The official student newspaper of Quinnipiac University since 1929. Proud Recipient of the New England Society of Newspaper Editors’ Award for 2015-2016 College Newspaper of the Year
OCTOBER 26, 2016
VOLUME 87, ISSUE 9
ARTS & LIFE: HALLOWEEN TRADITIONS P. 10
SPORTS: RUGBY FEATURE P. 16
QUCHRONICLE.COM OPINION: STUDYING ABROAD P. 7
A dream come true
Daniella Giammona becomes first student accepted into Class of 2021
University makes changes to shuttle schedule
By HANNAH FEAKES
By OLIVIA HIGGINS
News Editor
Staff Writer
PHOTO COURTESY OF DANIELLA GIAMMONA
Daniella Giammona became the first member of the class of 2021 at a benefit honoring her late father.
major in education or counseling. “Quinnipiac was my first choice because as soon as I stepped on campus I saw myself going there. It had everything that I wanted out of a school,” she said. Although she knew she wanted to attend Quinnipiac, it was not an easy process for her to be accepted into the university. Giammona said her grades freshman and sophomore years of high school were not what she had hoped for. “One major obstacle I had to overcome was myself,” she said. “As I started to think about college I had a reality check that I needed to work a lot harder to get into a school that’s right for me. When I found Quinnipiac I really pushed myself all through junior year to get where I needed to be for Quinnipiac. I worked very hard to get to where I am now.” Giammona said she will bring her school spirit and willingness to learn to Quinnipiac in the fall. “I’m mostly excited to meet other students who attend Quinnipiac,” she said. “I have a few
friends who graduated already, and they told me the one thing that made their experience unforgettable were the people they met.” Giammona had a strong application, according to Ingram. “She’s a bright young lady who has challenged herself inside the classroom,” Ingram said. Not only has she taken her academics seriously, but she’s involved in her school and home community as well. All qualities we look for when reviewing applications for admissions. I enjoyed reading her application.” Ingram expects Giammona excel in the classroom, be a leader on campus and to continue her important work with The New York Police & Fire Widows’ and Children’s Benefit Fund. “I’m humbled to be able to make such an impact in the lives of our youth as they begin their next chapter in life,” Ingram said. “This is true not only for Daniella but for the 1,900 freshmen that step on our campus every year.”
THE STORY OF THE SLEEPING GIANT
See full article page 8
The shuttle systems at Quinnipiac impact the lives of many students who live on campus. The shuttle schedules have changed slightly, according to Parking and Transportation Coordinator Shanon Grasso. Grasso said students can find the updated shuttle schedules on their MyQ accounts on the Quinnipiac website that is posted in the shuttle stop huts and outside her office by Public Safety. The latest change featured in the orange line includes a shuttle going from Westwoods to South lot. From there a separate shuttle will go to Whitney Village and return to South lot instead of going to all three destinations in one loop, according to Grasso. Grasso also encouraged students to use the TransLoc app, which can track the shuttles in real time as they go through their routes. Grasso said she receives complaints from students through many channels and welcomes them. That way she can improve the shuttle systems at Quinnipiac. “I definitely have an open door policy,” Grasso said. “If you feel something could be done a better way, I’m all ears to listen to it. I’m not using the shuttle service everyday, so you guys are the experts when it comes to that, if something can be tweaked to make it better.” Sophomore Megan Mikutsky recently had trouble with the shuttle system when her and her friends went to see a movie on a Tuesday night. The group came back to campus to find there were no parking spots in the Hill Top lot, so she would have to park on York Hill, but shuttles had stopped running for the night. There was no way for them to get back to main campus, according to Mikutsky. Mitkutsky then drove to the security hut at the New Road entrance. The Public Safety Officer told her that he had no idea where she could park, but directed her to the North Lot security hut. Eventually the North Lot security officer on duty gave her a temporary parking pass to park in North lot for the night. Grasso said the shuttles run until 1 a.m. on weekdays and until 3 a.m. on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, for the students’ convenience. “I have no problem with sophomores parking in North Lot after the shuttles have stopped running, but they have to move their car before 7 a.m.,” Grasso said. “At 7 a.m., I have people ticketing.” Mikutsky believes the school should have a shuttle on call for students who can’t make the regular cut off times for the shuttles to stop running. “If there’s nowhere to park, where we are supposed to? That’s the only other place we can go,” Mikutsky said. “They should provide some kind of transportation back down [to main campus].” Dennis Lyons, senior director of contract services at DATTCO has had a very positive relationship with Quinnipiac, throughout
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Imagine an early acceptance to your dream school in front of a huge crowd of people. That is what New Yorker Daniella Giammona experienced on Saturday, Oct. 22. Quinnipiac University accepted Giammona after she gave a speech at Answer the Call – New York Police and Fire Widows’ and Children’s Benefit Fund’s 31st annual gala. Giammona said she was surprised when Kanicka Ingram, senior associate director of admissions and director of multicultural recruitment, announced her acceptance into Quinnipiac. Giammona was the first student accepted into the class of 2021, according to Ingram. “When I finished my speech and Kanicka [Ingram] came on stage I was so confused,” she said. “I didn’t know who she was or why I was still on stage, but as soon as she started talking I started crying.” The mission of Answer the Call, founded by Rusty Staub, is to support the families of New York City police officers, firefighters, Port Authority Police and EMS personnel who have been killed in the line of duty, according to the Answer the Call website. Giammona’s father was a New York firefighter who passed away on 9/11 doing what he loved, according to Ingram. As the daughter of a fallen responder, Giammona said she was asked to speak at the annual gala. She spoke about how Answer the Call has helped her and her family move forward. “Even though it was very difficult for me to speak about my dad at the gala, it meant so much to me to actually do it,” she said. “I know my dad would tell me how proud he is of me for doing what I did that night. Speaking in front of all those people was one of the most difficult things I’ve had to do, and I know he was there with me pushing me to do my best.” Director of Development at the New York Police & Fire Widows’ and Children’s Benefit Fund Lauren Profeta contacted the Office of Undergraduate Admissions at Quinnipiac to ask if Quinnipiac University would attend the event to surprise Giammona with her acceptance, said Ingram. Giammona said that she applied to Quinnipiac early decision and is coming into the school undecided, although she is leaning towards a
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