he never meant to attend is truly amazing.”

The scholarship winners will be announced in June.

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News

“Cards for a Cause” Gives Back to the Community

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Also On Campus Jack Melanson Asst. Editor

Meredith Bryant Contributor

Standup for Flint It is Mission Month at Manhattan College; faculty, and staff are able to volunteer and give back. One of the simplest and somewhat new opportunities for people to give back is through Cards for a Cause.

Cards for a Cause is a volunteer project created in October 2014 by Tiffanie McIntosh, a senior women’s soccer player who is graduating in May. “Students gather together and they make cards for local causes. A fire station or a police station or a children hospital or a homeless shelter. The goal of it is to brighten someone’s day or thank people for their services,” McIntosh said.

In 2014, McIntosh reached out to the Director of Campus Ministry and Social Action, Lois Harr. She asked questions regarding where funding would come from and was put in touch with the right people to get Cards for a Cause rolling.

“It was something that I always liked to do, to make hand made cards cause I thought they were fun and they made people feel special. So I thought why not bring something I love to do, to the community. And get them involved in that too,” McIntosh said.

Soon after she spoke with Harr, she started gearing up volunteers to help her to get the project going. She immediately turned to her teammates to get them involved in community service. From her team, she went to other athletic teams and posted some flyers to get more volunteers outside of athletics to help.

Freshman student Sara Poons, is a frequent volunteer for Cards for a Cause.

“I first heard about it [Cards for a Cause] when they had the club/activities fair on the quad in the beginning of the year. McIntosh was trying to get people to sign up. I was interested so I started going to the meetings,” Poons said.

The inclusive nature of Cards for a Cause is what has drawn in the students for the last year and a half.

“I think it fits the community value [of

On Friday, April 29, a standup comedy event will be held to raise money for Flint, Michigan, a city that is currently going through a dramatic water crisis.

The event will take place in Hayden 100, and will start at 8 p.m.

There is no suggested amount for donation, or any mandatory ticket price, however donations will be accepted at the door.

Manhattan College comedy enthusiasts as well as outside performers are expected to attend and perform.

Springfest T-Pain will be coming to the Manhattan College campus on Saturday, April 23 to headline the spring concert.

Because of this, residence life outlined the process for students to obtain extra tickets in an email statement this past week.

Only 100 guest passes will be issued campus wide for April 21 through April 24. These passes will be distributed on April 18 to students who purchase tickets for 40 dollars.

Lecture on Social Media and Jane Austen

Sophomore, Emily Center working with Cards For a Cause.

Emily Center/Courtesy MC] because many students come together each week to make cards and its sort of social justice too because anybody can join,” she said.

Cards for A Cause first started out with a few people making cards. It has grown into students gathering in Cornerstone in Miguel Hall on Wednesday nights. Together, they are able to collectively create and complete up dozens of cards.

“It’s really cool for me to see the participation from other athletes. Not just the athletes, but I’ve been able to pull form other areas on campus and have them interested and want to come back and want to participate. So it’s just really awesome,” McIntosh said.

To volunteer at Cards for a Cause, the group meets Wednesday nights at 7pm in Cornerstone in Miguel.

Wednesday, April 20 visiting professor Michael Gamer will present a lecture on “Jane Austen’s Social Media” at 5:30 p.m. in Hayden 100. The event is being hosted in conjuction with the annial Sigma Tau Delta read-aloud on the Quad.

Last Day to Withdraw from a Spring 2016 Course Friday, April 22 is the deadline for any student to withdraw from a course they are currently taking in the spring semester.

Springfest Brings Heightened Security and Student Excitement to Campus Jenna Bloomer & Lauren Carr Staff Writer and Senior Writer

In previous years, there have been multiple problems during Springfest, causing public safety to step in. This year, Student Activities is taking necessary precautions to prevent this year’s event from getting out of control.

The destruction, underage drinking, a even a sexual assault has caused Student Activities to be more careful about the activities of this year’s event. Manhattan College is taking steps to ensure student’s safety and to prevent the event from getting out of control, according to John Bennett, president of Student Activities.

“Our goal is never to be extra ‘strict,’ but to provide a safe and fun environment

for our students, especially as the end of the semester is approaching,” Bennett said.

