Observer Issue 9 Fall 2022

Observer the

The Student Voice of Fordham Lincoln Center

September 14, 2022 VOLUME XLII, ISSUE 9

By MARYAM BESHARA AND INSIYA GANDHI News Editors

Content warning: The following article includes mentions of microaggressions and discussions on racebased discrimination and bias-related incidents.

Former Resident Director (RD) Kris Little and current RD Savanah Manos addressed allegations of misidentification motivated by race within the first-year residence hall in an email sent to the McKeon residential community on April 11, 2022. The email encouraged students to be tolerant and create an environment that is accepting.

“It has been brought to our attention that there have been occasions where members of the residential community have misidentified other members of the community based on their race,” the email read.

“Regardless of the setting or details surrounding the incidents, we want to bring awareness to how harmful and damaging racial microaggressions and acts of implicit bias are to the residential community.”

According to former Director of Residential Life Greg Jones, the email’s release was prompted by the misidentification of staff members on the basis of race.

Jenifer Campbell, dean of students at Lincoln Center, echoed Jones’ response and stated her understanding of the incident was that there were “some mis-identifications of individuals based on race which led to the incidents being addressed in the community.”

The subject line “Understanding the Impact of Microaggressions to Foster an Inclusive Residential Community,” as well as the email’s contents, highlighted the communication recovery model. The model outlines steps for accepting, apologizing and adjusting one’s own behavior, the McKeon RDs noted at the time.

The email sparked conversations among some first-year residents on the handling of racebased complaints on behalf of the Office of Residential Life (ResLife) and other administrative figureheads at Fordham Lincoln Center. see MICROAGGRESSIONS page 5

ALICE MORENO/THE OBSERVER

An email from April 2022 sent by the McKeon Hall RDs detailed the harm that racial microaggressions may bring to the community and emphasized the importance of tolerance.

Residents Feel Unsupported by ResLife’s Response to Microaggressions

COURTESY OF FORDHAM ATHELTICS

Fotis Kokosioulis, FCRH ’23, had a stellar game. He led the receivers with 130 yards and two touchdowns.

DeMorat Sets Passing Record in 52-49 Win vs Monmouth

By CHRIS MURRAY Sports & Health Editor

The Fordham football team defeated the Monmouth University (MU) Hawks, 52-49, on Saturday, Sept. 10 in an electrifying offensive affair. The competition featured 1,419 total yards between the two teams. The lead changed five times in what was the highest cumulative score for the Rams since their 2016 campaign.

It was also headlined by the record-breaking performance of quarterback Tim DeMorat, Fordham College at Rose Hill (FCRH) ’23, who threw six touchdowns to tie his own single game record and earned his 78th career touchdown, breaking the previous record of 76 set by Kevin Anderson, Gabelli School of Business at Rose Hill (GSBRH) ’17.

DeMorat’s 452 passing yards are the most in a game in his career and are the third most thrown by a quarterback in a single game in Fordham history.

“We’re glad he’s on our side,” Head Coach Joe Conlin stated about his star quarterback. “You never really feel like (the game’s) out of reach with Timmy on the field.”

Team Captain Trey Sneed, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences ’23, rushed for 117 yards on 17 attempts to lead the Rams on the ground. Meanwhile, Fotis Kokosioulis, FCRH ’23, caught 15 receptions for 130 yards and two touchdowns to lead Fordham in the passing game. MJ Wright, GSBRH ’23, tacked on another eight receptions for 97 yards.

Defensively, Ryan Greenhagen, GSBRH ’23, led the Rams in solo tackles and defensive back Stephen Williams II, FCRH ’23, added an interception that stopped a Monmouth drive in Fordham territory late in the second quarter.

The win moved Fordham to 2-0 in the nascent season. In the Rams’ first contest of the year, they toppled Wagner College on Sept. 1 in another high-scoring effort. Fueled

by five touchdown passes, one touchdown rush and 386 passing yards from DeMorat, Fordham won the season opener 48-31. While the win was cause for celebration, it also displayed that the defense was a step behind the offense. In the contest against Wagner last season, the Rams held the Seahawks to only a single touchdown. This year the game was closer.

Still, the Rams’ offense triumphed. The momentum continued against Monmouth. After the opening kickoff, Sneed rushed four consecutive times for a combined 24 yards to break into Monmouth territory. Sophomore running back Julius Loughridge, FCRH ’25, then carried the ball twice. Loughridge did not see playing time as a firstyear but has made the most of his opportunities this season. He followed up his 120-yard rushing performance against Wagner with 112 total yards and a touchdown on Saturday. see FOOTBALL page 7

Lincoln Center Housing Overflow Forces Residents to Live at Rose Hill

By ERIKA TULFO Features Editor

Confusion and frustration marked the fall 2022 housing selection process as Lincoln Center students were given assignments at the Rose Hill campus due to oversubscription.

According to Associate Director for Housing Operations Vickki Massy, around 20 students at the Lincoln Center campus are currently being housed in upper-classman residence halls at the Rose Hill campus.

Jenifer Campbell, dean of students at Lincoln Center, noted that 150 more students than initially anticipated were guaranteed housing in the residence halls.

“What happened this year was very different than what NEWS PAGE 4

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happened any other year that I have been here because of the oversubscriptions,” she said.

Massy mentioned that 1,349 residents are currently living on the Lincoln Center campus this semester, and 610 of whom are recorded to be first-year students. She outlined the Office of Residential Life’s (ResLife’s) steps to mitigate the overcrowding and better accommodate the number of resident students.

“We have placed several firstyear students in triple bedrooms in McMahon Hall and several upper-class and new transfer students in converted doubles,” Massy said.

Despite these efforts, students remain discontent with how the university has decided see HOUSING OVERFLOW page 2

SPORTS & HEALTH PAGE 6

What’s the Deal With?

A comprehensive guide to understanding football

ANDREW DRESSNER/THE OBSERVER

Finlay Hall is one of the residential halls at Rose Hill housing some of the Lincoln Center students due to the overflow.

CENTERFOLD PAGE 8

Orientation

Fordham students and staff welcome the Class of 2026

OPINIONS PAGE 12

Horse Carriages

Classic NYC experience harms its unwilling participants

ARTS & CULTURE PAGE 13

50 Years of Theater

New York Public Library exhibit honors theater history

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September 14, 2022 THE OBSERVER

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Fordham Deans Rollout New Advising System for Class of 2026

In the updated model, students will be led by one of eight professional advisers rather than a faculty member

By INSIYA GANDHI News Editor

While welcoming the Class of 2026 onto Fordham’s campuses, the Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) and Fordham College at Rose Hill (FCRH) deans’ offices introduced a new mode of advising. The modifications, which were inspired by other universities’ models and student feedback, is being implemented for current first-year students.

Maura Mast, dean of FCRH, explained that the new advising system stems from the university’s strategic plan to redesign policies and practices for academic advising and student support from the perspective of student access.

A substantial goal of Mast and Auricchio’s was the formation of an advising center, based on ensuring that students were sufficiently served by their academic advisers.

The idea for a new advising system was first conceived in 2020, when both deans assembled the Task Force on Undergraduate Academic Advising (TFUAA). It is composed of 18 people, consisting of faculty, staff and students and was established to accomplish three goals: the fulfillment of current student needs, the examination of advising practices in the field at institutions with superior retention rates to implement their strategies, and the proposition of potential models that are grounded in success.

The advising center compiled the three models, circulated them and organized town halls and anonymous surveys, according to Auricchio. She noted that a large subset of students from both undergraduate campuses responded to the surveys and that they measured students’ opinions of the models.

INFOGRAPHIC BY MARIA TERZULLI/THE OBSERVER

The new advising model will offer a holistic approach and provide students with a professional advisor who will remain with them over the course of their time at Fordham.

“What we learned was that people really liked models one and number two,” she said. “So then we delved deeper to see what were the things they liked about them each and what they did not like about. So, we crafted model 1.5 that took the best of each of those.”

Model 1.5 entails the creation of the Fordham College Advising Center that is led by Associate Dean for Academic Advising Ashlee Burrs, a newly developed position to oversee the center. Additionally, the team consists of eight professional advisers who will serve as advisers for the Class of 2026.

“They’re trained in advising and experienced in advising,” Mast said. “They have advanced degrees in higher education, leadership, development or student affairs.”

Mast described the associate dean’s role as “crucial” and noted that the role entails professional development and attending advising conferences, among other responsibilities.

Burrs emphasized that the new model for academic advising intends to provide students with holistic advising and support in terms of their academic pursuits on campus and ensures that students are connected to campus resources for their success.

“The new model allows the student to form a connection with the adviser as opposed to switching from Summer advisers, to a Class Dean who was different each year, and then a faculty adviser,” Burrs noted.

Auricchio shared that recruiting a professional adviser to remain with their student over the course of their time at Fordham is to ameliorate frustrations from students who felt passed around from adviser to adviser. Her hope is that students will be well acquainted with their professional adviser.

The new structure of the 1.5 model details that eventually all advising will be handled by the professional advisers and faculty members will assume a mentoring role, engaging with students in conversations that play into their strengths. Mast gave the example of a faculty member serving as a mentor to a student pursuing a minor in creative writing by connecting them to the publishing industry and helping them make sense of their opportunities.

“ The new model allows

the student to form a connection with the adviser as opposed to switching from Summer advisers, to a Class Dean who was different each year, and then a faculty adviser. ”

Ashlee Burrs, associate dean for academic advisers

In the current model of advising in place for the Classes of 2025, 2024 and 2023, advisers are faculty members who assist with registration, academic support, professional development and other responsibilities. In the new model, the professional adviser will fully assume this role and its respective responsibilities.

“No one likes lifting holds, no one likes those emails the day before registration,” Mast said. “The advisers are going to be in front of all of that, they are going to be

proactively making sure that students know what they are going to do through registration.”

The new system is only established for first-year students, with sophomore, junior and senior students continuing in the existing models. The Class of 2025 is continuing with the same academic adviser as the previous year, Dean Conor O’Kane, during the 2022-23 academic year.

“Picture this as a wave: A new wave is coming in, and it has first hit the Class of 2026. It will next hit the Class of 2027, 2028 and so forth, but the classes that are already here are continuing in this existing model,” Auricchio clarified.

