The Campus Magazine: Home Sweet Home

Ov e r a Ce n tu ry o f Service t o t h e H a rle m Communi ty

Septe m b er 2 0 1 6

The Semester of Moving City Forward

Here’s Your Degree

George Lois in the Archives

Black and Blue

Who should certify Grove School Degrees?

Advertising Legend donates life’s work to City College

Thoughts on Police Brutality from within the NYPD

In This Issue

Magazine Staff

Black and Blue

Editor-in-Chief Christian Hernandez Managing Editor / Sports Editor Curtis Ashley Copy Editor Janice D’Gracia News Editor Anthony Viola Features Editor Saif Choudhury Opinion Editor / Lifestyle Editor Alexandria Naase

Views from within the NYPD

8-10

–– Art Director Carmen Quang Contributing Designer Maria Tsampas Illustrator Alexandria Naase Business Manager Ebony Anderson-Brown Social Media Manager Ebony Anderson-Brown Faculty Advisor Linda Villarosa * Cover Photo by Curtis Ashley

News

EWB-CCNY’s Project (3) Here’s Your Degree (4-5) Athletic Director’s Unknown Past (6) Remembering Elie Weisel (12)

Features

Moving City College Forward (7) George Lois Archives (13)

Advertise with Us

Opinion

Black and Blue (8-10)

LIfestyle Talk to Everyone (11)

Sports

A shot at redemption (14-15)

Editor’s Note It was quiet this summer. Students and faculty were gone for vacation or more work. The rotunda was empty on its usually lively Thursday afternoons. And for once the shuttle buses drove through Harlem all day long with empty seats.

Beyond the surface though, so much more went down. Our team worked through the summer making sure you can stay up to date on what took place since you’ve been gone.

Contact Us North Academic Center 1/119 CCNYCampusnews@gmail.com CCNYCampus.org

The Campus @CCNYCampus @CCNYCampus

From scandals and secretive technicalities, to students’ work in other countries and their opinions on current events, to the impact the late Elie Wiesel had at CCNY, you’ll find in this issue, a shed of light on all the hidden details this past summer. That’s also including future events, such as our Women’s Basketball team’s upcoming season and the George Lois’ exhibition housed at CCNY. You’ll never know what you’ll find until you take a good look at what’s around you.

With that, welcome back to another year at City College and another year of The Campus.

We’re glad to be back and now that the summer’s almost over, it’s time to get back to work.

2 F U N F A C T : CCNY’s first mascot was a fossil. The “Benny the Beaver” mascot was adopted, due to the legend of there being a beaver colony where Shepard Hall is now.

Student Engineers Continue Working for Water Wells After spending a week in Nicaragua, EWB-cCNY begins the next phase of their project Photo courtesy of Engineers Without Borders USA City College of New York Student Division.

By Anthony Viola

City College’s Engineers Without Borders (EWB-USA CCNY) are working to bring potable water to the rural community of Tadazna, Nicaragua. During the first week of June, the group of students flew to the village for the first time to provide water wells to the community and to grow the chapter as a whole. The team saw the community they would be benefitting, yet, not everyone was

took charge of keeping close communication with the team while they were abroad. She kept the EWB-USA CCNY members in New York up to date with significant information from the travel team.

“Our assessment trip this summer was not only immensely informative, but also extremely influential,” states Filopoulus.

“Integration with community members gave us the insight necessary to understand their lifestyle- their current resources and most pressing needs.”

Filopoulos talked about the data gathered by the team, which included distances most families have to travel to retrieve water - though many times that water is contaminated. They also observed valuable water testing outcomes and geographical information. Filopoulos declared that this all prepared EWB-USA CCNY for the next part of the project: to design the wells and collect more extensive research.

The tentative date for the next trip will be January, 2017. However, Zayas mentioned that the team remained honest with the locals as they were asked about their return to Tadazna. CCNY doesn’t provide funds to the club like private schools do, and most of the fundraising depends on the EWB-USA CCNY. Regardless, the team is eager to reach their goals and head back to Tadazna as soon as they can.

Our assessment trip this summer was not only immensely informative, but also extremely influential.