The issue with last year’s event was not the students, according to Bennett. He said the students were the more well behaved than in the past.

“Last year, a non-student just about ruined the whole day. Our students themselves actually were so well behaved and I’m really proud of them,” Bennett said.

Because of this, Student Activities and Public Safety are being extra careful about the security for this year, to ensure that an incident like last year’s does not happen again.

“Public Safety will be on higher alert along with Residence Life in the days leading up to the Spring Concert, and on the day itself, when it’s all hands on deck,” Bennett said. According to him, if students follow the rules and obey the guest policy it should be a good day for everyone.

The events for Springfest are all free with a student ID and on April 18th Student Activities started selling 100 outside guest tickets for $40. Those guests will be the only ones to be given overnight guest passes for the weekend.

There will be an ambulance on campus along with outside security hired by the school, according to Bennett.

“Last year, our students were the best behaved they have ever been in the neighborhood so we’re very proud of that! We’re hoping our students are respectful of the neighborhood and noise again this year.”

While Student Activities is excited for the event the students are as well. Students have seen a lot of changes with this event in the last few years and for some they hope this is the best one yet.

“In my four years here this event has changed so much and I’m looking forward to my last Spring Fest,” senior Adam Baril-

las said. “I’m really excited for T-Pain, that was a great choice compared to the last few years.”

Just like every year Student Activities has been working with students to help get an idea of what the students want to see for the biggest event of the year. However, some students have felt that updates for the event have not been promoted correctly.

“As a former student who used to live on campus I feel as though they are not connected to commuter students at all,” senior Cierra Howard said. “I kind of feel like out of the loop. I never really see any signs for anything really because a majority of the notices of upcoming events are put in Thomas hall which no commuter ever really needs to go to.”

For more updates and information about SpringFest make sure to follow Student Activities on Twitter.

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Arts & Entertainment

April 19, 2016

Arts & Entertainment

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Players Perform “Little Women” for Spring Musical

This spring, MC Players performed “Little Women” for their musical.

Leony AnneMcKeown/The Quadrangle

Lindsey Burns Editor

On Thursday, April 14, through Sunday, April 17, Manhattan College Players performed the musical “Little Women,” based off the beloved 19th century book

by Louisa May Alcott, for students, faculty and parents.

The show, directed by Martin Marchitto, centered round the four March sisters living in Concord, Mass. during the Civil War and the immediate years after. “There was a lot of research,” Marchitto said. “[Senior] Carlos Perez actually served as a dramaturge and did a lot of research and

shared that with the cast. We talked a lot about the book and how the musical really takes the highlights from the book and composes it in quite a beautiful way.”

Because the show was historically based in 19th century America, the cast donned long, full skirts and dapper suits, transporting the audience back in time. “We had to look at each character through a lens of a different period,” Marchitto said. “Before we even started moving around, we brought in rehearsal skirts. They’re wearing those petticoats in rehearsal so they can start to get used to how they move. This is how they dressed in that period, so they need to feel comfortable in that.”

The show starred veteran Players member Jo-Ann Mullooly, who played the

lead character of Jo March, the second eldest March sister who provides hope and strength for the March family during this difficult time at war. “She loves writing stories, and the sisters are always performing them up in their attic for fun,” Mullooly said. “While the other sisters love the ideas of attending balls, wearing gowns and getting married, Jo dreams of publishing her stories, earning her own money and traveling to Europe.”

As the character Jo, Mullooly was the dominant force in the musical, having lines in almost every scene with multiple singing solos. Her powerful voice carried across the stage and moved the audience with both spoken and sung lines.

Marchitto, who had worked with

Mullooly in the past during the 2014 performance of the musical “Little Shop of Horrors,” in which Mullooly also starred in, admitted to being slightly upset that Mullooly had not auditioned for last year’s spring musical “Company.”

“I think she is incredibly talented and I was a little disappointed when she didn’t audition last year,” he said. “But I don’t think “Company” was really her type of show.”

However, if there was ever a role for Mullooly to end her Players career with, this was the one.

“This role was practically written for her,” Marchitto said. “This is a mega-role.