Mast explained that students expressed dissatisfaction and confusion with the current model in which they felt as if they had to contact numerous different deans and offices for an answer. She spotlighted students’ desire for high quality and informed advising from professors who reflect their identity and lived experiences.

Auricchio and Mast drew inspiration from institutions such as the University of Notre Dame and Loyola University Chicago. Auricchio noted that since the concept of professional advising is implemented at many other universities; she was surprised to learn about the faculty advising model at Fordham.

“The idea of professional advising is one that actually has been around in a lot of universities for a long time,” Auricchio shared. “The general concept is something that is really common.”

Both Mast and Auricchio shared that they are excited to offer a new opportunity to students. They shared their gratitude toward students who filled out feedback forms and attended listening sessions.

Student Takes Leave of Absence Following Inability to Secure Housing

Residents frustrated with ResLife's handling of housing-related issues and inconsistencies with communication HOUSING OVERFLOW from page 1

to handle the overcrowding.

Roela Xhala, Gabelli School of Business at Lincoln Center ’25, is an internal transfer student and one of the 20 Lincoln Center students housed at Rose Hill. Despite successfully completing her transfer application over the summer and signing up for Lincoln Center housing, she found herself back at her initial campus in O’Hare Hall.

Xhala recalled emailing ResLife three times as soon as her transfer was processed in an effort to secure a spot in one of Lincoln Center’s residence halls.

Out of the three separate occasions, she only once received a reply, which told her that the housing placement process began in late July for transfer students.

“I emailed them back again a week later — never got a response.

I emailed them again after that, and I never got a response back,” she said. “How do you expect to accommodate me when you’re not even answering my emails?”

Xhala resorted to calling ResLife, only to then be told that housing assignments were not something able to be discussed over the phone.

In August, Xhala was informed that her housing assignment would be at Rose Hill. Living in O’Hare involves having to wake up at 6 a.m. to commute to Lincoln Center for all seven of her classes.

“It’s unprofessional for an institution like Fordham to be doing this. If you are supposed to be at a certain campus, you should be guaranteed housing at that specific campus,” she said.

“I don’t think it’s fair to make students do these runarounds, going back and forth and making them tired.”

“ Every aspect of my

life has been uprooted because Fordham didn’t tell me that I wasn’t going to be receiving housing until it was too late to do anything. ”

Julia Pugliese, Fordham College at Lincoln Center ’24

Although last year’s incoming class size reached a historic high, Xhala recalls a seamless experience signing up for housing that cut a stark contrast to the “chaos” of this year’s process.

According to Campbell, internal transfer students are currently given priority housing if space were to open up in the residence halls at Lincoln Center. Xhala said she was told that all housing assignments were final.

When Xhala expressed her dissatisfaction over the phone, a representative from ResLife told her that receiving housing at Lincoln Center was “impossible” because of the combination of oversubscriptions, a larger batch of incoming first-years and fewer students leaving to study abroad.

Xhala stated that she understood but felt that “it also could have been communicated better.”

In addition to those being housed at Rose Hill, some students were informed late that they would not have a bed in any residence hall.

Julia Pugliese, Fordham College at Lincoln Center ’24, ended last year’s spring semester in eager anticipation for next fall, having secured a place on the waitlist for a single room and later, receiving multiple emails guaranteeing her spot.

She remembered an email telling her to wait until early August to receive her dorm assignment but when late August arrived without any further communication from Fordham, Pugliese reached out to ResLife and the dean of Fordham College at Lincoln Center.

“I would estimate at least six different people all started giving me different answers, but they were avoiding the main answer as to when I would get my dorm assignment,” she said. “I was talking to so many people, but they all kept telling me to call

other departments. It was like going in a triangle or a square.”

It was on Aug. 21 — just over a week away from the start of the fall semester — that Pugliese received an email letting her know she would not be receiving housing at Lincoln Center, single room or otherwise, because the residence halls were “backed up.”

Pugliese, who said she was never updated on the status of her place on the waitlist throughout her correspondence with ResLife, leading her to believe she was removed. Unable to find housing alternatives off-campus on short notice, Pugliese filed for a leave of absence.

Xhala echoed Pugliese’s confusion regarding the university’s waitlist system and her frustra-

tion at the lack of transparency.

“Every aspect of my life has been uprooted because Fordham didn’t tell me that I wasn’t going to be receiving housing until it was too late to do anything,” she said.

This is not the first time that ResLife has been criticized for their lack of action. Last fall, first-year students faced similar issues surrounding delayed housing assignments and lack of communication from the office’s end.

To prevent similar housing overflow issues in the future, Massy stated that the university has long-term plans to “work closely with the Office of Undergraduate Admissions to suggest how many first-year and new transfer students to admit for Fall 2023.”

ANDREW DRESSNER/THE OBSERVER

Students expressed dissatisfaction due to the housing placements.

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21 Years Later, 9/11 Is Still More Than a Memory: A Photo Essay

Solace and grief converge at the memorial, where acts of remembrance continue to imprint themselves on mourners

By MARYAM BESHARA AND AURELIEN CLAVAUD News Editor and Asst. Photo Editor

It wasn’t long after the tragic events of Sept. 11, 2001 that the United States began a long journey of recovery. Among the debris of one of America’s financial capitals sat tremendous grief and an uncertain future. An existential problem presented itself to a mourning population: How can the national conscious process an unimaginable loss of life?

As reconstruction efforts began for the World Trade Center complex, complications, such as financial and engineering burdens, quickly arose. The centerpiece tower of the new World Trade Center (WTC) — branded as One World Trade by the Durst Organization and the Port Authority of New York and New

Jersey — opened in 2014, 13 years after the attacks with the memorial opening the same year following enormous construction delays.

Alongside the physical reconstruction of the entire WTC complex, which at the time of publishing is still underway, One World Trade represented an attempt to establish a semblance of normalcy in Lower Manhattan.

The return of the hustle and bustle, as well as the various remembrance ceremonies, have tried to do that.

To understand the importance of these ceremonies and the value of national remembrance, we took a walk around the memorial grounds on the 21st anniversary of the attacks. What we saw there speaks to the power of memory and how it has changed over the course of two decades.

Honoring Sacrifice The 1 train skipped the WTC station in both directions for the ceremonies, so we walked from Chambers Street Exiting the station, we moved with a crowd of people all heading toward the glass tower that dominates the New York City skyline.

It was quiet but for the distant chatter, occasional taxis, CitiBike tires splashing over puddles and a low drone of bagpipes echoing along Fulton Street. As we approached the edge of the memorials at the intersection of Fulton and Church Street, a procession of Port Authority police officers playing

Memory and Mourning As we approached the memorial, we noticed several people walking with blank expressions on their faces. The hushed conversations were overpowered by the slight winds that rustled the branches of the nearby trees.

We spent a lot of time people-watching and taking in the magnitude of the events that occurred. Belonging to a generation that was not born prior to the attacks, all we could do was reflect on the emotions of those who were clearly there to mourn: those who leaned on their loved ones for support, those who gazed at flowers gently placed in the grooves of the names and those in silent prayer, fixing their gaze on where the towers once stood.

At a certain point, we stood under one of the trees surrounding the memorial at the North Tower to switch out the camera lens.

Looking up, our eyes met a woman in a rainbow tie-dye dress who adjusted her hair and angled her face toward an iPhone camera. She effortlessly glowed at the person kneeling down taking her photo — juxtaposed in the background was the memorial, a place where thousands lost their lives and where New York was forever changed.

Minutes before witnessing this interaction, we had our own conversation about selfies and their place at memorials. We initially described the experience of witnessing visitors hold up their front-facing cameras as “jarring” but then came to the realization that each person connected with the event in

the bagpipes captured the attention of passers-by. People ran down the street — still damp from a morning drizzle — alongside the officers as they held tightly onto their devices to record the moment.

The bagpipes ceremony was the first of many we witnessed as we walked around the WTC. Cantor Fitzgerald, a financial services company that once occupied floors 101 to 105 of the North Tower (right above the impact zone), lost over 60% of their national workforce in the attacks.

On the anniversary, the company set up a tent on the east side of the Oculus to commemorate the 658 employees lost. A solemn

choir sang before ex-employees, followed by a reading of the names. Visitors around the memorial quieted down as they passed the tent; the memory came to life, and people stopped to watch the ceremony.

New York Fire Department (NYFD) Station 10, located at 124 Liberty St., was the only fire station inside Ground Zero, the site of the terrorist attacks. The battalion stationed there was the first on the scene and lost six firefighters in the ensuing collapse of the towers.

On the anniversary, a firefighter in uniform stood guard in front of a bronze plaque commemorating the station’s sacrifice.

their own way; it was not our place to take note of how they chose to commemorate their visit.

Memory and remembrance can present themselves in many forms: loved ones left flowers, American flags, photographs and notes within the nameplates to communicate with those that were taken from them unexpectedly. As families surrounded the memorial and children innocently splashed their hands along the trickling water, unknowingly touching the grounds where tragedy and mourning intersect forever, we sought to capture what we could of what continues to bring people to the WTC.

PHOTOS BY AURELIEN CLAUVAUD/THE OBSERVER

THE OBSERVER September 14, 2022

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ResLife Email Sparks Conversations on Bias-Related Incidents at Fordham

News

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Residents share their experiences of racial discrimination and disappointment with Fordham’s resources MICROAGGRESSIONS from page 1

it’s kind of like once it's given to the resident directors we are no longer allowed to be informed as to what’s going on because of confidentiality,” McMahon-Ward said.

Overall, McMahon-Ward stressed that residents often have to state their case and RAs need to support their residents in these claims. In terms of the email released to the McKeon community, McMahon-Ward expressed that she was unaware of the email as it was not mentioned during staff meetings and had only heard about it through word of mouth.

In her experience in McMahon, McMahon-Ward said that there had never been any incident regarding race to warrant a widespread email.

Former First-Year Students Speak On Experiences in McKeon Hall Two former McKeon residents of color shared their encounters with race-based microaggressions in the residence hall and at Fordham. The students that were interviewed requested to remain anonymous due to fear of retaliation.

“My experience living in McKeon the first semester was really rough,” one anonymous student, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’25, said.

The student, who now lives in McMahon Hall, lived in a three-person room in McKeon Hall throughout the 2021-22 academic school year and spoke about the treatment they received from one of their roommates as a person of color in comparison to their other roommate who was white.

