The Fordham Ram
Serving The Fordham University Community Since 1918
Fordham
Raises Tuition For Third Year in a Row
By NORA MALONE NEWS EDITOR
Fordham University announced on March 31 that they would be raising tuition for the 2025-2026 academic year. The increase is the third in the last three years, and will increase housing and meal plan costs as well as tuition.
In an email sent to students and families, Vice President of Enrollment John Buckley said, “We arrived at this difficult decision to increase tuition only after a year of cost cutting and seeking efficiencies that did not have a negative impact on the student experience.”
Tuition will be increased by 4.65%, which equals an additional $3,063.48 per year. Housing will increase by an average of 4.3% depending on the room, which averages to around $1,000 a year. Meal plans
By JASMINE PENA GARCIA CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Over spring break, the Fordham Global Outreach (GO!) program sent students on volunteer trips to five different locations: Puerto Rico, Ireland, Honduras, El Salvador and Peru. GO! is a student-led service program rooted in learning social justice issues firsthand.
Steven Laureano, FCRH ’25, co-led the GO! trip to El Salvador. His team partnered with Christians for Peace in El Salvador (CRISPAZ), an organization dedicated to promoting peace and justice by amplifying the voices of those affected by violence and oppression.
“This was my first time leading a trip, and since I was a co-leader, I was able to lead with one of my closest friends,” Laureano shared. “I think this helped boost the trip’s morale and helped the students deal with the heavy content that we all learned.”
Throughout their time in El Salvador, the group engaged with community partners as
The Rats Are Back
By NORA MALONE NEWS EDITOR
Large, inflatable rats have been spotted just off-campus around Bathgate Avenue and Third/Webster Avenue. The rats are part of a protest surrounding Fordham University’s contract with Paulina Corporation, an asbestos removal company. According to a sign taped to the rat, Paulina Corporation “pays its workers wages and benefits below the standards in the area to perform hazardous asbestos work.”
Asbestos removal has been taking place since last summer in a variety of on-campus buildings, including Cunniffe House, Tierney Hall and John Mulcahy Hall. In September 2024, the same rats were outside the Rose Hill Bathgate and Third/Webster gates with signs protesting Fordham hiring Incinia Contracting for asbestos removal.
This is an updating story.
Fordham Professor Partners with Women’s Press
By LIVIA REGINA CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Students in Professor Ashar Foley’s Fundamentals of Communication and Media Studies course are volunteering with the Bronx-based organization Women’s Press Collective (WPC). The
partnership provides students with hands-on learning in multiple areas of journalism production, from news writing to operating a press.
Founded in 1982, WPC was initially created to amplify the voices of lowpaid women workers by
allowing them to produce their own media. Currently, they run a free benefit program where they teach production and publication skills.
“It’s building truly independent, truly communitybased media,” said Lisa
4
Student Life Council Discusses New STEM Building and Title IX Coordinator
By JACK MCDONALD ADVERTISING DIRECTOR
The Student Life Council convened on March 26 in the McShane Campus Center. The topic of discussion was the hiring of Elizabeth “Liz” Fanelli, Fordham’s new Title IX Coordinator, as well as the new STEM center, which Fordham recently announced alongside a $100 million donation from Maurice Cunniffe, FCRH ’54, and Carolyn Dursi Cunniffe, Ph.D.,
GSAS ’71. This sum was the largest single donation in Fordham’s history and will further expose students to rising careers in STEM. Fanelli was appointed Title IX Coordinator on Jan. 27, following an extensive career working for the Bronx County District Attorney’s Office and then Ramapo College, New Jersey. Approximately 20 members of the Student Life Council were present at the meeting.
SEE SLC, PAGE 4
Fordham Receives Donation of James Joyce Collection
COURTESY OF FORDHAM NOW
Students work on the printer at the press collective as part of their class.
NORA MALONE/ THE FORDHAM RAM
PUBLIC SAFETY BRIEFS
Fordham Receives Donation of James Joyce Collection
Off-Campus March 26
10:45 a.m.
On Wednesday, a student reported they parked their car in front of 2551 Hoffman Street. When they returned, the passenger window was broken, and their property was removed. The supervisor responded and called the NYPD. The NYPD arrested the offender.
Off-Campus March 26
1:30 p.m.
On Wednesday, a student reported they parked their car in front of 2493 Belmont Avenue. When they returned, the passenger window was broken and their property was removed. The student declined the NYPD.
Off-Campus March 31
6:04 p.m.
On Monday, there was a smoke alarm at 2508 Hoffman Avenue. The supervisor and FDNY responded. The investigation revealed a student cooking food triggered the alarm. The supervisor ventilated the area and reset the alarm panel.
By JACK MCDONALD ADVERTISING DIRECTOR
New York native Jesse Meyers announced last week he will be donating his collection of 700 books by or about James Joyce to Fordham University’s William D. Walsh Family Library. Meyers started collecting the books after reading “Ulysses,” and his collection now holds a variety of Joyce-related items, including coins, soaps and leaflets.
will surely be enriching.”
Meyers’ extensive career was centered around his profession as a publications marketing executive until his retirement in 1994. His first exposure to Joyce’s works came when he attended a lecture on “Ulysses” — one of Joyce’s most renowned novels.
outside of the classroom.
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Meyers has been published several times in Fordham University’s Joyce Studies Annual Journal, gathering essays by both experienced scholars and rising academics on Joyce’s works. Fordham’s Journal is one of only two collegiate periodicals on Joyce published in the United States. It has been active at Fordham since 2001, following a location transfer from the University of Texas.
“As a professor in the English department, I can say that this collection will serve students and teachers in the English department in all sorts of ways,” said Christopher GoGwilt, professor in the English department and managing editor for the journal. “There are a few of us who teach Joyce regularly in courses and for those courses the addition of these books, and videos and other materials,
Wednesday April 2
USG Senate: Meet the Candidates
McShane 112 7 p.m.
Wondering who is running for USG senate? Meet the candidates on Wednesday evening in McShane!
“My wife took me to a lecture about a book that Joyce had written called ‘Ulysses,’ and within five minutes, I was incredibly interested in the book, in Joyce and then following up on it,” Meyers said in an interview with Madison Musco for GreenwichTime.
Meyers has also taught “Ulysses” at the New York Irish Consulate and New York University’s School of Continuing Education. Meyers notes he has read the publication north of 15 times.
GoGwilt appreciates how this donation will enrich his classroom and even those where Joyce’s works are taught less frequently.
“There are many more of us who teach Joyce occasionally and there will be a rich treasure trove to explore for them and their students,” said GoGwilt.
GoGwilt also noted how students who appreciate a challenging read can especially take advantage of this new collection
“There are students who turn to Joyce on their own and I fully expect they may be the ones to make the most of this collection,” he said. “I should also say, as current managing editor of the Fordham-based journal Joyce Studies Annual, that this collection will be of interest to students and faculty – everyone really – well beyond the English department.”
Considering these books are both written by Joyce and scholars who studied him, students have an opportunity to read both Joyce’s own firsthand accounts and secondhand accounts of his life and work.
“In this world of digital reading, it’s extremely valuable to have such a large collection of physical books that can serve students over and over with a stability the digital collections can’t offer,” said GoGwilt.
Linda LoSchiavo, director of libraries at Fordham, noted Meyers’ collection brings a significant addition to the Walsh Library.
“The recent gift from Joyce scholar, Jesse Meyers, adds a significant dimension to the already sizable James Joyce collection in the Fordham University library,” said LoSchiavo.
Most of these items will
This Week at Fordham
Thursday April 3
USG E-board: Meet the Candidates
Bepler Commons 7 p.m.
Go to Bepler Commons on Thursday evening to meet the USG executive board candidates!
Friday April 4
Mainstage: The Children’s Hour
Collins Auditorium 8 p.m.
Mimes and Mummers is putting on their production of “The Children’s Hour” on Friday!
Saturday April 5
Choir Spring Concert
405 W 59th St 7:30 p.m.
Enjoy some music at the Fordham University Choir’s spring concert on Saturday evening.
be on display and be readily available. “Students, faculty and staff will have access to this collection once it is completely vetted and cataloged,” said LoSchiavo. However, some of the donated goods are fragile and will be kept in the special collections, where they can be viewed by making an appointment with the Walsh Library staff.
LoSchaivo noted that it would take time to make the collection accessible to the Fordham community.
“Given the size of this gift and the limited staff available in the library, it will take a great deal of time to process the entire collection, so we’re asking the Fordham community for their patience as we move forward with making everything available,” LoSchiavo said.
While the vast majority of the donation consists of written works, some videography has also been included, such as CDs and DVDs. Meyers has built up his collection over many years.
“Mr. Meyers is a tireless collector and a scholarly sleuth, whose insatiable curiosity for all things literary, and some urging from his wife, led him to discover the words and world of Joyce,” said LoSchiavo. “We are very lucky to be the beneficiaries of this passion and energy.”
Sunday April 6
Fordham Baseball vs Davidson Jack Coffey Field 12 p.m.
Watch the Fordham Rams play against the Davidson Wildcats on Sunday afternoon!
Jesse Meyers donated his collection of 700 books by or about James Joyce to Fordham to be enjoyed by students, faculty and staff.
LINDA LOSCHIAVO FOR THE FORDHAM RAM
By EMMA LEONARDI EXECUTIVE COPY CHIEF
Fordham University’s United Student Government (USG) met to hear a presentation from the Office of Sustainability and review new club proposals on March 27.
Ayden Johnson, FCRH ’27, Julia Dellapena, FCRH ’27, and Kaila Reynolds, FCRH ’27, student interns from Fordham’s Office of Sustainability, shared their mission and work with USG. Johnson detailed recent actions taken by the NYC Council Committee on Environmental Protection, Resiliency and Waterfronts.
Activity has included the mandate of a publicly available flood risk map for NYC residents, the addition of 500 public drinking fountains with water bottle fillers and plans to install solar panels on city council property and general infrastructure improvements.
Dellapena went over the benefits of student involvement in sustainability, such as gaining experience in local policy-making, networking opportunities and greater engagement with the Bronx
USG Evaluates New Club Proposals
community. For mobilization within the Fordham community, Reynolds asked for help from the USG Sustainability and Facilities and Dining committees in potentially providing complimentary transportation to committee meetings as well as hosting informational workshops and events through Fordham faculty and alumni.
Executive President Eron Maltzman, GSB ’25, said that Meet the Candidates will occur on April 2 and 3 for the senate and executive board tickets, respectively, with voting on April 7 and 8.
Senator Anna Brown, FCRH ’27, had a meeting with Vice President of External Affairs Travis Proulx about her MetroCard proposal, who has put her in touch with a member of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority to help her further her initiative.
The first club proposal outlined the potential for a Mexican American heritage club titled VIVA (Vital, Impactful, Voices and Adventurous) with a mission to provide students of Mexican descent with a safe space to share their stories,
create community and learn about culture and heritage.
Planned meetings include a welcome get-together to introduce the club and play lotería, as well as a discussion-based assembly on the first-generation college student experience and being Hispanic at a predominantly white institution (PWI).
For financing, the club has planned to do several bake sales of traditional Hispanic food, including conchas, tamales, champurrado and gelatinas; they will also receive funding from sponsors such as Aldi’s College.
This funding would not only go to club events but also would be used towards community resource-making, such as undocumented civil rights cards that can be donated to libraries and other community spaces.
The Brazilian Student Association (BRASA) also presented their club proposal, sharing with USG their mission to celebrate culture, community and bring the passion and creativity of Brazilian culture to all Fordham students,
regardless of nationality.
For potential meetings, BRASA noted meetings focused on Brazilian historical facts, and events such as a trivia night, a Brazilian movie night and Festa Junina.
Senator Jude Ortega, FCRH ’25, asked about when Festa Junina would be planned for, as it usually takes place during June and the university is not in session during that time.
The proposers explained that since Carnival occurs in February, they would plan for Festa Junina to be celebrated in the fall semester to have a big event during each of the semesters.
Executive Vice President Ava Cascella, FCRH ’26, and Vice President of Health and Security Aidan Costella, FCRH ’27, noted a meeting with Rose Hill Health Center Director Maureen Keown. Cascella and Costella reported that suggestions regarding transparency issues with medical billing were taken into account by Keown.
The department is working on a form for first-time health
center visitors about medical testing charges to reduce confusion about University insurance.
Vice President of Operations Megan Ruzicka, FCRH ’27, noted that the second Fordham Out of the Darkness walk will take place on April 5 at 1 p.m. on Edward’s Parade.
Vice President of Budgets and Finance Peter Grimes, FCRH ’25, indicated an upcoming visit from Intramural and Club Sports Manager Rose Dara to discuss a potential increase in funding for club sports, specifically to ensure that a medic can be present at all games.
Vice President of Facilities and Dining Mike Rodriguez, FCRH ’27, communicated an apparent issue with Urban Kitchen’s Grubhub. Rodriguez also mentioned a new restaurant experience within the Marketplace, increasing food variety.
Senator Mary Hawthorn, FCRH ’26, updated USG on her smoking initiative, and is currently working on a survey for Fordham students to get feedback on campus ashtrays.
Gabelli School of Business Partners with International Advertising Association
By JACK MCDONALD ADVERTISING DIRECTOR
Last week, the Gabelli School of Business’ marketing area partnered with the International Advertising Association (IAA) of North America to host “Navigating the Tightrope – Marketing in a Polarized World,” a conference for marketing students and professionals.
The event hosted marketing executives from various corporations, including Amy Weisenbach, chief marketing officer at the New York Times, Magdalena Pawelec, senior director and head of Brand Marketing at Whirlpool Corp., Carol Schuster, chief marketing officer at Lafayette 148 and Isys Caffey-Horne, president and head of Strategic Communications and Reputation at Stripe Theory.
Mohammad Nejad, Ph.D., chair of the marketing area, said the division is seeking to further its connections and industry collaborations.
“We have a deep mission in educating inspiring, ethical and compassionate business leaders who will use the power of business to transform society,” said Dean of the Gabelli School of Business Lerzan Aksoy, Ph.D.
Original research by marketing area faculty members was featured at the event. The members included Nejad, Genevieve O’Connor, Ph.D., associate professor of marketing, Aniko DeLaney, marketing lecturer, and Maria Vittoria Tullio, who received a master’s degree from Gabelli in marketing
intelligence in 2024.
“This is an immense source of pride for us, and for me,” said Aksoy. “We are a globally recognized business school, and we have over 2,000 students and over 200 faculty members.”
Thomas Stein, chair of IAA North America, said, “one of the reasons that these [panels] have been a success is because we have had great partnerships with brands and great partnerships with academia.”
The research discussed included 23 interviews with chief marketing officers and top marketing executives between August 2024 and December 2024, as well as over 900 survey responses across four adult generations.
“They [executives] represent a diverse set of different industries,” said Nejad. Some of the research highlights noted by Nejad include social versus political issues, the importance of authenticity and transparency and realistic conversation reaching beyond algorithms.
“We realize there have been a lot of different political conversations, so we are trying here to explore the topic and see what individuals have been thinking about,” said Nejad. The team questioned whether or not individuals believed brands should take a stance on political issues in today’s day and age. A significant percentage across all four generations surveyed, and a conversation with CMOs, showed an agreement that brands should not take a political stance.
Another question was on the importance of brands being
authentic. Brands should be transparent and take responsibility, according to those individuals surveyed.
“The pendulum may swing from one side to the other side, but brands must stick to their values,” said Nejad. Brands should have knowledge of their faults and business purposes, and take responsibility when wrongdoing occurs. Also, making proper use of data and not being emotionally reactive is important to brands, said DeLaney.
O’Connor moderated the panel amongst the CMOs present at the event. She began by allowing the panelists to opine on the research findings.
“For me, one of the most interesting findings … is the difference between people who don’t want us to take a stance on political issues but do want us to stand on social issues,” said Caffey-Horne.
“All of us have a desire for brands to be authentic,” said Pawelec. “It’s really critical for brands to win the customers across all of the generations.”
“The common feeling is that everything is on social [media], but more and more of the conversation is happening offline, instead of online,” said Schuster.
“I was really blown away that 90% of people’s grievances with brands–that they don’t post it anywhere,” said Weisenbach.
O’Connor asked the panelists how brands are trying to address the “pendulum swing,” highlighted by Nejad earlier in the event. Caffey-Horne noted
how there is a vocal minority, which can lead brands to make decisions not reflective of the needs of their customers or business.
“Navigating some of these issues with the customers can be tricky,” said Schuster. Opening a conversation on voicing political opinions can actually be detrimental to the company’s reputation.
The conversation was pivoted to how these executives feel the best way is to understand the consumer. “You have multiple sources of truth, and the marketers nowadays need to keep their eyes and ears open, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,” said Pawelec. She stressed the importance of corporations listening to consumers, as well as engaging in store visits.
“We have consumers looking at and reacting to new product features,” Weisenbach said, referencing how she views the qualitative piece of the research findings.
“Our mission is to seek the truth, wherever it leads … and it puts us in a really tricky place
with our readers,” she added, remarking how it is important to The New York Times to be independent and recognize its mission.
“We need to think about how to bring the same level of love and engagement to the younger generation, and that includes a slightly different approach … in how we execute the marketing,” said Pawelec.
“I am a huge fan of authenticity, and I think that is what is making brands loved,” said Pawelec. Whirlpool was recently able to move its brand confidence from fourth to first in the dishwasher market, which, to Pawelec, shows the power of caring for the consumer.