Integration with community members gave us the insight necessary to understand their lifestyle–their current resources and most pressing needs Z O E F I LO P O U LO S

prepared for the task before them.

“The biggest question we got is when were we coming back,” says sophomore Isabel Zayas. “It takes a lot to invite a group of people in your home and treat them like family. Colleges come and do research there once or twice, and not follow up with the community, and the locals are aware of this.”

Zayas is one of the engineering students who ventured to Nicaragua to collect water samples, gather elevation data, and conduct interviews. She mentions how open-minded and friendly the citizens of Tadazna were throughout the week-long visit.

“We spent most of our downtime playing cards with the people [of Tadazna]. They would give us fruit from their trees and let us pet their animals. They were super appreciative which made the experience so much more enjoyable,” says Zayas.

Jillian Panagakos worked alongside Zayas to retrieve the information. According to Panagakos, the trip was a huge success for the team.

“We accomplished every goal we set out to for this phase of the project and made great strides in forming a relationship with the community,” says Panagakos. “It was such a unique and humbling experience to get to know them.”

Back at home, second-year engineering student Zoe Filopoulos had an important task as well. As the assistant project manager, she

NEWS 3

Here’s your Degree Dispute over who Certifies Grove Degrees

By Elihu Fleury

4 THE CAMPUS / SEPTEMBER 2016

The end goal for all college students is earning a degree. Why else would we spend another four years dealing with all the stress that comes with pursuing that goal?

But what if all that hard work done for our degrees was done in vain— what if our degrees no longer held any weight?

Recent controversy over the degrees given to students from the Grove School of Engineering raises that question.

“Something is being done against our bylaws,” exclaimed Dr. Jamal Manassah at a meeting between Grove Faculty on May 19, 2016, where the issue was first raised. Dr. Manassah is a professor within the Electrical Engineering department.

The situation involved a technicality: for the past few years, the wrong group of people have certified the Grove School degrees. It’s Grove School faculty who’s supposed to certify the degrees, but instead CCNY Faculty Senate has taken that task in their own hands. Dr. Manassah expressed that the current arrangement is a clear violation of the City College Governance Plan.

The dilemma came as a surprise to him.

He knows this arrangement didn’t exist during his Faculty Senate chairmanship, which ended in 2002. Other faculty members were unaware that the present disposition violated bylaws. Some even disputed his assertions during the meeting as false or inconsequential.

The May 19 faculty meeting ended with a decision to inform the CCNY Faculty Senate of this violation. To prevent this matter from penalizing students, the faculty voted to let the current arrangement continue only for the 2015-2016 degrees.

Dr. Manassah doesn’t think that President Lisa Coico or recently resigned Provost Maurizio Trevisan knew about the violations before the May meeting. He has yet to figure out their position on the issue. Yet, he has been in communication with President Coico’s Legal Counsel, Paul Occhiogrosso.

Thus administration is aware of his concerns.

The current arrangement puts Grove faculty at a disadvantage. Under existing circumstances, Grove faculty cannot point out “irregularities” that may happen in a student’s career, and thus vouch on the student’s behalf. As a result, Dr. Manassah

feels that this is the Faculty’s duty, and not just a ceremonial obligation. He expressed that “if it doesn’t do its duty, then it’s failing in its business and abdicating its prerogatives.”

As such, he feels that this is just one manifestation of a larger problem - the movement of higher education to a “corporate” top-down model. This is different from the previously dominant “university” model, where consensus from faculty debates led to change. Dr. Manassah feels that the current system blocks Grove faculty “from carrying on their responsibility under accepted...college governance norms and professional accreditation guidelines,” thus, showing that “the authority of the faculty have been eroding with time,” and that their voices are going unheard to the detriment of higher education itself.

CUNY, CCNY and Grove School bylaws state that the faculty of a given school holds sole responsibility for conferring degrees.

Also, according to Article I Section 3 of the CCNY Governance Plan, the CCNY Faculty Senate should not assume the responsibilities of different faculties, and “decisions as to...

conferring of degrees rest with these several Faculties [of CCNY]”. In other words, from every conceivable angle, the current arrangement appears to completely violate bylaws of the university, the college, and the Grove School.