The student noted that their third roommate would only acknowledge their white roommate and they “just couldn’t understand why.” “(They) would only talk and would only communicate with me if it was to blame me for something,” the student said.

To determine whether the situation was racially motivated or based on a lack of communication, the resident involved ResLife. They noted that ResLife encouraged several mediations as a form of resolution but they felt that during the mediations, their concerns were “brushed under the rug.”

“It felt like the whole thing turned into me being the villain for even bringing up this idea, and I ended up feeling really bad about it because everyone was like, ‘Oh, it was just a misunderstanding,’ but it didn’t feel like a misunderstanding on my part,” they said.

In response to this, Campbell said that such situations can be complex and that staff strive to thoroughly address reports.

“I am confident staff did not ‘sweep’ the individual’s concerns under the rug. As with any report, situations can be complicated and multi-faceted,” she said.

“I can assure you, every report is taken seriously.”

The anonymous resident added that they do not believe that ResLife is a reliable resource and shared that, when confronting another experience with microaggressions, they felt that they and their friends could not seek ResLife as a resource due to how their previous conflict was handled.

Campbell added that when there is a conflict, there are two sides to every story and that it’s crucial to listen to both sides.

“Interpretations can be different and we are responsible for determining what happened between the two parties,” she said.

The resident said that they felt that their resident first-year mentor (RFM) was “incredibly helpful.”

They appreciated that their RFM provided them with the space to talk to someone their age and men-

Reactions to ResLife’s Email JILLIAN ARENA/THE OBSERVER

Students can report bias-related incidents to Public Safety and are encouraged to contact the OMA, CPS, or Campus Ministry.

tioned that they felt more comfortable approaching their resident assistant (RA) and their RFM than ResLife.

Ara Tandon, FCLC ’24 and a former resident of both McKeon and McMahon Hall, also spoke about their experience as a student of color with ResLife and their feelings surrounding their presence in predominantly white spaces. Tandon mentioned that they appreciated having an RA in McKeon who is a person of color and said it allowed them to feel recognized and validated, which added a sense of comfort to the RA-resident relationship.

“I never really felt like I had to go sit down and have tough conversations with (them) but part of that comfort was because I didn’t have to explain a lot of these things,” they said.

The anonymous resident added that they do not believe that ResLife is a reliable resource and shared that, when confronting another experience with microaggressions, they felt that they and their friends could not use ResLife as a resource due to how their previous conflict was handled.

“It’s just deterred a lot of us from actually seeking out proper help and resources that we need, especially in situations where we do feel like we’ve been violated or traumatized or lied to,” they said.

In response to this, Campbell noted that RAs are a part of ResLife and that they are trained by professional staff in terms of mitigating situations.

“Without question, RAs are ResLife,” she said. “Those same individuals are trained by ResLife.

You can’t separate the two.”

Another anonymous former McKeon resident and current resident in McMahon, FCLC ’25, shared an experience in which a friend imposed racially-motivated microaggressions on them and their friends in McKeon. They explained that in attempting to confront the individual who had marginalized them, they felt burdened with maintaining composure at risk of seeming hysterical.

“We always have to be the ones to move on; we are always immature; we get angry; we are overreacting,” they said. “But when a white person gets angry, it’s like, ‘Give them some room.’

It’s validated for them but invalidated for me.”

The second student said they felt supported by their circle of friends but noted that they felt approaching their RA would be

unhelpful as it would not entirely resolve the issue. The resident expressed that they felt a mediation would not be helpful.

“I understand the process but don’t think I trust the process enough,” they said.

The student chose not to report the alleged incident to their RFM, RA or RD at risk of not being believed.

“I just know there are instances where the white voice is believed over the POC (people of color) voice,” they said. “We know who gets the upper hand, we know who gets heard more, we’re gonna get painted like the angry, crazy POCs.” ResLife Discusses the Process of Reporting BiasRelated Incidents Investigations into bias-related incidents are usually conducted by Public Safety. Depending on the individuals involved in the case, other departments may be brought in to contribute to the report.

Robert Dineen, assistant vice president for Public Safety, outlined the process of how a student can file a race-based discrimination complaint with Public Safety. He noted that, when a student files a complaint, the department conducts “fair and impartial investigations with the objective of gathering an accurate description of the facts from both parties.”

Public Safety may be required to interview the student and conduct an investigation alongside the dean of students in order to meet legal requirements and protect the student’s safety, according to Dineen.

“When a student comes to file a race based discrimination complaint with the Department of Public Safety (DPS) our response will be handled sensitively and discreetly to protect the student’s privacy and preferences,” he said.

Depending on the severity of the race-based misconduct, a report of the investigation is forwarded to the dean of students if it involves a student-on-student case and will align itself with the university’s code of conduct process. If the misconduct involves an employee, the Office of Human Resources will be brought into the investigation.

Dineen noted that individuals may also seek out other legal remedies, including criminal prosecutions, as DPS maintains a cooperative relationship with the NYPD and will assist victims through each step of the process: reporting, investigating and resolution.

He added that DPS can connect students with other offices at the university including ResLife, Office of Multicultural Affairs (OMA), the chief diversity officer, Counseling and Psychological Services (CPS) and Campus Ministry.

To file a complaint within a residence hall, Jones said a student should speak to their RA or RFM, and the information will be relayed to the RD.

“ I’ve never seen an

outcome where they (ResLife) have done something efficiently because an email sending out links to people that can support you is not helpful. ” anonymous student, FCLC ’25

Former Residential Assistant Highlights Staff Experience In regard to handling a racebased complaint, Royall McMahon-Ward, FCLC ’22 and a former RA in McMahon Hall during the 2021-22 academic school year, explained that RAs are instructed to gauge the situation and its severity. She emphasized that RAs are tasked with ensuring that the resident who allegedly has been transgressed against is safe.

Upon learning about the situation, the RA first concludes whether the space the resident is in is safe. According to McMahon-Ward, if the resident does feel safe, the complaint will be reported to the RD. If the resident does not feel safe, the RA will contact the RD and the resident will be placed in emergency housing.

McMahon-Ward noted that, given the influx of residents in the years since the pandemic, if the halls are overbooked, she does not know where the students who need emergency housing would be placed.

“I genuinely don’t really know what would happen because if there’s not space, it becomes a little tricky,” she said.

She also mentioned that once the complaint is filed to the RD, RAs are not always aware of the next steps taken.

“I’ll be honest, RAs don’t really know what happens after because

The first anonymous student shared that when they first saw the email sent by the McKeon RDs, they scoffed at it.

“An email isn’t doing a lot,” they said. “An email is just an email. Most people don’t read their emails, or a lot of emails from ResLife usually get brushed off by people, so it’s not really like they’re doing a lot to help microaggressions. It really does seem like they do the surface level and then don’t really help when you actually need help.”

Campbell noted that she was not involved in the process of sending out the email but believed the email was sent from an informational perspective.

She added that students had an opportunity to meet with the McKeon RDs if they had further concerns and that that option was made known to them.

The email cited Campus Ministry, OMA, CPS and Public Safety as resources for students. The second anonymous student commented that they are yet to witness offices on campus provide a source of support.

“I’ve never seen an outcome where they (ResLife) have done something efficiently because an email sending out links to people that can support you is not helpful,” they said. “And an email with resources is not sufficient. And our students, our POC students, deserve more than that.”

The first anonymous student noted that they do not believe the university provides helpful resources and is unaware of what to do when faced with a situation in which they have to confront microaggressions.

“I feel like Fordham has to do a better job of making it more known because, at least at orientation, (in 2021), they made the fact that they are committed to diversity and inclusion known, but they never gave resources for race complaints,” they said.

They also added that they felt the university advertises resources such as Campus Ministry and OMA as clubs rather than actual resources.

The second anonymous resident suggested that affinity groups on campus organize seminars on white privilege, which promote allyship toward students of colors and encourage white students to practice accountability with their white friends. They emphasized that these reforms should elevate the voices of people of color and support these students without silencing fellow people of color.

“I want to feel safe in my home,” they said. “I don’t want to have to worry, or feel like I don’t belong here.”

Sports & Health Editors Gabriella Bermudez Chris Murray

Sports & Health

September 14, 2022 THE OBSERVER

What’s the Deal With Football?

An introductory guide for Lincoln Center students eager to learn and understand American football

By GABRIELLA BERMUDEZ Sports & Health Editor

Football is a staple of American culture. It’s typically defined as an event where friends and family gather outside of a large stadium, bars or each other’s homes, eating nacho cheese and fast food. Professional games are commonly played on Sundays while Saturdays are typically reserved for college games. College football games are an event that many students look forward to as a part of their undergraduate experience. Sitting in the stands wearing your university’s colors and rooting for their team is an experience like no other.

Fordham football fans flock to Jack Coffey Field, which sits at Fordham’s Rose Hill campus, slightly over 11 miles away from Lincoln Center (LC). Although LC students do find themselves occasionally sitting in the stadium seats, it is not a common occurrence. Showing up to football games is more commonly associated with Rose Hill student life.

Football is a fascinating part of American culture, offering a sense of community to spectators and allowing them to celebrate the success of a preferred team. Having an understanding of the sport can make it a more enjoyable experience for LC students who want to see the Rams perform at one of their five home games this season.

Kristjan Sokoli, former NFL defensive and offensive line player for the Seattle Seahawks, Indianapolis Colts and New York Giants, gave The Observer a guide to football for those seeking to better understand the sport.

The Start of Football Football’s formal name is “gridiron football,” since the sport is distinguished by the vertical lines painted onto the field. The “Father of American Football” was a Yale undergraduate and medical student named Walter Camp.

Football is a mixture of rugby and soccer. Over time, Camp played a role in turning this new sport into American football by developing the rules in the Intercollegiate Football Association (IFA).

One thing Camp influenced in the IFA was the change from beginning the game with a “scrummage” and instead establishing a system of “downs.”

Camp also developed the way football is scored, established 11 players per team, and created the position of quarterback and the line of scrimmage.

“ The beauty of football, every position is important. And in different situations, some positions are more important than others. ”

Kristjan Sokoli, former NFL player

Positions Football, like many sports, is broken up into offensive and defensive positions. When one team’s offensive players are in possession of the ball, then the other team’s defensive players are trying to stop the offensive

GRAPHIC BY ROXANNE CUBERO/THE OBSERVER

players from scoring any points.

