THE Volume 95, Issue 11
Q
UADRANGLE A Student Publication of Manhattan College Since 1924
April 4, 2017
www.mcquad.org
it’s the JASPER PACk BISHOP, MOURIKES LEAD PARTY TO EXECUTIVE BOARD SWEEP Aaron Mayorga, Jack Melanson & Stephen Zubrycky
Editors & Editor in Chief
The Manhattan College student body lifted the Jasper Pack to victory last week, filling all nine slots in Student Government’s Executive Board with the party’s candidates. At the top of the Jasper Pack’s ticket were Micaela Bishop and Phillip Mourikes,
ning for the commuter affairs position. A whopping 869 students cast ballots in the election, which was a significant uptick from last year’s turnout, according to John Bennett, Director of Student Engagement. Bennett estimated that there are 2,500 eligible voters. “We’ve compared ourselves to other benchmark schools and other schools in the MAAC for instance; our [turnout] percentages blow other schools out of the water,” Bennett said. This year’s high turnout follows a race marked by aggressive advertising campaigns. The Jasper Pack’s campaign
President-Elect Micaela Bishop
Micaela Bishop campaigning on the Quad on Thursday afternoon. Stephen Zubrycky/The Quadrangle who were elected student body president and vice president, respectively. Down-ballot, the party swept all seven races for vice president, with Patrick Mauer claiming club administration, Kaitlyn von Runnen claiming educational affairs, Gregory Gorman claiming finance, Adam Genners claiming social life, Patrick Estanbouli claiming residential affairs, Tara Marin claiming communication and Margaret Flores claiming the race for commuter affairs. Jasper Pack’s primary opponent was the other major party, The Campus that Never Sleeps, which was led by LisaMarie Nilaj and Alexander Constantine. There were also two independent candidates run-
featured a Snapchat “geofilter,” Snapchat themed posters and free lemonade giveaways on the Quad. The Campus That Never Sleeps distributed buttons and hung posters throughout campus that mimicked the No. 1 train. Mauer ultimately believes that his party’s victory was a function of the blood, sweat and tears that its members put into the campaign. “It feels awesome that the Jasper Pack had a sweep. All the hard work paid off,” Mauer said. Mauer plans to approach his new position with the same fervor. “The current plan is to strengthen and inspire new clubs on campus,” Mauer
said. “It was a very stressful campaigning week and it’s over,” Bishop said, describing herself as relieved. “The Jasper Pack is definitely very happy.” Bishop is going to make school spirit her top priority in the first weeks of her new administration. “Our initial idea is going to be to promote school spirit,” Bishop said. She hopes to achieve this by increasing attendence at student government meetings by mandating club representation. “We’ll get busy right away,” Bishop said. Mourikes is eager to hit the ground running. “My role as executive vice president will support the common goal of the Jasper Pack to increase school safety, grow our relationship with the residents of Riverdale, provide new styles of school spirit and to bring a new twist to social events on campus,” Mourikes said in a prepared statement. Bennett said that his office, which works closely with student government would have been glad with the results no matter which party claimed victory. “We were very happy when we saw the list of candidates to start with,” Bennett said. “We couldn’t lose, from our office’s [perspective].” Nilaj wished Bishop and the Jasper Pack members all the best, and said she plans to maintain an active presence in the student government. “I definitely still want to stay active whether that’s as a position or as a member,” Nilaj said. “I still think I have a lot to contribute to [student government].” Nilaj commended the work of her party members, specifically Constantine and club administration candidate Megan Haber. “Both [Constantine and Haber] have been involved in student government since their freshman year,” Nilaj said. “I couldn’t have asked for anyone better. They gave it their all. And my hope is that they run next year.” The executive board races were not the only items on the ballot for students last week. The assembly spots of commuter vice president will be filled by Anna Rosario. Liberal arts students elected Timothy Gress, and engineering students elected Samantha Cachoian. All three new vice presidents-elect ran for their positions unopposed. Students also elected new class vice presidents. Alannah Boyle was elected senior class vice president, juniors elected Liam Moran and sophomores elected Celeste Burns and Kerry Cavanagh. The outgoing student government will hold an assembly meeting tomorrow.
2017
STUDENT GOVERNMENT
ELECTION RESULTS
PRESIDENT & EXECUTIVE V.P. P Micaela Bishop and Phillip Mourikes Jasper Pack (J.P.)
LisaMarie Nilaj and Alexander Constantine
The Campus That Never Sleeps (C.N.S.)
V.P. FOR CLUB ADMINISTRATION P Patrick Mauer J.P. Megan Haber C.N.S. V.P. FOR FINANCE P Gregory Gorman J.P. Thomas di Giglio C.N.S. V.P. FOR RESIDENTIAL AFFAIRS P Patrick Estanbouli J.P. Uncontested
V.P. FOR ACADEMIC AFFAIRS P Kaitlyn von Runnen J.P. Samantha Coggins C.N.S. V.P. FOR SOCIAL LIFE P Adam Genners J.P. Rima Reda C.N.S. V.P. FOR COMMUNICATION P Tara Marin J.P. Morgan Graziano C.N.S. V.P. FOR COMPUTER AFFAIRS P Margaret Flores J.P. Marlene Pichardo C.N.S. Christopher Santiago Independent Stephen Serulle Independent SENIOR CLASS VICE PRESIDENT P Alannah Boyle Independent Uncontested
JUNIOR CLASS VICE PRESIDENT P Liam Moran Independent Uncontested
SOPHOMORE CLASS VICE PRESIDENT Elect two P Celeste Burns Independent P Kerry Cavanagh Independent Michael Hackett Independent COMMUTER REPRESENTATIVE P Anna Rosario Independent Uncontested
SCHOOL OF LIBERAL ARTS REPRESENTATIVE P Timothy Gress Independent Uncontested
SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING REPRESENTATIVE P Samantha Cachoian Independent Uncontested
869
TOTAL VOTES CAST
2
The
opinions & editorials
Quadrangle www.mcquad.org
Vol. 95 Issue 11 April 4, 2017
Stephen Zubrycky Editor-in-Chief Jack Melanson News Editor Haley Burnside Joseph Liggio Asst. News Editors Ally Hutzler Features Editor Managing Editor Megan Dreher Asst. Features Editor Taylor Brethauer Arts & Entertainment Editor Managing Editor Rose Brennan Asst. Arts & Entertainment Editor RikkiLynn Shields Sports Editor Charles Lippolis Asst. Sports Editor Tara Marin Social Media Editor Catherine Goodyear Asst. Social Media Editor Victoria Hernández Multimedia Editor Aaron Mayorga Photography Editor Anja Pollozi Asst. Photography Editor Alyssa Velazquez Production Editor Abbi Kirollos Asst. Production Editor Daniel Molina August Kissel 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.