The legal implications of this situation are unknown because this problem was entirely unprecedented.

Mr. Occhiogrosso hadn’t commented on the possible legal implications, and redirected all questions to Deidra Hill, Vice President of the Communications and Marketing Department.

Dr. Hill responded with the following: “The CUNY Board of Trustees grants degrees upon recommendation of the faculty.

Faculty are responsible for formulating policy relating to granting of degrees.” This is a summary of CUNY Board of Trustees Bylaws Section 8.5, the same bylaw that the college isn’t following, and the one used by Dr. Manassah to support his own case.

Dr. Charles Watkins, Chair of the Grove Faculty Executive Committee, asked for representatives of the CCNY administration, Grove administration, CCNY Faculty Senate

and Grove School of Engineering Executive Committee to come together “to discuss and attempt to resolve the problem.” He stressed that “[his] personal belief [is] that no graduate will suffer any consequences of this procedural issue regarding awarding of degrees.”

Students had mixed feelings. Civil Engineering student John Cifuentes said that the situation might be “more embarrassing [for Grove] than detrimental to both students and alumni”. “If it’s true,” he said, “it does make [the Grove degrees] invalid due to a technicality, but I don’t see any degrees losing its validity over this.”

Mauricio Mino, a Mechanical Engineering student, expressed that as long as the degrees’ worth isn’t affected, “it really doesn’t matter much if it’s conferred by the [CCNY Faculty Senate] or Grove faculty.”

But, he felt it was “strange that it is not bestowed by the Grove faculty as it should.”

This issue will be on the agenda of the first Grove Faculty meeting of Fall 2016, taking place in October.

NEWS 5

Uncovered Athletic Director outed as a sex offender

By Curtis Ashley As if City College did not have enough scandals to keep its students talking, it just added another one.

The New York Post reported last month that Dr. Kevin Abdur-Rahman, the now former Athletic Director (AD) of CCNY, had a criminal history unknown to the college.

An unnamed City College student found Abdur-Rahman’s record while browsing a site listing sexual predators.

Abdur-Rahman, who at the time of his conviction went by his birth name, Robert Kevin Applegate, was accused of taking part in a robbery that resulted in the sexual assault of a man and woman on June 20, 1975. Two other assailants were said to be with him at the time of the incident.

Abdur-Rahman was convicted in November, 1976 in Philadelphia. He served ten years in a maximum-security prison until granted parole. Due to his criminal history he is labeled as a Level 3 sex offender, the highest level an offender can receive.

On Facebook, Abdur-Rahman commented on the news surrounding his involvement in the incident. In the Facebook post, he stressed that the press misrepresented his past. “What you read in the [New York Post] were not my actions but because I was present and had committed other crimes even though they were lesser crimes I none the less was considered a responsible party which I take full responsibility for,” the displaced AD wrote, referring to an article by the New York Post which broke the news of his past.

In 1993, Abdur-Rahman applied to CUNY under a new name, withholding his

The Post article is putting to shame a school with so much history.

FRAN KILINSKI 6 THE CAMPUS / SEPTEMBER 2016

Displaced Athletic Director Dr. Kevin Abdur-Rahman, with a member of the CCNY Women’s basketball team.

Photo courtesy of The New York Post criminal history. He entered City College athletics as a higher education associate and through the years reached the top, becoming Director of Athletics. At this position, while best known as “Doc,” he held a strong relationship with the college’s teams, players, and coaches.

“He was a polarizing figure in sports at CCNY. He wasn’t liked by everyone, wasn’t disliked by everyone either,” City College graduate Fran Kilinski comments on the former AD. “It seemed like he wanted what was best for the athletes, but he also had other obligations and rules to follow that inhibited that.”

Kilinski, an ex-guard on the school’s basketball team and member of the Outdoor Track & Field team, recalled his experiences with Doc. “My relationship with Doc wasn’t super personal. I had my chats with him from time to time and had wanted to be closer with him, but since I had limited time at CCNY, I felt it wouldn’t have meant much,” he states.

“I can’t say I knew much else about who he was as a person, so it’s not my place to judge him as harshly as some have.”

