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THE STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF MANHATTAN COLLEGE | SINCE 1924
Volume XCVIII, Issue 5
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NEW YORK, SEPTEMBER 25, 2018
Assembly Talks Elevators, Orca TV Asbestos Abatement and Club Budgets at Second Meeting Continues in Leo STUDENT GOVERNMENT ASSEMBLY
As Manhattan College makes progress on renovations and construction around campus, asbestos found as work is completed poses a snag that must be dealt with. The Environmental Protection Agency banned asbestos usage in the 1970s but most campus buildings were built before that policy went into effect, and utilize asbestos for electric insulation as well as building insulation. Andrew Ryan, VP of Facilities, was not surprised when asbestos was found during renovations and construction. “You know its a 1950s building or so, so typically what you expect would be things like floor adhesive, floor tiles, pipe insulation for sure, sometimes ceiling tiles, but we didn’t have that issue down there, what else, up on the roof sometimes roofing materials, sometimes the glue and sometimes the flashings that go on the wall … We knew we had asbestos,” said Ryan. He continued. “We got it in many buildings but just the mere presence of asbestos is absolutely not a problem. When asbestos becomes a problem is ... when it becomes airborne and then the prolonged breathing it in.” Asbestos is being found and removed in the Leo Engineering Building. On the front doors of Leo facing RLC, signs have been posted notifying students and the public of the presence of asbestos, as well as the fact that MC is permitted to work on asbestos abatement. “One of the things about asbestos abatement is that you have to post notices all over the place. They’re pretty horrible signs, you know and scares the whole world,” said Ryan, “They’re required and say there’s asbestos abatement in process.” The school works with fully licensed contractors to make sure all work gets done properly. There are different ways to abate the asbestos but one process involves plasticiz-
ing and sealing the room off, putting the room under negative pressure, exhausting the air from the room through a high efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter and having workers go through a ‘decon’ area where they can shower off any left over particles. All the material that needs to be disposed of is double bagged and then brought to a site to be legally disposed of. The work has not interfered with school functions or with student or faculty life. “Most of the time that we’re doing it, we do it at night… The only time it will interfere with classes and stuff like that is if we have to close a hallway, which we had to during the summertime but that’s it,” said Ryan. While the school has the full information about the abatement process and the safety of the process, the notices were left for students to see and for some, to be concerned about. Senior civil engineering major Brian J. Murphy was one of a few students who started to feel a little uneasy about the signs. “I didn’t think much of it, but the more i thought about the more I realized that asbestos is asbestos and it just isn’t good at all,” said Murphy, “I really hope it hasn’t affected any students and that no one’s breathed it in. That would be bad for us; it would be bad for the school.” Sophomore civil engineering major Andrew Scala also shared some concerns. “I feel that the school should’ve had informed us through emails or more postings rather than only the signs in the front because most students come in from the back,” said Scala, “ I also wish the school would keep us up to date on the air quality that they are supposed to be monitoring.” According to Ryan, at no point in the process has the air been unsafe. While there is no set end date for the completion of the abatement, the school has completed the bulk of the work and plans to continue to remove any asbestos it finds as future construction and renovation projects are undertaken.
IN A&E:
IN SPORTS:
Gabriella DePinho & Richard Gerling Asst. News Editor & Contributor
The Student Government Executive Board met with the assembly on Sept. 19. TAYLOR BRETHAUER / THE QUADRANGLE
Taylor Brethauer Editor-in-Chief
Student Government held their second assembly meeting of the semester on Wednesday, Sept. 18 at 12 p.m. in Kelly 4B. The Cooper administration had the idea of assigning seats for voting members in order to pass out ballots and fill the front rows. The meeting started with a brief talk with Nick Valinotti, the resident district manager of Gourmet Dining. He has worked his way up in the ranks of Gourmet Dining and with the recent departure of Brian Weinstein, Valinotti was promoted to his new title. “I’ve been here the past seven years and I’ve worked my way up ... I really look forward to working with everybody here. If you all need anything or have any suggestions, please feel free to reach out, I’m really responsive and I’ll take care of everybody here,” said Valinotti. He spoke about updates coming to the dining areas on campus, including the fresh fruit and smoothie bar happening at Locke’s Loft that day. He
IN OPINION:
It’s time we start talking about suicide on p. 2
then answered questions from students and handed out free Gourmet Dining coffee cards to the assembly members. Budget Allocation Committee There were two clubs presenting to the assembly after being approved by the BAC for their specific requests. The process is then to allow assembly members to vote on the exact allocation. Representing the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) was senior Aaron Beinstein, who explained the conference to the assembly. “We are asking for about $1500 to send two students to the the AIChE national conference in Pittsburgh. Largely why we want to go is to build our organization here,” said Beinstein. Representing Society of Women Engineers (SWE) was senior Megan Haber, who explained their conference to the assembly. “[Our conference] will be in Minneapolis, Minnesota. SWE has gone to conferences before ... what happens at these conferences is there is a huge career fair ... networking ... and
IN FEATURES: 22-Push Ups for Veteran Suicide Awareness on p. 8
multiple lectures,” said Haber. The networking at these conferences allowed the group to bring to campus the #HeForSWE campaign. The group asked for $2500 for six members and one advisor. Vice president of finance, Ryan Kwiecinski, reminded the assembly of the procedures pertaining to advisors. “Just for clarification purposes, through the Budget Allocation Committee we do not cover the cost of the advisor because the money from the [BAC] does come from the student activities fee so it is for student conferences only. Even if the advisor is going on the trip, the advisors are not included in our allocations and we make sure to calculate without the advisor,” said Kwiecinski. The BAC determined they would allocate $1700 for this request. The assembly ruled in favor of giving the allocated budgets. At that time, assembly __________________________ CONTINUED ON PAGE 3
Fatima Asghar Featured at the MARS Reading p. 5
Jaspers MSOC Beat No. 25 Fordham on p. 12
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the Quadrangle Volume XCVIII, Issue 5 SEPTEMBER 25, 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
It’s Time We Talk About Suicide Gabriella DePinho Asst. News Editor
National Suicide Prevention Awareness week was officially Sept. 9-15, but most people consider the entire month of September to be dedicated to sçp the cause. The cause of suicide prevention and awareness is of particular importance to me, but I didn’t even know that the week had passed until I looked up the matter while writing the 22 Push-Up Challenge story. After the passing of my nineteenth birthday, I decided I didn’t just want to write on the matter but I had to. If you read the story, the connection between that challenge and this op-ed is clear. If you know me, the connection between my birthday and this is not at all clear. The truth is that 19 is a semi-insignificant birthday; nothing really happens. However, to me, 19--as well as 18 and 17-- as well as every birthday I will have in the future, came and will come as a slightly anxiety-producing joy to me. My weird relationships with birthdays is a side effect of my long and serious struggle with mental illnesses. However, this is not about me, what I went through or what I continue to go through because I get to continue going through my struggles. This is about the student from Seton Hall University that recently died after falling from a campus parking garage; a friend of mine that attends SHU personally knew him and is currently dealing with the grief. This is about Brandon, the kid from my town that died by suicide when I was in high school, who I heard about through whispers at dance class and through prayer intentions at church. This is about Travis Twiggs, my freshman year roommate’s father, a military veteran with severe PTSD, who died by suicide when she was young and how he is never gone from her. This is about Kate Spade, Anthony Bourdain, Robin Williams, Chester Bennington, Chris Cornell and every other celebrity that has died by suicide, that people question why they would die that way when they seem to be living the dream. This is about the way people still talk about suicide as selfish, as an easy way out, as a an act for glory, as a coward’s decision. This is about the way that people don’t talk about suicide at all. People have so many conceptions about what suicide is, but I can tell you what it is not: suicide is not simple. No suicide survivor or story is the same. No one can tell you there are set causes and pre-conditions that mean some-