There are also special team players. While there is an extensive list of over 20 positions, here are some of the more notable ones.

The defensive positions include defensive linemen and defensive backs.

The offensive positions include a quarterback, running backs, wide receivers, tight ends and offensive linemen.

You may be wondering, “Which of these positions should I be paying attention to?”

Sokoli offered a breakdown of key players during a game. “I think it all starts with the guys up front...

It all starts with the linemen.”

Sokoli explained that the linemen’s main focus is to protect the quarterback or any other player who is holding the ball.

Sokoli continued, “The beauty of football, every position is important. And in different situations, some positions are more important than others.”

For example, in a situation where one player is attempting to move the ball toward the end of the field, referred to as the end zone, the wide receivers become the “most important” on the field.

There are offensive and defensive linemen. The offensive line contains five players: center, left and right guard, as well as left and right tackle. The offensive linemen are typically the most physical players on the team, as they must create openings by pushing defensive players and allowing whoever is holding the ball to run past the other team’s defense.

Terms to Know Running the ball: Sokoli defines “running the ball” as “when the quarterback hands the ball to the running back, who’s directly behind him.” Quarterbacks can also run the ball, but it can put them at risk of injury or a turnover. This is related to specialization, and quarterbacks do not train to take hits and tackles on a regular basis.

The excessive impact can ruin a quarterback’s primary asset: his throwing arm.

Line of scrimmage: an imaginary line passing through the spot where the play ended on the previous down. Both teams line up on either side of the line of scrimmage. This is where they will begin the next play.

End zone: the end of the football field. Each team has its own end zone that the players are trying to protect while attempting to get into their opponent’s end zone.

Downs: the number of “chances” a team has for a play.

A team has four downs to get 10 yards, barring any penalties. If the team gets the ball past the 10-yard mark, they receive a new set of attempts — this action is called a “first down.”

The most familiar method is a touchdown.

While touchdowns offer the most points in a game – six – there are other ways to up the score.

“Each time they snap the ball, that’s a play until someone gets knocked down with the ball, or there’s an incomplete pass,” Sokoli explained. “If you don’t get 10 yards in four downs, you have to punt the ball.” If a team is especially ambitious, it can attempt to get a “first down” on its final attempt, but that can result in immediately turning the ball over to the opposing team if they do not convert.

Basic Questions How does a team score points?

There are several ways of scoring points in football. The most familiar method is a touchdown.

While touchdowns offer the most points in a game ­– six – there are other ways to up the score.

There is the opportunity for an extra kick after a touchdown is scored, and it gives the team one additional point. “If you kick a field goal from anywhere on the field without scoring a touchdown, you get three points,” Sokoli explained. “If you get tackled in your end zone, the other team gets two points.”

The latter scoring strategy is referred to as a “safety” and occurs extremely rarely.

How can a team/player get penalized?

There are a handful of ways a team or player can be penalized in football, but Sokoli

shared the most common way.

This penalty is called “holding.”

“You cannot hold the receivers,” Sokoli emphasized.

He offered an example of holding: “The offensive line is protecting the defensive line; they cannot grab at the defensive line. To keep them from a quarterback, you have to stay in front of their bodies.” Simply put, a player cannot grab another player who is already past them.

Sokoli emphasized the importance of athleticism. A player must use their wits and athletic ability in order to protect their team and defend the ball properly.

Who decides the plays during a game?

The coaches decide what plays are to be made during a game. But Sokoli explained that “some quarterbacks, as they get better and have more say in the system ... can maybe suggest plays.”

There are up to 10 coaches on a team, and there are coordinators calling plays for both the defense and offense.

During a game, some of the coaches sit in a booth in the stands. Football coaches usually wear a headset with a microphone attached. This allows for easy communication between coaches and sometimes players. The coaches in the booth have better visibility of what is happening on the field and are thus invaluable to a team.

“ In the college and

professional level, you will have several players that make their career specifically off of perfecting certain positions. ”

Kristjan Sokoli, former NFL player

“Nowadays, for most teams, the quarterback has a mic in his helmet, and the offensive coordinator or head coach will call the play into the mic,” Sokoli added.

What are “special teams”?

“Special teams” are players

who are used during any plays that involve kicking. This group involves punters and kickers.

“Typically, you will find most of your special team guys from defense ... because special teams are also a pretty physical unit, and generally defensive players are more physical and contact driven,” Sokoli explained.

The level of dedication toward special teams changes as a football player’s career progresses. “In the college and professional level, you will have several players that make their career specifically off of perfecting certain positions,” Sokoli said.

Fordham Football Now that you have an introduction to football, you can take the next steps and get to know Fordham football!

Fordham’s football program has been led by Joe Conlin for four years now. Conlin has spent his time with the Rams coaching star players Tim DeMorat, Fordham College at Rose Hill (FCRH) ’23; Ryan Greenhagen, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) ’23; Dequece Carter, Gabelli School of Business at Rose Hill ’23; Fotis Kokosioulis, GSAS ’24; Phil Saleh, FCRH ’23; and running back Trey Wilson III, FCRH ’23.

DeMorat and Greenhagen have fully earned the pride attached to their names as Fordham football superstars. Both have a number of accolades and records accumulated during their time at Fordham. DeMorat has been named First Team All-Patriot League for three consecutive seasons and the back-to-back Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year for the past two seasons. In the 2022 season, linebacker Greenhagen has already attained 15 tackles. Vigorously defending Fordham’s end zone, Greenhagen has a career total of 305 tackles.

Part of understanding Fordham football is knowing that, prior to last year, Fordham struggled for a number of seasons. But as of last season, there is a significant improvement in the team’s abilities and much to look forward to this year.

Fordham will play five games at Rose Hill this season, with the first one on Sept. 17 against the University at Albany.

www.fordhamobserver.com

THE OBSERVER

September 14, 2022

Sports & Health

7

Rams Triumph Against Monmouth, 52-49

In a back-and-forth contest, Fordham football emerged victorious against a team they lost to last season FOOTBALL from page 1

Following the series of rushing attempts, DeMorat fired a 38-yard touchdown pass to Dequece Carter, GSBRH ’23, on his first throw of the game to give Fordham a 7-0 lead just three minutes and 24 seconds in. The lead was short lived, as Monmouth responded on its next drive with a 60-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Tony Muskett, MU ’24, to tie the game at 7.

On the first play after forcing the Rams to punt on their next drive, Monmouth’s lead running back Jaden Shirden, MU ’25, broke off a 95-yard rush for a touchdown to propel the Hawks to a 14-7 lead. Shirden finished the game with an astounding stat line of 299 rushing yards and two touchdowns.

The Rams got the ball back with 8:10 remaining in the first quarter, but DeMorat promptly gave Monmouth possession by throwing an interception. The Hawks took advantage and drove down the field with back-to-back 35-yard plays to get to Fordham’s two-yard line. They punched the ball into the end zone but missed the extra point, giving Monmouth a 20-7 lead.

Despite the score at the end of the first quarter, the Rams’ offense started the second quarter undeterred. Twenty-seven seconds into the period, DeMorat tossed a screen to Kokosioulis, who ran 26 yards for a touchdown to bring Fordham within a score, 20-14.

Tim DeMorat, FCRH ’23, led the Rams throwing six touchdowns and 452 passing yards.

Despite the pressure from the Rams, Monmouth’s offense kept chugging. It marched down the field and responded with another touchdown with 11:58 remaining in the second. To compensate for the earlier missed extra point, the Hawks attempted a twopoint conversion. They failed, bringing the score to 26-14.

Later in the quarter, DeMorat earned his retribution.

With 7:02 left, DeMorat and Sneed marched the Rams down the field and capped the drive off with a short pass to Mekai Felton, FCRH ’24. Felton weaved through Monmouth defenders for 28 yards before finding the end zone, bringing Fordham within a score once more.

Trailing for the first time since the second quarter, Fordham set out on its final drive to try and find the end zone and escape West Long Branch with a win.

Williams intercepted Muskett’s pass on Monmouth’s next drive and the Rams immediately capitalized. Rushed for time with only 2:32 remaining in the first half, Fordham swiftly moved down the field before DeMorat threaded the needle to find Dan Byrnes, FCRH ’23, for a 33-yard touchdown, giving the Rams a 28-26 lead heading into halftime.

The contest featured more of the same in the second half.

After forcing a turnover on downs immediately to start the half, Fordham received the ball with prime field position. It took advantage, as L oug h r idge found a hole on the 2 -y a r d line and launched into the end zone to extend the Rams’ lead, 35-26.

As in the first quarter, Mon mout h promptly responded. On the first play of the new drive, Shirden juked a handful of Fordham defenders and ran 80 yards for a touchdown. Once again, special teams issues plagued the Hawks and they missed the extra point, narrowing the lead only to 35-32.

Fordham kicker and Syracuse University transfer Brandon Peskin, GSBRH ’24, nailed a 25-yard field goal on the Rams’ next drive to extend their lead, and the rapid scoring continued.

Monmouth responded with a field goal of its own on its ensuing drive as the Hawks made every effort to keep up with Fordham’s high-octane offense.

As the clock wound down to end the third quarter, the Rams maintained a three-point lead, 38-35, and

were marching down the field to widen their advantage. Fourteen seconds into the fourth quarter, DeMorat found Felton once again in the end zone. Felton made a beautiful over-the-shoulder catch to complete the 22yard touchdown and bring the score to 45-35.

Monmouth was still not done.

The Hawks swiftly glided downfield, stringing together short rushes and long completions until they found the end zone once again. Nevertheless, the Rams controlled their destiny, maintaining a three-point lead.

Fordham decisively progressed into Monmouth’s territory. The Rams made it to the Hawks’ 16-yard line and appeared poised to extend their lead and seal the game before DeMorat threw an interception on fourth down.

As they had done all game, Monmouth took advantage of Fordham’s misstep. With just over six minutes remaining in the game, Shirden took over, rushing four times for 68 yards.

Then, Owen Wright, MU ’23, found a hole that opened up into a 24-yard touchdown rush. With 4:01 remaining, Monmouth took a 49-45 lead.

