Volume 97 issue 8

The Fordham Ram Serving The Fordham dh University Community Since 1918 Volume 97, Issue 8

FordhamRam.com

March 25, 2015

Anti-Torture Group Vies for Support

Pecora Fired After Five Tough Years

By LAURA SANICOLA

By MAX PRINZ

NEWS EDITOR

Fordham Faculty Against Torture has a mission. It has a Facebook page. It has a Tumblr blog.

It has “ask me about torture” buttons.

But does it have support from the Fordham community?

Yes and no. On one hand, there was a steady stream of students flowing into and out of sessions of its first “teach-in,” a half lecture, half workshop on torture, human rights and restorative justice, held in the Campbell Multipurpose room on Tuesday.

The students in attendance participated in discussion on the ethics of torture in modern society and what can be done to enlighten the Fordham community about the mission of the organization and call support to its cause.

Dr. William Meyers, professor of history, addressed the crowd before delivering a presentation comparing and noting similarities between medieval tactics. Meyers SEE FFAT, PAGE 6

STAFF WRITER

SAMUEL JOSEPH/THE FORDHAM RAM

Tom Pecora, who has coached the men’s basketball team for five seasons, was let go last week after a 10-21 season.

Honors Program Names Keller as New Director

By LAURA SANICOLA NEWS EDITOR

For the second time in three years, the Fordham College Rose Hill Honors Program will welcome a new director. Dr. Eve Keller, pro-

fessor of English at Fordham College, has been named the new Director of the Honors Program of Fordham College Rose Hill.

She is slated to begin her role in the fall of 2015.

“I'm pleased, I'm honored;

FUEMS Earns National Recognition

By ROBERT PALAZZOLO STAFF WRITER

FUEMS may not be students favorite acronym, but outside the gates, the orgaization is now nationally recognized.

Fordham’s own EMS squad, known for helping injured, sick or severely intoxicated students, has recently won two national awards recognizing excellence in campus EMS. The awards place FUEMS in the highest echelon of emergency care in American universities.

One of these awards was the HEARTSafe Campus designation, an award given by the National Collegiate Emergency Medical Services Foundation (NCEMSF) in conjunction with the American Heart Association, among other groups. The designation recognizes excellence in cardiac arrest care from campus EMS, and other heart-related health issues.

“So this is saying that there’s a statistically higher chance of survival on our campus than somewhere else” when it comes to cardiac arrest issues, said FUEMS Director Chris Valenza, FCRH ’16.

According to the NCEMSF website, a “HEARTSafe campus” must have “Rapid Response by CPR and AED Trained First Responders, Rapid Public Access to Defibrillation, Early Access to Advanced Care, Public CPR and AED Training for the Community, Engagement in Preventative Car-

CASEY CHUN/ THE FORDHAM RAM

FUEMS was recently recognized by a national college EMS foundation.

diovascular Healthcare Activities.”

Valenza said that some of these qualifications can be deceptively difficult to achieve, such as a requirement that more than five percent of the student body be trained in CPR. However, he said they have managed to exceed that goal, training 10 percent of Fordham students in CPR. Mickaela O’Neill, FCRH ’15, was instrumental in achieving that

percent. She is the head training officer of FUEMS, and she said that she believes the HEARTSafe designation will spur further improvements to heart health at Fordham.

“It promotes awareness of quick access to CPR and early defibrillation, which can make such a difference, if we were ever to have a cardiac emergency on campus,” O’Neill said.

SEE FUEMS, PAGE 3

frankly, I'm humbled,” said Keller.

“I'm looking forward to adventures ahead.”

Keller, who joined the Fordham faculty in 1989, is heavily involved both at Fordham and in the greater academic community.

She is a past president and current executive committee member of the Society for Literature, Science, and the Arts (SLSA), a national academic organization that fosters discussion about the cultural and social interconnections between the sciences and humanities. She is the author of Generating Bodies and Gendered Selves: The Rhetoric of Reproduction in Early Modern England and the co-author of Two Rings: A Story of Love and War, a memoir of a Holocaust survivor.

Keller is a member of the Faculty Senate and its Executive Committee, as well as the Core Curriculum Revision Committee, which was responsible for the formation of the current undergraduate core curriculum. She serves as the associate chair of both the English undergraduate and graduate programs, and is the liaison to the Folger Shakespeare Library Consortium.

Keller has been a professor in the Honors Program for over 20 years, where she specializes in Medieval Literature. She was involved in the formation and development of the unique curriculum as well as the Ignatian Education seminars, which were designed to give honors students the opportunity to reflect on their experiences at Fordham by interacting with key texts from the Jesuit tradition of liberal arts education. She also has served as an advisor to seniors writing their theses. Currently, her research is centered on the cultural meanings of blood research in the seventeenth century.

Keller will be replacing Dr. Matthew McGowan, professor of clasSEE HONORS, PAGE 5

Men’s basketball coach Tom Pecora was relieved of his duties last Wednesday morning after five seasons as head coach of the Rams.

Under his leadership, the team was a dismal 44-106.

In a statement, the school said the decision was based on the fact that “the University’s men’s basketball program has regrettably not achieved the desired results or made the sustained progress hoped for under Mr. Pecora’s leadership, as measured by the won/loss record over five years, which was 44–106 (29.3 percent), and the recruited student athlete retention rate over the past four years, which was 50 percent.”

“The University extends its appreciation and gratitude to coach Pecora for all that he has done over the course of his tenure to position our men’s basketball program for greater success in the future,” the statement added. “We wish him and his family well in all future endeavors.”

Pecora arrived at Rose Hill five years ago after spending 16 years at Hofstra, serving as head coach for the last nine. He had four 20-win seasons and compiled a 155-126 record as the leader of the Pride.

He was hired by former athletic director Frank McLaughlin who also gave him a contract extension following the 2011-12 season. According to the statement, current athletic director David Roach met with Pecora last week to inform him of the University's decision. Roach did not respond to inquires for this article.

The success Pecora enjoyed at Hofstra failed to follow him to the Bronx. This year's team lost its first nine Atlantic 10 Conference games.

Last December, Roach was asked about Pecora's job security by the New York Post.

“I’ll evaluate everything at the end of the year and see where we’re at,” Roach says.

“After the last couple of years, we’re looking for significant progress in the program," Roach also SEE PECORA, PAGE 2

in this issue

Opinion

Page 9

Yik Yak Cyberbully Leads to Concern

Culture

Page 13

Spring Fashion Offers Understated and Bold Trends

Sports

Page 24 Track and Field Breaks Three Records

NEWS

Page 2

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PUBLIC SAFETY BRIEFS

March 25, 2015

Pecora Dismissed

Journal From Abroad

FROM PECORA, PAGE 1

March 12 2452 Arthur Ave. 5:30 p.m.

FDNY responded to a fire alarm at on off-campus apartment complex. The building was evacuated, and FDNY investigated. They discovered burning food on the stove. The system was reset without incident. There were no injuries or damage.

March 13 McGinley Center 12:40 p.m.

Public Safety was notified that a student was in possession of fraudulent drivers licenses. They responded and confiscated the IDs. Only three of the fake IDs belonged to Fordham students.

Public Safety is investigating the names of the other these known individuals and how the student came to have their IDs in his possession.

March 13 Jogues Hall 10 p.m.

A student was in the hall lounge and left his black leather jacket and scarf as he went to his room.

He returned to discover his jacket missing. Another student contacted him and the jacket was returned to him without the scarf.

March 17 Parking Garage 8:30 p.m. — 4:30 a.m.

An employee parked in the garage and returned the following morning to find the right back light missing from her car. She did not contact NYPD. Public Safety is investigating.

—Compiled by Cailin McKenna, Assistant News Editor

Follow us on Twitter! @TheFordhamRam

COURTESY OF FLICKR

Irish Rugby and hurling players compete for their country with no compensation.

Doing Without A Salary for Love of Sport

By SAMUEL JOSEPH STAFF WRITER

DUBLIN — A few weeks ago, I went to my first hurling match at Croke Park in Dublin, Ireland. I had no prior knowledge about either the teams or the venue, nor did I actually know how hurling was played.

A friend had found tickets online, and we decided to experience this new sport.

When we arrived, we found ourselves in a stadium that could fit up to 82,000 fans. It was nowhere close to being full, since it was very early in the hurling season. The 12,000 people who were there were dressed fully in blue and white for Dublin, and all the kids inside were waving their team’s flag. This number may not seem so monumental when compared to an average day at Yankee Stadium or MetLife Stadium, but wnot a single player on the hurling field is paid.

The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) is both an amateur league and the largest sports organization in Ireland. The GAA is responsible for hurling and Gaelic football as well as many other Irish games.

While working with the Gaelic Players Association, the GAA promotes Irish sports both on a national and county level. The players do not make any money from their teams and, while high-ranked players may have sponsorships to support them, the league is set up to promote players to work other jobs to

make their actual money. The players reach a level of professionalism in their sport without the capitalistic trap that leads to drug use and other pitfalls, and the money from tickets which sell for about €15-20, and merchandise is used to pay officials and maintain local clubs for kids and anyone who wants to play.

Like soccer, hurling and Gaelic football are split into two halves.

During the 15 minute halftime break, young kids take the field and play the same sport as their elders, with each game moderated by a referee, sometimes one that is the same age as those playing. As a club, the GAA is also in charge of children’s leagues and promoting Irish sports in schools. The GAA is teaching these children that playing is not for some external goal, but rather the purpose of playing is to celebrate Irish tradition and games.

We tried to keep up with the action, watching players bounce a small ball off a stick, dubbed a hurley, back and forth down the pitch.

Hurling is like a mixture of ultimate frisbee and American football. The point of the game is to move the ball down the pitch to the net. The net is like a soccer goal, also with a goalie, but has posts rising from each side, like an American football goalpost.

If the player hits the ball between the upper posts, his team receives one point. If he can get the ball past the goalie and score in the lower section, he receives a goal, which is worth three points.

While these sports are played by amateurs, the players themselves are not weak. Gaelic football and hurling are all played with no padding and if two players collide and one ends up with a broken nose or takes a hard hit to the head, there is no stoppage of play to help out.

Players who are injured are treated on the field by coaches or trainers or are taken off while the game continues. Coaches run over to the goalie or players to advise what to do next while play continue.

Seeing this level of artistry and passion makes me question the United States’ professional sports teams. We are so used to seeing top athletes make hundreds of millions of dollars a year, and it takes away from the true meaning of the game.

As a Yankees fan, I am often criticized for cheering for money. While this complaint is irrelevant to other baseball fans, it sticks when looking at the Irish system. Sitting in Croke Park and watching seven-year-olds take the field, waving hurleys in the air where professionals were just playing is extremely refreshing to see. That level of dedication for a sport is engrossing.

The atmosphere during matches feels close to home and draws the audience in, knowing the passion that fuels each player to play is not that of profit, but actual enjoyment of his sport. Each player represents the place he is from and no matter how small his paycheck, he has his county cheering him on.

said. “That means we’ve got to feel like we’ve improved quite a bit and the program is moving forward.”

It appears Pecora did not do enough.

There was some speculation that the team’s late winning streak this season would allow Pecora to return. After struggling at the start of Atlantic 10 Conference play, the Rams won five of their last 11 games, including an A-10 Tournament win over George Mason.

Pecora also enjoyed success as a recruiter. In successive years he signed two highly-touted prospects, Jon Severe and Eric Paschall. Severe was the 2013 New York State Player of the year at Christ the King High School and Paschall was Westchester County’s Mr. Basketball his junior season at Dobbs Ferry High School.

Christian Sengfelder, another freshman this past season, was named A-10 Rookie of the Week five times.

Still, Pecora failed to put a winning product on the court. In five seasons, he never won more than 10 games and never finished higher than 12th in the A-10.

Fordham will launch a national search to find its next men’s basketball coach. The university has said the search will be led by Parker Executive Search.

"We believe that Parker Executive Search will greatly enhance our efforts in finding a head men's basketball coach," Roach said in another statement released last Thursday. "They have a proven track record of helping institutions identify quality candidates, both athletically and academically, and we look forward to working with them as we move forward in the search."

The atlanta based firm declined a comment for this story.

A 2013 story by ESPN's Dana O'Neil reported that Parker typically charges between $60,000 and $90,000 for its services.

With Pecora gone, there is also fear that some of those players he recruited will transfer. Paschall announced Monday that he had been granted his release from Fordham and was free to look at other schools, but that returning as a Ram for 2015-16 was still an option. Severe, who took an extended leave of absence from the team earlier this season, could transfer as well.

This Week at Fordham Thursday March 26

Thursday March 26

Friday March 27

FET: Spring 2015 Playwrights’ Festival

Roll Through the 50s

CSF Spring Smash Brothers Tournament

Blackbox Theater 8 p.m.

The Playwrights’ Festival, hosted

by Fordham Experimental Theatre, will be featuring entirely student produced shows. The festival will include student-written and directed plays. There will also be performances Friday and Saturday night at 8.

McGinley 2nd 6:30 p.m.

Commuter Students Association will host a rollerskating event in McGinley as a part of Commuter Week. Milkshakes, hamburgers, fries and retro candy will be served and 50’s music will be featured. All are welcomed.

Keating 218 4 p.m.

The Contemporary Science Fiction Club is hosting a video game tournament. Participation in the tournament requires a $3 entry fee. Prizes will be awarded, including Nerdy TShirts, iphone cases, geeky stickers, and more.

Friday March 27 Black and Gold

Saturday March 28 Rams Got Talent

Rose Hill Commons 7:30 p.m.

Leonard Prep Theatre 5 p.m.

ASILI, Fordham’s Black Student Alliance, is hosting their annual Black and Gold dinner and dance. The event is co-sponsored by CSA and a part of Commuter Week. Tickets are $5 at the door.

Commuting Students Association will present 10 finalists to share their talents this Saturday in front of a student audience. The audience will be invited the choose the winner from the top three performers. All are invited to watch.

For more campus events, visit FordhamRam.com

NEWS

March 25, 2015

Page 3

Russian Forum Sparks Student Discussion on Homophobia Lincoln Center Event Sheds Light on Mistreatment of Homosexuals in Russia

By AMINA BHATTI STAFF WRITER

“Back in the Iron Closet,” an event held by Lincoln Center’s Russian Forum on March 24 at Fordham’s Lincoln Center campus, aimed to raise awareness about the rise of homophobia in Russia. The event was cosponsored by Fordham College at Rose Hill’s Russian Forum and Fordham College at Lincoln Center’s Rainbow Alliance.

According to Fordham’s “Student Leadership and Community Development” page online, the Russian Forum is a cultural club that brings “together Russian and non-Russian students interested in Russian and eastern European culture, history and languages.”

The Rainbow Alliance is a gay/ straight alliance that seeks to raise awareness of and support the LGBTQ community.

These clubs decided to team up to shed light on a new wave of homophobia that has arisen in Russia in the past few years. Perhaps most notably, such homophobia was revealed during media coverage of the Sochi Winter Olympics of 2014, in which clashes amongst LGBTQ activists and anti-gay activists unfolded. This recent rise of homophobia, as well as the experiences of gays and lesbians during this time period, was documented and discussed at the event through the photography of freelance journalist Misha Friedman, whose work has appeared in

prominent newspapers and Time magazine.

The other two speakers at the event were George Gellis, the executive director of the No More Fear Foundation — which helps with resettlement of LGBTQ members seeking asylum in the U.S. — and Dr. Zhenya Pomerantsev, the Russian Program Coordinator for the Modern Languages and Literatures Department at Fordham. Dr. Pomerantsev discussed from personal experience how gays in Moscow during the 1990s openly gay individuals were able to walk freely in public. Yet today, he said, “there are all sorts of attacks… and vigilante groups [against gays].”

Dr. Zhenya also discussed recent Russian policies which, “prohibit propaganda of…quote, non-traditional sexual relations to minors. It doesn’t specifically mention homosexuality but it is phrased in [an] ambiguous way.”

Such policies threaten the lifestyles of homosexualities in Russia. At the event, evidence of this aversion to homosexuality was shown in an ABC Nightline video titled “Anti-Gay Attacks Take Toll on Russia’s Largest Gay Nightclub.” The video documented homophobic attacks on Moscow’s most prominent gay nightclub, called “Central Station.” Local government videotaped staff and members walking in and out of the club through an activity known as “Morality Control.”

The video also discussed the de-

ROMAN SIMA/ THE FORDHAM RAM

Lincoln Center’s Russian Forum sheds light on homophobia in Russia and engages students in discussion on the issue.

nouncement of homosexuality by anti-gay activists.

Friedman’s photos of gay and lesbian couples provided stories of individuals who continue to live in a society where homosexuality is too uncomfortable for them to openly embrace. While there has been media coverage of attacks on homosexuals, Friedman said discussion of the LGBTQ community “is not an important topic to most people in [Russia]”. Another apparent inconsistency with the denouncement of LGBTQ members, as pointed out by Gellis, is the relative lack of controversy

centered around lesbians. “Many people don’t even acknowledge their existence,” he stated.

Both the speakers and students showed a general consensus that as of now, even in the United States, lesbians are not given as much media coverage as gay men.

During the event, Gellis also discussed the work of the No Fear Foundation in seeking to provide asylum in the U.S. to members of the LGBTQ community living abroad. He mentioned that the Foundation “has a lot of clients [now] because a lot of [Russian] people get a chance to get Ameri-

can visas… and are capable of escaping [persecution]”. New volunteers to the Foundation were welcome, as expressed during the event.

Maria Decasper, FCRH ‘17, a member of the Russian Forum and conference attendee, said that “[the speakers] touched on a lot of very important issues of human rights, [and that the event] was very moving.”

She also added that she “hopes that the Russian Forum will continue to participate in the dialogue surrounding issues of social justice abroad.”

FUEMS Achieves National Recognition With Award

CASEY CHUN/ THE FORDHAM RAM

FUEMS received the HEARTSafe award along with 13 other university EMS programs around the country.

FROM FUEMS, PAGE 1

O’Neill also emphasized that knowledge of CPR among students can save lives.

Fordham is one of 14 schools

nationwide that has earned the HEARTSafe award. Other 2015 winners include the EMS services of Georgetown, SUNY Albany, Rowan University, Tufts Uni-

versity, University of Delaware, University of Maine and Virginia Tech University. The HEARTSafe award has honored university EMS programs since 2013.

The second prize FUEMS earned by FUEMS is the “Striving for Excellence in Campus EMS” award, also from the National Collegiate Emergency Medical Services Foundation. According the NCEMSF, “the intent of this program is to recognize quality campus EMS organizations and hold them out as examples to other campus EMS organizations that are newly starting or are still developing their programs.”

Valenza said the Striving for Excellence award means that FUEMS meets the “gold standard” of EMS care on college campuses.

“We’re what other agencies strive to be, because of our training, our retainment of members, our quality of care,” Valenza said.

