Issue 3, Fall 2018 - The Quadrangle

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Volume XCVIII, Issue 3

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NEW YORK, SEPTEMBER 11, 2018

Cooper Administration Holds First Student Government Assembly Meeting ASSEMBLY FILLS VACANT SEATS Taylor Brethauer Editor-in-Chief

17 Years Later.

Read about the “9/11 Generation” in Op-Ed on page 2. JOHN MORRISON / THE QUADRANGLE

MC Retention Rates Hover Over 80 Percent Rose Brennan A&E Editor

Retention is an area of interest for the higher-ups at an institution of higher education, but not a lot of its inner workings are known widely across campuses.

At Manhattan College, retention is the responsibility of several upper-level administrators, including Provost Bill Clyde, who founded a committee for such topic in 2010.

Since 2009, retention rates for MC have been over 80 percent.

Another member of this committee is Marisa Passafiume, assistant vice president of academic success.

In addition to the retention committee, Passafiume oversees all of the college’s success services, including the Center for Academic Success, Student Athlete Academic Success Services, opportunity programs including HEOP and CSTEP, the Specialized Resource Center and Retention Services.

“My entire day is centered around retaining our students and assisting them in achieving their goals, both personal and academic,” Passafiume said.

“If [the student success unit] can’t help them personally, we find the person on campus that can.”

Academic success and retention are widely-encompassing areas and would be difficult for any person to manage alone. Luckily, Passafiume has help from several of the departments she oversees.

Some of this help comes from Acacia Mauriello, retention specialist.

Mauriello’s

IN NEWS:

MC implements health insurance requirement on p. 4

job entails determining and attempting to meet the unique needs of any student who might need help succeeding at MC. “Everything I do at Manhattan- working on Mapworks, the new peer mentoring program, the College 101 resource we’re building- is part of a larger effort across departments to build up a more proactive and nimble approach to addressing student needs, deploying people and technology to understand and improve service for all students,” Mauriello said.

Most people outside of the retention realm might be inclined to believe that retention only refers to students who remain at MC for the entirety of their undergraduate studies.

But it actually encompasses much more.

Retention rates measure the percentage of students who return to the same institution from one point in time to a second point in time,” said Bridget Miller, director of the office of institutional effectiveness. “The first-time full-time freshman fall-to-fall retention rate measures the percentage of first-time full-time freshmen enrolled at an institution in the fall of one year and who are also enrolled at (return to) the same institution in fall semester of the following year.”

The rate mentioned above is a very common one, and is usually what people think of when they hear the buzz-word.

So how does MC measure up? According to information provided by Miller, retention rates for first-time full-time freshmen among American private 4-year institutions in the US has been around 80 percent

IN FEATURES: Sheetal Kale becomes Title IX director on p. 10

since 2009.

Consequently, MC’s retention rate for first-time full-time freshmen has been around the same for the past five years: 85.01 percent for the class of 2020, 88.78 percent for the class of 2019, 83.67 percent for the class of 2018, 83.71 for the class of 2017 and 88.12 percent for the class of 2016.

In short, MC is certainly measuring up when it comes to retention rates in private institutions across America.

Unfortunately, a retention rate of 100 percent is not a likely goal. According to Passafiume, there are a number of factors which determine why a student might withdraw, including outside responsibilities and financial reasons.

Passafiume also insists on the importance of viewing retention from an ethical standpoint.

“If a student decides that after much thought they want to pursue a career in nursing, that it is their life’s passion and they are destined to be a nurse...

Well, we don’t have a nursing program, so it would be unethical for us to try and persuade them to stay here,” she said.

Though such cases are rare, there have been a few times when Passafiume believed it was in a student’s best interest to withdraw from the college. However, that does not necessarily mean it is the end of the road for a student in that situation.

“In that case, we help them with the process and let them know should they miss us, they can always come back,” Passafiume said.

Student Government held its first assembly meeting of the school year on Wednesday, Sept. 5 at noon in Kelly 5A. This marked the first time the current administration ran the assembly meeting.

The Cooper administration, which was elected the previous semester, is comprised of the following members: Jaycie Cooper, student body president, Jara Giner, executive vice president, Haley Nightingale, vice president of club administration, Ryan Kwiecinski, vice president of finance, Isabel Quinones, vice president for residential affairs, Anna Rosario, vice president for commuter affairs, Kerry Cavanagh, vice president for academic affairs, Casey Monroe, vice president for social life, and Jack Melanson, vice president of communication.

Budget Allocations Committee (BAC) The first point of business was the budget allocations committee. Emily Anderson, a junior, was representing Manhattan College’s chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA). The club intends to send two members and their advisor to the national conference in Austin, Texas in order to maintain their chapter status and also provide networking opportunities.

Due to the 11.6 percent budget cuts for the 2018-2019 school year, the BAC’s new maximum amount of money that can be allocated for conferences is $1700. Last year, that total was $2000. This was the only time during the meeting that the club budget cuts were directly addressed by any members of the executive board.

Despite voting members of the assembly graduating the previous semester, there was quorum and the request for the club’s conference fees was

granted.

Other Committees and Associations The Club Oversight Committee (COC), led by Nightingale, is still looking for members. The COC is currently not accepting any new clubs for the duration of the school year.

“With the position that we’re in right now, we are actually not accepting any new clubs at this time,” said Nightingale. She may have been alluding to the current club budget cuts.

The Social Life Committee (SLC), led by Monroe, is also looking for members. The SLC helps with Manhattan Madness, Springfest and other events on campus including the upcoming Quadchella on Friday, Sept. 14 on the quad.

Representatives for the Food Service Committee (FSC) and Neighborhood Relations Committee (NRC) were needed, after previous student representatives Olivia Siller and Ryan Quattromani, respectively, graduated. Elections were held at the end of the meeting.

Cavanagh encouraged first-year students to sign up for the committees as a way to be involved on campus in ways they may not have been before, especially with the SLC. “It’s a great way for freshman to get their feet wet, see what student government is all about and you can decide what your time commitment is [...] I know I did it my freshman year and it really allowed me to figure out my way around student government,” said Cavanagh.

Quinones then spoke about the Resident Student Association (RSA) and her plan on having meetings in every dorm

IN A&E:

IN SPORTS:

__________________________ CONTINUED ON PAGE 3

Hotspot Cafe Fordham Fiasco opens on B’way on full coverage p. 7 on p. 12

Opinion & Editorials

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the Quadrangle Volume XCVIII, Issue 3 SEPTEMBER 11, 2018

The Editorial Board

Taylor Brethauer Editor-in-Chief Stephen Zubrycky Managing Editor Jack Melanson News Editor

Gabriella DePinho Joseph Liggio Asst. News Editors

Megan Dreher Features Editor

Lauren Schuster Asst. Features Editor

Rose Brennan Arts & Entertainment Editor Managing Editor

Alexa Schmidt Asst. Arts & Entertainment Editor

John Jackson Sports Editor

C. Garrett Keidel Asst. Sports Editor

RikkiLynn Shields Catherine Goodyear Social Media Editors

Anja Pollozi Photography Editor

Alyssa Velazquez Production Editor

Samantha Walla Asst. Production Editor

August Kissel Michevi Dufflart Web Editors

Mohsin Ahmed Shannon Gleba Copy Editors

Abby Crowell Distribution Manager Nicholas Gilewicz Faculty Advisor About The Quadrangle 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 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.

Join The Quadrangle The Quadrangle’s staff holds weekly open meetings on Tuesdays at 4 p.m. in Kelly Commons Room 412. All are welcome to come and join the club.

Connect with The Quadrangle

mcquad.org @mcquad @mcquad mcquad

THE QUADRANGLE

The 9/11 Generation Consciousness Found, Innocence Lost Stephen Zubrycky Managing Editor

I am sitting on the rug in the family room, playing with my toys. The television is on.

My mother sits in the chair above me, weeping.

It’s Sept. 11, 2001. I’m four years old. I’ve now entered consciousness.

My father works in a building like those, I think. I ask my mom if that’s where he works.

It’s not, she assures me.

Nonetheless, she weeps.

I ask her why she is so upset. After all, Dad is not directly in harm’s way. She does not answer.

My dad eventually made it home from the city. I remember

sitting on the couch with him and looking at the television. A streetlight bent standing bent and broken against the gray hellscape. An escalator reaching upward into the smoke.

It was not long before the language of Sept. 11 soon entered into my vernacular. Terror. Hijack. Afghanistan. Osama bin Laden.

It was in this language that I began to dream - trusted friends and family members unmasking themselves and revealing themselves to be bin Laden.

It was in this language that I also played. Games like “plane crash” became common on the school yard. I’d build ornate little towns with tall centerpieces that towered over the streets

below. Then, I’d roll in my Hot Wheel fire engines and knock them down.

It was what I knew.

Growing up as part of the 9/11 generation means that there’s always a piece of my mind stuck on that day. Every time I visit Lower Manhattan.

Every time I see a bag laying by itself on the subway. Every time I board a plane.

There’s more that I remember from that September.

I recall the very next day, when we recited the Pledge of Allegiance in pre-K. And hanging a flag on our front porch.

My Sept. 11 experience was not extraordinary or remarkable. It was not a profile in bravery or heroism. It was my beginning.

A Heavy Price To Pay Rose Brennan A&E Editor

My first memory was of the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 attacks.

While my parents, along with the rest of the country, were glued to the television, the anchors would tell the viewers what the firefighters at Ground Zero needed. One of these things was water, and so my father and I took the short ride to Stop and Shop to pick some up.

When I asked my father why we had bought so much water, he very simply said, as he was handing the bottles to the state

troopers in the parking lot, “It’s for the firemen.”

My three-year-old logic thought this made perfect sense. Firemen needed water to put out fires. Little did I know what actually happened.

I do not remember the actual day of 9/11. My parents purposefully made sure of that.

Years later, I was told that they were glued to the television set, but every time I entered the room, they would change the channel.

Now, I wish changing the channel were that simple. Now, we’ve become a nation governed by fear, and I am forced to sit and watch.