April 4, 2017
2017 is an Election Year Too Aaron Mayorga Editor
The following is a staff member’s op/ed piece and does not reflect the views of The Quadrangle, its Editorial Board, the College or the student body. Elections have consequences. It’s an oft-uttered phrase, but it’s a lesson that many critics of Donald Trump must take to heart if they believe that his administration is bringing the nation in a negative direction, and this lesson applies to elections that lack the same kind of starpower and media attention as the presidential election cycle. In the aftermath of Trump’s inauguration, media speculation swirled around prominent members of the Democratic Party that may be positioning themselves to challenge Trump in 2020. After his unprecedented testimony against his former Senate colleague and current Attorney General Jefferson B. Sessions, New Jersey Senator Cory Booker is the subject of 2020-related media buzz. The same rumors were floated about New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand – who has occupied Hillary Clinton’s old Senate seat since 2009 – after her equally unprecedented opposition to Trump’s cabinet nominees and the same could be said for freshman California Senator Kamala Harris – who, in November 2016, became the second African-American woman and first Indian-American to be elected to the U.S. Congress’ upper chamber. While all this makes for interesting hypothetical punditry, it ultimately distracts from the elections that are, quite literally, just around the corner in 2017, and these are the elections that so desperately suffer from absurdly low-turnout and obscenely high-levels of voter disengagement. And, while these elections, again, lack the same 24/7 wall-to-wall coverage of their national counterparts, they are equally as important in charting a new path for American political governance. This year, 54 of the 100 largest American cities will hold municipal and local elections, and voters in seven of the ten most-populous American cities will have the opportunity to have their voices heard at the ballot box according to Ballotpedia, a nonprofit and nonpartisan election encyclopedia. Among these cities are Los Angeles, Boston, San Antonio, and the most-populated city in America: New York City–the very place where you and I are currently situated. While these elections typically go on without much fanfare, the stakes have been raised in the era of Trump, especially if your aim is to resist the 45th President throughout his Presidency. For example, later this year in New York City, voters will decide on who will represent them at Gracie Man-
sion and at City Hall and whomever they elect will ultimately preside over a gargantuan $82.2 billion budget – the largest municipal budget in the country and a figure nine times as large as the next largest: Los Angeles’ $8.7 billion 2016-17 budget. More pressingly, however, is that the fate of New York City’s half-million undocumented immigrants may also be on the ballot this election. In 2014, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio announced his intention to establish a municipal identification card. After deliberation by the New York City Council, the proposal became a reality under the guise of “IDNYC.” While most residents failed to see the utility in such an ID, it was a game-changer for undocumented New Yorkers. Now having a valid form of government-issued identification in reach, undocumented immigrants – many of whom took solace in former President Obama’s Deferred Action for Child Arrivals (DACA) executive program – could now set up a bank account and have access to services that required photo identification and from which they were previously excluded from obtaining. But, for all of IDNYC’s benefits, there also came a catch. In order to curtail concerns from the NYPD that a municipal identification card could be used to commit fraud, deBlasio and the City Council agreed to keep records of all IDNYC applicants – meaning that the City of New York presently has the personal information and addresses of tens of thousands of undocumented immigrants currently residing within the five boroughs. This means that, if Trump kept his promise to create a mass deportation force, the IDNYC database would be a treasure trove of information for ICE officials. Bronx City Councilmember Ritchie Torres told New York Magazine in December 2016 that “IDNYC and DACA could conceivably have the same fate: Two programs intended to protect undocumented immigrants could have the ultimate effect of exposing them. It’s a cruel irony.” Fortunately, the Mayor and the City Council have said that they will challenge any attempts by federal authorities to gain access to the IDNYC database and, if necessary, employ a provision in the IDNYC law that allows for the destruction of all IDNYC records; however, all of them are up for re-election and, as Trump’s candidacy has shown, nothing is ever certain in politics. The case of New York City is just one of many reasons as to why you should take notice of the political developments in your home states and towns. Others include New Jersey and Virginia, which will elect new governors as respective incumbents Chris Christie and Terry McAuliffe are term-limited. Both will have serious national implications as Democrats now
have the opportunity to take full control of the New Jersey state government and can make significant headway in Virginia’s racial gerrymandering Supreme Court case with blue streak victories in November. Not to mention, your vote and political participation might actually carry more weight in these off-year elections. This all brings us back to the topic of voter turnout. In 2016, an estimated 55.3 percent of all eligible voting-age Americans took to the voting booth according to the U.S. Election Project. This number, although comparatively low for Western liberal democracies, is in line with the turnout rates in national elections since 2004 (55.7 percent in 2004, 57.1 percent in 2008, 54.9 percent in 2012, respectively). Yet, in off-year elections like 2017, voter turnout plummets and fast. In 2013, New Yorkers elected a new Mayor, five Borough Presidents, and 51 members of the City Council to respective four-year terms. According to data from the City Board of Elections, citywide turnout that year was an abysmal 24 percent, a number that was described by the New York Times as “the lowest since at least the mid-20th century.” In City Council races, turnout was even worse. In the general election race for City Council District 11, which encompasses the entirety of the Manhattan College as well as the surrounding neighborhood of Riverdale, only 14,626 voters showed up out of 81,545 registered voters, a mere 17.9 percent turnout. And these low-turnout elections are endemic to state and local politics. According to Governing magazine and researchers from the University of Wisconsin, the decline is systemic and has the potential to get even worse. Although the state of affairs, as it relates political participation, is bleak, it also presents an opportunity. According to the Pew Research Center, 2016 marked the first time that Millennials represented as large as a voting bloc (69.2 million eligible voters) as Baby Boomers (69.7 million eligible voters), meaning that young people increasingly have the chance to influence public policy and voter representation in elections that have historically been dominated by segments of the population that are older, more economically well-off and whiter than the average American voter. But that’s only if we as a voting bloc exercise our right to vote. While the Framers burdened us with the Electoral College, they also gave us federalism- the freedom to use state and local governments as a shield from the agenda coming from Washington, D.C. You don’t have to wait until 2018 or 2020 to resist Trump. In fact, you can make your voice heard right now in elections where your voice may have the most relative power. Elections have consequences. Make those consequences for the better.
CORRECT IONS In last week’s issue, Charles Lippolis was miscredited as the author of “Jasper Comeback Falls Short,” which was written by Daniel Ynfante. In “Cinema’s Top Five” last week, Stephen King was credited as the director of the “Indiana Jones” film trilogy, which was the work of Steven Spielberg.
News
Residence Life Hires 36 New Resident Assistants Ally Hutzler Editor
Earlier this semester a total of 120 students applied for residence assistants positions across campus. After a thorough application process including group scenarios and individual interviews, 36 new RAs have been hired for the upcoming academic year. The intensive process measures five key competency areas as well as professionalism, team building, leadership and communication skills. “Really everything that we’re doing through the process is measuring how we think the candidate will do in those competency areas,” AJ Goodman, associate director of residence life for Chrysostom Hall, Jasper Hall and Overlook Manor, said. Some hypothetical scenarios include having to write up residents who are also your friends and dealing with a student who is not listening to you. Isaiah Paige, a sophomore at Manhattan College, said that the hardest part about the process was just being yourself. “The part that’s harder to deal with is that they want you to be honest, they don’t want you to tell them what they want to hear. I think that’s a little more difficult because as students we are trained to put the right answer down on the paper. But when it is time
to be yourself sometimes you don’t want to give away too much,” Paige said. Paige is currently majoring in electrical engineering and minoring in digital media art. When he was first applying to colleges he was going to pursue art school, but after receiving advice from his parents he decided to pick a more lucrative career path. Decorating his floor is one of the things he is really looking forward to when he is an RA. “I think that having a floor theme is actually pretty fun, I am already thinking of ideas. I really like Jasper building wide-events and I really want to do the ‘breakfast for dinner’ event,” he said. Paige thinks that connecting with his residents on a personal level will help make his RA responsibilities much easier. “I don’t know if RAs usually do this but just going door to door and sitting down and talking with people, just get a more personal connection,” he said. Junior Irenej Bozovicar is also looking forward to meeting and forming relationships with his future residents. Being an international student was difficult for Bozovicar, but his RA freshman year helped to make the transition less daunting. “Coming here as a freshman from Slovenia, who had to repeat each sentence twice in order for people to under-
stand me, was not so great. There is also no one from Slovenia that goes to Manhattan College, so I really didn’t have anybody to talk with in my language. However, my RA knew that, and kept checking up on how I was and stuff. She was the first who made me feel more comfortable in the new environment,” Bozovicar said. As an RA in Horan Hall next year, Bozovicar is looking forward to helping other students. “I have always been fortunate enough to be surrounded by people who were willing to help me. RA position gives me opportunity to give something back,” he said. Being an RA does come with challenges, such as a planning ahead of your busy schedule and being prepared to deal with different situations at any time. Anna Occhino, a sophomore and another recently hired RA, says that Chrysostom Hall has its own unique set of challenges that she must face. “Just because I am going to be in the freshman dorm it is going to be a little bit challenging getting students acclimated to life on college campus and that it is not the same thing as high school. That was the struggle that I had was realizing that it’s a lot more work being in college,” she said. However, Occhino also expressed that because the dorm is communal, the build-
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ing has a more familial atmosphere than some of the other residence buildings on campus. “You all share that struggle because you know that it is the worst dorm on campus but yet you love it because you can all relate to each other and you’re always going to have each others backs,” she said. Occhino, who is majoring in communication and minoring in music, is looking forward to bringing her love of music to the building. “We will probably have open mic and jam sessions and things like that to bring the community of all students, not just the residents in Chrysostom, together,” Occhino said. “I just want to make them fall in love with Manhattan College the way that I did.” The next step for these new RAs is to undergo training in August. All RAs must return to school two weeks before the rest of the students return to campus to attend information sessions and training sessions. “We start at 9 a.m. and end at 8 p.m. We do different sessions throughout the day to teach them our policies and procedures and at night it is a lot of role playing exercises so that the new staff can practice for different things that may come up and just getting used to having different stuff thrown at them,” Goodman said.
