Volume 105 Issue 2

By CEARA PERRY CONTRIBUTING WRITER

As of Jan. 1, Lerzan Aksoy, Ph.D., was appointed as the dean of the Gabelli School of Business. The decision was announced via an email to the Fordham community on Dec. 19. Serving as the interim dean since July 1, 2022, Aksoy is looking forward to continuously elevating the Gabelli School of Business.

Starting her academic career as a professor at Koç University, Aksoy has been at Fordham since 2008, when she joined the marketing faculty. She is the managing director of the Responsible Business Coalition and the former associate dean for undergraduate studies and strategic initiatives.

Aksoy is a recipient of the American Marketing Association’s Christopher Lovelock Career Contributions to the Services Discipline Award, a New York Times bestselling author and has published over 70 journal articles. Aksoy currently sits on the Academic Council of the American Marketing Association (AMA) and will serve as president of the Academic

SEE GABELLI, PAGE 4

The Fordham Ram

USG Discusses Special Elections and Club Proposals

By SOFIA SEMPER STAFF WRITER

On Thursday, Jan. 26, the Rose Hill Student Government (USG) met to discuss club proposals and special elections on campus.

Fordham's ACE and Ascend Host Lunar New Year Celebration

By ALEXANDER HOM CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Resplendent in lucky colors of red and gold, the students of Fordham’s Asian Cultural Exchange (ACE) and Ascend Business Club (Ascend) rang in the Lunar New Year at a festively-adorned Bepler Commons on Jan. 27. Both student-led organizations celebrated 2023 being the Year

of the Rabbit on the Chinese zodiac, which follows a duodecennial cycle.

Lunar New Year’s Day (LNY) is celebrated by over 1.5 billion people primarily in Asian countries across the world — China, Vietnam, Singapore and South Korea to name a few. In these cultures, LNY is the sacred flagship of Asian holidays, an auspicious and superstitious date predicted to be one of optimism and peace. The holiday

Lectures on China, Religion and Authoritarianism

By ANTONI ZLATANOVSKI CONTRIBUTING WRITER

season is usually met with family gatherings, bountiful banquets and traditions that carefully wish for fortuitous health and prosperity for the coming year.

LNY kicks off the start of the lunar and lunisolar calendars, which are governed by the pattern of the Earth’s moon phases. Lunisolar calendars feature anywhere from 353 to 385 days in a year, meaning that on the

SEE LUNAR, PAGE 4

The start of the meeting consisted of special election campaigns which began with Maria Narvaez, GSB ’24. Narvaez stated that she wants to be a part of change in the Fordham community and campus life. She hopes to include more foreign language-inclusive campus tours. Narvaez explained that many international students’ parents do not speak English and are unable to understand the tour guides. With this initiative, Narvaez hopes to create a more inclusive environment for international students and their families. She also stated that she hopes to expand the commuter students’ locker spaces and include more diverse companies in Gabelli Ground Floor meetings. Vice President of Operations Lauren Walcyzk, FCRH ’25, asked if she would be open to working with international integration for her initiative, and Narvaez said that she was planning on contacting them for this project.

Fordham Sophomore Researches Transgender History Opinion

By EMMA KARN CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Nicholas Chipelo, GSB ’26, presented his campaign for the special elections position as GSB senator of the class of 2026. Chipelo began his campaign by stating that he has loved being a part of the Fordham community and would now like to give back to them. He stated that he wants to improve the learning environment and to give students better access to nutritional information at on-campus dining areas. Senator Reese Dains, FCRH ’26, asked how he plans on bridging the gap between Fordham College Rose Hill students and Gabelli students. Chipelo answered that he has not noticed a huge gap between FCRH and GSB students. However, he also stated that, if

in this issue

American Conservatism Crosses Border Into Canada

Culture

Page 11

regime. The panel was held by Ian Johnson, a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author who has lived in China for over two decades and focuses on the topics of civil religion and civil society. He has covered subjects regarding China for over 37 years and has been awarded various prizes from Stanford University and

Harvard University, as well as a multitude of grants to fund his research.

The main focus of the lecture has to do with how religious faiths are being treated within China’s current political system of government. According to Johnson, the Chinese Communist SEE PULITZER, PAGE 4

Alexei Gannon, FCRH ’25, is a biology and history double major honors student. He has a passion and a penchant for melding the two disciplines together in his research. In the summer of 2022, he worked with his advisor, Amanda Armstrong-Price, Ph.D., to study the transgender history of the French revolt of May 1968. He was inspired to conduct this research within the context of the anti-trans legislation appearing in the United States today. “It felt especially important to emphasize the role that trans people — and especially trans women — have played in feminist movements,” said Gannon.

On Jan. 25, a panel was held at Fordham University’s campus at Lincoln Center about religious life in an authoritarian China and if citizens can freely practice their faiths under an authoritarian SEE HISTORY, PAGE 3

Winterfest Presents: Peach Tree Rascals

Sports

Men's Basketball Wins Five Straight Games in A-10 Play

Pulitzer-Prize Winner Ian Johnson

COURTESY OF JOANNA LI FOR THE FORDHAM RAM

Asian Cultural Exchange and Ascend Business Club worked together to host a Lunar New Year event.

Ian Johnson talked about many topics during his lecture, including the persecution of the Uyghur people.

PUBLIC SAFETY BRIEFS

Jan. 24

Arthur Avenue and 188th

1:00 p.m.

A student reported that while walking, a male approached them carrying a clipboard with paper that had numerous names listed. The male went on to state he was new in town and a recovering addict and wanted to get a list of names and positive reactions from people he met to provide to a judge. The student gave him $13 when the male asked for money for a magazine subscription. The student didn’t feel he was in danger and no threats were issued.

Jan. 26

Parking Garage

3:00 p.m.

A member of the Fordham community reported the theft of items from their car in the garage. The reporter said when they returned to their car $10 and a welding helmet were missing. No damage to the car was observed. The reporter could not recall if he had locked the car. A review of the video revealed a suspect and it was distributed to all members of Public Safety. The suspect is unidentified at this time.

Jan. 26

FMH Gate

8:40 p.m.

A student reported the theft of their electric scooter from in front of FMH. The student stated they left the scooter unlocked in front of FMH, but removed the handle bar. When they returned, it was missing. After an extensive review of the video, the offender was identified and interviewed by Public Safety. The offender said they believed the scooter was garbage and promptly returned the scooter. The reporter declined to notify the NYPD and the scooter was returned to the owner.

Fordham Hosts Lecture on Holocaust Education in the 21st Century

By MICHELA FAHY CONTRIBUTING WRITER

By ANTONI ZLATANOVSKI CONTRIBUTING WRITER

On Jan. 26, 2023, McNally Amphitheatre was packed with an audience filling almost every seat to witness a panel being held in regards to the Holocaust. With recent research showing that there is a rise in Holocaust denial and disinformation, Fordham University partnered with the Under-Told Stories Project and the Museum of Jewish Heritage in New York to invite various highly influential speakers to discuss how educators, the media, religious leaders and influential figures of all forms can fight Holocaust denial in modern times.

The panel was moderated by Fred de Sam Lazaro and Peter Osnos. Lazaro, who is the director of the Under-Told Stories Project at the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota, worked with Peter Osnos, an American journalist who founded the Public Affairs Books and Chicago News Operative to lead a discussion featuring a variety of professors and highly influential special guests speakers.

Amongst the panelists was Judy Woodruff, a former Senior Correspondent and live reporter for PBS Newshour who retired in 2022. Next to her sat Magda Teter, a historian and professor of Judaic Studies at Fordham Lincoln Center. Coming from the University of Virginia, were professors of Jewish history, James Loeffler and Jay Berkowitz. Lastly, there was Linda Krinstler, a contributing writer for the Economist and author of the book, “Come to This Court and Cry: How the Holocaust Ends.” Special guests included Eva Paddock, an educator and Holocaust survivor who was rescued from Czechoslovakia.

Modern Holocaust education “must be relevant to today’s generation,” said Paddock. “We’re the last authentic witnesses. The deniers cannot discount the label that was around my neck and our visas. And they cannot discount the document that I had that said we are confiscating Jewish property.”

The panel then discussed why prejudice still exists in modern times during an era where Holocaust education is readily accessible. For instance, when a white nationalist riot

Wednesday Feb. 1

Francis B. Messmore Center 5 p.m.

Swimming and Diving has a meet versus St. Francis College and Wagner University. Be sure to come cheer for the team on Wednesday during their last home meet of the season. Go Rams!

turned violent in Charlottesville in 2017, the original controversy mainly had to do with whether or not a Confederate statue should be removed. Despite this, the rioters were yelling antisemitic slogans and utilizing neo-Nazi flags and symbols. This was a large shock to many and brought further attention to the rise of antisemitism.

“I think that the first time in recent history that antisemitism somehow exploded was on that night in Charlottesville,” said Osnos. He then asked Loeffler, “Can you talk a little bit about that sudden moment when antisemitism, which was in remission, suddenly seemed to get so violent?”

“Haters find hate,” said Loeffler.

“One of the people who was behind that terrible weekend of violence was Richard Spencer, a white supremacist who actually went to the

how

University of Virginia and studied Nazi and German history. One of the reasons there were torches there was because he said ‘oh, I like what they did in Germany…’ He was borrowing from a playbook, not just feeling a kingship from these horrible moments in history… It was a very difficult moment for all of us, not just in Charlottesville but also in America to make sense of this.”

Another major problem that comes with Holocaust denial is disinformation. For this reason, Lazaro asked Woodruff, “How difficult is it to be a classic journalist in this day and age when you have so much coming at you from people who are powerful, and how do you deal with, frankly, lies?”

“A reporter is someone who goes and gathers the facts and

This Week at Fordham

Wednesday Feb. 1

McGinley Ballroom 12 p.m. – 6 p.m.

Come donate blood at the Senior Week sponsored Rose Hill Blood Drive in the McGinley Ballroom on Wednesday. Appointments are recommended but walkins are also accepted.

Thursday Feb. 2

McMahon 109 6 p.m.

Professor Adele Reinhartz will be hosting a lecture entitled “Separation Anxieties: Jews, Judaism and the Creation of Christianity.” The lecture will also be virtually available on Zoom.

Saturday Feb. 4

Rose Hill Gymnasium 2 p.m.

Women’s Basketball is facing Loyola University Chicago this Saturday at 2 p.m to celebrate National Girls and Women in Sports Day. Come cheer on the Rams during this competitive A-10 Game!

COURTESY OF INSTAGRAM then reports them back. You listen to all sides and you try to be fair and you don’t take sides. That’s what it’s all about,” said Woodruff.

“But of course, we are in a fraught and frightening political period right now… Our country is as divided as it’s ever been…. People now don’t just disagree on the issue, they disagree on fundamental questions of our culture, of our identity, who we are, what we fundamentally believe, whether it’s our religious faith, our racial background, our ethnic background, all of these things have now come into the mix,” said Woodruff. “[Journalists must] cover the news, be fair and call something that is not truth.”

Overall, the panelists emphasized the idea that history cannot be forgotten, fabricated or devalued.

Wednesday Feb. 8 Zoom 3 p.m.

Attend the Career Center’s 2023 Virtual Spring Career Fair on Wednesday. Join for group or 1:1 sessions with employers. Dress business professional and bring an updated resume!

The panel, moderated by Fred de Sam Lazaro and Peter Osnos, discussed

individuals can fight against Holocaust denial.

Fordham Sophomore Researches Transgender History

FROM HISTORY, PAGE 1

Gannon also stated that one of his motivations for this research was to respond to trans-exclusionary radical feminists (TERFs) who claim that trans women are not women but rather predatory towards women.

He hopes to show that trans women are historically strong supporters of women’s rights and have been key members of feminist movements throughout history.

Gannon was particularly interested in exploring the way this movement was tied together with a concurrent nationwide labor strike in May 1968. At the time, colleges and universities saw a surge in student protest that manifested in marches, pamphlet production and unionization.

At the same time, the labor movement was advancing through France. Gannon wanted to explore the ways in which these two movements informed and built on each other. He studied publications, news articles and political pamphlets from the revolt, as well as reading interviews in the

original French to gather primary source material.

While examining a robust body of sources, Gannon began to recognize patterns in activity that spanned across the two movements and could be seen echoed in protest movements today, with unionization being one key uniting factor.

He did not neglect the aftermath of the May ’68 revolt, when a series of separate feminist and queer groups emerged, including the Womens Liberation Movement, FHAR (a gay men’s revolutionary movement) and Gouines Rouges (a radical lesbian movement).

Gannon will present his research at the Undergraduate Research Symposium, but he emphasizes that the process is by no means finished. In the future, he hopes to conduct a psycho-geographic analysis. “The way that places were used [during the movement] was changed all the time,” said Gannon.

Universities were transformed into printing presses — hijacked by radical students to create propaganda to line the campus walls they were marching along and art to fill

the streets with. Their slogan was “beauty is in the streets.” Theaters and businesses were occupied and turned into communes. Gannon said that his goal is to begin “to understand the role of place and the purpose of place in civil resistance movements.” This approach has implications for today’s movements as well, leading to the question of whether this repurposing of place is part of what civil resistance is.

Gannon is currently busy tapping into his scientific expertise by conducting research in Eduardo Gallo, Ph.D.,’s biology lab regarding the neurobiology of motivated behavior. “It’s basically taking care of a big colony of mice,” he said.

But he said he is helping to run experiments examining the role of dopamine and acetylcholine in the basal ganglia. The goal is that this research will provide insight into the behaviors corresponding to ADHD, schizophrenia, substance abuse and addiction.

Gannon said that his over -

Gannon is most interested in the cross-section between history and biology.

arching research goals have not changed, however, he said he is still interested in the questions of how people think and how they come to be affected by the environment around them, whether he is reading French resistance

texts or testing the effects of neurotransmitters. “Across disciplines, the fundamental question is still – how and why do people act,” said Gannon.

Gannon's pursuits continue to extend from the laboratory to the classroom.

Serving the City Internship Program Continues to Grow

By GRACE GALBREATH ASST. NEWS EDITOR

Launched in 2020, the Serving the City Internship program connects Fordham students with New York organizations and provides students with a network of professional contacts and ultimately with paid internships. The stipends students receive within each paid internship are made possible through generous donations from Fordham supporters and alumni.

First co-founded by Maura Mast, Ph.D., dean of Fordham College at Rose Hill, and Laura Auricchio, Ph.D., dean of Fordham College at Lincoln Center, the program promotes paid student involvement with nonprofit organizations and focuses on inspiring Fordham students to embrace professions in culture and the arts. Although the program was originally named the Cultural Engagement Program, it was recently renamed the Serving the City Internship program.

Desirae Colvin, director of Administration, Communication and Strategic Initiatives, is the current program leader.

“While the former program name ‘Cultural Engagement’ was reflective of the program’s beginnings — our earliest partnerships were with the NewYork Historical Society and the Museum of Arts and Design — the program quickly expanded to include organizations involved in education, the environment, and social and health services,” said Colvin.

“While arts-based organizations remain an important and prolific part of the program, the new name ‘Serving the City’ is more inclusive of the wide variety of our partnerships and internship opportunities.”