Finally, the panelists advised marketers in the room on how to build and preserve brand loyalty.
“Sometimes doing nothing is the right response, and brands often find themselves in crisis mode,” said Schuster. Pawelec echoed that response. “It is important to stay calm, and trust the process,” she said. “Don’t improvise, trust the process, and stay calm.”
The event, titled “Navigating the Tightrope – Marketing in a Polarized World” was held on March 27.
JACK MCDONALD/THE FORDHAM RAM
“I have been in Title IX for over eight years, but my career started as a prosecutor for the City of New York, working with child abuse sex crimes,” said Fanelli.
Fanelli said that from the start of her career, she wanted to play a role in trying to avoid these types of crimes, both in the public sector and in education. She also worked in preventing class discrimination in her prior employment and is excited to focus specifically on the Title IX department.
“When I first started in this role at Ramapo, I had a different view of Title IX than I have now, coming from a prosecutor’s office, reporting and filing a complaint to get measures of justice,” Fanelli said. “Eight years in, I feel much differently, and what I think is most important is that students feel comfortable coming to me to get the accommodations they need to survive the experiences they have had, continuing going to class, building relationships, and getting to graduation. Any type of gender-based violence and discrimination can derail that,” Fanelli said.
Fanelli looks forward to hearing about what programs may be helpful for students, ensuring Rose Hill has a comfortable culture on campus.
“I think our CARE programs are important, and how often we utilize them,” said Dana Kien, Student Life Council chair, in response to Fanelli’s remarks. Being a mandated reporter, Kien noted how preventative programs help to ensure other mandated reporters have the advice they need to conduct their jobs properly.
“Big picture, I’m not
Elizabeth Fanelli Visits SLC
looking to make too many changes, rather working on improving what we already have,” said Fanelli. “We’re looking to hire an assistant dean who will be handling training, doing the conduct piece of it, so there is going to be some reorganization of the Title IX office.”
Fanelli is in the process of expanding the Title IX office and described how once she has a full team in place, they will know which changes to enact, working to enhance the community’s awareness of specific issues and provide resources of support to anyone who may need to file a report.
Judith Jones, Ph.D., chair of the Faculty Senate and Student Experience Committee, asked if there were specific things faculty members should be aware of to continue being supportive of Title IX’s mission. “I think it is important to emphasize faculty’s role as mandated reporters, and I do find this sometimes causes confusion on what to report or how to report it,” Jones said.
Fanelli said she is available to chat over the phone and is willing to consult with faculty to determine whether or not something must be reported whenever they need help.
“Our mission as Catholics and Jesuits should not be affected by anything happening politically, and that’s how I am operating, and if I need to do something differently, then I will, but right now, I am operating as I always have,” Fanelli said when elaborating on her job position. “I am here to support people, and that is my job.” She emphasized her availability outside of the meeting for members of the committee and the broader Fordham community.
The discussion pivoted to the recent donation for the
integrated science center at Rose Hill.
“We see there is currently a huge investment in science, it has been for a long time, largely in research and development in science,” said Robert Beer, Ph.D., assistant dean for Pre-Health Professions Advising.
Beer noted how the university has already responded to these national changes, expanding the computer science and chemistry programs. He also unveiled that the university will be introducing a minor in public health in the fall of 2025 and the Physician Assistant Master’s program, which is
set to launch in January of 2027. A director has already been hired for the Physician Assistant program at the Westchester campus.
“When you upgrade facilities, you can enhance the faculty and form more strategic external partnerships,” said Beer. “At that point, we can expand to new forms of research, which can generally benefit the institution at large.”
“It will be a 200,000 square foot facility, with common space, in the current open-parking lot area, and will contain classrooms, research labs, and makerspace areas,” he said. Beer also said that this is a next-generation view on
STEM, developing careers of health, ecological and computer sciences, as well as collaborating with the School of Law.
Students are encouraged to contact Beer if they have inquiries about the STEM center, which he will forward to the Office of the Provost.
Stephanie Sheehan, assistant director of Residential Life for Leadership Development & Training, delivered the Monthly Intoxication Transports Update, as requested by the Executive Board, which cited 63 transports and 14 refused medical assistance.
Fordham Students Volunteer at Local Press Association
WOMEN, PAGE 1
Daniell, WPC’s Operations Manager.
WPC’s labor roots are reflected in its programming. Volunteers working with WPC can expect to learn about labor, press and media industry history. They can also expect to focus on issues in low-income communities and learn about organizing work.
This isn’t WPC’s first time partnering with a university. They have a long history of working with students from schools in New York, particularly through the City University of New York(CUNY) system. They reached out to Foley when they moved to the Bronx from Brooklyn.
Fordham and WPC were able to form this relationship through Fordham’s Center for Community Engaged Learning (CCEL).
CCEL gives professors a small sum of money to bring in a community partner. Foley ultimately decided to partner with WPC because she liked that they are located near Fordham’s Rose Hill campus and sees them as an ideal partner for journalism majors.
“Your class is doing something for them and they’re providing something for the class,” said Foley. Students hone their skills through volunteering with WPC. While working at WPC, students practice their news writing skills, learn how to layout pages, operate and clean printing presses and work paper cutters. Fordham students also get the chance to meet and interact with students from other schools in New York as well as local communitybased organizations. For Daniell, that’s the kind of community building that
she hopes WPC can foster.
“It’s an opportunity for students to learn about how to build community media,” Daniell said.
The emphasis on community is also what draws Foley to WPC. She points out that besides focusing on community-centered media, WPC makes and serves lunch for office volunteers, providing a comforting escape for students used to dining hall food.
“You’re sitting around a table eating together,” Foley said.
Daniell underlines the importance of this kind of community in today’s media landscape, which she describes as “under unprecedented attack.” She finds that the journalism students involved with WPC are worried about what the current state of media means for their individual futures and the
future of the world. However, she hopes that WPC can be a place for students to take action.
“We know it’s important to have grassroots organizations that will unite people
together because there is unity in strength, there is strength in organization. And that’s what students can not only be involved in but really take leadership in,” said Daniell.
JACK MCDONALD/THE FORDHAM RAM
The Student Life Council meets once a month to meet with a guest speaker.
FROM
COURTESY OF FORDHAM NOW
A member of the Collective presents to Fordham students.
FROM TUITION, PAGE 1
will increase 4%; this leads to a maximum increase of $178.80 for the Ram Plus meal plan.
Buckley highlighted issues with the New York City economy in his email. This was also mentioned in the email announcing the tuition increase last year.
Students were overall unhappy with the increase.
“The quote, ‘Many of us are parents: We very much understand the impact of tuition increases, and are making multi-year plans to contain them,’ was the most frustrating part,” said Sage Rochetti, FCRH ’27. “Aside from, you know the abhorrent raising of tuition. Are they so incredibly dense that they think this quote is an acceptable [thing] to tack onto the end of this email?”
The email also noted the amount that the university currently spends on financial aid: “Fordham currently offers financial aid to approximately 90% of our undergraduates to soften the financial impact on students
By SIENNA REINDERS ASST. NEWS EDITOR
Fordham professor Laura Specker Sullivan is collaborating with Montefiore’s Center for Bioethics to serve the Bronx community. Their project aims to develop community trust and involve members in the hospital’s clinical ethics program. Its goal is to reshape Montefiore’s ethics program to ensure that Montefiore clinical ethicists best serve their patients through consultations and ethical advice.
“Not all of the clinical ethicists at Montefiore live in the Bronx,” said Sullivan, associate professor of philosophy and head of the project. “So there’s this question of the extent to which clinical ethics services are able to, kind of, understand and reflect the needs of the communities they’re serving.”
Specker Sullivan has worked with Montefiore since she started at Fordham in 2020. She is part of both their bioethics committee and
Students React to 4.65% Tuition Hike
and families. We spend more than $280 million a year on financial aid and, though it is the largest item in the University’s budget, it can never be enough.”
Last year’s email said, “In order to help students and families navigate rising costs, Fordham currently offers financial aid to 89% of our undergraduate population. We spend nearly $300 million a year on financial aid, which will continue to be one of our largest line items on our budget.”
Financial aid concerns have also been on students’ minds.
“I’m incredibly grateful that I just received an additional scholarship that’s helping me with the tuition increase, but without it I definitely would have a hard time staying a float,” said Bridget Godfrey, GSB ’27. “Fordham means a lot to me as a school and community, so I’m very lucky with the opportunities given to me this semester because without them
staying at Fordham would be harder. It breaks my heart to think that some of my peers this semester may be making tough calls with their education and finances because of these changes.”
Professors likewise have concerns about the tuition raise.
“In this environment where everything is already so expensive and education is becoming more of a priority especially for people of today … I’m quite disappointed to hear that.” said Sweta Sinha, an adjunct professor in the Digital Technologies and Emerging Media Department. “This is significant, this is going to impact [the students].”
The increase comes after a $100 million donation was given to the university to be specifically allocated to the construction of a new STEM building, and a hiring pause that was recently announced.
“I’ve seen Fordham raise tuition for nearly every
year I have been here with little to no improvement,” said Kelly Stanton, FCRH ’25. “Instead of making us pay more
money, Fordham should take a good look at themselves and see what they need to improve on before telling us to pay more.”
Fordham Partners with Montefiore
ethics review committee.
Specker Sullivan has also been connecting Fordham students with internships in Montefiore’s clinical ethics center since 2021.
Currently she is partnering with Montefiore to ensure that the hospital’s clinical ethics program reflects the needs of the Bronx community by engaging the community with clinical ethics. The overall goal of the project is to develop community trust with Montefiore and to better serve the Bronx community through ethics consultations.
Clinical ethics is a specialized consultation service present at most academic medical centers. The service involves a group of ethics consultants who help patients with ethical issues. According to Specker Sullivan, ethical issues tend to regard end-of-life care and decisionmaking. Through this project, Specker Sullivan hopes to improve Montefiore’s current clinical ethics consultation program so that Bronx
community members can better benefit from it.
“Our hope is that it will make the clinical ethics service a service for members of the Bronx community that they feel like is for them, meets their needs, that they can have involvement in, that they’re comfortable asking questions of,” Specker Sullivan said.
The project will be modeled after another ethics center at Temple University in Philadelphia. Their ethics center focuses on community engagement and works on developing community trust in order to reflect the needs and interests of individuals in the community.
The Montefiore project is in the preliminary stages, but members of the project have been working on it since September. According to Specker Sullivan, they have so far interviewed members of Temple University’s ethics program to get ideas for their own
program, learned how to conduct a needs assessment and started volunteering in the Bronx community in order to get a better understanding of how people in the community live and work.
The project will start taking off next fall when they conduct a needs assessment in the Bronx, which will ask people about their experience with Montefiore’s clinical ethics services and their awareness of it. The needs assessment will also gauge what issues Bronx citizens
feel are important or need to be addressed and will be distributed to community members through community partners, such as Fordham’s Center for Community Engaged Learning, as well as at locations such as food banks, farmers markets, libraries and churches “ It’s really just trying to find out what the community’s ethics needs are so that the clinical ethics service can position itself to better meet those needs,” Specker Sullivan said.
Fordham Students Travel to El Salvador and Honduras
well as individuals who were directly impacted by the country’s civil war. A particularly memorable experience for the team was their two-night homestay in Arcatao, where they lived with local families and saw firsthand how the war had affected the area.
“My favorite part was learning about El Salvador’s resilience, which set the tone for our trip,” Laureano said. “Through all the content we covered, our group stayed strong and kept a positive attitude, we never faltered.”
The trip included 13 participants, two student leaders, one faculty chaperone and 10 undergraduate students. Laureano found the experience to be overwhelmingly positive.
“Figuring out how to navigate different personalities can be difficult, but everyone meshed and flowed well together,” he said. “This was a really strong group, guided by curiosity and genuine care for El Salvador’s history.” For Laureano, this was his third and final GO! trip before graduating, following previous ex-
periences in California and South Africa.
Alexa Carmona, FCRH ’26, led the Honduras trip after participating in GO! for two years. Her team partnered with the Olancho Aid Foundation (OAF), and worked alongside students from the University of Scranton to volunteer in local schools. “It was an honor to lead a GO! trip after participating for two years and having wanted to lead since my sophomore year,” Carmona said. “I picked a great team, and we vibed
well with each other. That showed when we were working with the University of Scranton and the different kids we met at the schools.”
Each day, the group assisted teachers in classrooms and formed strong bonds with the children they worked with. These interactions quickly became the highlight of the experience.
“Our favorite parts as a team were working together in the classrooms and connecting with the kids,” Carmona said.
“Every day, we came back talking about the kids we spoke to and wished we could have
spent more time with them.”
The Honduras trip included 10 participants, one chaperone and Carmona as the sole student leader. Carmona felt well-prepared thanks to GO! leader training and the support of her chaperone.
“It was a roller coaster at times, but nothing I couldn’t handle,” she said. “Our group dynamic was always in sync; no one ever felt out of place or couldn’t speak up when needed. Whether dealing with internal group issues or challenges outside our group, we always handled things together.”
Fordham has increased tuition for the last three years.
MARY HAWTHORN/THE FORDHAM RAM
VIVIAN HEALTH FOR THE FORDHAM RAM Montefiore is a local hosptial that serves the Bronx area.
Updates from the Department of Education
By SIENNA REINDERS ASST. NEWS EDITOR
Trump and the DOE
Since the start of President Donald Trump’s second term, Americans have seen the United States Department of Education (DOE) take several actions against higher education institutions. The Trump administration has made significant changes to the department from within. Currently, it remains uncertain what the future holds for the DOE and institutions of higher education.
The DOE was created in 1979 under former President Jimmy Carter. According to its website, the DOE’s mission is to “promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access.”
The department oversees state education systems, ensuring equal opportunities for all students and providing financial assistance. The DOE’s services provide financial support to about 10 million undergraduate students through grants, loans and work-study opportunities. The department helps over 50 million students in pre-K through grade 12 institutions. It has implemented several pieces of significant legislation, including the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act.
Trump wants to close the department, an initiative that Republicans have been championing for years. Since January, Trump has begun to implement an agenda that includes his goal of dismantling the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) and that would give states control over education policies in hopes of expanding educational opportunities for individuals in the U.S. He says the department is no longer fulfilling its intended goals and is costing taxpayers too much money. Dismantling the DOE
Trump signed an executive order on March 20 calling for the Secretary of Education to take “all necessary steps” to ensure the department’s closure and return the power over education to the states. The order says that this will aid in students’ success and improve the nation’s future.
“Closing the Department of Education would provide children and their families the opportunity to escape a system that is failing them,” the order said.
But while his executive order calls for the immediate closure of the department, countless legal experts say the president doesn’t actually have the power to close a cabinet-level agency. Trump must still get approval from Congress in order to officially close the department, and it is currently unclear whether he has the support in Congress to do so.
Prior to the executive order, Trump began dismantling the department by firing over half of its staff. The DOE had 4,133 employees at the beginning of the year, according to the New
York Times. On March 11, 1,315 workers were fired, with an additional 600 workers choosing to leave by resigning or retiring.
Teachers, students and school faculty fear the ramifications of the dismissal of the DOE. Kari Smith, FCRH ’27, wants to be a teacher after graduation and is worried about the future of her profession and education as a whole.
“I’m really devastated. Especially as someone going into education, so many resources are being taken away, and I feel like it’s very selfish not to be considering what the department actually does and how beneficial it is, specifically for lower-income students and people with special needs,” Smith said.
The National Education Association (NEA) says the closure of the department would have detrimental implications for low-income students and students with disabilities who rely on the department’s programs. College students particularly fear the loss of scholarships, student loans and other federal assistance, which benefits 87.3% of first-time college students, according to the Education Data Initiative.
Trump announced on March 21 that some DOE services would move under other federal departments. Student loans would move under the Small Business Administration, while special education services and nutrition programs would move under the Department of Health and Human Services. However, many people believe that while certain DOE services will continue, dismantling the department will still be extremely detrimental.
“The Department of Education is a critical champion in enforcing federal statutes prohibiting discrimination and ensuring every student has access to an education that will help them reach their full potential,” said an article from the NEA. “Dismantling it means defunding programs that feed, educate, and protect our most vulnerable and underserved students, and leaving many families fearful and anxious and communities reeling.”
Updates regarding the DOE continue to be released every day, and it remains unclear whether the department will actually close its doors. However, Trump’s directives mean significant change for higher education, which will be felt all across the nation.
“
Dear Colleague” Letter
On Feb. 14, prior to the executive order, the DOE’s Office for Civil Rights sent a letter to all Pre-K-12 schools, colleges and universities receiving federal funding, instructing them to terminate the use of race as a factor in education programs (including admissions and hiring) or lose federal funding.
Affirmative action, the process of taking race into account for admissions, was deemed unlawful in the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, which is cited in the letter.
The letter stated that discrimination based on race
is illegal and said that diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) training and programs are discriminatory. It also criticized school curriculums.
“Educational institutions have toxically indoctrinated students with the false premise that the United States is built upon ‘systemic and structural racism’ and advanced discriminatory policies and practices,” the letter stated.
The document informed institutions that the federal government would begin taking “appropriate measures to assess compliance with the applicable statutes and regulations based on the understanding embodied in this letter.” Institutions were told that if they are found to be in violation of federal civil rights law, they will risk losing federal funding.