Spring Semester to Finish with Bad Case of the Mondays Sean Sonnemann Senior Writer
Manhattan College students and faculty are looking ahead to plan for the last week of classes as the semester comes to a close and will notice an abnormal schedule on the calendar. Unlike the normal weekly cycle, the first week of May includes daily class schedules on different days than usual, as well as a make-up snow day. As of now the schedule is as follows: Monday class schedule on Monday, May 1; Friday class schedule on Tuesday, May 2; Monday class schedule on Wednesday, May 3; and Thursday class schedule on Thursday, May 4. Having alternative class schedules on May 2 and May 3 was a decision made before the semester began in order to have an equivalent number of each class day on the college calendar. “We have a practice here of trying to make sure that we’ve got the right number of each kind of day—Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday—and sometimes that results in us making a Tuesday a Monday schedule or something like that,” Provost William Clyde said. “It’s efficient, even if it’s a little confusing.”
This specific weekly schedule switch was made due to there originally being both an extra day of Tuesday and Wednesday classes on the academic calendar. Monday and Friday class schedules are the days often lost when long weekend holidays occur and therefore were needed to be rescheduled for May 2 and May 3. The unusual schedule can be confusing to students and professors accustomed to following a set weekly routine. However, Clyde has not heard of any significant issues regarding scheduling conflicts from faculty members, especially adjuncts who may be beholden to the class schedules of other institutions where they also teach. On top of this original schedule set in the academic calendar, there was also an additional change made during the semester. Thursday, May 4 was initially scheduled as a reading day for students to use to prepare for finals, but will now be used as a make-up day of classes for the snow day that occurred on Thursday, Feb. 9. Thursday, May 4 and Friday, May 5 were tentatively set as reading days in the academic calendar at the beginning of the semester. However, the administration
also reserved them as possible make-up snow days in case of inclement weather cancelling classes at some point during the spring semester. Students were first notified of the decision to utilize the make-up snow day in an email sent out and an announcement posted on Feb. 13. Friday, May 5 is now the only reading day before final exams begin on Monday, May 8. “Honestly, as long as we have a reading day, I’m fine with it,” Gian Noto, chemical engineering student, said regarding the make-up snow day being instituted in the schedule. The college has not usually made up snow days in the past, but the college administration decided to take advantage of the unique academic calendar options available for this semester. “We didn’t have the schedule space [in years prior] and I don’t think we are going to in the future,” Clyde said. Usually, faculty members must make up snow days by scheduling extra sessions outside of normal class time, providing additional assignments or utilizing online
resources such as video lessons and forum post discussions. According to Clyde, there is a noted spike in the use of Moodle, the college’s online course webpage system, on snow days where classes are cancelled. The decision to cancel class can be a difficult one for the administration in trying to balance student and faculty safety with maintaining academic schedules. This is especially the case given that some classes, such as laboratory sessions and evening graduate classes, may only take place once a week. “There a variety of ways for the faculty to make it up, but in this case we had the day so we used it,” Clyde said. While faculty members may appreciate the opportunities provided by rescheduled class time, for some students the make-up snow day is now one more hurdle standing between summer vacation or possibly even graduation. “As a senior, having the make-up snow day is kind of a pain,” Alec Simon, finance major, said.
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news
At Airports, International and Minority Students Feel Targeted Victoria Hernández Editor
According to a study published in VOA News, fewer international students are now applying for US universities. Nearly four in ten US colleges and universities have reported a decline in international student applications, according to a recent survey by six higher education groups. The highest number of declines comes from the Middle East, especially Iran, which is one of six countries for which US President Donald J. Trump has instituted a temporary ban on travelers. On a recent trip back from Europe, a group of friends and a Manhattan College student who would like to remain unnamed were waiting on the US citizen’s line for customs where passports must be scanned and marked in order to determine what’s your next step. According to the US Customs and Border Protection, this automated passport control (APC) is a US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) program that expedites the entry process for US, Canadian and eligible Visa Waiver Program international travelers by providing an automated process through CBP’s Primary Inspection area. Travelers are prompted to scan their passport, take a photograph using the kiosk, and answer a series of CBP inspection related questions verifying biographic and flight information. Once passengers have completed the series of questions, a receipt will be issued. Travelers then bring their passport and receipt to a CBP Officer to finalize their inspection for entry into the United States. After scanning his passport, the student was marked with an “X” in the receipt, and their fellow American friends were marked with an “O”. According to the US Customs and Border Protection, the “X” can mean many different things: random inspection; you have items to declare; you have duty to pay; you have agriculture products that need to be examined; your membership may need review; your fingerprints may not have matched, the system may have trouble completing the transaction; you may have timed out on one of the screens, or other issues. The line for those marked with an “X” lasted two and a half hours while the other line, for those marked with an “O”, lasted thirty minutes. The “X” line was very diverse in contrast with the “O” line where the people were mostly white. When the student asked a customs officer, “Why was I marked with an ‘X’?”, he
simply said: “Because you have a Hispanic last name,” the student reported to have felt like a second class US citizen. According to an article by Julian Mark published in The Points Guy, many others have also been affected by this. “Limiting immigration is causing ripple effects at airports around the world for people attempting to fly to the United States, and in some cases, for those who have already arrived,” Mark said. And although this is true, his article goes on to say that, “US citizens are not affected by the restrictions on entry into the United States.” With this statement he seems to ignore the oppression that the Hispanic-Latino community is confronting at airports, even though they are not directly affected by Trump’s travel ban and most importantly, are supposed to enjoy the same rights as
pointed. That is prejudice. That is racist,” Flores said. Debbi Damico, Director of International Student and Scholar Services, recognizes the struggles of being an international student in the United States, particularly at Manhattan College. “Lately, many [students] have stopped by to ask questions about the travel bans and how they may affect their status in the future. I have tried to offer support and helpful suggestions to them; and at the same time, tried to allay their fears,” Damico said. In their mission to include different beliefs and cultures as a Lasallian institution, Manhattan College provides help and support to those international students that have felt targeted and/or excluded from the rest of US citizens. “My office is currently located in the
Almost 40 percent of American colleges and universities have reported a decline in enrollment of international students. fellow Americans, based on their US citizenship. Another Manhattan College student also went through a similar situation. Valeska Flores, a junior civil engineering major, is a US citizen born in Peru. “When I saw that the people in the ‘X’ line contained black people, Middle Eastern people, Asian people, Hispanic people, and that the ‘O’ line was primarily composed of white people, that’s when I came to the conclusion that my receipt being marked with an ‘X’ had a lot to do with the fact that I am Hispanic,” Flores said. Flores says she has traveled internationally several times and she has always gotten marked with an “X,”, and her father has too. The first times she didn’t mind because the line was short, but this particular time, “the whole customs process lasted over 2 hours. This infuriated me,” she said. “Although I don’t know the exact reason why the people on the “X” line got picked, just by analyzing the people there it was very obvious that the people on my line were very diverse.” Flores went on to express how underpowered and undervalued this situation at the airport made her feel. “Despite being an American citizen who has never committed any type of crime, why was I picked? I was very disap-
Multicultural Center in the Student Commons. The center offers a safe place for persons of all nationalities, religions, gender identities, everyone is welcome here,” Damico said. “I always encourage them to stop by and speak to me if they have any questions or concerns given the current climate as it relates to immigration and other matters relating to their status as F-1 and J-1 non-immigrant students/scholars/researchers.” Maintaining an open and honest relationship with international students on campus is crucial for their experience in the US and the vision they take home from this country. “I want them to feel that they can come to me with any issues, problems, questions, or concerns and be assured of my support, care, understanding, and confidentiality,” Damico said. Flores agrees with supporting all communities and believes that excluding a certain population is dangerous. “Generalizing and grouping people in categories, labeling them, is very dangerous. We need to get rid of those ideas all together,” Flores said. “Not every Muslim is a terrorist, not every Latino is an illegal immigrant. Their ethnicity and culture enriches their persona, however, it shouldn’t be the basis with which we try to predict their actions.”