Aside from a name change, the program itself remains relatively the same. Colvin said that the Serving the City Internship program is always working to create new partnerships, resulting in

more possibilities for paid student internships.

Colvin also highlighted the program’s new LinkedIn page as an important step in its’ expansion. “We are excited to be sharing more as we continue, especially via our brand-new Serving the City LinkedIn page,” said Colvin.

The page provides a space for interested Fordham students to view and apply to upcoming internships. Some internships still available for the spring semester include the Dyckman Farmhouse Museum, as a Public Relations Intern, and The Bronx is Reading, as a Literary Digital Marketing Intern.

The program is currently partnering with 37 organizations to “...provide paid internships — exclusively for Fordham College at Rose Hill and Fordham College at Lincoln Center students — to undertake internships at nonprofit organizations aligned with Fordham's mission,” said Colvin. Organizations in current part-

nership with the Serving the City Internship program include the City Schools Sports Association and the Brooklyn Museum. So far, more than 60 Fordham students have participated in the program, and even more are expected to get involved in the coming year.

Colvin mentioned continued

expansion as a part of the Serving the City Internship program’s future. “We have been bringing on new partners constantly and expect to do the same this year. We’re excited to announce new partners and internships on our LinkedIn page and in the weekly Dean’s newsletters that go out to [...] students every Wednesday.”

Fordham Launches the Fordham Hub

By EMMA KIM NEWS EDITOR

Fordham recently launched the Fordham Hub, a website that “connects students with a variety of campus resources, including Academic Advising, Class Deans, Career Advising and more.”

Currently, multiple Fordham groups are using the site for their academic advising, including Fordham College at Rose Hill, Lincoln Center, the Gabelli School of Business and the School of Professional and Continuing Studies.

Ashlee Burrs, associate dean

for academic advising, works with first-year advisors, who were the first to use the new hub.

“It is a tool that helps [students] make appointments with their advisor or class dean. It helps the advisors communicate, and it helps the advisors manage the appointments for a student. It keeps it all in a space for them to look back at,” said Burrs.

In addition to making appointments, more will be added to the Fordham Hub in the future. “It is just launching now. More and more departments will hopefully join and start

utilizing it. Financial aid is in there now, which is cool. It gives them a way to connect with students and send alerts to students. It is a useful communication tool. The midterm reports that faculty send are going to be in the hub. There are a lot of features that can build out,” said Burrs. “There is a larger team that looks at when those projects will be added.”

In recent years, the Fordham Hub is not the only change made to the advising system. Last semester, after years of research, the Fordham College

Advising Center was launched, which replaced the previous system of grade-level advisors for students. Like the Fordham Hub, which is currently mainly utilized by the class of 2026, the new advising system’s first phase was also directed at the first-year class.

While the system is currently most utilized by the first-year students at Fordham, Burrs explained that more student activity will result in more features in the future. “It is a cool tool. The more the students that use it, the more we can see what other features we can

add and different departments that we want to bring in,” said Burrs. “It all starts with the students and what they need and what they want. Right now, they can easily schedule appointments. We would love to use it even more.”

The Fordham Hub is located on fordham.edu under the My Pages Student tab, where students can utilize all features it has so far. Fordham’s Information Technology services also has a website dedicated to explaining how to use the hub for students and advisors unfamiliar with its features.

COURTESY OF TWITTER

COURTESY OF FORDHAM.EDU

Serving the City Intership Program has many partners throughout the city.

USG Discusses Special Elections and Club Proposals

FROM SPECIAL, PAGE 1

that gap becomes too large, he would try to find some way to unite the students.

Lastly, Michael Duke, GSB ’26, presented his campaign for the senator of the class of 2026 GSB to the student government. Duke stated that he is a part of the Fordham Marketing Association, had an internship with a non-profit organization in the Bronx and that he attended a panel discussion to learn

more about leadership positions. He explained that he wants to improve the school and be a voice for the Gabelli class of 2026. Duke said that he wants to focus on improving security right outside of campus because of the many assaults that have happened, and he would also like to improve the student government marketing.

Vice President of Health and Security Emily Kennedy, FCRH ’24, asked how he plans on im-

proving the safety of students outside of campus to which Duke said that he would like to work on improving the marketing of the Ram Path on Arthur Avenue because many students are not aware of it.

Maria Narvaez, GSB ’24, was elected as a Senator of the Class of 2024 GSB and Nicholas Chipelo, GSB ’26, was elected as a Senator of the Class of 2026 GSB.

Walcyzk said that the club fair was very successful with more than

140 clubs and organizations participating. Vice President of Student Life Brian Inguanti, FCRH ’24, stated that their committee size increased significantly and that club room applications will be sent out in February. Chairman of the Committee on International Integration Luisa Rosa, FCRH ’24, introduced her next project idea which is to get economic majors placed under the STEM program so that international students

Gabelli School of Business Appoints New Dean

FROM GABELLI, PAGE 1

Council beginning in 2024.

Aksoy received a Ph.D. in marketing from the Kenan-Flagler Business School, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill; an M.B.A. from George Mason University; and a B.S. in business administration from Hacettepe University.

During her time as dean, Aksoy plans on increasing Gabelli’s national and global visibility as well as building an innovative portfolio of degree and non-degree programs.

“School awareness is correlated with school reputation. My

goal is for the Gabelli School of Business to be recognized as the premier Jesuit business school in the world. I sincerely believe that we are already that. Now, we need the world to know,” said Aksoy.

Aksoy is looking forward to accomplishing these goals, as shown by her unrelenting faith in the Gabelli School of Business.

“I recognize that I am biased, but I sincerely believe that the Gabelli School of Business is the best business school in the world,” said Aksoy. “We have a wonderful story to tell—strong programs, outstanding faculty, thought-lead-

ing research, a commitment to student successand a unique purpose of providing our wonderful students with the knowledge and skills needed to create meaningful and lasting positive change.”

Aksoy’s demonstrated commitment to the globalization of the Gabelli School of Business — through partnerships, reputation and a diverse student body — stems from her background. Originally from Turkey, then moving to Chile, Mexico, Jordan and Pakistan, Aksoy lived much of her childhood as a “global nomad,” as her father was a Turkish diplomat.

She recalls childhood stories and memories across the world, such as her first word being “agua,” and trying Japanese rice balls and seaweed for the first time at her international school in Jordan. It was this multicultural upbringing, especially at an international school in Jordan, that Aksoy learned the importance of diversity and global perspectives.

“Growing up in different countries, making friends from around the world and being a Turkish woman from a predominantly Muslim country made me passionate about seeing the divine in all peoples and cultures and in

who major in economics can get a work visa that will last up to three years. She explained that international students with degrees in STEM programs are allowed to have work visas for up to three years while non-STEM international students can only receive a work visa for one year. Additionally, Rosa stated that many universities have economics listed under their STEM programs, but Fordham does not.

every human experience long before I knew how to articulate it. It also crystalized for me the inequalities that exacerbate human suffering and the importance of access to education,” said Aksoy. Aksoy was influenced professionally and personally for the role. “Our ultimate goal is the development of an abundance of leaders who come from diverse backgrounds but possess the same overriding desire to use their positions of power to create positive change in our world because of the transformative experience they had at [...] the Gabelli School of Business,” said Aksoy.

Pulitzer-Prize Winner Ian Johnson Lectures on China, Religion and Authoritarianism

FROM PULITZER, PAGE 1

Party (CCP) recognizes only five specific faith groups: Protestantism, Catholicism, Islam, Daoism and Buddhism. The practice of other faiths may be tolerated, but are formally prohibited. At one point in the 20th century, antireligious campaigns were waged across China. As a result, various places of worship were either closed or destroyed. However, there eventually came a point in time where government officials decided to cooperate with religious leaders, making the practice of religion in China more permissible.

When this happened, some forms of religion began to be seen as a part of Chinese history and

culture. For this reason, political leaders began to place deeper emphasis in regards to how they uphold the tradition and culture of China. Originally, “government leaders used to be judged by economic growth … now it is also about supporting traditional culture by supporting cultural projects,” said Johnson. Despite this, however, there still remains a substantial level of religious persecution in China.

“After the 2008 Olympics, the Chinese government began to realize that religion was part of a problem, which was the rise of civil society and other groups that were harder to control,” said Johnson.

Religions such as Islam and

Christianity began to be deemed as “problematic faiths” due to their “foreign ties” with institutions such as the Vatican, while religions such as Buddhism and Taoism are seen as indigenous to China, despite Buddhism having origins in India. Because of this, the CCP formed the Catholic Patriotic Association (CPA) as an organizational body of Chinese Catholics that is not affiliated with the Vatican.

On the other hand, the Chinese government has made it increasingly more difficult for Muslim groups, particularly the Uyghurs, to partake in pilgrimages such as the hajj. According to the Global Times, the “Chinese Islamic Association is the only organiza-

tion that is authorized to arrange for Chinese Muslims to go to Mecca in Saudi Arabia to perform hajj.” Violators of this policy could face extreme legal consequences. Moreover, men having specific beards or women wearing hijabs could be seen as forms of extremism. According to Johnson, stores and restaurants that do not serve pork could also be seen as extremist, including those who sell halal food.

It is estimated that roughly 30 million Muslims live in China, with the majority being Uyghurs residing in northwestern China, specifically within the border province of Xinjiang. On the other hand, there are “roughly 60-70 million Christians in China based

on guesstimate numbers,” said Johnson.

Over the past years, China has also been accused of human rights violations against Uyghurs. In recent years, the Chinese government has established internment camps and has violated the human rights of the Uyghurs as a whole.

When asked why the CCP has a problem with Uyghur Muslims specifically, Johnson said that, “the government makes it seem like Muslims are extremists. This is basically a form of chauvinism. It’s an effort to impose Chinese culture on minorities... [...] The Chinese government doesn't want to allow true autonomy in certain religious minority regions.”

Fordham's ACE and Ascend Host Lunar New Year Celebration

FROM LUNAR, PAGE 1 commonly-used Gregorian format employed by many Western nations including the U.S., LNY lands on a different day each year. LNY coincides with the first new moon of the lunisolar calendar.

ACE/Ascend are the leading Fordham student organizations that encourage the thriving of the customs lived by Fordham’s diverse communities of Southeast Asian and Pacific Islander ancestry.

“This is actually only ACE/Ascend’s second year/time honoring the Lunar New Year,” said ACE President and Ascend Vice President Arthur Liu, FCRH ’23. “We gave it a shot last year and it was a big hit. I saw this as an opportunity to educate our university about a holiday celebrated by over 20% of the world, and have them join us in celebrating it as well.”

Despite being ACE/Ascend’s second official LNY party, the 120 people in attendance — many club members and guests alike — said they found themselves admiring an event that many considered to already be a well-honed and decades-

long tradition. The evening began with attendants bonding over shared conversation and popular Asian snack treats, and both eboards introduced themselves and wished the partygoers a 2023 of good luck.

“LNY was previously only recognized by the recently-established AAPI committee, which held great tabling events in the old McGinley, but as a freshman I wished our Fordham community would do more to best celebrate this cultural event, especially with our AAPI and international student population continuing to grow,” said Liu.

The event featured a wide offering of food, spotlighting popular Chinese and Korean staples such as three kinds of peppery pork dishes, crispy roast chicken, sweet beef bulgogi, cellophane japchae noodles, kimbap sushi rolls, fish cakes and fried rice, culminating in a diverse spread.

The event also featured calligraphy tables complete with authentic brushes and ink to be used on red paper and traditional hongbao red envelopes. Though hongbao

are customarily filled with money and given by married couples to children, ACE/Ascend stuffed scores of envelopes with goldfoil-wrapped chocolate coins and distributed them as parting gifts.

“Honestly a great event,” said Rick Fu, Ascend advisor and GSB ’24. “We had a lot of food and everyone enjoyed getting to know each other. I especially enjoyed the calligraphy segment where we wrote some auspicious Chinese characters.”

“Our LNY event again fills me with wonder and appreciation for the ACE community,” said ACE treasurer Alex Tamsi, FCRH ’24, who attended last year’s inaugural celebration. “Engaging in the visual nature of the Chinese language and learning from my peers allowed us to delve into the holiday, the intricacy of Asian history and the unexpected parallels it draws with other world cultures, such as Egyptian hieroglyphics.”

“This year’s turnout showed how much ACE is growing — I got to see faces both familiar and new, and hear stories about past joys and future hopes. Events like

these invite the entire Fordham community to share in the celebration of AAPI heritage and to find something new, perhaps even something unexpectedly familiar,” said Tamsi.

“I’m Hong Kong born and bred, so I’m used to celebrating LNY every year,” Liu said. “In the Sinosphere, it’s akin to American Thanksgiving or Islamic Ramadan. LNY is my favorite holiday as it was the only opportunity for me to visit my paternal grandparents and their family residing in Malaysia, my father’s homeland. The season has connected and still connects me to all my relatives abroad.”

The ACE’s Lunar New Year celebrations came after their “DYNASTY” event in November 2022, which helped many students relax in the run-up to finals. In the future, ACE looks to February, as the club is attending a LNY parade in Manhattan’s Chinatown to further ring in the Year of the Rabbit.

“I hope ACE and Ascend continue to celebrate LNY together and make these young events annual Fordham traditions,” said Liu.

“The e-board members work hard to make events like this a success, but ultimately, it’s the warm people who come with open minds and open hearts that make these events so meaningful,” said Tamsi.

COURTESY OF JOANNA LI FOR THE FORDHAM RAM

ACE’s and Ascend’s E-board (pictured) planned the Lunar New Year event.

Serving the Fordham University campus and community since 1918

The Fordham Ram is the university journal of record. The mission of The Fordham Ram is to provide a forum for the free and open exchange of ideas in service to the community and to act as a student advocate. The Fordham Ram is published every Wednesday during the academic year to all campuses.

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RI never know what to write about for “From the Desk.” It’s the most vague column here at the Ram by a longshot. “Who’s That Kid” and “Editor’s Pick” have specific, defined instructions. But “From the Desk” could be about literally anything.

It’s far too premature to use this as a platform for reflection on Volume 105. We just started! I also don’t feel like I have any groundbreaking wisdom to share with our readers. This feels like the place to share my tips on productivity or my niche hobby, but I don’t really have any of those either.

I do know one thing for certain. As I write this column, it is currently the worst day of the week by far: Sunday.

I’m never productive on Sundays. Like at all. In fact, I lied one paragraph up. I’m writing this on Monday, because I couldn’t bring myself to do it on Sunday. That’s the chokehold that this wretched day has on me.

I haven’t thought about why I feel this particular way about Sunday. But after some brief reflection, it makes sense. I’ve worked hard throughout the previous week. On Friday and Saturday, I typically do something fun with friends to enjoy the time off. Life is good. Next week is still far away, and the only things that are really important are having a good time and making memories.

From the Desk | Nick Guzman

OPINION Fighting Against the Sunday Void

But then Sunday hits, and a wave of anxiety rushes over me. “What am I doing with my life?” and “Get it together, man” are questions I usually ask myself when my eyelids first open on Sunday. There’s an entire week of school and real life in front of me, and I don’t want to deal with it.