Chris Moore, FCRH ’17, intends to enter the medical field after graduation, and so he has always viewed FUEMS as the ideal opportunity to gain hands-on experience.

“So how’s it giving me experience — well I’m seeing lots of stuff, and I’m planning on taking the EMT course [that FUEMS offers] over the summer. And once I’m an EMT, you’re the one taking vitals, you’re the one mak-

ing a prognosis on whether they need to go to the hospital, and what you need to do to make sure that they’re okay,” Moore said.

However, Moore said FUEMS’ reputation had been cemented into place long before it got recognized by national organizations.

“I mean definitely the awards help add to its prestige, and gives you a bit of confidence. But for me, I had already known before coming into Fordham that it was a well-established organization,” said Moore. “It has a good reputation for just getting stuff done and making sure everyone’s alright.”

As a winner of the HEARTSafe prize, FUEMS is now allowed to put up an official sign indicating this status to students and visitors. Valenza said that FUEMS is currently discussing where to hang the sign with Public Safety, OSLCD and Facilities Management.

Valenza also said FUEMS plans to continue expanding its services to Fordham students, and that the organization hopes to win the “Collegiate EMS Organization of the Year” at next year’s National Collegiate EMS Foundation Conference.

NEWS

Page 4

March 25, 2015

USG Denies Support to Anti-Torture Faculty Group

By ERIN SHANAHAN ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

On Thursday, United Student Government (USG) voted against supporting Fordham Faculty Against Torture (FFAT), the newly-founded faculty organization urging the university to revoke the honorary degree it awarded to John Brennan, FCRH ‘77 and current director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).

USG shot down the resolution during its last meeting before a week-long break. There, the student government expressed concerns about the precedent an official USG decision would set, as well as disparaging views over the role of USG as the voice of Fordham students on this issue.

The resolution, presented by Nicholas Sawicki, FCRH ’16, vice president of Fordham College Rose Hill, would express support for FFAT’s overall efforts including its petition to revoke Brennan’s honorary degree.

Much of FFAT’s effort has been online, where the group has authored a petition that calls upon Fordham to revoke Brennan’s honorary degree. It currently has more than 300 signatures, including those from students, faculty, instructors and alumni.

“Certain members felt that the revocation of John Brennan’s honorary degree would set a murky precedent,” said Nevin Kulangara, GSB ’15, and executive president of USG. “Some raised the concern that revoking a degree from one individual would require the University to apply the same level of scrutiny to other recipients of an honorary doctorate.”

“In other words,” Kulungara asked, “where is the line drawn?”

Anna Holt, FCRH ‘17, a USG representative of the sophomore class, said she finds this explanation frustrating.

“My question is, why [was] this precedent framed in such a negative light this evening?” Holt said.

“Why wouldn’t we want to make high moral standards a norm for those carrying honors from Fordham?”

“That being said, I have faith in and respect for my fellow USG members and, although I personally do not agree, must respect the decision we came to as a whole,” she added.

FFAT was founded by seven faculty members in response to the Senate Intelligence Committee’s CIA torture report released in December 2014, which found that the CIA allowed a series of enhanced interrogation techniques such as waterboarding, hooding, sleep deprivation and forced stress positions on the grounds that such tactics, they said, yielded information vital to national security.

Brennan served as the director of the National Counterterrorism Center from 2004 to 2005. He also served as the United States Homeland Security Advisor from 2009 to 2013.

Following the report’s release in December, Brennan, who became the director of the CIA in 2013, defended the CIA’s actions.

During a conference shortly after the report’s release, Brennan said that detainees subjected to “enhanced interrogation techniques provided information that was useful and was used in the ultimate operation to go against Bin Laden.”

As of this month, Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of the university, has not indicated any intent to revoke Brennan’s degree, though he did meet with the group, according to a letter to McShane that the group has made public.

In its letter to McShane, FFAT said that rewarding the Fordham alum with an honorary doctorate degree in 2012 and the Brien McMahon Award for Distinguished Public Service in 2014 was harmful to Fordham’s “moral fabric.”

The letter, signed by seven faculty members from a range of departments, calls for the need to repair the damage done by awarding

J. SCOTT APPLEWHITE/ AP

USG denied support for the resolution proposed by professors to revoke John Brennan’s honorary degree.

the degree. Labeling its mission an “ethical first step toward restorative justice,” the letter states: “Only by acknowledging the fact that our country has erred in pursuing and defending practices condemned by the world community can the United States restore its leadership as a proponent of human rights.”

FFAT also calls for a public dialogue regarding the subject of torture and human rights and “on how,

in the wake of the human rights violations committed by our government, we can advance the cause of restorative justice.”

So far, the group has received some support from students, among them Sawicki, who voted to support FFAT. “Those who commit or are in violations of national or international law are not worthy of being honored with Fordham, or any uni-

Volunteers Head to Guatemala Fourteen Fordham students spent their spring breaks in Guatemala with the organization Volunteers Around the World. The group set up mobile medical clinics in the San Pedro La Lagune area. During their week-long trip, they helped over 600 patients.

Laura Sanicola and Joe Vitale contributed reporting.

Campus Briefs & Bites Fordham Acknowledged for Community Service Fordham was honored for its students continued commitment to community service and earned a spot on the 2014 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll.

In 2014, Fordham students clocked millions of hours of service. The honor roll recognizes universities around the country who create innovative service programs that allow students to give back to their community.

The Fordham community was honored for the categories of general community service and education. The first category named schools that emphasize community development for lower-income areas including the areas of education, health, economic opportunity, environmental restoration and support for veterans. The second category named schools that work to improve educational outcomes for children and youth in pre-K to 12 programs. Universities are chosen based on the scope of service projects, percentage of student involvement and academic servicelearning opportunities. Fordham’s Urban Plunge program and involvement with New York City HOPECount for homeless, helped Fordham stand out against institutions across the country.

Gabelli Students Travel to South America

CASEY CHUN/ THE FORDHAM RAM

versity’s, highest honors.” Sawicki said. “They stand in opposition to our tradition as a Jesuit, Catholic institution, as well as to our tradition as a university enlightened in the humanistic tradition.”

FFAT has a number of events planned for the semester, including a teach-in, scheduled for March 24.

During spring break, 38 sophomores and juniors in the Gabelli School’s Global Business Honors Program were given the opportunity to see first-hand a fundamental part of the South American economy. The group visited El Teniente, a copper-mining complex outside of Santiago, Chile. They received a tour of the Diablo Regimente mine and saw the production of Chile’s largest natural resource and a staple of the Chilean economy.

Students spent the remainder of their time in Chile visiting a boardroom session at Banco Estado, meeting with the global networks director of Startup Chile, and having an

audience with an investments executive at CIE Chile. Students in the program travel abroad three times during their undergrad at Fordham to immerse themselves in the business practices of countries in Europe, Asia and South America.

Lincoln Center Hosts Conference on Women To commemorate September 1995 when the United Nation’s Fourth World Conference on Women convened in Beijing, Fordham’s Graduate School of Social Service (GSS) prepared a daylong conference on March 14 at the Lincoln Center campus titled “Looking Back, Looking Forward: Economic and Health Issues for Girls and Women of All Ages Around the World.”

The event, co-sponsored by GSS’ Institute for Women and Girls was comprised of professionals, academics and students. The conferenced was opened by Irene Hoskins, former president of the International Federation on Aging and a participant in Beijing as an NGO representative, who reflected that the world conference had “opened many windows for us all.”

Fordham Honors Bronx Priest For Community Activism This past Friday, March 20, Msgr John Jenik, an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of New York, was welcomed to Fordham’s University Church. At the church, he was presented a handmade crozier, carved for him by Fordham carpenters. In 2012, a similar crozier was carved

by Fordham carpenters for Cardinal Timothy Dolan. Jenik has served his entire Forty-five year career with the Roman Catholic Church in the Bronx and he was dubbed “the priest with the bulletproof vest” due to his work as a longtime community activist for affordable housing and safer communities. He is especially known for his work to route drug dealing out from the Bedford area of the Bronx.

- Compiled by Cailin McKenna and Erin Shanahan, Assisitant News Editors

NEWS

March 25, 2015

Page 5

Fordham In The Bronx

Local Leaders Speak Out About Rising Rent Prices

JEFF COLTIN/ THE FORDHAM RAM

Rising rent prices around the city have been met by local officials who are taking action for low-income Bronx residents.

By JEFF COLTIN BRONX CORRESPONDENT

Rents are rising and more people than ever are living in New York.

The fight for housing is taking place on battlefields across the city: the super-tall luxury towers of 57 St., the construction sites of East New York, the Council chambers in City Hall and right here in Rose Hill’s West Bronx home.

Housing is “probably the number one issue across my district,” said State Senator Gustavo Rivera. This month he joined forces with the lawmakers in the Assembly and City Council who overlap his district to create the West Bronx Housing Coalition.

Rivera says the point of pooling resources is two-fold: “making sure we can address concerns of tenants that are certainly common across the entire West Bronx, and second, to really mobilize individuals to try

to join the fight to strengthen — at the very least extend, but hopefully strengthen — rent regulation laws in the state of New York since they are expiring this year.”

Rivera said his district, encompassing most of Belmont and other parts of the West Bronx, has the second-highest rate of rent-regulated apartments in the state. “Rentregulated” is a term referring to both rent-controlled and rent-stabilized apartments. This housing is affordable as a rule, and in the case of the much more-common rent-stabilized apartments, rent increases are “stabilized” by the city, rising at a more-or-less consistent rate set by the Rent Guidelines Board.

Rivera said keeping this affordable housing is essential for Bronxites.

“If they didn’t have somewhere affordable to live, then they couldn’t be close to the city where all the jobs and everything happens,” he said.

“It is incredibly important that we maintain the stock of available, affordable units so that individuals and families can find a place to live and thrive in the city that they work in.”

Domenick LaSorsa, FCRH ’15, knows the West Bronx’s housing crisis intimately. For more than six months, he has worked at the Fordham Bedford Housing Corporation.

The corporation manages so-called Section 8 Housing, another form of affordable housing where rent is subsidized through a government program.

LaSorsa says there are 526 apartments at the complex he works at — and a 1,000-person waitlist.

“They can’t really afford to pay rent at other places or they live in shelters and they’re trying to get back on their own,” he said of those applying for housing.

LaSorsa sees the same thing happening in apartments rented by

Fordham students. “Even around our own community around Fordham University, rent is increasing every year by large amounts,” he said.

Michael Charboneau, FCRH ’15 has been studying this trend. He is currently writing his senior thesis for the Rose Hill Honors Program on the impact of student movement off campus.

Charboneau said Belmont landlords are actively targeting students because most have financial guarantors and do not default on their payments because of it.

“More than half of the population of Belmont receives some sort of welfare assistance. It's not a very wealthy area at all,” he said. “So to have these students… it’s a huge disparity. So landlords are increasingly becoming aware of this. You can triple your rent, it’s no problem.”

Charboneau has found the median family income of a member of the class of 2018 is about $150,000, which is more than seven times the median income of $20,933 in Belmont’s community district.

Research is not yet conclusive on what increasing student housing will do to the neighborhood’s housing stock, but it does not seem to worry Rivera too much.

“Fordham students have been coming to Fordham since the school has been there,” he said. “It’s just part of a push that’s happening all across the West Bronx — that’s the problem of changing neighborhoods and changing demographics.”

Rivera cited a growing Mexican population and a decreasing African American population as examples, but said demographics will always change.

“The issue is the people that want to stay,” he said. “How do we make it so they are included in the changes in the community?”

Keller Named New Honors Director FROM HONORS, PAGE 1

sics at Fordham College, who announced his departure in early February. McGowan will be on sabbatical leave next year to finish his book on the history of dictionary writing and then will return to the Department of Classics and Classical Languages and Civilization.

McGowan became honors director after Dr. Harry Nasuti, professor of theology, in fall 2013.

“It is also a privilege and joy to direct the Honors Program, where I have gotten to know so many wonderful people on the faculty and in the administration, and I consider myself lucky to have had the opportunity to work with Fordham's finest,” McGowan wrote in an email to the honors program.

“And yet, the greatest privilege and deepest joy for me has been having the chance to work so closely with…the honors students, and there is so much about [the] interaction — both scheduled and serendipitous — that I will miss in leaving honors.”

Founded in 1950, the Fordham College Honors Program has provided a select group of students with a unique core curriculum of English, philosophy, history, art history and music history beginning with ancient studies and ending in contemporary studies in Western Civilization. The capstone of the honors curriculum is the senior thesis, an extended research project prepared under the individual guidance of a faculty mentor in one's major field. As director, Keller will work with the dean of Fordham College Rose Hill, members of the AJCU Conference of Honors Programs and the National Collegiate Honors Council.

CSA Kicks-Off Decade Themed Commuter Student Week

By CAILIN MCKENNA ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

Students returned to campus on Monday after a week-long spring break, and were met with the Commuting Student Association’s (CSA) annual Commuter Week. The week long program is open to both commuters and residents, and hosts innovative events around a central theme.

In years past, the week has included themes such as Broadway, Comic Con and Netflix, and has received great support from the Fordham community. There is a large turn out from students, who are incentivized by free food, entertainment and prizes. Events provide an opportunity for both commuters and residents to socialize.

“Our main goal is always to bridge the gap and ensure that commuter students know they have a home here on campus,” said Jessica Giglio, FCRH ’15 and president of CSA. “Fordham Students have been incredibly receptive to each year's theme and mostly because each year we bring such a variety of events to Fordham,” said Giglio.

The theme of this year’s program is “Through the Decades,” which will take commuters and residents through 300 years of history be-

ginning with eighteenth-century France and ending with a 1990s throwback. CSA has planned 11 events for this year’s schedule, up from the usual nine events.

“Our Executive Board thought long and hard about the perfect theme for the week and unanimously,” Giglio said. “We decided that a decades theme would allow us to have the most eclectic variety.”

The week kicked off on Monday with Ramily Feud, an interactive trivia game played with groups of four. In addition to trivia, CSA continued to provide activities for students with a variety of interests including jazzercise, socials, tea parties and guest speakers.

Continuing with the theme, CSA tackled the 1960s with two major events, including the inaugural commuter-friendly dance social, which took place on Tuesday in McGinley Center and was cosponsored by Peer Educators.

Additionally, on Wednesday, March 25, Mark Naison, a professor of African American studies and history, gave a lecture on student involvement in the 1960s and what current college students can learn.

CSA will also work with student groups such as ASILI, Fordham’s Black Student Alliance, in hosting their annual dinner and dance

KELLYN SIMPKINS/ THE FORDHAM RAM

Students returned to campus and went back in time with CSA’s ‘through the decades’ themed Commuter Week.

event known as Black and Gold in the McGinley Ballroom.

This year, CSA will also bring a rollerskating rink to Fordham. On Thursday, March 26, the rink will set up shop in McGinley second to celebrate the 1950s.

While planning for the event was a lot of work for Giglio and her fellow executive board mem-

bers, she believes that CSA has been an instrumental part of her Fordham experience.

“CSA has been my home for the past four years and a large part of that stems from the relationships I’ve made in the planning of events like Commuter Week,” she said. “I hope all Fordham students have the chance to attend com-

muter week and see all the hard work that goes into the week.”

The week will conclude with the event Ram’s Got Talent on Saturday, March 28 at 5 p.m. in Fordham Prep’s Leonard Auditorium.

The show will consist of 10 Fordham students who were chosen from auditions to showcase their talent.

NEWS

Page 6

March 25, 2015

Fordham Email Account Hacked by Phishing Scam

By KATIE MEYER MANAGING EDITOR

Monday morning, a Fordham email account was hacked by an unknown source, and an email was sent to a large portion of the student body.

The email account’s actual owner noticed the hack a few hours later and sent out an apology for the email, which contained only an invitation to edit what appeared to be a Google document.

However, Fordham’s IT department says it is more likely the email was a scam — a phishing scam, to be exact.

Phishing is one of the most common types of online attacks, and it is generally used to steal confidential information, usually through email or similar platforms.

Fordham has experienced phishing incidents in the past; one of the most serious came last January when an executive administrative assistant was hacked, and her account information appropriated. The damage was serious enough that more than 1,500 student accounts were put at risk.

The most recent scam was not as severe, Elizabeth Cornell, IT’s communications specialist, said.

Regardless, it has been a while since there was a large-scale phishing email sent to the student body.

Cornell said she did not know

KELLYN SIMPKINS / THE FORDHAM RAM

Fordham IT helped resolve a recent hack and phishing scam on the Fordham email server.

many details about the email.

The total number of accounts it reached, for instance, was not noted.

“I don’t think we really know where it actually came from,” she said. “That’s part of the nature of a phishing email; it’s very difficult to trace the sender.”

Later in the day after the initial phishing message went out, IT emailed an alert to all the people who had received the message.

Cornell said that this email, as well as the IT website, should be enough to inform students on how to proceed.

“The best course of action for someone who receives a suspicious email is to follow the instructions on IT’s website. [You can also] forward it to it customer care,” she said. “It can also be helpful if, when you see an email that seems suspicious, hover your mouse over it. If what shows up

doesn’t match what you think the source should be, like it’s just a long string of gibberish, then don’t click on it.”

Cornell said that for situations like these, IT has a fairly formulaic strategy. “[We] look for evidence of anyone who clicked on the email and may have compromised their account…then we activate blocks on the links so that students can’t click them anymore,” she said.

“We have a really solid system in place…it’s tried, it’s tested. We dot our I’s and cross our T’s.”

Still, she noted, new challenges pop up fairly often in the world of online hacking.

“The people who do phishing emails and spam are constantly evolving — it's just a matter of not getting complacent,” Cornell said. “We’re in a good place, because Shannon [Shannon Ortiz, director of IT security] is about the least complacent person. I think we stay on top of it.”

Even so, she added that it does not hurt to be prepared. There are a few steps students can take to keep their information safe if they do fail to notice a suspicious email click a bad link. The best, according to Cornell, is to immediately call IT’s customer care.

If students do not take action, there can be very real consequences.

“They could put malware on your computer, they could have everything you do be watched or recorded externally … there have even been cases where computers have been locked down or owners have lost control of their devices,” Cornell said.

In the end, she emphasized, prevention is best.

“Some students still click on the links,” she said. “But if you just pay attention, if you just look at what's being sent to you, you can generally tell it’s a phishing email. There are signs. It’s just about being careful.”

Faculty Against Torture Seeks Support of Petition FROM FFAT, PAGE1

is one of the organizing faculty of FFAT, a group of Fordham professors calling upon Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of the University, to revoke the honorary doctorate given to John Brennan, President Deputy National Security Advisor for Counterterrorism and Homeland Security and Fordham alum from the Class of 1977.

On the other hand, the petition that FFAT circulated in early February has only grown to 357 signatures by early Tuesday, up slightly over 150 since The Fordham Ram first reported on it in February. In early March, the Commuting Students Association gained 240 signatures for their petition to include commuters more in Integrated Learning Communities on campus in one weekend, a rate that dwarfs FFATs efforts. The undergraduate community alone has 8,345 students currently enrolled.