People say “everything changed after 9/11.” But a lot of that “change” was orchestrated by our country’s irrational fear of Islam and is continued today by our complacency.

Yes, we might think our lives have changed because of that awful day, and they have.

But those changes pale in comparison to the ones targeting our Muslim-American brothers and sisters, who have paid and continue to pay for the transgressions of those who should not be associated with them in the first place.

Never forget 9/11. And never forget the ones who continue to pay the price for it.

9/11 Means: A MuslimAmerican’s Perspective Rabea Ali Guest Writer

Sept. 11, 2001 changed the lives of everyone forever, some more than others.

For me, a visibly MuslimAmerican, even as a three-yearold, it meant I was to be unjustly lumped into the category of “terrorist”, all simply because the act was supposedly committed in the name of my religion.

For me, 9/11 means a wave of Islamophobia hit America and would steadily rise until a president who openly admitted he despised Muslims would be elected. For me, 9/11 meant everyone thought all Muslims were responsible and sought

revenge for the fallen.

For me, 9/11 meant living with an element of fear at all costs, for one person one person may just decide to enact their supposed revenge. For me, 9/11 means spending the night in the hospital and weeks with injuries because I dared to be Muslim.

Now, don’t get me wrong, 9/11 was a tragic event, and the lives lost should be mourned and honored. But what many tend to forget are the Muslim lives lost in the towers, the thousands of lives lost in the wars waged on terrorism that rage to this day, or the thousands of hate crimes that occur in the name of retaliation.

As the years go on, the af-

termath of 9/11 and the unjust targeting of Muslims serves as a reminder to be unapologetically Muslim, albeit while looking over my shoulder, and the need to create a change in the world in order for it to be more accepting.

So, when I see those flags on the quad this year, it’ll be a reminder to be on guard, but also a reminder to be true to who I am, and that some good should come out of these years of fear.

Rabea Ali is a junior management and marketing double major. She is also the current president of the college’s Muslim Student Association.

News

SEPTEMBER 11, 2018

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Student Government Holds First Assembly Meeting __________________________ CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 on campus to hear the voices of other students. Rosario also spoke about her upcoming meetings with the Commuter Student Association (CSA).

Educational Affairs Committee Updates Cavanagh had the most updates in terms of committees since her first meeting was the day prior. The Educational Affairs Committee (EAC), is comprised of student representatives, faculty member representatives, administrative representatives and college senate representatives.

Updates through the EAC included the confirmation of nine new concentrations within the School of Science and the alumni room in the library being available to book for faculty during the week before finals for events. Other changes to the library include new carpet on the fifth floor, along with a new layout with more study spaces.

The library has also discontinued their subscriptions of the print editions of both The New York Times and USA Today and instead will be gaining online access. Information will be sent to students within the coming days, said Cavanagh.

Other updates specifically for freshman included a new Moodle course titled “College 101” with tips such as ways to email professors professionally and maintain their study habits.

The recent orientation leaders will also be used as peer advisors or MODs through the new “Manhattan Opens Doors” program.

Future meetings will cover the revision of the academic integrity policy, the decrease of textbook cost, the honors program and the grade replacement policy.

Representative Elections Many spots were available for the assembly due to numerous members graduating last May. Each school has two representatives and each school except for the School of Science, needed one representative.

First was the position of representative for the School of Education and Health. Kaitlyn von Runnen, former vice president of academic affairs, holds one representative spot. Two people ran for this position and Shanice Lyle won.

For the position of representative for the School of Business, three people ran and Paul Fucao won. Rabea Ali currently holds the other spot.

In the School of Engineering, Stephen Zubrycky holds one representative spot. Three people ran for this position and Henzley Pierre-Louis was elected.

Multiple people ran for the position of representative for the School of Liberal Arts. After all eight nominees spoke, the voting members of the assembly elected Bailey Shaw.

The other representative spot is currently held by Julius Benecz.

The School of Science needed both representative positions filled. Running unopposed were Shereen Chaudhry and Cesar Cardenas.

There were still three positions to fill afterwards: alumni

All nine members of the Cooper administration were present at the assembly meeting, from left to right: Monroe, Melanson, Kwiecinski, Cooper, Giner, Nightingale, Cavanagh, Quinones and Rosario.

TAYLOR BRETHAUER / THE QUADRANGLE

Elections for representatives were held at the end of the meeting. A total of eight people ran for the position of School of Liberal Arts representative. Above, the candidates give speeches to the voting assembly.

TAYLOR BRETHAUER / THE QUADRANGLE society representative, FSC representative and NRC representative. Ellen Farrelly ran unopposed for alumni society representative. Three people ran for FSC representative, with the voting assembly members electing Fatoumata Saho.

Lastly, two people ran for NRC representative. Marshall Strawbridge was elected for the position.

“If you didn’t win an election, please come up after the meeting and sign up for one of our committees. We would love

for more people to be involved,” said Cooper.

The best way for first-year students to get involved are freshman representative positions. Students interested should get an application from the Student Engagement office, which is due by Thursday, Sept. 13. Online voting will begin on Thursday, Sept. 20 and end on Friday, Sept. 21, with the two nominees with the most votes being elected to fill the positions.

The minutes were accepted

MC Starts New Peer Mentoring Initiative Brian Asare Staff Writer

Manhattan College’s Center for Academic Success has recently announced a new peer mentoring initiative that is aimed at all incoming students to help them in familiarizing themselves with the campus and college life faster and easier.

This initiative is known as the Manhattan Open Doors program (MOD). This program was created this year, and it extends the role of the orientation leaders into the fall semester to continue to make them available for programs, questions and any kind of help that students may need during their introductory phase to Manhattan College campus.

Acacia Mauriello, the student success coordinator, is the advisor for the program and she believes the program

will have many benefits.

“So the advantages of the programing is that you can turn to people for help. Particular students who aren’t in the dorms and don’t necessarily have an RA that they can turn to,” said Mauriello. “We hope that they will continue to turn to orientation leader in a similar way and it also gives us admins an idea of what the students need and what we could do better with.”

She continued.

“It’s also an advantage for the student leaders that are part of the program. When you are doing something for the first time and you are building it from scratch, there is a lot of work that needs to happen,” said Mauriello.

Sophomore Jeremy Capuder, one of the orientation leaders and member of this year’s MODs program, is excited to be part of the program’s pilot year.

“I think it has a lot of potential very excited to be apart of it to behind and assisting with the creation and development of it, to see what ideas work and what ideas don’t and to contribute new ideas and just make the best program that it can be to assist the freshmen and incoming students part of it,” said Capuder.

Another one of the MODs, sophomore Angelica Schwartz, expressed a similar sentiment based on her experiences as a freshman commuter.

Schwartz said, “I’m interested to see how it gets created, how it continues on. I think it’s a very good idea because I kinda wish I would have stayed in touch with my orientation leader a little bit more and gotten to know people so I think its great and it’s always nice especially as a commuter student to have someone to guide you when your are lost on campus sometimes.”

Though the program is new, it is a program students would have liked to see before.

“I would have [liked it]; I feel like it would have been very beneficial and I definitely wanted to see more,” said Capuder,.“Like I saw my orientation leader around campus but I felt like it would have been great to have had more meetings and interactions.”

As of right now, the MODs program intends to send weekly outreach emails to all new students informing them of on campus events, resources and tips that students should know. The MODs will also be hosting informative and social events throughout the semester aimed at educating new students about different topics related to college life and getting new students to connect with each other.

by the assembly and the meeting adjourned.

The next assembly meeting will be Sept. 19 at noon in Kelly 4B. Editor’s Note: Jack Melanson is news editor for The Quadrangle and Stephen Zubrycky is managing editor for The Quadrangle.

Taylor Brethauer is the current student news representative, a non-voting member of the assembly.

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News

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THE QUADRANGLE

MC Implements New Health Insurance Requirement Gabriella DePinho Asst. News Editor

At the end of the 2017-2018 academic year, Manhattan College announced a new student health insurance requirement to be implemented for the 20182019 academic year.

In an email sent out on May 25 by Richard Satterlee, Ph.D, Manhattan College’s vice president for student life, the college announced that moving forward, each student would be required to have health insurance coverage.

Though the announcement was unexpected, Satterlee shared that it is fairly commonplace for MC’s peer institutions to have the same requirement the school is just introducing.

The plan the school ultimately selected to offer to its students is a gold plan through The Allen J. Flood Companies.

“We had several pieces that we really wanted to have in place. First of all, we wanted it to be Affordable Care Act compliant; that was really important to us,” said Satterlee. “It was really important that the plan we agreed upon covered athletic injuries because we have about 15% of our students on campus participating in intercollegiate athletics and we know that can be onerous, if you’re injured and need medical support.”

He continued.

“There are several pieces about this particular plan that

were attractive to us. We knew that anybody that adopted this plan would be able to see physicians or receive support locally which is really important.”

The plan is accepted by the CityMD on 237th street and by local pharmacies.

Administrators spent all of the 2017-2018 academic year working to find the most affordable plan with good coverage and ultimately opted for this particular plan.

The cost for one student on the plan is $2,110 for a 12 month period and was added to the tuition bill for the fall semester.

If students already have health insurance, they can choose to waive out of the plan by providing evidence of and information about the insurance they currently have.

However, an added tuition cost may seem daunting or be a financial strain to those who do need or want to opt in.

“As a part of the process, we wanted to make sure it was something that could be covered by financial aid and become part of their package,” said Satterlee.

Lisa Juncaj, Manhattan College’s director of Business Systems, has been instrumental in implementing this plan throughout the college.

She was part of the team that searched for the plan and has been fielding many of the questions or concerns coming in from students and families.

“In general, under the fed-

eral definitions of cost of attendance, health insurance can be included under that,” said Juncaj. “So generally under any cost of attendance item, financial aid can apply to that, whereas other scholarships generally cover tuition and fees.”

The deadline to waive or opt-in was set for Aug. 1., but the deadline was extended for the first year.