The DOE said it will investigate 45 universities for DEI violations, according to the Associated Press. The department is already investigating several institutions, including Stanford University, University of California, Berkeley, University of California, Los Angeles and University of California, Irvine. However, the status of their possible DEI violations and federal funding are still unknown. Fordham University is not currently on the publicly available list of schools to be investigated.
Following the distribution of the “Dear Colleague” letter, Fordham University President Tania Tetlow gave a speech to Fordham faculty titled “The Sign of the Times: How Will Fordham Hold Onto Core Values at this Moment?” on Wednesday, Feb. 26. Students, including reporters from The Ram, were not permitted to attend the event.
After the address, Tetlow spoke to reporters from the Fordham Observer about the university’s response to recent actions from the Trump administration. She said that the university plans to stand firm in its Catholic values.
“We have a right to exercise our religion as a Catholic institution and part of the core beliefs of the Catholic Church are beliefs in basic human dignity, in equality, in diversity, and in that we stand firm,” Tetlow said.
Schools Losing Funding
On March 7, Columbia University became the first institution to lose funding, as the U.S. federal government’s Joint Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism announced the cancellation of $400 million in federal grants and contracts to the university. The DOE said the loss of funding was a result of Columbia’s inability to protect Jewish students from antisemitic harassment during proPalestinian protests last spring.
“Since October 7, Jewish students have faced relentless violence, intimidation and anti-Semitic harassment on their campuses – only to be ignored by those who are supposed to protect them,” said Linda McMahon, secretary of education. “Universities must comply with all federal
antidiscrimination laws if they are going to receive federal funding. For too long, Columbia has abandoned that obligation to Jewish students studying on its campus. Today, we demonstrate to Columbia and other universities that we will not tolerate their appalling inaction any longer.”
Following Columbia’s loss of funding, on March 10, notifications were sent to 60 additional higher education institutions, informing them that they would risk losing federal funding themselves if they did not adhere to their obligations outlined in Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. The notification said that these institutions were discriminating against Jewish students and ignoring Title VI guidelines, which state that programs that receive federal funding cannot discriminate on the basis of race, color or national origin.
Columbia agreed to Trump’s demands on March 21 and implemented new policies in order to reinstate their federal funding. Some of the new policies include banning face masks and requiring protestors to identify themselves. Columbia will also review courses that discuss the Middle East.
The DOE announced on March 31 that they would review more than $8.7 billion in grants and over $255.6 million in contracts at Harvard University. It says the review will ensure that Harvard is following civil rights guidelines and complying with federal regulations.
So far, no other universities have lost federal funding, but it’s possible that they still could, according to the AP News.
The Future
While only 60 universities are on the list of schools facing funding cuts, Jacob Smith, assistant professor of political science at Fordham, said in an interview that all higher education institutions will feel the effects of changes to the DOE, especially if the department is
completely shut down.
“It’s going to be detrimental to higher education as a whole,” Smith said. “If there are fewer people at the Department of Education to administer benefits, that will affect when the money is distributed.”
Smith said that Fordham itself may not be affected as significantly as some other higher education institutions but that the closure of the department will impact all of higher education, and the effects may be felt at Fordham.
“It’s going to be detrimental to every college. Some things that are going on are going to be more detrimental to some colleges than others,” Smith said. “So, like, compared with other schools, Fordham has relatively fewer NIH grants, but other decisions may affect Fordham relatively more, so it’s going to depend on the particular part of it. But I think that it’s a negative picture for higher education as a whole.”
While legal scholars say it is not under Trump’s jurisdiction to officially close the DOE, he is still attempting to dismantle the department, which leaves people wondering whether he is misusing his executive power. On March 13, 20 attorneys, led by New York Attorney General Letitia James, sued the Trump administration in an attempt to stop Trump from dismantling the DOE. James says Trump’s attempt to close the department is illegal and unconstitutional, according to the New York Attorney General’s website.
Smith says that students should remember they have the authority to be a part of ensuring separation of powers and checks and balances on the president and that they should reach out to congress members with their thoughts on Trump’s recent actions.
“You do have the agency to call Congress and tell Congress to do what Congress is supposed to do and be a part of a system of separa-
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OPINION
From the Desk | Nishanth
Aduma
One Step at a Time
Growing up in the busy streets of Hyderabad, India, I saw traffic merging through narrow lanes, new buildings rising overnight and people constantly adapting to whatever came next. Change was life, and for the most part, it felt natural. I assumed my own path would follow the same logic, a planned journey where one decision would lead smoothly to the next. But looking back, the reality has been quite different. The past few years have not followed a straight line, and I am starting to realize they never really do.
In high school, I thought I had a clear vision of my future. I balanced academics with extracurriculars, immersing myself in projects that mattered to me. One of those was Project Y2C, an initiative I co-founded with friends to help children in childcare institutions access extracurricular activities. At the same time, I spent three years at Indus StartupYou, an experimental startup school where entrepreneurship was not just theory but practice. It was a space that encouraged risk-taking and problem-solving, where ideas became tangible ventures. I was also elected
Creativity, Activity, Service (CAS) captain of the student council, a role that reinforced my commitment to balancing leadership with service. My mindset was simple. The more I took on, the more meaningful impact I could create.
Then I landed in Boston.
As a first-year in the Hult International Business School, I found myself in an environment deeply rooted in entrepreneurship. Learning felt hands-on, dynamic and immersive. But something felt off. It was not an issue with the school itself but rather a growing realization that I wanted something different. I had a choice. Stay and see where this path leads or take a risk and transfer.
Transferring to Fordham was not part of my original plan, but when I thought about what I truly wanted from my college experience, it made sense. The transition, however, was anything but straightforward. I entered as a sophomore but lived off campus with upperclassmen, skipping the typical transition phase of dorm life and orientation events. Instead, I was navigating a new school while adjusting to life on Arthur Avenue, learning
AI in Academia
In the past few years, generative artificial intelligence (AI) has swept across this nation’s college campuses like a plague, leaving nary a classroom or dorm room free from its influence. In fact, just sit in the back of a classroom and observe what happens for a few minutes. You’ll probably see students open up ChatGPT to complete an assignment, passing it off as their own work.
Depending on who you ask, the high rate of AI usage on college campuses — a 2025 study found that as many as 71% of students have used generative AI — is either the end of academia or the dawn of a new, brighter educational era. Generative AI usage has had its fair share of both merits and drawbacks. While studies have shown that programs like ChatGPT can “enhance traditional teaching methods” by providing students with immediate feedback on writing tasks or by drafting succinct and accessible summaries of complex texts and ideas, they also reveal that these same programs decrease critical thinking skills, pass off inaccurate information as true and pose major ethical problems when it comes to plagiarism, authorship and racialized, heteronormative information bias.
This editorial, however, is not the place to hash out this invariably complex debate. What this editorial will do is address the fact that a significant volume of this AI usage comes in direct contradiction to educators’ wishes, with many professors prohibiting students from using the programs. For instance, Fordham University’s
to cook and figuring out how to integrate into a community that had already been established. I had to be intentional about finding my place. The first step was joining clubs and seeking out opportunities. That is when I found The Fordham Ram. Writing had always been an interest, and working as the Advertising Director while contributing articles gave me a sense of fulfillment. Finding a job on campus was also a priority, as I wanted to be financially independent. That led me to my role as a Tech Assistant at the Learning and Innovation Technology Environment (LITE) center, where I help students and faculty navigate various technologies in the space. It provided structure, introduced me to new people and helped me
feel more connected to the school. Through all of this, I discovered a sense of freedom. I was not confined to one predefined path. I made choices that felt right in the moment, whether that meant working on campus, exploring new opportunities or simply learning to exist in a city that always seemed to move faster than I could keep up. As my sophomore year comes to an end, I have no clear idea what the next two years will look like. But I do know that whatever comes next will be shaped by the same mindset that brought me here – embracing change, seizing opportunities and adapting as I go. If there is one thing I have learned, it is that things are never set in stone, and sometimes, the best decisions are the ones you never see coming.
website includes a page that not only provides educators with tools to catch generative AI usage but also provides a list of “Fordham-supported AI Tools for Learning and Productivity” that notably does not include programs like ChatGPT. AntiAI usage messaging can likewise be found littered across Fordham professors’ syllabi, with one syllabus from an upper-level art history course reading, “It is a basic and obvious expectation that you will not use AI (Chat GPT, etc.) for any work related to this course. The use of AI will result in an automatic failing grade for the assignment and may be forwarded to the University’s Academic Integrity Committee.”
Considering that students are using generative AI while often being directly told not to by faculty and staff, it then seems that a major shift in pedagogy, i.e., the ways in which professors approach the actual act of teaching, is certainly in store. More specifically, it is the opinion of the editorial board of The Fordham Ram that every university, Fordham included, should fundamentally readjust their approach to AI usage in educational settings, embracing it as an educational tool in a context that forces students to bring in and think critically about their own respective scholarly knowledge.
Fordham may very well already have a blueprint for adopting such an approach to the lurking presence of generative AI: Michael Peppard, Ph.D., is a longtime professor of theology here at Rose Hill. This past academic year, Peppard introduced a fascinating approach
to generative AI usage in his courses by directly asking his students to use generative AI when completing certain assignments. However, this does not mean that students should simply drop an essay prompt into a dialogue box and then submit whatever they receive from the AI software. Instead, Peppard asks students to engage in a critical back-and-forth dialogue with the generative AI program by crafting a series of highly intentional and discerning prompts that test the program’s scholarly knowledge surrounding a specific topic. After this “conversation” with the program, Peppard then requires that students write a reflection on their respective experiences, critiquing the accuracy and insightfulness of the responses that the generative AI program provided.
Peppard succinctly described this process of “require and critique” in an op-ed for Bloomberg, saying that “[f] or some assignments, students will use generative AI and then, as their evaluated work, offer higher-order criticisms of its outputs based on other sources and inputs from our course.”
What this process does is productively acknowledge that students are going to use generative AI. In other words, if students are going to use these generative AI programs regardless of whether or not they are forbidden from doing so, then professors might as well ensure their usage demands some critical thinking on the student’s part. Asking students to not only create probing prompts that test the programs’ knowledge but also ask them to critique the adequacy of the received responses is a great way to critically engage with AI. It requires
that the students bring their own learned knowledge to the table; after all, any critical engagement with a database’s knowledge must necessarily stem from knowledge beyond the scope of what the database can provide.
To be sure, this is not the only way in which professors may choose to utilize generative AI in their pedagogy. They may not only choose to apply programs to their curriculum in wholly different ways (e.g., encouraging its use for summation purposes), but they may also, of course, reserve the right to attempt to find a novel way to mitigate its usage. After all, generative AI does indeed carry with it concerns about academic integrity and its potential to devitalize the minds and motivations of students.
Beyond these questions about the ethics and efficacy of AI usage in academic circles, we at The Ram believe that any and all discourse about generative AI is woefully incomplete without acknowledging that any extended usage of these programs does significant damage to the environment. Programs like ChatGPT or Adobe Firefly pose an existential threat to our well-being, as their most basic operations consume ridiculous amounts of electricity and water while simultaneously producing concerning levels of carbon dioxide emissions. Research even shows that “[w]ithin years, large AI systems are likely to need as much energy as entire nations.” Thus, regardless of whether shifts in pedagogy are implemented, and regardless of whether they are effective or not, the fact of the matter is that all this generative AI usage is coming at the cost of our home: the natural world.
Editorial | Artificial Intelligence
OPINION
Over the River and Through the Woods: Spring at the New York Botanical Garden
By ERYNN
ASST. CULTURE EDITOR
I love the New York Botanical Garden (NYBG), known among students as the Botans, and our free access to the gardens is not something we should take for granted while we are students at Fordham University.
Founded back in 1891, NYBG boasts 250 acres of plant, fungal and animal life, along with globally significant research collections and immersive botanical experiences. Committed to helping nature thrive in order to help humanity thrive, the organization lives out its mission both in and beyond the Bronx. NYBG’s Green-Up initiative has established over 300 community gardens in the area, and their scientific research helps to find “nature-based solutions” to the earth’s climate and biodiversity crises.
I love how close it is to campus (just a short walk away!)
yet also how different it feels.
I love how big the space is and how each part feels like its own little world — from the forest to the river to the rose garden and the rock garden to Dandelion Hill.
I love the excitement of always having something new to explore — there are so many treasures in there (including a rock garden with at least one species of plant starting with every letter of the alphabet and a 275-year-old red oak tree in the Thain Family Forest). No matter how many times I go to the Botans, I still feel like I haven’t seen the end of the treasure box.
I love hearing the birds chirping and the creek moving across the rocks and the sound of my own breath as my feet hit the ground. I love seeing endless rows of trees and huge fields of grass and flowers swaying with the wind. I love noticing how things change as
the seasons go by. The bright greens of the grass, trees and leaves during the summer change to become the oranges and yellows that sway with the autumn breeze and then to the bare branches as those same leaves fall to the ground in the winter. All of a sudden when the spring comes, the flowers start to bloom and everything feels alive again after a period of rest.
I love to observe other people there and realize how much of an impact nature can have on our interactions and way of being — as you pass by, people will say hi and look you in the eye, which rarely happens on city streets.
Most of all, I love to get lost in there — to wander, breathe in the fresh air and see where I end up.
Being in the Botans reminds me that I am a human being, not a human doing. That I am not alone in the world but deeply connected to the earth and the people around me. That my life is not all up to me. It reminds me that the library where I study, the gym where I play volleyball and the cafeteria where I eat with my friends are not singular spaces in the universe, that I am a small part of the big world, and that my circles are small in comparison with everything else.
There is so much I love about the Botans, but what I don’t love is its lack of accessibility to the general public.
With adult tickets costing $35 and $39 for weekdays and weekends respectively, NYBG isn’t like other green spaces in NYC where you can go as you please.
Its priciness is all the more reason that we should use our free access to the Botans as Fordham students while we have it. This is especially important given the environment we find ourselves in as college students.
There is so much movement and activity happening around campus all the time and sometimes it feels hard to find stillness or a place to rest. During the never-ending midterm season and the ever-approaching finals season (basically all semester), stress compiles almost as high as the number of unread emails in my inbox and worry lingers almost as long as the Starbucks line before an 11:30 a.m. class. It is tangible and palpable. Everything happening around campus, everything the students are doing, feeling and experiencing gets held in the air, making it feel tense and inescapable.
A college campus is a really special place and also kind of a crazy thing. These spaces bring together young people from different backgrounds and identities but who share a lot of the same dreams, hopes and questions. It provides a space to exchange ideas, pursue passions and create relationships in a unique and
concentrated way. I can feel that really strongly on Rose Hill’s campus. There is a certain rhythm to it you can feel as you walk around, an energy that emanates through each building, into each classroom and dorm room from O’Hare Hall to Dealy Hall, Faculty Memorial Hall to Così, but it can also be overwhelming and all-encompassing. It is healthy to take a step back sometimes and realize that there is more to life than Fordham, more to life than college. Being in nature is a wonderful way to gain this sort of perspective and is proven to positively impact both mental and physical health outcomes. Luckily, we have somewhere full of nature we can go, right across the street, for free! There is a different air we can breathe readily available to us from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day except for Mondays. Nature is necessary, and we are privileged to have easy access to such a wealth of natural beauty, both in price and location. With sunny days bound to be on our horizon in the coming weeks and months, it’s never been a better time to get lost in the Botans. Why not take advantage while the time is ripe?
Erynn Sweeney, FCRH ’27, is an international political economy major fromCypress,California
A Piece of Paper Worth $360,000: What’s The Real Value of a College Degree?
By MOLLY O’CONNOR DIGITAL PRODUCER
In a country where affordability feels like a myth of the past and the education system is rapidly losing respect, the necessity of college degrees is highly questioned. While it is necessary to factor in finances given the price of everything in the world today, when considering the value of college degrees, we must also acknowledge the importance of personal and societal development through education.
We cannot only value the worth of education on how much money it will make us. Becoming a well-rounded person requires learning many different subjects and perspectives, and one way to achieve that is by going to college.
Social networking is also highly valuable in any field, and having a reputable college like Fordham University attached to your resume can be extremely beneficial in finding a job.
On top of this, college is an introduction to independence and learning how to make important life decisions as an adult with the help of resources that you won’t have out in the “real world.” However, this is becoming increasingly inaccessible given the extreme prices of attending a traditional
four-year university.
The cost of college has increased by more than double in the last 40 years, and the balance of student loan debt in the United States has increased by 66% in the last 10 years. This increase is leading many people to give up on pursuing higher education as they feel it will do more damage than good.
Though I am very grateful to be a student at Fordham, I also acknowledge that my experience is one that not everyone can access, regardless of academic ability. Fordham is a fantastic school, but I have a hard time believing any justification for the price point that comes with it, especially given the three huge tuition increases in just the last three years: 6% in 2023, 4.4% in 2024, and now 4.65% in 2025.
While inflation, COVID-19 and other factors have certainly raised costs for universities, they have also raised costs for students. Having an annual sticker price of $90,000 seems unfair and too high for many students and families compared to how much college students can expect to earn after graduating. Students should be concerned about their studies and building a foundation for their future careers, not about how they will afford to live
while paying off hundreds of thousands of dollars in student debt.
Scholarships and financial aid are helpful and certainly welcomed, but even with those resources, it can be extremely difficult for students and families to pay for their education here. Fordham boasts significant financial assistance for those unable to pay full price, with 96% of first-year students receiving aid, but with a starting price that high, more needs to be done to reduce costs for everyone.