In his time at the school, Abdur-Rahman watched various teams win championships, which includes the 2003 Men’s Basketball team and, most recently, the 2015 Men’s Soccer team.

“I am so sorry and embarrassed if any of you feel that I have brought shame on the

college, however, on the contrary we have brought honor to each other. CCNY has given me a format and platform to prove that the human soul can be repaired and find its rightful place to do good in the world,” Abdur-Rahman said online. “I hope CCNY can look past their embarrassment and accept that the work I was able to accomplish on that campus positively impacting the lives of young people for 23 years will give them pride knowing that there are very few places in our society where second chances can be so remarkable” After finding out that Abdur-Rahman kept this information private, the school looked into removing him from his position and from their system. Instead, Abdur-Rahman elected to retire, which allows him to collect a pension. According to the Deputy Director of Athletics, Karina Jorge, the college is looking for a replacement AD. “I can’t understand how this story manifested, what officials were in charge of his hiring or firing, or how exactly his reputation as an athletic director is affected by the allegations,” Kilinski says. “The Post article is putting to shame a school with much history. I’m annoyed that CCNY in some respects has become a punching bag in the CUNYAC... But there is much more to be discovered about this news.”

A Statement From President Lisa S. Coico

Moving City College Forward Summer has whizzed by and I cannot believe the beginning of the fall semester is upon us. I hope you have enjoyed a safe, fun, and productive summer and are ready to kick off the fall semester with great energy.

I would like to use this opportunity to share with you important information.

During the summer, an article published by the New York Times focused on the finances of City College. Here are the facts: The 21st Century Foundation, a not-for-profit corporation that raises funds in support of City College, received a subpoena from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn for documents relating to its financial transactions. The Foundation, assisted by its legal counsel, is responding to the subpoena.

I have asked all City College employees who interface with the Foundation to cooperate fully in this process. I am very confident this process will show that there

has been no inappropriate use of college or foundation funds. The primary mission of the foundation is to support the college as well as its faculty, students and programs to ensure their continued success.

As reported by our chief operating officer in June, City College is in a good place and positioned well to move forward. In fact, the college is poised to have exciting times ahead. The following is a snapshot of recent successes and initiatives during what has been a very busy summer:

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• President Lisa S Coico Photo courtesy of The City College of New York website

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In June, we hosted First Lady Michelle Obama who addressed nearly 4,000 City College graduates as the Commencement speaker. Her speech at CCNY was voted one of the top 10 Commencement speeches of 2016.

For a glimpse of the vibrancy of our students, particularly 2016 valedictorian Antonios Mourdoukoutas and salutatorian Orubba Almansouri, check out the video clips on CCNY’s YouTube and Facebook that continue to spark engagement long after commencement.

The summer was full of City College students participating in various internships and service learning opportunities, including STEM CDI, S Jay Levy fellowships, and the CCNY-Stanford summer program.

There are a wealth of opportunities at City, so start planning now to apply for these programs and many more.

Six undergraduates studied overseas this summer on Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarships. Katherine Burgos, Marvin Campbell, Danielle Davis, Mohamed Mohamed, Johanelli Ramos and Elena Soktoeva were selected through a highly competitive process.

Several research projects and published works involving City College faculty and students on various topics such as studying treatment options for women

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smokers, archiving the collection of legendary ad man George Lois, developing new magnetic microchips, and discovering the impact of climate change on the distribution of animal populations have received national attention.

In July, Forbes announced that once again City College is among the top colleges and universities in the country according to the 2016 rankings.

We celebrate the 30th anniversary of City College’s WHCR 90.3FM, the only public radio station in Upper Manhattan that focuses on the issues and needs of the Harlem community.

Congratulations to the first entering class of the Sophie Davis Biomedical Education/CUNY School of Medicine as they begin their academic journey this fall.

And, this fall I expect to announce some major fundraising initiatives.

As we begin a new academic year, I will be working with students, faculty, and staff to implement the college’s new strategic plan, Vantage Point 2022, that addresses key themes of student success; research, scholarship and creativity; new academic initiatives (including a new school of arts); diversity

(particularly among faculty); financial health; community; and iconic campus (strengthening our facilities).