“We did have an August

------------------------

The announcement of a new student health insurance requirement was unexpected, but it is fairly commonplace for MC’s peer institutions to have the same requirement the school is just introducing according to Richard Satterlee, Ph.D., vice president for student life. deadline and that every year will be our deadline but we did want to factor in the new students enrolling for the first time and also new transfers who happen to come in on a heavy rolling basis so because of that we extended the time period,” said Juncaj, “So we are, day to day, still getting waivers in.”

As of Aug. 31. approximately 3% of students had filled out the form to opt-in. As of that date, there was also a great number of students that had not either opted in or out.

How many students opt-in or out and feedback from students will go into a school-wide assessment of the plan and its impact and the school will take it into consideration when planning for the future.

As of right now, the school administrators have been hearing positive feedback from families and students.

“I had a student in my office the other day who has not had medical coverage in quite a few years because her family is going through some hard times and the fact that she could come back to school and get coverage is a factor in why she’s decided to return this semester,” said Juncaj. “She hasn’t been doing well academically and knows she needs to go for some care and now she’s it as part of her plan.”

She continued.

“You always here about how this affects retention but now that I’ve seen a story like that in front of me, I know it has an impact,” said Juncaj.

In a similar vein, Satterlee has also seen some positive side effects.

“It’s enabled us to have a conversation with students about what they need and what’s included and how it’ll benefit their educations,” he said.

While the plan is considerably affordable and very inclusive, there are some gaps in it that might affect students.

The plan does not cover dental services or vision services and does not cover injuries, illnesses, treatment or medical conditions due to military service or war. The lack of dental or vision service coverage might be a concern for any student but as a school with a large veteran population, the lack of coverage for military service related illnesses or needs might be of some concern to those students.

Ultimately, the school felt it was important to make sure that students had adequate accessibility to health care, in the case of an emergency that may potentially interrupt one’s education.

In the announcement email, Satterlee wrote, “Manhattan College’s policy requiring that students have health insurance will ensure continued academic success and the overall health and wellness of our student body. We believe that healthy students, and those with timely access to healthcare services, will be more academically successful.”

FED Challenge Approaching C. Garrett Keidel & Alexa Schmidt Asst. Sports Editor & Asst. A&E Editor

Another year, another FED challenge. Seniors Zoe McGreevy and Diego Miguens plan to participate in this year’s challenge, for the fourth and second time, respectively.

McGreevy, an economics major explained what the FED challenge is.

“It is a college wide challenge, that kinda acts like a club, in which a group of students and a faculty advisor get together to create a 15 minute presentation. We also prepare for 15 minutes of questions when we compete at the Federal Reserve Bank in New York at the end of October,” she said.

Miguens, a finance and global business major said the team made it to the second round last year.

“Out of 40 schools I think there were only eight of us that made it to the second round. It just so happened that we got put in a bracket with the best

team out of the competition which was Pace University.

They ended up beating us to advance to the finals, and then they ended up winning the national championship in Washington,” he said.

This year’s team will be different than last year’s because of the addition of new members.

McGreevy said, “We have a lot of new people this year. I think only a few people are returning from last year. We all have to learn the different ways we mesh together in a new group versus last year’s group.

There’s a lot of different current events which will change the way that our presentation is given.”

She continued.

“You gain a lot of real world experience. Which is really important because I feel like you don’t necessarily get that sitting in an economics classroom. But in being a part of this club you get to go out and meet people who are actually working in what you want to do. The real experience is good.”

The FED challenge is

something that requires a lot of commitment, practice and time. Sophomore economics and finance major Richard Gerling, is participating in the challenge for first the first time.

“We’ve been working hard over the summer. We do research on the various economic policies and monetary policy and really look how it affects the overall economy. We’re giving our recommendation as to what the federal reserve should do comprised of a 15 minute presentation and then questions afterward,” he said.

He continued.

“I thought it would be a really good experience to get knowledge outside of what I could get in a traditional classroom setting. It would be a helpful way to get me progress with an eventual career,” Gerling said.

This year, the team set goals for success.

“I think our main goal is to do as well as we did last year and hopefully better. So definitely want to get to the second round and hopefully move on to the finals. The Finals are

in Washington DC,” said McGreevy.

Beating Pace University this year is especially important to Miguens. “ I think my expectation or my goal is to beat out Pace before I graduate. Every year I’ve heard about the Fed it’s ‘Pace this, Pace that’ and that they’re a top school, that always ends up winning. So beating them or making it to the finals against them would be a good goal,” Miguens said.

And there is always room for improvement.

“We just want to basically improve anywhere we can. We have a couple presentation set up already to give to different people in the industry. Hopefully they’ll give us good feedback and that way we can fix those different things. There’s always things we can improve upon. Even going into the second round last year we had to improve a bunch of things,” Miguens said.

McGreevy and Miguens pay tribute of their success towards Hany Guirguis, Ph.D., the advisor of the club.

“Im proud of the faculty advisor, Dr. Guirguis. He takes time out of his family, out of his summer life just to come and teach and get us prepared for a little presentation that goes a long way in your future,” Miguens said. “I’m just proud of all the work that goes into it.”

He continued. “ A lot of it is behind closed doors, having people wake up at 6am every day including weekends. I don’t think people recognize that. They just think we give a regular presentation.

It’s a lot of work leading up to it.”.

McGreevy and Miguens agree the FED challenge is overall a great way to get involved on campus and make the most out of college education.

“I think anyone whos an economics major or just interested in economics in general, this is probably the best thing you can do for yourself,” said McGreevy. “I’ve learned more in the last four years doing this than I probably would have if I didn’t.”

News

SEPTEMBER 11, 2018

5

Dr. Mullaley Spends her Summer Measuring Ozone Levels to Improve Public Health Samantha Walla

Asst. Production Editor Alicia Mullaley, Ph.D., professor of chemistry at Manhattan College, spent her summer break measuring pollutants that most people are unaware of, but that affect their health on a daily basis.

The Long Island Sound Tropospheric Ozone Study, or LISTOS, is a study put out by New York state that aims to quantify the ozone concentration in the New York City metropolitan area, as well as downwind areas in Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts. The main objective of the study is to not only quantify the different levels of pollutants, but to get better at monitoring them.

Data of this kind contributes to the awareness of high ozone days, which can be beneficial to those with respiratory conditions.

Although Mullaley is an atmospheric chemist by training, the study also ties into her interest in public health.

“I love the idea of ‘citizen science,’ so all majors participate in collecting data. It’s the age of technology with our smartphones; can we somehow use that to help track urban air pollution or collect data?” said Mullaley. “It is consistent with my technical background, but it is also a passion project for me because I care about human health and the local effects it can have on this community.

So if we find something that’s alarming I’d like to make sure that we can bring that knowledge to the local people and make that available to them.”

In explaining her research, Mullaley made the distinction between stratospheric ozone, which many people may be familiar with, and tropospheric ozone.

Stratospheric ozone is beneficial and found in the atmosphere, and protects humans from cell mutations. Tropospheric ozone is produced at ground level and is harmful.

If conditions are right, precursors to ozone travel up through the atmosphere and react to form the pollutant.

New York City, which is a hot spot for urban air pollution, also has the highly concentrated population that can be affected by ozone.

These pollutants have negative cardiovascular and respiratory effects, especially for young and elderly people, as well as those with pre-existing conditions such as asthma. Air pollution has also been linked to deaths in nations like China, India and Pakistan, where pollution is not regulated by organizations like the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA. The EPA measures six pol-

lutants, one of which is ozone.

The healthy standard set by the EPA is currently 70 parts per billion (PPB) per volume.

Being exposed to over this concentration for longer than eight hours is deemed unhealthy.

Despite this standard, Mullaley observed consistent days with measurements over that threshold with some as high as 135 PPB per volume.

Mullaley’s data collection took place in the height of ozone season, which is the middle of June to the end of July. This time period is critical for collecting ozone levels, as ozone is produced in the presence of sunlight.

The study collected data over 40 hours of flight time on two flights a day that took place between the hours of 12 p.m. and 4 p.m.

These flights, which Mullaley was often present for, took place on a four-seater Cozy MK IV, which is technically classified as an experimental aircraft.

Mullaley attended these data collections to assure that her equipment was functioning and recording properly.

Mullaley is interested in bringing these tests to MC by setting up the same instruments on top of Hayden to measure ozone concentrations on campus.

Additionally, she hopes to measure indoor pollutants and compare the varying levels.

Mullaley plans on recruiting students to help with these measurements.

“What’s going on with the LISTOS campaign is great: to have a better characterization and understanding of how ozone forms, where it comes from and what it could possibly contribute to the local chemistry of the area,” said Mullaley.

“But on a personal level, I’m curious as to what’s really going on in the direct neighborhood and I want to be able to bring that to people and possibly have a positive effect on health.

So say [someone is] asthmatic and they know an ozone event is coming up. If they stay indoors and away from the pollution, can that help them potentially? I really like the idea of tying that to public health.”

Mullaley’s interest in measuring pollution is not limited to her LISTOS research, as she also enlisted Manhattan College students to help in studying ice cores this past summer.

Ice cores, which are 10 inch diameter cylindrical pieces of ice that forms as snow falls every year. As the snow becomes compressed, air bubbles form that represent the composition of the atmosphere from a certain period of time.

These ice cores provide a record of methane and other gases dating back about 800,000 years. This past summer, Mul-

laley’s students worked on a core that went back 8,000 years, but she also has samples that date back 20,000 years.

Mullaley is particularly interested in the interactions between carbon monoxide, CO, methane and what is called the hydroxyl radical, OH. CO is a precursor to ozone, which is a created pollutant.

“The atmosphere is really good at cleansing itself and it does this by reacting harmful chemicals with OH,” said Mullaley. “But hydroxyl likes carbon monoxide, so if there’s CO in the atmosphere, which is also a pollutant, it will eat away the OH. If CO takes the OH away, then there’s no OH to react with methane.”

She continued.