"People talk about student apathy as if it were this natural thing, but it is not,” said Dr. James Kim, professor of English and FFAT faculty organizer, to students during a discussion. “Apathy is not your natural state. Powerlessness is not your natural state.

They were produced by structural forces like student debt and the suppression of free speech, which together function to depoliticize you. The good news is that occasions like today give you the opportunity to take your power back."

The petition is supposed to be presented to McShane at the Board of Trustees meeting on

April 23rd. As of this issue, McShane has declined to comment.

FFAT formed in December 2014 following the release of a report from the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence regarding the use of torture by the CIA against war criminals. The report found that the CIA was performing torture tactics against war prisoners.

Brennan, who was the commencement speaker at Fordham in May 2012, has since publically defended the CIA’s actions. Brennan stated in a press conference following the reports release that "there were no easy answers, and whatever your views are on [enhanced interrogation techniques], our nation and in particular this agency did a lot of things right during this difficult time to keep this country strong and secured.”

It seems that apathy is not the only potential barrier to the group’s efforts to gain support among the student body — student opinion on Brennan’s implication in Brennan’s involvement in the CIA torture tactics is far from unified.

Aaron DeVera, FCRH ’16, believes the admonishment of director Brennan by the faculty may be displaced. “As CIA director it's his job to be face of an organization purposely faceless, no matter the issue,” DeVera said.

“Director Brennan has made unprecedented and monumental changes to modernize the CIA, despite the medieval reputation of its methods from previous administrations.”

“As an employee of the admin-

istration it is not acceptable to disagree with the president,” he added.

Graham Bass, FCRH ’17, commented on the one-sided view of torture tactics by Americans. “A lot of people in the United States have this view that if something works and its for a good cause,

like stopping communism or terrorism, that the ends justifies the means,” Bass said. “But torture does often produce lies more than truth…even if we take the cynical cross benefit analysis there’s still an issue of moral consistency.”

He went on to say that those

who support torture in some situations must approach similar actions and tactics emplyed by our enemies with the same mindset.

FFAT has begun referencing themselves on social media as “Fordham Against Torture,” a name that signifies the inclusiveness of faculty and students alike.

COURTESY OF FORDHAM FACULTY AGAINST TORTURE

Faculty members held a teach-in on Tuesday pushing for the University to revoke Brennan’s honorary degree.

NEWS

March 25, 2015

Page 7

Fordham Health Services Misconceptions Clarified

By AKASH BHATIA STAFF WRITER

Around campus, there have been a lot of misconceptions circulating about Fordham Health Services. For example, there is confusion about whether the Fordham Health Center provides certain services such as STI testing, along with other health services.

Kathleen Malara, director of Fordham Health Services, said she wants to shed some light on the realities of the Health Center.

“All the services are listed on the website and in our brochure,” Malara said. “Anyone can come pick one up at the Health Center,” The purpose of Health Services, as described by its brochure, “is to provide confidential primary health care to students on all campuses.”

The Health Center at the Rose Hill campus is located in the lower level of O’Hare Hall and is open 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on weekends.

The Health Center does not provide emergency services, as that is the responsibility of the Fordham University Emergency Medical Services (FUEMS).

While many people may criticize health services for leaving emergencies to a group of undergraduate students, FUEMS is certified by the State of New York as an ambulance corps, and all FUEMS members are trained in American Red Cross Standard

First Aid and CPR. All of this information is stated in the brochure.

The combination of the website and the brochure can provide incredibly useful information for Fordham students, according to Malara.

For example, the confidentiality of medical information is an issue that is covered thoroughly by the brochure.

“Medical information can be released only with the permission of the student or as required by law,” the brochure details.

There are some other tidbits about the Fordham Health Services that could prove to be extremely invaluable to students.

“There is no charge for visits to the Health Center,” the brochure explains.

However, the student is responsible for all laboratory charges that are incurred. Moreover, at the Rose Hill campus, walk-ins are accepted between the hours of 11:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.

In addition, certain immunizations (such as those for travel) are offered for a minimal fee that is highly discounted from a price one would have to pay at the average clinic.

However, Fordham Health Services does more than provide primary care, physical examinations and immunizations. They are also an allergy clinic, providing injections when necessary.

Health Services can provide laboratory x-rays as well, and can refer a patient to an outside radi-

CHRISTIAN WILEOJO/ THE FORDHAM RAM

Student Health Services offers many health conveniences ranging from women’s healthcare to allergy health clinics.

ologist when necessary.

The Health Center staff include a nutritionist who is available upon appointment to discuss eating disorders or healthy eating habits. The Health Center also has newly-approved medications and non-medication therapies to help students quit smoking.

Despite the Fordham Health Center’s lack of contraceptives, other women’s health care servic-

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Still, there are some services the Health Center cannot provide.

When asked about psychological therapy and testing, Malara responded, “Counseling and Psychological Services provide this

service.”

However, Health Services is involved on campus with other departments. For example, it works with the aforementioned Psychological Services and OSAPPS. Malara and Health Services hope they can always fulfill their mission, which is “Provide accessible and high quality health care service to Fordham University Students.”

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OPINION

March 25, 2015

Page 9

The Fordham Ram

Let Students Roam Free on Yik Yak

CASEY CHUN/THE FORDHAM RAM

Yik Yak is normally a hub for harmless comments, but a recent increase in abuse and bullying has some worried.

By MARGARITA ARTOGLOU OPINION EDITOR

School officials across the country have become concerned with the popular mobile app, Yik Yak. The app is a forum where users can post anonymous short messages. Yik Yak users can look through other messages posted by people within a 1.5 mile radius of them and can post short responses to posts.

If you have ever scrolled down to the comments of a YouTube video, you know that Internet arguments can become heated.

Like most online forums, though,

YouTube requires users to create an account before they can begin trolling other videos.

Yik Yak, on the other hand, is completely anonymous. The lack of responsibility for a comment made on Yik Yak has caused some school officials around the country to worry that the app will become a hub for cyberbullying.

While Yik Yak seems to be innocuous the majority of the time, the New York Times reported that some professors and students found not-so-innocent posts on Yik Yak, as well as threats. Some were personal and directed at a particular person, while others

have targeted larger groups. For example, a professor at Eastern Michigan University felt victimized by students who used Yik Yak to write demeaning and sexually explicit messages about her.

Meanwhile, a student at Kenyon College utilized Yik Yak to suggest a gang rape in the women’s center.

Yik Yak might harbor some unsavory comments at universities across the country, but here at Fordham it seems to be used for relatively harmless purposes.

“I don’t really think that Yik Yak is harmful to anyone. Most of the posts on there aren’t targeted at

anyone. Usually they’re just jokes that everyone can enjoy. It’s amusing,” says Helen Keating, GSB ’18.

Some schools disagree. The New York Times reported that a handful of universities have already banned the app from their servers, while others are in the process of considering removing the app from their Wifi networks.

Colleges should abandon efforts at trying to limit their students’ Yik Yak use.

Since Yik Yak is a mobile app, students can just use their cellular service to access the app, so banning the app on the Wifi network would raise more problems than fix any that may or may not exist. Limiting access to a social app that many students enjoy using would be viewed as an infringement of free student speech. Many universities, including Fordham, are already under scrutiny for a perceived lack of free speech. A ban on Yik Yak would only cause further outrage from the student body.

While colleges should stop trying to control Yik Yak’s increased campus presence, users of the app should also make an effort to be more civil on the anonymous app.

After all, Yik Yak’s creators, Tyler Droll and Brooks Buffington, aimed the app at college students with the belief that people in that age range were mature enough to handle the anonymous aspect of the app. Droll and Buffington even disabled the app at many high schools in order to prevent cyberbullying, without realizing that it had become a problem on

the very college campuses for which they had designed Yik Yak. It would be foolish to expect every single post on Yik Yak to contain a positive message.

After all, the app is a great place to complain about the school, classes or student life, because the chances are high that other users will agree. But it is also not too much of a burden to expect users to refrain from posting threats or insults directed at a specific person.

Indeed, Yik Yak’s staff has already put some precautions in place. Certain keywords, such as the word “bomb,” will stimulate a pop-up that asks whether the post might be offensive and warns the user that law enforcement takes threats seriously. In the past, Yik Yak has cooperated with police to track a message that implied a gun threat. The app is definitely committed to creating a more positive user experience. It is the users’ turn to make an effort to be more respectful on the app.

Although there may be particular instances in which Yik Yak could facilitate the spread of harmful messages, like Kenyon’s rape threats, Yik Yak is ultimately just a simple way to pass time by sharing jokes with everyone else who uses the app on campus. As long as no serious problems arise from the app’s anonymous messages, colleges should allow students to use Yik Yak. Margarita Artoglou, FCRH ’18, is a communication and media studies major from Queens.

At College, Connections, not Classes, Reign Supreme

By BRIANNA ALLARD CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Why do we go to college? We all came in with different expectations, and we all answer that question differently. Many people point to the independence they experience or the knowledge they gain as the most important part of college, but is this really the case?

A recent New York Times post by contributor Anna North claims that college is not about either of these things and instead argues that college is not about the classes you take to earn a degree as much as it is about making both social and professional connections. Although I have only been here at Fordham for a little while, I would have to agree with this claim.

The social aspect of college is an important part of the whole experience. I remember last summer when I was getting ready to come to Fordham. People were constantly telling me that the friends I made here would be my friends forever. Even in the limited time I have been at college, I have had some great experiences with the friends I made at Fordham. Many of the adults in my life are still friends with the people they met in college and some are even married to someone they dated in college. Making social connections is definitely an integral part of

the college experience because I have seen it manifested in my own life.

One example explained by North tells the story of a young man who attends college classes without officially enrolling in the class or even paying tuition. He says that his favorite part of the experience is not the free classes or the knowledge he gains from them. Instead, he claims that surrounding himself with other young people is what has had the greatest impact. He enjoys this company more than the free classes. Considering the value of college classes in today’s world, that is saying a lot.

Making friends that will last a lifetime is a definite highlight of our four years here.

However, we can all attest to the fact that socializing and making friends is not the only responsibility we have in college. There is definitely a serious side to our college experience. Upon graduation, we all hope to be employed and on our way to the real world. Here, the other type of networking that occurs in college becomes important: professional networking.

One of the main points that any school tour mentions while prospective students are looking at colleges is the opportunities for internships.

After all, these internships sometimes open doors for job opportunities later on down the road. Even if they do not result in a job offer, people who

RAM ARCHIVES

The McGinley Student Center at Rose Hill is a good place to make both professional and social connections.

have internships can still make useful connections, at the very least.

Just the name of a college itself can take you places. For example, it seemed that after I decided to go to Fordham, current students and alumni with whom I was somehow connect began popping up, including people who worked with my parents and more distant family members.

What this does is open up professional connections with just the mention of a particular school. I know graduates of Fordham who are responsible for hiring interns, and prospective interns from Fordham take priority on their lists. Of course, I am

assuming this phenomenon is not unique to just Fordham, as it probably happens at every college. The point is that the college name opens up professional opportunities, and especially internships, even without the degree.

Since almost everyone goes to college nowadays, having a degree does not necessarily put you ahead in the job market, which is already difficult to maneuver given the economy of today. Our best bet to landing a job we love after college is to make professional connections while we are still in college.

Of course, the degree we get after

the completion of our core and major requirements is still a very important part of the overall college experience.

We are paying to earn this degree, and without it, the connections that we make will not get us as far as we would like. However, there is a shift in emphasis occurring.

Instead of simply relying on the degree you get, you can now get ahead through the connections you make in college.

Brianna Allard, FCRH ’18, is a communication and media studies and history major from Somers, Connecticut.

OPINION

Page 10

R Serving Fordham University campus and community since 1918 The Fordham Ram is the University journal of record. The mission of The Fordham Ram is to provide a forum for the free and open exchange of ideas in service to the community and to act as a student advocate. The Fordham Ram is published and distributed free of charge every Wednesday during the academic year to the Rose Hill, Lincoln Center and Westchester campuses with a readership of over 10,000. The Fordham Ram office is located in the basement of the McGinley Center, room B-52.

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Editor-in-Chief Joe Vitale Managing Editor Katie Meyer Copy Chief Robert Frerich Assistant Copy Chief Sydney Keen Executive Copy Editors Katie Nolan Max Prinz Michael Cavanaugh Canton Winer Kelly Kultys News Editor Laura Sanicola Assistant News Editors Erin Shanahan Cailin McKenna Opinion Editor Margarita Artoglou Assistant Opinion Editor Kristen Santer Culture Editors Nicole Horton & Amanda Giglio Sports Editor Anthony Pucik Assistant Sports Editors Sam Belden & Drew Casey Photo Editor Casey Chun Assistant Photo Editors Kellyn Simpkins Christian Wiloejo Layout Editor Mae Drucker Digital Editors Blaine Kaniewski Anna Carey Amanda Maile Business Director Mike Krzysko Business Staff Ryan Chand Faculty Advisor Dr. Beth Knobel Editorial Page Policy The Fordham Ram’s editorial and ramblings topics are selected on a weekly basis and reflect the editorial board’s view on a campus issue.

Opinions Policy The Fordham Ram appreciates submissions to fordhamramletters@ gmail.com. Commentaries are printed on a space available basis. The Fordham Ram reserves the right to reject any submission for any reason, without notice. Submissions become the exclusive property of The Fordham Ram. The Fordham Ram reserves the right to edit any submissions. The opinions in The Fordham Ram’s editorials are those of the editorial board; those expressed in articles, letters, commentaries, cartoons or graphics are those of the individual author. No part of The Fordham Ram may be reproduced without written consent.

March 25, 2015

From the Desk | Ryan Chand

Why I’m Bullish on Bitcoin Crypto currencies, most notably Bitcoin, are definitely not an uncovered topic. Because I have been following crypto-currency news for the past few months, it has become evident to me that there is a huge gap between what the press and the mainstream public believe Bitcoin is, and what a growing population of economists, students, entrepreneurs and tech geeks think Bitcoin is.

Bitcoin is a form of digital currency that allows anyone in the world to pay anyone else any amount of Bitcoin by simply transferring “ownership” of the coins. Transactions are done via the Internet and sending or receiving Bitcoin is as easy as sending or receiving an email. The currency is stored in your digital wallet and can be used to buy virtually anything.

While the current value may be based on speculation, the true value is derived from the network effect. Think of Facebook or Twitter — these social media platforms hold no value unless people use them. More users mean more value for the platforms because there are more people with whom to interact. Companies can engage with followers more effectively, and advertisers reach a much larg-

er consumer base. Bitcoin works in the same manner as a positive externality — the more people that accept and pay with Bitcoin, the more valuable the currency and the technology becomes.

One of the biggest benefits of using Bitcoin is the low transaction fees. Consumers have no problem buying a cup of coffee with our credit cards; however the coffee shop is hit with a two to three percent fee for accepting the payment, and the transaction then has to be cleared by the credit card company and whole host of other regulatory agencies.

This is a complicated process that can be avoided using Bitcoin. You pull out your phone, scan the QR code and within minutes the coffee shop has the $5 for the coffee in Bitcoin. On a larger scale, Microsoft has just decided to accept Bitcoin as form of payment for all online sales. With tight margins, Microsoft takes a hit with each transaction made with credit cards online. Five percent margins are automatically cut in half with transaction fees: this is money that can be reinvested back into the business, passed back to consumers, or even taxed by the government. Accepting Bitcoin removes the fees from the process

and the company can convert the Bitcoin it receives into dollar automatically to avoid any currency conversion risk.

Bitcoin also has implications on a global scale. Bitcoin allows a farmer who does not have direct access to a bank sell his crops on an international market. All the farmer needs to accept payments is an Internet connection — no bank account, no credit card and no middleman. This farmer can instantly receive Bitcoin for his crops and pay almost nothing to do so. He can also store his money in Bitcoin, which in some situations can be much more safe than storing physical money in local banks. From a transactional perspective, Bitcoin makes complete sense. It can help major companies reduce their fees and keep profitable margins, and it can give virtually everyone access to a world market.

Finally, Bitcoin allows microtransactions to occur. Micropayments have never been feasible because it is just not cost effective to run small payments through the existing credit card system.

Bitcoin has the unique characteristic of infinite divisibility.

You can send anyone the smallest amount of Bitcoin for, again,

very small fees. Media companies stand to benefit from this because they can now charge for individual pieces of content, instead of charging for a full subscription.

These are just a few of the many reasons why I am bullish on Bitcoin. Merchant adoption is increasing at very high rates, and Venture Capital firms are pouring money into the technology. While I do not think it will replace fiat money, it will instead force a change in our current financial system that will have a huge impact on global economics.

The symbiosis of fiat money and crypto-currencies will be a powerful catalyst for extending the benefits of the modern economy to virtually everyone all over the world.

Editorial | Class of 2015

Overcoming the Post-Graduation Blues Have you ever seen a picture of an ostrich being chased by cheetah? Right now, we feel like the ostrich. Graduation is the cheetah.

But in all seriousness, the sense of panic we feel as our commencement date looms is undoubtedly a widely-shared sentiment in the class of 2015. With family expectations, self expectations and the grim reaper of student loans, it’s only natural we should worry about our future.

We aren’t going to tell you “don’t worry, be happy.” The phrase “carpe diem” will never cross our lips. Frankly, that’s a load of sentimental crap.

What we will tell you is don’t worry for the wrong reasons.

Don’t worry that you aren’t on track to a 401k. Don’t worry if you don’t have a career the day after graduation.

There are two types of people

post-grad. There are those who find a stable job, have a linear career, have a fairly happy life and will never have to worry about affording the rent. These people play it safe.

Then there are those who take risks. These people aren’t afraid to wander. They sometimes take the blind plunge. They aren’t playing to an imaginary audience.

They’re experiencing the joy of finding their own song.

We’ve seen a lot of people forcing themselves into graduate school, fellowships, wage-slave jobs and the like. We have to wonder if this is a good thing.

Don’t choose a path simply because you think you need a path.

If you’re choosing among these options simply because they seem like the “responsible,” safe decisions, maybe take a second look.

Once you enter the rat race, it’s hard to exit.

Well-paved roads may look more secure. They might even look more comfortable. But, these roads are travelled by many, and the gridlock can be terrible.

As much as we (by which “we” means Katie) hate Robert Frost, sometimes the road less travelled really is the better route.

When you go to write your memoir, how do you want to remember your 20s? I’ll bet you want to remember crazy, exciting, unpredictable years. And, only you can make that happen.

It may seem obvious, but we’re only 22 once. Seriously, think about it. No kids, no spouse, no dog, no mortgage. You can literally move wherever you want, take whatever low-paying — but fulfilling — opportunity that comes along, and truly find out what makes you happy.