My highest priority will continue to be student success. City College is truly the economic engine of upward mobility unlike any other institution in the region. I will continue to protect its stewardship so that thousands of students will continue to have access to excellence and realize their dreams of completing a college education.

I look forward to the upcoming president’s roundtable discussions with students so stay tuned and have a great semester.

Lisa S. Coico

NEWS 7

8 THE CAMPUS / SEPTEMBER 2016

Thoughts on police brutality from within the NYPD

By Nick Middleton For the past two summers I’ve interned at the NYPD HQ, first in the Juvenile Justice Division and currently in the Candidate Assessment Division. Most of the police officers in my division are people of color, and as a black man, it’s pretty exciting that I get to work under the first black female chief.

The fact that I work in the department, the fact that I can name 10 officers and the address I work at —an address most officers recognize — off the top of my dome, works in my favor to protect me. This is something other black people don’t have the privilege of. A privilege that people like Alton Sterling, Freddy Gray, Sandra Bland and many others didn’t have.

The most recent death that set social media ablaze was that of 23 year old Korryn Gaines. According to The Guardian’s “The Counted” database, Gaines’ death marked the 160th police killing of a black person in 2016. The growing tension between police and people of color continues to grow and have led to numerous protests and debates, and sadly, even more attacks from both sides.

As an intern, and as a black man, I’ve got to see what it is like behind the blue wall, and it’s not as clear cut as it comes off to be.

For example, being a part of the Candidate Assessment Division, I’ve been shown how potential officers are evaluated before being considered for a position. Some point after taking the test someone from the division is sent to meet a candidate’s neighbors and ask about what type of person the soon-to-be officer is. The problem is that a lot of people don’t know their neighbor OPINION 9

well enough, especially in New York City.

So there are a lot of evaluation forms where neighbors will not know anything about the officer in training but still recommend them to be a police officer. But how can you make that call without any information on them?

Questions like does this person have problem with drugs, does this person have a problem with alcohol, does this person have any prejudice towards any race… these questions aren’t being answered on evaluations, and yet the evaluations are still seen as a positive recommendation within the process of becoming a police officer. This is just one of many issues.

The police department is very old school.

When given a chance to look at ex-police commissioner William Bratton’s recruitment plan, it is clear that his aim is to recruit more

you, and Reynolds understood that. Incidents like Castile’s death aren’t new, they’ve happened plenty of times in the past, but the only difference is that we are now recording when it happens and sharing it for the rest of the world to see.

Don’t get me wrong, I fully support police officers who do their job and do it well. I worked with the police in numerous occasions, I have strong relationships with them — I’ve even been to their kids’ birthday parties — but the thing is, the bad ones are ruining the rep for them, putting their lives in danger, and that is something I can’t abide by. On the flip side, the same thing is happening within the black community: There are black people who are bad and make bad choices and put everyone else on edge. Is that fair? Absolutely not. But when

Police chose to put their lives in danger for the better of the people. We did not choose to be black and have our lives be put on the line. millennials. I find this admirable seeing as a primary issue with the current system is that you still have a lot of officers from older generations— generations that aren’t as socially aware as millennials. As the saying goes, you can’t teach an old dog new tricks; it’s almost impossible to tell someone to just change with the times.

I remember how I was in a meeting and Philando Castile’s death was brought up.

Castile was shot and killed by a police officer in July while in the passenger seat of his girlfriend’s car. The family, which included Philando, his girlfriend Lavish Reynolds, and Reynolds’ daughter, were pulled over for a busted tail light. In this meeting I was attending, a co-worker poked at the fact that Reynolds live-streamed the moments after Castile was shot: “Well the first thing the driver did was go on Facebook live,” he said, hinting that what Reynolds did was wrong or showed the guilt of any wrong actions.

Right, I told him, because if the police show up to your door and shoot you, you don’t call more of them and expect them to aide you.

We currently live in a society where unless you have video evidence, no one will believe 10 THE CAMPUS / SEPTEMBER 2016

it happens with black people, we can’t just have quick trigger fingers.

I have spoken with officers and detectives and kids of uniformed members of service, and they seem to have a more narrow view.