“I’m curious to see how the concentration has varied over time and in particular how the different sources of CO have varied. Because carbon monoxide mainly comes from biomass burning -- think of forest fires -- but it also comes from oxidation. Isoprene is a gas that’s emitted from trees.

That isoprene will react in the atmosphere and can produce CO as a product. Methane can become oxidized by OH to produce CO.” Additionally, Mullaley uses isotopes to discern the sources of pollutants. She uses human fingerprints to explain how isotopes work.

“The different sources of CO have their own isotopic signatures. It’s like a little bit of detective work; each source has its own unique fingerprint,” explained Mullaley. “We can exploit those fingerprints to figure out how much came from biomass burning versus the oxidation of methane and/or non methane hydrocarbons.”

The results from measuring these signatures can help determine the sources of CO and how they change over time.

“Just think about it, once we have a larger population then you can imagine the source from biomass burning might increase if there are more forest fires, if we are doing prescribed burning for example, or burning forests for agricultural reasons,” said Mullaley.

The labor intensive process of studying ice cores lends itself to summer research, meaning that the school year is better for analyzing data.

Peter Parlato analyzed the ice cores over the summer with Mullaley.

“My favorite aspect of [the study] was the hands-on work I got to do. The analytical procedure was complex, but it made it even more exciting when I got to finally see and interpret the data,” Parlato said.

Sophia Misiakiewicz, an environmental science major, liked both the hands-on work

and the preliminary research of the project.

“Although doing the actual experiments were great, I really enjoyed doing the background research: learning about other similar studies, and different environmental phenomenon that would contribute the carbon monoxide concentrations in the atmosphere,” said Misiakiewicz. “I also loved learning the atmospheric chemistry; how the molecules interact with each other to form the product we’re studying. It was really incredible to see how so many different things were connected, from accumulation rates in Antarctica, to identify-

ing the contribution of biomass burning to the CO concentrations.”

Mullaley’s research contributed not only to the field of public health, but to the students she recruited for the project.

“There’s a lot of time and energy that goes into acquiring any kind of data, and not everyone realizes it when they go into their textbook and read the graphs and numbers,” said Misiakiewicz. “Working with Dr. Mullaley opened up my perspective to the scientific field, and what it actually means to be a scientist.”

____________________________

TOP: Sophia Misiakiewicz and Peter Parlato studying ice cores over the summer.

MIDDLE: High ozone levels seen along the entire Connecticut shoreline and farther downwind.

Dr. Mullaley participating in a study with similar measurements in 2013.

BOTTOM: Dr. Mullaley participating in a study with similar measurements in Alabama in 2013.

ALICIA MULLALEY / COURTESY

Arts & Entertainment

6

THE QUADRANGLE

Board Games, Podiatrists and Timothee Chalamet: Scatterbomb Returns Stephen Zubrycky Managing Editor

Scatterbomb started the school year off Friday night with a show entitled “Scatterbomb Breaks Up With Their High School Sweetheart.”

The show featured the improv troupe’s returning players: senior Kevin Donald, junior Erin McWilliams and sophomores Jenn Bueti and Aedan Roney. Three new cast members: Moira Delaney, Brendan Hanney and Meredith Taylor made their debuts.

The players - old and new - put on a gut-busting show to a full house in Hayden 100, where every seat was filled and every aisle lined with lined with laughing students.

“We used to have a foot guy too.”

The show started off with a suggested word from the audience. The players chose “pineapple.”

Donald began the bit by discussing how much he loved the Nickelodeon show “Spongebob Squarepants” when he was a kid. The players then tapped each other in and out, continuing each other’s storylines with funny quips.

Roney then started a new bit, of the same kind, in which he described his love of fresh fruit, and began listing the fruits he bought at the grocery store. The players then swapped in and out listing all the fruits they bought.

A third bit revolved around Donald, who was at the self checkout line at Walmart. Taylor, who was an employee, then came over to tell Donald that he had too many items, prompting Roney, who was playing a shift manager, to come over and get involved. Roney recommended Donald visit Walmart’s in-house nutritionist, next to the optometrist. Roney then bragged about Walmart’s former in-house foot guy, played by Bueti, where an unsuspecting Donald was soon found getting a full massage up his left leg.

“You shut the hell up, Remy!”

McWilliams started the next scene by pretending to swim with dolphins. We soon learned, however, that she was in a hotel hot tub. Taylor, who worked at the hotel, was given the task of holding up pictures of dolphins and making screeching noises.

Bueti climbed into bed with

Hanney for the next bit, followed by Delaney and McWilliams.

A satisfied Bueti said, “First night of college!” before musing about joining the women’s rowing team.

“I hear that’s not a good idea,” Hanney said.

“I heard it’s actually not that bad,” responded McWilliams, a former rower herself.

McWilliams and Delaney started the next bit, in an IGA grocery store, by trying to sell guns at a table. Delaney was offering a 10 for $20 special on glocks, with the proceeds going to fund a second floor of Draddy Gymnasium. The scene concluded with a customer, Donald, asking McWilliams, “Where are you from?

Fordham?”

Next, Donald and Roney pulled up chairs and lit cigarettes. “Picture this,” Donald said, before pitching an underthe-sea television show starring an anemone, a mollusk and a loofa.

“The loofa’s a loner,” Donald said.

“The loofa’s aloof-a,” Roney replied.

The chain smoking pair continued to light more cigarettes before hatching the idea that all of their undersea characters smoked, except a mollusk named Remy, who would try to get the other characters to kick the habit.

Sensing a stroke of genius, Donald and Roney got up and shouted in unison, “You shut the hell up, Remy!”

“Dead mom. Per vy dad.”

In the next scene, an 8-month pregnant Bueti is running a marathon with her husband, played by Hanney.

Roney, a water salesman, comes by, eyeing up Bueti.

The salesman makes Hanney jealous - and Bueti, despite her own flirtations with Roney, says she Roney was checking out Hanney - not her. Tensions increase as Roney returns, selling jewelry (for free) that has only Bueti’s birthstone and then “foot massages that slowly go up the leg.”

In the next bit, Bueti wows jump rope enthusiasts Donald and Roney with her “double jump,” for which there is an extensive warmup. Then the trio - all playing jock-like jump rope enthusiasts, beat Delaney and Hanney in a double Dutch competition.

The next scene starts with a

Above (from left to right), Roney, McWilliams and Donald perform a scene while Taylor, Bueti, Delaney and Hanney look on. The group performed with four returners and three new members.

TAYLOR BRETHAUER / THE QUADRANGLE strange dance from Donald and Roney. McWilliams jumped in, but her timing was off. The trio lamented that the America’s Got Talent judges would never pick them - until the hatched an idea.

“Our mom died,” the group announced to judges Howie Mandell, Randy Jackson and Nicki Minaj, played by Bueti, Taylor and Hanney, respectively.

“Is she in the audience tonight?” Hanney’s Minaj asked.

The group pointed to the mother in the audience, saying she was waving her hand.

“It’s rigor mortis,” Donald said. Then, the threesome’s father began kissing their “dead” mother, to which the dancers feigned disgust.

“Dead mom. Pervy dad,” Roney said with a sigh.

“I am Timothee Chalamet!”

For the second half, Scatterbomb would work with another suggestion: Florida.

Donald and Roney opened the set by sitting in chairs in the Florida swamp, wondering what to do with their lives, which, the audience learns, consists of throwing beer bottles at a billboard, throwing beer bottles at alligators, and throwing beer bottles at that “Forrest Gump-looking kid.”

As the scene concludes, the audience learns that the two are actually sitting beneath the billboard, and they open their mouths and crane their necks in the hopes of getting a few drops as another bottle crashes against the billboard.

In the next scene, Hanney works as a staff member at Disney World, serving up bad news with a smile. First he warns Roney that plastic

bags are not allowed at Disney World anymore and he’ll have to carry everything by hand, and that, no, he may not lift his shirt and use that to carry things because “there are kids here.” As Hanney explains the policy, Donald, his arms overloaded with merchandise walks past, exclaiming “Why did I buy a puzzle?!” Hanney then denies an on-her-knees McWilliams entry into a ride because she is not tall enough.

The troupe then moved through a few smaller scenes in which they sing songs while cooking and doing the dishes and write letters to loved ones as a plane crashes.

In the next scene, Hanney enters the Hard Rock Cafe in Miami looking for actor Timothee Chalamet. The staff, Taylor and Donald, argue back and forth with him, telling him to leave the kitchen. Then, a tall, emaciated Roney enters, posing as Chalamet.

“No, that’s Steven Tyler,” one of the cast member says.

Hanney then calls his mother - who lives next door and comes to scold the staff.

The scene concludes with Hanney exclaiming, “I am Timothee Chalamet!”

“GO BACK TO THE FOYER!” The scene opens as a game of hide-and-seek, with “Come out come out wherever you are.”

Roney then stole the show, walking onto the stage with hands raised and an ear-to-ear grin, announcing, “I’m gay!”

Then the scene, cuts to Roney with his mother, Bueti, who asks him why he said it.

“I learned it from Dad,” Roney said.

The father, played by Don-

ald, enters the scene and Roney describes to Bueti how his father likes to play hide-and-seek “under the covers with Mr. Slavinski.” The parents send Roney away, and he goes to sit in the foyer.

Donald comes clean with his wife, saying he has been playing games with all the neighbors, including Yahtzee with the Smiths.

“That’s my favorite game!”

Bueti said, dejectedly. “I don’t know if I can ever trust you again.”

Donald justifies it by saying that he was initially going to play Parcheesi but the game was missing pieces.

“Is that why I found those Parcheesi pieces in your pockets?” Bueti asks.

Then, as Roney tries to reenter the scene, the parents yell, “Go back to the foyer!”

The first show was an allaround strong start for the improv troupe, with impressive performances from the new cast members and an audience that was bursting at the seams.

“I was incredibly nervous but once we got out there and I got my first laugh I felt a lot better about it,” rookie cast member Delaney said. “It was so much fun and it was pretty incredible to see that many people come out for our first show.

Scatterbomb’s next show will be on Sept. 28.