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April 4, 2017
Trump Weakens Energy Regulations; SpaceX Flies Reusable Rocket WORLD WEEKLY Daniel Molina Editor
Russians Take to the Streets in Nationwide Anti-Government Protest In a rare show of force, thousands of Russians took to the streets of Moscow and other cities in the biggest anti-government protests in years. Police reported over 600 were detained over the rallies — but human rights groups say the number is higher. The crowds gathered to protest government corruption, with many people calling for Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev’s resignation. Source: NPR Trump Signs Executive Order Rolling Back Energy Regulations With a sweeping executive order signed at Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) headquarters, Trump initiated an immediate review of the Clean Power Plan, which restricts greenhouse gas emissions at coal-fired power plants. Trump’s overall executive order goes beyond that program and will suspend, rescind or flag for review more than a half-dozen measures in an effort to boost domestic energy production in the form of fossil fuels. Source: Fox News Success for Space-X’s Reusable Rocket California’s SpaceX company has successfully re-flown a segment from one of its Falcon 9 rockets in the satellite passenger SES-10. Traditionally, rockets are expendable - their various segments are discarded and destroyed during an ascent. Elon Musk’s company (founder of Tesla Motors), in contrast, aims to recover Falcon first-stages and fly them multiple times to try to reduce the cost of its operations. It marks an important milestone for SpaceX in its quest for re-usability, confirming its mission to be the first recreational spaceflight company. Source: BBC Mike Flynn, offered to be Interviewed in Exchange for Immunity; Senate says No. Former National Security Adviser Mike Flynn told the Senate Intelligence Committee he was willing to be interviewed about the Trump campaign’s possible ties to Russia in return for immunity from prosecution. The Senate Intelligence Committee turned down the request, saying it was “wildly preliminary” and that immunity was “not on the table” at the moment. Source: NBC News Devastation in Colombia Due to a Natural Disaster; at least 193 deaths. A torrent of debris surged through the city of Mocoa near Colombia’s southern border with Ecuador around Saturday midnight, catching many residents off guard asleep in their homes and leaving little time to escape. Witnesses felt buildings vibrate before an avalanche of water carrying mud and debris swept through, toppling homes and lifting trucks downstream. The number of dead people had risen as of Saturday night to 193. Source: The New York Times
Features
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“Every Novel’s Voice is an Act of Imagination” MARS: Stephen Kiernan Adanna Carter Contributor
A writer has the mentality to create their own fiction, the ability to conjure up their own characters, the power to create their own meaning, the skills to make up their own plots, the narration to teach their own lessons, and the capability to display their own perceptions. Writers portray this ability in the words they construe to tell a story. This a glimpse of what wisdom was offered at the latest installment of the Major Author Reading Series last week from the novelist, journalist, guitarist, and actor himself, Stephen Kiernan. One of the stories that Kiernan shared with his audience was from his novel “The Hummingbird,” inspired out of the idea of humor in a death bed. The novel explores the notion of how a warrior can become a man of peace and connects to the notion of warring America becoming a nation of peace. The chapters that Kiernan read out loud to his audience centered around an optimistic nurse named Deborah Birch and her grumpy patient Barclay Reed. Barclay Reed is a retired history professor, troubled veteran, and grumpy patient suffering from terminal kidney cancer. Deborah Birch is a kind nurse who takes care of people who are terminally ill. She caters to Mr. Reed’s post traumatic stresses and haunting blasts from the past in hopes that she can help
Stephen Kiernan offered words of wisdom at the English Department’s MARS. Juliette Rodrigues/The Quadrangle him through his traumatic experiences and treat his tormented mental state. The scene that Kiernan read out loud to his audience starts with a raucous and grumpy Mr. Reed, who claims that in all of the time he spent waiting for Nurse Birch to arrive, he’s eaten fifteen bananas. Nurse Birth is very patient and kind. She disagreed with Mr. Reed’s claim of eating fifteen bananas. Mr. Reed’s irritable character of course get’s offended by the accusation and asks Nurse Birch if she is calling him a liar. Nurse Birch informs Mr. Reed that she is calling him a tester. In conclusion to the excerpt of the skit read out loud to the audi-
ence, we find out that Mr. Reed was lying entirely and actually detests bananas. The novel, like many other works of writing, faced different challenges. The author, like many other authors, had his own ways of handling these challenges. One of the challenges concerned the novel being written from a woman’s point of view by a male individual. Kiernan addressed this topic explaining that it was difficult to write from a woman’s point of view, but he received many females with strong personalities’ feedback to make sure that he was giving the woman’s voice authenticity in the story.
Another one of the challenges was writer’s block. However, Kiernan explained to us that he doesn’t get writer’s block because he’s appreciative of the rewriting of his own work and notices that as he rewrites a story, he’ll change the setting, path, or ending of the story until he is completely satisfied with its course. Lastly Stephen Kiernan offered more words of wisdom concerning novels stating, “in a novel the writer should vanish and the story should be seen as more of a movie.”
Slice of Social Justice Presents “Feminisms” Lauren Schuster Staff Writer
In a fitting end to Women’s History Month, students and faculty gathered together in Cornerstone in Miguel Hall to listen to Cristina Pérez Jiménez, a faculty member of the English department, discuss women’s movements across the americas. Jiménez engaged the audience in a variety of discussions about what feminism, intersectionality, and movements for change all mean. The topic of the event was deemed to be “feminisms” rather than the usual singular “feminism,” because Jiménez wanted to touch upon the variety of different approaches and experiences that feminists of different racial, ethnic, and sexual identities all have. Many of the points of conversation brought up by Jiménez were about intersectionality, meaning the way that a single person’s multiple identities come together to effect the way that they experience life. She discussed how being a poor woman, a black woman or a latina woman makes your experiences in life very different from that of a rich woman or a white woman. She then explained that the recognition of those differences is important for wom-
en to be able to support each other and be inclusive in their movements for change. Jiménez then went on to talk about various women’s movements that have happened in different places in the americas. She talked about the Women’s March on Washington that took place this past January, as well as the “Day Without Women” event that took place earlier this month. She then linked their approaches to that of women’s movements in places like Argentina and Puerto Rico. Marches and strikes were tactics mentioned that seem to be universal to every movement to enact change. Acknowledging this connection brings a sense of solidarity with movements that we may not directly be a part of. Learning from other movements both helps us to be more aware of the problems around us that we may not personally experience and helps us to improve the movements that we are a part of. Jiménez encouraged the audience to think about the variety of ways that they can incorporate these concepts into their actions as feminists going forward.