Trailing for the first time since the second quarter, Fordham set out on its final drive to try and find the end zone and escape West Long Branch with a win. Sneed started the drive off with three straight rushes for 8, 7 and 6 yards. After a DeMorat incompletion, Sneed rushed twice more for a combined 22 yards to break into Monmouth territory.

For the rest of the drive, DeMorat and Kokosioulis dominated. DeMorat connected with his wide receiver for a short gain then rushed for 12 yards on the next play. This set the Rams up on Monmouth’s 15-yard line.

DeMorat found Kokosioulis for a one-yard gain as the clock hovered around one minute left in the contest.

“ You know, you’d like

to not be that high scoring, that close, but a road win’s a road win so you take it any way you can get it. ”

Joe Conlin, Fordham Head Coach

On third and nine from Monmouth’s 14-yard line, DeMorat located Kokosioulis in the corner of the end zone and delivered a perfectly placed ball to give the Rams a conclusive 52-49 lead.

Monmouth received the ball with 56 seconds remaining and threatened by entering Fordham’s territory, but the Rams’ defense remained stout and prevented the Hawks from reaching field goal range.

The victory marks the first time since 2013 that the Rams are beginning a campaign 2-0.

It is also important to note that Fordham lost to Monmouth in its home opener last season.

“Obviously offensively they had a great day, Timmy had another great day, Fotis had a great day,” Conlin remarked after the game. “You know, you’d like to not be that high scoring, that close, but a road win’s a road win so you take it any way you can get it.”

After the first two games of the season, it appears the Rams

are firing on all cylinders and ready to compete for the Patriot League Championship. The defense will need to buckle down though, as it struggled to keep opponents out of the end zone at times last season and has allowed an average of 40 points per game so far this season.

The football program will look to continue its positive momentum in this year’s home c om i ng game against the University at Albany on Sept.

17. The Rams have not begun a season 3-0 since the 2013 campaign where they won their first 10 games and advanced to the NCAA FCS Championship.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF FORDHAM ATHLETICS

Running back Julius Loughridge, FCRH ’25, continued his breakout season, rushing for more than 100 yards this game.

Fordham Football 2022 Schedule vs. University at Albany Sept. 17, 1 p.m.

HOMECOMING

@ Ohio University Sept. 24, 2 p.m. vs. Georgetown University Oct. 1, 1 p.m.

FAMILY WEEKEND

@ Lehigh University Oct. 8, 12 p.m. vs. Stony Brook University Oct. 15, 6 p.m. @ Holy Cross Oct. 29, 1 p.m. @ Bucknell University Nov. 5, 1 p.m. vs. Lafayette College Nov. 12, 1 p.m. vs. Colgate University Nov. 19, 1 p.m.

Fall 2022 Orientation Program

The fall orientation program hosted a variety of ex receiving the university’s new pr

By MARYAM BESHARA News Editor

COURTESY OF BRUCE GILBERT

A first-year student and their family waiting in line to move into McKeon Hall.

Fordham University hosted its new student orientation for Lincoln Center and Rose Hill undergraduate students at their respective campuses during the weekend of Aug. 28-30. The 2022 fall orientation schedule included a series of events and speakers across the three days, with orientation coordinators, captains and leaders working together to welcome the Class of 2026 to Fordham Lincoln Center.

The orientation program is mandatory and serves as a welcome to incoming Fordham students. The schedule ran from 7 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. for the first two days of the program, and it began at 7:30 a.m. and concluded at 3:30 p.m. on the final day, with a “Dessert on the Lawn” event for all residents on the Lowenstein Outdoor Plaza from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.

In collaboration with the New Student Orientation teams and the Offices of Student Involvement at Rose Hill and Lincoln Center, the 2022 orientation programs received 2,720 students across the campuses, according to the Office of Undergraduate Admissions Class of 2026 enrollment profile. It also welcomed University President Tania Tetlow, J.D., who began her term as Fordham’s 33rd president on July 1.

“I loved the welcoming Mass, full of emotional parents realizing they were about to say goodbye,” Tetlow said.

The president added that she was blown away by move-in day and impressed by the staff and student volunteers. Tetlow noted that she was even more amazed by the warmth of the welcome that was provided and was “all the more excited to be here.”

She also felt that Fordham does a remarkable job of making everyone feel like they belong.

The Class of 2026 is the first incoming class to have Tetlow serve as their university president.

“ Looking at the orientation leaders from a freshman’s perspective, they radiate a really nice form of community and friendship here. ”

Grace Miller, FCLC ’26

Rundown of the Program

COURTESY OF BRUCE GILBERT

University President Tania Tetlow, J.D., greeting students as they move in. The Class of 2026 is Tetlow’s first incoming class as president.

A group of first-years getting to know each other on the Lowenstein Outdoor Plaza.

The newest class of Rams attended a variety of events hosted across the campus as well as excursions across the five boroughs of New York City, according to Emily Ellis, Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) ’23, an orientation coordinator (OC) for the 2022-23 academic year and an online editor at The Observer.

The first day of the program served as movein day for first-year students residing on-campus. It also included a family liturgy, a “New York, New York”’ reception for families, and op-

portunities for residents and commuters to meet within their orientation groups. The day ended with a “Night of Welcome” held on the outdoor Plaza from 8 p.m. to 10:30 p.m.

Student Life Day, which served as the second day of orientation, split the program into three tracks — the Maroon track, the Ram track and the Ignatius track — to accommodate the volume of first-years at Lincoln Center. Keynote speakers and presentations, including “Getting Involved,” “Living the Mission” and “Surviving the Party,” took up a majority of the day and were hosted in Pope Auditorium, Constantino Hall and the McNally Amphitheater.

The day concluded with excursions from 8 p.m. to 10:30 p.m., which included a variety of activities such as roller skating at Rockefeller Center; walking along the Brooklyn Bridge; a visit to the Edge, One Summit Vanderbilt, or Roosevelt Island; a movie night on the Plaza; and more, according to Ellis.

New student orientation’s final day consisted of an academic orientation for first-years and was divided into two sections based on college. The FCLC orientation included tours, an academic fair and a talk on advising, whereas the Gabelli School of Business at Lincoln Center (GSBLC) orientation included presentations on the academic program, faculty introductions and meetings with Gabelli mentors. All students also attended a third small group meeting, which invited orientation leaders and first-years to talk on the outdoor plaza for the last time.

First-Years Reflect on Their Orientation Experience Grace Miller, FCLC ’26, said that her favorite takeaway was the people she met in her orientation group, including her orientation leaders (OLs), and the speakers the orientation program provided.

Miller noted that she wished people had more time to become friends with one another in their small groups and critiqued a sector of the program titled “Real Talk.” According to Ellis, “Real Talk” discusses social injustices and opens the floor to students to share their own experiences.

Miller said that thought Real Talk was “strange,” as she felt that it forced students to “open up about stuff you don’t want to to people you just met.”

Although she noted that the program prefaced no individual had to share anything they were uncomfortable with, Miller stated that, in her group, everyone had to share at least once.

Ellis noted that Real Talk is “a great way for students to open up to each other and talk about the real world challenges that students face in their time here at Fordham” and described it as a wonderful bonding and educational tool.

Overall, Miller said she enjoyed orientation and would consider returning as an OL because it was nice to watch the community that was present through the OLs this year. She noted that it would be even nicer to be a part of it.

“Looking at the orientation leaders from a freshman’s perspective, they radiate a really nice

COURTESY OF ADAEZE JINADU

Hosted on the Plaza, the small group meetings provided first-years w

m Welcomes the Class of 2026

xcursions and speakers, with incoming first-years resident’s first welcome address form of community and friendship here,” she said.

“Everyone was being very inclusive and cheering everyone on with so much enthusiasm.”

Jada Pledger, FCLC ’26, echoed this sentiment and shared that she thinks being an OL would be very fun, comparing the experience to being a camp counselor to a bunch of kids “except the kids are your age.” She added that she enjoys meeting new people and felt that orientation was a fun experience.

“ It was really rewarding to see

all that we had worked on over the summer had actually come to life during actual orientation. ”

Melanie Sztulman, GSBLC ’23 and orientation captain

“I would appreciate and thoroughly enjoy bringing a group together just like my orientation leaders did, so it would be like passing the torch,” she said.

Pledger shared that orientation was a great experience for her and felt that it was a good opportunity to meet new people following the daunting and scary affects of being in a new city at a new college. She mentioned that the program “forces you to be social” and allows for opportunities to make connections with people in different class years.

“I honestly met the majority of the people I talk to now at orientation,” she said.

Miller and Pledger both suggested that, in the future, orientation groups should intermingle with one another to allow for opportunities to meet more people. They also felt that there should be a balance between activities and speakers. Miller shared that she felt the program included a lot of draining information with a little bit of fun, which Pledger echoed and suggested the inclusion of periods of rest to “break up the monotony of the speakers.”

“Every single presentation was really engaging and informative but I think that they sort of lost their zest as the day progressed,” Pledger said.

Orientation Staff Share Advice and Speak on the Program’s Efforts The New Student Orientation team at Lincoln Center, which was led by Dan Patterson, associate director for first-year experience, consisted of four OCs, 14 orientation captains and 85 OLs, according to Ellis.

Melanie Sztulman, GSBLC ’23 and an OC for the 2022-23 academic year shared that as an OC, she worked between 28 to 35 hours per week and helped plan multiple summer events, including two Summer Orientation Programs held on June 11 and July 13, as well as the commuter and transfer BBQ held on Aug. 8.

She noted that her favorite memory from orientation was getting to know the OLs and the captains during their training a week before the Class of 2026 was welcomed. Sztulman added that there were five days dedicated to training the leaders for orientations and afterhours where the OCs and captains worked closely together to wrap up all the material that needed to be prepared for orientation.

“It was really rewarding to see all that we had worked on over the summer had actually come to life during actual orientation,” Sztulman said.

Will Gualtiere, FCLC ’25 and an OL for fall orientation, shared that his favorite memory from fall orientation was move-in day and seeing the sense of excitement everyone had, including the first-years, as they were moving into the residence halls. He described it as an “electric environment” and felt that move-in day was the time he bonded with the OLs and other staff members.

He added another memory he has from orientation was seeing Tetlow interact with the Class of 2026 and other community members.