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SEPTEMBER 11, 2018

Arts & Entertainment

7

The Hotspot Cafe Opens on Broadway Shannon Gleba & Nicole Rodriguez

Copy Editor & Staff Writer After Manhattan College students moved off campus last spring, a new restaurant found a home near campus at 5983 Broadway. Located right under the 1 train’s 242nd Street stop, The Hotspot Cafe is open seven days a week from 6 a.m. until midnight. With its close proximity to campus and the 1 train, it is expected that the cafe and hookah lounge will soon be swarming with Jaspers.

The Ambience: Upon entering The Hotspot Cafe, customers are greeted with the rustic, yet clean-cut decor, seemingly popular in interior design today. Comfortable furnishings adorn the recently opened establishment giving customers the ideal relaxed environment for grabbing a bite, finishing schoolwork or even simply taking a breather in between classes.

The counter, where orders are taken, is lined with a pastry case that display different cakes and sweet treats. In addition, customers can watch their crepe being made, as the crepe pan sits on the far end of the counter. Once diners place their orders, they are able to pick a seat, either in the front cafe area, or beyond a set of French doors in a large room filled with comfortable couches and loveseats.

The Menu: The Hotspot Cafe’s enticing menu is not only packed with standard cafe delicacies

like bagels, coffee and dessert pastries, but also with crepes, gelato and Belgian waffles. All of the prices on the menu are standard and fairly cheap. The most expensive menu item, a honey turkey & cheese crepe, will only set you back $9.99.

Although the restaurant is open until midnight, many of the menu items seem to only be appropriate for breakfast or a light afternoon meal. However, to cater to the late-night crowd, The Hotspot Cafe transforms into a hookah bar at 4 p.m., where customers are invited to stay until midnight.

For Lunch: Pesto Crepe For lunch, we opted for one of the various savory crepes on the cafe menu: a pesto crepe. Filled with mozzarella, tomatoes, arugula and pesto, it makes for a piquant and filling dish. The dish was served within minutes and to our surprise was the size of the entire plate. For the bargain price of $7.50, the appetizing plate was crisply made before our eyes.

Providing an interesting twist on your typical sandwich, the basil crepe at The Hotspot

Cafe possesses absorbing flavor combínations with the oozing mozzarella cheese, fresh greens and creamy pesto.

If you prefer sweet crepes, The Hotspot Cafe offers an immense array to choose from such as S’mores, Brownie Sundae and Apple Pie. The crepes themselves are quite a mouthful and are perfect for sharing.

To Drink: Iced Vanilla Latte and Iced Tea To drink, we had an iced vanilla latte and an iced tea.

The iced tea ($2.39) was refreshing, especially in the very hot weather. While the tea was unsweetened, it tasted delicious, and paired well with a pastry.

Likewise, the iced vanilla latte was amazing, especially at its price of $3.50. The latte was very tasty, with the perfect balance between sweet and bitter.

Also, another great part of the coffee is the option of different milks. Upon making the drink, the barista asked what kind of milk we would like, giving the perfect opportunity for someone with an lactose allergy to opt for a different kind.

For reference, a large coffee costs $2.63, which is a competitive price for those who frequent the nearby popular coffee chains.

A Snack: Chocolate Croissant For a mid-morning snack, we tried a chocolate croissant.

While the croissant looked delectable, with a crisp, browned top, its quality was not ideal.

The croissant was dry, and seemed to have been sitting on the pastry shelf for too long.

However, once business picks up and more pastries are being sold, we believe the pastries

------------------------

will sell quicker and hopefully be freshly made more often.

Overall Insight: The Hotspot Cafe is a great option for Manhattan College students looking for a place to hang out and to try something new due to its close proximity to campus and the subway.

While the cafe definitely caters to those hoping to satisfy their sweet tooth, there are still many different options to choose from. The affordability of the drinks and food will definitely draw in a younger crowd, and many coffee drinkers may become regulars.

The Hotspot Cafe is now open down on Broadway under the 242nd Street subway station. Their menu includes pastries, gelatos and crepes.

KELSEY KOVACS / THE QUADRANGLE

The Performing Hearts: Let’s Talk-apella!

Alexa Schmidt Asst. A&E Editor

Make way for the new singing group on campus: the Performing Hearts. New to the college this semester, the group is MC’s first all-female acapella group.

Junior psychology major Naomi Uy originally came up with the idea to create an allwomen acapella group.

“I did acapella in high school with an all-girls group, and it was mashed up in between a classical women’s choir, but we were also a pop acapella group and I felt like we were kind of missing that here.

I feel like girl-groups are totally badass. And I justed to bring that to Manhattan College,” Uy said.

To follow through with this idea, she talked to Andrew Bauer, director of music and coordinator of performing arts.

He gave her a list of people who were already involved with

Singers or Music Ministry, to whom she sent out an interest email over the summer.

Juniors Gabby Kasper and Megan Lawlor received the email and immediately took an interest.

“I thought it was a fantastic idea and just an awesome way to bond and get some girl power on this campus, which we always need more of,” Kasper said.

Whoever got the email automatically joined the group.

However, Uy is always interested in expanding the group.

“Since we’re just starting out, I wanted to get a good core group of people that are obviously dedicated to the idea. We didn’t have auditions this year, but we will in the future if the idea goes through,” Uy said.

“Honestly, it’s a pretty diverse group, there’s a lot of girls that I know in it which is really cool, I mean even though it’s a small school, performing arts is always bigger than you

think it is,” Lawlor said.

She continued.

“It was really nice, I got to see a bunch of new faces at our first meeting, but also just a lot of people that I kind of knew before, though groups like Singers, which is just massive that you can’t know everyone, but now I’m getting the chance to know everybody better which is nice,” Lawlor said.

Besides practicing each week, the Performing Hearts has high hopes for participating in other events.

“We’re planning to do something at Open House hopefully.

As far as performances go, we hope to tie in with other singing groups, like Manhattones maybe. We could do a concert with them, or in the spring we do an orchestra or singers concert and we could tie that in,” said Uy. She continued.

“I know these girls have a lot of musical potential, and maybe we can enter music com-

petitions and stuff like that, and bring MC a name. There are a lot of competitions around the New York area that we could join, so we hope to do that,” Uy said.

Uy, Kasper and Lawlor all hinted that an ABBA medley is a possibility, as well as “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun,” and “It’s Raining Men.” Lawlor said their style will be typical.

“Kind of stereotypical but fun stuff that everyone knows and loves. We’re definitely leaning away from classical. It’s a little bit of classic pop, definitely more in the pop category,” Lawlor said.

Even though the group is just starting out, each girl wants to pursue the idea and make it into something bigger.

“I have a lot of hope for us, even though we’re a very new small group, we’re just trying to figure it out. I think it’s a bunch of people who are all coming together with the com-

mon goal of loving to sing, so it can’t go bad,” Lawlor said.

“I have really high hopes for this group. I love acapella music a lot, I know its not some people’s forte, like they don’t really listen to it, but I personally do, like all the time, which makes me a huge nerd, but I’m really tied to this group. And I hope it goes as far as it can,” Uy said.

She continued.

“There’s a lot going on the world right now, and I think it’s really important that women stick by each other. There’s a different kind of support that comes from being with a group of women, especially a group of strong, powerful women, all working towards the same thing,” she said.

“I think it’s really awesome that we’re creating a space for that to happen. I hope it’s something that people will join in the future, and it can expand and grow, because I do think it’s an important thing,” Kasper said.

Arts & Entertainment

8

THE QUADRANGLE

Student Government Hosts Quadchella Auditions Gabriella DePinho Asst. News Editor

On Thursday, Sept. 6, Student Government hosted auditions at 5 p.m. in the Box for students interested in being featured as a student performer at Quadchella, the campus’ yearly fall concert event on the quadrangle that will be taking place on Sept. 14.

On the judging panel of the auditions was Andy Bauer, director of music and coordinator of performing arts, seniors Erin Plitt and Alex Constantine, the two co-hosts of Coffee House, and members of the 2018-2019 Student Government board. Isabel Quinones, VP for Residential Affairs and Haley Nightingale, VP for Club Administration, sat through the auditions while other members such as Jaycie Cooper, Student Body President, and Kerry Cavanagh, VP for Academic Affairs, helped get students who were not signed up to audition to come in and give it a try.

“Jaycie [Cooper] contacted both myself and Alex Constantine and we are the co-hosts of Coffee House, which is a Manhattan Magazine sponsored Open Mic night, so the gist that I got was that Student Government wanted the feel of this year’s Quadchella to be very

much like coffee house where it’s a very inclusive thing and people have the opportunity to share their talents and experience performing on a grander scale,” said Plitt.

With the atmosphere guides in the room, Student Government members also felt it was important to have Bauer in the room during the auditions and be there leading up to the performance.

“He’s a resource we’ve been using for equipment and knowledge of how to run a successful music event on campus,” said Nightingale.

Bauer also felt his presence at the auditions and in the process of deciding on performers was important.

“The main reason I’m here is that I’m the Director of Music and Coordinator of Performing Arts so it’s really my charge to make sure that all the music on campus is approved and appropriate.” Bauer continued, “The second reason is because we have so many people auditioning, we’re not going to be able to schedule everyone, inevitably there will be cuts so it’s better that I do it rather than students. Students cutting other students causes pain and misunderstanding.”

Student Government decided to have student performers this year to help out the yearly

budget but also to get students more involved with their programs and events.

“We were trying to decide on who we were going to have for Quadchella and none of the artists really stood out insanely so what we decided to do was save money, do student performers for Quadchella and then reallocate that money from our budget to Springfest.

Hopefully that will allow us the opportunity to get a bigger artist at Springfest,” said Quinones.

“One of our big platforms we ran on was ‘bridging the gap’ so we felt like a good way to do that and get things rolling,” said Nightingale.

The turnout for auditions was much higher than anticipated which may possibly cause some cuts. The night before the auditions, only five people had filled out the google form for an audition time; the morning of, 13 people had filled out. In actuality, approximately 20 people auditioned for a slot in the performance.