The event is part of a series called “Slice of Social Justice,” which is organized by Campus Ministry and Social Action. The Slice of Social Justice events serve pizza to those in attendance and aim to provide speakers that will inform students about various social justice topics. Ivan Bohorquez, a graduate assistant who works for Campus Ministry and Social Action, worked to organize the event. He explained that he wanted to work to improve the Slice of Social Justice program, saying, “At the beginning, when I started [working at Campus Ministry and Social Action], the whole program Slice of Social Justice was kind of on the decline.” This did not discourage him, however, and instead inspired him to draw more people to the event. “I do think it’s an awesome programming idea, because you can never really get enough of current events, and I don’t think we talk about current events as much [as we could] at Manhattan,” Bohorquez said. “I wanted to definitely bring that, talk about topics which you can never do enough
advocating for, like there’s never too much learning about feminism, or racism, or in the fall we had Professor Groarke talking about voter suppression. These are things that are not going away tomorrow, so that was my motivation for it,” he said. Bohorquez decided to hold a Slice of Social Justice event about specifically about feminisms for several reasons. “I knew that in the month of March I wanted to do programming pertaining to women for sure,” Bohorquez said. Then, on a recent spring break L.O.V.E. trip to Guatemala, Bohorquez’s team leader was a passionate feminist, which inspired him to want to learn more about feminisms himself. He then realized that this topic would fit perfectly with both the Slice of Social Justice series and Women’s History Month, so he contacted Dr. Jiménez who agreed to be the speaker. Bohorquez hopes to hold more Campus Ministry and Social Action events focused on feminism as well hold more Slice of Social Justice events on other diverse social justice topics.
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Features
April 4, 2017
Manhattan Welcomes Potential Jaspers on Accepted Students Day Megan Dreher & August Kissel
Assistant Editor and Editor Spring has officially sprung, and Manhattan College is getting in the spirit of the season with fresh flowers and big banners. This has all been in preparation for the three Accepted Students Days, an event which welcomes high school seniors to campus, the first of which was hosted on Wednesday, March 29th. “We had a wonderful day on Wednesday for our first Accepted Students Day. We had close to 400 prospective students on campus,” said Caitlin Reed, executive director of admissions and enrollment operations. The 400 students spent their day touring the campus, viewing the facilities, visiting the rooms in each of the dorm buildings, listening to President O’Donnell speak, eating at Locke’s Loft and experiencing what it’s like to attend a college class. They also had the benefit of viewing what a typical day is like around campus. “We consciously hold these events on
Wednesdays when classes are in session, in order for prospective students to get a sense of what it is like to be a student at Manhattan College,” said Reed Prospective students who came to visit the campus agreed that the day was not only educational, but also influential in their college decision process. “I thought it was pretty insightful, they definitely explained the school pretty well, and they give you a good glimpse of what everything is around here. It was inspiring and kinda makes me want to come here. It was pretty well put together,” said Andrew Klienitzke, a high school senior from Babylon Village, Long Island who is seriously considering joining the Manhattan College Class of 2021. Attending an Accepted Students Day is crucial in the college decision process. Prospective students noted that aspects of Manhattan stood out to them and were ultimately influential in making their decision. “I really liked it because I got to meet with so many students and professors, and I had the chance to talk to the Dean of the school I’m interested in. I think that’s really rare for a lot of college Accepted Students Days,” Rachel Foertch said.
Along with the admissions office, the student engagement office organized many of the day’s events.Their team oversaw the table sessions, the Jazz Band performance, and John Bennett, director of student engagement, spoke on the Student Life Panel. Bennett said that having warm, sunny weather was a huge help for the day’s success. “Half the battle seems to be the weather, and considering the past few weeks of weather, it was as nice as could be. The campus looked really nice and everybody seemed to be in a really good mood, and it was good to get the process started again,” Bennett said. While admissions and student engagement are key in keeping a smooth flow throughout the day, it truly is a campuswide effort. The day could not have gone as well without cooperation and compassion from students and faculty of the college. “The entire campus community contributed to making the event a success and helped prospective students and their families to understand what makes Manhattan College such a dynamic learning environment,” said Reed.
Manhattan College/Courtesy As the spring season continues, the campus will see two more Accepted Students Days. Both are an opportunity to welcome potential members of the class of 2021. “To be honest, I believe the next two will be even more successful than the first, which is really boding well because this first one was good too. It’s only going to get warmer, and the flowers will come out, and that’s such a huge sell for the campus and how beautiful it actually is,” Bennett said.
Admired Housekeeper Eva Kalme Retires After 56 Years At MC
Eva Kalme has worked for MC for 56 years. Tara Marin/The Quadrangle
Tara Marin Editor
Eva Kalme, who works for residence life as a housekeeper, is retiring after 56 years at the college. Born in Puerto Rico, Kalme came here with her sister when she was a young girl, and her first job was at a handbag factory in Manhattan. When she started working at Manhattan College in 1961, she was a parttime cook and housekeeper for 21 years. In 1982, she became a full-time employee. Kalme reflects on her beginnings here with warmth. When she wasn’t working, she discovered lifelong hobbies. “I love writing poetry and reading, and I love going to museums,” she said. Not long after she came to America, she met her husband, Eglis Kalme, who supervised the painting staff at MC. He and Kalme shared similar interests, and eventually she found her own place at the college alongside him.
“He showed me a world I didn’t know about - he took me to the opera, the ballets, museums. He opened my world,” Kalme said. Kalme worked in the factory up until they got married, and then moved into The Quigley House, a little white house which was a residence hall located where Kelly Commons now stands. Kalme is one of the only people at MC who has been here long enough to witness the ways that campus has transformed over the years. “I lived at the little white house for 17 years. After that, we lived in West Hill. [...] It was off campus, up near the Horace Mann School. I always enjoyed living here. Especially in West Hill, it was very peaceful, very beautiful. We had a beautiful private garden. My husband loved Manhattan College, and since he came from the war, he said he found peace here,” Kalme said.
Her husband, who passed away in 1983, was a talented artist. Some of his paintings are hanging in buildings around campus and Kalme noted that he would often fix portraits that students would vandalize. He was a refugee from Germany and came here with two degrees in electrical engineering and finance, which were not accepted here, but Kalme reminisces on his optimistic and funny spirit. “He used to say, ‘immigrants here start from the bottom, but I started from the top.’ I said, ‘explain that to me’ and he said, ‘well, for the first time I came here, I had to have a sponsor because I couldn’t support myself. The first job I had was for a contractor. He sent me up to the roof of a building to paint, so I started from the top!’ And he was right,” she said. When asked what her favorite thing about working here was, Kalme didn’t have to think twice: “The people. All my co-workers are fantastic. They are so good and very sweet and kind.” One of these co-workers is Jose Garcia, her supervisor. Garcia explained that when he first got offered the position of supervisor, he was hesitant to accept it, but Kalme pushed him to take it. He also notes how dedicated Kalme was to her work. “She would come everyday at five o’clock in the morning even though her shift started at seven o’clock. She is a good employee and a good person,” Garcia said. Andrew Weingarten, director of residence life, saw Kalme as “a blessing” to the department. “She has served tens of thousands of students over the years. Some quick math tells you that about 21,600 Jaspers have lived in Horan Hall alone since it opened… and Eva was there the whole time. We will really miss her,” Weingarten said. Megan Heaney, education major and resident assistant in Horan Hall, expresses
similar feelings about Kalme. “Last year I lived on the second floor of Horan, which is also the floor where the housekeeping office is. Everyday I was greeted with a kind ‘Good Morning!’ from Eva, and it was always a great start to my day. This year, I ran into Eva on the elevator on my first day of student teaching. She said good morning, told me I looked beautiful, and said I would do great in the classroom, which actually helped calm my nerves for my first day,” Heaney said. Heaney touches on a significant aspect of Kalme’s career; perhaps more impressive than Kalme’s long-term dedication to MC is her generosity and genuine interest in the students. “Eva is not only an extremely hardworking individual who has helped keep Horan Hall clean for many years, but also a truly kind person who has brought smiles to so many students faces. Eva will be greatly missed by Horan Hall,” she said. At the end of the semester, residence life will see Kalme off with a retirement party filled with adoring colleagues, friends, and students. As for her retirement plans, Kalme is excited to have more free time. “I think I will continue going to museums and to the parks. I love to explore old historical houses, and I will have the time to go do that now. And of course I will continue to write poetry,” she said. When she describes what she will miss about working here, her poetic nature shines through: “Besides my coworkers, I liked the work I did, and in Horan Hall, there’s beautiful scenery. If you stand in the window in the morning and look out at Van Cortlandt Park, there’s not a better view. That’s what I will miss. Every morning I would go and look at the sun shining. It was a beautiful view. I told myself many times, ‘this is what you’re going to miss.’”