Still, college graduates are 24% more likely to be employed than those with only a high school education. For many, their degrees will propel them to success in a field they are passionate about.
Additionally, on the level of societal improvement, college graduates are twice as likely as those with just a high school diploma to volunteer and contribute more than three and a half times as much money to charity. They are also more likely to vote, with 75% of college graduates voting in comparison to 52% of their high school-educated peers.
Having active members of society and politics is extremely important for a functioning country. While not every person needs or desires to have a
degree in ethics or be an expert in political science, having those people in society helps keep everyone in the know and enriches us as a whole.
Without philosophers, we might not have the moral code we accept and follow today. Without humanities majors, we might not be able to see life through so many different lenses. Without STEM majors, we would be without so many amazing and important advancements that we often take for granted today.
The value of a college degree goes so much further than just leading people to money and careers. It can transform the
heart of a person’s core values and beliefs, and those people can change the very fabric of our world. But to keep this experience accessible to anyone who might want to pursue it, we must make large efforts to reduce the cost. Higher education should not be restricted by the high cost of tuition, but instead exist as an open opportunity for anyone to seek greater knowledge.
Massachusetts.
Molly O’Connor, FCRH ’28, is a journalismmajorfromWeymouth,
Fordham College at Rose Hill has an annual sticker price greater than $90,000.
MARY HAWTHORN/THE FORDHAM RAM
The New York Botanical Garden is across the street from Fordham. MARY HAWTHORN/THE FORDHAM RAM
SWENNEY
OPINION
A $400 Million Wake-Up Call: The Fraught Future of Federal Funding in Higher Education
By MICHAEL DUKE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Columbia University has been no stranger to controversy, especially since the start of last spring when antiIsrael protests erupted and changed what normalcy was at the Ivy League university.
From student activists taking over an academic building in the spring of 2024 to the staged protest inside a university library this spring, Columbia has seemingly not gone a single week without being in the news for student activists’ actions. However, when you look at student actions being taken, such as how students disrupted a “History of Modern Israel” class at the beginning of the semester or how the university has responded to uncontrolled activism by offering “safety escorts” for Jewish students walking on campus, you have to wonder why some outrageous instances are still occurring at Columbia even though it has been a whole year since protests initially broke out.
Students at Columbia are probably thinking the same thing, especially since the Trump administration pulled $400 million in contracts and grants with the university as a result of what it calls inaction from Columbia administrators relating to cracking down on antisemitic actions on campus.
To be clear, I’m not claiming that Columbia is the only university that has issues with antisemitism on campus, but I am highlighting the severity of them — to where the federal government is now stepping in. The federal government shouldn’t have to babysit private institutions; in fact, it sets a precedent that could be abused down the line. But for the issues today, it is arguably necessary.
The U.S. Department of Education’s (DOE) website states that the funding pull came after the university’s administrators and former interim-president Katrina Armstrong did not respond to a notification by the Joint Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism of a “comprehensive review of the university’s federal contracts and grants in light of ongoing investigations under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.” The DOE website states that the university had seen “Chaos and antiSemitic harassment” persist on campus despite administrators being conscious of the notification by the Task Force.
The DOE’s website adds that “The decisive action by the DOJ, HHS, ED, and GSA to cancel Columbia’s grants and contracts serves as a notice to every school and university that receives federal dollars that this administration will use all the tools at its disposal to protect Jewish students and end anti-Semitism on college campuses.”
Though the funding may return if Columbia complies with federal government directions to change university policies to benefit all students, there are no assurances, given questions now raised by Armstrong’s recently announced resignation from her interim role. Regardless of who the face of the institution is, administrators at Columbia owe it to their institution to commit to sensible actions to earn back the funding. They also owe it to other institutions to set an example for how to deal with the federal government’s demands, especially since Harvard University now has a similar investigation to Columbia’s on its hands regarding antisemitism.
Democratic senator John Fetterman echoed this rhetoric
on X, where he stated once the funding pull was announced, “Columbia let antisemitism run amok to cater to lunatic fringe and paid provocateurs. Leadership allowed those assholes to take over the campus and terrorize Jewish students. Now, Columbia pays for its failure and I support that.”
Just as Columbia’s encampments and associated anti-Israel protests came to be the face of all university protests, the Trump administration’s actions against Columbia are likely meant to be a warning shot to university administrators across the U.S.
Columbia should not be the sole face of antisemitism in the United States, especially since antisemitism has been prevalent at not just Columbia, but also schools like Yale, the University of Southern California, the University of Michigan and the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) for the past year.
Most importantly, the message that the Trump administration is sending with the $400 million being put in limbo is not that students aren’t free to exercise their First Amendment right to freedom of expression, but rather that they must do so in legal, responsible, proactive and disciplined ways. The message from the Trump administration is also meant to hit home with administrators whose jobs are to ensure that campuses are safe
for all students by keeping potential or active threats in check and at bay.
Attacking a Jewish student for wearing Jewish clothing, like what happened at Yale, is not legal; it is antisemitic. Vandalizing the home of a university regent is not activism; it is a degrading act of “antisemitic intimidation,” as put by the University of Michigan in a statement following this occurrence in 2024. Drawing swastikas on chalkboards, waving flags that say “Israelis are Native 2 HELL,” putting the star of David next to a sculpture of a pig holding a bag of money or other countless incidents that took place at UCLA during anti-Israel protests, are blatantly sick and disgusting.
But, despite how objectionable the UCLA example, or similar occurrences, might be, they are not necessarily unlawful and could be argued to be offensive hate speech that is still protected under the First Amendment. But just because it might be protected does not mean it doesn’t violate university policies, or that students should get away with them.
The point here is that goodfaith efforts to protest don’t seem to be happening, and what these examples show is that they have not been happening on college campuses.
While Columbia administrators, like both former presidents Minouche Shafik and Katrina Armstrong, are not responsible for what happens at
other schools, they are responsible for how they let a situation that the nation was closely watching get out of hand. Their inaction led to Jewish students receiving death threats, being spat on or pinned against walls and even chased out of their dorm rooms, as a report from Columbia’s Task Force on Antisemitism revealed in August of 2024 had occurred on campus.
It is not a secret that Columbia was the face of the 2024 protests, especially since the first encampment that took over a campus lawn inspired students at other schools to do the same after Columbia received national attention from the mainstream media. Though you can’t change the past, what you can do is ask productive questions, like wondering if antisemitic actions across the U.S. could have been avoided if Columbia had acted differently. After all, antisemitism has spiked almost 400% in the U.S. since Oct. 7, 2023, according to the Anti-Defamation League, and you have to wonder how much of it could be credited to the inaction, ineptitude or mishandling by those in charge at higher education institutions.
Michael Duke, GSB ’26, is a business administration major from Scottsdale, Arizona.
Editor’s Note: For more information about Columbia’s federal funding, see page 6.
MARY HAWTHORN/THE FORDHAM RAM
President Trump recently cancelled $400 million of federal funding for Columbia University.
OPINION
Serving on the Front Lines: The Value of Working in a Restaurant
By INDRANIL KAR OPINION EDITOR
In 2021, I made the lifealtering decision to enter the food service industry. After turning 17 years old, like many young adults my age, I was in desperate need of cash and some degree of financial independence. Fortunately for me, during COVID-19 a local Persian restaurant that I grew up eating at with my family had a job opening for a busser, or basically a jackof-all-trades.
COVID-19 heavily affected the food service industry, as many restaurants were forced to close or hire limited and more specialized employees. I would soon learn that a busser is a real team player at the bottom of the “restaurant food chain.” It is someone who sits, clears and cleans tables, folds silverware sets, fills up waters, cleans
up the bathroom atrocities and quickly picks up a wide array of other roles. This job would shape my values and influence my further entrenchment in the world of restaurants, hospitality and the service industry/people business. I’d gain further experience as a server at a burger restaurant, the type of upscale Midwest joint that was converted and refurbished out of an old automobile garage. While the atmospheres of the fine-dining Persian restaurant and an upscale “greasy spoon” were a bit different, the skills I learned on the job not only applied to my adult life, but also translated into my academic pursuits. I think that everyone should take the opportunity to work at a restaurant at some point in their life because it not only develops you as a personable individual, but the stories you
have will last a lifetime. Working in the food service industry exposes you to all types of people and characters. The restaurant industry is not only one of the largest in the United States, but its workforce is also one of the most diverse in both age and racial demographics. At my first food service job in the Persian restaurant, besides the owner’s husband who helped run the gin bar, I was the whitest worker in the establishment. The kitchen staff consisted of a hardworking and dedicated team of hijabis, Muslim women who wear the traditional head scarf. While the majority of this restaurant’s workforce predominantly spoke Farsi and other languages amongst each other, it required me to push myself out of my comfort zone to develop my own effective communication and teamwork skills when I needed to relay messages from the front of house to the kitchen or back of house. My boss grew up at this restaurant, as her parents started the business. As we folded silverware into the late hours, she gave me encouraging life advice to adjust to young adult life, prepare for college and live up to parental expectations. In my next food service venture, I was lucky to work my way up the restaurant food chain. As a server, I held more responsibilities as
I was handling checks, and keeping customers happy. One part of the job that I learned quickly was handling “hangry” individuals.
Isaac Forson, FCRH ’26, worked at a Häagen-Dazs in Brooklyn. Some difficulties he faced at the job included “bad online orders and people yelling at you over the phone required coming up with a quick remedy and being quick on your feet.”
Multitasking with difficult customers and assigned tables in your section is a big component of the job. For me, managing large sections of the restaurants meant that I was dealing with over 20 tables per shift. Creating a mental script assisted me in gaining cash tips and a larger bill upselling millennials artsy alcoholic lemonades and other drinks.
Forson advised, “suggestive talk like name dropping specific items in conversation. Never pushing an item too much. People like it when you say things with a smile. People skills get you an extra tip. I always try to compliment a customer on their hair or tie. It depends on the person.” Skills learned on the job can be applied to other aspects of life.
The ability to multitask, work under pressure and communicate effectively improves significantly while
working in food service. One server, FCRH ’25, detailed her own experience working at a fine dining establishment in New York City and what skills she has learned that apply to her daily life. She described, “Not only do I think it’s a lucrative industry that can be really helpful. I believe that it has matured me in many ways. My communication skills, my ability to manage conflict, and time management have all improved. Learning not to buckle under the pressure. It had taught me resilience.”
Working as a server required the memorization of the entire food and drink menu by heart. Knowing the menu or appearing to know the menu helped me not only sell more food and drinks, but it helped me learn how to be more personable to new people.
Working in the food service industry was extremely beneficial to developing myself as a person and improving my work ethic. I learned the value of hard and honest work. Young adults should spend some time working in the food service industry because the skills learned and earned on the job are applicable to most aspects of daily life as a student and contribute to the growth of a well-rounded individual.
To Binge-Watch or Not To Binge-Watch?
By JOHANNA BROOSLIN CONTRIBUTING WRITER
As streaming platforms dominate the television industry, how the average viewer consumes content has drastically changed. While some platforms, like Netflix, rely on the binge model — where entire seasons are released at once — others, such as Max and Disney+, drop one episode per week. The weekly release schedule offers a far better viewing experience than the binge model. Staggering the episode releases builds suspense and fosters deeper engagement from audiences, while dropping full seasons at once causes the show to fall out of public discourse much faster and turns television watching into a race to the end of the season instead of enjoying each episode individually. For busy college students, the weekly release of episodes reigns supreme. This model allows for better balance, as only one episode a week needs to be consumed in order to stay up-to-date on the show. No need to neglect work and studying to conduct an eight-hour binge-watch of a new show. Instead, watching the singular episode is a nice break between assignments while watching a whole season
can feel like a job in itself.
Of course, the binge model does not require watching the entire season in one sitting, and with a little self-control, the season can be watched over the span of one week instead. The problem, however, comes with the inevitable risk of spoilers. Good luck logging into any social media platform without seeing the twist-ending of your favorite show spoiled at the top of your home page. While you can spread out your consumption of the episodes, many people do not, and the chances of hearing spoilers are much higher. Not only are the chances of hearing spoilers much less likely with the weekly model, but it also builds suspense for the upcoming episode. The slow rollout allows mystery and tension to increase over the weeks instead of being resolved within a matter of hours. Extending the anticipation makes each reveal far more impactful, as audiences can use the time to speculate and build excitement before the next episode airs. The viewing experience becomes more immersive and rewarding rather than becoming an overwhelming blur.
The weekly release schedule
also cultivates much more engagement in comparison to the binge model. When “The White Lotus” releases every Sunday night on Max, audiences can tune into the episode on their television or laptop while following along on their phones to thousands of fans posting their live reactions on X. Even after the episode airs, the online conversation moves into theories, predictions and analysis of the episode until the next week. In contrast, when an entire season is released at once, the discourse surrounding the show does not last nearly as long. According to data collected by the platform Fandom, seasons with weekly releases generate 33% more engagement during their release window compared to when seasons are dropped all at once. The engagement for series using the weekly model is also sustained for 50% longer than shows with the binge model. Discussion of the episodes is also prolonged outside of online spaces. Viewers watch and process each episode, bringing their thoughts into conversation with friends and family to create an ongoing dialogue for weeks.
When binge-watching a show the episodes tend to
blur together, and it becomes much more difficult to appreciate each episode individually because you are determined to reach the finish line. According to a study from First Monday, viewers who binge-watch shows are less likely to remember details than those who watch one episode a week. The weekly release model allows each episode to stand on its own for a full week, and audiences can use the time to fully analyze the episode. Each episode becomes a point of discussion instead of the season overall, enabling fans to dissect possible foreshadowing and subtle plot developments that may otherwise be overlooked when episodes are watched all at once.
While binge-watching a show brings instant gratification, the weekly release model offers a richer and more satisfying viewing experience for audiences. Viewers savor each episode and participate in discourse for months instead of rushing through a season and moving on after a few days. Prolonged engagement with television shows deepens the audience’s investment in the story while also building a greater appreciation for small details that can go unnoticed when consuming a season all at once. The method of releasing episodes weekly is a much-needed return to how television shows have always been aired. Despite the rise of bingewatching, the weekly format remains the superior method to experience television, as this model preserves the excitement, suspense and community that makes television watching enjoyable.
Indranil Kar, FCRH ’26, is a political science major from St. Louis, Missouri.
Johanna Brooslin, FCRH ’27, is an English major from Medfield, Massachusetts.
Streaming platforms offer various television consumption methods
MARY HAWTHORN/THE FORDHAM RAM
Working in the food service industry provides valuable life experience.
MARY HAWTHORN/THE FORDHAM RAM
Getting a Dose of Appalachia with ‘Gloaming Nowhere’
By LARA EJZAK CONTRIBUTING WRITER
A note of the rural southeast moseyed its way into the SoHo Playhouse via the musical, “Gloaming, Nowhere.”
The show was written and performed by Appalachian native artist J.S. Streible with the purpose of encapsulating and broadcasting life in the remote mountains.
On March 27, I had the privilege of attending the performance and interviewing the husband-wife duo that is producer Mackenzie Spivey and Streible himself. Despite the limited floor space of the theater, Streible utilized every square foot for storytelling during the 90-minute show.
Prior to the show commencing, classic Appalachian and bluegrass music played through the speakers of the theater, a choice that turned out to be premeditated.
“Every aspect of the show is heavily curated,” explained Streible.
Streible played these tracks pre and post-performance, as well as during intermission as an ode to the traditional music of the genre. However, the performance itself is anything but orthodox Appalachian.
While researching the show and coming across the phrase “neo-Appalachian patchwork kaleidoscopic collage,” I was at a loss for how those words worked together in the same sentence. I was pleasantly surprised when what I heard was a contemporary pop-style version of the classic Southern mountain regional music.
“We’re calling this neoAppalachian to delineate that this is not bluegrass old time,” clarified Streible. “It’s very melodic.”
The musician accompanied his storytelling simply with a guitar or piano which were the only on-stage props throughout the show. Voice was the main instrument, putting a focus on the deeply lyrical songs.
As opposed to writing specific songs for the musical, nearly all the numbers come from 10 years worth of poetry and songwriting by the artist with some dialogue to simply help the story move along. An “Appalachian patchwork quilt,” as the creator put it.
The narration covered the rollercoaster of emotions associated with new adventures from apprehension to ambition. A nostalgic air surrounded the production, giving even the audience a sense of life in Appalachia.
The setting of the show itself could not have been more juxtaposed with its venue, which ended up affecting the content.
“We had to cut a song for New York,” said Streible, explaining that the song resonated less with an urban audience as opposed to a rural one. “In the south, everyone could relate … It almost was diminishing returns in New York.”
Every aspect of the show was thoughtfully curated and performed. The accent and mannerisms that the actor adopted stood out as a representation
of a resident of the setting, and Streible did a fantastic job at maintaining the Appalachian energy with each new character he embodied.
The performer did hefty research to find the best form of storytelling, pulling from examples of English minstrels and West African griots. He wanted the show to be a “celebration of storytelling” and invited all interpretations of the show, stating that art should be up for interpretation and talked about.
Speaking of talking, the dialect had that redneck southern characteristic that was almost indecipherable at times. On top of vibrant dialogue, Streible’s acting was just as animated, relying primarily on physicality.