He believed that the first-year students and the entire orientation staff were overall impressed with Tetlow.

“ Get involved with as much as you can as early as you can. ”

Will Gualtiere, FCLC ’25 and orientation leader

“This is her first class that she’s coming in with, and you can really see the passion and the connection she is trying to establish with each of the first-year students,” he said.

This year was Gualtiere’s first year as an OL. He said that he decided to join the New Student Orientation team after seeing the community between the OLs when he was a first-year. He noted that the passion each of the OLs had for the position and watching that community form inspired him to join the team.

Sztulman and Gualtiere both encouraged first-years to get involved on campus and make it a priority to do so. Sztulman added that being involved allows you see the inner workings of the university, and the two hope first-years join the orientation staff next year.

“Being involved is really the best way to become integrated in the community and get to know people,” she said.

Alongside Sztulman’s advice, Gualtiere encourages first-years to try things they might not want to try or continue pursuing passions they had in high school because “that is really where you’ll find your closest friends and the love and passion Fordham has to offer.”

“Get involved with as much as you can as early on as you can,” he said. “Don’t overwhelm yourself, but make sure you get exposure to all the opportunities that Fordham has to offer and all the different communities that you can become a part of and grow within.”

COURTESY OF ALLIE BEEKMAN

A group of first-years and their OLs on their excursion to Krispy Kreme.

COURTESY OF ISABELLA UBARICO

COURTESY OF AINUR ARSLANOV

with a chance to speak with their OLs.

Students meet with their OLs in small groups where they discuss life at Fordham and ask many questions.

COURTESY OF MADDIE BAMFORD

PAGE DESIGN AND GRAPHICS BY ROXANNE CUBERO/THE OBSERVER

OLs pose for a photo at the top of One Summit Vanderbilt, one available excursion option.

Opinions Editors Ava Peabody Isabella Scipioni

Opinions

September 14, 2022 THE OBSERVER

Observer the

Editor-in-Chief Allie Stofer

Managing Editor Maddie Sandholm Online Editors Emily Ellis Kreena Vora Creative Director Alexa Stegmuller Advertising Coordinator Luis Castellanos Layout Editors Roxanne Cubero Tara Lentell Photo Editors Alyssa Daughdrill Andrew Dressner Asst. Photo Editors Aurelien Clavaud Molly Higgins

GRAPHIC BY LAUREN BOCALAN/THE OBSERVER

Notable men of Fordham (from top left: George G. McMahon, S.J., Joseph M. McShane, S.J., and Mario Gabelli) have buildings named for them, while notable women (from bottom left: Marie Clark Taylor, Anne E. King, and Ruth Whitehead Whaley) do not.

The Woman, The Building

Fordham must incorporate more women when naming its buildings PATRICK CULLINAN Contributing Writer

In many ways, Fordham has opened its doors to be more inclusive to women of academia. Previously an all-male institution, the school now enrolls more women than men, and women have almost equal representation with men in the faculty.

And our university’s president is, at last, a woman.

Unfortunately, such contemporary changes cannot undo historical injustices.

Just because Fordham is making progress today doesn’t mean that its long history as a predominantly-male institution isn’t still notable. The school remains disproportionately focused on men in terms of the names of our campuses’ buildings, almost none of which bears the name of a woman. It’s time for that to change.

In my review of all Fordham buildings, which I conducted by scanning current maps of the Rose Hill and Lincoln Center campuses and looking up every name appearing on the maps (aided by a revealingly named library guide, “Fordham University History: The Man - The Building”), I found that, by the most liberal estimate, only two buildings (out of 32 total) are named for women: Saint Mary of Queen’s Court and Susan Conley (née Salice) of Salice-Conley Hall, both at Rose Hill. It should be noted, however, that Salice-Conley is named for the families of donors Susan and Tom Conley. A fountain at Rose Hill is named for Carolyn Dursi Cunniffe, Ph.D., an alumna of Fordham, but the actual Cunniffe House is named for her husband Maurice J. Cunniffe.

No building at Lincoln Center is named for a woman. Not one of our academic buildings is named for a woman.

None of our athletic fields at Rose Hill is named for a woman.

Of course, it must be said that this isn’t the result of active, hostile sexism: It’s not as though the building-namers of years past looked at a list of potential names, stroked their mustaches, and scratched out all the female names while chortling to themselves about the inferiority of the “fairer sex.”

Fordham’s buildings are named in this way because of the passive, insidious misogyny that has pervaded our culture for centuries.

The buildings are (for the most part) named after Jesuit saints and people who have been important to the history of Fordham. These two categories do not allow for many women to be on the list in the first place.

The school’s preference for Jesuit saints is understandable, but as women cannot enter the Society, all but one of the saints associated with Fordham buildings are

male. Even the one seemingly feminist holdout, Queen’s Court, harbors relics of the patriarchy in its wings: Robert’s, John’s, and Bishops’.

And given that Fordham was founded as a seminary, only began to accept women to its undergraduate classes in 1963, and has been run by priests until 2022, it is not surprising that men were always at the top of administrators’ minds when they dedicated new buildings.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. For one thing, we now have a female president — and I look forward to the possible dedication of Tetlow Hall one day. Until then, there are a number of trailblazing women of Fordham’s past who may not have been president of the university but are certainly worthy of having a building named after them.

Every year Fordham puts off honoring women in the same way it honors men is another year the school neglects the debts it owes to Fordham women.

For example, Anne E. King, who in 1939 became Fordham’s first female dean and served in that role for 25 years. In her time, she was also president of the American Association of Schools of Social Service and helped found Fordham’s first master’s degree program.

Marie Clark Taylor, a Black woman who received her Ph.D. in botany from Fordham in 1941, was the first woman to receive a Ph.D. from the university and the first African American woman ever to receive a Ph.D. in botany.

Ruth Whitehead Whaley was the first Black woman to be admitted to Fordham’s Law School, enrolling in 1921. She graduated in 1924, becoming one of the first Black women to practice law in the state of New York and the first Black woman to do so in her home state of North Carolina.

Finally, some recognition should go to Fordham’s first female undergraduates, who were initially admitted to a separate college named after St. Thomas More (because even the women’s school had to be named for a man). In the 10 years of Thomas More’s existence, the new “coeds” (as they were called) had to deal with hostility from male students and restrictive policies, such as no mixed-gender classes, from the administration. There are many women among Fordham’s first who might be considered for recognition.

Among them is the brilliant Sue Kahl.

She may never get a building, but I will hold out hope for at least a plaque. In Kahl’s time, some of her male peers child-

ishly insisted that the new women weren’t worthy of courting. When asked by The Fordham Ram about this in 1965, Kahl responded that the men didn’t have to worry about that: “Fordham guys are not exactly prize packages.”

As for saints, we don’t have to wait for the Jesuits to start admitting women to their ranks. There are many female saints worthy of honor, and we don’t even have to stray far from Fordham’s existing buildings to find some. For example, Fordham currently honors three male Jesuit missionaries who came to New York to evangelize to the Native American population: Sts. Goupil, la Lande and Jogues, of Martyrs’ Court. But no recognition is given to the people to whom they were missioned.

An easy (and long overdue) way to address that is to honor St. Kateri Tekakwitha. Kateri was a Mohawk woman in the late 17th century who converted to Christianity at the age of 19. Her conversion is due to the presence of Jesuit missionaries (successors of Jogues and the martyrs), but her deep devotion can only be attributed to her. In 2012, she was the first Native American to be canonized.

She would make an excellent addition to the list of saints Fordham honors in the names of our buildings.

Of course, Fordham doesn’t get a new building every day, so this proposal necessarily involves removing some existing male names from certain buildings. Such changes might certainly cause frustration, but we should remember that Fordham changes its buildings’ names quite frequently. Earlier this year, on April 27, the McGinley Center became the McShane Center.

Furthermore, changing the name of a building does not have to mean erasing the legacy of its original namesake. We can preserve the memory of the important people of Fordham’s past in scholarships, statues, works of art, dedication of classrooms and wings of buildings, to name a few.

The concern of what to do with the existing names of buildings, however, is secondary to the issue of recognizing women. Every year Fordham puts off honoring women in the same way it honors men is another year the school neglects the debts it owes to Fordham women.

It makes sense for Fordham to honor the great men who led the school to its current position, and it makes sense to honor the history of the Jesuits. But the history of Fordham is not limited to men, and the history of the Jesuits is not limited to Jesuits themselves. Our buildings can honor our entire history, the parts we’ve always been proud of and the parts whose importance we only recently came to acknowledge.

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September 14, 2022

Opinions

11

Everything Is Going to Hell

How embracing nihilism and the end of it all has made my life more meaningful JAKE ERACA Asst. Opinions Editor

After a pandemic, an insurrection, multiple natural disasters and every other evil that the past few years have thrown at us, it’s hard to not feel changed. We live in a world that feels like it’s constantly post-tragedy. Capitalism has run its course, and we are living in a society that doesn’t cater to the modern psyche.

Existence in that vacuum can be taxing, and it often results in the burnout and mental health issues that have become common in our workplaces, homes and society at large. However, I have recently found comfort in restructuring my perspective on the world that lit itself on fire. Through seemingly rampant nihilism, my outlook has changed significantly.

Nihilism is defined as “the rejection of all religious and moral principles, in the belief that life is meaningless.” While this may seem counterintuitive to living a life that is more satisfying and enriching, I believe that there is some wisdom in this philosophy. We must realize the insignificance of our existence and recognize that regardless of our income, social status or production, there is nothing that will remain at the end of the world. This perspective is a unique insight that I believe nihilism — ironically — provides.

In my personal life, for example, I have tried to stop putting monetary stresses at the forefront of my mind. Whether that be managing a budget or simply deciding whether to dine out or not, at the end of the day, none

of it really matters. So why not take a friend out to dinner? Or buy that thing from your Amazon wishlist? Joy and satisfaction are currencies in their own right and are arguably more impactful on a person than money. If nothing matters, then every moment of flourishing becomes infinitely more meaningful, and joy seems more abundant than ever.

It seems that there is a new normal in our socializations: one of constant burnout and the underlying exhaustion that creeps up on every single one of us, unbidden and unwanted.

In a post-tragedy world, I have embraced apathy as a means of coping and, paradoxically, adding meaning to my life.