She had to put a lot of time in, there are so many things in terms of learning the lines,

learning the blocking, getting everything to be so specific, getting the music, getting the music cues, listening to other people, I mean it just goes on and on, but she is just absolutely a delight and a joy to work with.”

The musical, which consisted of two separate acts, brought the audience on a roller coaster of emotion. Its historical storyline and strong acting and singing carried the show, while bits of comedic lines and tragic plot twists were sprinkled in.

Although the cast and crew faced a difficult planning and rehearsal schedule, with so many school breaks fragmenting the month of March, Marchitto credits their preparedness and ability to plan ahead for their overall success. “In general, we re-

hearsed three days a week and we had the whole show staged [before spring break].”

It is clear that this production would not have been possible if it were not for the students involved. “It really is a student-run group,” Marchitto said. “We had a student technical director who worked with me to construct the set. Students helped with hanging and focusing the lights. Liz Corrigan was the prop master, she got the props organized and coordinated. Taylor Hollister actually, besides being the assistant stage manager, was the choreographer. I feel very strongly that when students are interested in doing certain aspects that we allow them to have that opportunity.”

The commitment and dedication of the cast and crew, and the combination of stu-

dents and brought-in professionals, proved to be the perfect equation for a successful show. The audience was reactive to the plotline, laughing at the comical parts and saddened by the tragic parts.

“I grew up reading ‘Little Women’ and watching the movie and actually playing house with my cousins, so I was really excited to come see it at school,” Hope Miedema, a junior math major and audience member on opening night, said.

“I think the best part about it is the singing. We have really great singers on campus, I really had no idea.”

With the last performance happening on Sunday as a matinee, the “Little Women” spring musical season has come to a close. The success of the show was appar-

ent and it was obvious that the student-run group truly challenged themselves with this performance and this decision to do “Little Women.”

Marchitto credits all of the students involved for their great success.

“That’s Players at its best, that it really is student-run and student-motivated. I love coming in and working with them and bringing in the professionals to fill in the holes, like lighting and costume design,” Marichitto said. “There’s a great amount of student commitment. This couldn’t happen without the students.”

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Arts & Entertainment

April 19, 2016

Art Class Spotlight: Guitar Skills and Techniques Sean Sonnemann Editor

In MUSC 209, “copying notes” during class has a different meaning than it usually does around campus.

Seven students sit in Thomas Hall 517, all working through different arrangements of their fingers on the strings of their guitars.

Guitar Skills and Techniques, taught by professor Daniel Garcia, is a course that teaches students not only to learn how to play the guitar, but also better understand music theory, read sheet music and appreciate the capabilities of the instrument.

“I get students with all kind of levels,” Garcia said. “Some kids have been playing for a couple years and they know the basics.”

“Some people have never played an instrument and come knowing nothing.”

This can be challenging to balance— especially when at the end of the semester Garcia must assign each student a grade.

So instead of reaching a certain skill level, he expects all of his students to understand the basics.

“I make it very clear that I don’t grade anybody according to anybody else’s level,” Garcia said.

“What I want to see is an effort, that everybody is playing with right technique and everybody understands the idea of practicing the instrument.”

Throughout each class session, Garcia alternates between demonstrating at the front of the room and working with students one-on-one to evaluate their progress.

He continually offers words of encouragement and praise to his students, but is also not afraid to reach and correct improper grips on the frets while continually stressing the importance of practicing at home.

For this session, the students are con-

MUSC 209, taught by professor Daniel Garcia teaches students how to play the guitar.

Sean Sonnemann/The Quadrangle tinuing their work on learning “Dust in the Wind” by 1970s era rock band Kansas and mastering the style of playing known as Travis picking.

“You have forever and ever to get this right,” Garcia tells his students as they work through a verse of the song.

As someone who has been playing guitar since he was a 10-year-old living in his native Madrid, Garcia lives this advice.

He came to the United States to study classical guitar and boasts a Master’s degree in classical guitar performance and a minor in jazz.

Since 1998 has lived in New York City performing, producing, recording

and teaching in various capacities.

At Manhattan College he also holds a class on audio recording, something he incorporates into MUSC 209 as well.

This semester, the group is working on perfecting a quartet version of The Beatle’s “Yesterday” that they will record on the last day of class. It will be yet another time students are forced to show their progress to their peers.