one will experience suicidal ideation. There are warning signs to look out for such as but not limited to the following, compiled from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP): talking about unbearable pain, withdrawing from family and friends, anxiety, fatigue, depression, loss of interest, serious health conditions, prolonged stress, stressful life events, access to lethal means and previous suicide attempts. However, in a post on Harvard University’s Health Blog by Patrick J. Skerrett, a former executive editor for Harvard Health, Dr. Michael Miller, an assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School is quoted, “Many people who commit suicide do so without letting on they are thinking about it or planning it.” The truth of suicide is scary. According to the AFSP, there is an average of 123 suicides a day. For every suicide, there are 25 attempts. In 2016, adolescents from 15 to 24 had a suicide rate of 13.15 percent and it is the third leading cause of death of members of that age group. Mental health issues are growing among college students. A Boston Globe article published a few weeks ago on Sept. 6 reported on new findings in a study done by researchers at Brigham and Women’s Hospital that was published in the journal “Depression & Anxiety.” According to the study, one in five college students reported thoughts of suicide in the past year and approximately 9 percent of students had actually attempted suicide and 20 percent had reported self-injury. Researchers surveyed more than 67,000 college students at more than 100 colleges for this study. As Manhattan is a school with a large and growing veteran student population, it is also important to look at the data surrounding this issue and that population. The Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) released its newest findings on veteran suicide in Sept. 2017. The study reveals that veteran rates mirror those of the population that veterans live in; however, when you adjust the data for differences in age and sex, risk for suicide was 22 percent higher among veterans than non-veteran adults. These numbers don’t lie: suicide is a serious and growing issue. Nothing about these numbers is glorious or easy. With there being such clear evidence that suicide and suicidal thoughts are growing problems in college students, it came as a shock to me that we, as a campus, did not do more to raise awareness, but also make a change during the week of the 9th to the 15th or throughout the rest of the month. During the week of the 9 to the 15, the only event that oc-
curred related to the issue was a program I heard about hosted by a Resident Assistant in Lee Hall. On Sept. 17, the Student Veteran Organization on campus hosted the 22 Push-Up challenge. Those two events are all we did as a campus. Now maybe, as the month isn’t over quite yet, there are more programs to come, but I have doubts about that considering last year’s events were quite similar to the ones we had this year. One could argue that we are a Catholic institution and being that the Catholic Church has a complicated history with teachings on the matter, it is better we stay silent, but I raise a different perspective. As Catholics, we are called to love one another and to help those in need. Are those struggling with mental illnesses, major life stressors or suicidal thoughts not worthy of our love and help? I doubt you answered yes to that question. So now what? You know the statistics, the hard numbers, you’ve heard my personal anecdotes and you’ve even thought about this through the lens of Catholicism; what do we do moving forward? I don’t get to decide what campus groups or school administrators do about this issue, but as a community, we can make a decision. Maybe in the future, we host more events to raise awareness about the issue. Maybe in the future, the Counseling Center tables on the quadrangle to make their services, selves and location more widely known to students. Maybe in the future, clubs host events about self-love. Not everything that can be done to raise awareness about the issue has to be a heavy conversation; we can find ways to make it inspiring and empowering. We just have to start having the conversation. We are one collegiate institution in a sea of thousands; but if we start, maybe we can inspire students elsewhere to have a conversation, and so on. I rather have the conversation now than when it’s too late. It’s easy to tweet about checking in on your friends, but it’s hard to follow through. It’s easy to say “RIP” but it’s not easy to talk about what happened. It’s time we destigmatize; it’s time we talk about suicide. Editor’s Note: Gabriella DePinho is an Assistant News Editor of The Quadrangle and a sophomore. The views expressed in this article are hers, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Manhattan College, The Quadrangle or its Editorial Board.
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SEPTEMBER 25, 2018
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At Second, Meeting Student Government Assembly Takes on Orca TV, Club Budgets __________________________ CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1 member Liam Moran stood and began asking questions about the budget cuts. Director of student development, John Bennett, told him to save his questioning for the end of the assembly due to the packed schedule of presentations. Resident Student Association Vice president of residential affairs, Isabel Quinones, spoke about recent updates she had learned through the residence life office. “I recently met with AJ Goodman and Dean Carey to get an update of what’s going on on campus. I have a good elevator update,” said Quinones. There was an inspection over the summer months for each elevator shaft on campus. Quinones continued. “The actual work on the Horan [Hall] elevators is scheduled to begin within the month. … By next fall, all elevators are expected to be fixed within the building. One elevator will be closed at a time,” said Quinones. The elevators will be completely replaced. This information came from Andrew Ryan, vice president of facilities. There are also plans for renovation work to begin in Horan Hall, with a consultant visit planned for current and former resident students. The former resident students consist of those who became commuters or moved into local apartments after living on campus. Residence life has seen a decrease in on-campus living, from 98 percent last year to around 80 percent this year. The blue light system was also addressed, a topic of discussion from the previous year brought up at assembly meetings often. “We have 24 blue lights on campus. … It’s all online if you’re curious of the public safety measures that have been taken,” said Jaycie Cooper, student body president. Presentations from ITS, Health Ser vices and OrcaTV Placed intermittently throughout the meeting were presentations for the assembly. The first was from Information Technology Services (ITS) representatives Anita McCarthy, ITS training coordinator, and Richard Musal, director of client services and operations. The two presented on the use of Web Print, Labseat and Google Jamboards, all resources students can use for printing, checking computer lab availability, presentations and
Anita McCarthy from ITS presents Web Print to the assembly. Web Print allows students to send documents needed to print to any location on campus for easy pick-up. For more information, check out the resources on Inside Manhattan. TAYLOR BRETHAUER / THE QUADRANGLE
New Director of Health Services, Catherine Sharbaugh, speaks to the assembly. TAYLOR BRETHAUER / THE QUADRANGLE studying, respectively. The next presentation was from the new director of Health Services, Catherine Sharbaugh. Sharbaugh has come from Haverford College in Haverford, Pa., and has many plans to make her office more approachable and accessible for all students. “I’m the new sheriff in town ... right off the bat, [after last year’s report] I hope I can encourage you all to get the flu vaccine,” said Sharbaugh. She reminded students, especially with the upcoming cold season, to wipe down their cell phones and laptops, where germs can most commonly be found. This information, among others, will be introduced has part of a “health advisory committee”, a big plan of Sharbaugh’s upon her arrival to the college.
“I would love to get to know you all better, I’d love to get students on a health advisory committee and I really feel like I need to know what’s going on on this campus and do a little bit of assessment. I know there is lots of needs ... we are student services and we want to get to know your needs,” said Sharbaugh. She also plans to hold a “health fair” and begin moving all paper records to an online database, commonly referred to as an electronic medical record, or an EMR. “I’m not saying that’s going to happen right now, I’ve just been here for a few weeks so far, but I’d really hope for that to happen and bring [the health service] into a more modern practice,” said Sharbaugh. She reminded students to feel free to visit at any point during the school year and that
Health Services can be found in their temporary location in Horan Hall rooms 218-220, Monday through Friday at 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The final presentation was from Daniel Aguirre, a senior representative from OrcaTV. The channel, which can be found on channel 3 on the College’s cable network, allows clubs and departments to advertise their events. This program went live last semester. “Basically what we’re trying to do is to get everyone, especially student organizations and clubs on campus to promote themselves on campus and bridge the gap on campus. The gap being a lack of communication,” said Aguirre. Aguirre encouraged students to utilize the service in order to boost the service’s usage. More information can be found at manhattan.orcatv.com.