Contrary to popular characterization of our generation, we

Millennials are hard-working and existing in a more competitive and fast-paced arena than ever before. Most of us have hardly had the time in college to even take a breath. Taking the next year (or several) to engage in self-reflection and self-exploration may be the most responsible choice you could make.

College is the last thing that was planned out for us by the adults in our lives. Make the next decision yours.

This week’s editorial was submitted

by Canton Winer, FCRH ’15, and Katie Nolan, FCRH ’15. Winer, former Managing Editor of The Fordham Ram, is an American studies and sociology major from West Palm Beach, Florida. Nolan, former Copy Chief of The Fordham Ram, is an English major from Louisville, Kentucky.

Disagree with our editorial?

Then send us an email! fordhamramletters@gmail.com

OPINION

March 25, 2015

Page 11

Silence of the Rams: Fordham’s Free Speech Problem

Kathryn Wolper

STAFF WRITER

Starbucks Promo Stimulates Debate

The head coach of the men’s basketball team was fired last week following a record of 44-106 after five years.

The university was unhappy with this dismal record, and chose to do something about it. Fordham’s free speech record, on the other hand, is even worse. Yet the university has done nothing to change it. The creators and enforcers of Fordham’s unfriendly free speech environment are still sitting comfortably in their offices.

I, like so many others, have become somewhat resigned to the university’s stifling free speech environment. Unfortunately, most other Fordham students also seem to have quietly accepted business-as-usual.

Maybe that is why the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) neglected to mention Fordham in its ranking of the 10 worst colleges for free speech earlier this month.

Fordham’s absence from the list was surprising, especially given Georgetown’s inclusion.

Greg Lukianoff, president of FIRE, wrote on Huffington Post that Georgetown earned a place on the list due to its treatment of H*yas for Choice.

“Since 2010, the university has refused to recognize the student group H*yas for Choice, contending that its mission conflicts with that of the university,” Lukianoff wrote. “Written policy, however, states that ‘all members of the Georgetown University academic community ... enjoy the right to freedom of speech and expression,’ including the ‘right to express points of view on the widest range of public and private concerns.’”

H*yas for Choice has sometimes found itself at odds with the Georgetown administration due to the group’s promotion of access to contraceptives.

H*yas for Choice is fairly similar to SAGES (Students for Sex & Gender Equality and Safety), which began operating at Rose Hill last semester.

SAGES, like H*yas for Choice, is not officially recognized by the university at which it operates. Unlike H*yas for Choice, SAGES operatives concealed their identities for some time due to fear of repercussions from the university.

When I interviewed Abigail Grace, president of H*yas for Choice, for a USA Today College story last semester, even she recognized that Fordham was more restrictive of contraception distribution than Georgetown.

“I think that H*yas for Choice’s case should make it very clear to Fordham administrators that it is possible to have an un-recognized, un-affiliated group distributing contraception on a Catholic campus,” Grace said.

Fordham’s website states that, “As an institution in the Catholic, Jesuit tradition, Fordham University follows Church teachings on reproductive issues.

Distribution of contraceptives, contraceptive devices and/or birth control, in any form, is prohibited on Fordham University property and at University-sponsored events.”

Recently, Starbucks ended the cup component of its “Race Together” campaign, which met severe social media criticism upon its announcement. The premise of the campaign was to encourage conversations about race in the popular coffee shops by writing “race together” on customers’ cups. Still, critics expressed concerns about the effort seeming forced and opportunistic. Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz called the cup messages “just a catalyst” for more widespread conversations about race. The corporate endorsement of conversations about race relations will continue through different means.

Although the campaign seemed trite and forced, the decision to launch such a campaign was nearly as bold as Starbucks’ famously strong coffee. The execution of the endeavor fell flat, but the parties responsible for its implementation understood an important fact about society: coffeehouses and other community hubs are breeding grounds for conversation. Inspiring conversation about topics such as race in community hubs is a step up from the ignorance that plagues many people. It will not solve America’s race problem, but it places race at the forefront of awareness.

A cup of coffee at Starbucks comes at a premium; someone with a daily Starbucks habit might easily spend $50 a month on coffee. At the intersection of class and race, many regular customers likely feel the positive effects of privilege in their daily lives and would not consider race an issue unless their baristas reminded them.

Although not every customer makes the leap from awareness to action, some may, and others may be inspired to reevaluate their viewpoints.

Simple awareness does not mend the chasm between privilege and oppression, but it does make the gap more palpable. Critics who claim that it is not a coffeehouse chain’s place to chime in on race must understand that all businesses have a voice. Many businesses choose to stay silent on important issues because they feel that their voices do not belong in the conversation. Silence begets silence, but conversation, however awkward or forced, leads to better, more effective, and more frequent conversations. Starbucks’ blunder shows that companies and individuals must be open to making mistakes and working hard to correct them.

The “Race Together” campaign was imperfect. However, an imperfect conversation is still a conversation. The corporate shame that Starbucks might feel after a failed social experiment may motivate it and other companies to try again and do better.

Starbucks’ future plans for the “Race Together” campaign could incite an important dialogue about inequality in America in a more intentional and effective way than the original plans did.

Starbucks will continue to encourage and participate in conversations about race and inequality in other ways. In the face of criticism, Starbucks did not back down and instead changed its approach. Ultimately, starting conversations about race is less about perfection than effort.

By CANTON WINER

REGINA KENDRICK/THE FORDHAM RAM

Many students who harbor complaints against the school feel suppressed by Fordham’s speech policies.

Georgetown does not prevent H*yas for Choice from distributing condoms on Georgetown’s campus because the group is not officially university-sanctioned, nor does it use university resources.

Although SAGES does not use university resources, the group is still technically in breach of Fordham policy.

I respect (though I disagree with) the university’s stance on contraceptives. Still, it is nonsensical that SAGES is in breach of university policy when obtaining and distributing condoms using its own time and resources.

Furthermore, what exactly does “distribution” mean? Is handing a condom to your friend “distribution”? How about handing out condoms to three or four friends?

When I presented this question to Christopher Rodgers, dean of students at Fordham College Rose Hill, last semester, he responded essentially that administrators will know what distribution is when they see it.

This brand of murky shadow policy is dangerous. It allows the administration to essentially enforce policy whenever it conveniences them. After all, why has Fordham failed to take disciplinary action against SAGES? Surely the group’s dispersal of condoms at university events falls within the definition of “distribution.”

The easy answer to Fordham’s hypocrisy in dealing with SAGES is optics. Administrators understand that it would generate significant negative press if the university took disciplinary action against SAGES, so the group is allowed to operate relatively freely, flying in the face of Fordham policy.

SAGES is only the latest splashy example of Fordham’s free speech problem. Student groups face these problems every semester.

Administrators respond to criticism of the university’s free speech climate by claiming that the university almost never denies demonstrations or events the freedom to operate on campus. This is incredibly misleading.

Student-led initiatives have run into university roadblocks for years.

Student attempts to produce The Vagina Monologues, for example, came to fruition only after independent support from academic programs allowed students to bypass the Office of Student Leadership & Community Development (OSLCD).

Fordham students must apply for

permission to demonstrate on campus. This defeats the point of protesting. By requiring advance permission, Fordham guarantees that demonstrations almost never occur. Fordham claims that it almost never denies these requests, but it is troubling that students have to request the right to demonstrate in the first place.

Administrators claim that the regulations surrounding free speech at Fordham are identical to New York City’s policies. This is also untrue.

New Yorkers who wish to distribute handbills on a public sidewalk or in a public park, have a demonstration, rally or press conference on a public sidewalk, or march on a public sidewalk without using amplified sound, do not need any permits.

Fordham’s policies are more restrictive than New York City’s policies. And for what reason? Surely New York City has more significant safety concerns to weigh regarding free speech than Fordham does.

Matters are even worse for Resident Assistants (RAs), who operate under a near-constant state of lowboiling fear.

RAs with whom I have spoken privately disdain the intimidating behavior of the Office of Residential Life — and particularly that of its director, Kimberly Russell. Yet, when trying to get them to speak publicly, they are terrified of losing their jobs.

Some RAs will not even voice their disapproval via private text message or email out of fear of reprisal.

As a former RA, I remember being told in training by Senior VP for Student Affairs Jeffrey Gray that it was unprofessional to criticize your employer. Disturbingly, Gray seemed to be referring to an event the year before in which several black RAs publicly questioned the university’s handling of a hate incident in which someone scrawled a racial slur on the door of a black RA. At least one of those RAs was not offered the RA position the following year.

This unapologetic act of intimidation is indicative of a wider culture.

Matters have only worsened, and RAs have since been told they will be fired if they speak with membrs of the media (including The Fordham Ram). Other acts of intimidation are hardly uncommon.

Even staff members and faculty do not feel safe to speak freely at Fordham.

A number of Resident Directors (RDs) — both present and former — have quietly voiced their strong

disapproval of Kimberly Russell and the management of the Office of Residential Life, but none of them will do so publicly.

Reviews of Russell on ebosswatch. com, an online review site where users can evaluate their employers, are 100 percent unfavorable. One review calls her “cruel,” though others are more harsh.

After I wrote an article for USA Today College last week regarding Fordham’s free speech problem, several former Residential Life employees reached out to thank me for saying what they were too afraid to say.

One message summed up the climate succinctly: “Great article on free speech — clearly I’m still in fear as I’m messaging you [privately]!”

Last year, a number of dissatisfied Residential Life employees reputedly left a thick folder of complaints documenting the Office of Residential Life’s mismanagement and the general climate of intimidation. These complaints appear to have resulted in no change whatsoever.

Professors are also not spared from Fordham’s free speech climate.

When I was writing a story last semester for USA Today College about SAGES, for example, none of the five professors I contacted were willing to speak with me on the record.

Even when students have attempted to reform Fordham’s free speech environment, they have largely — if not entirely — failed.

United Student Government published a forty-five-page report on Fordham’s free speech problem in 2013, which, despite the valiant effort, bore no fruit.

Still, Fordham students should not give up hope. The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), relies heavily on students and faculty to report free speech infringements, and I strongly encourage members of the Fordham community to file individual cases with FIRE on their website at www.TheFire.org/resources/ submit-a-case/.

For the good of the university, university, students must stand up, speak out and demand free speech. We can not set the world on fire if the university keeps raining on our parade.

Canton Winer, FCRH ’15 and former Managing Editor of The Fordham Ram, is an American studies and sociology major from West Palm Beach, Florida. He has written about this topic for USA Today College.

OPINION

Page 12

March 25, 2015

Stringent Drug Policies Inhibit Companies’ Acclimation to Marijuana Leniency

By KRISTEN SANTER ASSISTANT OPINION EDITOR

For the past couple of months, I have been applying for internships and jobs in Connecticut and New York, and I was interested to see that a sizable number of employers asked if I was willing to participate in a drug test, especially since both states have only recently legalized medical marijuana. It brought to my attention how medicinal and recreational marijuana legalization is going to affect the workplace in the next few years, especially with new states like Oregon and Alaska joining in the legalization of recreational marijuana.

According to Yahoo! Finance, positive drug tests rose to 3.7 percent for the first time in a decade, and in Colorado and Washington, positive drug tests for marijuana increased to 20 and 23 percent respectively. However, there is little evidence that companies have begun to relax their drug use policies, with most employers enforcing a zero tolerance policy. With medicinal and recreational marijuana use on the rise, this could ignite a new form of discrimination in the workplace.

Under the amendment that legalized marijuana in Colorado, employers are not required to “accommodate the medical use of marijuana in any work place.”

However, Brandon Coats, a previous employee of Dish Network and quadriplegic, was fired after failing a drug test even though he had a medicinal marijuana prescription; Coats states that marijuana controls leg spasms and that he was always sober while at work. He has yet to receive an answer from the Colorado Supreme Court after his appeal.

When marijuana was legalized, loss of jobs was an unintended and unfortunate consequence.

While there is not enough information to fully discuss the financial repercussions and benefits of marijuana legalization, perhaps citizens and legislators did not realize the economical drawbacks, while they were focusing on the substantial monetary increase in state revenues from taxes.

As of right now, there seems to be no apparent backlash from the media or the community about the danger that marijuana legalization poses to jobs. However, this is more likely the fault of companies strict drug policies than marijuana legalization itself.

One of the only new measures regarding marijuana drug testing is now occurring in the District of Columbia, where employers are banned from requiring drug tests of potential employees. However, employers still retain the right to test employees for drugs after including them on payroll.

While companies take their time adjusting policies to fit the changing times and laws, potential employees may be overlooked and rejected based on their legal drug use. Unfortunately, there are many contingencies with drug

use policies.

Currently, the standard drug test will indicate that employees are positive for marijuana even if they are sober during work hours, and use it solely as a weekend activity. The ingredient THC that is found in marijuana can usually be detected in the urine from one week to one month after marijuana consumption, according to Drug Court Institute. Employees are therefore allowed to drink casually, but cannot consume marijuana whatsoever.

In addition, state marijuana laws directly clash with the federal law, which clearly states that the use of marijuana is illegal.

Any employer that receives federal funding or is subject to other federal regulations must consider marijuana a prohibited substance, regardless of its legalization status in the state.

Although these issues continue to plague and prohibit reform within the workplace, companies need to review their policies and back away from their strong commitment to zero tolerance. Employers will only continue to receive backlash and lawsuits from the community, and block their

companies from progress.

While federally supported companies should demand a drug-free workforce, it is confusing to figure out how to respond to the increase in the recreational use of marijuana. It is clear that employers should not discriminate against users of medicinal marijuana, assuming that they are sober while at work. Although their employment is not protected under the Colorado state constitution, employers should not deny employees their various healthcare options as long as they remain drug free during working hours.

However, employers are not unreasonable by demanding a drug free zone. In their eyes, it has been the only way to ensure an acceptable and respectable workplace attitude and ethic for the past few decades, making them feel at ease that none of their employees are drug users, and therefore sober while working (there are obviously employees who slip through the cracks, however).

Nevertheless, many companies should implement a more lax policy regarding marijuana use,

at least until new drug tests are created that can accurately record marijuana consumption. Employees are expected to remain sober and alert during work hours, but they cannot be blamed for marijuana use recreationally any more than alcohol consumption.

Companies can remain rigid in their commitment to zero tolerance when it comes to drug testing policies, but they will continue to suffer from it. The growing shift in the perception of marijuana demands reform. In addition, several studies have arisen which question the overall effectiveness of drug tests. Lewis Maltby’s study, published as early as 1999 by the American Civil Liberties Union, stated that it is not an accurate and inexpensive way to measure employee efficiency.

As companies hopefully begin to soften their drug testing stringency with the rise of casual marijuana use, we may see the slow decline and eventual end of drug testing altogether.

Kristen Santer, FCRH ’17, is a communication and media studies major from Stamford, Connecticut.

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Cate Carrejo Making the Most of the End of the Semester As I write this, I am in the process of boarding my plane back from spring break in Boca Raton, Florida. The gate attendant just promised my fellow passengers and I a smooth trip back to “Paradise, New Jersey,” also known as Newark Liberty Airport. I scoffed to myself and thought bitterly, “I’m leaving paradise, not going back to it.”

I suspect that most of you are just as unhappy about leaving your tropical or snowy paradise as I am about leaving Florida. My Facebook and Snapchat were full of white sand beaches, Vienna cafes and Greek ruins, places that make New York City look positively dull. After a week of non-stop sunshine and palm trees, of lazy days and crazy nights, the thought of going back to school is almost physically painful.

All good things must come to an end, and vacation tends to have an unsettlingly abrupt nature to its end. But it’s not so much the end of vacation that we mourn, but the return to the generally unpleasant realities of a student. One day, you’re carefree and floating through decisions and hours; the next day, you’re back to the regiment and responsibility of school. Break is a huge tease; it’s supposed to build you back up to get ready to finish the semester strong, but it really just leaves you hating the fact that you even have to go back. Vacation gives the illusion of adult independence that gets harshly shattered by the contradiction of arbitrary and mandatory that school entails.

What we have to remember is that we have to make the most of this time at the end of the semester. This is the part of the semester that counts and we have to make it count, despite the apathy that tends to set in after spring break.

And even if it’s less than ideal, the manic hectic spring weekend/finals week/move out blur is a welcome rush of adrenaline. This is the work hard, play hard, whirlwind sprint at the end of the marathon that we have subconsciously been waiting all year to reach. So no matter how hard it will be to pry our minds away from the beach, we must launch ourselves into the end of this semester with the intensity each day deserves.

I’m on my plane now and leaving Florida behind me. The transformative and uplifting promise of the last chance to accomplish and experience something new before the end of the school year provides comfort as the beach grows smaller behind and below me. Now I have to make Fordham my paradise, and perhaps that simply means facing each day with the enthusiasm contained in possibility. I hope as you read this, it helps you set your mind with a similar attitude to embrace the last few weeks of this year.

Tackle whatever you have been putting off, set a few goals, study meaningfully for your impending tests. Don’t waste this time waiting for summer, because it will be here before we know it!

Excellent.

This is your opportunity to show the nation that Fordham University is one of the best colleges in the country!

Excellent.

CULTURE

March 25. 2015

Page 13

The Fordham Ram

Keeping It Minimal This Spring

By ELIZABETH SMISLOVA CONTRIBUTING WRITER

“Fashion,” Vivienne WEstwood said, “is life-enhancing and, like everything that gives pleasure, is worth doing well.” Doing things well usually implies effort, something many college students do not want to put forth in their wardrobe because of other priorities. Now that spring is here, shedding winter layers to reveal spring fashion is a breeze.

Fortunately, the runways this year have made looking chic on a daily basis simple. Minimalism is making a comeback, but do not put off this style as boring. Less truly is more when it comes to style, so sticking to monochromatic outfits can still pack quite a punch. Clean lines with a twist, like an envelope skirt, add interest. Play with textures as well, like animal skin and feathers (all faux, of course). Geometric cutouts are a great way to show off a little skin and add some color this spring. Minimalist pieces go with everything; you can make them work for day and night. Take a simple black top with a boxy fit and cut outs on the shoulders. With jeans, black booties with a sturdy heel, and maybe even a cardigan, you have a perfect outfit for running around campus going to class.

Now take the top again, add white jeans and peep toe stiletto booties, and you are ready to take NYC nightlife by storm.

As Miranda Preistly duly noted in The Devil Wears Prada, “Florals? For spring? Ground-breaking.” Although she had a point, florals will always be in for spring, just like black will always be the new black. You can always improve on perfection, however. Island prints may seem more like something from a nightmare of your family vacation to Florida 10 years ago than a fashion forward option, but trust me.

Large flower prints graced the models for Michael Kors and Fendi. More affordable brands with similar styles include Banana Republic and Topshop. To avoid looking too much like a cliche American tourist out of Lilo & Stitch, pair bright colors with neutrals, like black.

Loud prints are another area where minimalism can succeed in creating seamless style in an unexpected way.