“We have had to perform a couple times in front of the class,” senior Chuck Pallas said. “It’s a little nerve-racking, but he [Garcia] helps you get adjusted to it and teaches you to overcome.”

Pallas is an experienced drummer, but wanted to take the class to both fulfill a hu-

manities requirement for his civil engineering degree and pick up a new instrument.

“I’ve learned a lot in a limited amount of time,” he said. “The more you practice the more you get the hang of it.”

As with learning any instrument, Garcia frequently reminds his students that perfecting their skills takes time and dedication.

“Once we get the notes right we take it to the next level—which is making music, not just reading ink,” he said after watching the quartet run through the song.

Listening to the students who are hard at work twice a week in the Performing Arts room, they are clearly on the right track.

Features

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Senior Spotlights Lauren Valle Rikki Lynn Shields Asst. Editor

Education major and Manhattan College senior, Lauren Valle, decided that Manhattan College was the best place for her to excel in her studies.

From Hampton Bay, New York, Lauren decided that Manhattan College was the perfect choice for her. The school wasn’t too far from home, and Lauren loved it’s proximity to the heart of the city. This May, Lauren will be graduating from Manhattan College with an Elementary and Special Education degree.

Lauren knew at an early age that teaching would be the perfect profession for her.

“I knew I wanted to become a teacher since I was a very young girl. When I was younger, I would play pretend school with my friends and family all the time. I would always play the role of the teacher, and have my younger sister be the student.” Lauren said.

Although Education was what Lauren focused on the most throughout her college career, her favorite class was one of the religion classes she took during her freshman year. “My favorite class at Manhattan College was a religion course I took my freshman year about the Holocaust. My professor taught me so much in and outside of the classroom. We had the opportunity to go downtown to the Museum of Jewish Heritage and to meet with a Holocaust survivor.

The class was extremely powerful and stir-

ring.”

Lauren enjoyed everything about her Manhattan College experience, however, her one regret was not studying abroad.

“If I could do it all over again, I would have studied abroad for a whole semester!” Lauren said. Although she did not study abroad, Lauren had the opportunity to student teach at a local school. “I had the opportunity to be a student teacher in a local elementary school in the Bronx for a semester. I was placed in a fourth grade classroom. It was the best experience I could have ever had. These fourth grade students were so inspiring. They helped me learn how I can be the best teacher possible.”

“Overall, I truly enjoyed my experience at Manhattan College. I loved everything that Manhattan had to offer me.

I formed great friendships, had opportunities to help me in my future career, and really enjoyed New York City, especially the food!” After graduation in May, Lauren will continue her education at Manhattan College for another year to receive her masters in Elementary and Special Education. Although she will be returning to Manhattan in the Fall, her four year undergraduate experience was something she wouldn’t trade for the world.

“Everything you learn in school, you will see in some shape or form at a school when you begin teaching. So, hold on to every lesson plan you have made throughout your semesters at Manhattan College because you will use them eventually!”

Valle will continue to study at MC after graudation to recieve a masters in education.

Lauren Valle/Coutresy

Shayna Ginsburg Taylor Brethauer Asst. Editor

There are many things on the mind of the class of 2016: employment, grad school, the future. At Manhattan College, the opportunities to achieve these things are easy and accessible. For senior Biology major Shayna Ginsburg, she credits her success on all of the things she’s experienced since coming to campus four years ago.

After graduation, she is going to grad school at New York Medical College where she will start towards her certification and doctorate in physical therapy, which starts soon after she accepts her diploma in May. The program lasts three years and she’s looking forward to working with people who need help all while learning even more each day.

“I’m looking forward to finally graduating and getting out there working in the career that I want to,” said Ginsburg.

Getting out there has been no easy task.

Ginsburg has been focusing on internships and jobs in medical offices in order to get the best hands-on experience possible. She was inspired by seeing the physical therapists work with patients who thought they could never walk again that were able to slowly regain that ability through their help. She also has enjoyed labs where she’s been able to dissect and analyze specimens

as part of her training.

“I did an internship at a physical therapist office that made me realize that’s what I want to do. [Also], I actually worked with a professor at the New York Medical College before, in the labs. It was a good experience, which helped me apply what I learned here in a medical school laboratory,” said Ginsburg.