That view usually lies along the line of “the police are the real victims, the media is attacking them, etc…” And that’s the problem. A lot of people just want to ignore that there is even a problem and that is a problem in of itself.

I’ve witnessed firsthand the impact police brutality has. Being an intern or having a close relationship with polices officers doesn’t exclude me from seeing what’s happening around me. I’ve personally witnessed people of color being abused and manipulated for simply being that person in the wrong place, at the wrong time, who happened to say the wrong thing that pissed off the wrong cop.

I’m not going to say police don’t matter.

They definitely do. But that’s not the issue right now. Police choose to put their lives in danger for the better of the people. We did not choose to be black and have our lives be put on the line.

Black lives have been devalued their entire presence in America.

Call it what you want, but that has to change. We have to fix the system. We had so long to fix the fucking system and yet have done nearly nothing. The system was built on corruption, and we had so much time to correct it— that is the most frustrating thing.

My ancestors were slaves and yet, today, centuries later, even after the Civil Rights movement and all of these other historic movements, my people are still being murdered in the streets for nothing more than a suspicion at times.

We need to do something different, because what’s currently happening has not worked for way too long. Have officers consistently patrol the same communities, to build a repertoire with the neighborhood.

Call out corrupt police and monitor the officers more efficiently. When someone blows the whistle on criminal activity they shouldn’t be ostracized from the department for it, action should be taken. That should be the standard.

There’s a lot of work that needs to be done, and it can’t happen in a day or a month. It has to continuously be changing, but we have to be willing to bring the change.

Talk to Everyone Why You Should Share More Than Just a Classroom With Your Peers

By Ricardo Verdesoto Generally, senior year means being finished with the overwhelming classwork, projects, and papers that have haunted us for the last four to six years. Some look as far ahead as to plan what kind of graduation party they’ll throw, or how they’ll decorate their caps. Yes indeed, it is the beginning of the end.

Senior year can also bring frustration though. Maybe financial aid isn’t coming through, or a class is full. It could just be that you’re missing the motivation to cross the line, or in this case, the stage. Transitioning into the “real world” can be difficult. Some students never had a job, or if they did, it didn’t pertain to their area of study. So what happens to those people? Let’s just say there is a large gray area between graduation and your dream job.

However, keeping an open mind is important. You may be graduating with honors, but the truth is no one knows who you are. So getting to know your classmates and peers can be vital to your post-college life. You may have been sitting next to someone who can help you get in an industry you’re interested in. Talking to that person can open the door to your career, or even start a friendship!

Face to face communication is key in relationship building. We currently live in the era of social media, where we spend all summer secretly creeping on each other’s Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat posts.

Now we feel like we know each other; like we can just go about our business and stay quiet because there’s nothing to talk about, right? Wrong. There’s still so much to explore about one another.

We are sitting next to the next generation

of world leaders, industry pioneers, creative geniuses, and CEOs. We live in a world where young people have a hard time making eye contact with each other, and this in turn hurts us when it comes down to sitting down for that very first job interview after graduation. We have the power, and our own futures, in our hands.

As millennials, we are both cursed and blessed with this magical thing called the internet. It has also made us incredibly less vocal about our feelings and about our ambition as future leaders. There is only so much we can get to know about each other if all we see is that dog filter on Snapchat.

We are an incredible mosaic of personalities, talent, and creativity. We are ambitious, hungry for success, and equally as nervous for whatever the future holds. We are also in control of our success, and what better way to succeed than to help each other.

Seniors, we are closer than ever to putting on that cap and gown. It wouldn’t hurt to do so as a family: to walk across that stage knowing that we encouraged each other’s success and that we challenged each other’s creativity. The possibilities are endless, and the time to build our relationships is now.

Talk to everyone.

L I F E S T Y L E 11

A Lasting Legacy CCNY remembers Elie Wiesel

By Saif Choudhury

Elie Wiesel (1928-2016) was a writer, City College educator, Nobel Laureate, and Holocaust survivor.

The world mourned the death of writer Elie Wiesel on July 2, 2016. The author, professor, Holocaust survivor and Nobel Laureate wrote more than 40 books – including Night, Wiesel’s memoir of what he endured during the Holocaust and how it shaped his view of life.