I always end up getting through it okay, but it’s the dreary anticipation that sucks the life out of me. Beyond that, I think about all the things I did over the weekend and how incredibly stupid and meaningless they were. My thoughts are almost exclusively negative. This isn’t comparable to any other day of the week. Even on Monday, the traditional pick for worst day of the week, I have classes and a bunch of things that have to be done. At least I feel productive. In terms of awful days, Sundays are in a league of their own.

I’ll take you through a typical Sunday for me while at Fordham. First, I’ll sleep until whenever nature decides it’s the proper time for me to rise. If that’s 2 p.m., then that’s 2 p.m., I don’t make the rules. Then, I’ll watch football for several hours. At that point, the day is pretty much over. I’ll go to the Ram budget meeting on Sunday night and then continue to stress about the coming week. It sounds fun, I know. Now I’m aware there are obvious changes I could make so

Sundays are more bearable. You might be saying, “Don’t sleep until 2 p.m. and maybe you won’t feel so awful” or “Why don’t you wake up and seize the day?”

First off, be realistic. I’m not Superman. I’m a 20-year-old male who both enjoys sleep and requires lots of it. But seriously, I know there are changes I could make to make Sundays a little more bearable. It can’t be healthy to consistently feel negative on the same day every single week.

I’m not a great goal-setter. Usually, I just do things without really considering a bigger picture or what the “endgame” is. But I’m gonna try it here. Publishing this column will serve as a way to hold me accountable. We’ll start with some baby

steps. First, I want to be up before noon on Sundays. That seems realistic for me. Then, I want to do something right when I wake up. Whether that’s doing a little homework, finishing a Ram article or going for a walk. Something that’s productive yet not at all intimidating. That way, I know I accomplished something even if it’s super small.

The “Sunday Scaries” are not at all unique to me. I know most people my age feel the same way. But who knows, next Sunday might roll around and my newfound plan will work wonders. I might have to pick a new least favorite day! Maybe Sundays will make an all-time comeback. That probably won’t happen, but I am still going to give it my best shot.

Editorial | Counseling and Psychological Services

Fordham’s Funding of CPS Is Insufficient

Winter can be associated with many positive feelings and experiences — from the excitement that comes from the first snowfall or the contentment in a cozy environment. However, winter can also usher in more acute feelings of depression and general sadness. The combination of longer nights, cold weather and less time spent outdoors can cause people to experience the “winter blues” or seasonal affective disorder (SAD).

The annual occurrence of winter blues comes on the heels of a general increase in mental health disorders, especially among college students. With one in three college students reporting cases of anxiety and depression as well as 88% of students believing there is a mental health crisis nationwide on college campuses, it is imperative that universities have robust mental health resources readily available for all students.

Fordham’s own mental health resources available on campus do not meet the need and increasing demand for accessible care for students. With the knowledge of an increasing mental health crisis, the administration needs to act now to significantly improve the care offered to students. The university claims to value cura personalis, or care for the whole person, but does not live up to this espoused standard when it does not prioritize student mental health.

Counseling and Psychological

Services (CPS) is not given enough funding to properly care for the entire student body. The CPS webpage details the services that they offer to the Fordham community, broken down into 11 different categories, ranging from crisis intervention to individual counseling and group sessions. CPS does not have the funding to help all students, and this is evident in the limited availability when it comes to booking appointments for extended individual therapy. With their current funding, CPS can only cater to the mental health needs of just a few lucky students. Another problem that points to a lack of funding is the referrals to off-campus providers section. For students who fall into this section, CPS will help find them an offcampus provider if it is requested, or if the students’ concerns fall outside the scope of services offered by CPS and they have resources to access those off-campus services. Directing students off campus for care can create even more obstacles and stressors that may prevent them from continuing to seek care. The stress of finding a provider that accepts their health insurance, the commute to the off-campus location and trying to fit sessions into their busy schedule can all be contributing factors for what may lead a student to not bother caring for their mental health. This is an unacceptable position to leave students

in. Every student should have the ability to seek and receive mental health care on Fordham’s campus.

Fordham also needs to take steps to make the language describing CPS services clearer. As mentioned before, the language surrounding the amount of slots for long-term individual therapy is extremely vague. There is not a precise number given as to how many students CPS can take on for long-term counseling, and such transparency on the part of CPS would benefit students as they would know how realistic it is to receive care on campus.

Another area in which CPS could offer more transparency is how much therapy sessions cost a student, both in the short-term and long-term. There is no mention of a cost on the webpage which could create the impression that all services are free for students, but this could end up being a false assumption. Students need to be provided with all the information upfront so they can formulate an idea of the

accessibility of mental health care at Fordham.

The university needs to invest in mental health services now as the deterioration of college students’ mental health nationwide is an ever-growing field of research.

Rates of mental health concerns have only grown since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, exacerbating the mental health crisis that had already started to show on college campuses. It is well-overdue to increase institutional support for CPS as students recover from the pandemic and deal with mental health concerns in general.

Fordham needs to put a concerted effort into improving the accessibility and transparency of mental health services on campus. Every student should have the ability to receive care on campus through CPS and have all the information they need to access that care. There is a mental health crisis raging nationwide, and Fordham needs to rise to the challenge and combat it.

American Conservatism Crosses Border Into Canada

By ZACHARY BADALAMENTI CONTRIBUTING WRITER

As the GOP has shifted towards right-wing extremism and anti-federalism since the watershed presidential election of 2016, the Republican party’s political influence has infiltrated Canada’s political landscape. With the dramatic change in political rhetoric, members of the alt-right, a division of the far-right movement characterized by white supremacist values, began to organize themselves into violent groups and militias. One such group to rise to national notoriety is the Proud Boys. Stanford University defines the group as “an all-male, far-right extremist organization” with values stemming from Islamophobia, racism, anti-Semitism, homophobia, transphobia, misogyny and xenophobia.

Founded in 2016, the group garnered national attention and support by misrepresenting its mission as being anti-left rather than radically alt-right and riding the wave of social and political upheaval catalyzed by the Trump presidency. The decision to deliberately leave the organization’s objectives vague allowed for continuous news coverage and debate, especially because ex-President Donald Trump refused to

denounce the group.

The group has grown exponentially, now with 72 chapters in the U.S. Furthermore, the hateful rhetoric within U.S. politics has led to the creation of international Proud Boys chapters in Australia, the U.K. and Canada. The introduction of the alt-right extremist group into Canadian politics also inspired support for other extremist groups in Canada, such as the neo-Nazi organizations Atomwaffen and The Base.

Today, the group is federally recognized for having ties to white supremacy by the U.S. and as a terrorist organization by Canada. The organization is simply a group of militant extremists living out their dreams of being vigilantes fighting to uphold the homogeneously white institutions of the Puritans.

Although the Proud Boys organization began in 2016, the organization was not heavily associated with being a terrorist entity in Canada until recently. With the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Canadian government issued a vaccine mandate to quell its spread nationally. The mandate was met with immense political polarization because it did not align with the antifederalist ideologies held by many Canadians. Similar to in the U.S., organizations such as the Proud Boys, Atomwaffen

and The Base used the political unrest to wedge social and political division even further apart.

Alt-right organizations were able to garner support from movements protesting government-issued vaccine mandates by distorting the initially anti-federalist message and by promoting radical anti-left concepts. Through the process of adding increasingly radical elements to the anti-federalist movement, the Proud Boys and other organizations effectively transformed and weeded out existing groups of protesters down to the groups of militant drones that have flooded the mainstream news cycle of the last two years with hate crimes.

Before the Jan. 6 insurrection, the Proud Boys’ chapters of Canada had long withheld from publicly presenting themselves as a group perpetuating hateful rhetoric. Canadian news outlets refrained from referencing the organization in the same breath as similar neoNazi organizations espousing white supremacy. Despite this, following the insurrection of the Capitol, Canadian officials were quick to bring down the metaphorical hammer of justice, designating all three groups to be federally recognized as “terror entities” and ordering the disbandment of the Canadian Proud Boys’ chapters.

To a group of people who

are determined to take change into their own hands, national recognition, negative or not, encourages the anti-federalist beliefs that led to large masses of people gathering to protest in the first place.

Although the groups no longer operate under the same names, supporters of the groups have organized themselves differently. Of the organized protests following the government’s designation of the terrorist organizations, the most notable was the “Freedom Convoy,” a protest against the recent mandate stating truck drivers traveling across the Canadian border to the United States needed to be vaccinated, which spanned seven days in January 2022.

Through the use of the rightwing crowdfunding website GiveSendGo, the “Freedom Convoy” amassed millions of dollars. However, on Feb. 16, 2022, the website was hacked, revealing data on the total amount collected in donations and where the money was being sent from. The data showed that of the $9.577 million, the “Freedom Convoy” crowdfunding page had raised, 18%, or $1.748 million, came from the top 1% of donors. Of those donors, the largest is Jim Hoft, the editor in chief of Gateway Pundit, a U.S. news outlet Wikipedia describes as a “far-right fake news website.”

Although Jim Hoft was the most notable U.S. donor to the Canadian political protest, the leaked data traces over 1,100 donations back to accounts of people who had in the past supported other far-right organizations .

Aside from the “Freedom Convoy,” the level of political and social unrest in Canada is still very high. Most recently, the province of Alberta passed a bill rooted in anti-federalism into action that would reject federal sovereignty, allowing the region to reject or ignore any laws or regulations imposed by the Canadian federal government.

While the symbolism of the confederate flag and white supremacy as a whole feel unique to the American experience, the influence of the political climate of the U.S. expands past its borders. Additionally, not only does the polarization of the U.S. hold indirect implications for foreign nations, but, as seen in the leaked donation reports, those who hold political influence can directly play a role in the social and political development of Canada and other international territories.

The Necessity of Fighting For Abortion Rights in a Post-Roe Era

By SAISHA ISLAM CONTRIBUTING WRITER

On Friday, Jan. 20, thousands of pro-life activists gathered in Washington, D.C. for the March for Life protest at the National Mall. The March for Life rally, held since 1974, protests Roe v. Wade, a Supreme Court case that provided federal protection for the right to choose abortion. The recent overturning of Roe v. Wade allows states to pass laws regarding abortion, with regulations differing from state to state. This year, the March for Life rally celebrated the overturning of Roe v. Wade and discussed consolidating various pro-life groups to push for stricter abortion policies. This rally also promoted youth involvement in the prolife movement and expressed hope for the younger generation to be more involved.

While anti-abortion activists are pleased with the overturning of Roe v. Wade, there has been political controversy surrounding the decision. Many Republican politicians are reflecting on what it means to be pro-life and some are encouraging restrictive measures on abortion. Other Republicans, however, are concerned with how these measures affect the party’s performance. Former President Donald Trump

appears to be concerned with the latter, as he previously blamed the debate on abortion for Republicans’ poor performance in the midterms and is now distancing himself from the anti-abortion movement.

The addition of younger voters who support abortions and the resurgence of individuals who participated in the Women’s March the Sunday after the overturning of Roe v. Wade has further complicated the issue for pro-life politicians. The anti-abortion movement has made it clear through the March for Life that it is not satisfied with the overturning of Roe v. Wade by implementing more stringent policies like “restrictions on medication abortion, protections for so-called crisis pregnancy centers that discourage women from having abortions, and promises of anti-abortion appointees to run the Justice Department and the Food and Drug Administration.”

I believe that access to abortion is healthcare and that the line should be drawn between reproductive freedoms and religiously influenced ideas. Unfortunately, the overturning of Roe v. Wade has made things more complicated and even dangerous for many women who need an abortion. Currently, abortions are

not an option in at least 13 states, and many others have stringent laws, including gestational limits and restrictions on state funds.

For women in states where abortion is illegal, there is a significant financial burden in traveling to another state for an abortion. According to the New York Times, there are “thousands of dollars on added costs beyond the procedure itself, including flights, hotels, child care, food and gas.” Furthermore, “about half of the women who have abortions are living below the poverty line.” In addition, many states do not offer funds to cover procedure costs, ranging from about $500 for first-trimester procedures to over $2000 for women in their second trimester. Donations to abortion funds provide financial resources, transportation and other forms of assistance have increased exponentially in recent years. Many of these organizations, often composed of volunteers, do not have enough funds to help everyone.

The limitation of access to abortion can significantly affect maternal health. Individuals who are denied abortions are more likely “to stay in contact with violent partners and to have trouble affording basic living expenses” and have children that are “more

likely to live below the federal poverty line.” There is also the danger of back-alley abortions or other unsafe methods to terminate pregnancies for individuals who are desperate for the procedure and feel they have no other options. People who are denied abortions can additionally face mental health issues and distress. Overall, every individual’s situation differs, and the reason they choose to have an abortion also differs. Taking away federal protection on abortion causes more harm and confusion.

While many individuals in the anti-abortion movement cite religious reasons for opposing abortion access, a line should be drawn between individuals’ reproductive freedoms and religious beliefs. The imposition of these beliefs is unethical. People should be

able to make their own choice of whether to receive an abortion or not. The debate over when life begins has multiple scientific, philosophical, societal and ethical perspectives. Limiting abortion access and putting stricter measures on abortions cause more harm to individuals and society. Regardless of laws, abortions will occur. Providing federal protection over this choice and making other aspects of healthcare easier, such as financial assistance for medical costs, birth control access and sex education, as well as information promotion, would greatly benefit and inform those making the decision.

Saisha Islam, FCRH ’25, is a biology major from New York, N.Y.

Zachary Badalamenti, FCRH ’25, is a journalism major from Oakland, Calif.

Thousands of pro-life supporters gathered for a March for Life rally.

COURTESY OF INSTAGRAM

The Problems Posed by Social Media Aren’t Metaphysical

By NICOLE BRAUN OPINION EDITOR

If you have ever had a teacher or professor lament about the detrimental effects that social media is having on you and your brain, well, they’re not alone (here’s looking at you, Mrs. Martin).

The Seattle school district is suing social media companies, which include Meta (owners of Facebook and Instagram), Alphabet Inc. (owner of Google and YouTube), Snap Inc. (owner of Snapchat) and ByteDance Ltd (owner of TikTok), arguing that they “are responsible for hooking young people on their platforms and creating a mental health crisis.”

Responsible for 50,000 students, the Seattle school district believes that the social networks owned by these companies are at fault for their students’ anxiety and depression, as well as increasing rates of suicide. Recently, there has also been increased awareness and criticism for how these media giants are complicit in promoting unhealthy behaviors, namely disordered eating. Such claims came to light after Meta whistleblower Frances Haugen revealed documents that, allegedly, her former employer “knowingly prey[ed] on vulnerable young people to boost profits.”

Of course these companies do not want to shoulder the blame for poisoning the minds of youth

worldwide. In their defense, citing the steps taken to prevent young audiences from seeing harmful content, such as allowing parents to limit their kids’ screen time and age-verification steps. These are, however, nothing more than half-measures, meant to appease concerned parent groups. They are nothing more than bandaids on a gaping wound, giving the illusion of Internet safety as such restrictions are unbelievably easy to evade.

However, what is currently serving as an even bigger defense is a loophole in the Communications Decency Act which has protected social media companies from similar lawsuits in the past.