She’s been able to see how her education helps in real world applications and appreciates the classes she’s had to take while here at Manhattan. Her biggest helpers were those teachers and advisors that went above and beyond to help her learn as much as she could in order to continue on in grad school “The biology department is great. The professors and advisors guided me to the courses I need to be in and find out where my interests are,” said Ginsburg.

She knows she’s not the first or the last student pursuing her dream of becoming a physical therapist, but she encourages younger students to check the field out and see if they have any interest.

“It’s okay if you don’t know what you want to do right away. [Physical therapy] wasn’t my first step or plan but soon enough you’ll know what is right for you.

And for biology majors, don’t procrastinate. There’s a lot of work with papers, lab reports and studying- just don’t put it off,” said Ginsburg.

Ginsburg will pursue physical therapy after her graduation in May. Shayna Ginsburg/Coutresy

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Features

April 19, 2016

Visiting Professor Lectures on Shakespeare on the 400th Anniversary of the Writer’s Death Ethan McDowell Contributor

A crowd of eager students and faculty filled the auditorium of Hayden Hall on Thursday, April 14 to listen to a lecture given by visiting professor Dr. Garrett Sullivan, Jr. of Pennsylvania State University.

He was equipped with a presentation of videos, pictures, and art, and an impressive compendium of all things Shakespeare.

Dr. Sullivan’s talk examined the 16th and 17th century writer and playwright and the Shakespearean themes, motifs, and allusions contained within British propaganda films during World War II. The event was coordinated by English professor Dr. Brian Chalk, who stated that the goal of the lecture was to both commemorate the 400th anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death and to allow for students to connect to Shakespeare’s ideas and themes through the interrelationship of British wartime propaganda and Shake-

spearean literary form.

Dr. Sullivan was introduced by English professor and department chair Ashley Cross. Dr. Cross celebrated Dr. Sullivan’s academic achievements in a personal introduction, which included his position as co-editor of Shakespeare Studies and his publications on early modern English literature. Professor Sullivan began the lecture with a video segment from the film Henry V. While Laurence Olivier addressed his troops on the glory of England and God in the prose of Shakespeare, Dr. Sullivan readied his discourse on the use of Shakespeare as wartime propaganda.

In his discussion, Dr. Sullivan detailed the purposes of using film as propaganda to call men to arms using three film propaganda themes: (1) What Britain is Fighting For, (2) How Britain Fights, and (3) The Need to Understand Sacrifices. He gave the audience the example of the British film Fires Were Started, a depiction of heroism and firefighting during the Blitzkrieg of London during World War II. The im-

ages of firefighters defending the city saw a response from the British population to support the war effort. The documentary could be connected to Shakespeare through a speech given in the film from Macbeth, showing the audience that Shakespeare was a powerful motivator in mobilizing anti-German aggressions.

“Seeing that these works from 400 years ago are still producing secondary creative works at least as recently as the 1940s puts some perspective on them even just as the original plays themselves,” Max Whitwell, a sophomore English major said.

Dr. Sullivan occasionally told jokes in his address that commanded laughter in the audience. At one point, Dr. Sullivan displayed a clip of the British film A Matter of Life and Death in which Shakespeare is Americanized several times. In the film, American servicemen playfully banter the dialogue of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream in the manner of American gangsters. A servicewoman misspells Shakespeare’s name, and when another

woman acknowledges this, the first woman jokes, “Who are you, his agent?” to remark on the commercialization of American ideals.

While this elicited chuckles and snickers from the audience, Dr. Sullivan revealed that these antics were representations of the bond between America, portrayed by the servicemen and servicewomen, and Britain, portrayed by Shakespeare’s play A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Whitwell said that he thoroughly enjoyed this portion of the presentation. “The part where he talked about the mocking depiction of the irreverent American attitude towards Shakespeare by the British was the best part” Whitwell said.

“I was intrigued by the topic of Shakespeare and the film industry, but I was not expecting it to take the turn it did,” said Lauren Kalina, a sophomore Communications major. “The huge impact and influence that the media has over society is outstanding and it’s cool to see how even Shakespeare is used in that influential way.”