The musical was less plotdriven, and focused more on the music and portrayal of characters one would encounter in the setting. The lack of structure is reminiscent of the title itself, which (surprise) was chosen because of the metaphorical significance and double meaning.
“Gloaming is a word that basically means dusk or twilight,” Spivey described. “That’s a really good metaphor for the in-between spaces that this show occupies.”
The fact that the title is reminiscient of the phrase “going nowhere” is a nod to the wandering plot.
Despite the show occasionally being advertised as a story of a biracial man living in Appalachia, that theme does not take center stage.
“This is not going to be a [musical] about a biracial person,” insisted Streible. “I wanted to make something timeless that appeals to everybody.”
The show does an excellent job of presenting the multifaceted nature of Appalachia. The moments of spirituality and mysticism create an eerie feeling within the viewer but are quickly displaced by upbeat refrains or heartfelt ballads. There was not one
moment when Streible’s voice wavered, and his acting justified the lack of other bodies on stage.
The show is in town until April 5 at the SoHo Playhouse, so if you are looking to be transported to the southern mountains and take in the twang, check it out! And, if you happen to talk to any Southerners, make sure you pronounce it as “Appa-latch-uh” to avoid any mockery.
Full Circle in the City: Embracing New York’s Everlasting Charm
By HAILEY BAKER STAFF WRITER
New York, New York — it’s a wonderful city, and I have loved it since I stepped foot off the Vamoose bus right outside of Penn Station in 2015. The bright lights and bustling crowds enamored me, and I felt at home somewhere in the chaos of it all. I visited four more times before committing to Fordham, and every time it felt more like home.
Over time, I grew more accustomed to Manhattan — my favorite borough, though I love the Bronx too. As I took classes at Lincoln Center, started memorizing the subway routes and figured out which coffee shop has the best chai latte — the answer is Charlotte Cafe on 96th Street and Broadway, by the way — the city became much less alluring for me. Times Square became overstimulating, tourists frustrating and Manhattan more of a commute than a luxury.
My little sister, Brooke, came up from Maryland to visit at the start of spring break. She hadn’t been to downtown Manhattan in a few years, primarily staying on our campus when she visited for a family
weekend. Her visit helped me embrace being a tourist again.
In an almost perfectly fullcircle moment, I met my younger sister, who is 17, at the bus stop right outside of Penn Station, telling her how great of a weekend we were going to have. She had the same wideeyed wonder that I did, and it was at that moment that I admitted to myself that I had let the stress of daily life change my perspective on the city that had once felt so electrifying. For the next few days, I decided to try to experience the city the way I once had, as if everything was new again.
Our first stop was the “Alice In Wonderland”-themed Alice’s Tea Cup Chapter I, at 102 West 73rd Street, where we met our cousin. We shared “The Mad Hatter” tea-for-three, enjoying scones, sandwiches and sweets. The food and drinks were great, but the atmosphere was even better, showcasing an environment of whimsy and nostalgic, child-like joy.
After eating, my sister and I walked through Central Park to the “Barbie: A Cultural Icon” exhibit at the Museum of Arts and Design in Columbus Circle. The exhibit, which closed on
March 16, showcased 65 years of Barbie’s cultural influence with over 250 vintage dolls, lifesize fashion and other staples. Brooke and I took advantage of the five unique photo opportunities at the exhibit, including a replica of Barbie’s Corvette, and then headed to Lady Gaga’s parents’ Italian restaurant, Joanne Trattoria, on 70 W 68th Street for dinner. They have a cabaret show every Friday night, with former Mean Girls National Tour cast member Grace Romanello performing at ours. During her performance, Joe Germanotta, Lady Gaga’s father, humbly asked us what we thought, defying any stereotypes about the entitlement of A-list celebrities and their families.
As tired as we were, after dinner, we went to Top of the Rock, one of New York’s five observation decks, an attraction I always wanted to visit. Even through the mist, the city’s panoramic views — the Empire State Building, Hudson River, Statue of Liberty, etc. — were unmatched.
Still infatuated with the incredible view, Brooke and I took the Ram Van back to Rose Hill to sleep and prepare for the
next day. We had a more relaxing morning grabbing lunch at the Carnegie Diner & Cafe in Times Square, which had the fanciest milkshakes I have ever seen, and we went to the Vessel in Hudson Yards, a 150 foot walk-through art installation. The Vessel had incredible views of the West Side that sparked a mini photoshoot for us.
In the evening, we went to see “The Book of Mormon” on Broadway, which we won lottery tickets for. Not surprisingly, it was one of the funniest shows I have ever seen, written by “South Park” creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker along with composer Robert Lopez.
The following day, Brooke and I got breakfast at Liberty Bagels, a place I visited one of the first times I came to New York. It symbolized my newfound embrace of being a tourist again. I did not get my usual safe-choice cinnamon raisin bagel with walnut raisin cream cheese, but instead, I got a rainbow bagel with birthday cake cream cheese, like the first time I went to the shop.
Returning to Penn Station at the end of the trip to go back to Maryland for break, I felt a profound sense of gratitude for a city whose allure is eternal, even with the drawbacks of repetitive routines. And, I learned it’s okay to be a tourist.
Liberty Bagels is a popular spot for NYC tourists.
LARA EJZAK FOR THE FORDHAM RAM
J.S. Streible starred in “Gloaming Nowhere” at the Soho Playhouse.
HAILEY BAKER FOR THE FORDHAM RAM
CULTURE
Editor’s Pick | Art
Cutting to the Chase on Collaging in College
By ALLISON SCHNEIDER EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Growing up, my sister and I did a lot of crafts. Neither one of us was ever very good at painting or drawing, but if you gave us some cardboard, a couple of glue sticks, markers and a bit of construction paper, and we would have no problem keeping ourselves entertained for hours making poorly-constructed paper jewelry and assembling tiny accessories for our American Girl Dolls. These hand-made trinkets were by no means lasting works of art, but it was fun to get our hands a little dirty and say we made something together.
Over the years, my love for arts and crafts never quite left me. I have found that the process of cutting and gluing and making something new out of old scraps is extremely gratifying, and that feeling doesn’t go away with age.
In the second semester of my first year at Fordham, a friend of mine reintroduced me to the wonderful art of collage. It’s a creative medium that, thankfully for me, doesn’t necessarily require a ton of technical skill. Collage is art created from the overlapping, the meshing together and the interweaving of various pieces of found material. That material can include anything from photographs and magazine clippings to fabric scraps and old take-out menus. I’ve even been known to use old copies of The Ram in some of my collages.
Collaging is great for a number of reasons. For one, it allows me to put all the papers and magazines I collect to good use. Instead of collecting dust in a box under my bed, all my favorite photos
By ANNA GAYTON CONTRIBUTING WRITER
“All you country boys saying you know how to treat a woman right… well only a woman knows how to treat a woman right!” exclaims the emerging powerhouse to the music scene, Chappell Roan. Grammy Award winner of the “Best New Artist” category Roan recently released her first single since skyrocketing to fame just last year. The song debuted on “Saturday Night Live” back in November, with Roan sporting a full face of drag makeup and a custom pink gingham two-piece. Following the late-night performance and a 2024 Governors Ball Music Festival teaser of a different unreleased song “The Subway,” fans anxiously waited and wondered when the Missouri-native would officially release new music.
While her debut album “The
and magazine clippings get thrown into collages that I can display on my walls or hold onto as proper keepsakes.
The process of turning unassuming paper scraps into art is also the process of turning those things into memories that I can look back on not as individual pieces, but as a whole, as a collage.
The medium of collage is also surprisingly freeing. You are constrained by the materials that are available to you, but not by any technical limitations beyond the ability to use scissors and a glue stick. It removes the pressure when you work to create something new. Collaging allows you to imagine combinations of materials that would otherwise never have been paired together. It almost forces you to be creative, and the results are always fun.
There are no rules telling you what your collages should be about. I myself have made collages about all sorts of random things, including orca whales, modern technology, hot dogs, the state of Florida and the dairy lobby. Last spring, I made one out of materials I collected while on a trip to Ireland that features a map of Galway, photos of the Irish countryside, clippings from restaurant menus, bus ticket stubs and more. As you can see, the possibilities are pretty much endless.
Collaging also makes for a fun group activity. Some of my favorite memories from the past couple of years were made at collage nights in a friend’s dorm, and they are fairly simple to organize. All you need to do is get a couple pairs of scissors, some glue sticks, plain paper to serve as a base for your collages
and as many materials as you and your friends can get your hands on. I recently had the great fortune of inheriting a giant stack of old calendars from my grandparents. The calendars are perfect for my purposes, as I prefer materials with lots of photos and big letters to cut out and put back together. I recommend checking
out nearby thrift stores for old magazines, picking up free brochures or event programs around campus and holding onto all the random bits of paper you might encounter. Think museum guides, postcards and wrapping paper.
Collaging materials and inspiration are all around you, as long as you are willing to
look for them. Like I said before, collaging isn’t just an activity for kids, it’s for people of any age, and it really is a ton of fun. I recommend collaging to everyone because I think it is the perfect opportunity to spend time with friends, reflect on fond memories and let your creativity take the reins.
If
Can She Get the Job Done?
Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess” has been performed time and time again, when Roan takes the stage it isn’t just the catchy pop vocals that captivate you. Her unapologetically vibrant stage presence and artistry are what make her a force to be reckoned with, and that hasn’t changed for the rollout of her new song. Mysterious flyers and billboards popped up around the country, prompting fans to call the HOT-TOGO hotline, where they were greeted with an interactive menu of job titles and sound bites.
Following all the teasers, Roan officially announced the song to be released on March 13. She wrote to Instagram that releasing a country song was a “def bold and scary move” after numerous pop hits, but her risks paid off as the song debuted at No.
1 on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs Chart. Produced by Dan Nigro, the song opens up with a fiddle, a new sound for her; however, its prominence in the track certainly pulls listeners into the country swing, or at the very least pop country.
The lesbian pop icon is not shy of a double entendre, using lines such as “other boys may need a map / But I can close my eyes / And have you wrapped around my fingers” to suggest that she can find what you’re looking for. The second verse follows this indicative mantra “Good luck finding a man who has the means / To rhinestone cowgirl all night long,” which could be a reference to her campy Midwest aesthetic, or something more provocative.
Even after just one listen, it becomes clear that she is addressing an important topic: the feeling many women have
of being undervalued and dissatisfied in relationships. The official release’s convenient timing to Women’s History Month reminds audiences of the importance of recognizing a woman’s agency in the bedroom and those who paved the way for safer feminine expression. Roan’s song delivers another
strong anthem while paying homage to her queer and country roots. Following the success of the single, fans speculated: what’s next? Although there have been no official announcements, “The Giver”’s official lyric video teased a menu with a few more unreleased songs — so who’s to say what’s next for the Midwest Princess?
SYDNEY MULFORD FOR THE FORDHAM RAM Chappell Roan began her career in 2015 after being signed to Atlantic Records.
ALLISON SCHNEIDER/THE FORDHAM RAM
you’re looking for a new creative venture to try solo or with friends, collaging is the perfect place to start.
April 2, 2025
CULTURE
Who’s That Kid? | Ezra Roscoe FCRH ’28
From Idaho to NYC: Ezra Roscoe Embraces Change and Creativity
By VIOLET WALLACE ADVERTISING DIRECTOR
As our interview began, Ezra Roscoe, FCRH ’28, set down his mini figurine of Jack Black from the upcoming Minecraft movie — a perfect introduction to the kind of person he is. “I carry him everywhere — just because it’s funny,” he told me with a grin, his enthusiasm immediately setting the tone for our conversation.
Roscoe is double majoring in film and classics, a combination that reflects both his artistic passion and intellectual curiosity. “I love it,” he said, his eyes lighting up. “The program at Lincoln Center is really strong, and I’ve met so many amazing people. There’s something special about being surrounded by others just as passionate about film as I am.”
Film studies is a popular and growing major at universities across the globe, attracting students with a passion for storytelling, cinematography and media production. Film programs have gained more recognition and resources as the entertainment industry continues to expand with
streaming services, independent films and blockbuster franchises. Many top universities, including New York University, the University of Southern California and the University of California, Los Angeles, offer renowned film programs that provide handson experience, industry networking and deep academic engagement with film history and theory. While competitive, the major opens doors to careers in directing, screenwriting, production, editing and film criticism, making it a dynamic field of study.
Being in New York City, he noted, offers an unparalleled advantage. “There’s just so much happening here. It’s inspiring to be in a place where creativity is everywhere — you don’t get that in a lot of places.”
When asked about the intersection of film and classics, Roscoe became especially animated. He eagerly explained how classic literature forms the foundation of many modern films — stories that have been retold differently for centuries. “People don’t always realize how much of what
we watch today comes from ancient stories,” he said. He pointed to Christopher Nolan’s upcoming film, “The Odyssey,” set for release next summer, as a perfect example of how filmmakers continue to draw from the past to create something new. “The Odyssey” is an ideal example of how filmmakers continue to draw from the past to create something new. “It’s crazy to think about — these stories have lasted thousands of years, and now they’re getting multi-million dollar productions,” he said.
When he’s not in class or at a theater, Roscoe enjoys exploring the different neighborhoods of NYC, taking in the inspiring atmosphere of the city. “Writing is a big part of it for me,” he explained. “I think storytelling is at the heart of both classics and film. It’s about understanding human nature.” As our conversation wound down, I asked Roscoe if he had any specific goals for the future. He leaned back for a moment before replying, “I’d love to write and direct my films one day.” He laughed, but there was a certainty in his
voice, a confidence that suggested he was already thinking about how to make it happen. Roscoe is originally from Idaho, and he admitted that moving to NYC was a big adjustment. “It’s very different,” he said with a laugh. “Everything moves slower back home — especially the people. Here, it’s nonstop. There’s so much culture and energy, and there’s always something to do or see.” Despite this contrast, he embraces the change. “Back home, I’d have to go out of my
way to find an independent theater showing a classic film or a cool art exhibit. Here? I can just step outside, and I’m surrounded by it,” he said. It’s clear that Roscoe is right at home in the Big Apple, ready to carve out his place in the world of film with a figurine of Jack Black, a notebook full of ideas and a deep appreciation for the stories that have shaped human history in hand. If his passion is any indication, it won’t be long before he’s creating cinematic classics of his own.
The Twilight Books and Movies: Which Is Better?
By SAMANTHA DIAZ STAFF WRITER
Whatever slander you may have heard about “Twilight” needs to be left in the 2010s. The book and movie series have become cool again. For a time, the “Twilight” series was mocked, especially when the movie adaptations were coming out. If you were a fan, it had to be a closely guarded secret to keep from being made fun of. But over the last couple of years, “Twilight” has been experiencing a renaissance phase. It’s no longer something to be ashamed of, and people hold it near and dear as an iconic piece of nostalgia.
The series continues to have a huge community online, consisting of fans young and old. To this day, people still argue about why they’re Team Edward, Team Jacob or even Team Alice.
The “Twilight” saga consists of four books: “Twilight,” “New Moon,” “Eclipse” and “Breaking Dawn.” Although there are three other spin-off novels, there are only movie adaptations for the first four books, which brought more popularity and attention to the series.
When I first got into the series, I watched the movies first and didn’t understand what all the hype was about. I didn’t think it was anything special, and just like everyone else, I found it to be pretty silly. But I gave it another chance; there was something about the story that kept drawing me in. As crazy as the events were,
I was curious to see how the books would hold up, which led me to buy the entire series. I was instantly hooked by the first book. It only took me about two days to read, and I instantly jumped into the rest of the series, finishing in less than a month. I find that the books bring way more life to the story than the movies do. Like any book-to-movie adaptation, there are certain things that they leave out plot-wise that could’ve helped the movie a lot.
For one, Bella actually has more of a personality. Yes, she’s still gloomy and laughably clumsy, but she has a lot of positive qualities that the movies overlook. Bella likes to hang out with her friends. She studies, goes shopping and hangs out at the beach with them. In the movies, she’s less than eager to be around them, which is not how she is in the books. She’s smart, loyal, empathetic, sarcastic, funny and extremely independent. The movies tend to focus on her being more shy, anxious and awkward.
Edward is also not as emotionally disconnected. There is a part early on in Bella and Edward’s relationship where he carries her to the nurse’s office after she faints in biology class. This was only something that happened in the book. In the movies, he is always cold and distant to her.
Some moments in the book are so bad, it’s good. For example, in “Breaking Dawn,” Edward insists on Bella not
having their child. When he talks to Jacob in private, he tells him that when all of this is over, he will let Bella have Jacob’s baby if she wants one. That is the most insane thing I have ever read a married man say to someone that he hated. As much as Jacob liked Bella, he also thought Edward was crazy for saying that. As bad as it is, that is one of my favorite moments in the book that never made it to the movie.
Iconic lines like “You named my daughter after the Loch Ness Monster?” and “This is the skin of a killer, Bella” were original quotes from the book and just as hilarious. “Hold on tight, spider monkey,”
and “Bella, where have you been loca?” were unfortunately not originally from the book. Still, the movies remain iconic and even more hilarious for adding those lines in with 100% seriousness.
I think the movies are well-adapted, giving a visual of the story, without changing much of the characters’ appearances or events in the book. However, the characters do feel one-dimensional and boring, which makes the movies feel more lifeless than the books.