For example, a jumpsuit by Michael Kors features a bright, sky blue background with a large floral print. The sweet-heart strapless neckline keeps the ensemble youthful, along with the trendy jumpsuit silhouette. Add a belt for texture, interest and shape. I love a heel with jumpsuits, and viola!

AMANDA SCHWAB/AP

For a casual spring look, a dress can be paired with wedges and bright accessories to pull off a simple but stunning look.

You have a simple yet playful look for spring that is flattering for most body types.

Another classic piece that is getting an update this season is chambray, a light, breathable version of denim for warm weather. All-denim outfits are everywhere, but if you find that you look more farmer than runway, invest in a simple chambray dress that provides a clean canvas for endless outfits.

Ones with a slight v-neck and three

quarter length sleeves are universally flattering and can work for day or night. Felt floppy hats in burgundy, black, or tan and strappy sandals give off a bohemian vibe. But a dark belt and heels (wedges are a more casual option) are perfect for date night on Arthur Ave. Chambray is not limited to just clothes, though. Take old jeans and DIY a chambray headband, a super trendy piece that also incorporates the ’70s theme featured on the

runways. YouTube has good videos on DIY-ing with denim, including creating cute shorts with lace cutouts (a personal favorite).

Staying on trend does not have to cost a lot when your shoes go with everything. Christina D’Ambrosio, writer for hit blog “College Fashionista” says, “Looking for a versatile piece that’ll transition your winter wardrobe into warmer weather? Giving you a perfect solution to all of those days between boots and flip flop seasons, a cute pair of sneakers will be your spring BFF. Match high-top Converse or Vans with a skirt for an adorable look that’ll work for any occasion this season.” They are practical for outdoor events, class and even for a casual date.

For accessories, asymmetrical earrings are everywhere. Forever 21 and H&M are classic places to stock up on cheap jewelry and sure to complete an outfit. Cool earring backings and mismatched combinations are the perfect dose of interest. Chokers are also in, but they can be intimidating. I recommend trying one when you go out one night with a simple outfit; you will love the confidence surge. Brandy Melville has simple ones, like thin black velvet, and Claire’s has cheap ones too. Makeup and hair are icing on the cake, and there are some styles that are particularly on trend this season. Messy buns get the hair off your face and look cute.

YouTube has easy tutorials on styles that look more complicated than they are. Plum eyeshadow is very flattering on all eye colors. Use it in small amounts during the day, and build it up for night. Doing fashion well doesn’t have to be hard — but always represent your own personality in what you wear.

Film Club Prompts Students’ Reactions on Social Issues

By NICOLE HORTON CULTURE EDITOR

What some people may not know is that Fordham University’s REACT to FILM is not another student-run club on campus, but a college chapter of a national non-profit organization based in New York City.

In addition to attending leadership conferences with filmmakers, the group meets weekly to discuss thought-provoking documentaries.

The national organization selects documentaries for the college chapters to view and discuss. They host free screenings open to all students, serving both enticing conversations and pizza. REACT to FILM also looks to raise money for the causes featured in the films.

REACT to FILM’s goal is to inspire young people to engage in real issues through film. Its main goal is “leveraging the best issue-based filmmaking to promote social responsibility and spark civic engagement.”

Club president Marlessa Stivala, FCRH ’16 explains what the club is about, and how film can bring various groups of people together.

“At the REACT to FILM yearly leadership conferences, one of the main things that they talk about is ‘What’s your favorite issue you’re passionate about?’” said Stivala. “Because I think everyone, whatever their political or religious affiliation is, has a certain issue that they re-

COURTESY OF RUN RABBIT RUN MEDIA

Matt Shepard is a young boy who was murdered due to his sexuality in 1998.

ally care about, so I think it’s nice that every time we have a film we have a certain club or group of people that could get on board.”

Stivala recalls a particularly stimulating discussion and debate about The Internet’s Own Boy, in which

filmmaker Brian Knappenberger explores the life and work of programming and information activist Aaron Swartz.

“One of my favorite post-screenings discussions was last year when we did The Internet’s Own Boy,” said

Stivala. “We had a very lively discussion [regarding] Aaron Swartz. It was interesting because there wasn’t an even split per say: where some people were saying, ‘It’s really awesome what he did,’ but other people were saying, ‘Actually, I understand why the government did what they did.’”

For Grant Bolles, FCRH ’16, relatable films are an important aspect for REACT to FILM’s discussions.

“Especially with The Internet’s Own Boy, we’re all part of that generation that grew up with the Internet and is going to live with the Internet for the rest of our lives,” said Bolles.

“I think the issues that get more discussion are the ones that pertain to our lives the most.”

REACT to FILM is always looking to expand its membership and collaborate with other student clubs that are proponents of the issues explored in these films.

“The more that the events are related to things that people on Fordham’s campus are interested in, whether academically if they’re tied into a core class, or generally,” said Caitlin Hufnagle, FCRH ’16.

“Matt Shepard is a Friend of Mine is something that a lot of people are interested in at Fordham — LGBT relations is an important topic, especially with a lot of things going on with Women’s Empowerment and PRIDE. Also the fact that they’re so broad, like to have done Virunga

and now we’re doing Matt Shepard: they’re two extremely different issues, but I think that means we get to touch more people.”

Matt Shepard was a gay student at the University of Wyoming who was beaten and left to die in a large field on Oct. 6, 1998. Aaron McKinney and Russell Henderson were arrested shortly after the attack, charged with murder and received two consecutive life sentences. Significant media coverage was given to what role Shepard’s sexual orientation played in the killing, and his murder brought national and international attention to hate crime legislation.

“The more we have things that pique people’s interests, the more people will come out and get interested in our club,” said Hufnagle.

In addition to discussing documentaries, REACT to FILM members weighs in on Academy Award nominations, like Virunga which won Best Documentary in 2014.

They also discussed the recent controversy that minority filmmakers have not received proper accolades.

Hufnagle said that they went to an event that gave women filmmakers a platform to discuss their experiences and projects.

REACT to FILM’s next event on April 9 at 8 p.m. is a screening of Matt Shepard is a Friend of Mine. The event is supported by PRIDE and Women’s Studies. There will be free food and a panel discussion following the film.

Page 14

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CULTURE

March 25, 2015

Who’s That Kid? | Joe Russo

Advice | Catherine Kastberg

Shaping up for Summer Now that spring break has come and gone, it’s time to seriously crack down. While I hope everyone enjoyed themselves on vacation and participated in the “treat yourself” mentality by eating anything and everything in sight, it is time to prepare for summer. I hate to say it, but the key to losing weight is making sacrifices. The most important part about exercising is making sure you put time aside to do it. It can be hard and annoying, but if you want to get into shape you have to acknowledge that this is a serious commitment.

Now that the weather is supposedly getting warmer, there are so many more opportunities for exercise. As Fordham students, we are fortunate enough to be granted access to the Botanical Gardens. If you have yet to visit and take a relaxing jog or walk in the gardens, you are missing out.

The scenery is so beautiful that you will forget you are even working out.

Another alternative is the Bronx Zoo. It’s free for everyone on Wednesdays and is also a great place for a stroll or a jog. Remember when we were little and jumping rope was a fun past time? Well, why not try to develop that habit again. You will be shocked at how easy little kids make it look because it is definitely a workout that delivers results.

After cardio comes the fat burning exercises, such as squats and planks.

Interval training is also a great way to lose weight and it flies by. ndulge yourself in the warm weather by strolling down Arthur, and treat yourself to a satisfying salad at Johns Pizzeria or mix it up with a smoothie at Healthy Fresh, which can be found on Hughes. Try sticking to foods that are high in fiber and low in fat such as whole grains, fruits, nuts and vegetables. One of my biggest challenges when trying to slim down is snacking; I love snacking. Instead of automatically reaching for the bag of chips, substitute with carrots and hummus or vanilla yogurt with granola and fruit mixed in. The hardest part of fitness is developing a routine and carving out time in your day, but once you have achieved that, it will become a second thought.

KELLYN SIMPKINS/ THE RAM

Page 15

Student Runs on Dunkin

By BLAINE KANIEWSKI DIGITAL EDITOR

The new face of Dunkin’ Donuts has arrived, and his name is Joe Russo. It all began on June 27, 2009 when Joe wanted to try his first iced coffee. The first sip of the French vanilla iced coffee with cream and sugar will be remembered forever.

Russo says, “My life has changed since that moment, and even now, whenever I drink French vanilla, I don’t taste it as much as I did that day.”

Being a communications major helped this Bronx native to become involved in media, leading him to be aware of the lack of Dunkin’ representation throughout the media industry. Even though he is not an official spokesperson, Joe advertises on Twitter, Instagram and by wearing Dunkin’ Donuts paraphernalia often. Dunkin’ is even the first topic of choice Joe uses in conversation when he meets someone new. He says you rarely see him without a coffee cup in his hand.

His dream is to be in commercials, papers and on the radio, preaching about all Dunkin’ has to offer the world. Joe says he wants his “face in shining lights in Times Square.”

Keeping up with new coffee flavors and coupons is important in being a Dunkin’ public figure, and Joe keeps updated by reading the webpage daily.

Joe is proud to say Dunkin’ follows him on Twitter, as well as tweets directly to him and retweeting him, making his dream of being the Dunkin’ Donuts spokesperson even more of a reality.

But, being the Dunkin’ spokesperson may not be as simple as it seems. Joe says Dunkin’ does not offer any internships. He even wrote them a letter about being an intern, but they never got back to him.

But, that won’t discourage Joe

COURTESY OF JOSEPH RUSSO

Joe visits California and hopes to play a role in bringing Dunkin’ to the west coast.

from continuing his pursuit of being the star of Dunkin’ Donuts. “Hopefully I can bring Dunkin’ Donuts to the West Coast” Joe says, “those poor people are suffering.” But, according to Joe, Dunkin’ only has two establishments in California, and that can put a kink in his plans to successfully become the official Dunkin’ spokesperson. “It’s frustrating because I really want to get Dunkin’ out to Cali, but don’t want to leave Dunkin’ behind,” says Joe. Joe has spent his time at Fordham working hard to gain experience in media through jobs and internships at broadcast stations including CBS. By putting himself out there, Russo says, “I’m better able to be taken seriously as a media spokesperson for Dunkin’ by already being seen in media corporations, and through connecting with Dunkin’ via the

media.”

Due to his great love for Dunkin’, Joe is very anti-Starbucks. “I drank Starbucks before trying Dunkin’, and was never in love with it,” says Joe, “I just find the quality of the coffee isn’t up to par with the price and that really bugs me.”

In 10 years, Joe sees himself on TV, advertising for Dunkin’. He also recommends the iced coffee and pretzel twists for a snack. But, if that plan does not work, Russo says, “Ideally if I can’t be their spokesperson, I’d like to work for them and maybe work on a plan to expand them out to California and the West Coast.”

Joe says he looks forward to graduation and pursuing his Dunkin’ dream. For now he says, “I’ll finish out my time here at Fordham the way I started, with a whole lot of Dunkin’ iced coffee.”

Review | Television

E!’s ‘The Royals’: A Not So Guilty Indulgence

By NICOLE HORTON CULTURE EDITOR

“One Tree Hill” creator Mark Schwann weaves an intricate web of royal drama and deceit in E!’s first scripted series with a pilot episode that can easily draw in fans. “The Royals,” filled with family turmoil, scandal and illicit romances, has the potential to compete with other television melodrama staples like “Empire,” “Scandal” and “How to Get Away With Murder.”

The fictional British monarchy is helmed by King Simon (Vincent Regan, 300) and Queen Helena (Elizabeth Hurley, “Gossip Girl”), who appear to be polar opposites rather than a united royal couple. King Simon is an enlightened ruler and shows how much he cares about his children. Queen Helena embodies Lady Macbeth as she looks to suppress her emotions, often associated with femininity, in favor of appearing as a strong ruler. Since they do not seem to be compatible, it will be interest-

ing to see if there will be flashbacks or scenes reminiscing about how the two came to be married.

It is the younger royals that the show really has fun with in regards to outrageousness and debauchery.

As Prince Liam, William Moseley is sincere and charming with boyband-cute looks. In addition to his demeanor and blonde hair, Prince Liam is similar to the real-life Prince William in that he has a crush on a commoner, Ophelia (Merritt Patterson, “Ravenswood”). Ophelia’s father is the head of the Royals security detail. Viewers will want to root for this couple, but also worry that their interaction will impact her father’s job. For “Gossip Girl” fans, Ophelia will remind them of Dan or Vanessa — on the outside looking into an impermeable, glamorous and wealthy world. In conjunction with that reference, Prince Liam could easily be Nate Archibald’s royal alter ego.

Prince Liam’s rebellious sister, Princess Eleanor is played by Alexandra Park, who alternates between

nasty retorts, hard partying and displays of emotion that remind you she is a young woman still finding herself.

Then there is Jasper (Tom Austen, Legendary), Princess Eleanor’s attractive bodyguard who will have viewers questioning his intentions and motives. Their interaction will certainly heat up in the upcoming episodes.

Aside from the drama and vices, the pilot also offers a number of humorous moments. The episode begins as Princess Eleanor drunkenly dances on a table at a club, and various tabloid headlines feature photos of “the royal beaver.” Then, there is Liam and Eleanor’s incessantly dumb female cousins who come to visit.

Anyone skeptical of the concept of a monarchy will not have their doubts quelled by watching these two princesses.

“The Royals” is definitely an escapist drama, not a guilty pleasure. Fans of “Gossip Girl” or other melodramas may be intrigued by this well-executed pilot, along with anyone who has ever tracked real-life royal activity.

COURTESY OF E! ENTERTAINMENT TELEVISION

CULTURE

March 25, 2015

Page 16

Tips to Enjoy Your Island Getaway to the Fullest

By NICOLE HORTON CULTURE EDITOR

Spring break may be over, but it is never too early to start planning your next vacation. I was lucky enough to visit Aruba for spring break this year, and along with some sunburn, I brought back a few tips that could make any island getaway great — no matter where or when you go.

Figure out who to tip in order to secure a prime spot on the beach Many resorts in Aruba have lounge chairs underneath huts, creating your very own authentic island spot with shade so you can tan without burning. I have heard of some people waking up at 8 a.m. to claim a spot on the beach, and hoping that there were still a few huts left. If they cannot find a spot, they begrudgingly look for lounge chairs by the pool. Is everyone dropping off their towels and a few belongings early before going back to sleep? No, they are tipping one of the towel guys or other resort employees throughout the week so they can save them a spot. Once you have a solidified spot, you are set for the week.

Be practical when choosing water sports Any island you visit offers a variety of water sports, such as scuba diving, snorkeling, parasailing, kayaking, jet skiing and water rafting. I am certainly not one to back down when it

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Aruba is one of the many tropical vacation destinations that boasts fun in the sun and water sports.

comes to a high-speed roller coaster, but it is important to choose a safe, fun option because there usually are not any restrictions. After all, all you have to do to partake in the water sport of your choice at most locations is sign a waiver and pay. It is good to chat with people who just finished to see if they are experienced or if it just looks easy.

Also, make sure to look into whether your resort offers select activities for free, since choosing a certain options can amount to a lofty bill.

Suntan lotion Since I looked like a ghost after this long winter, I was careful to apply suntan lotion throughout my stay... and I still got sunburned. However, if you

do not reapply, you can get sun poisoning and be forced to stay in the shade the rest of your vacation. No one wants to miss out on sunbathing, so be conscientious about using and reapplying lotion.

Be adventurous in your drink choice and find a favorite bartender All-inclusive resorts offer you the luxury of drinking without worrying about the bill. In addition, you can also try a new drink without worrying you might have just spent $10 to $15 on a cocktail you detest. Rather than choosing the traditional island favorites like pina coladas and margaritas (which

Review | Comic

Air Wars: Behind the Mic

By NICOLE HORTON CULTURE EDITOR

Coinsiding with recent announcements of talk show departures and subsequent revamps, Bluewater Productions’ has released a graphic novel, Air Wars: Behind the Mic: Howard Stern, David Letterman, Chelsea Handler, Conan O’Brien, and Jon Stewart. It chronicles these trailblazing hosts as they have parodied social issues and skewered politicians and celebrities.

“With the announcement that both Stewart and Letterman are stepping down, the landscape of talk shows and political parody is changing,” said Darren G. Davis, Bluewater’s publisher. “Clearly, the people featured in this creative nonfiction volume have influenced news broadcasting and pop culture. The stories about their success are as fascinating as any of the news they report and as funny as their jokes.”

Written by writers C.W. Cooke, Melissa Seymour, Patrick McCormack and Jerome Maida and illustrated by Noumier Tawilah, Jon Stanicek, Erick Adrian Marquez, Kent Hurlburt and Tsubasa Yozora, the collected edition of Air Wars: Behind the Mic features a cover by artist George Amaru.

Like me, readers may be confused why the cover uses the word “Mike” instead of “Mic” in the title.

The illustrations are lifelike, vibrant and fun.

Beginning with longtime late night host David Letterman, the graphic novel details his journey to fame, his bits that made him a comedic icon and how comedic influences like Johnny Carson

shaped his career.

The graphic novel also details Letterman’s other business endeavors like his production company, and how he dealt with personal struggles like extortion and the attempted kidnapping of his son.

In Chelsea Handler’s excerpt, her pint-sized, funny assistant Chuy makes an appearance. Handler would not be pleased with all of the dark marks on her character’s face, which creates the illusion of wrinkles.

However, Air Wars: Behind the Mic provides insight into Handler’s difficult times and her brash, no-holds-barred style of comedy that gained attention as she hit the stand-up comedy circuit in Los Angeles. As Handler prepares to move from E! to Netflix, her career will definitely continue to evolve.

It was a bit jarring to see a colorful depiction of Jon Stewart on the cover of his section and then a black and white story that also differed from Letterman and Handler’s excerpts.

Stewart’s fans will learn a lot about his earlier career though, including his failed attempts at acting and MTV show success.

The graphic novel also shows how Stewart addressed 9/11 with class and a bit of humor.

Conan O’ Brien’s story illustrations are as vibrant as his red hair.

This section does a great job of recounting O’Brien’s path to fame

are certainly favored for a reason), there are a number of different drinks you can order so you do not get sick of either. A pina colada and strawberry daiquiri blended together is a delicious Miami Vice. Another tasty option is the Dirty Monkey (just ignore the Urban Dictionary results), which is generally made up of Bailey’s Irish cream, a fresh banana, rum and cognac. A bartender recommended a mango mixed drink with raspberry Smirnoff vodka, which was a great combination. Alternatively mojitos are a fresh, less heavy mixed drink.

If you want a unique twist, ask for a lemon mojito, which mixes well with the lime and mint at the bottom of

Binge Guide | Nicole Fiorica

Game of Thrones At a glance: Genre: High Fantasy Seasons/Episodes: 4/40 Avg .Episode Length: 55 mins Available on: HBO GO, Amazon

COURTESY OF FLICKR

and various career moves, detailing O’Brien’s rise as a comedy writer with “Saturday Night Live” and “The Simpsons.” It was actually “SNL” executive producer Lorne Michaels who recommended O’Brien as the next host of “The Late Show.”