Sports

Sports Recap

Jaclyn Marr Senior Writer

Men’s Lacrosse Manhattan earned its first win of the season on April 16 after a rousing 11-10 overtime victory over Marist. Nick Strano scored his third goal of the game just 21 seconds into overtime to get the win for Manhattan.

The Jaspers improved to 3-10 overall and 1-3 in the MAAC. Strano and Parker Giarratana led the team with three and four goals respectively. Giarrantana’s team-leading 27 goals are tied for the ninth-most in a season all-time for the Jaspers. Jack Fowler was strong for the Jaspers in the circle, winning 16 of 24 face-offs.

Manhattan plays Siena next at Gaelic Park on April 23.

Men’s Golf The Jaspers took part in the Glen Oaks Shootout on April 11 and placed fourth after notching a score of 322 (+34).

Ryan Lynch and Jon Keyes finished tied for fifth place in the shootout and first on the team with the same scores of 78 (+6).

Ross Ketner earned third place on the team with an 82 (+10), which was 14th overall.

Softball Manhattan played in two doubleheaders last week, totaling 19 runs.

After getting postponed twice, they finally got to take on Wagner on April 11.

Manhattan took the first game 10-9 and Wagner won the second 3-2.

Shannon Puthe started the Jaspers’ offense in game one with a tripe to left field in the bottom of the first. The Jaspers went on to score six total runs in the first and four more in the second. They were shut out the rest of the game but it was enough to get the victory.

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On April 13, the Jaspers split a doubleheader against Lehigh, which began an eight-game road trip. They notched a 4-3 victory in game one before falling to Lehigh by the same score.

Matazinsky tossed a complete game eight-hitter. She allowed three runs, striking out five and walking three. She went 3-for-3 with a homer, two runs scored and an RBI. Bowman finished 1-for-3 with a two-run homer, which was her seventh of the year. Alexa Dawid went 1-for-3 as well with a run scored.

Baseball The Jaspers notched a 3-2 victory over Army West Point on April 12 in a non-conference game. It was a whole team effort for the Jaspers and they earned their ninth win of the season.

Manhattan’s scoring started in the third when Joe Credendino led off with a single and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Jose Carrera. Manhattan got the early lead when Credendino scored on Richie Barrella’s infield single, which was his second of the game.

Michael Pfenninger and Barrella were both 2-for-4 for the Jaspers. Pfenninger had a triple and run while Barrella had an RBI. Michael Scarinci struck out and kept Army West Point off the board until the sixth inning. Manhattan’s relief of Joe Jacques, Tom Cosgrove and Shawn Kanwisher allowed just one walk to secure the victory.

On April 13, the Jaspers traveled to Long Island for a non-conference matchup against Hofstra. They fell 14-4 and now stand at 9-20 on the season.

The Jaspers notched 12 hits despite only getting four runs. They were led by Carrera who finished 3-for-5 with a triple and run. Jason Patnick finished 2-for-3 with a triple and two RBIs. Fabian Peña was also 2-for-3 with a run and two walks.

Women’s Lacrosse Manhattan had a notable offensive outing against Marist on April 13 despite falling 25-12. Freshman Molly Fitzpatrick had a career-high five points as she notched four goals and an assist, leading the way for the Jaspers.

Claire Roediger, Megan Yarusso and Kara Hodapp had multiple goals for Manhattan as well, each notching two a piece.

use the help.”

Manhattan was led by the women’s lacrosse team, which finished as the best women’s team with over 2,600 community service hours.

At the head of the lacrosse team’s impressive feat was Casey Silvestri, president of SAAC. Silvestri was recognized by the NCAA as the top female studentathlete, after attending 18 service events and completing more than 80 hours in the fall semester of 2015.

“It is what I love to do,” Silvestri said about community service. “But you have to start somewhere and if your SAAC president isn’t doing the hours and is telling everyone else to do them, what kind of example is that.”

Through the Helper Helper app, Silvestri and SAAC were able to track their progress throughout the fall and see where they ranked. Most of the events they planned were organized in September, but with the motivation to finish among the best in the NCAA, the teams were determined to do more hours.