Arts & Entertainment
Scatterbomb’s 2nd Annual Bit Show
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The Scatterbomb gang prepares for their next bit. Taylor Brethauer/The Quadrangle
Taylor Brethauer & Timothy Hamling Editor and Contributor
Manhattan College students have come to know and love the crew of the improv comedy group, Scatterbomb, thanks to their hilarious shows throughout the school year. Around this time last year, the group introduced a new type of show to their standard line-up: the bit show. On Apr. 1, Scatterbomb brought the show back, much to the delight of their followers. Entering into Hayden 100, students were met at the door with a chair holding slips of paper, pens and an overturned hat, along with a sign saying, “Please write a suggestion of a movie/TV genre!” This was similar to last year’s bit show, where suggestions for a sitcom character’s catchphrase was also pulled from a hat of paper slips with ideas from the audience before the show. As custom to every Scatterbomb show, audience members greet their friends as popular songs play over the loud speakers within the small auditorium-style room. Everyone laughed and sang along to Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up” came on. More throwback style songs came on until the eight members of Scatterbomb came onstage with Simple Mind’s “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” playing in the background. With senior member Will Lamparelli playing emcee, the show started off with a bit used from the previous year’s show called “10-Minute Movie”. This year, members Will Lamparelli, Kevin Donald and Madison Blecki managed to summarize the entire plot of “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” within ten minutes in, as Donald put it, semi-rehearsed fashion.
Those familiar with the film were able to pick out well-known plot points like Cameron staring deeply into a painting in a museum or the parade Ferris crashes. The three Scatterbomb members played multiple characters from the film, inciting laughs at their attempts to match the film character’s mannerisms and accents. Although it might seem easy to pull off this feat in ten minutes, Lamparelli, Donald and Blecki did it graciously with tons of laughs. “It’s a good opportunity for us to do a lot of experimentation with our improv,” said member Matt Clark about the Bit Show. “Normally we stick to one form and everything but it’s fun for us and the audience that we get to play some games and change things up a bit.” The next bit of the show involved the suggestions given before the show. Members Sean Feeley, Robert Aparri, Jackie Hanna and Matt Clark acted out a scene while Will Lamparelli pulled various movie and TV genres from the hat. Each time a genre was pulled, the group had to change their performance style to match that genre. Examples pulled from Will Lamparelli include Quentin Tarantino film, Sci-Fi film, cooking show, and the Jerry Springer Show. Members from the audience laughed along as the group tried to quickly adapt to the fast changes. Following this bit was a short musical bit. To start, four words were provided by the audience. After this, Donald emerged from the side of the stage with a guitar, and began strumming the chorus to Radiohead’s hit song “Creep”. The four words provided by the audience were used by four members of the improv team to develop four wacky short stories, all told to the tune of Donald’s guitar playing. After each story, the room belted out the chorus of the song and shoved the improvisor off the stage. “I’ve been on the team for two years and I
don’t know if it was the best received, but it was definitely my favorite show that I’ve participated in. It feels kinda weird to say it, but this show is just a little bit for us, to just have fun. But I do think that when we’re out there having fun, it reflects for the audience [...] I felt very good about it, and what really determines if it’s a good show for me is not whether or not we’re doing our best improv, but whether or not people leave with a smile on their face,” said Donald about the show. Another returning bit from last year’s show was the Backpack Sketch. Each improv member was given a backpack containing a random, unknown item placed in the bag by another member, and had to open them as the skit progressed. As items were pulled from backpacks during the sketch, the member’s reactions were just as genuine as the audiences. Some items included a charging cord, a magnet, and a VHS player, to name a few. Then, member Angela Benevenia plugged her phone back into the speakers to play a secret playlist that the member hadn’t seen or heard before and Clark, Feeley, Lamparelli and Hanna motioned their way through this hilarious interpretive dance session. One of the newest and most well-received sketches involved members acting out random scenes with their hands, and projecting the shadows onto the front wall. This crude form of hand puppetry was reminiscent of childhood creativity, but contained the humor and fast wit of the Scatterbomb crew. “All the other bits, we drew from somewhere, we had seen somewhere else, but shadow puppet improv was one that Kevin and I came up with,” said Lamparelli about the bit. ‘[Kevin and I] were lying in bed and [...] started doing shadow
puppets on the wall, and we did it for like half an hour.” Lamparelli and Donald knew they had struck gold with the idea. “Shadow puppets entertained two people in college for half an hour one night, and we were like we have to do this in front of people,” said Lamparelli on his favorite bit of the night. The improv crew performed another classic improv routine for the show: Translations. Two members would take turns talking in gibberish while two other members provided an off-the-cuff translation for what they had said. This bit allowed the group to demonstrate how well they could both talk and act on the fly, and it was met with much laughter. For the final bit, the lights were back off and then back on and then back off again in something that could be aptly titled “Flash”. Benevenia, Donald and Lamparelli took turns reading off unlikely pairs when the spotlight was off. When the spotlight came back on, two Scatterbomb members had to do quick one-liners as their characters, like Homer and Lisa Simpson or Lin-Manuel Miranda and the actual Thomas Jefferson. The only time the audience “booed” was when the show was over. Scatterbomb members lined the exit from Hayden 100 and received compliments from their classmates, family and alumni. As always, the Scatterbomb shows are ones to never miss out on. With the end of the semester a little more than a month away, Scatterbomb has some big plans for the end of the school year. “[We have] another standard show [planned], and then the much anticipated Scatter Prom. It’s very formal, get dressed up, and take a picture maybe,” joked Clark.
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Arts & Entertainment
April 4, 2017
Short Stop Shutters Doors Joe Liggio
Assistant Editor For many Riverdale residents, Mar. 19 marked the end of an era. Since 1985, Short Stop Coffee Shop had solidified its reputation as a quaint little diner, feeding countless patrons over the years from its location on Broadway just mere steps from the 242nd Street subway station. This legacy came to a close on a Sunday night earlier this month, when the establishment shut its doors for the final time after serving its last few late night diners. Pink menus now peak out of the top of a dumpster sitting on the street, topping off a mixture of debris from the already in-renovation storefront. As with many mom and pop restaurants in Riverdale, the influx of large chain eateries such as Buffalo Wild Wings, Chipotle and Dunkin Donuts throughout the neighborhood has taken its toll on business, despite a core, dedicated base of long-time regular customers. Ten days prior to closure, the staff at Short Stop published a Facebook post reminiscing over the wide variety of customers to patronize the establishment over the years, ranging from “Manhattan College students who have shared many plates of cheese fries and chicken fingers on drunken nights, the Van Cortlandt Park track club that drives everyone equally crazy (love ya though), and all the regulars who our cooks and employees have served like family.” Many from Manhattan College have
The inside of Short Stop Diner. Tim Hamling/The Quadrangle
Short Stop Coffee Shop had been in business since 1985. Short Stop had this sign posted outside their restaurant during their last day of business. Tim Hamling/The Quadrangle fond memories of dining at the establishment. Geraldine Taylor, administrative assistant in the School of Business, said that she like to pick up soup from the restaurant during the winter, adding that “They had a great chicken rice and chicken noodle [soup].” In addition to Manhattan students and staff, Short Stop serviced two notable customers in 2014, comedians Jerry Seinfeld
and Amy Schumer, for which the restaurant was featured in an episode of Seinfeld’s own talk show web series “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee.” As the title implies, the Primetime Emmy Award-nominated series follows the comedian, along with a guest, as they drive to a café or restaurant to grab a cup of coffee. During the filming of a Season 5 episode, the 1971 Ferrari Daytona Seinfeld and Schumer were driving broke down en route to another restaurant for filming. They ended up going to Short Stop in-
stead, taking the time to mingle with employees, patrons, MC Students and MTA workers alike after ordering plates of eggs and toast. Upon hearing of the restaurant’s closure, many returned to the establishment to eat for a final time. Another Facebook post invited restaurant-goers to purchase t-shirts commemorating the diner’s tenure, adding that they take the opportunity to “Come by to pick one up, have one last wonderful meal and to say goodbye!” Construction has already begun on a new business set to take Short Stop’s place within the next two months, but it’s clear that the memories made at the well-loved restaurant will remain on Broadway. Moira Delaney contributed to reporting.