Budget Cuts Returning to the topic brought up earlier by Moran on budget cuts, Cooper was able to explain to the assembly the information they had received over the summer. “We had the budget cuts because men’s rowing became a club. So, their money could no longer come from athletics because Title IX says that you have to have even mens and womens teams or it’s against federal law. In order for men’s rowing to proceed on campus, they would have to become a club. We were hit with a roughly $77,000 allocation that we had to make up in our budget,” said Cooper. Kwiecinski then added onto her comment. “Essentially, we were told to cut budgets across the board by 11.6 percent. Every organization on campus, no matter how old your club was, no matter what your budget was previously, whether it was something like Quadchella, Spring Fest or conferences, all of that was cut. Anything that falls under the student activity [fee] was cut by that 11.6 percent across the board. There was no favoritism and there was an email sent out in June notifying students that this would occur,” said Kwiecinski. Moran then asked how to prevent a situation like this in the future. In the end, it was decided that a resolution to student government’s constitution could be brought up to the college’s senate. At that time, Bennett, from where he was observing the meeting, chimed in. “We are your representatives and speak on behalf of you guys, we go to bat for you. It was handed down to us as a mandate after the whole budget process had happened. You’re preaching to the choir and we understand everything that is being voiced now we have been hearing since the summer. We are trying to see if we can get additional funding,” said Bennett. He also mentioned that there was been a club freeze since the spring semester so there are no new clubs taking more funding than the already reduced budgets. After ten minutes of discussion, Moran then suggested the discussion to be tabled until the next meeting. The minutes were accepted by the assembly and the meeting was adjourned. The next assembly meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, Oct. 3 at 12 p.m. in Kelly 5B.
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THE QUADRANGLE
L.O.V.E. Application Process Updated Alexa Schmidt & Samantha Walla
Asst. A&E Editor & Asst. Production Editor The Lasallian Outreach Volunteer Program, or L.O.V.E, as it is more commonly known on campus, has recently made changes to their application process that will better reflect the values of the program. Sophomore Ireland Twiggs participated in a trip last year, and is currently leading the winter break trip to New Orleans. As a double major in peace and religious studies, she is no stranger to the concept of social justice. “I think the L.O.V.E. program is good for Manhattan students because it offers them an opportunity to make a community and meet people they may not have had the chance to interact with before. It offers a space to talk about pertinent issues in our society along with ways to address them and be an ally in some cases. It also provides a cultural immersion experience that is memorable to everyone that is apart of the team,” she said. She continued. “It offers exposure and a sense of community on campus that teaches the applicant about a variety of topics and how to work alongside a team. The L.O.V.E. program is actually what drew me to apply to Manhattan College and the people I met alongside my team have become some of my closest friends,” Twiggs said. Although the program evolves each year, several changes have been made that will cause the application process to differ as compared to years prior. Students will find the website updated with clear dates, prices and descriptions of each excursion, as well as updated, ethical photography. “Simple living”, a long-valued aspect of the program, was also added as a pillar and now holds
a place among the official standards for L.O.V.E. participants. The most notable change, however, will be seen when the students actually begin to fill out their applications. This year, instead of applying to a specific trip, students indicate which areas of social justice they are interested in, as well as their price range. Trip preference is still a factor, but the program hopes to shift the emphasis from the destination to the actual activism tied to the experience. After applications for the winter trips closed, the student trip leaders worked together to place applicants on the trip that best combined their interests and affordability. “That was a really positive process because we were able to see where people were at in their understanding, how exposed they had been to thinking about issues of social justice,” said Kathleen Von Euw, Assistant Director of Community Engagement and Partnerships. Being placed by student leaders has solved some of the problems the program has faced in the past regarding transparency of the experiences and diversity within the groups. “It’s like a giant puzzle. We’re trying to make sure that there’s diversity within the group, so that’s year, major, resident, commuter, where people are from, languages spoken, everything.” The application questions have also been tweaked to emphasize service rather than destination, as the old questions asked people to answer why they were interested in visiting a place they had never been to. Having applicants answer based off of generalizations about a place or community that they might not have ever encountered went against the aim of L.O.V.E. Students are now asked to talk about why they’re inter-
L.O.V.E. participants from past years featured on the updated website, which has changed to feature more ethical photography. CMSA/ COURTESY ested in the program, how they define social justice, which experiences are they most interested in and why, and what they hope to learn. “They have more of a reason why they would want to go on a particular experience based on those justice issues instead of saying ‘oh, it’s spring break, I want to go to Jamaica.’ Having it be a little more in depth,” said Jacqueline Martin, Coordinator of Social Action and Campus Ministry. Student preferences on trip location are still considered, but the revamped application better reflects the essence of L.O.V.E. In doing this, newer and less popular trips are given more encouragement to grow, as students who may have been unaware of their interest in a particular trip can be accurately placed by the leaders. “Being open-minded is really important for entering into this program. Applying to the program and having the willingness to be open to whatever experience you get placed on is sort of a good indicator that students will be open to the experi-
Students from the college traveled to El Cercado in the Domican Republic for their L.O.V.E. trip in the past. CMSA / COURTESY
ence in general,” said Von Euw. The new application has also eliminated the interview process, which created unnecessary stress for both applicants and trip leaders. “When there’s an interview, there’s a power dynamic,” said Von Euw. “And one thing we try to teach the love participants is about power and privilege, so eliminating the structures we had within our own program that reinforced power was something that we’ve been doing. If you want to do it, you’re interested in doing it and you have the means to do it, then you should get to do it.” Students are now guaranteed that they will have the opportunity to go on an experience, if not the first time they apply, then for a program later in the year. These outward changes have a notable effect on students who want to apply to these trips. ”I think change is always difficult in any situation, especially trying to convince those around you to accept the new mode of how things are being done,” said Twiggs. “As a participant last year and a leader this year I have seen how the application process works from both sides.” She continued. “I personally like the new way of doing the applications, I think it pushes the applicants to really understand the issues that they are interested in more than the location of the trip and that makes the experience more meaningful. On the side of the leaders, I think it brings them together as well to work cohesively with applications and devise the best possible teams,” she said. After being placed, students attend an orientation to acquaint them with the values and mission of L.O.V.E. “We’ve started an orientation program over the summer for navigating L.O.V.E. That
way we can give everyone a good background on what the program is about, they can have a good understanding and we can make sure they know what’s expected of them, and they get the policies and procedures,” explained Martin. “Once they really get into it then they know exactly what to be expecting. It’s a positive addition. With that, the participants, once we place them on different experiences, they go to their specific meeting and that’s where they meet their leaders and team and have some connection and bonding with them in addition to learning more about the program.” The time once spent on interviews can now be used to creating a space for everyone to dive into social justice. Both Martin and Von Euw hope to increase the opportunities for students to continue their involvement in social action after they return from their weeklong experience. “We want to get students out in NYC or Bronx to hear speakers or go to museums or to protests. We do a lot of talking so we want to encourage even more by creating opportunities,” said Von Euw. Ultimately, the changes made to the L.O.V.E. application have been in the works for some time, as the program is always undergoing internal improvements. However, this outward development clarifies what it means for students to experience L.O.V.E. “They understand the approach of the program. We are focusing more on immersion, being with people, building relationships, and less on service and doing things for people. People still have a perception that we’re service-mission trips, so I think that helps people know what they’re getting into,” said Martin. L.O.V.E. applications for spring break trips are due on Oct. 9.