I believe that this loophole should be closed because social media companies are to blame for the mental health crisis currently ravaging American youth. For nearly two decades, they have been greedily marketing harmful products, lifestyles and mentalities to young people.

In last year’s State of the Union address, President Joe Biden brought up the harms of social media, the first president to ever do so during the State of the Union. He highlighted the underlying reason as to why social media companies will never truly dedicate themselves to curbing youth media addiction. He called the behaviors of these companies a “national experiment they’re conducting on our children for profit.”

As long as young adults,

known to be marketers’ most valuable demographic, stay on social media and continue to be a captive audience for companies looking to sell products or mine information, social media companies will not make any significant concerted effort to lessen the attractiveness of their platforms or reduce their addictiveness.

While suing the social media companies is certainly a symbolic step, I’m not sure it is much more than that, because honestly that’s not the main issue. The problems that are making teenagers anxious and depressed don’t stop — or start, for that matter — on TikTok or Instagram. And what happens if the lawsuit is successful, if social media companies are concretely found to have poisoned the minds of young people? What’s the endgame? Social media, as well as our reliance on it, is too deeply entrenched in our society and ourselves to be completely eradicated.

Again, for argument’s sake, let’s say the lawsuit is successful and there are stricter rules about teenagers creating accounts and stronger parental controls. What happens when those adolescents become adults? The buck also doesn’t stop with young people. Once those vulnerable kids become adults, that content will still be available to them, and those same mental health issues will be waiting for them on the other side of their eighteenth birthday.

The issues that are causing such overwhelming dread about

the state of the world, and even the way we see our own bodies, is all around us. Whether or not a teenager is in-tune to these social media platforms, it doesn’t matter. The doom is all around us, and while social media magnifies it, it is inescapable.

Whenever something particularly technologically dystopian happens, like, say the development of an AI service that can write your college essay, a chorus of us obnoxious television show know-it-alls like to say, “Oh this is just like an episode of ‘Black Mirror’!”; Referencing the show that episodically makes the case that technologically generally and social media specifically are leading to the collapse of our tooadvanced society, as our phone

screens are a type of “black mirror.” However, a mirror can only reflect what’s around it. The world issues are certainly amplified and the ones more likely to cause us panic are sent to us via a terrifyingly accurate algorithm, but the more anxiety-inducing fact is that these problems surround us; they are not safely enclosed in a phone or an app. Sure, we have the power to delete the app, but we don’t have the power to close out the outside world. Even after we close the app, the beat goes on.

3D-Printed Homes Are The Future of Construction

By LINDSAY OSIT CONTRIBUTING WRITER

3D printing is making its way into the construction industry — and opponents fear how it might impact the job market. In Houston, Cive’s giant printer is constructing the first 3D-printed two-story house. A small workforce stands alongside the machine, but the team’s size doesn’t compare to the size of a typical construction crew. While some might see this as a threat to labor markets, the technology can create markets for new, higherskilled jobs and save the housing industry from its current worker shortage. Overall, the benefits of 3D-printed homes outweigh the disadvantages: houses of the future can be cost-effective, safer and more sustainable.

3D printing isn’t a brandnew technology; several printed homes have already been built or are currently being constructed across several states. However, the use of technology continues to grow as more companies begin to recognize its benefits. Last fall, the Credit Suisse forecast said that 3D printing could grow up to 30% in the next year, which would significantly change the construction industry. Manual labor primarily dominates the construction industry, but the new method would create higher -skilled tech

jobs and decrease the physical demand. And while some might argue that this poses a threat to machinists, it could give them outstanding employment opportunities.

Greg Morris, co-founder and CEO of GE Aviation, told Business Insider that 3D printing challenges the current state of machining:

“you’ll get complex parts that a machinist will have to work with versus starting with a block of material. So you’re not replacing machinists; you’re just asking them to learn a little different skill set of what they start with and work with,” he said. Thus, while the switch to 3D printing might alter machinists’ traditional manufacturing responsibilities, that labor market will by no means vanish.

Due to enhanced geometric precision abilities, machinists will also have more freedom to create structures that would otherwise be impossible to develop.

Aside from machinist labor, opponents of 3D printing fear that the presence of large on-site construction crews pose a threat to those currently employed in the construction industry. However, the National Association of Home Builders cited a lack of construction workers for a recent housing shortfall. Chief economist Robert Dietz said it now takes up to four months longer to build a home than before the

COVID-19 pandemic, a shortage increasing demand and loss of lumber, appliances and workers. Despite construction companies paying an hourly wage higher than nearly all private sectors, it’s not enough to keep workers in the industry due to dangerous physical demands. The capability of complete construction without massive crew demands makes 3D printing a solution to this worker shortage.

Because 3D printing reduces the manual labor required, employers can benefit from labor input savings and the construction industry can build houses more quickly. 3D printing does not use wet construction, which requires time and generates much waste. A recent study shows that 3D printing requires 34% fewer man-hours than traditional construction methods. In addition, although the study shows that material costs are more expensive for 3D printing, construction costs are cheaper.

Since it is a relatively new technique, studies can’t confirm how long it will take for construction and maintenance savings to account for increased material costs. But the fact that the technology is fresh paves the way for future investments and advancements that can reduce that initial expense. Hikmat Zerbe, head of structural engineering at Cive,

acknowledged the drawbacks of installation costs. However, he also said that once the technology is improved, “builders may reach a point where such construction is cheaper than non-printed housing.”

The future is promising for economic-friendly enhancements to 3D construction in today’s fastpaced technological atmosphere. But arguably more important than improving long-term costs is addressing economic threats that traditional techniques impose. The National Library of Medicine’s review may provide more benefits, including waste reduction and energy conservation. For example, 3D printing uses additive manufacturing: products are built layer-by-layer rather than through the subtractive process, creating more waste. Additionally, the shortened process makes

production more direct and efficient, which can reduce carbon emissions. Since the materials involved in 3D printing are easily reusable, they are more eco-friendly than those in fused deposition modeling.

Still, the National Library of Medicine recognizes legitimizing the technology as a gateway to environmental benefits. A significant concern of 3D printing techniques is that they need universal regulations that standardize processes and ensure safety. Industry leaders must collaborate with regulators and establish alternative construction materials and procedures standards. After regulations are implemented, 3D printing will benefit the environ-

Lindsey Osit, FCRH ’24, is a journalism major from South Windsor, Conn.

Social media poses as a major detriment to society’s mental health.

COURTESY OF TWITTER

Nicole Braun, FCRH ’24, is an English major from Saddle River, N.J.

Post-Pandemic American Churches Face Uncertain Futures

By NORA LEACH STAFF WRITER

On Christmas Eve, I went to Mass with my family, one of the first times during the COVID-19 pandemic. As I listened to the familiar carols, I looked around at how empty the church was compared to previous Christmas Masses. At first, I dismissed this smaller attendance as one of the many changes from the pandemic. However, upon further reflection, I realized that this change was inevitable, and I wondered if the church I had attended for so long would shut down.

Church closures in the U.S. will lead to both negative and positive changes in religious practice. Like me, many Americans have stopped going to church, and research indicates that the pandemic is a factor in the increasing number of Protestant church closures.

However, there has also been a decreasing number of Americans who consider themselves Christian, which was at 90% in 1972 and 64% in 2020. Even before the pandemic, in 2017, young adults and teenagers stopped attending church for diverse reasons, which included adjustment to life changes such as college, fear of judgment from other

church members and disagreement with the church’s opinions on political issues. Each of these reasons indicates the changes that could occur if more churches shut down.

The first change is less time and enthusiasm for individuals to practice their faith, especially for college students. For me, attending church became monotonous before the pandemic. The pandemic gave me an excuse to stop going, and online broadcasts of Masses seemed tedious given how I spent hours of my day on remote learning. I figured that once places started gradually reopening, I would return to church with my family.

Then, I moved four hours away from home and had to create a new life away from my family and friends. New routines require months of perfecting as you struggle to balance schoolwork and leisure time. These changes are amplified when you start college at the height of a global pandemic. Despite my first-year dorm’s location next to the Fordham University Church and the option to watch live broadcasts of Masses, attending church was the last thing on my mind. When I could have prayed to God for comfort, I chose to isolate myself and for the first time in my life, my faith was not a priority.

While my lack of attendance at church seemed inevitable, I will not deny that the limitations of the pandemic made it more likely. The pandemic gave me a taste of what will occur if more local churches shut down: religious practice becomes less important in daily lives and routines.

Second, increasing church closures could lead to a lack of religious unity. On the one hand, closing down churches would make meeting others passionate about their faith more difficult. On the other hand, people who form relationships with each other based on their faith may have more difficulty doing so if their local church shuts down. Churches can be a way to find people with similar interests within religion, so lacking a social space can make it more challenging to connect with local communities.

On the positive side, this lack of religious unity could be significant for learning about and accepting other religions. Despite continuing to be steadfast in my Christian beliefs, many of my closest friends in my high school belonged to other religions or were atheists, so we never bonded through similar religious beliefs. However, I learned more about their faiths (or lack thereof), and I gained a new perspective

of the different experiences of religion. This experience could also be important for those who are unaffiliated with religion, who, according to the Pew Research Center, may still believe in God and partake in religious practices. Those who are not part of a specific religious institution would want more flexibility to learn about and accept other faiths while retaining one’s own. While that flexibility does not necessitate the shutdown of churches, there may be more opportunities to engage in other religions and spiritualities if it is more difficult to go to a nearby church.

This leads to the third effect, which I believe will become more important in the future: politics. These past few years have seen monumental political changes, the most prominent one being the overturning of Roe v. Wade. Christian leaders either supported or opposed the decision, but regardless of these stances, Americans expressed their discontent with religion. Many Catholic churches were vandalized across the U.S. as a form of protest towards Catholicism’s stance toward abortion. It is no surprise that religion can play a significant role in influencing political opinions. Without the option of attending church, there could

be a change in how much individuals allow their religious beliefs to influence political opinions. They will not allow their religion to become the sole factor for a political belief. Conversely, religions and churches have evolved over the years to accommodate for political and social changes, but they will not have that chance if they shut down. Churches need to realize that young people will make or break their religion’s future, and ignoring the issues will only make communities more discontent with religion.

I do not think that religion will stop being important. Despite my lack of enthusiasm for attending church, I still believe in God. I empathize with those who will no longer have a place to go for worship because their local church shut down.

While I believe churches will always have an important place in Americans’ lives, this increased number of church closures is not only a result of the pandemic. It is a sign of social change in America, and whether churches can adapt to these changes will make or break their future.

Nora Leach, FCRH ’24, is an English and American studies major from Groton, Mass.

Fordham Embraces Creative Freedom with “notes.”

By MEGHAN MAHAFFEY CONTRIBUTING WRITER

The interconnectedness of our world today rests upon the desire to create. Art will continue to offer a sensory stimulation to make sense of the physical, mental and social environment, which transcends the everevolving nature of our world. Fordham University lends a hand to this craving for artist expression through their visual arts department. Every fall semester, the department conducts a seminar for seniors nearing the end of their undergraduate careers. In this seminar, students of all specializations within the field — photography, architecture, graphic design, painting and film — are given the opportunity to undergo an intensive process of creative growth. At the end of the semester, students share their work from the semester in Fordham’s Lipani Gallery, located on the street level of the Lincoln Center campus in the visual arts complex. The work of the 15 students who partook in the 2022 Senior Seminar is currently on display for viewing in an artistic exhibition entitled “notes.”

After initially viewing the exhibition virtually, I traveled to Lipani Gallery where I could enjoy the full extent of the students’ artistic talent. The variety of creative productions within

the exhibition reflected the limitless breadth of Fordham’s visual arts program.

Stephan Apicella-Hitchcock, department head of the visual arts program and administrator of the 2022 Senior Seminar, offered insight on the inner workings of the project, describing it as “elliptical” in nature. For 26 years, Apicella-Hitchcock has been working in Fordham’s visual arts department, just recently rising to head of the department. He finds the fall senior seminar to be particularly fulfilling as he witnesses the work of students who are at the peak of their undergraduate career and dedicated to their craft. He aspires to create a tight knit community through the seminar, which he said was especially prevalent with this group of students. Apicella-Hitchcock said he aims to “become superfluous” throughout the semester, as artists create an environment not dependent on the authority

of a professor, but rather on the creative inspiration they draw from one another. He provided funds for the 15 students to eat a meal together during the semester, which he believed enhanced the ongoing process of improving their work. He views art as a catalyst of communication, not simply as catharsis, which is exhibited in “notes.”

The first collection of work I noticed was that of Molly Frank. In it, she displays three doors as a question of what we willingly present to the world. “I have always been interested in those around me and what we choose to openly share about ourselves and intentionally hide,” Frank said. She finds doors to be the literal and metaphorical gateway into people’s lives and stories, as they are “a very physical representation of us…that goes beyond race, gender, economic and societal differences.”

Frank intentionally leaves some ambiguity in her work, as she

wants the viewer to interpret the residents of the home themselves. Her artwork initially caught my eye because of the bright coloring of the doors, but I was drawn in by the deeper meaning of the photographs. She “present[s] homes and their potential storylines quietly,” the same way that people selectively choose what is displayed for others to see.

Secondly, the work of Chloe McGee caught my attention because of its seemingly simplistic nature. In the gallery, McGee displayed six photographs, all adhering to a neutral and pleasing color palette. I originally saw the collection that shows three brown eggs, a bowl of bread, miscellaneous silverware and the arms of two people resting in the background. Her “photographs are of the parts of the world that merge the gap between opening and closing your eyes for too long,” she said. These “photos are of the parts of existence [she] probably would have disregarded otherwise but cannot live without,” allowing her to “appreciate the obsolete and the redundant.”

Like Frank, McGee explains her fascination with the endless interpretations of her work, pointing to the subjectivity of the artwork in “notes.”

While walking through the exhibition, the creative liberty that the students possessed was

evident. Photography was only a fraction of the disciplines exhibited in the Lipani Gallery. As Apicella-Hitchcock proudly acknowledges, everyone decodes and encodes in a different way; art is by no means universal. “notes.” is a way for someone to travel in the footsteps of the artists, recognizing the differences and similarities that they possess. When discussing the Fordham visual arts program itself, Apicella-Hitchcock wants to “have events that create a sense of identity, a sense of place and are fun.” Visual communication is at the forefront of his concerns, and he proudly spoke of the commitment to this awe-inspiring endeavor by the 2022 Senior Seminar students.

Frank explained how her time at Fordham “has had an incredible influence on [her] discovering [her] artistic identity.” Apicella-Hitchcock’s “inviting and charismatic personality allows for everyone to be comfortable with each other, which therefore allows [them] to create, discuss and critique freely,” she said with pride.

Fordham’s vigorous visual arts department challenges students to nurture the bonds with one another and embrace an ongoing cycle of correction. The artists featured in “notes.” are exemplars of the willingness to constantly evolve creatively, which will be necessary in their future endeavors in an array of fields.

The Importance of Media Preservation

By SAMANTHA MINEAR FEATURES EDITOR

“Media permanence is a relatively modern phenomenon, but it is one that we take for granted,” Darren Mooney of Escapist Magazine wrote.