One of the groups affected by the life and work of Wiesel is the faculty and student body of the City College of New York. From 1972 to 1976, Wiesel served as a Distinguished Professor of Judaic Studies.

More recently, he served on the Board of Visitors from the Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership at CCNY, where he advised and mentored students.

Wiesel was much more involved with CCNY than just teaching and advising. In May, 2008, Dr. Gregory H. Williams, who was President of The City College at the time, conferred upon Wiesel the honorary degree, Doctor of Letters.

“Elie Wiesel has spent much of his adult life working on behalf of oppressed people everywhere,” said President Williams. “We honor him for building on his personal experience of living through the Holocaust to use his talents as an author, teacher and storyteller to defend human rights and peace throughout the world.”

Wiesel delivered the Inaugural 12 THE CAMPUS / SEPTEMBER 2016

President’s Lecture, titled “Confronting Fanaticism: Building a Moral Unity in a Diverse Society,” in City College’s Great Hall after receiving his honorary degree.

“We must fight hatred or it wins,” stressed Wiesel in his lecture. “We are all threatened… What do we do about it?

What must we do… Are we to give up on humanity… Even on the edge of the abyss, it is possible to have hope.”

Wiesel received the U.S. Congressional Gold Medal, Medal of Liberty Award and the Presidential Medal of Freedom for emphasizing messages of hope such as this. In order to ensure that the future never repeats the mistakes of the past, Wiesel also spent time working with students of other educational organizations – such as Boston University, Yale University, and Barnard College.

General Colin L. Powell, founder of Colin Powell School for Civic and Global Leadership at CCNY, remembered his friend by posting on Facebook, “Elie Wiesel, one of the greatest humanitarians of our time and a dear friend of mine has died. Holocaust survivor, Nobel Laureate, brilliant author, conscience of the world lived by the code ‘to forget the dead is akin to killing them a second time… He will be missed, but his spirit will live on.”

The CCNY Jewish Studies Program also issued a public statement the day after Wiesel’s death: “Elie Wiesel was a Distinguished Professor in the earliest days of our department…” They concluded their statement by referencing how Wiesel’s contributions to CCNY will not be forgotten: “Our vibrant learning community today is part of his gift to us: we will remember.”

We must always take sides. Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented.

ELIEZER WEISEL

in the archives Advertising Legend George Lois donates his life’s work to the City College Archives

By Carmen Quang The year was 1962. Esquire, the men’s fashion and literary magazine, was only a few fed up investors away from evolving into the next Playboy in a last ditch attempt to yield a profit. Enter George Lois. At 31 years old, Lois was every bit as imposing as the basketball player turned art director.

He promised Howard Hayes, the managing editor of Esquire, that he could turn the declining publication around. Lois’ visceral covers--many of which were comments on race relations, feminism, and the War in Vietnam—provided incredible insight on 20th century American culture. For this reason, Lois’ works are a part of the permanent collection at MoMA. This summer, Lois’ tour de force became a part of the City College Archives. As part of the Opportunities in Research and Creative Arts (ORCA) program, funded

by CUNY, students Anna Pinger, Stephana Egan, Catherine Okoye, Carmen Quang, and Maria Tsampas had the priv-ilege of working closely with the original adman himself, George Lois, as well as Professor Ed-ward Keller of the Media and Communication Arts department, and archivist David Nocera, to sort and curate Lois’ life work. Professor

I deeply believe in the role public education plays in helping students of diversity to succeed...For me I am coming home

Keller hopes the experience will “expose [his] students to the creative process and enable them to better understand the art of advertising and what makes it transcend the selling of products.”

“The archives’ contain Mr. Lois career and encompass his television and print advertis-ing, logo designs, as well as his correspondence, photography, and incredible memorabilia. “It’s like living history,” remarked Maria Tsampas, a student archivist.

Indeed, the breadth and depth of the George Lois collection extends far beyond the wildest imagination of any advertising con-noisseur. Each of the thousands of pieces in the room are a tribute to American history: boxer Sonny Liston as “Black Santa” gracing the cover of Esquire at a time when Listons’ reputation was more notorious than jolly; a cover of Richard Nixon receiving a makeover which inspired the April 2016 Donald Trump cover of Variety magazine; and Muhammad Ali as San Sebastian in reference to when Ali was banned from boxing while on trial for evading the Vietnam War draft.