Arts & Entertainment
SEPTEMBER 25, 2018
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Fatimah Asghar Featured at MARS Reading RikkiLynn Shields Social Media Editor
Each year, the Manhattan College English Department’s own Dr. Adam Koehler and Dr. Dominika Wrozynski put together the Major Author Reading Series, otherwise known as MARS. Throughout the years, there have been a variety of different authors and poets visiting campus, holding readings of their work in Hayden 100, answering questions from students and professors and selling their work through the school’s bookstore. Fatimah Asghar, a Pakistani-Kashmiri-American poet, screenwriter, performer and educator kicked off the Major Author Reading Series. Asghar is not only a poet, but also the co-creator and writer for the Emmy-nominated webseries Brown Girls, a series that puts the spotlight on friendships between women of color. Along with her Emmynominated webseries, Asghar’s work has also appeared in POETRY Magazine, PBS, Teen Vogue, BuzzFeed Reader, The Huffington Post, The Offing, Academy of American Poets and a variety of other wellknown publications. Asghar admits to have entered her undergraduate studies with a desire to work for the United Nations, majoring in International Studies. However, she soon realized that this wasn’t what would make her happy. She admits to never having taken a creative writing or screenwriting course in college, but for some reason, writing was always something
she enjoyed and something at which she excelled. “I have one life and I want to be happy. I don’t want to do something that makes me unhappy. And writing makes me happy,” Asghar said. Asghar read from her book of poems, If They Come for Us. The poems she read gave the audience a taste of her style, which she specified is mainly inspired by her childhood, her experiences growing up in America and how she grapples with the way she thought of herself when she was young compared to now. During her reading, Asghar mentioned how she is fascinated, when looking back at her childhood, by the way that “childhood logic” would take over. Some of the poems she read from If They Come for Us, such as “Old Country,” “Haram” and “How’d Your Parents Die Again?” reflect on these thoughts. A few of her other poems, such as “Partition,” “When the Orders Came” and “100 Days” reflect on both the current political climate and a variety of other historical events that have impacted Asghar’s life in some way. While Asghar does incorporate a wide variety of themes and genres into her poetry, writing doesn’t always come as easy for her as it seems. As for challenges, Asghar admits that as a writer, her biggest challenge is time. “The days get filled with so many things that it can be hard to carve out time for yourself,” Asghar said. “Creative writing is rejection after rejection. Sometimes though, a “no” is a “not yet. Writing is writing.
Writing is always writing. If you can study a craft, you are artist.” Asghar admits that some poems that she has written don’t end up being looked at for months on end. As a writer, Asghar confessed that it’s important to not only read and write other works, but to also leave your own work alone sometimes, or have friends read it over if you’re having a hard time. “Sometimes it’s better with distance. Leave things for a long time so the results feel organic,” Asghar said. What stood out to most students at the MARS reading was Asghar’s distinct voice, which she confessed she didn’t discover easily or quickly. “It takes forever to find your voice. Make a book you’d be proud to stand by for years and years,” Asghar said. The students at the MARS reading were inspired by Asghar’s advice and the words she spoke while reading her poetry. “Fatimah beautifully mixed the personal with the political to create a poetic experience that, when read aloud, creates a powerful hold on the listener which makes it hard to not pay attention. I really loved how simple her poetic voice is, but the topics and words she uses inspires inspiration in aspiring writers,” said senior English major David Valentin. Sophomore Ian Fenton, who also attended, shared his thoughts as well. “I thought she spoke to the Muslim-American experience in a way that portrayed how difficult it can be growing up in that insular familial setting
Fatima Asghar, author of “If They Come for Us,” opened Manhattan College’s Major Author Reading Sereis. RACHEL ROCA / COURTESY within the American cultural framework. Her poetry is powerful but not beyond understanding for someone who is pretty unfamiliar with poetry in general (me). She was great and I highly recommend her work for anyone who 1.) feels marginalized and isolated, and 2.) wants to engage with poetry that isn’t pretentious or too esoteric, especially casual readers
who want to get more serious,” Fenton said. The next Major Author Reading Series will be held on Oct. 11 at 6:30 p.m. with critically acclaimed, bestselling author Julianna Baggott. The location on campus has yet to be determined.
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Arts & Entertainment
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THE QUADRANGLE
Andy Bauer: The Man Behind MC Performing Arts Alexa Schmidt Asst. A&E Editor
Andrew Bauer is the main man behind performing arts. Besides being the director of Singers and Music Ministry, he oversees all other groups including Jazz Band, Pep Band, Players, Pipes and Drums, Manhattones and Orchestra. He is also responsible for anything that goes on at the chapel, like weddings, funerals or convocations. Bauer has many talents of his own. He can play the flute, keyboard, organ, guitar, saxophone, kazoo and bass. “I like to write music at the piano. I’m a composer so I usually like to flesh things out at the piano and it’s very useful because you hear all the ranges of the different instruments at the piano. I like arranging and composing music. I like to record in studios, put together demos and do recording, which is really great,” Bauer said. Bauer grew up in Dutchess County, went to Bard College and then to the Manhattan School of Music for his masters’ degree. “When I graduated college in upstate, NYC was viewed as the Mecca of performing arts, so anyone’s who serious about having a career in music has to at least take a look at New York and come and try to make a go of it. And of course, Manhattan School of Music was here so I just stayed because that was where all the work possibilities are,” he said. He continued, “I moved to NYC in 1988, and my first apartment was $400 a month overall. I could make a living, busting in the subway sometimes and even go out to dinner afterwards. I worry about the cultural vital-
Andy Bauer (right) conducts the Manhattan College Singers at the Lessons & Carols performance in 2016. KAIYUN CHEN / THE QUADRANGLE ity of the city when people are just priced out of it. How many talented people are we missing out on just because they can’t afford the city? That’s a big problem, and I still see it,” Bauer said. During the semester, Bauer is at the college around seven days a week because running this department the way he envisions it requires attention. He noted that as the director, he has to be there for the students when they need him. “It is so important to build relationships with the students, especially in performing arts where they are such a big part of our program. We really learn so much from them and they keep us so much into the core
what’s important these days. We kind of give them stuff they don’t know either. It goes both ways,” he said. Bauer recalled how he got the job at Manhattan College. “It’s very interesting how I got this job. It speaks to the human connections we make in this world because if I trace back all the people that I had to get this job, it goes back to a fellow named John Sacco, who is a coach in the Manhattan College Singers,” he said. Bauer was the music director for a parish in Yonkers when somebody at another church called him to do a funeral. He got introduced to Tom Snowden, who was directing music at a parish in Yonkers
“It is so important to build relationships with the students, especially in Performing Arts where they are such a big part of our program. PHOTO BY MANHATTAN COLLEGE COURTESY
when he decided to become a priest. Bauer took over his job in Sacred Heart, Yonkers, teaching in high school and directing music for the parish. Snowden also got Bauer a job working for the Sisters of Charity at the College of Mount Saint Vincent, and one of the sisters was a teacher at Mother Cabrini High School. They needed a music director so they contacted Bauer to run the girls’ choir. He found Manhattan College through one of his students in the choir who wanted to try out for the performing arts scholarship at Manhattan College. He accompanied her on the piano, and she decided to go to MC. It turned out that the music director at MC left the position and the same student called Bauer and said that he could fill the temporary position. He went for it, and in the end, the students really liked him and recommended him to Student Engagement. In the Spring of 2012, Bauer took the job. “That’s when I discovered how unique Manhattan was because the students had a huge say in what was happening. And that’s true for all of performing arts. We give our students a lot of authority in what reportraire and music we decide,” Bauer said. He continued. “Everything went really well, I really liked the place, and I feel like everything I had
ever done in my career was leading me up to this point at MC. I just felt like I was coming home. I felt like I fit in the particular character that is here at this school,” Beaur said. Eventually, Student Engagement asked if Bauer if he wanted to be the director full time and he said yes. He knew he was not an administrator, but knew he could do it because of his experience in being a musician, choral director, and knowing theater, orchestra and jazz. “I interviewed for job in June and heard nothing. Then the second week of August they hired me. I was shocked because I asked myself, ‘How am I going to prepare, considering I have to run a whole department?’ But, I did it, and I felt like a cat thrown off a balcony, where I landed on my feet,” Bauer said. Since then, Bauer has really dedicated himself to the program. He made some incredible memories, including the two classes he taught: Abbey Road and Sergeant Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. “These were two fantastic classes which examined and performed those seminole Beatles albums which have such an influence over the music of our time. Working with the students and performing that was by far the best experience of my teaching career and possibly my music career in totality,” he said.