The graphic novel also recounts O’Brien’s short-lived promotion to “The Tonight Show” and how he handled the disappointment gracefully.

The last host featured is Sirius XM’s often-controversial host Howard Stern.

Air Wars: Behind the Mic does a good job of depicting Stern’s ups and downs as he looked to find the right platform for his comedic style.

Any fans of these hosts and their respective talk shows will definitely enjoy this book with its intriguing illustrations and details about their careers.

the glass. Finding a favorite bartender will definitely enhance your drinking experience. A good one may even offer tips for preparing the drinks.

Avoid turning all-inclusive into all-you-can-eat All-inclusive resorts, which are very popular in Aruba, usually offer buffets for breakfast and lunch. It is important to remember that not every meal is an opportunity to take advantage of plentiful options or to justify the costly all-inclusive prices.

Good options for breakfast are omelets, yogurt and fresh fruit. For lunch, I would take advantage of the salad bar and variety of fresh seafood.

When I went to the restaurants for dinner, I would indulge more.

Get restaurant recommendations from frequent visitors If you are not staying at an allinclusive resort or look to venture into town one night for dinner it is a good idea to get restaurant recommendations from frequent visitors.

In Aruba, there are an overwhelming number of restaurants in the nearby commercial area. It is easy to chat with people on the beach or in the pool, and it is better to get a recommendation from someone who has had a timeshare for 20 years versus a random review online. This is how I ended up visiting one of the best Italian restaurants I have ever been to outside of Arthur Avenue.

What it’s about Taking place in the fictional realm of Westeros, the acclaimed show begins when Ned Stark (Sean Bean, Lord of the Ring) is asked to be the new advisor to King Robert Baratheon, an old friend. Not eager to take the position but worried about the influence of Robert’s scheming wife Cersei (Lena Headey, 300) and her family, the Lannisters, he leaves his family in Winterfell in an attempt to protect the king. Meanwhile, across the sea, Daenerys Targaryen (Emilia Clarke) makes new alliances in an attempt to reclaim the throne that was taken from her family years ago, and in the North, an older, more ominous threat looms over everyone as winter approaches.

Why it’s so good Over the course of the pilot episode, “Winter is Coming,” it is an undeniable fact that every viewer will fall in love with the Stark family, from oldest brother Robb (Richard Madden, Cinderella), to mischievous younger sister Arya (Maisie Williams), to bastard brother Jon Snow (Kit Harington). The show’s switching perspectives not only follow the individual threads of the Stark family but also a number of other compelling characters whose stories weave together seamlessly over the course of episodes and seasons. This show has amazing storytelling, and is as appealing as a political drama as it is a fantasy story.

Why you should binge it As you might be able to tell just from

this very basic brief of the show, “Game of Thrones” is a show where a lot of things are happening at once, and binging it makes it much easier to keep track of going on. Additionally, if you haven’t jumped on to the bandwagon by now, you’re already way behind. “Game of Thrones” is nothing short of a cultural phenomenon, and you know you’ve already heard spoilers about a certain Red Wedding, among other references. If you want to catch up before the new season starts on April 12 to avoid yet more spoilers, you should get going.

Standouts Among the most important characters to watch include Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage), who is dubbed the Imp on the show because of his height, but whose character has incredible depth. The show is also structured so that the climax of each season happens in the penultimate episode of each season, episode nine. This means that “Baelor,” “Blackwater,” “The Rains of Castamere,” and “The Watchers on the Wall,” — all of which are among the highest rated of the series — are all best suited for keeping you on the edge of your seat.

Potential Pitfalls The large cast of characters, one of the principle reasons I suggest binging the show, are going to keep you on your toes. It’s helpful to keep in mind that “Game of Thrones” is not the kind of show that you can watch while multitasking if you truly want to understand everything that’s going on. This also would not be an adequate “Game of Thrones” guide if I didn’t warn you not to get too cozy to any one character. No one is too important to be killed at any point in time. Tears will be shed.

CULTURE

March 25, 2015

Page 17

A Passion for Theater On Fordham Stages and Beyond

By ALYSSA OPDYKE CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Michelle Corr is Fordham’s fieriest member of the theater communityand it’s not just because of her crimson mane.

Michelle and I sat down at our local Panera Bread over spring break — we are both Fordham neighbors and at-home neighbors of a very small Philadelphia suburb — for food, laughs, to compare home and school and to talk about her involvement in Fordham’s theater community.

Admittedly a “shy kid,” the sophomore, communications major and music minor first became involved with improv theater as a preteen to “open up a bit.” The love for all things theater has been in place ever since; she joined her first musical in seventh grade and began to seriously consider a career in theater in her junior year of high school.

Hoping to continue pursuing her love of theater after high school and immerse herself in Fordham, she has been involved in the performing arts since her first semester at Fordham. That fall, she joined the theater group The Mimes and Mummers, Fordham’s mainstage theater group based in Collins Auditorium. There, her first role was of the “ridiculous” hairdresser Paulette in Legally Blonde – a role she had played once before and a character she admits is her “in 30 years.” She has worked on a number of productions, most recently the rock musical Rent, a production she calls “exhausting” but well worth it.

COURTESY OF MICHELLE CORR

Michelle Corr, FCRH ‘17, participates in on and off-campus theater opportunities. She began doing improv theater as a preteen.

Wanting to expand her theater repertoire, she joined Fordham’s Experimental Theatre Group (FET), a student-run group focused on “experimental productions,” including off-Broadway productions, student written plays and musicals. There, she has assisted with various productions since her freshman year, and she made her on-stage debut in this fall’s production of Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson. She hilariously narrated the show as Storyteller, a role she enjoyed thoroughly because of its nature as “a parody of a person” and new opportunity to “die on stage.”

When asked about her favorite Fordham theater memory between the two groups, Michelle cackled and immediately remembered an inci-

Behind the Ghostlight | Richard Bordelon

Trying to Find the Next ‘The Book of Mormon’ It is no doubt that The Book of Mormon is a smash. When it opened in March 2011, this completely new show has sold out nearly every single performance, with tickets ranging from $100 for the last row to almost $500 for prime orchestra seats — quite the price to pay for a two-anda-half-hour Broadway musical. To date, the show has grossed over $300 million in ticket sales alone (not to mention merchandise and cast album sales) and won the 2011 Tony for Best New Musical.

It’s the kind of success that Broadway producers often only dream of.

To that end, most producers have tried to find shows that can find this kind of commercial success in a very expensive business. While revivals are often more likely to recoup the initial investment of the producers, new musicals are the ones that make the big bucks.

Of the musicals currently on Broadway that have run for more than two years, only one is a revival: Chicago. Long-running musicals, such as The Phantom of the Opera, Mamma Mia!, Jersey Boys, and Wicked, are all still in their original productions. The productions of new musicals have reaped the rewards of loyal fan bases and consistent wordof-mouth marketing among locals and tourists alike.

To launch a new musical, however, is a big risk.

It takes millions of dollars to put a Broadway musical on the stage,

and it takes hundreds of thousands of dollars to keep a show running from week to week. Until ticket sales become steady, producers may have to shoulder these weekly costs themselves just to keep a show open in the hopes of award nominations or a sudden bump in sales.

But, let’s not forget the artistic aspect of commercial theatre. Musical theatre is, after all, an art form. Many producers try to find shows that balance the commercially appealing and artistically fulfilling aspects of live theatre; these shows should, hypothetically, be the most successful. Occasionally, they take an even greater risk and look for something that is also new, something that has never been done before.

This season, three shows fit this “wholly original” description: The Last Ship, Something Rotten! and It Shoulda Been You. Each of these musicals have a story and score that is not based on any previous material. The Last Ship, which had a score

by The Police’s frontman Sting (and even starred him for a few weeks), has already closed, losing $12 million dollars in its wake. The other two shows open in April, at the peak of the Broadway season, and both feature seasoned Broadway performers.

Will Rotten or Shoulda become the next Broadway smash? Could one, or both, of these original musicals run for years to come, like Mormon?

Well, only time — and maybe Tony Awards — will tell.

dent during Bloody Bloody: “Sally, one of our leads, was washing fake blood off of one of her arms between scenes, and missed her cue.

We were in the wings and had no idea what to do—do we go on stage?

Move on? Thank God, Ellie [Crane, FCRH ’16, who played President Andrew Jackson in the production] was improv-ing for like five minutes.

She went up to AJ [Golio, FCRH ’16, a fellow member of FET who was not in the production] and asked his name. When he replied AJ, she said, ‘Me too!’ and everyone cracked up. It

was great.”

Despite alarming incidents like this, Michelle finds unique strengths within and ability to collaborate among both groups, and appreciates the different acting environments and “close knit families” each group provides: “Mimes is different in that it feels more professional with the hired directors and assistance, and actually feels like it’s what you’re going to do in a theater career, where FET is more of a student group effort towards running and being in the production — but Mimes definitely also involves work as a group.”

Although a majority of FET and Mimes members participate in shows for their own extracurricular enjoyment, Michelle has bigger theater plans. “I’m going to be on Broadway, but in the event that doesn’t pan out, I would love to do publicity for a theater in midtown.” She chose to attend Fordham not only for its “opportunity for a real degree” and “insane sense of family,” but also to pursue her acting career both on and off campus.

And that she has.

Beyond FET and Mimes, Michelle had the opportunity to film as an extra for the newly premiered Netflix sitcom Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt during the fall semester. Even though it was a long day of filming, she described the experience as “surreal,” as well as an excellent way to meet and

learn from veteran extras. Michelle even had the opportunity to speak to executive producer Tina Fey and guest star Tim Blake Nelson, as well as bask in the presence of series stars Titus Burgess and Ellie Kemper.

A devotee to Phantom of the Opera, Michelle is also currently studying voice with Andrew Drost, a company member of the show, who has given her “great acting and life tips.” She cites Drost, as well as Idina Menzel, Sarah Brightman, Ramin Karimloo, Lea Solanga, and Orfeh as her primary performance inspirations.

Beyond her involvement in theater, Michelle is a member of the Rose Hill Society and Gloria Dei choir, is a Josh Groban devotee, loves exploring new neighborhoods in the city, and has quite the hidden talent: rapping. “I can rap every single verse of “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air” [theme song] and “Ice Ice Baby.”

But unlike her usual spitfire and detailed answers to my inquiries, there was one last question Michelle couldn’t help but to hesitate on: What is her dream Mimes or FET show?

After a brief moment of delay, Michelle lit up and answered, Heathers.

It could work for either Mimes or FET. But my absolute favorite show is Chess. It’s perfect.” She immediately requested that I watch it.

And with that passion, how could you not?

Editor’s Pick | Irish Movies

St. Patty’s Through Film

By CAILIN MCKENNA ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

Last Tuesday, the streets of New York were filled with people wearing green head to toe and boasting that on this day they, too, were Irish.

St. Patrick’s Day captures the green scenery you’re likely to find around the Emerald Isle. However, Ireland and the Irish culture is more than this Americanized holiday might suggested. It is more than boiled meat, potatoes and a pint of Guinness.

As a member of a very Irish family, it is easy to grow bored of traditional Irish meals which consist of boiling just about everything. There is more to the culture than the bland food, though. Many people know of Ireland’s traditional step dance, folk and Celtic music. But, many people are unaware of its growing film industry, especially in the independent film industry.

I spent much of my spring break lounging around and watching movies. In honor of the holiday, my family decided to watch many Irish films.

Fortunately, Netflix recently added an extensive list of Irish classics and new films. These films capture the picturesque views of the Irish countryside, the bustling streets Dublin, and the unique music and culture of Ireland.

Every St. Patrick’s Day, you’ll find the 1952 movie The Quiet Man, starring John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara, playing on my living room television. It tells the story of an American man who escapes his past by returning to his homeland, Ireland. He buys a house in the Irish countryside, and falls in love with his unpleasant neighbor’s younger sister.

The love story is met with beautiful views of the Irish countryside and

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The Quiet Man, released in 1952, showcases Irish culture.

disputes over the relationship in the small village.

Today’s Irish film scene is largely made up of independent films, in contrast to the grand and elaborate production of mid-twentieth-century movies. An example of this push towards independent films that put the Irish industry on the map is the film Once, which stars the members of the band Swell Season. Set to award-winning music, the movie tells the story of an Irish street musician who meets a young Czech woman.

The characters, named “Girl” and “Boy,” form an unlikely pair and decide to collaborate and combine their musical talents. Their music tells the story of their blossoming love. The film was made on a tight budget, but went on to win an Oscar for best original song and was adapted to the Broadway stage.

The Irish film industry is not just limited to romances such as Once and The Quiet Man. Like their British neighbors, the Irish are also known for their dry sense of humor. The

film Life’s A Breeze chronicles an unemployed slacker down on his luck who decides to do something nice for his elderly mother and cleans up her home. He throws away many of her belongings including old newspapers and an old mattress. However, in doing so, he throws away more than just a mattress — he throws away her life savings. As familial issues are at the forefront, the focus of the family shifts to the search for the lost fortune in this Irish comedy.

In another Irish comedy, Waking Ned Devine, a small village discovers that one of their residents has won the lottery. In the hopes of getting a piece of the fortune, Ned’s neighbors head to his home only to find him dead from the shock of winning. The townsfolk come together to convince the claim inspector that one of them is really Devine in order to claim the fortune in this outrageous comedy.

As St. Patty’s is forgotten until next year, now is as good a time as any to take a trip to the Emerald Isle through some of Ireland’s finest movies.

CULTURE

Page 18

March 25, 2015

UN Has No Magic Fix for Gender Equality

By SYDNEY KEEN ASSISTANT COPY CHIEF

Many women from our generation grew up reading about and watching Hermione Granger, the fictional, wiry-haired trailblazer of the wizarding-world who led her male counterparts through the nuanced magic and danger of J.K Rowling’s fantastical Hogwarts. Over the past few months, specifically beginning in September of last year, Hermione took on a different role to capture the attention of women and men of all generations. Emma Watson, the actress responsible for the film-portrayal of Hermione in the Harry Potter films, was appointed as a UN Women Goodwill Ambassador.

On Sept. 20, 2014, Emma Watson commenced her role in the HeForShe UN campaign for gender equality, with an inaugural speech at the campaign’s launch.

This speech, delivered before UN officials and ambassadors from around the world at the UN headquarters in New York, has now garnered over six million views on YouTube. HeForShe aims to galvanize millions of men and boys around the world to become advocates of change in ending the inequality between genders.

The speech addressed global issues of gender inequality. Watson went on to address the harmful misconceptions surrounding

feminism and the feminist identity by recounting her experiences, both past and present, and shedding light on the necessity of gender equality.

“The more I spoke about feminism, the more I realized that fighting for women’s rights has too often become synonymous with man-hating. If there is one thing I know for certain, it is that this has to stop,” Watson said. “For the record, feminism, by definition, is the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities.”

Today, over 250,000 men and boys from around the globe have taken the pledge on the UN’s HeForShe website to advocate for gender equality.

While an overwhelming number of people have been roused to action in solidarity with Watson and the UN campaign, she recently revealed that she was confronted soon after her remarks by adversary action.

March 8 marked another International Women’s Day, a day historically dedicated to the celebration of women around the world.

On that day, an interview with Emma Watson was broadcasted on Facebook to further promote the HeForShe campaign. Watson addressed the common misconception that many have about the current state of gender inequality and the all-too-common idea that the movement for gender equality

is not urgent.

When addressing how prevalent gender inequality is currently, she spoke about threats against her that she received, “The minute I stepped up and talked about women’s rights, I was immediately threatened. I mean, within less than 12 hours, I was receiving threats.”

Throughout the interview, however, Watson showed no signs of slowing down.

Quite to the contrary, she expressed her unwavering desire to be able to see complete gender equality in her lifetime, although she was candid in pointing out that there is still much work to be done.

Watson was not alone in raising awareness of the absence of gender equality in the world on International Women’s Day. The Clinton Foundation called upon women around the world to take part in its campaign No Ceilings: The Full Participation Project.

The Clinton Foundation flooded social media platforms when female celebrities, politicians, world leaders and civilians set their identifying photos as a generic female silhouette with Not-There.org written across the bottom.

The website, which explains the campaign’s investigation of gender inequality through the use of quantitative data, reads,

EVAN AGOSTINI/AP

Emma Watson utilizes her fame and broad fanbase as a UN Goodwill Ambassador.

“On International Women’s Day, the world woke up to find that many women were not there. This symbolic act reflected what a new analysis of women and girls’ progress says about the state of gender equality: we’re NOT THERE yet.”

Both Emma Watson, as a representative for UN Women and HeForShe, and The Clinton

Foundation have had a lasting effect on the movement towards gender equality and contributed to the echoing nature of the messages dispelled on International Women’s Day: women may not be there yet, but, as Watson now famously stated regarding her compelling everyone to take action in change, “If not me, who? If not now, when?”

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SPORTS

Page 20

March 25, 2015

The Fordham Ram

Rams Fall inWNIT Second Round in Queens

By MATT ROSENFELD STAFF WRITER

Last season, the Fordham women’s basketball team’s season ended on March 22, over 1,600 miles away from Rose Hill. It was a down-tothe-wire 64-63 loss to No. 7 seed California in the NCAA Tournament’s first round in Waco, Texas.

On March 22, this year’s version of the same team saw their season come to an end. This time, however, the game was just 15 miles from home.

Fordham’s 2014-2015 campaign ended in a 77-63 loss at St. John’s in the second round of the Women’s National Invitation Tournament.

After defeating Central Connecticut State University at home on March 19 by a score of 70-67, the Rams secured a date with city rival St. John’s.

The two teams raced out to a quick start, as four early points from graduate student Tiffany Ruffin put Fordham up 10-9 just four and a half minutes into Sunday afternoon’s contest. A three pointer from sophomore Hannah Missry extended the lead to four for Fordham just a minute later, but that’s when the Red Storm put their foot in the ground.

St. John’s ripped off a 9-0 over the next two minutes to take an 18-13 lead. Fordham did not let it get out of hand, as the Rams clawed back

DREW DIPANE/THE FORDHAM RAM

With many returning players and a strong incoming class, the women’s baseketball team is excited for next season.

to a one point deficit, 24-23 with seven minutes to play in the first half. Unfortunately for head coach Stephanie Gaitley’s squad, another St. John’s run, this time to the tune of 10-2, saw the Red Storm take a nine point lead with 3:22 left.

A Missry three and a jumper from senior captain Emily Tapio brought the Fordham deficit to 38-32 heading into the break.

The bucket going into halftime capped off a terrific first half for

Tapio, who was a perfect five for five from the field, scoring 10 points and grabbing three rebounds in the half. Unfortunately for Fordham, St. John’s junior guard Aliyyah Handford scored 19 points to lead St. John’s.