Cavanagh was even encouraging students walking past the Box to audition for a slot in the performance and some students did come in to audition because of her.

The auditions encompassed all different kinds of music, from disney songs, to original

The students that auditioned for Quadchella will perform at the event on Friday, Sept. 14.

EMILY ORTIZ / THE QUADRANGLE music, to ukulele covers and original to them, so if they don’t jazzy versions of classic songs. fit this particular program, I do The auditions alone showcased hope they consider joining othjust a few of the talented stu- er performing arts ensembles dents that are here at MC. and other opportunities like “We had a lot more [people Coffeehouse for performance,” audition] than I expected and I said Bauer. think it just goes to show how Constantine also shared a much talent is on campus and I similar sentiment. think this is a really good event “There’s Music Ministry, to open the door to open the Manhattones, Singers, Players’ door to how much talent we musicals, Coffeehouse. I mean have in different genres of mu- after this, maybe this opens the sic,” said Quinones. door for all those other types If students are cut from the of clubs that are on campus for program, Bauer encourages kids to really enjoy and express them to seek out the other mu- themselves in,” he said. sic opportunities on campus.

Quadchella will take place “Everybody that auditioned on Friday, Sept. 14, from 4 to 7 is really talented. Everybody p.m. on the quadrangle. has a particular talent that’s

Bryan McKeon: A Passion for Poetry Maria Thomas Staff Writer

Bryan McKeon, a sophomore at Manhattan College, embarked on a journey of the written word in his senior year of high school. It wasn’t until Bryan suffered a career-ending knee injury during one of his football games that he discovered his passion for writing.

“I felt like I was really bored and had nothing to do anymore. I was just sitting around one day and my friend suggested that poetry could be a really good hobby,” he said.

McKeon said that his AP English teacher also pushed him to experiment with writing poetry. He drew his original inspiration for poetry from a piece that was covered in class.

“We were doing a Robert Frost poem that really hit me.

I can still remember the words.

That really had an impact on me and what I was going through at that time,” McKeon said.

The process of composing beautiful poems became a sort of therapeutic ritual for McKeon.

“It was almost used as a coping mechanism and a way to just express how I felt and my ideas and opinions on the world,” he said.

As his passion for writ-

ing grew, so did his skill. On Aug. 14 of this year, McKeon launched an Instagram page dedicated to his work, using the handle “@bcmckeon.”

Although he has composed approximately one hundred poems within the last year, he has only posted five on the newly created account. The account currently has 108 followers, and keeps growing.

“I had been wanting to do it since spring semester of last year, but just with the way my schedule has been going, I got really sidetracked. In the summer I was really developing it a lot with my older brother,” he said.

With frequent advances in technology and a plethora of social media platforms that are free to the public, there has grown a large population of artistic youth that publish work online in hopes of becoming discovered and making it big, but with McKeon, that is not the case. When asked about his hopes for the future, he said he does not write hoping for recognition.

“I’m not trying to be famous, I just want other people to hear my opinions and my views on stuff, and maybe they can relate to it, share a common experience about it with others, and help them in their life. At the end of the day, po-

etry is not what I think about it, it is however many meanings people can take out of it,” McKeon said.

He continued “I’m okay with being a guy with, you know, two hundred followers on Instagram just sharing how I feel, because with poetry you don’t have to share it with the world as long as you touch certain people,” he said.

In addition to his Instagram

account, McKeon is sharing the gift of poetry with the world by organizing and promoting Open Mic Poetry Nights at Manhattan College twice a month, along with with fellow Jaspers Rose Brennan and Lauren Schuster, which are held in the Multicultural Center, located on the third floor of the Kelly Commons.

“It gives a communal aspect.

It gave me a second family. You just want to spread your knowl-

edge and connect with other people and allow your creativity to grow. I’m a civil engineer, no one would think I’m a poet, so you could say I’m trying to change the whole concept that engineers are only concerned with math,” McKeon said.

Editor’s note: Rose Brennan and Lauren Schuster are an editor and assistant editor for The Quadrangle.

The third poem featured on McKeon’s Instagram account, @bcmckeon.

BRYAN MCKEON / COURTESY

Features

SEPTEMBER 11, 2018

9

Rebecca Traister Headlines First Student Engagement and Women’s Center Lecture Samantha Walla

Asst. Production Editor Manhattan College’s Student Engagement Lecture Series kicked off the year with an event co-sponsored by the Lasallian Women and Gender Resource Center at noon on Friday, Sept. 7. The lecture featured Rebecca Traister, a journalist who writes for New York Magazine in addition to her three books. Her most recent, Good and Mad: The Revolutionary Power of Women’s Anger, comes out on Oct. 2. Her previous books, All the Single Ladies and Big Girls Don’t Cry, were named Notable Book of 2016 and 2010, respectively, by the New York Times. The latter was also the winner of the Ernesta Drinker Ballard Book Prize. The lecture, which dealt with Traister’s research for her book, focused on women’s anger as a political force.

Traister spoke about the implications of day-to-day interactions that women experience, such as being urged to smile. While it may seem like a nicety to be told to smile, Traister urged her listeners to think about where that comes from.

“That message on the street from strangers is ‘don’t be negative, don’t be querulous.’ The proper and appreciated view of femininity is one that is contented, not angry, not disruptive,” said Traister. This type of interaction is not limited to the streets; Hillary Clinton was told to smile by Joe Scarborough, a host at MSNBC, after winning several primaries. Nancy Pelosi was also criticized for “embodying bitterness” and frowning during Donald Trump’s first State of the Union Address by White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders. Additionally, Traister pointed out that powerful women are usually photographed with their mouths open.

“This is the image of the

woman who we’re told scares us the most: the one who has her mouth open in loud and assured complaint. It is the angry woman who is the big threat,” said Traister.

The connection between anger and power was also a prominent theme of Traister’s speech.

Traister discussed the #MeToo Movement, drawing attention to the story not only being about the repercussions many faced after being exposed for their crimes, but how for decades many evaded repercussions even when their stories were out in the open.

“One of the chief traits of the powerful is their ability to suppress and discourage those who would challenge their power by dissenting and expressing anger,” said Traister. “We try to suppress women’s anger in part because we understand power.

We in this country do understand and should understand the power of mass anger. It was our founding narrative and we fetishize it as our founding narrative. Think about it: ‘give me liberty or give me death,’ ‘live free or die,’ ‘don’t tread on me.’

This patriotic catechism, we carve it into our buildings. We obsess about it.”

Traister highlighted how these expressions of mass anger are only considered rational, patriotic and admirable when it comes from white men.

These notions are not only applicable to historical events, but to the 2016 election. While Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders were praised for their channeling of mass anger, Hillary Clinton faced criticism for being “shrill” and yelling. In the New York Times review of a debate in which Sanders was congratulated for being controlled, Clinton’s “ferocity was risky given that many voters already have an unfavorable opinion of her.”

“Anger is a regular, normalized mode of expression for white men in America,” said

Traister. “That’s in part because white men have always been our normative citizen, our intellectual ideal. Their dissatisfactions are understood and being rounded in reason and not this emotional buck of femininity.”

While writing Good and Mad, Traister revisited the media’s coverage of the Women’s March. Despite being the biggest single-day protest in this country’s history, the day-after coverage largely ignored the protest. However, Traister cited the increase of women holding political office and the #MeToo movement as responses following the example of the march.

“I believe that all of this has shaken us to our foundations. I believe that it is the stuff of insurgency, not something that’s going to happen next week.

Political movements in this country take decades. This is a long term fight. Nonetheless, I believe that it is an insurgency against a white male, patriarchal, capitalist minority that is clinging desperately to its power.”

She continued, bringing to light the influence of race in discussing anger and power. “I want you to begin to hear how common and how pervasive this kind of language and these reversals are, how we register anger that’s coming from those with less power as violence, while any violence perpetrated by those with more power is so normalized to be indiscernible.

It’s obviously not just about gender, it’s about race.”

After her speech, Traister took questions from the audience, which she cited the as her favorite aspect of visiting colleges, as she likes to hear what students in different parts of the country are thinking about. Traister was particularly glad that people asked about race and white women and their role in today’s politics.

Liola Moody, a political science and international studies

Rebecca Traister spoke at the first Student Engagement Lecture of the semester which cosponsored by the by Lasallian Women and Gender Resource Center. The lecture took place in Kelly Commons on Friday, Sept. 7.

SAMANTHA WALLA / THE QUADRANGLE major, asked Traister’s opinion of the recent anonymous op-ed about the Trump administration published in the New York Times.

“I think my favorite part was just how much she knows,” said Moody. “I feel like now we hear a lot of people speak just to speak, because there’s a lot of opportunities for people to have their voice out there, but a lot of times it’s really not knowledgeable. But the fact that she really understood the pressure and she really answered to the best of her ability. She wasn’t speaking just to hear herself talk, she was speaking to teach.”

“I got chills,” said Carolina Perez, also a political science and international studies major.

“My philosophy teacher told us to come for class, but it was actually really interesting and I’m

glad I came. The way she talks, she’s so passionate.”

Above all, Traister wants to change how people listen to women and understand their anger as valid political thought.

“Begin to tune your ears to how this works. I want you to think about whose voices are being discounted. Who is being told, as Pamela Harris was earlier this week, that they are ‘out of order.’ That they are causing the chaos, that they are disruptive, that their mouths are loud.

And I want you to think about the fact that those messages are being sent in part because the people who are sending them understand the power of those loud mouths and that disruption. Because that power is, in theory, perhaps, revolutionary.”

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Features

10

THE QUADRANGLE

MC Welcomes New Director of Diversity, Equity and Chief Title IX Coordinator Lauren Schuster Asst. Features Editor

While she may be new to Manhattan College, Sheetal Kale, J.D., is no stranger to working with anti-discrimination law. Before taking her new position as director of diversity, equity and chief Title IX coordinator here at MC, she worked in a variety of positions as both an attorney and as legal counsel for Barnard College and TCS Education, a network of nonprofit higher education institutions aimed at helping students from underprivileged backgrounds.