SEPTEMBER 25, 2018
Arts & Entertainment
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The Feast of San Gennaro Returns for 92nd Year Catherine Goodyear & Maria Thomas Social Media Editor & Staff Writer
It’s that time of the year again when everyone feels a little Italian. Similar to the Catholics’ St. Patrick’s day, the Feast of San Gennaro is a holiday and event that people of all backgrounds participate in. For the 92nd year in a row, American-Italians will celebrate their heritage with traditional Italian food, colorful parades and various performers. Each year for 11 days, along Mulberry Street between Canal and Houston Streets, red, white and green garland is hung to commemorate the Feast of San Gennaro. “I took dance classes in Chinatown since I was two, and I always saw the festival but I never got to go. It always looked so colorful and fun. I am excited to say that this year, I was finally able to go. The atmosphere was magical. People of every ethnicity were gathered to observe Italian culture. It was very fun and I am definitely going next year,” said junior Claudia Bernhardt. Festival goers can participate in the celebration by enjoying the many food vendors and games that line the streets of Little Italy. People can eat fine sausages or tasty desserts like cannolis. On Sept. 14, the Italian eatery Caffe Palermo sponsored the annual cannoli eating competition. Ernest (who did not wish to give his last name) is a coowner of Pip’s Pitt, a sausage and pasta shop located in Little Italy. “My family and I have been working the Feast of San Gennaro for about 40 years. I love seeing people I know here and watching everyone enjoy the
For the 92nd year, thousands flocked to the 10-daySan Gennaro Feast along Mulberry Street in Lower Manhattan.
food,” he said. Victoria Cipollina, senior mechanical engineering major at Manhattan College, finds the feast to be a “beautiful expression of culture”. “A huge part of my Italian heritage is family and most of what makes me think of my family is food and sharing a meal together. It’s nice to feel like you are part of a community and extended family when you go to the festival. I am definitely looking forward to having a good meal and being a part of this huge event which so many people are able to partake in and celebrate my heritage,” said Cipollina. San Gennaro was first celebrated in the United States when Italian immigrants from Naples congregated in what is now known as New York’s famous “Little Italy” in September of 1926. They were celebrating Saint Januarius, the patron saint of Naples. “I am most looking forward to the food at the festival. I celebrate my heritage with my family at dinners and celebrations, including watching soccer. My favorite part of the festival was the lively atmosphere and friendly people. The food and drinks were great. They made it an even better time. To anyone planning on attending, I suggest wearing your stretchiest pants. I have never been so full in my life,” said junior Gabrielle Formoso. Saint Januarius was a bishop before he became a martyr for the Catholic Church due to his death during the Great Persecution at the hands of Diocletian, the Roman emperor at the time. The people of the San Gennaro festival will honor him by carrying his statue through the streets of Little Italy, known as the Grand Procession. This takes place on the last Saturday of the festival after a celebratory mass.
ALL PHOTOS BY CATHERINE GOODYEAR / THE QUADRANGLE
MC Film Society Announces List of Films Lauren Schuster Asst. Features Editor
At the beginning of each fall semester, the members of the Manhattan College Film Society are tasked with picking a theme to set the tone for the club’s film screenings that year. After the theme is established, members then must suggest films that would fall under the theme to screen throughout the course of the school year. This process is overseen by the club’s two coleaders, senior students Sofia Tollinche and Marisa Washington. “As co-leaders, obviously we are movie enthusiasts, so we have seen a couple [of films
fitting the theme]. So we can also tell [the other members] ‘listen, we have these movies that we like, maybe you would want to see them, or not.’ We tend not to impose our own preferences and we let them choose before we do, and then we sit down with Dr. Toth and decide which ones are the better films to screen,” Tollinche said. This year’s theme is new beginnings, which will be focused on, but not limited to, comingof-age films. The films the club intends to screen this year include “Dead Poets Society,” “Lady Bird,” “Hard Candy,” “Eighth Grade,” “Dazed and Confused,” “A Silent Voice,” and “Butch Cassidy and the
Sundance Kid.” The club’s coleaders and the club’s faculty advisor Margaret Toth, Ph.D., all voiced their excitement to examine the wide range of films and how they all still manage to fit the theme. “A lot of these films we haven’t seen and some we have, so it just opens up more discussion about something we all love and just the little details that go in with it,” Washington said. While the film screenings are meant to be fun opportunities to watch good movies, they also aim to get those in attendance to think a little deeper about the films. At each screening, a member of the Film Society gives the audience some
key things to look out for about the film and then facilitates an open conversation with the audience about the film after it ends. “The MC Film Society aims to gather together students and faculty who want to discuss film in a setting that is at once relaxed and rigorous. That is, the events are fun and open, but we also like to have serious conversations about the films we screen,” Toth said. These conversations are mainly moderated by students who are members of the club, however, there are the occasional exceptions. This year, Adam Koehler, Ph.D., a professor in MC’s English department, will be moderating the
discussion on the film “Dead Poets Society.” “Each year, we invite one or two faculty members to present a selected film, usually based on their teaching and research interests. For example, last year, Dr. Marinaccio, an expert on NYC texts, presented ‘Taxi Driver.’ Dr. Koehler has taught ‘Dead Poets Society’ and has a provocative take on it that I’m sure attendees will be interested in hearing about,” Toth said. In addition to the film screenings that are spread out over the course of the year, the club also organizes occasional outings in the city and script readings on campus. No dates for the club’s upcoming events have been announced yet.
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THE QUADRANGLE
Peer Ministry to Begin at MC Shannon Gleba Copy Editor
One of the most important aspects of religion and faith is the ability to share one’s beliefs with others. As a Lasallian Catholic school, campus ministry has always been present at Manhattan College, as well as service and social action. This year, the college’s ministry program is expanding with the addition of a new peer ministry program for students. The idea for a peer ministry program came from Father Thomas Franks during his inaugural year as the college chaplain in 2017. Fr. Thomas shared this idea with Kaitlyn von Runnen, current senior, and they worked together to formulate a plan for the program. “Father Tom came here last year; I was on the interview committee, interviewing new campus chaplains after Father George passed [..] at the end of 2016. Then, we hired Father Tom and this was an idea that him and I have been discussing, basically just about bringing more campus ministry to campus. So, it’s been some-
thing that has been ongoing, so this summer we really got the ball rolling on working towards developing the peer ministry program, researching what other schools and universities do, things like that,” said von Runnen. Fr. Thomas thinks the peer ministry program is important because many of the ideas for it have come from students themselves. “I think that it’s not about faculty, administrators, campus ministers sort of presenting what should be, but deciding among themselves what’s important, what’s relevant, how to express faith and become a community together,” said Fr. Thomas. While the program is still in the initial stages of planning, Fr. Thomas is already looking to get more students involved. On Sept. 19, two information sessions were held for students, both commuters and residents, to share ideas and to sign up to receive more information about peer ministry. Senior Nicole Kaiser attended one of the information sessions and was excited to hear about a new way to get involved in ministry, in addition to attending mass.