“For me it is really high up in terms of when I do evaluate it, I’m doing something for somebody else and not for myself,” Silvestri said about where being named the top female student-athlete, as well as the school finishing in second ranks for her. “When it comes to sports and athletics, we’re all very driven as athletes. We’re very competitive in nature, so to win some-

thing always feels good.”

Despite the intention to complete many hours, SAAC still didn’t expect to reach such a high level in the standings “No, we really didn’t and it was amazing because we did go up against some very big schools that have a lot more student-athletes than we do,” Bobby Gebhard, SAAC representative for the men’s track and field team said about not expecting to rank second in the NCAA. “It was just really great that we had such high turnout from different athletes.”

Aside from Silvestri, Manhattan had Meredith Bryant of the softball team and Nikki Prestiano of the women’s lacrosse team place in the top 10 most outstanding student-athletes.

The women’s track and field team completed the most hours among all women track and field programs in the competition. The softball team finished third among softball teams, and women’s soccer was second for all women soccer programs.

The men’s teams enjoyed their bit of success as well, as the track and field squad was first among all track and field teams, and the lacrosse and soccer teams finished second in their respective programs.

“I think it’s great just seeing how far SAAC has come that the student athletes especially are way more involved in the community than we have been in the past,” Allie Yamashiro, vice president of SAAC

Freshman Parker Giarratana is tied for the ninth highest single season all-time goal mark in Manhattan history with 27 goals this season.

Go Jaspers/ Courtesy Men’s and Women’s Track and Field Manhattan finished competing at the Princeton Outdoor Invitational on April 16. The men’s team placed third altogether and the women placed seventh.

On the men’s side, Manhattan notched four event wins. John Dove earned first in the 1500 meters with an 1C4A-qualifying time of 3:56.48. Amir Khaghani took first in the 3000 meters, Bobby Gebhard won the triple jump and Hayden Clark took first in the long jump.

Ellinor Persson had a personal-best leap in the long jump of 5.82 m, which qualified her for the ECAC Championships.

Stephanie Ranagan had a team-best eight draw controls, as well as a goal and an assist.

April 16 was Senior Day for Manhattan and they honored their six seniors, Yarusso, Ranagan, Cunningham, Roediger, Marissa Acosta and Casey Silvestri before their afternoon matchup against Niagara.

The Jaspers ultimately fell 12-8 and now stand 4-10 on the season and 0-5 in the league.

Niagara opened the game with four straight goals but the Jaspers fought back with three-straight. Roediger notched the first goal for the Jaspers off a 40-yard open-field pass from Ranagan. Cunningham found the back of the net next off a pass from Yarusso. Darby Nolan followed with a free-position goal.

Manhattan came out strong in the second half with three-straight goals, tying the game at 6-6. However, Niagara soon answered back, notching five-straight goals and taking an 11-6 lead. The Jaspers ultimately fell 12-8.

The Jaspers’ next matchup is April 20 against Iona.

SAAC Drives Manhattan to Second Most Community Service Hours in NCAA Competition Daniel Ynfante Editor

In the 163-year existence of Manhattan College, very few times have the school’s 17 Division 1 athletic programs reached the pinnacle of the NCAA. You’d have to go all the way back to 1973, when the Jaspers won the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships, to find the last time a Manhattan team won a national event.

Forty-three years later, Manhattan has achieved NCAA success once again, only this time, it hasn’t been on the field, but off it.

For the NCAA Team Works Fall 2015 Helper Helper Community Service Competition, Manhattan’s Student Athlete Advisory Committee, which organizes community service events, helped rank Manhattan in second place out of more than 120 schools to participate in the competition.

“It’s a great honor to be able to represent our school, Manhattan College, in a way that some people might not look at us,” Frank Merrill, social media coordinator for SAAC and one of the men’s lacrosse team representatives said. “Going out and helping the community means a lot to us and it really gives us a good look for not just being athletes or not just being students, but also going out and helping others that can

and representative for the volleyball team said.

The high turnout for community service has been thanks in part to the concerted effort Silvestri has made over the last year to increase student-athlete participation at SAAC events.

With more student-athletes attending events and completing community service hours, SAAC will now look to continue to grow. And it will be doing so with the addition of a new position on its board that will focus on the professional development of students. SAAC will work with career services to develop interview skills as well as help write cover letters and resumes.