Lois’ spectacular contribution includes not only Lois’ 92 published Esquire covers, but his original sketches, advertisements for other high-profile clients such as Tommy Hilfiger, whom Lois put on the map in 1985, The New York Post, and MTV. When asked why he chose City College to house his collection, Lois said plainly and simply, “I deeply believe in the role public education plays in helping students of diversity to succeed.” Lois, the son of Greek immigrants, is alum of the High School of Music and Arts which was located on the City College campus from 1936 until 1984.

“For me, it is coming ho-me.”

Advertising legend George Lois is considered to be the “spark” behind the Advertising Creative Revolution of the 1960s Photo Courtesy of George Lois

G E O R G E LO I S F E A T U R E S 13

SPORTS

A shot at redemption, With a New Direction CCNY Women’s soccer returns to the field Photo By Enzo Ames

The 2015 City College Women’s soccer team had a season they would like to forget.

And as the 2016 season gets underway, they have a shot at that goal.

Last year, the Women’s soccer team finished with an abysmal 2-14-1 overall record, their worst since the 2010 season when they finished 2-18-1. In conference play, they ended with a 1-4-1 record.

However, neither record shows the real turmoil the team was in. The girls had a negative 73 goal differential, allowing 88 and scoring only 15. Thirteen of the goals City scored came in a game against fellow CUNYAC opponent, Medgar Evers College.

14 THE CAMPUS / SEPTEMBER 2016

By Curtis Ashley

“Well, last year a lot of things just didn’t go the team’s way,” new Head Coach, Louis Manoussos commented.

Joining the team in Spring of this year, Manoussos found himself as the first piece in the reconstruction period of the team, but a valuable piece indeed. His experience in the sport includes coaching at the assistant level at Dowling College, and holding the head coach position at Pratt Institute. In addition, Manoussos is the owner and founder of the New York Soccer Training Academy.

Since his arrival, he has been active in preparing for the upcoming season, making sure that players are aware of what is ahead.

“My staff and myself put a strong emphasis on accountability. We hold our players responsible for their actions on and off the field. It all begins with off season conditioning and spring ball. Pretty much we like for them to go all year round.”

Manoussos said.

There wasn’t much to work with, however. The team lost their senior players in the off-season, including Emily Ramos, Anna Elias, and senior captain Elif Demircan. In all, eight players left the team, leaving a huge hole to be filled. But like everything else, Manoussos seems to have everything under control. He has recruited some new players,

including Dina Sayd of Fort Hamilton High School, Tatiana Zuluga of Island Tree High School, and Melany Caceres of Archbishop Molloy High School.

Returning to the team from last season is team captain Patricia Martinez, defender Annette Scotto, and goalkeepers Marissa Olsen and Zoe Rosenbloom.

Coach Manoussos is confident that this team can manage a better season than last year, and it’s teamwork that will make this dream work.

“My overall goal for this season and beyond is to build a winning attitude and program. At the beginning of the season

everyone is equal. There is no one better than you,” says Manoussos. “We have no individual players, we do everything by committee. Last time I spelled ‘team’, it is not spelled with an ‘I’.”

The team plays eight conference games this season, including a couple of key matchups at home. Home for the girls means Field 91 on Randall’s Island, where they will face Brooklyn College and York College.

“I am excited about the entire season,” Manoussos says. “I think every team on our schedule is a quality opponent. We take no one for granted. We respect everyone, we fear no one. If we come prepared and bring

our A-game to practice and to the game, we should be just fine.”

City was blanked by Brooklyn in their sole match-up last season, but they were able to get past York College in their most previous game, defeating the Cardinals 1-0 on their own turf. City will face Brooklyn and York in back-to-back games on their schedule. First Brooklyn on Saturday, October 8th, then York on Wednesday, October 12th. Set towards the latter portion of the season, these two games will both be indicators of how much the team has either progressed or stayed stagnant.

S P O R T S 15