“My two passions are social justice and education, and this was kind of the perfect opportunity to combine the two,” Kale said.

Unlike Kale’s past positions, however, her current position at Manhattan College gives her the unique opportunity to work with faculty, staff, and students all at the same time. This allows her to truly get to know the college community on all of its various levels and help everyone on campus to feel safe from harassment and discrimination.

“I see a deep commitment

to addressing diversity and sexual misconduct among all members of the administration [here] and that’s really great to hear. They’ve been really supportive,” Kale said.

Going forward, Kale will work with various offices on campus like human resources and admissions to ensure that everyone considered for both employment and admission at the school is treated in a fair and unbiased manner.

As chief Title IX coordinator, Kale is also responsible for addressing issues that fall under several different levels of sexual harassment laws.

“Not only are we beholden to the DOE, which administers Title IX, we are beholden to New York state law 129-B. We’re also beholden to New York City law, which is in some ways a little bit stricter for employers. There’s been a new law passed in the state and the city with increased training requirements for employers who have fifteen or more employees regarding sexual harassment,” Kale said.

In addition to Title IX, city and state laws, the school also must adhere to NCAA regulations in situations involving the

various campus athletic programs.

“If you imagine a venn diagram, we fall within all those laws and regulations,” Kale said.

Kale’s biggest hope is that going forward, the school will not only comply with laws like Title IX, but will go above and beyond to serve the school community in the best ways possible. If the school does not follow federal regulations like Title IX, then they are at risk for losing their federal funding, but Kale aims to go far beyond the basic requirements.

“I’m also working with Brother Jack to incorporate our mission into our policies so not only are we compliant, that goes without saying, but also that we elevate our practices to ensure that we are doing everything we can to be Lasallians, to respect one another,” Kale said.

Kale also wants students to feel comfortable sharing their ideas and concerns with her so that she can get a better idea of how to improve things for them.

“I want [the students] to know I’m really open to listening to their concerns. I think that it’s easy for me to come in

Kale previously worked as both an attorny and as legal counsel for Barnard College and TCS Education before coming to Manhattan College.

LAUREN SCHUSTER / THE QUADRANGLE here as a civil rights attorney, as somebody with an investigations background, to impose what I think is the best thing to do, but that’s not what I want to do. What I want to do is address the particular needs of the college,” Kale said.

Overall, Kale’s work will aim to ensure that all members of the MC community experience a fair, as well as legally compliant, process in any situation regarding sexual misconduct or discrimination in their time here.

Ariel Salazar and the Practice of Parkour RikkiLynn Shields Social Media Editor

Ariel Salazar, a freshman computer science major from Astoria, NY, isn’t your average freshman walking the campus.

Since attending Accepted Students Day, Salazar knew he wanted to attend Manhattan College, not only because of what if offered academically, but also because of what it of-

fered him socially.

“I had always felt comfortable on the campus, in comparison to other institutions. I became convinced that Manhattan College provides great opportunities, during and after my next four years. These opportunities include the fiveyear B.S/M.S program for Computer Science majors,” Salazar said.

Along with the academic opportunities Salazar plans to

take advantage of during his time at Manhattan College, Salazar has also dedicated himself to the practice of parkour and freerunning since 2014.

“Parkour is a disciplinary art of movement in which one uses his or her running, jumping, and climbing skills to surpass obstacles in the environment. Freerunning is the artistic and beautiful version of parkour in which one implements his or her style into the

movement. Such forms may include flips, difficulty, fluency, and others,” said Salazar.

Salazar’s interest in parkour was sparked after following different parkour athletes via their Youtube channels and videos. Since discovering the sport, Salazar has been taking advantage of the abundance of obstacles in New York City to execute his moves on and around.

“Before I started training, I would watch parkour athletes on Youtube videos and ask myself, ‘If they can do it, why can’t I?’ I like to practice in a training facility (Brooklyn Zoo) and certain parks located in Queens, Manhattan, and Brooklyn.

After long hours of training, I have learned to complain less and work harder; parkour/freerunning is my way of life,” said Salazar.

Along with parkour, Salazar also practices speedcubing– a

------------------------

Salazar executing a vault over small pyramid in Brooklyn park.

ARIEL SALAZAR / COURTESY

practice that many people may be familiar with– that consists of completing a Rubix cube in its entirety in a matter of seconds.

“In two speedcubing events (Big Apple Spring 2016 and Weston Spring 2017), I had a great experience competing with others and also volunteering to be a judge. Anyone who learns to solve this well-known puzzle quickly, or only the solution, will enhance his or her logical thinking and memorization of algorithms, along with their corresponding cases,” said Salazar.

Salazar believes the practice of parkour, freerunning, and even speedcubing has led him to exactly where he is meant to be.

Salazar said, “I consider my personality to resemble a square; such shape represents neatness, organization, mathematics, and determination.

Throughout my entire academic career, I continuously abided by these qualities. These practices have allowed me to figure out what I like to do and what I am good at; those answers have enabled me to choose a path to follow for the rest of my life. Beginning to walk that path is what excites me about completing the next four years at Manhattan College.”

Sports

SEPTEMBER 11, 2018

11

Olyvia Chaltas Spends Summer With Albanian National Team, Prepares For Final Season At MC JASPERS TALK Gabriella DePinho Asst. News Editor

Olyvia Chaltas is senior from Temecula, CA on the Manhattan College volleyball team. Before entering her final season with the team, she spent the summer playing volleyball for the Albanian women’s national team. She experienced a historic run by the national team which included a trip to the semifinals of the Confédération Européenne de Volleyball (CEV) Silver European League Championship.

The Quadrangle: How did you start playing volleyball in the first place?

Olyvia Chaltas: “Growing up, I was always playing a bunch of sports. It was just part of our family values to always be a part of something, especially part of something like sports teams. My neighbors, who are family friends, both of their daughters are a few years older than me and they played volleyball. They said ‘you’re tall, you should try it’ and I just remember going to my first camp and falling in love with the sport and I’ve been playing ever since.”

TQ: When you were in high school, was it your plan to play at a collegiate level? How do you think playing on a college team helped you grow?

OC: “Yeah, it was always my dream to play on a Division I level team. Ever since I started playing volleyball, it was a huge goal of mine. First of all, accomplishing that goal made me grow as a person because you realize when you put in enough work towards something you’re passionate about, you can achieve what you want. Playing at a collegiate level teaches you a lot of values that you can take into the workplace or life in general. Time management, teamwork, passion even.”

TQ: Do you think sports has influenced your studies in any way?

OC: “I think so. My major is marketing and my minor is religious studies. Business is a big teamwork environment to be in. You’re constantly working with people on projects, things like that, so I think that aspect that I’ve learned from volleyball is going to play a big part when I’m in the professional workplace.”

TQ: This past summer, you spent time with the Albanian national volleyball team. How did that get set up?

OC: “So my old club team, they have connections in Albania with the national team.

I was back over winter break playing the club’s alumni game and some of the coaches said like ‘you’re playing really great, it’s great to see you’ and all of

this and ‘we were wondering if you’d be interested in going overseas this summer to play with the Albanian national team?’ I am Greek-Albanian so I would be able to play with them so it translates in that way, so I jumped at the opportunity.”

TQ: So you just said it could translate. Do you want to play for a national team, whether it’s the Albanian team or the American team? Or was it just a fun summer thing?

OC: “It was amazing and fun this summer. Like I said, my goal up until going into college, was to be a college athlete and all of that. Ever since I started playing, even going on visits, recruiting trips, before I signed anywhere, I asked if they had any players going professional, anyone going beyond college because that has been a goal of mine as well. To continue playing after college. If that works out, that would be awesome.”

TQ: What was the experience like? Did you go to practices and games with them?

OC: “I did everything. Practices, scrimmages, playing. I lived with the team, I ate with team, I traveled with them. I really became part of their family. That was one of my favorite parts was really just becoming close with team and the coaches and really just learning from them. Seeing new places, experiencing European volleyball

which has a different feel than American volleyball.”

TQ: What did you learn there that you plan to bring into your season here?

OC: “I learned a lot. I think it made me a lot smarter as a player because these women I played with, many of them had been playing volleyball for twenty years or more and you learn so much from them.

They’re so passionate because this is a job for them. They’ve been doing this all their life.

The passion for the sport, ball IQ, really those are the two major things I took away.”

TQ: So how are you feeling being that this is your last season with the team? Are you excited? What are your hopes for the season?

OC: “I’m for sure fired up!

It’s my last year so it’s crazy how the time has flown by but I’m really just focusing on having fun with my team, building that family environment, playing with passion and just having the most fun I can in my last year of playing college volleyball.”

TQ: Is there any advice you’ve learned from over your years here and even from this summer that you plan on imparting with the new freshmen? What do you want your lasting impact to be?

OC: “Just enjoy every second. Like I said, time just flies

Olyvia Chaltas is a senior athlete on the Manhattan College volleyball team.

GO JASPERS / COURTESY by. I can’t believe I’m a senior.

I’m trying to instill the values of our program, but also teaching them to have fun with all of it.

At the end of the day, I don’t really remember how many wins and losses I had over the years, it was really just about being with team, playing volleyball and having a great time.”

Deanna Hewlett Named New Director of Intramurals Haley Burnside Senior Writer

Deanna Hewlett is the newest director of the intramural program at Manhattan College. She, her colleagues and the students are hopeful and excited to see how she will use her expertise to improve the program.

The intramural program consists of two divisions differing in competitive intensity.

There are a number of various sports offered such as volleyball, basketball, soccer and flag football. Each sport has a season, usually lasting about two months. Students can join or create teams regardless of prior experience or knowledge of the sport at hand.

Junior Sydney Mattera has been involved with intramurals at the college since her freshman year. She believes that Hewlett will bring a fresh face to intramurals.

