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THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF MANHATTAN COLLEGE | SINCE 1924
Volume CIX, Issue 3
NEW YORK, FEBRUARY 6, 2024
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Manhattan College Fires Associate Dean of Students and Director of Residence Life Matthew Lewis Mack Olmsted & Zoe DeFazio
Jasper Summer Research Program 2024 Community presentation of completed summer research projects on the 5th floor of Kelly Commons. ADRIANNE BILOUS/ COURTESY
The Beauty of Physics: SPS Wins Best Chapter Award
Following allegations of inappropriate sexual contact with a Manhattan College student and revelations of sexual performances distributed on X, formerly known as Twitter, and OnlyFans, Manhattan College fired Matt Lewis, associate dean of students and director of residence life, on Nov. 29, 2023. The college considers personnel matters private and refused to comment on Lewis’s specific situation but did not deny the allegations. “Once the College was made aware that one of its employees engaged in activities that may be in violation of Manhattan College’s Code of Conduct, it took immediate and decisive action to protect the well-being of all concerned,” the college wrote in a statement to The Quadrangle. “Upon the conclusion of its investigation, that employee was terminated from the College. Manhattan College is committed to upholding the highest standards of ethical conduct, and we will continue to take appropriate action as necessary to uphold those standards.” The night Lewis was fired, he posted on X, “Well… someone at work found my alt (X account) and OF (OnlyFans) and now I’m losing my job.” “Alt” refers to an alternate social media account a user uses to share different content aimed at a different audience from their main account. One of Lewis’ followers on
Manhattan College’s Society of Physics Students (SPS) chapter received the Outstanding Chapter Award from the national organization, placing them in the top 10-15% of chapters with the distinction. This marks the second time in four years that the chapter has earned national recognition for its efforts. According to manhattan. edu, the criteria for the award fall into three broad categories, “participation in national SPS events, outreach programs for youth, community service and increasing student recruitment efforts.” The website also mentions that the SPS is the “social hub
and informal advising network” related to the physics honor society Sigma Pi Sigma. One of the biggest achievements the chapter gained recognition for was participating in the STEM Outreach Day hosted by the college last year. The chapter played a significant role in planning the event as well as coordinating with the college community to immerse children from grades K-12 in a variety of STEM experiments. Rebecca Coglianese, a physics major and current vice president of the club, spoke about her involvement and how she found the club after switching her major to physics. “I was inspired to join in my freshman year, after I changed my major to physics, to find a community with interests similar to mine and to get an in-
IN NEWS:
IN FEATURES:
IN A&E:
IN SPORTS:
Rush Week for MC Greek Life on pg. 6
Meet the Greenstreets Band on pg. 8
Draddy Game Suspended During Lockdown on pg. 11
Angelina Persaud Managing Editor
Seniors Receive George J. Tamaro Scholarship on pg. 4
troduction to the professional world of physics,” Coglianese wrote in an email to The Quadrangle. She also spoke about the involvement SPS has with other societies and clubs on campus to further promote STEM outreach and engage the community. “SPS loves to collaborate with other clubs!” Coglianese wrote. “We collaborated with Pi Mu Epsilon, the Mathematics Society, for STEM Outreach Day in April 2023, serving underrepresented communities in the Bronx. Many activities were conducted bilingually in English and Spanish.” She also noted that the Pi Mu Epsilon event gained the chapter further recognition as __________________________
Features Editor and Senior Writer
X replied, “Gosh Sir, that is so insane, is that even possible? How can they just fire you for that?! Sending you so much sympathy and strength Sir!!” To which Lewis replied “Thanks boy, but they definitely can.” Shortly after The Quadrangle attempted contacting Lewis, the posts were taken down and a Quadrangle reporter was blocked from both Lewis’ main and alt X accounts. Multiple attempts to contact Lewis by The Quadrangle were unsuccessful. Lewis began his role as director of residence life in January 2023 and later took over the additional role of associate dean of students. During his time at the college, Lewis and his partner lived directly adjacent to undergraduate students on the eleventh floor of Horan Hall, one of the apartment-style residence halls on campus. Lewis shared living facilities including a common room, laundry and garbage facilities with students. There have been no allegations that anything inappropriate occurred between students and Lewis in his room on campus. The Quadrangle has learned that Lewis has exchanged sexual photos with a student who was unaware of his position at the time. Following an exchange of messages, Lewis proposed meeting at a location off campus. Lewis did not show up; when the student learned of Lewis’s position, they shared the information with friends, one of whom anonymously reported the situation to the college. The Manhattan College __________________________
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