In a world plagued by burnout and deadlines, I refuse to exist to produce anymore. Though it is hard, and I don’t always succeed, I’ve attempted to stop drawing confidence and self-worth from my capabilities and from the never-ending labor that everyone stares down at some point. What will this time do for us down the line? Time is finite, so we must spend it wisely. If all we do is give and give, we forget how to take. This in turn results in a person unable to feel fulfilled as they constantly empty their cup of things that create joy. Abundance, happiness and fulfillment only come when we are whole, and how can we be whole if we give ourselves away to labor?

The late stage capitalistic landscape that is the working world is no longer compatible with the average psyche and has resulted in a society of enduring suffering rather than flourishing.

After realizing this change my-

self, I simply shut down. It’s hard to not feel overwhelmed with the things demanded of us, so why burn yourself out trying to deliver on an irrational request?

We make teachers work in schools where they must die for their students. We expect nurses and doctors to forgo their lives almost entirely to meet the demands of a doomed society. We build cities and use them until we get tired of them, then build a brand new one next to the ruins.

After surviving such dramatic dangers and persevering as only human beings can, it is unethical to embrace the hustle culture of our society. If tragedy has taught us anything (time and time again), it is what really matters.

Living to produce and work seems antithetical to the human condition, especially when so dramatically juxtaposed with the flaws in our systems.

Late stage capitalism has resulted in a world that favors profit over health. However, it is lofty and unrealistic to simply argue that no one should work. The unfortunate truth is that we live in a world governed by these ideals, and not everyone has the privilege to even explore living for the moment. We have created a world that some of us get to experience to the fullest while some provide that experience for others, and that is simply unjust.

I, for one, am tired of this way of life. I refuse to be a cog in a machine, especially if that machine produces next to nothing and thrives off of inefficiency.

Our world is filled with wonders of nature, marvels of technology that humans have just begun to explore, and a vast array of cultures and lives waiting to interact and learn from one another. Yet, somehow we have decided that the best lives are those lived in a void. We have decided that the value of a human existence is in the value of its net product.

I refuse to exist for this flawed purpose, especially after surviving and growing from events that will mark the pages of future textbooks. It isn’t fair to anyone to exist in this system, and we are perpetually driven away from our desires and things that spark joy, and instead herded back to the grinding stone to produce just to survive.

We work for currency not even

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backed by gold. We give away massive amounts of our lives to labor, willingly, in return for a number in a bank account or the material possessions we covet while on break. Is this truly the zenith of human existence? It is 2022 and yet it feels like we are stagnated and rotting. Progress has become monetized and stratified, generating privilege instead of freedom from the very systems that created it. Why? We are stronger and better than this. We are capable of more joy, progress and prosperity than our employers would have us believe.

I am tired of being glorified cattle, herded from one place to another, endlessly producing pieces of paper and numbers. In such times as these, I suggest embracing a little nihilism to grant perspective. Choose to live a life of actively seeking joy, and stop prioritizing material gain and success, because why toil for a system that is engineered to provide the bare minimum to workers every single time?

The world has almost ended time and again, and we haven’t caved yet. Why not use our time to experience the gift of life, instead of spending it for unfair compensation in an unfair world?

It is illogical and counteractive to the human condition to exist in this way, and it only results in the plague of burnout and exhaustion that is slowly engulfing and depriving us of a world we are slowly destroying.

After all the pain and massive change we have undergone, it is simply illogical to return to the broken systems that govern our society and expect for them to work the same.

Roe v. Wade and What We Can Actually Expect From Fordham

Fordham’s lack of a statement regarding the overturning of Roe v. Wade shouldn’t come as a shock to students LAURA OLDFATHER Asst. Opinions Editor

The Supreme Court overruled Roe v. Wade on June 24, and many universities, both religious and secular, issued statements in response. But Fordham’s administration stayed quiet.

For students who don’t check their school email in the summer, or who haven’t been closely following reproductive rights news, the lack of a statement might not mean much. Other Rams, however, believe that the lack of statement in support of students’ rights is not in accordance with Fordham’s key values, such as cura personalis, or “care for the whole person.”

Some students expected Fordham to release a statement criticizing the ruling and supporting reproductive rights. However, as Fordham is a Jesuit institution,

I do not think we can or should make such demands.

Schools like the University of Michigan and the University of California released statements condemning the decision and promising to defend the reproductive rights of their students, which is to be expected from public universities in blue states. However, it is more reasonable and appropriate to compare Fordham to how other Catholic universities have responded.

The president of The Catholic University of America celebrated the decision, saying that he “rejects the unholy idea that there is a constitutional right to kill unborn children.” But other Catholic universities including Notre Dame University, Duquesne University and the Jesuit Marquette University released statements that could be considered neutral, saying things like “We must respect one another in moving forward from this decision, as we have

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on other issues which potentially divide us.”

Fordham students would do well to remember that their experience at a Catholic university in regard to this issue is not the same as all other Jesuit colleges due to its location. Louisiana, Indiana and Wisconsin are all states where abortion is banned or the ban will be in effect soon, whereas abortion is protected in New York. Statements on the Court’s recent decision are more appropriate for schools in states where abortion is currently more restricted than it is in New York.

The most we could hope for in a written statement is neutrality.

In New York state and in the tri-state area, these health services are legal and accessible.

Students may expect a statement from Fordham to support others who have lost the right to abortion, but the lack of statement from Fordham — which aligns the university with the Catholic Church on this issue — can itself be regarded as a statement. The most we could hope for in a written statement of neutrality and administrative language that tries not to alienate anyone.

There are secular universities in the United States that, unlike Fordham, provide birth control and, rarely, abortion service.

Some students believe that Fordham should follow suit, and I agree that in an ideal world the university would provide free condoms and engage in conver-

sations about safe sex. But we attend a Catholic institution, and part of the package is that we cannot expect things that don’t align with principle teachings of the religion.

This does not mean that Rams should be content with the decision and do nothing. If you feel angry, this is the time to channel it into caring for others. Abortion is currently protected in New York, but it is an American issue.

We should advocate for our peers in other states. There are several ways you can do this, including donating to abortion funds and independent clinics, voting, and protesting. While I don’t think religion should rule our country, what I don’t intend to do is argue with Catholic institutions, Jesuits or any other Catholics about their morality and whether or not abortion is “right,” and I don’t think you should either.

As a non-Catholic at a Catholic school, there are times when I disagree with university policies. However, there are several reasons I think there are better ways to take action than arguing in circles with people who have a stronger commitment to the principles of their faith than I do.

The official statement from the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) on the overruling of Roe v. Wade celebrates the decision, but I encourage everyone who is outraged to continue reading.

“We also affirm our belief that building what Saint John Paul II called a ‘culture of life’ requires a stronger social safety net than our country has today,” the statement said. “To be truly pro-life, we must support all women, expectant parents and their children by

advocating for policies like universal health care, paid parental leave and a more equitable distribution of our country’s abundant resources.”

I’m sure many pro-choice people would agree that our country requires a stronger social safety net. That safety net is what I think is important to focus on.

Instead of creating animosity in a situation where changing others’ minds is extremely unlikely, it is more fruitful to hold Jesuits accountable to these action statements. Rather than wasting energy demanding a short statement, we should work together to better the lives of Americans.

Catholics do support human life in all forms. My discourse with them isn’t going to be about whether a fetus is a person or not. It’s going to be about how we can understand one another and work on the things we both agree on and consider ourselves committed to, such as abolishing the death penalty, supporting parents, universal health care, supporting children and distributing resources equitably. I can do all this while respecting religious beliefs and simultaneously advocating for democracy rather than a theocracy.

Fordham decided not to release a statement on the overruling of Roe v. Wade this summer, which is the strongest stance we could have expected given the university’s history, mission, donors and administration. Instead of seeing this as a loss in a place where students are privileged to have the basic right of abortion health care, we need to support people in other areas and hold Catholics accountable.

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The Fight to Ban Carriage Horses in NYC

Activists argue that the horses on New York City’s streets are suffering and that the practice should be replaced AVERY GRAFELD Contributing Writer

Ryder, a carriage horse in New York City, collapsed in Hell’s Kitchen on Aug. 10, 2022. Veterinarians speculate that Ryder is around 27 years old; the average age for a carriage horse ranges from 13-14, making him exceptionally old for his occupation. Ryder’s collapse occurred after a 7 and a half hour shift during a New York heatwave, where temperatures reached 90 degrees. The incident was unfortunately not shocking, as Ryder was later found to be malnourished, dehydrated and suffering from Equine Protozoal Myeloencephalitis (EPM), a disorder that attacks the central nervous system.

Ryder’s collapse sparked outrage from animal rights organizations around the globe.

“There’s no question that using horses to pull carriages through very busy and loud New York City streets is unsafe and an undeniable strain on the horses’ quality of life,” Maureen Linan from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) said to the Observer.

“This latest tragic incident demonstrates that the most humane, responsible and sensible action is for New York to eliminate horse carriages from its streets.”

Criticism even reached celebrity interest. Bella Hadid expressed that she feels “It’s barbaric to force horses like Ryder to pull heavy carriages in extreme heat in the busiest part of the busiest city in America without a place to break or eat.” Hadid also shared her support for New York City Council Member Robert

Holden, who is sponsoring Int. 573-2022, a bill to ban horse carriages and replace them with electrical ones.

If passed, the electric carriages would resemble a motor car from the early 1900s and would run at a speed of 3 miles per hour. Carriage horses, for reference, trot at a pace of 8 to 10 miles per hour. The electric carriages would be powered by lithium-ion batteries and run in all weather conditions, regardless of rain or snow. Built to invoke America’s Golden Age, the cars would be styled with gold rims and a “parasol” convertible top.

The guarantees of the new bill, however, appear unfavorable to carriage horse drivers with many believing the electric cars could never attain the attraction held by horses. Carriage horses embody the evolution of transportation and are a quintessential New York City experience for many tourists. Some feel without their presence, a definitive chapter of history would be lost.

The question is: Are we willing to exploit an animal’s well-being to reenact the past?