“I was very eager and pleased to meet Deanna Hewlett. I think she will be a great asset to the student engagement office and will be a great coordinator to the intra-

murals program,” said Mattera. “I am very excited to start working with her. The program continues to improve and evolve and I am very eager for what’s to come this year!”

John Bennett, Director of Student Engagement, sees the intramural program as a vital aspect of the college’s student life opportunities, and he has a positive feeling about the direction that Hewlett will take it.

“Intramurals have always been a big activity at this college, but maybe in the past few years the involvement has gone down. Deanna is not only going to bring us back to the levels that we used to be at, but I think she’s going to surpass those levels,” said Bennett.

As for Hewlett herself, the excitement comes from a personal love of intramurals, and she looks forward to helping the students of Manhattan College have a good experience through the program.

“I’m most excited about the students honestly. I have a love and a passion for intramurals.

That’s where I got my start,” said Hewlett.

Although she did not origi-

nally foresee herself having a sports-related career, she is glad to have found herself in her new role.

“I actually started as a computer engineering major at school in Texas. I moved from Mississippi to Texas to go to college and I didn’t know anybody. I started out my freshman year playing basketball and flag football on intramural teams and I literally met some of my best friends through that.

Today, I still talk to some of the people I met through intramurals,” said Hewlett.

She went on to add, “I had always been around sports but I never really thought of sports as a career until I started to learn about the different levels of involvement. Since intramurals were so important to my experience in college, I’m excited to be a part of the program here.”

Hewlett’s goals for the program involve making it enjoyable for the participants and the staff.

“I’m ready to build a great program,” said Hewlett. “I’m looking to bring some more structure to the program and

Hewlett will use her expertise to improve the intramural program, TAYLOR BRETHAUER / THE QUADRANGLE give students more responsibility. For the participants and the workers, I expect them to have fun and enjoy themselves.

I want to make it a fun work environment where they can learn.”

The work positions in the program offer students the chance to be leaders and work with more responsibility, according to Hewlett. Mattera is eager to take on the additional

responsibility and help the program grow, especially considering her extensive involvement over her past few years at the college.

“I started getting involved with intramurals during my freshman year. My brother, Matt, introduced me to the __________________________ CONTINUED ON PAGE 12

Sports

12

THE QUADRANGLE

Cross Country Teams Looking To Pick Up Where They Left Off Last Season John Jackson Sports Editor

The Manhattan College men’s and women’s cross country teams performed extremely well last season and are looking to pick up where they left off this season as well.

The 2017 season saw the men finish first of five at the Fordham Fiasco race, second of seven at the Monmouth Invitational, 21st of 30 at the Paul Short Run, second of eight at the Metropolitan Championships, second of 11 at the MAAC Championships, 19th of 37 at the NCAA Regionals and fifth of 25 at the IC4A Championships.

Pacing the Jaspers on the men’s side last season were alumnus John Dove and current senior Amir Khaghani.

While Dove is no longer running for the Jaspers, Khaghani has a year left to help out the team and improve upon his impressive results from 2017. That included a third place finish at Fordham, third at Monmouth, fourth at the Met Championships, ninth of 144 at the MAAC Championships, 69th of 254 at the NCAA Regionals and 22nd of 203 at the IC4As. The women experienced similar success as they ranked among the top at a variety of the meets. They finished first of six at the Fordham Fiasco race, third of eighth at the Monmouth Invitational, 29th of 34 at the Paul Short Run, first of 10 at the Metropolitan Championships, fourth of 11 at the MAAC Championships, 30th of 36 at the NCAA Regionals and 11th of 25 at the ECAC Championships.

A large part of the women’s success last season came from

senior Lisa Fajardo who had a phenomenal season. Some of her highlights include winning at the Fordham Fiasco race and Monmouth Invitational, placing second at the Metropolitan Championships, placing third in the MAAC Championships and breaking a Manhattan College record at the ECAC Championships by placing third of 209 and finishing the 5,000-meter race in 17:58.9.

Both teams’ seasons kicked off at Van Cortlandt Park on Saturday, Sept. 8 at the annual Fordham Fiasco race. Although Fordham isn’t in the MAAC Conference, the fact they are so closely located in the Bronx makes them a regular nonconference opponent for most of the teams on campus. While each team may have a different experience with Fordham, the cross country team has more of a friendly rivalry due to practicing alongside them at Van Cortlandt Park and the fact that Head Coach Kerri Gallagher is an alumnus of Fordham.

“As a team, we have a lot of respect for Fordham since we see them often when we train in Van Cortlandt,” Fajardo said via email. “Also, Coach Kerri ran for Fordham’s head coach, Tom Dewey. There is definitely satisfaction when we beat them, but I would say it is more of a friendly rivalry.”

Khaghani shared similar sentiments to that of Fajardo.

“I think there’s a fun little competitiveness, but it’s also fun like we know them, we see them a lot of the time in the park because they’ll come and work out, so there’s no bad blood, it’s just like a little fun competitiveness,” said Khaghani.

A week before the race, Fajardo also shared her thoughts about the race.

“Next Saturday is going

to be our first time racing in a long time, so there aren’t really any specific goals other than to get out there, race smart, and give our best effort on that day,” Fajardo said in an email statement. “We won this meet last year, (men and women) so it would be great to come back and do it again!”

Neither the men nor the women won the race as a team, but they still finished high in a meet that included more teams overall. The men took second place out of 11 teams and the women took third out of 13 teams. Both teams were also able to top Coach Gallagher’s alma mater.

Leading up to the race, and thus the start of the season, Khaghani expressed his excitement for his fourth year as well as seeing the freshmen begin their first year.

“I think it’s just an exciting time,” said Khaghani. “And we have a lot of freshmen. It’s about 10 new people on the team so that’s a really exciting time and with the races coming up, we want to really see how the freshmen will do because they’re the little bit of the unknown.”

Two of those unknown talents were big contributors for the Jaspers on Saturday. Ryan Tierney finished in 20th place out of 112 in the 8,000-meter race for the men and Hali Ielfield finished third of 124 in the 5,000-meter race for the women.

Overall on the men’s side, senior Chad Maier paced the Jaspers as he placed second out of the 112 runners with a time of 26:05.60 in the 8K. The biggest story out of the race came from Fajardo herself as she broke the aforementioned school record for the 5,000-meter race which she set

Lisa Fajardo breaks her own 5K school record at the 2018 Fordham Fiasco race on Saturday Sept. 8 at Van Cortlandt Park.

GOJASPERS /COURTESY herself at the ECAC Championships in 2017. The new record of 17:53.77 was more than five seconds better than the prior record which lasted less than a year.

Fajardo slightly switched up how she trained in the offseason and although she couldn’t compare it to her usual training, she put her trust in Coach Gallagher that it would all pay off and work out in the end.

“My training this summer involved running a lot more mileage, as well as training in higher temperatures and higher humidity, so I can’t really compare my progress to last summer, but changing things up is good sometimes, and I trust Coach Gallagher,” said Fajardo via email.

Although the first race has come and passed, it is only the first race and regardless of the promising rookies, the solid team effort and the record-breaking performance, Khaghani knew there are bigger fish to fry.

“That’s a big thing that we

want to work on is not just being competitive in the MAAC, but being competitive in the Northeast and on the East Coast,” said Khaghani.

The teams will head to Wappingers Falls, NY in a few days as they race at Army. They’ll have six days to recover from Saturday which will be a good way to get them used to running on tired legs and help them build up for their bigger races later in the semester.

“We’ll have time to recover, but it is so early in the season so it’s more about getting good training in and sort of learning to run on tired legs and not getting full recovery because you don’t want to peak this early in the season,” said Khaghani.

“The bigger races are MAACs, [NCAA] Regionals and IC4As so it’s sort of using it to continue building strength and endurance to be able to make it all the way through November,” said Khaghani.

Deanna Hewlett Named New Director of Intramurals __________________________ CONTINUED FROM PAGE 11 program and I really enjoyed working for this work study,” said Mattera.

“I have been a score keeper for the last two years, which has the role to check all the players in, make sure everyone knows the rules, and keep score of the games while everyone plays.

This year, I signed up to be a supervisor for the program! I enjoy working for this program and would love to take on more responsibility,” said Mattera.

Brain Opfer, a junior civil engineering major, is also a longtime fan of the program.

“I started refereeing for in-

tramurals as a freshman. I also participated in the sports since freshman year. This year I am one of ten supervisors for intramurals,” said Opfer.

As for the benefits of participating in the intramural sports, everyone involved can name a few. Opfer sees the valuable physical health benefits to intramural participation.

“I like participating in intramurals to stay active and also to relax. For a lot of students that played sports in high school but not in college it is nice to play an organized game and have fun. It is a great way to let your mind rest for an hour after a day of school,” said Opfer.

Though Mattera would not

disagree with Opfer, she also notices the social benefits to intramurals.

“I believe intramurals are very, very beneficial to students. I actually can’t stress that enough. We always have tons of students signing up. Intramurals are an escape for students from their school work and gives them the opportunity of socialization,” said Mattera.

Bennett also believes that intramurals provide good social opportunities, especially in their specific nature of low-time commitment and the ability to choose the intensity of the competition.

“It’s such a great social activity whether you like the

sport or not. I really honestly feel like it’s the easiest way to make new friends. It doesn’t really matter if you like flag football or if you’ve ever played flag football. It’s all about the social aspect,” said Bennett.

In comparison to other campus activities, Bennett thinks that intramurals provide flexibility, which is important to students with busy schedules.

“It’s not a huge time commitment. It’s a good excuse to come back to campus if you’re a commuter or to get out of your room if you’re a resident without becoming overbearing on your schedule,” said Bennett.

Students who wish to par-

ticipate but are unable to find teammates are encouraged to reach out to student engagement.

“Most students sign up with their friends, but if you don’t know anyone else who wants to sign up we will always put you on a team. All you have to do as a student is contact us and ask to join,” said Bennett.

Hewlett’s passion and personality can bring a new, organized nature to the program that has already been so important to students on campus. To join the action, contact Hewlett herself, or other student engagement staff members.