Tapio continued her success immediately starting the second half.

The forward from Brewster, New York scored the first four points of the half, cutting St. John’s advantage to just two. The Red Storm eventu-

ally extended their lead to eight with 10 minutes left to play, leaving the Rams staring the end of their season straight in the eye.

Staying true to form, Fordham fought back, cutting the lead to six multiple times. However, they were never able to get enough stops to cut into the deficit significantly. As the second half wore on, the Fordham defense wore out. The Red Storm increased their lead to 14 with fewer than five minutes to play as a

combination of missed shots and turnovers prevented Fordham from making a serious run.

“They wore us down,” Gaitley said. “We tried to mix up defenses, and we haven’t tried to do that all year. We were able to match them on offensively for a certain part, and then once we gave up some points and struggled on the offensive end, had a couple turnovers, they kind of ran with it.”

Fordham was not able to cut the lead to less than 13 as the time expired, and St. John’s moved on to the third round of the WNIT to face Villanova.

As for the Rams, they closed the door on a third straight twenty-win season. It was also the third consecutive year the team has reached a postseason tournament. The loss also meant it was the last game for Fordham’s three seniors, Emily Tapio, Tiffany Ruffin and Taryn Durant.

The captain Tapio did not disappoint. The senior finished the season with a 19 point, four rebound performance, going eight of 10 from the field. Ruffin was not far behind in her last NCAA game, scoring 18 points, grabbing seven rebounds and dishing out five assists. Senior Taryn Durant also added two points and a rebound in nine minutes.

“There’s a lot of big shoes to fill with the senior class,” Gaitley said.

Fordham finished the year with a 21-12 record.

Baseball Finishes 6-4 in Opening Homestand

By SAM BELDEN ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

After starting out the season with a series of road trips, Fordham baseball was glad to return to the Bronx two weeks ago. The homestand, which began on March 10, has been a successful one for the Rams. They were up-and-down over the first few games, defeating Manhattan, falling short against Stony Brook and splitting a two game series with Sacred Heart.

After dropping its next contest to Delaware, Fordham heated up and won its next two, including a come-from-behind victory over UMass Lowell and a thrilling onerun game versus Hofstra.

After posting four wins and three losses since its return to New York, the team was gearing up for the Strike Out Cancer Tournament hosted by Seton Hall, originally scheduled for last weekend, but the weather had other plans. The wet and snowy conditions forced the cancellation of all three of Fordham’s scheduled games. On Sunday, however, sunshine finally prevailed, and the Rams hosted the NYIT Bears for a doubleheader.

When all was said and done, Fordham came away with two victories, extending its current winning streak to four and improving its record to 8-12.

The Rams got off to a hot start in the first game. In the bottom of the first inning, they quickly loaded the bases. Sophomore right fielder Mark Donadio got the first run on the board with an RBI single, scoring junior second baseman Joe

JOSHUA KIM/THE FORDHAM RAM

Sophomore outfielder Mark Donadio has been a key to the Rams’ success throughout the season.

Runco and keeping the bases full.

After junior catcher Charlie Galiano failed to get on base, junior left fielder Ryan McNally hit a fly ball to center, resulting in the second out but allowing junior third baseman Ian Edmiston to tag up and score.

The next two innings were relatively uneventful, but in the fourth, sophomore starting pitcher Kirk Haynes gave up a pair of sacrifice flies to NYIT players Anthony Martelli and Matt DiBiase, allowing the Bears to tie the game. Haynes, with two earned runs to his name, exited the game after the fifth inning and got the no-decision. In the bottom of the sixth, Fordham got the go-

ahead run when junior shortstop Joseph Devito slapped a single to left field, scoring junior pinch runner Tim O’Connor. NYIT was unable to retaliate. Fordham reliever Jimmy Murphy pitched two perfect frames to pick up the win in the seven inning game, and the Rams were victorious by a score of 3-2.

Just a few hours later, the two teams squared off again. This time around, the first run of the game came in the third inning, when Runco scored from third on a passed ball. In the top of the fifth, junior starter Brett Kennedy surrendered a pair of runs to NYIT, putting Fordham at a one-run disadvantage. The Rams wasted

no time on getting back in front.

They put forward a team effort and wound up rallying for four runs in the bottom of the inning. Edmiston and sophomore left fielder Ryan Mahoney knocked in runs, while Runco, Donadio and sophomore center fielder Jason Lundy crossed the plate. Galiano accomplished both feats.

The Rams kept it going in the sixth with Lundy, Runco and Donadio each connecting for an RBI single. Eventually, Donadio advanced to third and scored on a wild pitch, putting Fordham at a seven-run advantage. NYIT attempted to mount a comeback in the top of the eighth, scoring three

runs, but was quieted by sophomore reliever Shane McDonald, who secured the last four outs and earned the save. The Rams piled on two more runs with sophomore pinch hitter Pat Gardner’s single, and the final score stood at 11-5.

Murphy, who handled the fourth and fifth innings for Fordham, picked up the win, his second of the week.

Although the Rams struggled to a 1-9 start to the season, their record is now a respectable 8-12.

Head coach Kevin Leighton believes that the string of home games has had a positive effect on his squad’s performance.

“We are lucky. We play at a beautiful home park with turf and lights, which allows our guys to spend more time on it,” said Leighton. “I think the home games have helped us to win some of the close games, and winning really helps our morale.”

This week, the team will square off against Iona on Wednesday before heading down to Virginia for a three-game series against Richmond. The Spiders will be Fordham’s first A-10 opponent of the season, but more are on the way.

After traveling upstate for next Tuesday’s game against Albany, the Rams will host George Mason and Davidson in a pair of conference series.

“The A-10 is tough, but when we play the way we are capable, I feel we can beat anyone,” said Leighton.

“Right now I think our guys believe they can win, even if we are down early, and that is something that you can’t really coach.”

SPORTS

March 25, 2015

If you are a basketball fan, then March is your Christmas. Between the NBA, currently in the home stretch leading to the playoffs, and the always-entertaining NCAA Tournament, there are many opportunities to get your basketball fi x. Yet, each year there is an argument that arises about which is better, the NBA or the NCAA. Many fans argue that the NCAA is better because it is more competitive and more intense than the regular season NBA games, but this is an absurd notion that must be changed. Fans of the college game tend to fall back on the same arguments, such as that the games are always close and therefore more interesting, when in fact eight out of the 24 tournament games have been lost by 12 or more.

NCAA fans also reference the terrible play of teams like the Sixers or Knicks, to which I say don’t pay attention to the teams that are not in the playoff hunt.

The battle for the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference has three teams within one game, the Nets, Pacers and Celtics, who are desperately trying to catch the Charlotte Hornets. On the Western side, we have seen an explosion from Russell Westbrook in his attempts to keep the Thunder in the playoff hunt, and in doing so has eclipsed 10 Triple-Doubles on the season. Watching games like these reminds us that the NBA Playoffs are just around the corner, and we will see the best-of-the-best duke it out soon.

NCAA fans also say that the intensity with which college games are played far surpasses that of the NBA. There is a simple explanation behind this, though. NBA games are played much faster and much more competitively for a longer period of time, which has caused fans to become accustomed to watching them play at a certain level. This leads us to believe that players are not giving their all during every game, when in reality the average fan does not realize how hard these players are competing.

Basically, the NBA players make what they do look really easy, which fans then take as them underperforming. This idea leads fans to make crazy assumptions, such as Kentucky’s ability to beat the Sixers. We need to throw that idea out as a whole for one reason and one reason only: Kentucky has zero professional basketball players currently; the Sixers have 15. Regardless of how good Kentucky is now, or how many NBA prospects they have, they are not a professional team and therefore wouldn’t stand a chance.

Each March, both NCAA and NBA basketball fans alike, are given a treat in the NCAA Tournament. There should be no arguments or comparisons over which is better, because there is no answer. Both are great to watch as a basketball fan, so pick whichever you prefer and enjoy it. March and April are gifts from the basketball gods, so let us not squander it by arguing. The NBA and NCAA basketball both have their own merits. Luckily, most fans can put aside their biases and enjoy both leagues.

Matt McCormack

Varsity Scores & Stats

Pat Costello

The Madness of March

Page 21

Women’s Basketball Central Conn 20 26 46 Fordham 20 25 45 (CCSU) A. Harrington 18 pts (FOR) T. Ruffin 18 pts, 9 rebs

Softball Fordham 3 Saint Louis 5 (FOR) K. Lombardo 3-3, RBI (SLU) A. Tarquinio 3 RBI

Baseball NYIT 2 Fordham 3 (NYIT) N. Sebastian 2-3, R (FOR) J. DeVito RBI

Fordham 21 25 46 St. John’s 31 23 54 (FOR) E. Tapio 19 pts (SJU) A. Handford 23 pts

Fordham 8 Saint Louis 5 (FOR) C. Ianiro 3 RBI, 2 R (SLU) E. Everingham 2 RBI

NYIT 5 Fordham 11 (NYIT) L. Mele 3-4, 2 RBI (FOR) R. Mahoney 2-3, 2 RBI

Men’s Tennis Fordham Yeshiva

6 1

Fordham 10 Saint Louis 11 (FOR) M. Daubman 2 RBI (SLU) A. Macfarlane 5 RBI

Wagner Fordham (WAG) N. Dini 4-5, 2 RBI (FOR) M. Kozuch RBI

Women’s Tennis Fordham Bethune-Cookman

4 4

Fordham 2 Northwestern 7 (FOR) M. Daubman 1-3, RBI (NU) B. Lebeau 4 RBI

Athletes of the Week Jimmy Murphy

Kayla Lombardo

Junior

Senior

Baseball

Softball

The pitcher appeared in both games of Sunday’s doubleheader against NYIT, and he made his time on the mound count. Murphy tossed four innings of relief and picked up two wins on the day. In the earlier contest, he held the Bears scoreless and finished the game.

Lombardo went on an offensive tear during Fordham’s three game series against Saint Louis. She batted .600 and knocked in three runs against the Bilikens. Her season average now sits at an impressive .342.

Each week, The Fordham Ram’s Sports editors honor one male athlete and one female athlete for their on-field performances as their “Athletes of the Week.”

News & Notes • Women’s Tennis Knocks Off Bethune-Cookman Last week, wom-

• Track Rained Out, Will Now Kick Off Spring Down South

en’s tennis traveled down to Florida for a 4-3 win over Bethune-Cookman. The Rams lost all three doubles matches, but they battled back to win every singles match and best the Wildcats. Seniors Sarah Ali, Bella Genkina and Julie Leong and sophomore Destiny Grunin lifted the team to victory with clutch singles wins.

Due to an early spring snowstorm in southeastern Pennsylvania, West Chester University cancelled its outdoor track meet scheduled for Sunday. Most of the team will now compete in its first event of the season at the Fred Hardy Invitational in Richmond, Virginia, while select athletes will travel to North Carolina for the Raleigh Relays, hosted by NC State.

• Baseball Falls to Wagner

Baseball lost to the Wagner Seahawks in a hotly contested game on Tuesday. Although the Rams got a nice start from freshman Ben Greenberg (5 IP, 2 ER), they were unable to do much offensively, scoring just two runs.

While the game was tied heading into the eighth, sophomore Greg Weissert and junior Joe Serrapica each gave up a run coming out of the bullpen, and Wagner came out on top by two. Sophomore first baseman Matt Kozuch (2 BB, RBI) and junior second baseman Joe Runco delivered the standout offensive performances for the Rams.

•

Softball Defeated by Northwestern On Tuesday, softball faced off against Northwestern University in Hampstead. The Rams quickly fell behind when junior pitcher Rachel Gillen surrendered six runs in the first inning.

She left after three innings. While the relief corps held the Wildcats scoreless, the offense managed only two runs. The final three innings were scoreless. Fordham wound up falling short by a margin of five, 7-2. Seniors Michele Daubman and Paige Ortiz knocked in the Rams’ only runs in the losing effort – Compiled by Sam Belden

4 2

NHL Trophy Predictions The regular season is winding down to its final games, and, while some teams are gearing up for the playoffs, others are readying themselves for the McEichel sweepstakes. As the season’s final games are played, there will be some very interesting conversations shaping up surrounding the various trophy races. Here are my picks for the winners of some of the major individual awards.

Hart (and Vezina) Trophy: Carey Price. The Montreal Canadiens allow only 2.2 goals per game — the lowest total in the league — precisely because of this guy. Price is at the tail end of one of the best seasons for a goalie in recent memory.

He boasts a goals against average of 1.90 and a save percentage of .937, both well above his career highs.

Montreal leads the league in points, but without the stellar play of Price it would probably be little more than a wild card contender. John Tavares is also in the Hart conversation: he has led the previously bottom-dwelling New York Islanders to legit playoff contending status. I would still pick Price over Tavares, though, since the Canadiens would be much worse without Price than the Islanders would be without Tavares. Price is truly the most valuable player to his team in the league.

Since I picked Price to win the Hart, he is obviously my pick for the Vezina also. However, there are some other great candidates. Pekka Rinne has had an outstanding season for the Nashville Predators, leading them to first place in the Central Division — and the entire NHL — for the majority of the season. Also, Cory Schneider is arguably the most underrated goaltender in the league right now. He is second in the league in save percentage (.929) and flaunts a 2.16 goals against average. Keep in mind that he plays in front of a pretty bad New Jersey Devils team. Imagine what his stats would be like if he played on a team with better defense.

Calder Trophy: Aaron Ekblad.

Filip Forsberg stole much of the Calder talk early in the season, and Johnny Gaudreau has been a rookie sensation in Calgary as Johnny Hockey. However, Aaron Ekblad is my pick to win the Calder due to his historically great rookie season in Florida that nobody seems to be talking about. This kid is only 18 years old and he is doing things that no defenseman has ever done at his age. Ekblad has totaled 11 goals and 24 points through 70 games while steadily manning the blue line. He was one of the major reasons why the Panthers stayed in the playoff race as long as they did.

Jack Adams: Peter Laviolette. Finally, I think that Peter Laviolette of the Nashville Predators deserves to be named coach of the year. Even though the Predators have struggled mightily of late, they have still greatly exceeded expectations this year.

Laviolette has managed to form a cohesive unit between the team’s young stars such as Filip Forsberg and its more experienced stars such as Shea Weber and Mike Ribeiro, leading the team to a breakout season. Jack Capuano of the Islanders deserves an honorable mention for leading a young, inexperienced and normally unimpressive team to the top of the standings.

SPORTS

Page 22

March 25, 2015

Anthony Pucik

Sam Belden

Keep OT, Get Rid of the Shootout

A Giant Problem in San Fran

The NHL is at it again. At the latest general manager meetings, the league discussed changing the overtime period such that it would reduce the amount of shootouts in the league. In the American Hockey League this season, a new system has successfully reduced games that have gone to shootouts by over 10 percent. Teams in the AHL now start the seven minute overtime period with the usual four-on-four play for the first three minutes, then to threeon-three play after the first whistle for the remainder of the time.

The NHL is thinking of possibly implementing a similar system in order to reduce the number of shootouts in the league. Rather than change the OT rules, I have a simpler solution: get rid of the shootout altogether.

Having a skills competition to determine who will earn an extra point in a regular season game that could end up being the difference between making and missing the playoffs later in the year is ridiculous. A team shouldn’t be penalized for having less-skilled shootout players than the other team, nor should a team serve to benefit from having those players in a one-on-one matchup with a goaltender.

If a team with no superstars was able to push a team with some of the best players in the league to overtime only to end up losing in a skills competition, it does not really show how well it played as a team overall.

While that does not always happen and the losing team does end up getting a point, the shootout is nothing more than showcasing a skill that in the end is not all that instrumental to winning hockey.

The NHL does not even like to factor in shootouts come playoff time because they only count regulation and overtime wins (ROW) for teams that are tied in points at the end of the year, thus taking away shootout wins. This makes sense, because a team should not stand to benefit from winning multiple games in the shootout when in the playoffs they won’t get that chance and will have to win in regulation or in a twentyminute overtime period. With that in mind, though, why not just take away the shootout altogether?

The NHL already seems to be phasing the shootout out of the game, anyway.

Just this year, the league made teams switch sides in overtime so they would have to make the long change they would normally have in the second period, which would lead to longer shifts, more tired players and a better chance of scoring. And, wanting to switch to the new AHLstyle overtime would only further the phase-out process.

With the discussion of new OT formats and the already implemented long line changes, it appears the NHL is not exactly looking to keep the shootout relevant. Play the five minutes, even seven minutes, of OT, and if no scoring occurs the game should end in a tie.

Sure ties are not the most exciting, but I would rather have that than an “exciting” shootout that could end up affecting playoff races and seeding.

They say that hope springs eternal during MLB Spring Training, but for some teams, the odds of reaching the World Series are getting worse by the day. This is especially true of the San Francisco Giants. Baseball’s defending champions have struggled to a record of 5-16 this spring, good for dead last out of the MLB’s 30 teams.

On the surface, this seems to be a surprising development — after all, the Giants roster has a host of familiar faces, and the team has won three of the last five World Series.

Simply put, the Giants have become baseball’s most prolific dynasty since the turn-of-the-millennium Yankees.

Unlike those teams, however, these San Francisco squads have not necessarily excelled during the regular season; in fact, last year’s champion was an average team for the second half of last season, and they wound up with an 88-74 record. An 87-75 Pythagorean record suggests that they were a slightly worse team than that unremarkable record suggests.

The MLB’s playoff system, however, is a breeding ground for randomness.

The Giants got hot, and, thanks to a series of unbelievably strong pitching performances from ace Madison Bumgarner, they took it all the way to the World Series.

After an uneven offseason, lowlighted by the departure of infielder Pablo Sandoval, there were those who doubted the Giants, but few people envisioned an abysmal spring like this. They got off to a bad start when right fielder Hunter Pence was hit by a pitch. He won’t miss too much of the regular season, so he can help turn things around, but Pence’s was the only serious injury to any Giants player this spring. Superstar catcher and 2012 National League MVP Buster Posey has been floundering, hitting just .182. Holdovers Angel Pagan, Joe Panik, Travis Ishikawa and Brendan Crawford have been equally unimpressive, while new addition Nori Aoki is doing little to prove that he’s an upgrade over the departed Mike Morse, who’s been having a great spring with the Marlins.

The pitching hasn’t been much better. Among the starters, veteran Tim Hudson has turned in the only acceptable performance. Meanwhile, Bumgarner and Ryan Vogelsong have pitched poorly, and Jake Peavy, Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain have been downright awful. All five have ERAs above 5.00. The bullpen hasn’t been much better. Closer Santiago Casilla and setup man Jeremy Affeldt need to be better than they’ve been this March.