“We want to develop the full student athlete,” Silvestri said. “Since we have all the community service now, we’re just going to try to add this along with it. A lot of professional development, which will be fun.”

While the recognition by the NCAA as the school with the second most community service hours is an accomplishment outside of the playing the field, it is still a significant accomplishment for SAAC and its members.

“It’s definitely up there,” Gebhard said about where he ranks this achievement. “It really is great that we as a school were able to come together. For all of the different teams to come together it was really impressive.”

Sports

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April 19, 2016

SAAC Holds its First Jumping Into the Community Tournament

From left to right, Hanna Gabris and Margaret Della of Kingsbridge Heights Community Center speak at SAAC’s first Jumping Into the Community Volleyball Tournament.

Daniel Ynfante/ The Quadrangle

Daniel Ynfante Editor

Dozens of student-athletes gathered at Draddy Gymnasium on April 17, some wearing basketball jerseys, others wearing Hawaiian shirts, others athletic gear, but none in their team uniforms.

Last Sunday at the Student Athlete Advisory Committee’s first annual Jumping Into the Community Volleyball Tournament, student-athletes joined to participate in a competition where the funds would go to the Kingsbridge Heights Community Center.

“We thought by having this tournament for KHCC it would bring more awareness to Riverdale and the school because they do such a great job,” Jade Gray, SAAC representative for the volleyball team, and part organizer of the event said.

Together with Gray, Allie Yamashiro, also of the volleyball and vice president of SAAC, planned Sunday’s event. The two went on a L.O.V.E. trip to El Salvador, where they held a similar fundraiser, and af-

ter volunteering at a therapeutic recreation class with the Special Needs Program at KHCC in the fall of 2015, they decided they could replicate the event at Manhattan with the funds going to KHCC. “Allie put this whole entire thing together and she did an amazing job,” Casey Silvestri, president of SAAC said. “I turned around to Allie and said, ‘do you need anything,’ and she’s like, ‘nope, got it.’ It’s because of dependable people like her that we’re able to do such amazing things.”

The event featured student-athletes and students competing in a volleyball tournament, where the winners took home several prizes including a $25 gift card to the Manhattan College bookstore.

Four five hours, student-athletes had the chance to socialize with other students, as well as learn about the benefits of KHCC. “Just more knowledge about Kingsbridge Heights Community Center,” Yamashiro said she wanted people to leave with when they attended the event. “It’s right here in the Bronx, it’s so close to us.

It’s a great way for us to help out, and just to see more of what this community, the

Bronx community and the Kingsbridge community is all about.”

The Special Needs Program at KHCC offers help to people with mental or physical disabilities. On Sunday, Hanna Gabris, director of the Special Needs Program brought with her six adults in the program, who had the chance to participate in the event and interact with student-athletes.

“To me personally just besides the financial aspect of it and the physical support, to me what is really important … to touch folks here and students and bring awareness,” Gabris said. “This is a population which is I think really misunderstood.

People have their fears and not that much experience with really knowing who they are and what they are able to do. They’re also kind of neglected in society, so I’m trying to change that culture and be a huge advocate.”

Sunday’s tournament is the first of what KHCC’s directors hope become an annual event.

“I think awareness is very important,” Damarr Smith, associate director of development at KHCC said. “Obviously being a nonprofit in the middle of the Bronx you

want as many partners to know what the work you’re doing, but then you need the advocates going out there saying the positives that you’re doing. And the best advocates are the people that have been in the program, that have worked in the program, so people like Allie and Jade to spread the word.”

“This is something that we’re so proud of because it really helps our participants be main stream,” Margaret Della, executive director of KHCC said, “and that there’s opportunities to take trips and have physical activities and develop their own creativity in the arts. Everything that every individual in life should be able to access.”

For SAAC, who ranked second in the NCAA for most community service hours in the fall semester of 2015, events like the volleyball tournament are enticing for student-athletes to participate.

“Because we’ve created events where student athletes can have fun like today and making it campus wide, people are enjoying themselves and getting involved,” Silvestri said. “They’re joining the bandwagon with everybody else.”

The proceeds from the event will go to the Kingsbridge Heights Community Center.

Kenneth Hoyt/ The Quadrangle