Backstage with the Stage Crew Shannon Silvia Contributor
With the upcoming production of “Legally Blonde” just around the corner, the Manhattan College Players are working very hard to make sure they have all their lines down before opening night. However, the stage crew is doing all the hard work behind the scenes helping to bring life to the play. Silvana Acierno, a freshman chemical engineer major at Manhattan College, can be found working as a scenic designer on the “Legally Blonde” set. Silvana’s job as scenic designer comes with strenuous hours of painting and sometime even helping build various parts of the set. “I’m a scenic artist, and I basically paint, set design and [choose] different color schemes. I work with the director and we put together the different colors for the set and I help out with designs for the stage,” said Acierno. Michael Kiely, a freshman physical education major, is also part of the hard work behind the scenes of the upcoming play. Kiely does more of the physical labor that comes with being a part of stage like building various aspects of the set. “Personally, I build the sets with [my friend] Kirk. We follow the plans given to us by our director Marty and then we help Silvana paint,” said Kiely. Both Kiely and Acierno worked on stage crew for plays in high school, which is where they both developed a passion for it. Their time in high school was so unforgettable that they decided to seek out an opportunity to continue their passion at
The stage crew is hard at work to make the Legally Blonde set look fantastic. Silvana Acierno/Courtesy Manhattan College. “I actually did stage crew in high school my junior and senior year and I loved it so much… and I made some of my best friends there,” said Acierno. Working on stage crew isn’t all fun and games. It takes a lot of hard work and dedication to make sure the set comes out the way that that the director has envisioned it. When you are on a time limit and have a small crew, it can make things even more difficult.
“There’s usually only three or four of us building the set at one time and painting it. So that’s stressful, there’s a lot for us to do but it gets done and we’ve gotten more help lately which is nice,” said Acierno. Despite all the stress that comes with time management and hard physical labor, the two crew members agree there is an extremely rewarding feeling that comes with it. Especially when you are able to stand back and see the final outcome of all your hard work.
“When you step back after working hard for a couple weeks and you can actually see the set in front of you. You’re like, ‘wow I put that together,’ it’s kind of nice,” said Kiely. “Legally Blonde” comes to Manhattan College Apr. 6 to 9 in Smith Auditorium. “I’m so excited, I think it is going to be amazing! The cast put so much effort into it, we put so much effort into building it, it’s going to be a really good production,” said Acierno.
Arts & Entertainment
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Stockett’s “The Help” Addresses Racism in 1960’s Mississippi THE BOOK NOOK Rose Brennan Assistant Editor
The 1960s were a particular time of upheaval for the United States. One of America’s most iconic presidents was gunned down in Texas. The Vietnam War began. And, of course, the extreme oppression that black and African Americans faced during the Civil Rights Movement. This is the world of Kathryn Stockett’s The Help. The novel’s story is told from the points of view of three Jacksonian women, with the narrator changing every few chapters or so. Two of the women work as maids in affluent white households, and one of whom falls into the social circles of the white women. The first voice belongs to Aibileen Clark, who works for the new mother Miss Elizabeth Leefolt. Aibileen is a veteran maid, but despite this, she believes that Miss Leefolt’s daughter, Mae Mobley, is her “special baby.” Mae Mobley is also the first child she cares for after the death of her own son, Treelore, which likely catalyzed Aibileen’s special relationship with her. The second is Minny Jackson, Aibileen’s best friend and fellow maid. Minny originally works for the senile mother of one of Jackson’s most prominent housewives and notorious racist Hilly Holbrook. After Hilly wrongfully (yet purposefully) accuses Minny of stealing from her mother, she is forced to find work with another family. Minny ultimately settles for Celia Rae Foote, a social outcast from the slum of Sugar Ditch with a sunny disposition who is hiding some dark secrets. The third and final voice belongs to Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan, a younger woman with ugly duckling syndrome who wants nothing more than to move out of Jackson and become a writer. This goal is much to the displeasure of her mother, who wanted Skeeter to come home from college with a husband rather than a degree. Skeeter is unlike Aibileen and Minny because she
is not one of “the help”, but rather a rich woman who is childhood friends with both Elizabeth and Hilly. Skeeter eventually finds work writing for the local newspaper in an advice column dedicated to housekeeping. Because Skeeter knows next to nothing about this subject, she seeks the advice of her friend Elizabeth’s maid: Aibileen. Her interactions with Aibileen inspire Skeeter to write an ethnographic study of the experiences of black maids working for white families in the South. Skeeter presents the idea to Aibileen, who is extremely hesitant, thinking that publishing the book could incite racial violence against black people in Jackson. Nevertheless, Skeeter begins a low-grade friendship with Aibileen and eventually Minny, who educate her on the complexities of the lives of “the help” and the families they work for. This book is definitely one to immerse yourself in, but for those of us that need to study for finals and might not have the time to read an entire novel, Tate Taylor directed the 2011 Academy Award-winning film adaptation. It stars Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer, Emma Stone and Jessica Chastain, three of whom were nominated for Academy Awards. This is one of the rare occasions in which the film is actually on par with the book, as it is extremely faithful to the novel and pays close attention to its subtle nuances that made it truly unique. The Help is among one of my favorite pieces of literature, largely due to its story centering on the lives of three women. And while one of the three focal characters does pursue a romantic relationship, it is not one of the central focuses of the book. What is of true importance is the relationships between the women, whether as friends, mother and daughter, caretaker and child, enemies or otherwise, and how these relationships are impacted by the race relations in Jackson as well as in the United States during a time of great change.
Rose Brennan/The Quadrangle
Title: The Help Author: Kathryn Stockett Genre: Historical Fiction
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Quad Staff Q&A
April 4, 2017
Meet the Quadrangle’s Production Staff
Alyssa Velazquez
Abbi Kirollos
Production Editor
Assistant Production Editor
FRESHMAN SECONDARY EDUCATION ENGLISH CONCENTRATION
SOPHOMORE MARKETING MAJOR C.I.S. MINOR
BRONX, N.Y.
SARANAC LAKE, N.Y.
Question: What’s your favorite thing about the Quad? Alyssa Velazquez, production editor: My favorite thing about the Quad is the people I get to work with. Being production editor requires me to spend my Sundays working alongside very talented journalists who not only care about journalism, but about the MC community. Abbi Kirollos, assistant production editor: What Alyssa said! Question: What’s your favorite book, TV show, or movie? Alyssa Velazquez: Currently my favorite book is “A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius,” by Dave Eggers. I
like it because it’s based on a true story and the author is able take a traumatic event and tell it from a humorous point of view. My favorite movie is “The Gold Rush,” starring Charlie Chaplin. Abbi Kirollos: My favorite movie is “10 Things I Hate About You.” It is the ultimate 90’s movie and it always makes me laugh. Question: Do you have any exciting plans for this year? Alyssa Velazquez: I’m a commuter now, but my goal is to be able to live on campus next year and be more involved with the MC community, especially with the Quadrangle. This summer, I am hoping to have the opportunity to work at a summer camp
up in Rockland. Abbi Kirollos: My plans for the rest of the year is to do well in my classes and hopefully find an internship in the city for the summer. Question: What is your most played song on Spotify? Alyssa Velazquez: I don’t have a favorite song. My favorite Spotify playlist is probably “Singer-Songwriter Coffee Break.” My favorite artist is probably Ed Sheeran. Abbi Kirollos: My most played song on Spotify right now is “Elevate” by St. Lucia.