“I participated in youth ministry in high school so that was a bunch of teens coming together in small groups and discussing gospels and hanging out and having fun and it was a great way to meet people but also connect through faith. So, I’m really hoping that this program kind of facilitates the same thing. I go to mass on Sundays but you don’t really interact with anybody but your friends who come to mass with you, so its hard to meet people through that. And even some of my friends don’t have as much of a faith foundation as some of my high school youth ministry friends, so I think this will be a good way to connect college friends and faith friends and put it all together,” said Kaiser. A very important part of the peer ministry program is the inclusiveness it has for all religions, not just those who are Catholic. “I personally believe that we’re a Catholic community, we’re a Catholic college, and we’re very open and accepting to all other faiths, but I think it is also important to recognize your own and to develop it. It’s a very important part of a lot of peoples’ college experiences despite whatever faith they are
and whatever they practice or don’t practice. I think a lot of times we go through a transformative four years of college. People look to have some type of guidance from other students who have been in similar shoes, they look to sometimes a higher power to understand why things happen. Is it for a reason? Is it not for a reason? So, I think that’s part of the reason peer ministry is important,” said von Runnen. Once the peer ministry program planning is set, the leaders hope to form smaller groups around campus that can meet on a regular basis for different ministry events. Some of these groups could be made of students who live in the same residence halls, or those in the same class. These groups will be lead by peer ministers who will undergo training and will be responsible in coordinating activities, communicating with the Campus Ministry Office and facilitating meaningful conversation among their peers. Fr. Thomas hopes to have the program up and running by Thanksgiving and looks forward to getting started. “I’m hoping by the end of the year that we can have an established group of maybe ten
or twenty peer ministers that are creating programming on campus that are working with small communities and building things up this year and start some activities and that would be great,” said Fr. Thomas. Von Runnen thinks peer ministry is important to MC’s campus to supplement all of the service opportunities available for students, which she has also been heavily involved. “I think peer ministry is important because we have a lot of focus on social action, which I think is great, it’s a great way to learn, to grow and to develop. However, I think it’s equally as important to have that campus ministry and that campus faith on campus,” said von Runnen. Peer ministry is a great opportunity for interested students to form a more dynamic relationship with God beyond the scope of mass, and Kaiser hopes many students take the chance to deepen that relationship. “Don’t be afraid to come, no one is going to judge you based on your opinions, it’s whatever you want to say, you say and just be honest and open about it and it’ll be great,” said Kaiser.
22 Push-Ups For Veteran Suicide Awareness Gabriella Depinho Asst. News Editor
On Monday, Sept. 17, Manhattan College’s Student Veteran Organization hosted the 22 Push-Up Challenge at noon on the main quadrangle. A group of approximately 30 students gathered on the quad to partake in the challenge, which is an initiative to raise awareness of the fact that approximately 22 veterans die by suicide each day and to raise awareness about the general issue of suicide. Before the pushups started, the SVO’s president, senior Michael Giraldo spoke for a moment to the group gathered there about the statistics behind the Push-Up Challenge. He then led the count as the group did the pushups in unison. Michael Giraldo also spoke on why it was important that they were doing the challenge, especially in the middle of the day with veterans and non-veterans alike. “Suicide is a very taboo conversation to have. We felt like we can use the veterans to bring awareness to the issue,” said Giraldo, “We’re student veterans, we’re all going through the same stuff togeth-
er and it gets hard at time but today we’re just here to be together.” This is not the first year Manhattan has partaken in the challenge. The challenge has been circulating the nation for a while and takes different formats, such as 22 PushUps as a group or a daily 22 pushups for 22 consecutive days. Jonathan Hoogerhyde, a senior Marine Corps veteran, shared a bit more of the challenge’s history. Hoogerhyde said, “This event came about, it’s been around in the military for a little while now, the 22 PushUp Challenge and it’s basically a response to veteran suicide which is a very real epidemic for a lot of people who leave active duty, especially with the longest period of American warfare right now, the war on terror. He continued. “We have a lot of veterans who come back with mental health issues after combat, PTSD and things of that nature, that makes it very difficult for them to adjust back to civilian life.” Tiana Sloan, the Director of Veterans Success, was hired to Manhattan College with the opening of the Veterans’ Success Center. Supporting the
Approximately 30 students gathered on the quad to raise awareness of the fact that approximately 22 veterans die by suicide each day. GABRIELLA DEPINHO / THE QUADRANGLE veterans is her every day job and this event was no different. “[My job is] a little bit of everything. It’s being able to assess our student veterans, help with their programs, organizing and reaching out to alumni on their behalf, being able to work with them on resumes, on their careers and just setting them up,” said Sloan, “Our student veterans are integrated
on campus here but they’re still a little different.” At the end of the day, students of all types - veterans, athletes, and traditional students - came together for a small event that hopefully opens everyone’s eyes to a larger issue. “This is an event to raise awareness about the issue specifically for those in the military but also in a broader sense
suicide, depression and all of those things. This is something the veteran club on campus thought was an important thing to raise awareness for but really it’s just a local realization of something that’s a nationwide issue,” said Hoogerhyde.
Features
SEPTEMBER 25, 2018
Students Attend First Meeting for the Marble Hill Project
Madalyn Johnson Staff Writer
The Marble Hill Project is a community-based project that focuses on cleaning up parts of the Marble Hill Housing Complex located at 5365 Broadway. Their mission is to create a clean, healthy environment for the Bronx community. Last year, Manhattan College students, as well as residents of the Bronx, came together weekly to the garden and take out trash laying in random locations. The school has been encouraged to do the same this year. Manhattan College students are introduced to this type of community service by professors in the religious studies department. They hope students will participate and help residents and supervisors of the Marble Hill Project clean up garbage not only so they can complete their community service hours, but so they can gain lifelong skills and knowledge about the area that surrounds Manhattan College. David Shefferman, Ph.D., associate professor of religious studies, shared how Manhattan College came across the Marble Hill Project. “Students started last spring, spring of 2018. It was also part of the Arches Program and came out of the same coalition as the Green Fair Project,” said Shefferman. Shefferman regularly informs students when meetings are held for the project and why it is such a beneficial experience for students in their academics and social life. “It’s local, it’s right here, connected to where the college is and where our students live and travel. It’s a great opportunity for students to learn about urban planning, urban studies, environmental engineering, and it helps out these communities, these residences,” said Shefferman. On September 21, a few
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students in the Arches religion course came to an informative, brief meeting about the project. Students, led by project supervisors Anthony Del Obre and Ian Christner, toured the housing complex and the common areas where garbage is constantly dumped. “It’s an opportunity to tag community a bit closer together,” said Christner. “Public housing is our attempt to create housing for low-income communities.” Anthony expressed his concerns about the trash, explaining that the problem has become so dangerous that it is now a health issue for many of the residents. Unwanted sofas and furniture have been left outside and inside buildings, including down flights of stairs which Anthony mentioned is a huge fire hazard. Students were able to talk to some residents of Marble Hill who discussed why the illegal garbage dumping has become such a daily occurrence and why the efforts to fix the issue have not been successful. “They keep having meetings about us stopping the trash,” shared one resident of Marble Hill. “They get mad when no one wants to clean things up, but as soon as they get cleaned up, it gets trashed.” The project hopes to get more students at Manhattan College actively involved in helping the community get rid of all the trash. The colleges’ service last year made a significant difference. Students were able to identify which locations around Marble Hill get the most garbage and also helped plant and garden. Marble Hill’s effort to fix the community needs a lot of attention and participants, for it’s an independent, small organization that doesn’t receive any financial help from the government or state. “What we’re doing is independent,” Del Obre explained. “It is not funded by the city. If there’s not a green space in the community, we will make one.”