Even outside of “Twilight,” books are always bound to be better than the movie. I’ve felt this way with other
adaptations such as “Harry Potter” and “The Shining.” There is so much left out in movie versions that it feels like a completely different story. Another plus for books is that you can imagine it yourself. When you watch a movie adaptation, you watch a director’s interpretation. Books allow you to have your own interpretation, visuals and enjoyment.
I have a shameless love for “Twilight,” whether it’s the books or the movies. I found myself enjoying it a lot more once I read the books. The series, whether it is the movie or book, will always be funny, ridiculous and iconic in its own way.
VIOLET WALLACE/THE FORDHAM RAM
Ezra Roscoe, FCRH ’28, has found areas of study that suit his passions.
CRISTINA STEFANIZZI/THE FORDHAM RAM
The Twilight movies combined grossed over $3 billion worldwide and the books sold more than 160 million copies.
By EDUARDO MATEO STAFF WRITER
When it comes to fast food restaurants, Chick-fil-A has long been a crowd favorite, thanks to its signature crispy chicken, friendly service and of course, the famous sauce variety. But in the ever evolving world of chicken joints, the Chick-fil-A on Fordham Road now has some competition with Burning Beaks, a local gem down on Arthur Avenue. Over time, Burning Beaks has built up a loyal fan base and it’s easy to see why as they bring something different to the table that has people buzzing. As Burning Beaks rises in popularity, it becomes more competitive with other fast food brands like Chick-fil-A, which in turn raises the question: does Burning Beaks have what it takes to rival Chick-fil-A, or does the original fast food giant still reign supreme?
Chick-fil-A has long been known for its consistency. Whether it’s the classic chicken sandwich, chicken nuggets or chicken strips, you can always count on the quality. The breading is crisp, the chicken is tender and juicy and the meal often comes with their well-loved waffle fries. It’s the kind of meal
CULTURE
Burning Beaks vs. Chick-fil-A
that’s always satisfying and comforting — a favorite for those craving something familiar. But for many, it’s not just the chicken that keeps them coming back. The thing that sets Chick-fil-A apart is its ability to offer a variety of dipping sauces. From the tangy Polynesian sauce to the sweet Chick-fil-A sauce, the options are endless, making it a customizable experience for anyone who visits.
In contrast, Burning Beaks offers something a little different. While they also serve chicken sandwiches, strips and nuggets, they stand out by offering a variety of unique flavors. For instance, their lemon pepper and hot honey options appeal to those who enjoy a little more spice and creativity in their meals. The restaurant’s commitment to bold, flavorful options gives it an edge for those looking for something more than the traditional fast-food chicken experience. But while Burning Beaks brings exciting flavors to the table, it doesn’t quite reach Chick-fil-A’s level of consistency and ease.
For me personally, though, Chick-fil-A still edges ahead in terms of overall appeal. While Burning Beaks’ menu certainly caters to those looking
for bold and creative flavors, Chick-fil-A’s familiar, comforting taste is hard to beat. The predictability of the quality and flavor, combined with the perfect chicken to breading ratio, makes Chick-fil-A a go-to for me when I want something reliable.
In the realm of milkshakes, both Chick-fil-A and Burning Beaks make a case for themselves. Chick-fil-A’s milkshakes are well-loved and praised for their creamy, indulgent texture and classic flavors like chocolate, vanilla and strawberry. The shakes are enjoyable, and often regarded as one of the highlights of the Chick-fil-A experience, especially when paired with a salty serving of fries. Burning Beaks, however, has recently added milkshakes to their menu, and they’ve quickly become a hit with customers.
According to the “Ignite Your Cravings” article review on Burning Beaks published by The Fordham Ram, the shakes are rich and creamy, with flavors designed to complement the restaurant’s bold chicken dishes. While the shakes at Burning Beaks are certainly delicious, I still find Chick-fil-A’s to be a little more satisfying. The classic hand-spun texture and indulgent flavors have
earned Chick-fil-A a strong reputation in the milkshake game, and in my opinion, they remain the standard. Ultimately, deciding whether Chick-fil-A or Burning Beaks is the “better” choice comes down to personal preference. Chick-fil-A remains a top contender for those who value consistency, a myriad of sauces and a satisfying, familiar meal every time. Its reputation for quality and service makes it a safe and reliable choice. On the other hand, Burning Beaks offers something new and exciting for those who want to venture beyond the typical fast-food chicken experience.
With bold flavors, a focus on freshness and a unique menu that’s tailored to spice lovers, Burning Beaks essentially provides a compelling alternative to the usual chains. In the end, I believe that Chick-fil-A wins this fight against Burning Beaks and takes the top spot. The combination of great chicken, perfect fries and unbeatable sauces makes it hard to beat. But despite this, Burning Beaks is still worth the visit, especially for anyone looking to try something new. Both restaurants bring something unique to the table, and in the end, it’s all about what kind of experience you’re looking for.
Whispers of Color: A Whimsical Take on Reality
By JULIA BURNHAM CONTRIBUTING WRITER
On this past sunny, warm Saturday, I decided to take the Metro-North and 7 train into Manhattan. Instead of lying outside in a green area like Central Park, however, I wanted to see a brand-new art exhibit at Pleiades Gallery: “Whispers of Color,” created by artist Frederick Ballet. As I walked into the perceivably empty gallery, I was under the impression that I was completely alone. I was slightly startled to see the artist himself lounging behind the large, block-shaped desk. Ballet explained how his glossy, frameless photographs were created on what is called “face mounted acrylics,” which are photographs that are printed and then carefully adhered to plexiglass.
After his explanation, I silently wandered around the gallery, perusing the art and trying to determine which ones caught my eye. One of the pieces stopped me in my tracks — a photograph of a crowded train station, with layer upon layer of blurred color. It reminded me of how I perceived the world as a child: colorful, chaotic and teeming with magic. As I told him how much I loved this particular photograph, Ballet pointed me toward his many pictures of the ocean, which held profound color and no trace of humanity in sight. He then told me that one of his patrons said those photographs
felt like they captured Earth before humans civilized it, and I agreed. Ballet’s photographs add a touch of surrealism to everyday occurrences like these through his artistic vision.
Ballet has always had a fascination with the natural world. Ever since he was a child, he felt called to the ocean and was enamored by its beauty and calm. Although his keen interest in anatomy led him to become an orthopedic hand surgeon by trade, he began seriously pursuing photography upon retirement. While Ballet started his artistic journey using only digital photography, he recently began to make “encaustic paintings,” using his photography, like the ones displayed in this gallery. As stated in his bio, Ballet believes that “the true subject of the photograph is not the physical world, but rather the subconscious mind of the photographer.” This core tenet of his artistic philosophy is demonstrated clearly by his serene yet alive art. As a child, I used to hate when my mom would drag me to museums and galleries, not understanding why she was so happy to stare aimlessly at paintings for hours. If I’m being frank, until this past year, I found museums boring. Although I found art intriguing, I did not understand the appeal of having it all in one space instead of online or in class. This past year, however, I have begun to love analyzing art with the help
of the art history introduction class I took last year (shoutout to Professor Lakey). Art calms me and allows me to explore a world outside my own.
The “Whispers of Color” exhibit is no different. Ballet creates a world that merges Earth’s environment with surrealist art elements inspired by Salvador Dalí and Max Ernst. Unlike complex works, like the paintings of the Gothic period or the pre war German art at Neue Galerie New York, the exhibit superimposed photographs that allow the viewer to choose their adventure using the world surrounding them.
Throughout my whole time there, Ballet was kind and welcoming, helping me understand his art and inviting me to understand the intentions behind each piece. Though I was intimidated walking into the gallery, I slowly was able to get over my initial shyness and happily jot down notes from him. At the end, I got a Hershey’s chocolate from his large jar as well as the gallery’s business card, with a QR code leading to his personal website.
I truly enjoyed this exhibition. On a weekend when I was surrounded by rehearsals for Fordham University Choir’s
upcoming performance at Carnegie Hall, I found solace and peace in these photographs, as well as the brick building in which they were placed. Especially because I went to the gallery alone, I felt like I found a hidden gem in the heart of Hudson Yards.
“Whispers of Color” opened on March 18, with its official opening reception on March 22. The exhibit will be available in the Pleiades Gallery until April 12. I highly recommend it is as a low-key, reflective art experience contrasting New York’s more famous, crowded museums and galleries.
EDUARDO MATEO FOR THE FORDHAM RAM Chick-fil-A’s satisfying fast food experience is hard for new spots to beat.
JULIA BURNHAM FOR THE FORDHAM RAM Pleiades Gallery is currenty displaying the exhibit “Whispers of Color,” created by artist Frederick Ballet.
By ISABELLA DEROSA ASST. CULTURE EDITOR EMERITUS
There’s an old saying that goes, “March comes in like a lion and out like a lamb.” I am not entirely sure where it came from, but I’m dedicating this article to whoever said it first because they managed to sum up my spring break in 11 words. Fordham’s spring break started in the “lion” days of March. This was rather unfortunate for our lovely friends back at Rose Hill, some of whom made the journey across the pond to join us abroad students in our European adventures. As Americans, we are always told about London’s dreary weather. However, I don’t think there was anything that could’ve prepared my friends — or me, for that matter — for the rapid hail storms that took place the day of their arrival.
Nevertheless, a little rain (or pea-sized falling ice rocks) never hurt anybody, so after a pitstop to purchase some umbrellas, I guided my visitors on a three-day tour of London. I’m not sure an American student who’s only been in the U.K. for about three months is the most qualified tour guide, but I gave it my best shot. We started the tour at Fordham London Centre and took a ten-minute walk to the British Museum. In those 10 minutes, we were exposed to just about every form of weather Earth’s atmosphere
By JULIA TYNAN CONTRIBUTING WRITER
I went on a delightful day trip outside the city to the village of Tarrytown. Located in Westchester County, this place features a waterfront area on the eastern side of the Hudson River. This day trip is very easily accessible for students by taking the Metro-North train from Grand Central Terminal.
I arrived at the village after about a 50-minute train ride from Grand Central. The Tarrytown Boat Club was conveniently located right next to the train station. At the marina, I saw various sailboats on the river. Then, I began walking along the Scenic Hudson RiverWalk Park trail. This segment of the fifty-one-mile trail goes along the Hudson River. On a sunny day, you can even bike across the trail.
After walking for a while, I got to Horan’s Landing park. There were benches and a quaint gazebo where you could relax. Towards the end of the Tarrytown segment of the trail, I approached the Sleepy Hollow Lighthouse. Free of charge, you can attend a 45-minute curated tour to learn more about its history. However, you would need to
CULTURE
Let’s Talk About the Weather
is capable of producing.
After that introduction, the following days we explored Westminster and Kensington. It was at these moments that I developed a newfound appreciation for tourism. I’ve walked through Westminster many times on my own, but walking around with my friends let me see it through their eyes. Their excitement at seeing things like Big Ben, the London Eye and Westminster Abbey made me feel like I was seeing them for the first time as well.
I ended up retiring from my tour guide position as we continued our spring break in Europe. Our first destination was Madrid, Spain. Now, if you thought that traveling a bit more south would help us venture into the “lamb” days of March, you are not alone. Our carry-ons (all of which lost an epic battle with the Ryanair baggage sizer box) were filled with flowy skirts and shortsleeved tops. I was planning on swapping my umbrella for sunglasses and discarding my jacket. Luckily, I didn’t wind up leaving behind the winter attire entirely because March’s lion was prowling along the Iberian peninsula, preying on college students dressed for warmer weather.
Like our time in London, we didn’t let the lion-like weather scare us away. Despite my shoes squishing when I stepped and my jeans turning about five shades darker, we walked about
eight miles every day exploring the piazzas, shops and markets. We toured the Royal Palace of Madrid, where we also made it our personal mission to take a selfie in every extravagant mirror we came across. If the royal families of the 18th century had cell phones, they most certainly would have done the same. We visited art galleries and cathedrals and spent all our nights in Spain getting tapas, a brilliant concept that involves ordering multiple appetizer-like dishes and sharing them family style. I 100% recommend.
Our journey continued to Lisbon, Portugal, and as you can probably guess by now, March’s lion hopped right on our flight with us. At this point, some of my friends traded their umbrellas (which had been repeatedly blown inside out by the wind) for bright pink ponchos. I’m sure the Portuguese locals were in absolute awe of this new fashion statement. A clothing item I wish I purchased was some hiking boots. Pro tip: If you have ever wondered what it would be like to compete on the show “Wipeout,” just wear Adidas Sambas on the steep and narrow cobblestone streets of Lisbon in the pouring rain. However, every cautious, slippery step was worth the beauty of the city. Each cobblestone street was lined with colorful buildings decorated with flowerboxes and painted tiles. The many hills and mountains displayed the city in an
impressive array of buildings and colors tucked next to the shoreline, where the water crashed against a rocky beach. We spent our time exploring statues, excavations of ancient Roman ruins and different castles and monasteries. My personal favorite was our visit to Castelo de São Jorge, where I saw peacocks roaming freely despite the threat of the stormy weather. We also stopped at an open space overlooking the entire city. It was here we got some aesthetic photos with our rain attire, and I purchased a hand-painted bird whistle from a street vendor as a souvenir. Not only is it a cool decoration, but it is also an excellent way to annoy my family with the beautiful sound of highpitched bird calls on repeat in our house upon my return. We did manage to get one “lamb” day on our trip. On our very last day in Lisbon, we took
advantage of the sun shining by walking along the shoreline. Our spring break came to a close with one final night in London, where we opted to dine at an American-themed restaurant. My friends from Rose Hill expressed their longing for a good American burger after being outside of the States for so long. I don’t think they fully understood how much I agreed. The restaurant let us know it was authentic American food through the football banners and beer posters on the wall. I also saw a University of Alabama flag, which assured me that I was in the right place.
Nearing the start of April, the sun has been shining pretty consistently in London. Though my Rose Hill friends had to return to the States, I am looking forward to my final weeks in London and all of the sunny lamb-like days ahead.
My Day Trip to Tarrytown
make a reservation for the tour in advance.
After viewing the lighthouse, I encountered the John D. Rockefeller Estate. Known as Kykuit, this 40-room historic site was home to four generations of the Rockefeller family. Now a property for the National Trust of Historic Preservation, the site offers seasonal tours of the estate and its grounds starting in May. Although I couldn’t walk around the grounds, I did view the beautiful estate’s exterior.
As I continued walking, I headed back towards the village center. Here, I explored countless stores on Main Street. I first visited one of my favorite coffee shops in Tarrytown, the Coffee Lab Roasters. This cozy cafe had a vibrant atmosphere and welcoming workers, with a wide selection of coffee drinks and tasty pastries as well. One of my favorite aspects about the shop is that they do creative latte art on hot coffee drinks!
After relaxing, I went to a charming secondhand shop, Trilogy Consignment. The store sells exquisite vintage items in excellent condition. Some of the merchandise includes a wide array of accessories, including jewelry,
purses and shoes. Although I didn’t purchase anything here, I always love to explore a new shop!
After a long day of walking, I got a delicious meal from Lefteris Gyro, an authentic Greek restaurant. This traditional spot had excellent service and a lively ambiance. After dinner, I walked on Broadway and stumbled upon an antique shop called Pretty Funny Vintage. This shop has a vast range of vintage and antique jewelry, furniture and clothes. It is the perfect place to purchase a unique gift!
After a fun day exploring Tarrytown, I returned to the train station and headed back to Fordham. Although I didn’t have time on this day trip, one of my favorite attractions near Tarrytown is the Rockefeller State Park Preserve. Located in Mount Pleasant, the 45-mile scenic trail offers numerous hiking options of various lengths. This state park offers a variety of landscapes, like rivers, lakes and hills. Some activities to do here are hiking, biking and fishing. I could spend an entire day just exploring!
I discovered the village of Tarrytown when I was younger since I am from a nearby town. It is the perfect place to
explore if you want to escape the city. The quaint stores, scenic trails and excellent restaurants offer an amazing experience for any student. If you are looking for an excursion without breaking the bank, this is the place for you! Exploring the village offers an entire day trip, where you only need to pay for a round-trip train ticket to get there and back.
It is important for students to explore outside of the city to get a break from busy city life. As we approach finals season next month, it is vital to connect with nature to promote mindfulness and to reduce stress. Only an affordable train ride away, students can explore Hudson River towns like Peekskill, Cold Spring and Tarrytown.
ISABELLA DEROSA/THE FORDHAM RAM Fordham students studying abroad explored the streets of Lisbon, Portugal.
JULIA TYNAN FOR THE FORDHAM RAM
The towns first residents, Weckquaesgeeks Indians, fished for oysters in the Hudson.
Women’s NCAA Basketball Deserves Your Attention
By DARCY MULLANE CONTRIBUTING WRITER
The first women’s basketball Division I NCAA tournament was in 1982, with Louisiana Tech University taking home the debut trophy. Since then, women’s basketball has made significant strides forward, with the WNBA being founded in 1996 and NCAAW gaining the right to use the term March Madness in 2022.
People have begun to take women’s sports more seriously, with athletes like Caitlin Clark making it known to audiences that female athletes are talented and skilled. When women’s sports first started, they were simply not given the same resources and opportunities as men. That is not to say that they had less potential to be athletic.