Question: What was your favorite article that you wrote for the Quad? Alyssa Velazquez: The Money Issue was a fun one to write. My article was called “Student Debt Crisis: Millennials are Paying the Price,” which focused on how college tuition is aiding in the everincreasing debt crisis that has been effecting many students of our generation. I wouldn’t say I enjoyed writing this article but it was very eye-opening to really see how the price of college is hurting the next generation of leaders. Abbi Kirollos: Wait, I thought I just had to show up on Sundays….
JOIN T HE QUAD The Quadrangle meets every week on Tuesdays at 4 p.m. in Kelly Commons 412. All our welcome to these open meetings, and we are always looking for new members who are passionate about writing, photogrpahy and graphic design.
sports
Women’s Basketball’s Disappointing Season Daniel Ynfante Senior Writer
The Manhattan College Women’s Basketball Team enjoyed the biggest win turnaround in the NCAA in the 2015-2016 season. After going 3-27 in the 2014-2015 season, the Jaspers won 15 games last year. Looking to build on the success of the 2016 campaign, the Jaspers hired head coach Heather Vulin for the 2016-2017 season. But Manhattan’s improvement hit a bump in the road in Vulin’s first season, as the Jaspers went 8-22. On Thursday, Manhattan’s season came to an end in the first round of the MAAC Tournament with a 62-46 loss to the Monmouth Hawks.The Jaspers were outrebounded 49-29, as the Hawks owned a considerable size advantage. “The biggest disappointment for me is we knew they were a tremendous rebounding team and we didn’t consistently buy in that we had to rebound,” Vulin said. “When you get outrebounded by 20 this is what’s going to happen.” In Vulin’s first season as head coach, the Jaspers regressed on the court, partly because of an inexperienced roster. Manhattan lost five seniors, and featured a team
Kayla Grimme at the MAAC Tournament. Aaron Mayorga/The Quadrangle of sophomores and juniors with very little playing experience. “In terms of execution of our game plan, it was really frustrating for me that our Achilles heel all year was we didn’t have people consistently knock down open shots, and rebounding was a major struggle,” Vulin said. Vulin admitted that she knew the lack of depth would be a problem when taking the job, but she had other goals in mind for her first season. “My goal with this year was just to really get our culture up and make sure we’re committed to doing things the right way,” Vulin said. “I think in terms of that, I’m going to give myself an A on that.”
On the court on Thursday, Manhattan was nowhere near an A. The Jaspers opened the contest going scoreless for nearly three minutes, and digging themselves into a 7-0 hole. Monmouth owned the glass, grabbing five offensive rebounds in the quarter and led 16-10 after the first. “I think we had a rocky start so that didn’t help us,” Kayla Grimme, who led Manhattan with 22 points said. “At moments, we pulled it together and looked good … we just have to carry that into next year.” The Jaspers opened up the second on a 7-0 run to go up 17-16, but Monmouth regained its footing, and continued to own the paint. The Hawks outscored the Jaspers
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24-12 in the paint, and outrebounded them 25-16 to carry a 32-27 lead at halftime. Manhattan’s offensive woes were on full display in the third, as the team went scoreless for eight minutes, and the Hawks used a 19-0 run to take full command of the game. “Offensively, I thought we got some really good shots during that 19-0 run, but we weren’t putting the ball in the basket,” Vulin said. Gabby Cajou and Grimme were the only offensive weapons for the Jaspers in the second half. Cajou scored eight and Grimme scored nine points in the second half. “I think right now establishing a good culture and getting all of our heads in the right direction, and having the same mindset and goal, I think that’s really what we need to focus on right now,” Grimme said about what Manhattan must do to rebound next season. The Jaspers end a disappointing 20162017 campaign, but lose just one senior for next season. With a year under their belt, Vulin hopes Manhattan can turn things around. “It’s a great program … and I’m really excited to really rebuild it and I think we’re definitely going in the right direction,” Vulin said.
what’s up this week
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sports
April 4, 2017
Softball’s Shutout Streak Reaches Four
Manhattan’s softball team shut out Rider on Sunday. Aaron Mayorga/The Quadrangle
Daniel Ynfante Senior Writer
There’s an old adage in baseball that says you can never have too much pitching. But what if you actually can? For Tom Pardalis, head coach of the Manhattan College softball team, too much pitching is a problem he is content with having. The Jaspers recorded their fourth consecutive shutout and fifth in the last six games after 8-0 and 5-0 wins against the Rider Broncs on Sunday in the MAAC opener. “The hardest thing that I have to do this year is keep everybody happy,” Pardalis said. “That’s going to be the hard thing.”
Manhattan’s stellar rotation includes Briana Matazinsky, Stephanie Kristo, Nicole Williams and Kayla McDermott, who each sport an ERA under 3.00. “I’m impressed by our whole staff right now,” Pardalis said. “It’s like whoever is going out there is setting the tone for the day.” In Manhattan’s 15 wins this season, the team has given up just 29 runs. On Sunday, Matazinsky pitched a one-hit-shutout in the first game. McDermott tossed five innings in the second, and Kristo came in for the last two innings to preserve the shutout. “I have a great team behind me, I know every girl out there is going to make the play when it’s hit to them, so that’s just
Freshman Kayla McDermott Sunday against Rider. Aaron Mayorga/The Quadrangle
Jasper Softball’s strong pitching led them to two victories over MAAC rival Rider. given me a lot of confidence,” Matazinsky said about her performance this season. Matazinsky was nearly flawless in the 8-0 win against the Broncs. The sole hit against her came in the first inning, after which she proceeded to toss five no-hit innings while striking out six. Matazinsky produced with the bat as well, driving in the first of three runs for the Jaspers in the second inning. Later in the fifth, Matazinsky would pick up another RBI with a single. Victoria Ross also drove in two runs, continuing her red-hot stretch. The junior third baseman has hit .571 over the last eight games. Ross, who served as a utility player her first two seasons at Manhattan, has seen an increase in opportunities this season and has taken full advantage of them. “When you’ve been in that spot you never take your name for granted in that lineup,” Ross said. “It’s always a good thing to hear it, but I think it just shows how competitive the whole team is. It’s
a dog fight for a spot on this team, and I wouldn’t want it any other way because it pushes us every single day to be better and that’s why we’re a great team.” Ross has a team-leading .353 average this season, all while batting at the bottom of the lineup. Against the Broncs, Ross hit eighth. “Right now we’re getting a lot of production from our 7, 8, 9. It’s really turning over the lineup, which is key,” Pardalis said. In both games against the Broncs, the Jaspers displayed their team strengths: pitching, speed and lineup depth. The Jaspers stole seven bases combined in the games, including a delayed steal of home in the first game. In the second game, after Shannon Puthe led off with a triple and Alexa Dawid reached on an infield single, Dawid immediately put the Jaspers in position to grab an extra run by stealing second. Manhattan would go on to score two runs in that inning, and behind McDermott’s solid performance, would win 5-0. After a 3-7 start to the season, the Jaspers have rebounded, winning 12 of the last 14 and eight games in a row. But Pardalis is not surprised. “Nothing’s changed. We didn’t start off slow. We were playing well, we were playing good teams,” Pardalis said of the team’s winning streak. “We were real competitive with them. Games went down to the wire. Sometimes you win them, sometimes you lose them.”