It’s true; the idea that TV, film and music are no longer lost in time, that they evade the natural consequence of age, is the thankless yet rudimentary job of the internet. But with great power comes great responsibility, and some of the biggest entertainment giants — namely Warner Bros. Entertainment — have taken to removing a number of shows from their platforms in an effort to curb spending, a business move which many are calling a tremendous disgrace.

Media was once created to be consumed and then forgotten. In 2013, the Library of Congress reported that 75% of all silent films had been lost, though there have been concerted efforts since to recover the lost films. Nevertheless, before the 21st century, it was exceedingly rare to have a digital archive of media; the process remains difficult and expensive, particularly for older films shot with analog film stock. The introduction of DVDs,

and the subsequent shift from cable to streaming services, hallmarked a new era for media preservation. Rental companies like Blockbuster and Redbox became increasingly defunct as media conglomerates were able to license their filmographies to companies such as Netflix, HBO Max and Hulu, enabling decades-old content to be viewed by new audiences and for posterity. HBO Max specifically became known for its classic content.

However, shortly following the merger of Warner Bros. and Discovery, Inc., — parent company of HBO Max — new CEO David Zaslav announced “drastic changes” to its media library, in “an attempt to cut costs.” This meant that films such as “Batgirl,” which was completed and awaiting release, as well as multiple TV shows (including the celebrated and criticallyacclaimed “Westworld”) were removed completely from the platform, sparking a collective outcry across both the media and entertainment industry.

It’s undoubtedly unfortunate that these shows have found themselves on the cutting room floor for cast, crew and audiences alike. But the larger issue at play is less about convenience and more about history. The most famed titles will have

no problem finding new homes, but smaller pieces may be lost in the transition. As HBO Max sets its future sights on more theatrical releases, as opposed to the pandemic-inspired switch to online exclusives, they do so at the expense of the vision and trust of their dedicated team of filmmakers and screenwriters .

Media is not only a form of entertainment, but is rooted in education; the tropes, storylines and fictitious narratives audiences find themselves falling in love

with almost always point to a larger issue or worldly discussion. “Generation,” canceled after only one season and removed from HBO Max, was hailed as a dramedy with a rare skillful touch to address real teen issues.

“Minx” was a 1970s-era comedy that unabashedly pushed the boundaries of second-wave feminism and erotica, and was also removed from the platform, despite being renewed for a second season.

This new, passing trend of

treating media as disposable is the beginning of a terrible reckoning. Not only will audiences be left without their favorite stories, cast and crew members will be unrecognized for their hard work and the mistakes of the past will repeat themselves without the cautionary tales of the power of the screen.

Some movies and shows are too good to forget — no matter the price tag — because the resulting consequences may prove to be much more expensive in the long run.

“notes.” showcases the work of students from the 2022 Senior Seminar.

COURTESY OF MEGHAN MAHAFFEY FOR THE FORDHAM RAM

Editor’s Pick| Media

Who’s That Kid? | Stephanie Lane, FCRH ’25

Sophomore Films and Photographs Campus Life

By SOFIA DONOHUE ASST. NEWS EDITOR

From the moment Stephanie Lane, FCRH ’25, stepped foot on campus, she knew that she wanted to get involved. A New Media and Digital Design major with a passion for videography and photography, Lane is a video producer for WFUV and media manager for Fordham Club Baseball, Fordham Men’s Ice Hockey and Fordham Dance Team. While she isn’t in WFUV’s studio or photographing a sports event, Lane is a “Ramfluencer” for Fordham’s marketing team, a member of Fordham Club Swim and a photographer, author and model for MODE Magazine.

Lane had heard about WFUV before she began her freshman year, so she immediately got in contact with the radio and began her training as an intern in November 2021. This past fall, Lane became a video producer working in entertainment.

“I knew that I was super interested in video production … I did a lot in high school with video production and editing, but I’d never done anything with entertainment before so I decided to do that rather than something with sports.”

During a typical week as a WFUV video producer, Lane goes into the studio at least once a week to film. In the Keating

basement, Lane gets the opportunity to meet up-and-coming artists, which she says is one of her favorite parts about working at WFUV. Typically, the band or artist plays three songs in the studio, which Lane and a group of video producers record and edit throughout the week.

“A lot of the artists are super nice. Working with different artists is one of my favorite parts because you’re interacting with someone who’s so talented,” said Lane.

This past semester, Lane had the opportunity to work with Beabadoobee, an indie-pop singer-songwriter from London. Beabadoobee recorded three songs with WFUV: “Coffee,”

“See You Soon” and an unreleased song, “Glue Song.” Beabadoobee’s performance of “Glue Song” now has over 180,000 views on WFUV’s Youtube. Post-jam session, Lane even gave Beabadoobee a tour of campus after she expressed that she wanted to “experience the American uni life.”

Lane also has a passion for photography, which she credits to both her dad and her high school’s curriculum that allowed her to take a variety of photography classes.

“My dad was super into photography, so we always had cameras around. I got acquainted with photography because of him. I got more involved with

video editing in high school when I got to take electives. That’s when I figured out I wanted to go into some type of video production,” said Lane. Since she’d taken photography classes in high school and had a growing interest for the craft, Lane decided that she may as well put her skills to work at Fordham. By documenting various Fordham sporting events, Lane has had the chance to make friends, start building her portfolio and, most importantly, have fun. Lane’s first time working as a project-based media producer for Fordham Athletics was this past fall at Late Night on the Hill, an event to celebrate the men’s and women’s basketball teams’ kickoff to the 2022-23 season. Throughout the event, Lane captured the basketball team players as they made their grand entrance, a performance by rapper Wale and the bleachers packed with enthusiastic students.

“Basically, I’m trying to bring fans into the game and get them involved in that. I’ll take a video of the event and have 24-48 hours to edit the video.”

Although she practically had to pull an all-nighter to edit the video, Lane felt a sense of accomplishment and purpose after she completed her first project.

“I’d love to showcase that we do actually have sports here and people should come here if

they’re interested in that. We do have great programs, and I think they aren’t highlighted enough.”

Ice hockey is Lane’s favorite sport to watch. Therefore the Fordham Hockey was the first team Lane reached out to and asked to photograph.

“I love all the players on the teams I photograph, but hockey is definitely my favorite because of my passion for the sport. In the future, I think I want to go into some hockeyrelated job rather than a different sport,” said Lane.

Lane also noted that one of her favorite parts of photographing club sports is the creative freedom that comes along with it. If she were taking photos for Fordham’s D1 teams, Lane

would have less independence when it comes to posting on social media. Not only does Lane appreciate the opportunity to explore her creative side, but she also is grateful for the fact that players and their families appreciate her work.

“I love when players will come up to me and say ‘Thank you so much for your photographs, I share them with my family.’ I think it’s super rewarding when parents and players thank me for taking pictures. I know that I’m not only building my own platform, but it’s also emotional with players’ parents, and I like how there’s multiple levels to my job. When I went into it, I didn’t realize it would have that impact on other people.”

What Is “Primitive” About Self-Taught Art?

By ELEANOR SMITH CONTRIBUTING WRITER

On Jan. 27, the American Folk Art Museum hosted a webinar on the effects the Interwar Period had on self-taught artists. Often referred to as “modern primitives,” self-taught artists have played an extremely important role in American art history. Most American folk artists are or were self-taught, and this seminar focused on many different self-taught American artists that had previously been grouped together in a monolith.

The first session, titled “Modern Primitives,” was a discussion that examined how self-taught art was exhibited in the interwar period. The discussion was led by Esther Adler, the curator of drawings and prints at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), and focused specifically on the MoMA’s exhibition of self-taught art. The MoMA was created in 1929 by “progressive and influential patrons of the arts,” who saw a need for a museum that pushed back against the conservative culture of the fine arts.

Adler spoke about the relationship between artists and mediators — people that champion the artist and their work. She said that often the only reason artwork survives and is placed in museums is because an intermediary figure, usually somebody that is wealthy and influential, values the work. Thus, the art that we see today is shaped by how the mediator views the artwork. When wealthy people affect the way art by self-taught artists is preserved and viewed, much of the complexity of that artwork is lost, especially because self-taught artists are often lower-class.

Susan Davidson, an independent curator and panelist for this talk, reckoned with this by centering the art as the only primary source. She recognized that the “artists themselves are not necessarily the best salesperson” and focused on the information that can be gleaned from the art in front of her rather than on secondary accounts of the artists’ lives. She did, however, grant that some biographical details are necessary to put the artists’ work into context.

Jennifer Marshall, a professor focusing on American art at the University of Minnesota, added to Davidson’s point about biographical context. She stated that self-taught artists often draw more inspiration from the political and social environment

than conventionally educated artists, who are heavily influenced by their formal education. Therefore, examining the political and social context of an artist’s life can offer important insight into their work. The second talk was titled “The Inside/Outside Conundrum.”

Lynne Cooke, the senior curator for Special Projects in Modern Art at the National Gallery in Washington, D.C., delivered a lecture on how self-taught art was categorized and received in the 20th century. The name of the talk is a reference to how art was categorized by critics in the 20th century. There was the “inside” art of formally educated artists, which was categorized by a variety of factors, such as subject, medium and style, and then there was the “outside” art of self-taught artists, which was viewed as one category regardless of subject, medium or style.

Many American folk artists in the early 20th century were first or second generation European immigrants. These artists — including John Kane, Lawrence Lebduska and Horace Pippin — did not draw from royal or religious life as many of their predecessors did, but rather took inspiration from their lower- or middle-class roots, creating art that everyday people could relate to.

Unfortunately, the “intermediaries,” as Adler discussed in

the previous session, greatly affected how the work of selftaught artists was displayed and consumed. Self-taught art was often grouped into one category, minimizing the complexities and differences between the works of artists with different lived experiences and inspirations. Additionally, the work of self-taught artists was displayed by “intermediaries” in museums in a way that would appeal to upper-class museum guests — who were not the artists’ intended audience.

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, whether an artist was technically trained had an outsized influence on how their art was viewed in comparison to other works. Many critics viewed all art from self-taught artists as a monolith, grouping together art from vastly different artists and labeling those artists as “modern primitives.” As the art world has diversified, however, differences in art are more closely related to class, age, gender and race, rather than formal education or lack thereof. The term “modern primitives” is out of date — art is not “primitive” just because it is created by somebody without technical training, and there is nothing “primitive” about art that accurately depicts the ins and outs of everyday American life.

COURTESY OF STEPHANIE LANE FOR THE FORDHAM RAM Lane captures the entertainment and sports side of campus life in film.

Neighborhood Spotlight | Upper West Side

Get a Snapshot of New York City in the Upper West Side

By CALEB STINE COLUMNIST

Nestled west of Central Park between Riverside Drive and Central Park West lies Manhattan’s Upper West Side. This charming, familyoriented neighborhood is historic and academic, becoming increasingly more trendy and home to some of the city’s most classic landmarks.

Originally a shipping and transportation neighborhood, due to its proximity to the Hudson River, the neighborhood went from becoming mostly a squatter’s settlement to an affluent area in a matter of centuries, owing credit to the development of the subway system in the early 20th century and the growing academic prestige of Columbia University, which sits nearby in Morningside Heights.

Fordham’s Lincoln Center campus, which spans from 60th to 61st street between Columbus and Amsterdam Avenues, sits at the southern tip of the neighborhood, which runs from 59th to 110th St. Conveniently, students can reach the neighborhood through the Ram Van or via the B or D trains.

The Upper West Side is diverse and home to a variety of

people, but is particularly notable for its Jewish population and cuisine. Zabar’s, a jewish grocery store, sits on 80th and Broadway and is home to smoked fish, bagels, babka and more to keep you coming back. Another store down the street, Barney Greengrass (“The Sturgeon King”), of 86th and Amsterdam, is loaded with high-end fish made to cater, and has been in service for over 100 years.

Jewish delicacies aside, the neighborhood has a variety of food to offer. Freddie and Pepper’s, as well as Francesco’s Pizza have both earned 8.1 ratings on Barstool founder Dave Portnoy’s review app, One Bite.

A prospective itinerary for first-timers to the Upper West Side is outlined below. Stunning exhibits in the morning, large portions of southern food towards the afternoon, followed by a walk to work off the calories before filling up again with excellent chicken and rice selection and a wide selection of gelato to cleanse your pallet is a great way to spend your time in the area.

A day on the Upper West Side / Morning: American Museum of Natural History / Lunch: Jacob’s Pickles / Afternoon: Riverside Park / Dinner: Flor De Mayo / Dessert: Screme Gelato Bar

Outside of just filling your

stomach, the Upper West Side can satisfy anyone’s craving for knowledge of art or history through the New-York Historical Society, which is currently showcasing an exhibit of paintings of New York City up until July and an in-depth presentation on the history of the Jewish deli until April.

Over on Broadway, the historic Beacon Theatre is a staple for comics and musicians alike.

Jerry Seinfeld, who lived on West 81st street on our televisions for nine seasons of “Seinfeld” in the ’80s and ’90s, now calls the neighborhood home. He per-

forms here next month.

Of course, Lincoln Center is the mecca for arts and entertainment events in the city. While it definitely is a walk from what many would consider the “heart” of the neighborhood, the Upper West Side would be a much different, and artistically less-informed place without it.

What makes the Upper West Side unique is not the restaurants or the proximity to Central Park. It’s not even the stacked marquee of events playing at the Beacon or Lincoln Center.

The Upper West Side shines

Winterfest Presents: Peach Tree Rascals

By ISABELLA DEROSA CONTRIBUTING WRITER

On Friday, Jan. 27, Lincoln Center’s Campus Activities Board (CAB) hosted its annual Winterfest celebration. Winterfest is one of the biggest events hosted by Lincoln Center CAB, and this year’s concert was its first in-person since COVID-19. This year, Winterfest hosted the alternative group the Peach Tree Rascals, who went viral on TikTok back in 2019.

The doors opened at 5 p.m., and upon entering the event, guests were greeted with blue and white Winterfest decor and an exciting atmosphere. The concert took place in the Lowenstein Pope Auditorium at the Lincoln Center campus. The venue was a perfect fit for the concert with both seating and an open floor for guests to dance along to the music. Cool lighting and refreshments gave the room a comfortable feel. Prior to the Peach Tree Rascals’ appearance, two of Fordham’s very own student bands performed as opening acts. The first opener was Melissa Joy, FCLC ’24. Joy, a singer-songwriter from Long Island, performed music spanning several genres including a cover of “Mr. Brightside” and her latest single, “Achilles.” Joy was the perfect way to kick off the show as her music

set the vibe for the night. The atmosphere was filled with fun and upbeat energy.

Next up was Jacob Sins, FCLC ’23, along with band members Lucy Murray, Anna Helldorfer, Peter Zirnis, Adriana Braganza and Arielle Schmidt. Sins played some brilliant originals and fun covers that had everyone singing along. Both Sins and Joy are incredibly talented performers who definitely have more success ahead of them. “It adds to the sense of community we have and is also very inspiring to see my peers showcase their talents on such a large stage,” said Bianca Ortega, FCLC ’25, a committee member. Arantza Rebollar, FCLC ’25, another committee member, shared CAB’s main motivation for picking artists is based on their “good vibes and allaround positive energy.”