The Marble Hill Propject gets Manhattan College students involved in projects at the Marble Hill Houses. MADALYN JOHNSON / THE QUADRANGLE
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The Few, The Proud: The Spikeballers Alexa Schmidt Asst. A&E Editor
You’ve seen their faces. You’ve heard their music. Maybe you’ve joined in on a game or two. And you’ve probably wondered how they play so well. The Spikeball guys often seen on the quad when the weather is nice never miss an opportunity to get outside and play their favorite game. Junior civil engineers Joseph Campiellia and Marco Armato are dedicated players to the unique game. Their friend, Chris Hoffman is often seen playing with them as well. These students are no strangers to the concept of the game. All you need for Spikeball is the set and four players, each in pairs. “My friend actually introduced me to the game in high school and we played one summer like every day. I started a club at my high school and eventually brought it here. I’ve been traveling to tournaments for like 2 years now and I’m just spreading it to my friends,” Campiellia said. While Campiellia was exposed to the game in high school, Armato discovered the game through a different route. “I saw a Youtube video like a year and a half ago and thought it was cool so I got it. I brought it here, and I saw Joe [Campiellia] and his brother Mike playing, and thought, wow they were pretty good, and then they brought us to a tournament and it was mad fun. And now we play all the time,” he said. On the other hand, Spikeball is known for being a casual game. Hoffman bought the set for the beach, but met Campiellia and Armato on the beach and joined. Since then, he’s gotten better at playing. Although there is not an official club for it, Campiellia has thought about the idea. He said, “I don’t really have the time to go through that whole process, but I’m trying to spread it to as many people as possible. I’d love to have a little unofficial thing going on.” Hoffman described Spike-
ball as “volleyball, but instead of hitting it over a net, you hit it on a trampoline. That’s the best way to put it.” Campiellia added, “A mix of four square and volleyball. Imagine the net, like a volleyball net on the ground. So you have three hits between you and your teammate to get the ball back on the net and it’s got to go off the net cleanly. It bounces once and hits the floor for you to get a point.” In total, it’s two people versus two people. It is a very fast-paced game, and there are no boundaries. It is possible to make up your own rules, but it starts to get confusing quickly. Spikeball sets come in two sets: the pro-sets, which are $100, or the regular set, which is $60. The pro-sets are used for tournaments and to refine your skills, while the regular set is more for the beach or more casual atmospheres. It may seem pricey, but for the spikeballers, the money is worth it. Campiellia said, “Once you buy the set, if you break any part of it you just email them and they send you replacement parts for free.” The guys don’t have a groupchat to communicate when they want to play, but they say it’s a work in progress. As of right now, they just text each other. The only challenge they face is during the wintertime, when the weather does not permit them to use the quad. They try to find space inside of Draddy Gymnasium, but it gets tough when schedules conflict. Besides being a recreational activity, Spikeball tournaments are popular among players. Just recently, on Sept. 8, Armato and Campiellia drove to University of Connecticut to a college sectionals tournament. As a pair, they came in the top at 16th place. “Tournaments are fun, but they’re also pretty hard. Everyone’s really good so you get wrecked, but you learn,” Armato said. “At tournaments they have like 50-100 nets going at a time. You just get a big field and spread them out,” Campiellia said. “I won a tournament, so
You’ve seen their faces. You’ve heard their music. Now meet those guys who are always on the Quad playing Spikeball. ALEXA SCHMIDT / THE QUADRANGLE that has to be my best memory. Coming home with some prize money.” “The best part of spikeball
is playing with people you like and having crazy rallies that are kind of dumb but just like diving and flapping and having
people yell at you is the best part,” Armato said. Catch these guys out on the quad before the weather turns!
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Sports
SEPTEMBER 25, 2018
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Matt Centrowitz Returns Back to Where It All Started to Bolster Running Program John Jackson Sports Editor
Manhattan College had a reunion this past August with a former Jasper studentathlete who has accomplished numerous things over the last 44 years since he attended college in Riverdale. That former Jasper, Matt Centrowitz, was named director of the college’s cross country and track and field programs beginning on Aug. 1. Centrowitz has had a storied running and coaching career. As a runner, he was a collegiate All-American, a PanAmerican Games gold medalist, a four-time United States Champion and a two-time Olympian. He was ranked the nation’s best high school miler as a senior at Power Memorial High School and still holds the state record in both the 1500-meter and mile races. As a coach, he started the cross country and track program at American University from scratch and coached it from 1999 to 2017. Over his 18 years there, Centrowitz coached 11 AllAmericans, was named Patriot League Coach of the Year nine times and led the men’s cross country team to six straight Patriot League titles. After his final season with American University in 2017, he spent some more time with the training of his Olympic gold medalist son Matt Centrowitz Jr. Now he’s back home and ready to help bolster the running programs at Manhattan. “Well it feels fantastic to be back at Manhattan College,” Coach Centrowitz said. “And obviously I’m from the neighborhood so it’s great to be home again.” Centrowitz only spent a year with Manhattan before transferring to the University of Oregon. However, his experience at Manhattan was a positive one and it’s where he met his lifelong friends. “The best friends I made were at Manhattan College,” Coach Centrowitz said. “A lot of them are still personal friends that I speak to on a daily basis.” One of his closest friends is the school’s cross country assistant coach, John Lovett. The two runners both attended Power Memorial together before Lovett went down in Manhattan College history for being part of the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championship team in 1973. However, Centrowitz was on a NCAA Championship team of his own as Oregon’s cross country team was best in the nation in 1977. He was also recognized internationally a year before that as he competed in his first Olympic Games in Montreal, Canada.