After Clark’s monumental journey with the University of Iowa in the Women’s March Madness finals and a record-breaking rookie season with the Indiana Fever in the WNBA, she made significant progress in viewership of women’s basketball. The star-studded class of 2024 made very prominent leaps forward for the game as they saw a 65% increase in viewership, but with the loss of players like Clark, many worried
By KURT SIPPEL STAFF WRITER
The New York Knicks came into the 2024-25 season with a lot of excitement surrounding the squad. The new additions of Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges bolstered the Knicks’ core, consisting of Jalen Brunson, OG Anunoby and Josh Hart.
But there are many ups and downs during an NBA season, and this is something that the Knicks have proven all season. One of these low points has been the loss of Brunson, who went down with an ankle injury against the Los Angeles Lakers on March 6.
The Knicks have been treading water since their captain went down with a record of 7-5 without him, and have been on a two-game win streak, beating the Milwaukee Bucks and the Portland Trail Blazers. They have been able to keep their heads above water because of the performances of their starters Bridges and Anunoby, as well as Hart, who have all taken steps up.
But the Knicks have been struggling on the defensive side of the ball all season. Their defensive rating is 13th in the league, but there has been improvement ever since the return of center Mitchell Robinson.
This has played into the Knicks’ season many struggles
this upward trend would decrease.
Although rounds only up to the Sweet Sixteen have been played of this year’s women’s March Madness tournament, and not the high-stakes finals, the viewership has been down 22% since last year but up 43% since 2023. This downward trend was expected with the loss of Clark and the hype around her, but it is not to say that the trend will continue down or that this class of players is less talented.
It is important to note that there has been a significant increase in viewership since 2023, demonstrating how
the “Caitlin Clark effect” still prevails in women’s college basketball. However, while Clark may have been the main face of last year’s tournament and women’s sports in general, many other players were part of that movement forward.
To serve as an example, Angel Reese from Louisiana State University (LSU) is an incredible player who was a part of the increase in viewership because of her incredible skills and partly due to her supposed rivalry with Clark. The media pitted them against each other, adding a dramatic aspect and making people more interested in the game.
Some of this year’s stars of the NCAA tournament are Paige Bueckers from the University of Connecticut (UConn), JuJu Watkins from the University of Southern California (USC) and Hailey Van Lith from Texas Christian University (TCU). Many of these players have gone viral not just for their extraordinary talent but also for their social media presence. This presence has increased the tournament’s viewership through relatable press because it gives people personalities to root for.
Bueckers is the suspected number-one WNBA draft pick for 2025. She is currently
A State of Affairs: Knicks Check-In
against higher-end opponents. They have had a losing record against teams over .500, going just 12-18 this season. Head Coach Tom Thibodeau’s tight rotations expect a high number of minutes to be played by his starting five.
The Knicks’ starting five has the highest number of minutes played per game out of any starting five in the league, playing a combined 180 minutes per game. Some of their players are sounding off about their struggles with all of these minutes.
Earlier in the month, reports came out that Bridges was having some friction with Thibodeau with all of the minutes being played. Bridges has been known as an NBA iron man, and he hasn’t missed a game since his rookie season.
Bridges, when asked after a shootaround about the minutes, told the Athletic, “I’m on that side because I’m a starter and I’ll play a lot of minutes. Sometimes not fun on the body. But you want that as a coach, but also talk to him a little bit, knowing that we’ve got a good enough team where our bench guys can come in and we don’t need to play 48, 47 [minutes].”
During the long NBA season, these minutes can add up, especially when the playoffs are just around the corner. Fatigue can start to set in, especially when playing teams that aren’t very good and are taking you down to the wire.
The Knicks are playing teams like the Trail Blazers in March all the way down to the last minute and getting big performances
in her fifth year and has gained significant popularity over the past season due to her undeniable talent. She averages 19.2 points per game and hopes to lead UConn to win their 12th national championship. UConn and South Carolina are the favored winners of the tournament, but there can always be upsets. Watkins recently tore her ACL in USC’s last game (which led them to the Sweet Sixteen), but she is one of the faces of the future of women’s basketball. As a freshman, she made it to the Elite Eight and was one of the leading scorers for that Trojans squad.
Van Lith has helped set records for TCU women’s basketball. She helped them to their first Sweet Sixteen and Elite Eight in program history. Van Lith transferred from LSU to TCU for the 2024-2025 school year and has been very impactful in progressing the program. These players are just a few of the insanely talented ones currently changing women’s college basketball; they show that Clark is not the only reason people should watch the tournament. Women’s March Madness is worthy of its growing appreciation because of players’ proven skill and athleticism.
out of Anunoby, Hart and Bridges. But when playing the Los Angeles Clippers in the same month, they were just getting outclassed in the effort department. The starting rotation is producing, but they aren’t getting much of anything from their bench.
Despite all of these issues that have been plaguing the Knicks, things have still managed to be okay. They have the fifth-best record in the league and have the seventh-highest overall rating around the league as well.
With the absence of Brunson, many other players have started to find their groove. One such player is Bridges, who has had some struggles throughout the season with his offensive output. Things changed from his role with the Brooklyn Nets
when he was primarily getting all the touches, to now on the Knicks where he became more of an added piece along with the weapons they already have.
Since the Brunson injury, Bridges has excelled, averaging 22.2 points a game along with 5.2 assists and a true shooting percentage of 63.9%. He’s finally breaking out and showing Knicks fans his true potential.
On Sunday, Brunson was cleared for participation in basketball activities and told CBS News, “Realistically, I’m hoping to play before the playoffs. I think it’s good for me to get some game reps before we go into that type of stretch run. Most importantly, I want to make sure I’m 100% healthy.”
With Brunson hopefully back before the playoffs, the Knicks are hoping to get healthy enough before their run in the postseason. If they are able to maintain the three seed before the season ends, they will face the Bucks, who are the sixth seed and who the Knicks have beaten every time they faced them this season.
The Knicks are looking at going on a very long run this season, hopefully ending in a championship. But with all of the minutes, injuries and struggles they have had this season, it might be a little tougher of a run than they had originally thought.
COURTESY OF USATODAY
University of Connecticut senior Paige Bueckers is projected to be the first pick in the upcoming WNBA draft.
COURTESY OF YAHOOSPORTS
The New York Knicks, although injury-ridden, are still in position to make some noise in the playoffs.
Baseball Scores 55 Runs in Four Games
By NOAH HOFFMAN ASST. SPORTS EDITOR EMERITUS
Fordham Baseball followed up a 4-1 spring break with a perfect 4-0 week, including a weekend series sweep.
The Rams began the week with an extra-inning 6-4 win against the Wagner College Seahawks. After two scoreless innings, a pair of RBI singles from senior Cian Sahler and sophomore Madden Ocko in the third and fourth innings gave Fordham a lead of 2-0. Wagner then cut the lead to 2-1, and it stayed that way until the seventh when a two-run double gave the Seahawks a 3-2 advantage. The Rams responded very quickly, manufacturing a run after freshman Taylor Kirk led off with a walk, advanced to third on Sahler’s single and scored on junior Daniel Bucciero’s sacrifice fly to tie the game.
The two teams traded RBI singles in the eighth to make it 4-4. In the eleventh inning, Fordham scored with two RBI walks to win the game 6-4. It was a bullpen effort from the Rams, as seven pitchers combined to throw 11 innings. Sophomore Keon Smith pitched the final three innings, allowing no runs and striking out five to win his second game of the year.
A weekend series down south at the University of Richmond Spiders followed for Fordham. In game one, the Rams rallied from down
8-4 to win 13-9. A firstinning three-run shot off the bat of freshman Anthony Grabau, his first home run of his collegiate career, put Fordham up early. Richmond countered with solo shots in the bottom of the first and third innings and tied the game at three in the fourth, later taking a 6-3 lead after three runs in the fifth inning. Kirk made it a 6-4 ballgame with a solo home run in the seventh before Richmond re-extended the lead in the bottom of the frame to 8-4.
With the Rams now down four, the offense exploded for nine runs in the ninth inning.
Freshman Chase Hanawalt began the rally with a walk and scored a batter later on junior Tommy McAndrews’ two-run homer to make it an
Athletes of the Week
Chase Hanawalt Freshman Baseball
Michaela Gier
Sophomore Track & Field
Freshman Chase Hanawalt played a huge role in a remarkable Rams performance, ending in a ninth-inning comeback to beat the University of Richmond on Friday. He was the last to score for the Rams with a three-run home run, his first of the season, in the final inning to bring the final score to 13-9 in favor of Fordham. Overall, Hanawalt was 3-for-4 with a double, home run, three runs batted in alongisde two runs scored.
In the Rider 5-Way Invitational over the past weekend, sophomore Michaela Gier beat her own school record in the women’s pole vault competition. She broke her record set last year of 11’ 3.75” with her new height of 11’ 5.75”. She got fourth place in the competition, one of the highlights of Fordham Track & Field’s efforts in New Jersey.
8-6 ballgame. Two singles and a fielder’s choice followed to load the bases with no outs for Bucciero who singled home a runner. Fordham took a 9-8 lead with graduate student Andrew Kanellis’ two-run single, who later scored on a wild pitch. The big inning was capped by the man who started it, Hanawalt, as he blasted a three-run home run to center, his first home run of his collegiate career. The Spiders gained one run back in the bottom of the ninth, but the Rams held on for the 13-9 comeback victory.
The Rams’ bats carried the momentum into the second game of the series, defeating Richmond 15-11. The tandem of Bucciero and McAndrews opened the game with an RBI double and two-run single for an early 3-0 advantage. By
the end of the fourth inning, the Rams had extended the lead to 11-1 after eight straight runs, bookended by a Kanellis two-run shot in the third and sophomore Matt Dieguez’s three-run homer in the fourth inning. Richmond responded with three runs in the bottom of the fourth, but Fordham answered fast. Freshman outfielder Tommy Markey clocked his first career home run to make it 12-4. The Spiders added four more in the fifth, but the Rams once again responded promptly with three runs in the sixth inning, highlighted by a second Kanellis homer and a two-run double off the bat of graduate student Jack Brennan for a 15-8 lead. Richmond came within four in the eighth inning, but
senior Gannon Brady nailed down the win in the ninth. The third and closing game of the series featured even more offensive fireworks, with Fordham once again outslugging the Spiders 2118. Similarly to the first two, the game began with the Rams putting up a three-spot in the first inning, including back-to-back solo home runs from Sahler and Bucciero. In the second inning, Bucciero continued his hot hitting with an RBI double, before Grabau blasted a three-run home run to make it 7-0. By the end of the fourth inning, Fordham extended the lead to 13-0 thanks to two more singles and a three-run home run from Bucciero, his second of the day.
A seven-run fifth inning by Richmond cut the Rams’ lead to 13-7, but by the ninth inning, the score sat at 2110, thanks in part to three more home runs from Sahler, Dieguez and Ocko. Richmond made it interesting, scoring eight runs in the bottom of the ninth, but Fordham prevailed to hang on to the 21-18 win.
In the Richmond series, the Rams scored 49 total runs, with 55 scored over the entire week. Their four wins in a row brings Fordham back to an even .500 at 1414 while improving to 7-2 in conference play. Next up, the Rams will take on the Davidson Wildcats in another Atlantic 10 series, this time at home in the Bronx.
Varsity Calendar
Men’s Golf
Men’s Tennis
Women’s Tennis
The Fordham bats came alive this week, with the team winning all four games. COURTESY OF FORDHAM ATHLETICS
Boxing Legend George Foreman Dies at 76
By IAN NELSON ASST. SPORTS EDITOR
On March 21, boxing icon and grill spokesman George Foreman died of heart failure. He was 76.
There are not many success stories that can rival George Foreman’s. A sports legend, Foreman was born in Marshall, Texas, in 1949. He and his six siblings were raised by his mother, Nancy Foreman and his stepfather, J.D. Foreman. Foreman’s childhood was marked by poverty, violence and a difficult upbringing in Houston’s Fifth Ward, called the “Bloody Fifth” at the time.
Foreman admitted to having a troubled childhood and engaging in activities like mugging and shoplifting, but he was able to turn his life around when he began to pursue boxing. Before starting his boxing career, Foreman spent time in the Job Corps, a free residential career training and education program for low-income young adults. At 16, he met Nick Broadus, the instructor who taught him how to box. Foreman fought his first amateur fight in 1967, winning with a knockout in the first round. He had a body built for boxing; in his prime, Foreman stood at 6 feet 3 1/2
inches tall with a reach of 78.5 inches and weighed around 220-225 pounds.
He was a titan in the ring, and took the boxing world by storm; three years after he started, a 19-year-old Foreman won an Olympic gold medal in boxing. In his bouts, he displayed a powerful, heavy and clubbing style of punching, with his left hook and right cross known to be particularly devastating. His performance in the Olympics earned him the epithet “Big George.”
Foreman’s career was illustrious, and he was involved in some of the most legendary fights in boxing history. In 1973, he stunned a then-undefeated Joe Frazier with a second-round knockout to win the world heavyweight title as Howard Cosell cried, “Down Goes Frazier!” Foreman put the champ to the canvas six times in less than six minutes. In 1974, he fought Muhammed Ali in the “Rumble in the Jungle.” Finally, and possibly most impressive of all, in 1994, Foreman shocked
the world when he knocked out heavyweight champion Michael Moorer in the 10th round to become the oldest heavyweight title holder at the age of 45. His record still stands today.
Foreman held the title for a little less than two years before retiring at the age of 47. In all, Foreman’s career record stands at 76-5. He knocked out his opponent in 68 of his 76 victories for an incredible 89.5% K.O. rate.
Outside of the ring, Foreman became a household name as
the namesake of the George Foreman Grill. He once said he made “much more” than $200 million from the grills, surpassing his boxing career earnings. For reference, his biggest boxing payout is estimated to be roughly $5 million for the “Rumble in the Jungle.” In 1999, he sold his stake in the brand for $137.5 million.
Foreman was also a bornagain Christian. In 1977, after a loss to Jimmy Young and a near-death experience in the locker room, Foreman experienced what he described as an encounter with God. He left boxing behind and became an ordained Christian minister. Foreman once said, “Sports are sports. It’s all about how we carry ourselves out of the ring.” He lived by those words and devoted his life to faith, preaching in Houston and working with troubled youths. George Foreman’s journey from poverty to riches and obscurity to fame is what makes his life such an interesting topic for discussion. His legacy as both a two-time heavyweight champion and iconic pitchman solidified his place as a recognizable figure in both sports and business. He is survived by his wife of 40 years, Mary Joan Martelly and his 12 children. He will be remembered.
Does the Opening Day Starter Really Matter?
By GRACE MCCARRON SPORTS EDITOR
As the calendar turns to March every year, anticipation grows for Major League Baseball’s Opening Day. Part of the build-up to the first games of the new season are the announcements of who will be taking the mound for each team on Opening Day. This often sparks discourse amongst the baseball community, raising questions of who the right man is to start the season off on the right foot.
In reality, the Opening Day starter is a total formality. Yes, it’s an honor for any pitcher to get to open the season for their squad. It’s a turning of the page and a completely fresh start for every single team. Whatever happened the previous season, whether it ended in a World Series victory or with 100-plus losses, everyone starts at the same place on Opening Day. But often, the Opening Day starter is simply based on who is available and healthy, and there is little need for any overreaction from fans about these announcements.
Let’s start with one of our local teams. On March 14, the New York Mets announced that Clay Holmes would start their season opener at the Houston Astros. This was met with mixed reactions. The Mets signed Holmes to a three-year, $38 million
contract this past offseason.
The catch: Holmes has not been a starting pitcher since his rookie season with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2018. He transitioned to a bullpen role in 2019, and continued in this role after joining the New York Yankees in 2021, eventually becoming their closer. When the Mets inked his contract, they also announced that they signed him to be a starter, and Holmes is now converted to a role in the starting rotation in Queens. During spring training, Holmes was very impressive, ending his spring with a 0.93 earned run average, raising hopes that Holmes would have a
successful transition to being a big-league starter once again.
It’s understandable why fans would be unsure about Holmes starting the first game of the Mets’ 2025 season. He’s new to the role, and Yankee fans recall the anxiety they experienced when Holmes came in in the ninth inning, as he was not always the shutdown closer they wanted. However, when you look at the rest of the Mets’ options in the starting rotation, it becomes easier to grasp why this decision was made. Perhaps, if he wasn’t on the Injured List with a right oblique issue, Sean Manaea would have
been chosen. He had one of his best career seasons last year for New York and was a crucial part of their rotation, posting a 3.47 ERA in 32 games. Perhaps if Kodai Senga had not dealt with shoulder and calf injuries that forced him to make only one start in 2024 after a stellar 2023 season, he would have gotten the ball. The reality of the Mets is that their rotation is dealing with injuries and has several new faces, so there was no layup answer for who got the ball in the opener. Holmes wound up tossing 4.2 innings and giving up three runs on Opening Day, not a fantastic performance
by any means but not anything for the Mets to immediately panic over.
On the other side of town, the Yankees had Carlos Rodón on the mound for their opener at home against the Milwaukee Brewers. The Yankees normally would have had Gerrit Cole out on the mound on Day 1, who has started four Opening Days in pinstripes, but he will miss the entire 2025 season after getting Tommy John surgery on his pitching elbow. Rodón has had an up-and-down Yankees tenure, struggling mightily with a 6.85 ERA in 2023 before bouncing back with a 3.96 ERA last year. Cole certainly would’ve been more of a sure thing, but the Opening Day starter is all about picking the best option of what you have. In a sense, the Yankees rewarded Rodón’s solid 2024 campaign by giving him the ball for the 2025 opener.