When it came to the main act, the Peach Tree Rascals did a great job of continuing the positive atmosphere. CAB went through an extensive process to select this year’s main artist. Rebollar and Ortega explained how the committee reaches out to many artists over the summer who are both available and within budget.

Once they selected five to six artists, the Lincoln Center students picked the artist via poll. The Peach Tree Rascals

won the poll and gave a great performance. The band was excited to play and enjoyed interacting with the crowd. Even for someone who has never heard their music, they were fun to listen and sing along to.

Aside from just picking the artists, there is a lot more the committee does to ensure the success of the concert. Ortega noted that the committee worked for “several months planning basically every aspect of the concert.” During the event, there’s a job for just about everything from managing the concert itself to coat and bag check.

Prior to the concert, Rebollar explained that there are committee members who coordinate volunteers, make flyers and t-shirts, run the social media and plan the artist release party.

Nevertheless, it is clear that the Winterfest concert is well worth all of the hard work.

Committee member Emma Ritchie, FCLC ’25, said that Winterfest, “is all about making a space where everyone can relax and just enjoy themselves. Music is something everyone can connect through, no matter the artist.” All the committee members agreed that the true purpose of Winterfest is to create a space where Fordham students can connect and have fun. This year’s concert was particularly important as it was not only the 10th annual Winterfest,

but also a great way to rebuild a sense of community after the pandemic.

It can be hard for students to take a break from their busy schedules, and jumping into the new semester has many challenges. One of the Winterfest Committee goals was to create an event to celebrate Fordham students’ hard work as well as

in my mind because it holds many parts of New York, in their purest forms, in one neighborhood. Quiet, brownstone-lined streets are uncompromised by the bustling main avenues of Broadway, Columbus and Amsterdam. A leisurely walk on a Sunday morning in loose-fit jeans and a sweater on Riverside Drive is as peaceful as anyone would like it to be, and 72nd and Broadway pulses with rushhour energy that reminds me so many times why I’m thankful to go to a school that calls the city its campus. give them a moment to relax. This goal was accomplished as the auditorium was filled with students enjoying the music. The Peach Tree Rascals and the openers were great performers, and the audience was filled with positive vibes. Overall, Winterfest was a great experience for all those who were a part of it.

The Upper West Side contains much of what defines NYC culture, from museums to parks or art to delis.

COURTESY OF INSTAGRAM

COURTESY OF ISABELLA DEROSA FOR THE FORDHAM RAM

CAB’s Winterfest concert brought the Peach Tree Rascals to Fordham.

FIT Showcases Female Designers in “Designing Women”

By JULIA CHORUN CONTRIBUTING WRITER

If you’re a designer, there’s a good chance you’re often inspired by your surroundings, whether it’s a concept, a person or even a wall. Yet there is a secret source of ideas designers unknowingly draw from and often influence: the interior design of their own homes.

The Museum at Fashion Institute of Technology, located at 227 West 27th Street in Manhattan, unveiled the “Designing Women: Fashion Creators and Their Interiors” exhibition. This collection features 60 pieces of clothing from 40 female designers like Lucille Ball, Ann Lowe and Coco Chanel. Each designer is represented by at least one garment or accessory, drawn from The Museum at FIT’s permanent collection and an interior image to go along with it.

Aside from the eye-catching ensembles that constitute the centerpiece of the experience, one of the exhibit’s most important components is its curation. From entrance to exit, the collection follows a timeline beginning in the late 18th century and ending in the 21st century to express the development of La Belle Époque. The translation, “The Beautiful Era,” is remembered amiably for being the predecessor of the Western societal and economic hardships that were endured in the 20th century. This time

of peace and relative prosperity was most enjoyed by privileged Parisian individuals, whose clothing reflected the opulence, extravagance and affluence of their place in society.

The experience begins with a dramatic feather-trimmed dress from 1892 Paris, clenched at the waist with a pop of a pale green, floral-patterned silk in the sleeves and skirt. The silk fabric used to balance the use of multiple black textures reflects a pattern commonly used in many 19th century homes as wallpaper or upholstery. Furthermore, its puff sleeves and dark embellishments set the tone for the grandeur of The Beautiful Era the museum aims to accentuate in each piece.

Following this era, an increasing number of women founded important couture houses in Paris, London and New York. Among these esteemed women was Madeleine Vionnet, one of the most well-known and influential dressmakers in modern fashion history. On view at the museum is a demonstration of her groundbreaking construction methodologies, which were heavily influenced by her interpretation of geometrically precise arcs and angles. Her evening dress from Paris during the summer of 1925 displays a linear model of beige silk chiffon, with metallic bead embroidery. The garment is tied to her salon de presentation, or in other words, her neoclassical inspired “Temple of Fashion.”

The relationship between interior design and fashion design is strong and persistent. One visionary, Pauline Trigère, created a brand and an image for her fashion house from a concept that came from her self decorated suburban apartment. La Tortue, or The Turtle, was the beloved symbol of the Trigère brand, and it came from a living room with blends of neutrals accompanied by bold green hues and patterns. The bold-colored, contemporary elements in an otherwise neutralcolored space are personified in the museum’s green and orange evening dress and matching cape, where the colors are dauntless, but the shape itself is understated and simple.

Each ensemble and supplementary photo of the designer’s personal space allows for viewers to make their own connections. Where I saw a similarity between Vionnet’s dress patterns and her temple ceiling, you may notice a carefully thought out relationship between her love of interior minimalism and the gown’s proportions. When we continuously breathe, think and create in a space, that respective space eventually becomes an integral part of our own expression.

When designers like Anna Sui choose to spend their life in a space of their own making, each element can become a preference or point of interest. The museum closes with two designs from Sui that are inspired by her

self-decorated apartment nestled in Greenwich Village. Both are accompanied by a video from Vogue, where Sui gives a tour of her victoriana and art nouveau adjacent home. Her walls are covered head-to-toe in chinoiserie wallpaper, and her bedroom is characterized by stark color contrasts in stained glass windows and multiple venetian mirrors. There’s a clear theme between her interior blend of fantasy and comfort and the two featured pieces. The black wool dress embroidered with armoires and clocks from her 1997 New York Autumn designs, reflect a sense of play with crafts and icons that are all too similar to the patterns in her famous bookroom. Moreover, the museum’s choice to include her stained glass-inspired Kaftan ensemble from autumn 2012 emphasizes that no matter the time period, women absorb and learn from the space in which

they’re placed, or choose to be placed in some cases.

There is one concept that you may not find so easily discussed in the collection: luxury. Granted, a discussion of class disparity and unequal wealth distribution wasn’t necessarily the point or focus of an otherwise aesthetically pleasing and well-curated experience, but nonetheless, La Belle Epoch was defined by affluence. Legacy, funds and privilege are the backbone of such diverse and innovative forms of inspiration, as fashion was made popular by the middle class women’s desire to follow suit of the British royal family. Perhaps when you visit the free exhibition, which is open to the public until May 14, you too may notice that wealth allows for such interior-based design roadmaps to make these ensembles a trend at the time, and a treasure today.

Heroism on Display at the NYC Fire Museum

By REBECCA TEJIRAM CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Located in the Hudson Square District of Manhattan, the New York City Fire Museum showcases the heroic history of New York City firefighters, from the days of horse-drawn ladder trucks and steam engines to the first motorized pumpers. It stands in place of the 1904 Firehouse Engine Company No. 30 with an exterior that fittingly resembles a firehouse, with its sturdy brick

structure and garage-like doors. As part of its two-story structure, the museum hosts a number of exhibits commemorating the valor and sacrifice of New York City firefighters. One example is its 9/11 Memorial, which features artifacts and equipment recovered from the wreckage, many still coated by the white dust from the collapse of the Twin Towers. In addition to a memorial wall honoring the 343 firefighters who lost their lives on Sept. 11, 2001, the exhibit includes priceless pieces such as a pew

from St. Paul’s Chapel that was physically marked by the equipment of the firefighters when the church was used as a base of operation after the attacks.

Along with these displays and articles, the museum adds to its remarkable collection through a new exhibition entitled, “Firehouse: The Photography of Jill Freedman.” The exhibit pays tribute to the work of acclaimed photographer Jill Freedman, who lived and rode with various fire engines in the 1970s, documenting the everyday lives of FDNY firefighters. It features two rooms dedicated to photographs from Freedman’s 1977 book “Firehouse” as well as a powerful six-minute documentary of Freedman discussing her experiences during the project.

Upon entering the first exhibition room, visitors can view portraits of firefighters and photographs of their activities in the fire stations along the walls while listening to Freeman’s documentary. The second exhibition room is more solemn as visitors quietly walk around the room observing the photographs of firefighters on the job and actively putting out fires.

As Freedman explained in the documentary, the inspiration for her project stems from a childhood dream of becoming a firefighter, a

passion that was revived after she captured a photo of a firefighter rescuing a cat. She sought to capture “what kind of guy will risk his neck for someone else’s or run into burning buildings and feel responsible for every stranger who needs help.”

Through the vast collection of black-and-white photos, one cannot help but notice the parallels between the roles of firefighters and combat soldiers — the constant action, the unpredictability of every moment, the exhaustion, the longing to go home. Yet the determination and mettle in their eyes are unmistakable and shine through in each photograph. Freedman’s artistic genius is particularly evident in a photograph titled “E50, South Bronx.” At first glance, the image seems indiscernible as it appears as only black with a few white streaks. However, a closer, more careful look reveals that the light parts of the photo are the headlights of a fire truck, driving in the blackness of night. As Freeman depicts, the heroism and grit of these men are manifested in their willingness to go into the bleakest, dirtiest and darkest places with the primary mission of rescuing and saving lives.

Yet the collection captures an unexplored side of the job of

firefighters — one that is rarely seen. Freedman depicts the brotherhood that arises in a job where one’s life depends on the man next to him, “the closeness that grows out of being in combat together.”

People of all backgrounds, races and walks of life are seen cooking, dancing and eating together — a stark contrast to the danger and gravity of the job depicted in the other photos. Freedman shows the humanity and heart of these heroes with photographs of them playing with children in the community, playing card games and watching TV.

Jill Freedman’s work strives to capture firefighters as “the antithesis of all the meanness and cruelty you see in the newspaper and the streets.” It is a potent reminder of the need for places like the New York City Fire Museum to inspire younger generations, and remind them of the debt of gratitude they owe to first responders. In the words of the late Freedman, “I saw the only firefights I can respect, fought in the only uniform I like. If men must fight wars, let them fight for life instead of death.”

“Firehouse: The Photography of Jill Freedman” is available for viewing at the New York City Fire Museum through the spring until April 2, 2023.

The New York City Fire Museum showcases the heroism of firefighters.

COURTESY OF INSTAGRAM

“Designing Women” showcases the creativity of female designers.

Superteams Finding their Way into the WNBA

By JULIA MOSS CONTRIBUTING WRITER

News broke a little over a week ago that sent shockwaves through the WNBA: the 2021 MVP Jonquel Jones was leaving the long dominant Connecticut Sun and joining the New York Liberty. The trade included three teams: Connecticut, New York and Dallas. New York received Jones from the Sun and Kayla Thornton from the Dallas Wings. Dallas received Natasha Howard and the rights to Crystal Dangerfield, both from the Liberty. Lastly, the Sun received Rebecca Allen and the sixth overall pick in this year’s draft from New York along with Ty Harris from Dallas. Through this trade, the Liberty somehow managed to shed the salary cap to free up space to sign another big star in their pursuit of a title.

There’s been a lot of buzz around where WNBA superstar Breanna Stewart will go in free agency. Well, it seems the cap space freed to acquire Jones will be incredibly beneficial as it was just announced Stewart is down to two options. She’s either going to stay in Seattle where she’s spent her entire sixyear career, or follow Jones to Brooklyn to play for the New York Liberty. The prospect of a starting lineup including Sabrina Ionescu, Jones and Stewart is becoming increasingly likely, which would complete a big three that could compete with any team in the league.

However, the Liberty aren’t the only team trying to accumulate a superteam. The reigning WNBA champions, the Las Vegas Aces, gained a huge pickup in the form of legend Candace Parker. The decision came as a bit of a surprise as Parker had made her home in Chicago for the past two seasons, but she stated her main reason for making the switch was family. “I need to be there for my daughter, for my son, for my wife. I can’t be

without them for parts of the season when Lailaa is in school, and I won’t miss her volleyball games or school dances simply because of distance. Lailaa starts high school in August and I need to be there for her, just as she’s been there for me,” said Parker.

Parker will be joining an already stacked Aces team with 2022 MVP A’ja Wilson, Kelsey Plum, Chelsea Gray and Jackie Young, finishing out a starting five that may be the strongest we’ve seen in WNBA history. Last season, these five players alone averaged 82.3 points per game, so it’s clear the outlook of next season is somehow brighter for the defending champs.

However with these free agency moves has come controversy. Some have argued that superteams ruin leagues and make them less competitive. While we’ve seen this with teams like the 2010 Miami Heat and 2016 Golden State Warriors of the NBA, it hasn’t truly been seen of a team in the WNBA acquiring a superteam to this extent and frequency. While the entertainment factor of seeing stars play together will be a positive, it’s definitely worth considering how this can affect competitiveness in the league.

Even if Stewart stays in Seattle, the Liberty have put themselves into the championship-contender category. While New York lost Howard in this trade, they have upgraded the exact position with Jones. Jonathan Kolb, the Liberty’s general manager, has performed a masterclass of an offseason managing to significantly upgrade their roster while simultaneously cutting down on salary cap money.

Fans of the WNBA are sure to be in store for a season like they’ve never seen before. There are still some dominos that are yet to fall with Stewart, Courtney Vandersloot, Nneka Ogwumike among others that have yet to have decide on a team, but regardless the anticipation has officially begun for the 2023-24 WNBA season.

Athletes of the Week

Kyla Hill Sets Fordham Record in Big Weekend for Track and Field

By LOU ORLANDO ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

Fordham Track and Field enjoyed a successful trip to Mass. for the River Hawk Invitational, recording season bests on both the men’s and women’s sides.

The highlight of the weekend belonged to senior Kyla Hill, who set a Fordham women’s record in the 60-meter dash with a time of 7.60 seconds. The time bested the previous record of 7.61, which was co-held by Hill and graduate student Kathryn Kelly.

Hill found herself in the winners circle once more, winning the 200-meter dash with a time of 24.49 seconds. Graduate student Jana Rokitta also earned an event win, taking first in the high jump. The Rams would tack on two more top five finishes as seniors Mary Kathyrn Underwood and Nathania Tan both earned second in the 500-meter run and 5,000-meter run, respectively.

Fordham added four top-10 finishes as well. Senior Alexandra Thomas took sixth in the 3,000meter run, junior Marin Bogulski ranked eighth in the 1,000-meter run and graduate student Helen Connolly finished tenth in the 800-meter run. Runners Connolly

and Underwood would later join graduate student Jill Jones and junior Molly Mulvaney for a ninth place finish in the 4x400.