There have been bright spots — new third baseman Casey McGehee has been fantastic and holdovers Brandon Belt and Gregor Blanco are also exceeding expectations. But make no mistake: the San Francisco Giants are a team in trouble. Many fans scorn Spring Training as meaningless, but the team’s stars are failing it, and while a few of them will surely turn it around, these March statlines cannot simply be dismissed. There’s no excuse for such a wide gap between our expectations and Giants’ performance. If they want to make it four World Series titles in six years, something will need to change.

COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA

Barcelona, led by Leo Messi, is advancing to the quarterfinals of the Champions League after defeating a tough Manchester City.

Messi, Barcelona Dominate Man City in Champions League

By GIULIO RICCIARDI STAFF WRITER

Champions League — Barcelona 1-0 Man City (3-1 Agg.): Barcelona booked its place to the Champions League quarterfinals with a 1-0 win over Manchester City. Led by Messi, the Catalan side never really looked threatened during the match despite scoring only one goal.

Barcelona has had a very successful second half of the season after its initial struggle this year.

The club has won 17 out of its 19 games in 2015 and claimed first place in La Liga.

Meanwhile, Man City is in the race for the Premier League title alongside Chelsea and Manchester United. The current Premier League champions are in second place behind Mourinho’s Chelsea, which is in the lead for the coveted title. In Europe, City has seemed to struggle over the years despite the club spending large sums to build a strong team. In contrast, this Barcelona side has had the experience of winning and competing in the competition year after year. The pressure is always on for the club, as it is expected to be challenging for the title every year.

In the first leg, Barcelona triumphed 2-1 away from home at the Etihad Stadium and picked

up two crucial away goals. The result never really looked in doubt for the 2010 Champions League winners. At the Camp Nou, the match was all about Messi. The perennial Ballon D’or winner and 2014 World Cup finalist put on a show against Man City. The opposing side always looked a step slower than Messi as he was passing and dribbling all around the City defenders. He showed brilliance when he crossed a ball into the box and found Rakitic with no defenders around him. The summer signing made no mistake in chipping the ball past Joe Hart and sending Barcelona to the quarterfinals.

The club could have easily gone through by four goals had it not been for the heroics of Man City keeper Joe Hart, who gave City some semblance of hope. The English keeper denied Barcelona on multiple occasions and saved City some sort of dignity with the score line.

Borussia Dortmund 0-3 Juventus (1-5 Agg.): Juventus shocked Borussia Dortmund at home to book its place in the Champions League quarterfinals.

Former Man City forward Carlos Tevez led Juventus with two goals and an assist to cap off a magical night for the Argentine forward and for the Italian club.

The two clubs have had vastly different seasons this year in

terms of success. Dortmund has had a downright awful season where at one point, it was in last place in Bundesliga. Despite being a Champions League finalist only two years ago, the German club has certainly lost something this season.

The club has recovered from its abysmal start and is now rising up the table. While Borussia Dortmund has collapsed in the Bundesliga this season, Juventus has continued to dominate Serie A. The three-time champions are on the verge of adding a fourth straight title to their collection and their first title without former coach Antonio Conte.

In the first leg, Juventus won 2-1 at home, which left the second leg an open affair. Dortmund managed to score a crucial away goal that gave it a clear advantage coming into the match at home.

However, Juventus opened up the floodgates immediately through Carlos Tevez, who scored a long range goal to put Juve in front.

Juve allowed Dortmund to keep possession but limited its opportunities on goal.

Dortmund was able to keep the ball but didn’t make anything out of it, and thus Juve would end up scoring. It scored twice in the second half through Morata and Tevez in a rout of Dortmund that secured its advancement to the next round of the Champions League.

Follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/theram_sports

SPORTS

March 25, 2015

Page 23

Softball Opens League Play at 1-2

By DREW CASEY

By ANTHONY PUCIK

ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITOR

SPORTS EDITOR

Fordham softball wrapped up its out of conference tournament schedule March 13-15 down in Raleigh, North Carolina at the N.C. State Hyatt Place Invitational. Fordham split its first two games, falling to No. 21 Missouri 7-5 and defeating Binghamton 6-4. The Rams then went 1-2 in their final three games, defeating Lipscomb 3-2 in nine innings, but falling to Longwood 10-7 and No. 25 North Carolina State 5-0.

The Rams finished with an 11-10 overall record heading into their first Atlantic-10 matchups of the season against the St. Louis University Billikens this past weekend.

The first two games were part of a doubleheader on Saturday, March 21. Fordham struck early in the first game, scoring three runs in the top of the first on RBI walks to senior designated player Michelle Daubman and redshirt senior starter Rachel Gillen and an RBI single by catcher Kayla Lombardo to go up 3-0. The score stood the same until the bottom of the fourth when St Louis’ freshman Alyssa Tarquino hit a threerun home run off Gillen to tie the game at three all. The game would again remain scoreless for two and a half innings, until Gillen surrendered another home run in the bottom of the seventh, this one a two-run shot to sophomore Alex Nickel, giving St. Louis the 5-3 walk-off victory. Brianna Lore picked up the victory, improving to 7-6 on the season, while Gillen dropped to 7-5 with the loss.

The Billikens started the scoring in the second game, scoring two runs off Daubman on a solo home run by senior Lindsay Freidman and an RBI single by Tarquinio to go up 2-0. Fordham cut the lead in half in the top of the fourth on a solo homer by Daubman and took the lead in the fifth on an RBI triple by sophomore second baseman Amy Van Hoven and an RBI single by sophomore third baseman Lindsay Mayer off Billiken freshman starter Maddie Baalman to make it 3-2 Rams.

St. Louis tied the game up in the bottom of the inning on an RBI double by Lore, but Fordham retook the lead in the top of the sixth on a two-RBI single by Gillen to make it 5-3. The Rams add-

ed three more runs in the top of the seventh on a three-run home run by senior right fielder Cora Ianiro to make it 8-3. Those runs proved very important, with St. Louis adding two in the bottom of the inning on junior Elizabeth Everingham’s two-run home run off Gillen, but the team couldn’t bring it any closer and Fordham took the game 8-5. Gillen picked up her eighth win of the season (8-5) while Baalman earned her third loss (4-3).

The rubber game of the weekend took place on Sunday, March 22. The Rams got to Lore early, scoring eight times in the first two innings. A Daubman RBI double made it 1-0 after the first, but Fordham exploded for seven runs in the second. Back-to-back RBI walks to Van Hoven and Mayer started it off, then an RBI single

by Lombardo and back-to-back two-RBI doubles by Daubman and Ianiro gave the Rams an 8-0 lead after an inning and a half. St. Louis chipped away in the bottom of the inning with solo home runs by freshman Allie Macfarlane and sophomore Hailey Weavers off Daubman to make it 8-2 Fordham. The Billkens cut into the Fordham lead further in the bottom of the third on a three-run home run by Macfarlane to bring St. Louis to within three runs at 8-5.

The Rams added some cushion in the top of the fifth on an RBI single by reliever Patti Maloney and sacrifice fly by senior left fielder Brianna Turgeon to bring their lead to 10-5, but the Billikens took back those runs in the bottom of the inning on a solo home run by sophomore Mackenzie Peter and a Macfarlane single that led to an error and a run. A Weavers solo homerun in the bottom of the sixth brought the Rams lead down to 10-8, and three runs in the bottom of the seventh on a Lore single that scored two runs and a Tarquinio RBI single off Daubman gave the Billikens another walk off victory, 11-10, and the series, 2-1. Baalman picked up the win for St. Louis (5-3) while Daubman suffered the loss for Fordham (2-5).

The Rams open their season at home this afternoon against the Iona College Gaels at 3 p.m.

Cinderella lost her glass slipper — I mean blue stool.

Fourteen-seeded Georgia State upsetting three-seeded Baylor on Thursday afternoon in Jacksonville was definitely one of the highlights of the first three rounds of the NCAA Tournament.

As with most March Madness upsets, the scene was fairy-tale-like.

Entering the game, Georgia State head coach Ron Hunter was confined to a swiveling royal blue stool.

It sounds funny, but it later made for an incredibly vivid moment.

The fourth year head coach at the Atlanta public university was forced into this inconvenient position after tearing his Achilles while celebrating his team’s Sun Belt conference championship on March 15.

Achilles or not, the Panthers, entering the second round contest at 24-9, did not seem to stand a chance against the Big 12 power. They hung with the Bears in the first half, only trailing by three after the first 20 minutes. It seemed like the Panthers had a good chance at covering for the bettors as the near ten-point underdog, but not many thought that they could come out on top after the final buzzer.

Committing only six turnovers, Georgia State hung with the Bears down the stretch and put itself in a position to win its second ever NCAA Tournament game. However, down 12 with 2:54 remaining in the second half, it seemed that the Bears had gotten the best of the Panthers.

Not so fast. Never turn your back on a Panther, especially if he is a Hunter.

R.J. Hunter, the son of Ron, took over from this point on until the final buzzer. Hunter netted nine consecutive points, while the defense held to cut the Panthers’ deficit to just three with 1:20 remaining.

A minute later, sophomore guard Isaiah Dennis drew a foul and then converted one of two from the foul line, making the score 56-54 with 19 seconds remaining.

Georgia State immediately fouled Baylor senior guard Kenny Cherry.

Cherry, an 84 percent free throw

shooter, was not so sweet, missing the front end of the one-and-one.

Georgia State junior T.J. Shipes corralled the rebound. The underdog was down two with 14 seconds remaining and had the basketball with a chance to tie or even win with a three-pointer.

The Bears defense came to play, Brian Urlacher-style, on the Panthers’ final possession and did not allow the Panthers inside the threepoint line. In fact, they didn’t allow Georgia State anywhere near the line twenty-feet-nine-inches from the basket. It was all but over, but the Bears forgot about the hunting panther.

R.J. Hunter found himself nearly 30 feet from the hoop with time winding down and knocked down what became the game-winning bucket from straight away downtown.

It was one of the most incredible shots under pressure in NCAA Tournament history, and father and coach Ron could not contain himself. The blue stool could no longer hold him up as he tumbled to the floor at Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena in jubilation.

Luckily for Ron, Baylor called a timeout in an effort to regroup and to steal the game back with 2.6 seconds left. The game resumed, and Ron witnessed his team pull off the upset in dramatic fashion after Bay-

COURTESY OF WIKIMEDIA

Kevin Ware, formally of Louisville, was not the big story this year for GSU.

Varsity Calendar HOME AWAY

Thursday March 26

Baseball Softball

Seton Hall 3:00 p.m.

Friday March 27

Saturday March 28

Sunday March 29

Richmond 3:00 p.m.

Richmond 1:00 p.m.

Richmond 12:00 p.m.

La Salle (DH) 12:00 p.m.

La Salle 1:00 p.m.

Syracuse 3:00 p.m.

Stony Brook 3:00 p.m.

St. Joseph’s 2:00 p.m.

NYIT 12:00 p.m.

St. Joseph’s TBA

Men’s Tennis Women’s Tennis Track and Field

Marist 12:00 p.m.

Rowing JOSHUA KIM/THE FORDHAM RAM

Women’s Soccer

Monday March 30

Tuesday March 31

Wildcat Invitational Murphy Cup

St. John’s 1:00 p.m.

Wednesday April 1

Albany 3:00 p.m.

Raleigh Relays/Fred Hardy Invite

Golf

The Rams played three tough games, but only came away with one win.

lor’s final shot failed to find the bottom of the bucket.

The Hunters, both R.J.’s shot and Ron’s tumble, will forever be cemented in March Madness history.

To add another wrinkle to the Cinderella story, Kevin Ware was also one of the Panthers starting guards in the game. You probably remember Ware as the Louisville player who suffered a gruesome leg injury in the 2013 NCAA Tournament. Ware returned to play for Louisville last season, but aggravated the injury after playing only nine games, and later decided to attend Georgia State to finish out his college basketball career with two years of eligibility remaining.

Unfortunately, it struck midnight for Georgia State on Saturday as their run ended with a 75-67 loss to sixth seeded Xavier. Lightning did not strike twice for the Panthers, as the Musketeers shot nearly 68 percent from the field en route to advancing to the Sweet 16. The Panthers concluded the 2014-2015 season at 25-10 and will forever be remembered.

In light of the win over Baylor, Ron Hunter has reportedly received interest from upper echelon teams that are in search of a new head coach.

With the position currently open at Fordham, who knows? I highly doubt it, but say it only semi-sarcastically. I’ll provide the maroon stool.

SPORTS

Page 24

March 25, 2015

The Fordham Ram

Men’s Basketball Concludes Season at 10-21 Season Begins, and Ends, With Questions

By MAX PRINZ STAFF WRITER

The Fordham men’s basketball team began its 2014-15 season surrounded by question marks.

Could this young team begin to turn the program around? Could it get out of last place in the conference?

The Rams ended their season at the Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament nearly two weeks ago and are now, somehow, faced with even more unknowns.

The University relieved head coach Tom Pecora of his duties last Wednesday [see page 1] after the team fell to VCU, 63-57, in the second round of the A-10 Tournament to close out its season.

The Rams finished the season with a 10-21 record, going 4-14 in the A-10 Conference. The early part of the conference schedule was brutal, and Pecora’s team lost its first nine games in Conference play.

Fordham started to turn things around near the end of the year.

The flashes of hope provided by freshmen Erich Paschall and Christian Sengfelder began to turn into glimpses of spectacular play.

The Rams finished the season winning five of their final 11 games, a stretch that included the team’s first road win in conference play since 2013.

Those spectacular glimpses continued in the A-10 tournament, held at the Barclays Center where the Rams took down George Mason in the first contest of the tournament.

The Rams defeated George Mason 71-65 on a Wednesday night to advance to the second round of the tournament. Fordham got a sparkling performance from Sengfelder, who scored a career-high 27 points.

“I’m not following [stats] at all during the game,” Sengfelder said.

“I just want to make some baskets and help the team win.”

“To win the first game in the tournament in the Barclays Center, an NBA stadium, it’s a great feeling,” Sengfelder added.

Pecora’s team started slow in the first half, but managed to take a 34-28 lead into the break. Only one Ram scored more than 10 points in the first, but it was Sengfelder, who tallied 15 first half points and kept the Rams in the lead.

“He just keeps getting better and better,” Pecora said of Sengfelder. “He pays attention to detail, his work ethic.”

The Rams failed to distance themselves from George Mason in the second half. The teams were separated by just two points in the

final minute.

“It was one of those games where we couldn’t get that separation,” Pecora said. “One of our game goals is always to win the battle of the boards, and we did.”

Sengfelder’s stellar effort became even more necessary when Eric Paschall struggled to fight through his ankle injury. Paschall injured his ankle in practice last week and sat out the Rams’ final two games.

“We knew Eric wasn’t going to be 100 percent, that’s 18 points a game, so other guys had to step up,” Pecora said.

Senior Bryan Smith, a Brooklyn native, was another key contributor. Smith finished with 12 points, four rebounds and three assists.

“We played the same team two years in a row, and to get them both times is a great feeling,” Smith said.

Pecora also praised Smith’s leadership. “The job that he has done has really allowed Christian and Eric to mature a lot quicker than some of our freshmen in the past,” he said.

Fordham knocked George Mason out of the tournament for the second consecutive year. It sent the Rams on to a second round contest against a skilled VCU team, but Pecora said he was undaunted.

“It’s March,” Pecora said. “We know what we have to do.”

Unfortunately, the Rams failed to do everything necessary to beat the talented VCU team.

In the second round of the A10 Tournament, Fordham fell to VCU 63-57. The team battled valiantly without Paschall, who missed the game because of a sprained ankle. To even hang in against VCU, a team ranked in the Top 25 during the regular season, was quite an accomplishment.

“They always say if you lose by less than five it’s the coach’s fault, but I’ll take it,” Pecora said. “I can see the talent, I can see them moving in that direction.”

Fordham did everything it could against a superior VCU team. It was a tie game, 30-30, at halftime thanks to Fordham’s brilliant three-point shooting. Fordham made six of eight attempts from behind the big line in the first half to overcome turning the ball over 12 times.

“Gotta give a lot of credit to Fordham,” VCU head coach Shaka Smart said. “They’ve gotten better and better over the course of the year.”

“Every time we play Fordham they play us real tough,” Smart added.

Fordham simply failed to keep pace in the second half. VCU dominated on the offensive glass,

CHRISTIAN WILOEJO/THE FORDHAM RAM

Senior Guard Bryan Smith (right) attempts to get around George Mason’s defense at the Atlantic 1o Tournament.

ANDREW ESOLDI/THE FORDHAM RAM

Junior guard Mandell Thomas (left) connects with A-10 Rookie of the Year Eric Paschall (right) at the Barclays Center.

racking up 20 offensive rebounds and getting the better of Fordham inside the paint. Fordham’s hot shooting disappeared and Pecora’s team struggled to handle VCU’s rebounding ability.

The Rams played stellar defense the entire game, holding VCU to just 30 percent shooting, but struggled on the glass. In total, VCU missed 41 shots, but got 20 of those misses back and scored 18 second-chance points.

“If you said to me ‘Hey, you’re going to hold VCU to 30 percent from the floor and you’re only gonna have 16 turnovers,’ I’d have said we’re going to win the basketball game,” Pecora said. “The difference maker was them on the boards.”

“Their 20 offensive rebounds hurt us a great deal.” Pecora added The loss marks the end of senior Bryan Smith’s career. Smith, a Brooklyn native, finished with 14 points, including a trio of huge three-pointers, playing his final game just 10 minutes from his home.

“Like I said before, I’m in-

debted to him for coming to Fordham,” Pecora said of Smith.

“There were a lot of other options and we weren’t the flavor of the month. But it’s a bit easier for guys to come now because they see that the future is bright.”

A little more than two weeks after that loss, the future is considerably more clouded. Fordham let Pecora go last Wednesday and is now in the midst of a national search for his replacement.

Along with a new coach next season, the roster could look very different as well.

Paschall received his release from the University on Monday and announced that he was looking at other schools. However, he did say returning for next season was still an option.

The status of sophomore Jon Severe is also unknown. After breaking the freshman scoring record his first season on Rose Hill, Severe took an extended leave of absence from the team this year.

The departure of the coach who recruited him likely increases the possibility that he will transfer as

well.

Athletic Director David Roach, who met with Pecora last week to inform him of the University’s decision to go in a different direction, did not respond to inquiries for this article.

The dominant storyline for the Rams this past season was how young they were.

With seven freshmen on the roster and two in the starting lineup, things were going to be difficult from the start.

Now, however, it is possible that next season could get even harder.

The questions are myriad: Who will be the head coach? Is Paschall staying? Can Mandell Thomas and Ryan Rhoomes be great senior leaders? Who will help Thomas continue to improve as a point guard? Can Senior Ryan Canty return to full health? What will the team get out of Severe?

Repeatedly labeled as “a young team,” the Rams began to grow as the season wore on.

Now, with Pecora gone and Paschall possibly joining him, next year’s Rams must find a way to come up with more answers.