A couple of years after graduating from Oregon, Centrowitz landed a job as an assistant coach at St. John’s University in 1980. While there, he still kept up his running and earned gold at the 1980 Olympic Trials. Due to the United States’ boycott of the Olympic Games hosted in Moscow, Russia, Centrowitz did not get a chance to participate in his second Olympic Games. “So I can’t say my Olympic experience has been tremendous or anything, but I am a two-time Olympian and my son finished the job for us by getting the gold medal so it’s kind of a cool thing that even though I didn’t accomplish it, my son finished the job for me,” Coach Centrowitz said. Centrowitz Jr. was able to finish that job in 2016 at the Rio de Janeiro Olympic Games by winning the 1500-meter race. In doing so, he became the first US runner to win that race since 1908. Centrowitz’s daughter Lauren is also an accomplished runner who ran for Stanford and qualified for the Olympic trials in 2012. Beyond running, she also excelled in academics and earned a master’s degree from American University in Justice, Law and Society in 2012. The accomplishments of his children are not something he attributes to being a Centrowitz, but rather individual hard work and effort. “Talent is one thing, a lot of people have talent,” Coach Centrowitz said. “But who dedicates themselves and has the passion for this, you can’t predict that. There’s no gene for that. You got to have to find your way through this sport because it’s a lot of work. It’s an individual sport and a team sport at the same time and you got to find your niche and obviously you have to enjoy that kind of work not just do it, but you have to enjoy it and thrive with it. And both of them did that in high school and college.” Centrowitz brings a lot of experience and success to the table for Manhattan. When he embarked on starting a new track and cross country program at American University, he truly didn’t have much to work with at all. The school didn’t have enough room for any field events and the track they built was just around the soccer field which meant it wasn’t even as round as normal tracks. With Manhattan, he’s coming into a good situation as the team has been quite competitive in both cross country and track and field the last few years. “I think it just shows the investment in the program that the school’s making and that
Matt Centrowitz comes back to Manhattan College to serve as director of the cross country and track and field teams GOJASPERS /COURTESY
Matt Centrowitz (third from left) being introduced at the Armory on Aug. 22 . GOJASPERS /COURTESY
the alumni are making,” said senior Amir Khaghani. “I know there was a lot of alumni interest in building the distance program back up from what it was in Coach Lovett’s time at the school. So they really wanted to bring it back to its former glory so sort of hiring Coach Centrowitz and bringing him on really shows an investment in the program because now we’ll have two full-time coaches for the distance program, plus Coach Lovett as the assistant coach so it’s really showing an investment by the administration and the alumni to support the team and our future.” The focus is indeed to
build up the distance program, but that does not mean track and field will suffer. “We’re not diminishing any other area, but we’re beefing up the middle distance and distance running programs here,” Coach Centrowitz said. Senior Lisa Fajardo, one of the integral runners on the cross country and track and field teams, also expressed excitement over the hiring of Centrowitz. “I am really excited to have an olympian as a part of our program! He has a lot of experience as a runner and a coach,” Fajardo wrote via email. Fajardo already broke nu-
merous school records in different events over the years (most recently on Sept. 8 when she broke her own 5K school record set in 2017) so it will be interesting to see how Centrowitz’s presence may impact her performance the rest of the cross country season and going into track and field season. The cross country season is well underway and under the tutelage of Head Coach Kerri Gallagher, Assistant Coach Lovett and Director Centrowitz, the trio hopes to build up the distance program while keeping the track and field program in tip-top shape.
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THE QUADRANGLE
Men’s Soccer Topples Fordham In Final Minute MSOC: Manhattan 1, Fordham 0 John Jackson Sports Editor
The Manhattan College men’s soccer team (7-1; 0-0 MAAC) took down No. 25 Fordham (3-1-2; 0-0-0 A-10) thanks to a late goal from junior defenseman Adrien Awana on Sept. 18 at Gaelic Park. This latest installment of the “Battle of the Bronx” was much anticipated as the Jaspers came in rolling at 6-1 on the season and the Rams came in as 2017 NCAA Elite 8 representatives and nationally ranked this season. A crowd of 498 came out to see which Bronx team would claim the borough in 2018. That was the largest crowd for a men’s soccer game at Gaelic Park in at least the last six years. There wasn’t much in terms of action for the first half of the game. Both teams combined for eight shots and no corner kicks. The Jaspers came close to scoring at the 13:18 mark when junior defenseman Tristan Doran set up sophomore forward Berti Fourrier for a shot. However, Fourrier’s kick hit the right post. The closest the Rams came to scoring was at 15:00 when junior midfielder Bart Dziedzic took a shot from outside the box that junior goalie Marcellin Gohier stopped. The only other save in the first half came from Rams senior goalie Rashid Nuhu who deflected sophomore forward Brandon JosephBuadi’s close-range kick at 18:03. Similar to the first half, the second half featured more defense than offense for the
majority of the minutes. Both teams once again combined for eight shots, but they did combine for five corner kicks this time around. Fourrier played aggressively as he followed up his two shot attempts in the first half with three more in the second half. Two of the three shots were wide and the third was stopped by Nuhu at the 69:43 mark as he dove to his left to pick up his second of three saves on the night. Gohier picked up his second save of the game a few minutes prior (at the 65:29 mark) when Nuhu fired a free kick near midfield all the way towards the net which was counted as a shot on goal. With 36 seconds left of regulation, freshman midfielder James Cotter found Awana who then buried the ball in the far left corner of the net for the game’s only goal. It was Awana’s fourth goal of the season which tied the French transfer student with Joseph-Buadi for the most on the team and the most in the MAAC. Manhattan’s win over Fordham marked a few firsts for the Jaspers. It was the first time on record that they have ever beaten a nationally ranked team, the first time they have beaten the Rams since 2004 and the highest winning percentage (.875) they have finished non-conference play with since joining the MAAC in 1987. The Jaspers will now head to West Long Branch, NJ as they open up MAAC play against Monmouth University (2-4-1; 0-0-0 MAAC) on Wednesday Sept. 26 at 7:00 p.m. at Hesse Field on the Great Lawn.
ABOVE: Manhattan men’s soccer team celebrating with Adrien Awana after his late goal against nationally ranked No. 25 Fordham on Sept. 18 LEFT: A record 498 fans in the bleachers of Gaelic Park cheering on their teams in the “Battle of the Bronx” on Sept. 18 PHOTOS FROM GOJASPERS / COURTESY
Katelyn Hall Transitions From High School Swimming to Collegiate Swimming JASPERS TALK Madalyn Johnson Staff Writer
Katelyn Hall is a freshman student from Rockland County, NY who is majoring in engineering. She previously swam at Albertus Magnus High School in Bardonia, NY as well as the Phoenix Aquatic Swim Club in New York City. Now a Jasper student-athlete, Hall shared with the Quadrangle about her experiences so far on the women’s swim team which begins its first competitive races on Sept. 29 at the Fairfield Invitational.
The Quadrangle: How has the transition from high school athletics to college athletics been for you? Katelyn Hall: Definitely a lot more intense, it’s been demanding with the number of hours I’m required to practice. A lot more of a commitment. TQ: What made you choose Manhattan College? KH: The team atmosphere, definitely. The community and the swim team has been so welcoming. I also chose Manhattan College because of its great reputation, especially in the engineering department. TQ: What are your short-
term goals for this season on the swim team? KH: Other than just improving, a big drop in time, but I don’t expect too much this season. TQ: What are your longterm goals as a Jasper athlete? What do you want to achieve after your four years on the team? KH: I guess to lead the team to victories, score well in the MAAC Championships. TQ: What has been the best advice your coaches and fellow teammates gave you as the school year begins? KH: Well, everyone has talked to me about time management. It’s the most impor-
tant key to doing well in sports and school. TQ: What made you begin swimming and want to pursue it as you got older? KH: The environment I’m in daily. It’s a team effort and I like that. I’ve always felt pretty close to the teams I’ve been on in the past and to this one right now. They’re basically a family to me. TQ: Who have been your biggest supporters? KH: My mom, I would say. She’s always been supportive, driving me to practice all the time. It’s a big commitment for a family to support some-
one’s hobby. She also gives me snacks which is pretty nice. TQ: What would you advise young girls who dream of becoming a college or professional athlete? KH: You have to be invested and really love the sport. You should want to continue it or it’s not going to feel fulfilling. TQ: What would you advise those that swim or do any sport, but feel defeated and want to give up? KH: Take the pressure off your shoulders and don’t worry about your times. Focus on enjoying it with your teammates and stuff.