Men’s track and field followed the women’s Friday performance on Saturday morning, tallying an event win and six top 10 finishes. Junior Steven Zucca led the way as his season best time of 14:35:18 in the 5,000-meter dash resulted in the first event win of the season. Sophomore Rodolpho Sanchez finished fourth in the 3,000-meter dash with a season best time of his own.

Joining in on the fun, junior Daniel Asher, senior Erik Brown and freshman Mattthew Nurse earned top 10 finishes in the mile, 500-meter dash and 400-meter dash, respectively, all posting season bests. The Rams earned one

more top-five finish as Brown and Nurse joined freshman Kevin Callaghan and sophomore Isaiah James for a third place finish in the 4x400 relay with a season best time of 3:21:92, raising the number of season bests to six on the day.

The weekend was a continuation of early success for the women’s side, marking the fourth straight weekend of three or more event wins. Hill continues to dominate, having earned an event win in the last three meets. For the men’s, the weekend marked their strongest showing of the new season, featuring their first event win and a slew of season bests.

Fordham will look to further their recent success as the Rams are set to take on the Metropolitan Indoor Track and Field Championship on Friday, Feb. 3 in Staten Island.

Fordham Women’s Tennis Wipes Marist College 7-0

By BRETT TULIP CONTRIBUTING WRITER

This past weekend the Fordham women’s tennis team traveled upstate to play Marist College at Life Time Athletic in Harrison, N.Y. This statement win marks the team’s first of 2023 and the spring season. This Sunday was an encouraging sight for the Rams, as they had many key individual performances as they moved on to 1-1 for the year.

Hill

Track and Field

Hill broke the Fordham school record in the 60-meter dash at the River Hawk invitational on Friday, posting a winning time of 7.60 seconds. The senior was also victorious in the 200-meter dash, coming in at 24.49 seconds. Wilhelm was a major contributor as Fordham Swimming and Diving swept two meets this past week against Iona College and the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. He won the 100 backstroke against Iona and the 200 freestyle and 200 medley against UMass.

Wilhelm Junior Swimming and Diving

Each week, The Fordham Ram’s Sports section honors two athletes for their on-field performances as their “Athletes of the Week.”

The stars of this week’s match can be awarded to not only one or two players, but the entire team. Going 8-1 in total matches, and only half of the singles matches going to three sets, this event could truly be considered a thrashing for a Marist team that had already lost

7-0 in their previous match against St. John’s University. While we are used to seeing veterans like graduate students Valeriya Deminova, Carlota Casasampere Escoda and Lindsay Hung perform at a high level and win their matches in the past, it was extremely promising to see some of the younger players including freshman Sofie Siem and sophomore Lorraine Bergmann combine to win their doubles match against older Marist opponents. The only loss of the day for Fordham came in a doubles match consisting of Eleni Fasoula and Rachelle Yang where they narrowly dropped the match by a score of 6-3.

Overall, this was a big win for the team. Women’s tennis will travel

to St. Bonaventure University this week and take on the Bonnies this Friday at 4 p.m. This game will be the first game in conference play of the year, and the only Atlantic 10 team they will play until April when they travel to play the University of Richmond. St. Bonaventure, currently 1-1, has had a poor women’s program in recent history, with no winning seasons since 2011-12. Their dismal finishes can be highlighted by a 3-17 record in 2012-13 and an awful 1-19 record in 2017-18.

It remains to be seen if this year’s Bonnies team will put up more of a fight than in years past, but Fordham should definitely be gunning to pick up an victory to kickstart a winning season.

Varsity Calendar

AWAY

Men’s Track and Field Women’s Track and Field Women’s Tennis

Men’s Swim and Dive Women’s Swim and Dive

Men’s Tennis

COURTESY OF FORDHAM ATHLETICS

Kyla Hill sprinted to the Fordham record books this past weekend.

Squash Takes Three in Big Weekend

By MADDIE BIMONTE SPORTS EDITOR

The Fordham squash team bounced back this past weekend with a successful romp against New York University and Dartmouth University’s club team. Taking a sole loss against Bucknell University, it was a huge welcome home for the Rams after being on the road since Dec. 3.

In their opening match of the weekend, the Rams squared off against NYU, and while junior Henry Frowley dropped his opening match in the one slot, the Rams swept the second through eighth slot with decisive wins from sophomores Bennett Van Liew, Sofia Arseniev, Robert Cruikshank and Aarav Jhunjhunwala, junior Nicholas Choo and freshman Jack Stanley.

Senior Caleb Schumacher won his match in the seventh position in four sets (11-3, 9-11, 11-5, 117) while sophomore Edwin Hess suffered a hard-fought loss to NYU’s Philip Tinker in four sets. The Rams were able to lock down a 7-2 victory, a massive change of pace from the previous weekend.

The Rams went on to drop the next match against Bucknell, 6-3.

The Rams’ victories came from the two, five and seven slots.

In the two spot, Van Liew defeated Andre Giglio in a competitive four-game set, dropping the first match before coming back to sweep the next three (411, 11-4, 11-8, 11-8). Meanwhile, Cruikshank took on Harrison Sotir in the five spot, also having to battle for his three victories (13-11, 11-4, 10-12, 11-5). Lastly, Schumacher outlasted Cameron Hill (11-5, 11-6, 5-11, 12-10), mirroring Cruikshank in dropping the third game and bouncing back for the fourth game.

The rest of the Rams fell just short of their matches with other close contests coming in the four spot, courtesy of Arseniev, taking her second match and falling short in the rest.

Things continued to look up for the Rams on Sunday as they faced off against the Dartmouth club

Varsity Scores & Stats

squash team for a double-header. Fordham had an immediate leg up on Dartmouth as they only had seven players to the Rams’ nine, securing them a 2-0 start from the go.

Starting off strong in the one spot, Frawley locked down both of his matches, winning the first one, 11-4, 11-3, 11-4 and the second, 119, 11-3, 11-7 — a clean sweep.

Van Liew had a tough battle for the two slot, with him taking a 115, 11-9, 9-11, 11-6 victory in match one and 7-11, 11-6, 11-5, 11-3 in match two. Stanley, Arseniev, Choo, Schumacher and Hess all had two wins over their competitors, closing out the afternoon for the Rams.

In what was a strong home victory for the Rams, they will be back at home once again on Saturday, Feb. 11, when the team hosts Boston University at 2 p.m. and Drexel University’s club team at 6 p.m.

Swimming and Diving Posts Double-Sweep

By NICHOLAS RAPTIS CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Another week, another sweep for the Fordham swimming and diving team. In fact, Fordham posted two sweeps this last week against both Iona College and the University of Massachusetts Amherst. Against Iona, the women dominated with a final score of 183-106. It was slightly closer for the women’s team against UMass, but they still secured a 164-136 win. The domination against Iona carried over to the men’s side, with the meet ending 175-108. However, it was a razor-sharp matchup for the men against UMass as they narrowly won 148-145. This marks the first time in school history that the Rams have swept UMass in a meet.

Against Iona, Fordham started strong in the 200 medley relay and never looked back. The women’s relay team, which posted a first place time of 1:45.8, consisted of graduate student Megan Morris and sophomores Emma Shaughnessy, Ainhoa Martin and Jessica Zebrowski. Freshman Christian Taylor, sophomore

Kevin Zahariev and graduate students Paris Raptis and Taras Zherebetskyy led the men’s team to victory with a time of 1:32.04.

Fordham continued to find success in the relay later in the meet, sweeping the 200 freestyle relay. Morris, Shaughnessy, A. Martin and Zebrowski combined again to win the relay with a time of 1:37.98. For the men, Taylor and Zherebetskyy were joined by sophomores Vitalis Onu and Alexander Shah for a winning time of 1:24.68.

Beyond the relays, the Rams also took home all the diving events. On the men’s side, freshman Marco Petit won the one-meter with a score of 201.08 and the three-meter with a score of 210.75. Graduate student Millie Haffety took both events for the women, with a score of 287.25 in the one-meter and 302.10 in the three-meter.

The Minutemen proved to be a tougher opponent for the Rams. This meet started similarly to Iona, with Fordham sweeping the 200 medley relay events. Morris, Shaughnessy and Zebrowski competed again but were joined this time by sophomore Leire Martin

for a fantastic time of 1:45.89. This set a new pool record at the UMass swimming complex. Over on the men’s side, Taylor, Raptis and Zherebetskyy combined with senior Nicholas Chao for a winning time of 1:32.28.

The pool record set by the women in the 200 medley relay was only one of eight total pool records set by Fordham on the day. Notably, three of these records came during butterfly events. Zebrowski set a record in the 200 butterfly with a time of 2:03.82 and a record in the 100 butterfly with a time of 55.85. Raptis also swept both events for the men’s team, and set a new pool record in the 100 with a time of 48.50.

The meet ended in dramatic fashion for the men’s team, with the outcome being determined by the day’s final event. In the 200 freestyle relay, the Rams snagged first while also setting a new pool record in the process. The meet would not have been secured without help from the Fordham “B” team consisting of Shah, Onu and sophomores Taj Kanjanakaset Michael Biryukov. Their efforts simultaneously secured third place and victory for Fordhams men’s team in the meet. Fordham previously had not beaten UMass in a meet since 2017.

Fordham will end their regular season on Feb. 1, at home in a dual-meet against St. Francis Brooklyn and Wagner College. Currently, the women’s team is undefeated with a record of 8-0. The men have only dropped one meet, with an overall record of 6-1. Fordham will look to close out this spectacular season on Wednesday before going on to compete in the Atlantic 10 tournament.

News & Notes

Matt Sloan Receives Coaching Award at EXACT National Soccer Showcase

Fordham Men’s Soccer coach Matt Sloan received massive praise for his efforts at the EXACT National Soccer Showcase this past fall. Sloan is a former Fordham Men’s Soccer player turned assistant coach, and he received an abundance of positive feedback from the athletes at the EXACT camp, ranking him one of the highest rated coaches of the program.

Two Rams Earn Track and Field Awards

Senior Kyla Hill and graduate student Jana Rokitta had quite a weekend at the River Hawk Invitational this past weekend. Hill was named Women’s Performer of the Week honors for the second straight week. She won the 200-meter dash event in a personal-best time of 24.49 seconds. That is the second-best time in the Atlantic 10 this season. Hill then broke her own 60-meter dash school record with a time of 7.60 seconds, seeding second at the meet and third in the A-10 so far. Rokitta excelled in the high jump event, clearing 5’ 7”, just shy of her league-best mark of 5’ 8”, which she set last week at the Ramapo Season Opener.

Men’s Tennis Swept Twice

By NICK GUZMAN SPORTS EDITOR

Fordham Men’s Tennis competed in their first matches of the new year this past weekend, taking a trip up to New England to face Brown University and Dartmouth College. The Rams were ultimately swept in both contests by a score of 7-0, falling to 0-2 on the young season.

In Providence, Fordham put up a good fight against Brown despite failing to win a set. Three different Rams took a game to tiebreak, but all were eventually defeated. Graduate student Quinn Fender fell to Noah Hernandez 7-6, 6-3, junior Toi Kobayashi came up short against Oliver Worth 6-0, 7-6 and freshman Sampras Rakotondrainibe lost against Sam Feldman 6-1, 7-6. This marks the second consecutive season that Fordham was swept at the hands of Brown.

Fordham’s fortunes weren’t much better against Dartmouth in Hanover on Sunday. The Big

Green came into the matchup at 4-0, including impressive sweeps against Navy and Siena College. Like against Brown, no Ram managed to win a set. Freshman Dhillon Virdee-Oakley was the only Fordham player to win more than three games in a set, as he fell to Henry Ren 6-1, 6-4.

This is Fordham’s first season under head coach David Slater. The Rams went 6-10 in an uneven 2021-22 season under Nelson Peña that saw them lose six consecutive matches between February and April. They’ll certainly want to improve their fortunes in 2023. With the departure of Second Team All-Atlantic 10 player Tom Russwurm, Fordham will need new faces to step up as their regular season schedule kicks into gear. Next up, the Rams will play in their first home match of the season at the Life Time Athletic Center in Harrison, N.Y. against Fairfield University on Saturday, Feb. 4.

Squash protected their home court with three wins this past weekend.

COURTESY OF FORDHAM ATHLETICS

Swimming and Diving are off to an electric start early in 2023.

COURTESY OF ELLEN BERGIN

Overtime: Expanding the Sphere of Women’s Sports

By MADDIE BIMONTE SPORTS EDITOR

Over the past few years, scandals, tears and drama have shaped the landscape of many women’s sports leagues. From the shocking abuse reports out of the National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) dealing with sexual assault to the Britney Griner incarceration in Russia, women’s sports have dealt with a lot, all while trying to grow and promote their sports.

However, it is not to say that change and progress hasn’t occurred. Just recently, it was announced that the NWSL would be expanding the league, placing new teams in Boston, Utah and the San Francisco Bay area.

This comes after the league had a year of massive growth in terms of ratings and viewership. In 2022, the NWSL Championship match saw an influx of 71% compared to the previous year, with 915,000 viewers tuning in to watch the Portland Thorns take the cup over

the Kansas City Current.

The Current entered the league just a year prior, in conjunction with Angel City FC and San Diego Wave FC, with the Current reaching massive success in terms of performance and talent. With the expansion of the NWSL, the newer teams were able to grow their fan bases and spread the word of the NWSL to more and more communities. On top of the growing streaming popularity of games, attendance for games reached an all time high with 1,042,063 people attending a match in 2022.

The NWSL Championship game traditionally would stream during the day and on cable channels, making it difficult for a large audience to be able to view the match. However in 2022, for the first time, the match was at primetime on a Saturday night on CBS. And guess what? People watched.

Other leagues are following suit,

with the WNBA to add expansion teams in 2025, and the Premier Hockey Federation, the professional women’s league, recently added another Canadian team to their organization.

So, more and more people are finally taking an interest in women’s sports. But why does it still feel like they’re lacking?

Where the real issue lies is in marketing and the commercialization of women’s sports. Far too often are women’s sports pushed aside for the larger, more popular men’s leagues. And that’s fine, mainly because the men’s leagues are successful money makers and highly popular with a global audience. Women’s sports just aren’t there yet. But they can be.

The timeless, baseless claim that is always thrown around is “nobody wants to watch women’s sports” or “women’s sports aren’t as interesting as men’s sports.” I truly believe

that if women’s sports were marketed in the same way as men’s, the story would be completely different.

Publicizing is such an easy step for companies to get the interest up. For example, on ESPN, there have been multiple days where I sign on to the app, and there is not a mention of any women’s sports at all on the main page. That should not be the case. People care about what is accessible to them.

Many leagues are doing all they can to grow the sport, whether that be from increasing their television

presence to expanding to new cities. But the people in charge of big media organizations need to shed light on the hard work of so many women athletes to really see change in the way they deserve.

It is hard to conceptualize what the future landscape will look like for women’s sports. It is a large hill to climb, and it seems like there is no end in sight right now. However, the progress that women’s sports have made thus far have provided me with some comfort to know that one day, they will be just as talked about as men’s sports.