This is all to say that no one should be reading too much into Opening Day starter statistics. The 162-game season is long, and there is plenty of time for things to change before the push for October. While impressive performances around the league, especially MacKenzie Gore’s six scoreless innings with 13 strikeouts, feel like the best way to start off on the right foot, there is so much more to come. And isn’t that the real gift of Opening Day?
CRISTINA STEFANIZZI/THE FORDHAM RAM
On March 21, legendary boxer and multiple-time heavyweight champion George Foreman died at 76.
CRISTINA STEFANIZZI/THEFORDHAM RAM
Former New York Yankees reliever Clay Holmes opened the season for the New York Mets on March 27.
Softball Puts on an Offensive Clinic, Winning Five
By EMILY PADEGIMAS CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Fordham Softball scored a whopping 40 runs over 22 innings this past week, earning four wins. Thirty-six of the team’s runs came over 15 innings of Atlantic 10 play on Saturday and Sunday.
The Rams started their games with a midweek, nonconference victory against the St. John’s University Red Storm in Queens, where senior Sydney Wells put the offense on her back for Fordham. After junior Neleh Nogay reached on a walk in the first, Wells homered to center field, giving the Rams an early 2-0 lead. In the third, Nogay reached again — this time on an error — so Wells had another chance to knock her in. This time, she sent a home run over the right field wall to extend Fordham’s lead to 4-0.
St. John’s scored its lone run in the bottom of the sixth on a single and double. The Red Storm outhit the Rams 7-4, but Wells’ offense was enough to coast to a win. She was perfect at the plate, going 3-for-3 with two home runs, a double, a walk and all four RBIs. Junior Eva Koratsis added the only other hit for Fordham.
For the Rams, Sophomore pitcher Olivia Simcoe was excellent in a complete game effort. She allowed one run, seven hits, two walks and three strikeouts to earn her second victory of the season.
The Rams established a five-game winning streak this past weekend at home after sweeping the St. Bonaventure University Bonnies. All three games resulted in five-inning, mercy-rule victories.
In the first game of a
doubleheader on Saturday, Fordham put up 15 against the Bonnies. The Rams started their journey to a mercy rule win with a four-run first.
Much like against St. John’s, Fordham’s one and two hitters sparked the offense. Nogay got the Rams on base with a single to start the inning. She stole second, allowing her to score on a double by Wells for a 1-0 lead.
The next four batters for the Rams reached base. Koratsis got aboard on a hit-bypitch, then scored on a double by cleanup hitter junior Nicki Sudall. Sophomore Erin Hoppe added an RBI triple and junior Kate McGuire added an RBI single to bring Fordham’s firstinning score to 4-0.
The Rams tacked on two runs in the third on a solo home run by Sudall — her fifth on the season — and an RBI double by freshman Sophie Nesturrick. With two outs, McGuire came through again in the fourth to start a big nine-run inning. She singled with the bases loaded to bring in Nogay and sophomore Annie Sullivan (pinch running for Koratsis). A single by senior Mallory McClellan brought in the third run of the inning for Fordham. Poor defense by the Bonnies extended the inning and allowed two runs to score before the Rams turned over their lineup. In her second plate appearance of the inning, Nogay notched an RBI single up the middle before Wells cleared the bases with a three-run home run to cap off Fordham’s scoring.
Junior Holly Beeman earned the win — her first of two this weekend — in a nearly perfect effort. She gave up just two hits with eight strikeouts over five innings.
Fordham carried its offensive hot streak into game two
on Saturday, outscoring St. Bonaventure 12-3. This time, the Bonnies jumped out in front in the first, scoring three runs on a pair of singles, a groundout and a two-run home run. The Rams answered with one run in the bottom of the inning. Nogay singled up the middle and eventually scored on a line out by Koratsis.
McClellan started the offense for Fordham in the second. She led off the inning with a double to right field. A bunt single and stolen base by sophomore Mikayla Swan put runners on second and third with no outs. Back-to-back singles by Nogay and Wells scored a run a piece to tie the game 3-3. Sudall came through with a two-run double to put Fordham up 5-3.
A seven-run third secured the Rams’ second mercy-rule win. Loading the bases on a walk and two singles, the team pushed its first run of the inning across on a single to right field by Nogay. Wells knocked in a second run on a fielder’s choice before Koratsis hit a grand slam to clear the bases and put Fordham up 11-3. McGuire added one more on a solo home run with two outs in the third.
Senior Emilee Watkins was the winning pitcher — earning her fifth on the season. After allowing three runs on three hits in the first, the pitcher was perfect for the rest of the game. Watkins had one strikeout and threw just 33 pitches over five complete innings.
The Rams completed the sweep with a 9-1 win over the Bonnies on Sunday afternoon.
A little more than half of the team’s scoring occurred in the first. Nogay, Wells and Koratsis reached on a hit-bypitch and two walks, respectively, to load the bases with no outs. A wild pitch scored Nogay
before a third walk by Sudall reloaded the bases. The middle of the lineup came through for Fordham, with Hoppe, McGuire and McClellan each picking up an RBI. Number nine hitter Swan drew the fifth walk of the inning to bring Hoppe home, putting the Rams ahead 5-0.
McClellan picked up her second RBI of the game in the second on a single to center field, scoring Hoppe — who reached on a fielder’s choice — to increase Fordham’s lead to 6-0.
St. Bonaventure responded with its lone run in the top of the third, a solo home run off of Beeman. The Rams finished their scoring in the bottom half of the inning. A walk by Wells started a two-out rally. Koratsis followed with a single to the right side before Sudall doubled to score both runners. Hoppe capped off the rally with an RBI single up the middle to extend Fordham’s lead to 9-1.
Over five innings, Beeman allowed one run and seven hits with three walks and five strikeouts. She improved her record to 8-3. After this past weekend, Beeman has the lowest earned run average (ERA) for
qualifying pitchers in the A-10, sitting at 2.04.
The Rams’ offense saw production from top to bottom against the Bonnies. The leadoff hitter Nogay went 5-for-8 with two walks, three RBIs and seven runs scored. She added five stolen bases against the Bonnies, making her total 28 on the season. Going into the weekend, Nogay was ranked 10th in the nation in stolen bases. Sudall — in the cleanup spot — had the most hits, going 6-for-7, with two walks, six RBIs and four runs scored. McGuire batted sixth, adding five hits, one walk and five RBIs.
Behind its strong offensive and pitching performances, Fordham improved its overall record to 16-16 (the first time since Feb. 7 they have not had a losing record) and 7-2 in conference play. As they continue their homestand, the Rams will look to extend their winning streak against the Stony Brook University Seawolves on April 2 before facing A-10 opponent George Mason University for a weekend series starting April 5.
Swinging for Spring Success: Rams Finish Sixth at Rum Pointe
By GIANNA TETRO STAFF WRITER
The Fordham men’s golf team officially swung into their spring season this weekend at the Battle at Rum Pointe, held at the Rum Pointe Golf Course in Berlin, Maryland. The Rams finished strong in sixth place, with a team score of 15 over par. While they were a mere six strokes behind La Salle University in fifth place, their performance set a solid foundation for the start of the spring season. The tournament marked a great opportunity for Fordham’s athletes to shake off the winter cold and prove that they’re ready for what’s to come.
Fordham’s senior standout, Jake Mrva, led the way for the Rams. After an impressive three-under 69 on Saturday, Mrva finished the tournament with an even-par total of 144, finishing in 11th place. His steady play and consistency on the course were essential to Fordham’s overall performance. This strong finish demonstrates his impressive leadership and sets the tone for what could be a standout
spring season for Mrva. It wasn’t just Mrva who stepped up throughout the weekend. Freshman Patrick Ginnity had a consistent tournament, finishing at four over par with rounds of 77 and 71, tying for 29th place. Close
behind him was sophomore AJ DePaolo, who also finished at four over par (74-74), earning a tie for 29th place with Ginnity. Sophomore Felix Luetke Meyring finished just a stroke behind the pair, ending at five over par
(77-72) for a tie at 36th place. Freshman Liam Howard demonstrated his potential, posting a 76 on Friday and a 74 on Saturday, where he tied for 44th at six over par. Also demonstrating his potential, freshman Tucker Silva showed
improvement throughout the event, improving his score by three strokes with a 75 on Saturday, finishing at nine over par and tying for 57th. While the underclassmen players gained valuable experience, the Rams were able to showcase their depth and resilience throughout their entire roster.
Looking ahead, men’s golf is gearing up for the next challenge at the Abarta CocaCola Collegiate Invitational, hosted by Lafayette College at Northampton Country Club in Easton, Pennsylvania, next weekend. This event holds significance for Mrva, who ranked first for players with a -5 and 9.62 points awarded to him, also claiming his second individual title of the academic year at last year’s tournament. They are excited to return to the course where they have had previous success and will be looking to build on the momentum from their finish at Rum Pointe. The Rams will aim to sharpen their skills and continue to push for individual and team excellence for what we hope will be an exciting
spring season.
Men’s Golf open their spring season at the Battle at Rum Pointe and prepare for the Abarta Coca-Cola Collegiate Invitational.
COURTESY OF FORDHAM ATHLETICS
After a rough start to the season, Fordham Softball excels with five straight wins.
CRISTINA STEFANIZZI/THE FORDHAM RAM
The World Is Wide Enough for Musicals and Sports
By KATHRYN COX CONTRIBUTING WRITER
The unexpected crossover between sports and theater has taken over TikTok, with sports fans and “Hamilton” enthusiasts coming together to create and consume a unique new genre of content. On TikTok, creators have been pairing NBA players, teams and highlights with the musical numbers from the hit Broadway musical, blending the intensity and drama of basketball with the powerful lyrics of “Hamilton.” These edits have found a way to blend two worlds that do not typically interact. The appeal lies in the ability of these edits to capture the drama and emotion of both worlds, creating a harmonious viewing experience that resonates with fans of either or both.
Whether it’s a player’s gamewinning shot accompanied by “My Shot” or an older-younger player duo synced to “History Has Its Eyes on You,” the juxtaposition creates a mesmerizing and entertaining result. As a sports and theater fan, the NBA and “Hamilton” edits have taken over my For You Page; I have saved or reposted more than 30 different edits. It is intriguing to see how editors connect two vastly different worlds.
My favorite, with around 325,000 views, features Kevin Durant and Shai GilgeousAlexander with the song “History Has Its Eyes on You.” In Act I of “Hamilton,” George Washington sings a reflective piece to Alexander Hamilton.
In the context of the musical, Washington is warning Hamilton about the weight of his actions and decisions, reminding him that people will judge them both. The song speaks to one’s legacy and the individual accomplishments and mistakes that future generations will examine. Durant is a player who has cemented his place in NBA history. Still, he has faced criticism, especially surrounding his decision to join the Golden State Warriors in 2016, leaving behind the Oklahoma City Thunder, the team that had drafted him nine years prior. The song speaks to the dual nature of greatness Durant has faced: the personal responsibility of being a professional athlete and knowing that history will remember you for all your decisions. On the other hand, Gilgeous-Alexander, a current star for the Thunder, is still in the early stages of his career,
but has been a player with a ton of potential and is currently in the running for the NBA’s Most Valuable Player. The edit places Durant in Washington’s shoes and Gilgeous-Alexander in Hamilton’s shoes.
The editor claims that Gilgeous-Alexander should not make the same “mistakes” that Durant did when choosing a more significant contract in Golden State over a commitment to the team he had been with for years. While Durant is an established star, GilgeousAlexander is a player with a long future ahead of him. The song’s theme, that history is always watching, speaks to their impact on the game and how it will be analyzed for years to come.
Another popular edit song is “Non-Stop,” sung by Aaron Burr as the final song in Act I of “Hamilton.” Different sections of the song have been used for various players. With over
260,000 likes, one edit highlights the shooting ability of Lebron James, Kyrie Irving and Kevin Love, who played together with the Cleveland Cavaliers for three seasons from 2014-2017. A second focuses on the song’s start and features the greatness of Stephen Curry’s threepointers.
The edits are about telling a story of each player as a character that viewers identify with. The edit might focus on specific qualities of the player, such as their moments of triumph and failure or their work ethic, and pair that with a “Hamilton” song that matches those themes.
As the popularity of these edits continues to grow, it reflects a broader cultural shift that TikTok has welcomed, one where audiences enjoy content that blends genres and, ultimately, sparks joy and excitement. The NBA x “Hamilton” crossover represents a creative way for sports fans to
engage with theater and vice versa, broadening their perspectives. It also speaks to how TikTok has transformed fan engagement, allowing younger users to participate in storytelling beyond typical sports or theater commentary. Fans are actively shaping the narratives by connecting the themes of “Hamilton” and the careers of NBA players.
One of the reasons these edits work so well is the dramatic nature of both basketball and theater. Basketball, like theater, thrives on conflict, struggles and accomplishments. Every game is a performance, like every show is a performance, with players stepping on the court like actors stepping on stage. Musicals like “Hamilton” heighten reallife stories through lyrics and emotions. When the fast-paced drama of the NBA is combined with “Hamilton”’s storytelling, they create a unique product that resonates with broader audiences.
As the trend continues to gain traction, it wouldn’t be surprising to see even more crossovers between Broadway and sports. Could we see an edit of Tom Brady to “My Shot,” capturing Brady’s rise from an overlooked sixth-round pick to arguably the greatest quarterback of all time? Or an edit of Aaron Judge and Juan Soto to “For Good” from “Wicked?” The possibilities are endless. Whether you’re a basketball fan, a theater lover or somewhat of both, there is something enchanting about watching these two worlds collide.
Overtime: How Can You Not Be Romantic About Basketball?
By IAN NELSON ASST. SPORTS EDITOR
There’s something about an NCAA tournament underdog story that makes you think that anything is possible. The sheer unpredictability mixed with the excitement of watching — pardon my phrasing — a bunch of nobodies knock off a top-ranked, starstudded squad of future NBA players will leave any fan reeling, but wanting more.
In the past few years we, as viewers, have seen some of the most spectacularly unexpected upsets in NCAA tournament history. In 2023, number one seed Purdue University was stunned by the 16 seed, Fairleigh Dickinson University (FDU) in a matchup where they were 23.5 point favorites. That Purdue team included two-time national player of the year Zach Edey as well as Braden Smith, who would be the Big Ten Conference’s player of the year in 2025. Nobody expected FDU to put up a fight against the number one team in the country, but they shattered all expectations, becoming the second 16 seed to ever defeat a one seed. Basketball is unpredictable, by nature. On any given day a fivefoot-nine junior college transfer, and future used-car salesman, can hit seven threes against your
favorite team and scar you for life. But, that’s just what makes basketball so fun to watch, especially at the collegiate level.
Even though that upset was a great one, that year’s tournament itself was not full of unexpected defeats. For that, we need to go back five years to 2018.
March Madness 2018 was a tournament rife with upsets. On average, the NCAA tournament will feature roughly eight upsets; during this tournament, there were eight instances of a lowerseeded team winning in the first round alone. Some of the best upsets of the year included when the 16-seed University of Maryland, Baltimore County, beat the number one-seed University of Virginia to become the first
16-seed to ever beat a one-seed. In that same tournament, one-seed Xavier University and two-seed University of North Carolina both lost in the second round. Yet, with all these upsets, there was one that left fans in awe.
Alongside chaplain and basketball icon Sister Jean, the 11seed Loyola University Chicago Ramblers (LUC) made an improbable Final Four run, defeating higher-seeded teams in every matchup. In the first round, they defeated six-seed Miami University 64-62. In the Round of 32, they ousted the three-seed University of Tennessee 63-62. In the Sweet Sixteen, they bested the seven-seed University of Nevada 69-68. Through three games, their total margin of victory was
a mere four points. In the Elite Eight, they quadrupled that margin of victory as they routed the number nine-seed Kansas State University 78-62. However, their Cinderella story came to an end in the Final Four as they lost to the University of Michigan 69-57. They may have been eliminated, but not before putting on one of the best shows in NCAA tournament history.
The other day I asked myself why the 2025 NCAA tournament felt bland compared to previous years, and then it dawned on me: there has not been a single underdog story worth telling this year. As I am writing this, the Elite Eight portion of the tournament has yet to be played, but looking at who remains it is clear that this
has been a year for the favorites. With eight teams left, the lowestseeded team still alive is Texas Tech University, a three-seed. How boring.
Nobody cries for the favored team when they trample over a team they should beat anyway, but watching a small school overcome the odds will make any person with a beating heart emotional. Why?
It’s simple, people are drawn to underdog stories. They are inspiring, exciting and they represent a chance for the seemingly impossible to occur. You watch a squad of never-weres showcase their resilience and determination and it makes you feel all warm and fuzzy.
In all, this year’s tournament has been short of the number of remarkable moments you expect to see when March Madness rolls around. In 2023 and 2018 (among other years) there have been results, scores and moments that were so incredible that I will remember them for the rest of my life. However, aside from the unbelievable three-point shooting performance of the University of Alabama in their Sweet Sixteen game against Brigham Young University there has, so far, been nothing from this tournament that I will look back on and say to myself: wow, how the hell did they do that?
NBA x “Hamilton” edits are surprisingly appealing to musical fans, sports audiences and a combination of the two.
CRISTINA STEFANIZZI/THE FORDHAM RAM
This year’s March Madness tournament seems to be missing excitement without any underdog stories.
CRISTINA STEFANIZZI/THE FORDHAM RAM