Smush Parker and the Hunt for the Best Fordham Player in the NBA

By BRETT TULIP CONTRIBUTING WRITER

A few weeks ago, it was announced that former NBA player and Fordham University alum William Henry “Smush” Parker is working towards becoming an NBA referee after refereeing for some time at lower levels. For those unfamiliar with the former five-year NBA guard, he is perhaps best remembered as being a public punching bag for the late legend Kobe Bryant. Bryant bashed Parker on multiple occasions, for example in 2012 when he said, “Smush Parker was the worst; He shouldn’t have been in the NBA, but we were too cheap to pay for a point guard. We let him walk on.” Parker would go on to explain years later that Kobe’s hatred went beyond the basketball court when he detailed in 2014, “He told me one day at practice — I tried to talk to him outside of basketball about football. And he looked at me in practice and was dead serious and said, ‘You can’t talk to me. You need more accolades under your belt before you come talk to me.’”

Because of these very public quotes from an NBA Hall of Famer and superstar, the ex-Fordham star has had his reputation among the general public significantly damaged. Inspired by Parker’s recent re-emergence into headlines due to his announcement, I was left wondering — was Smush Parker really the best NBA player to come out of Fordham?

I was motivated to take a historical dive into not only Parker’s career but other Fordham Men’s Basketball players who played in the NBA to see who was truly the best. To be clear, I will define “best” in this case as the player who had the most productive career while in the NBA, not as the player who had the best collegiate career. There have been many stars at Fordham to hold historical school numbers, but there are few who had success

at the next level.

Starting from the current year of 2023 and working backwards, there is nowhere else to start but with the 41st pick in the 2019 draft, former Fordham forward Eric Paschall. Paschall should be a familiar name to devoted NBA fans, being a former NBA All-Rookie

First Team player in 2020 after averaging a productive 14 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.1 assists with the Golden State Warriors. Paschall’s promising role, however, quickly diminished after key injured players returned to Golden State. After his rookie year, Paschall spent one more year with the Warriors before being traded to the Utah Jazz in exchange for a second-round pick. Paschall played well in a limited capacity and was eventually signed in the off-season by the Minnesota Timberwolves, but was waived before seeing any on-court action. Paschall made a scratch in the NBA and was a valuable player for a limited time but is disqualified from this list for multiple reasons. First, he only played one season at Fordham before transferring to Villanova University. Second, he is 26 years old and currently a free agent, so it remains to be seen what he will accomplish before he calls it a career.

Looking back 17 years before Eric Paschall’s selection, the next Fordham player to play in the NBA is none other than the man himself, Smush Parker. In 2002, the Cleveland Cavaliers signed Parker as an undrafted free agent. He bounced around his first few years, playing for the Cavs, the Pistons and the Suns in three consecutive years until he reached his apex in 2006 with the Los Angeles Lakers. Parker put up career highs in almost all major statistical categories, averaging 11.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 1.7 steals. These are all extremely solid numbers and playing 33.8 minutes a game while starting all 82 is the

definition of reliable. After this career year, Parker had one more productive year with the Lakers before having stints getting limited minutes with both the Miami Heat and Los Angeles Clippers. Although he fizzled out fast, Parker had a respectable career and deserved to be treated as such.

Before Paschall and Parker, there were only eight players to be rostered on an NBA team from Fordham. Of these eight, only three played more than one season. The most recent of these three is center Dan O’Sullivan. O’Sullivan was undrafted in 1990 and played six seasons in the league. Five of these years were played exclusively in a reserve role. His only notable season came in 1996 when he played five games for the Toronto Raptors, averaging 27.8 minutes a game with a mild 6.6 points and 6.4 rebounds. Although impressive to play six seasons in the NBA, O’Sullivan had a lackluster career with limited to note, which certainly rules him out from being the best Fordham player in the pros.

Before O’Sullivan, the only other notable players with NBA success were guard Kenny Charles and forward Ed Conlin. Charles, a third-round pick for the Buffalo Braves in 1973, played five years in the league for both the Braves and Atlanta Hawks. He had solid

numbers in both the 1975 and 1976 seasons, putting up low doubledigit scoring averages, along with around 2.5 assists and rebounds apiece. Aside from these few years, he did not leave much of an impact in the NBA and would fall out of the league by the age of 27.

This last leaves us with Fordham legend Ed Conlin, who, as a college player, led Fordham to a regular season championship in the now-dissolved Metro New York Conference. During his senior season in college, Conlin put up monster averages of 25 points and 21.4 rebounds a game. So, how did he fare in the NBA? After being drafted fifth overall by the Syracuse Nationals in 1955, Conlin recorded seven productive seasons. While never an All-Star, he still played very well, recording four double-digit scoring seasons in the NBA, the most of any Rams alum. Although his uptick in scoring could be reflected by the overall increase in points per game across the league, his numbers and impact should not be understated.

He played in two conference finals, playing 20+ minutes in the 1956 Conference Finals. In this series, he was even the Nationals leading scorer in one of the games with 19 points. Conlin was a key contributor to his team while playing hundreds of games beside NBA

Hall of Famers and basketball legends such as Dolph Schayes, Wilt Chamberlain and Paul Arizin, who were each named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team.

After laying out the options, the three candidates for Fordham’s best player in the pros are clear. Is it Eric Paschall and his productive 14 points per game (PPG) season in the modern NBA against some of the most athletic and talented defenders to walk the earth?

Is it Smush Parker, who, although he had a poor reputation, was a solid starter on winning teams?

Or is it Ed Conlin, the fifth overall pick and playoff player in an era of basketball where outside of a few superstars is largely forgotten?

It is certainly a debate, but I would give Conlin the edge due to relative longevity and consistent scoring while contributing to reasonable postseason success.

However, Parker is right behind him, and his years of solid play should help him transition to being a stellar referee at the professional level.

Although the list of Fordham players to make the NBA is relatively low, it will undoubtedly grow as the program continues to improve drastically, along with the Atlantic 10 pumping out talented NBA players annually.

There is looming success to be seen in the realm of women’s sports.

COURTESY OF TWITTER

COURTESY OF TWITTER

Fordham has a long history with the NBA, and will only continue to get longer as new generations rise up.

Men’s Basketball Wins Five Straight Games in A-10 Play

By THOMAS AIELLO ASST. SPORTS EDITOR EMERITUS

The ball keeps rolling forward for Fordham with five consecutive wins. Keith Urgo’s team has gained serious momentum holding a top five spot in the conference. Given the current state of the Atlantic 10, Fordham is in serious position to vie for a top four spot in the A-10 tournament. Teams that earn a top four spot get a double bye, something Fordham desires.

The three game road trip wrapped up in Olean, New York at Saint Bonaventure University. The Bonnies are not the same team as they were last year in any sense. Head coach Mark Schmidt lost five all-time greats that accumulated an A-10 title in 2021. They either transferred to power five schools or went professional, everyone else entered the transfer portal to seek greener pastures which forced Schmidt’s hand into an entire roster overhaul.

Growing pains have been the common theme of the season for the Bonnies all year. Coming into their matchup against Fordham, they were 9-0 at home but winless on the road. The Reilly Center is notorious for being one of the better atmospheres in the A-10, factor in Schmidt as one of the best coaches in the country Fordham was served a full plate.

The Bonnies are a scrappy bunch, highlighted by former Saint Peter’s University guard Daryl Banks who dropped a whopping 29 points against the Rams. He propelled the Bonnies and led all scorers, going 12-12 from the free throw line.

Banks’ huge night was the only reason Bonaventure was in the game. His backcourt mate, Kyrell Luc, only managed 10 points on the night while the rest of the Bonnies who played didn’t surpass nine points yet maintained a 30-28 lead into halftime.

Sophomore Zach Riley was the

match that began the fire, disrupting the final possession of the first half with a steal to keep Fordham in striking distance.

The Rams came out firing in the second half, utilizing an 18-8 run that included a huge putback dunk from freshman Elijah Gray to maintain the lead. Will Richardson continued his fine play as a freshman, propelling the team out of a 12-5 hole in the first half. He finished his day on 6-8 shooting and 4-5 from range to total 16 points on the day.

Graduate student Khalid Moore led the Rams with 19 points on 6-7 shooting from the field. Fellow fifth year Darius Quisenberry began slowly but finished with 17 points despite 3-10 shooting from the field, with 11 of his points coming off free throws.

Senior Rostik Noyvistkyi included seven points, five boards and five dimes that also included a monster dunk off a baseline drive. There were points in the second half where Fordham not only was the better team but dominated the Bonnies in some aspects. The Rams allowed zero fastbreak points and outscored Mark Schmidt’s group 28-18 in the paint.

Even when tempers started to flare in the second half, Fordham remained poised to close it out in a hostile environment 79-68

in spite of a last ditch effort from Saint Bonaventure.

The Rams won three straight on the road, something that hasn’t been done since 1995 and snapped a huge losing streak against the Bonnies that dated back to March 2013. Upon their triumphant return home began their preparation for a meeting with George Washington University (GW).

The Colonials came into the Bronx a top 100 team in adjusted offense according to Kenpom, and with the A-10’s leading scorer James Bishop. First year head coach Chris Caputo is veering the Colonials on the right path that has seen incredible highs.

A trip to Rose Hill was a step back for the Colonials, falling down to Fordham 85-70 in a second half trucking by the Rams. Fordham ended the back-andforth first half on a buzzer beating dunk by Moore to slice into the 37-33 lead.

The momentum was suppressed in the second half as both teams went back and forth, carried by Brendan Adams and GW getting ahead by as many as six. Following the first media timeout, Urgo’s club found a switch and flipped it. Some sparks flew which turned into a five alarm fire as Fordham went bonkers the rest of the way.

The 20-4 run was capitalized on a 30-point game from

Moore and a fast break where he pulled off a 180 degree dunk. Quisenberry joined the fun with 22 points of his own, and junior Antrell Charlton recorded 10 points and seven steals, the third highest single game steal total in program history.

10 points from senior Rostik Novitskyi and six from Gray were enough to propel Fordham forward, but the team MVP of the game didn’t even throw up points.

The hero of the day was Kyle Rose; despite not posting a single point he shut down Bishop by holding him to four second half points. His line included three assists, three swipes and only one personal foul.

The team shot 55% from the field in the second half while capitalizing on GW’s weak defense by adding 17 fast break points and 40 in the paint.

For the first time since 2016, the Rams won four straight A-10 games. One of the highest peaks the program has seen in some time and their best in-conference start since 2007 when the team began 6-2.

In came the first place Billikens on Tuesday night for one of the biggest matchups at Rose Hill in a long time. The incoming 7-1 Saint Louis University (SLU) team held the nation’s assist leader, Yuri Collins. The point guard came in with 10.6 assists per contest

piloting a potent Saint Louis offensive attack.

Four players came in averaging over 10 points headed by Gibson Jimerson, one of the best scoring players in the A-10.

Little Fordham went up against the big, bad Saint Louis team and kept the game close the entire way. Allowing for Saint Louis to lead by as many as eight, the Rams went pound for pound in the first half down only 36-31.

Francis Okoro did the damage for SLU with a 21 point, 11 rebound performance on 8-10 shooting, simply feasting in the post against Fordham bigs. But he would be the only real offense SLU received; Collins only had nine points but a lone assist on four turnovers.

Fordham was led again by Moore and Quisenberry, with 27 and 20 points, respectively. Chipping in was Richardson with eight points and Gray playing huge minutes to go along with a game changing dunk late.

Junior Abdou Tsimbila added six boards, but his two points came off a breakaway dunk off a steal that sent life into the Rose Hill Gym. Charlton hit clutch free throws towards the end and Novitskyi added four of his own with Rose playing his stout defense to march along to a 75-65 victory.

The Rams have also been a second half team, waking up in the second 20 minutes and utilizing huge runs. They were especially good from the free throw line, taking 24 trips while hitting 20.

For the first time since 2007, Fordham has won 18 total games. That same year was the last time the Rams won five games in a row in conference play.

With all the momentum now on their side after taking down the top dog in the conference, Fordham will hit the road with a matchup against the defending A-10 champion University of Richmond Spiders.

Women’s Basketball Continues To Show Imperfect Promise

By COLIN LOUGHRAN STAFF WRITER

There are times over the course of a season that forces teams to calmly hit the reset button and seek improvement. Fordham women’s hoops may be in such a spot after splitting their most recent two games against the University of Richmond Spiders and the Saint Louis University Billikens.

A 68-59 comeback victory at home against the Spiders featured a Fordham team that was able to come back after a sluggish start. Their 87-84 road loss to the Billikens saw a similarly bleak opening and strong revival, but did not conclude with a joyous victory.

Last Wednesday’s affair against the Spiders began poorly. The Rams shot only 34.3% from the field in the first half, and trailed 29-24 at the end of the first 20 minutes. Things improved for Fordham in the third quarter,

but they were still outscored in the frame by a Richmond squad that boasts the Atlantic 10’s third best team shooting percentage. The Spiders received particularly solid outings from Katie Hill and Maggie Doogan. Hill posted a team-high 12 points and 11 rebounds. Meanwhile, Doogan supplied 10 points, nine rebounds and a team-high four assists. Regardless of how effective the Spiders were for three quarters, Fordham came storming back in the fourth quarter, and outscored the opposition 30-14 in the frame.

Seniors Anna DeWolfe and Sarah Karpell and graduate student Jada Dapaa were all key to the maroon wave, and played their best down the stretch. Each was critical to the defensive effort, and helped deploy a full-court press that limited Richmond’s ability to move up the court. DeWolfe excelled with team-highs of 24 points and four assists as well as four rebounds and two steals. The Maine native

struggled from three-point range, but made up for it with seven makes from the charity stripe in nine attempts. Dapaa was similarly effective. The graduate forward recorded 11 points and a team-high 11 rebounds, while Dingle added 17 points and a team best eight steals.

After the Rams’ win over the Spiders, they traveled to St. Louis for a Saturday night showdown with the Billikens that followed a similar pattern. While not a particularly prolific shooting team, St. Louis was red-hot from the opening tip. The Billikens outscored Fordham 29-17 in the first quarter and held a 49-38 lead at halftime thanks to key play in the paint. The Midwestern home team scored 24 points in the paint over the initial 20 minutes and only attempted five shots from distance over the same time frame. Kyla McMakin led the attack, providing 33 points. The women in maroon eventually battled back with a 31-point third

quarter, and led by four at the end of the frame. DeWolfe, Dingle and graduate student Kaitlyn Downey were all integral to the surge. All told, Dingle scored a team-high 22 points, while DeWolfe and Downey tallied 21 and 16, respectively.

Downey had one of her most diverse games this season as she also added five assists and eight boards. The fourth quarter was a frantic scene. The Rams were outscored 22-15 in the period, and while they had a chance to win on a last second shot, it was clear they ran out of steam after a brilliant showing in the prior

10 minutes.

Women’s hoops has proven they can either start fast or come back at the drop of a hat, but it is not yet known if they can put together a consistent effort for 40 minutes against A-10 competition.

The split moves Fordham to a 6-3 conference record highlighted by extremes. They’ll look to find a happy medium this Wednesday night at St. Bonaventure before returning home to the Rose Hill Gym for a Saturday afternoon meeting with Loyola University Chicago.

Darius Quisenberry attacks the George Washington defense in an 85-70 win at the Rose Hill Gym.

COURTESY OF FORDHAM ATHLETICS