On Aug. 11, New Yorkers protested outside City Hall in support of banning carriage horses. From activists to everyday citizens, protestors expressed their resentment towards an industry that exploits animal labor. Tony Ultano, a spokesperson for carriage horse drivers, responded: “The veterinarian who examined Ryder believed he has EPM, a neurological disease caused by possum droppings. This is another example of why people shouldn’t rush to judgment about our horses or the blue-collar men and women who choose to work

ALICE MORENO/THE OBSERVER

Carriage horses withstand challenging conditions to take riders around New York City.

with them and care for them.”

However, the fact that these horses are in contact with possum droppings further demonstrates the inhumane living conditions they face. EPM is developed through indigestion, which means Ryder was likely consuming rancid food by the presence of possum feces. Ultano also failed to mention that Ryder was malnourished and over the legal age requirement to pull a carriage. At his advanced age, EPM wasn’t the sole factor in his collapse.

In further support of carriage horse drivers, the Transport Workers Union proposed a re-evaluation of the carriage horse industry on Sept. 1. They

plan to relocate the horses to a building in Central Park and appoint a full-time veterinarian to monitor their health. Water troughs would additionally be built across the park to prevent dehydration, which was a major factor in Ryder’s collapse. Released a month after Ryder’s accident, their statement has been met with public scrutiny due to its prolonged response time.

However many revisions are promised, the carriage horse business is an unsustainable practice. Horses aren’t meant to withstand the commotion of New York City, as they’re regarded as generally timid creatures. The city is a destructive environment

for an animal that relies on fields to graze, not sidewalks to trot.

The dwindling promise of stables and water troughs in Central Park sticks a loose Band-Aid on a harmful practice that ultimately must be banned.

By urging friends and family to boycott horse-driven carriages and advocating for Holden’s bill to replace horse carriages with electric ones, we can end the animal neglect and abuse that is so prevalent in our city. Ryder’s incident may have been a rare case, but it’s indicative animal abuse in the industry.

We must stand up to the carriage horse industry and end this harmful practice once and for all.

Video Killed the Instagram Star

Amid the internet’s move towards videos, we should not abandon still photography on social media MARIA TERZULLI Staff Writer

The head of Instagram, Adam Mosseri, released a video on July 26, 2022 explaining recent changes to the platform in response to criticism from countless users, including even like Kylie Jenner and Kim Kardashian.

The backlash follows Instagram’s new emphasis on short videos, called Reels, that are remarkably similar to TikTok, an app that has dominated the video market. Many users argue that Instagram is trying to become TikTok, especially as engagement with still photos has decreased and suggested or sponsored posts have overtaken content from friends and family in users’ feeds. Home feeds seem to be pushing the Reels feature,

which mostly consists of TikTok videos downloaded and reposted to Instagram.

Although Instagram rescinded the update in response to the pushback, Instagram’s effort to abandon still photos is a testament to the new wave of intense emphasis on video, animations and other types of moving content.

This trend is extremely disheartening: Instagram’s roots are embedded in photos, where early users shared their morning lattes, beloved pets, and otherwise mundane skyline views while commuting to work. Sharing this type of content allowed users to romanticize aspects of their day-to-day lives that would otherwise go unnoticed. By burying image-only posts in users’ feeds, Instagram is destroying its origins in strictly photo-based content.

Photos are an intimate expe-

rience. Oftentimes, only a select few know the true origins behind an otherwise normal photo.

They leave something to be desired. If we want to understand it, we have to actually study it instead of having everything visualized for us through movement.

There is a shared enjoyment in seeing a photo that appears simple but knowing its construction required behind-the-scenes work.

Photos force us to interact with content in a way video never will.

The medium of photos allows us to share something without sharing everything. They allow us to conceal attitudes we would rather hide, like concealing family tension for the sake of a nice photo to hang on the wall. Photos leave more room for interpretation by the audience, which is essential to art.

On the other hand, the interpretation of a video becomes

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more uniform through consistency in things like tone of voice and body language. If everyone gathers the exact same message from a piece of art, the content inspired by it is more likely to be uniform, and after a few cycles, individual interpretation is erased.

The general public will not stand by and wait for Instagram to deal with its identity crisis.

Video content is certainly still valuable. Both photo and video should be able to coexist without platforms like Instagram forcing one over the other. But we cannot afford to lose sight of the abstractness of photography throughout the shift to video.

Instead of large platforms dictating the format of content that artists and casual users should be creating and consuming, users should be able to choose.

Artists of still images should not have to worry about losing their livelihood because of a business decision made by social media platforms.

As explained by Instagram user and photographer Anastasia Pagonas in her “Ode to Instagram”: “The still image has been deprioritized in favor of quick video; my sage friend said of it: ‘the death of stills and stillness.’”

In a society that constantly encourages us to keep moving and “hustle,” is it inevitable that this ideology will spread to our

art? By removing stillness from our art, are we removing stillness from our lives as well?

Is this simply a business decision made by Instagram to make advertising easier and a seamless part of our daily lives? Is it a coincidence that we receive ads for things we’ve talked about days before?

Advertising has become a major part of Instagram, and according to one Instagram user, out of the first 16 posts on their home feed, 14 were suggested posts, ads or sponsored content from accounts the user did not follow.

We should not abandon still photos for the sake of modernity. We should instead choose platforms that allow us to express ourselves through whatever medium we prefer. Users are getting fed up with being forced to transition from consuming photo to video content, which has manifested through the popularity of new apps like BeReal, an app that sends users a notification at random times of the day to capture and upload a photo within two minutes.

BeReal’s popularity shows that users aren’t ready to give up the still photo, and if Instagram can’t meet their demands, we will find an app that will.

The general public will not stand by and wait for Instagram to deal with its identity crisis. All individuals, both general consumers and influencers, should call on the app to make the necessary changes to save still content.

Users made Instagram what it is, and only users can decide if the app survives.

Arts & Culture

Arts & Culture Editors Isabella Gonzalez Olivia Stern September 14, 2022 THE OBSERVER

Theater Arts in the Archives

The Theatre on Film and Tape Archive showcases 50 years of center stage, behind the scenes and all-around creative preservation in a landmark theater exhibition

By AVERY LOFTIS Staff Writer

Located at 40 Lincoln Center Plaza, a short walk from Fordham’s Lincoln Center campus, the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts is celebrating 50 years of its landmark video-recorded theatre archive in an exhibition titled “Focus Center Stage: 50 Years of the Theatre on Film and Tape Archive.”

Each aspect of the Theatre on Film and Tape Archive (TOFT) is commemorated with video monitors streaming snippets of musicals, plays and interviews that can be heard through the adjustable headsets attached.

“Just by walking through the exhibition, (students) can get a sense of the breadth and depth of the collection, of all the recordings. It’s literally five decades of history — there’s something for everyone,” TOFT Assistant Director Wendy Norris said.

The exhibition begins with a mural of poster-sized playbills representing the work recorded

by TOFT. The exhibition path is lined with snippets of the archives of over 8,000 video recordings, about 4,500 of those being live performances. The showcase even includes musicals and plays in the avant-garde, such as the first recorded production for the archive: an Off-Broadway rock musical with an all Asian cast titled “Golden Bat.” Concluding the first floor of the exhibition is an interview reel of TOFT Founder Betty Corwin, after her retirement in 2001. In the video, Corwin listed off values important to her, which she took into account when founding the archive in 1970.

Corwin mentioned representation of women, people of color, LGBTQ+ and those with disabilities as important to the message and tradition of TOFT. She believed that theater recordings “reflect the times, reflect the three decades of what went on in the world.”

To Corwin, theater is not only part of culture but how people measure history.

TOFT consistently takes into account the diversity of each story, along with artistic merit, when deciding what 40-50 productions to record each season. Norris admitted narrowing the list to conform with financial and temporal resources is difficult.

TOFT also has collections of notable theater professional performances, such as the first act

workshop of Sondheim’s “Sunday in the Park with George.”

The remainder of TOFT’s recorded collection consists of interviews, theater awards programs and film adaptations — including the film adaptation of “Fences” starring Denzel Washington, Fordham College at Lincoln Center ’77.

Preservation is a harbinger of progress to those at TOFT. Norris said that prior to the pandemic, researchers traveled from around 48 states and 32 countries to access the materials, as “preserving theater history was really one of the main aims of establishing the collection and also saving these recordings for future generations to study, and learn from, and be inspired by.”

“ Preserving theater

history was really one of the main aims of establishing the collection and also saving these recordings for future generations to study, and learn from, and be inspired by. ” Wendy Norris, New York Public Library’s Theatre on Film and Tape Archive Assistant Director

Norris noted that their largest audience is probably theater professionals, but student groups such as English classes and art history courses have also used their viewing rooms.

Fordham Communications department professor Jennifer Clark said that she has used the archive for her own research and for a course on costume design.

Clark said that there is much notable scholarship that has come out of the TOFT, such as “Divine Decadence: Fascism, Female Spectacle, and the Makings of Sally Bowles” by Linda Mizejewski, emphasizing the expanse of research that is accessible mere strides away.

As Norris noted, “theater kind of reflects life.” Almost anything at TOFT could intersect with one’s studies.

On the left side of the first floor exhibition is a glass case with Cor-

win’s photo, with chocolate bars stacked underneath — a traditional gift to stagehands that Corwin began.

Upstairs, pictures set in film cell frames display the behind-thescenes work of stagehands, camerapeople, costume designers, playwrights and directors.

“We wanted to bring out the fact that the archive has been successful because of the great cooperation of all the theater artists who all have to give their permission for a production to be recorded,” Norris said.

TOFT’s 2002 Tony award, also on display in the exhibition, spotlights the amicable appreciation between theater creators and the theater preservers at TOFT. Norris also stressed the importance of audiences, virtual or otherwise.

“I think theater, really — it needs support, it needs audiences.

That’s the beauty of live performance, is that it’s a conversation between performers, the creators and the audience — it’s a give and take,” she said.

The most recent recordings for the archive were the Broadway production of Billy Crystal’s “Mr. Saturday Night” and the off-Broadway production “On that Day in Amsterdam.”

To view Broadway and Off-Broadway productions alike, library card holders can take the elevator to the third floor, where the Lucille Lortel screening room houses 24 computer monitors and video screens encompassing the room in a thrum of white noise.

According to Norris, the monitors are used for playback controls, while the video signals are sent from the archival recordings and playback decks in the basement to the booked video screens. There are also bookable viewing rooms suitable for classes or large presentations, equipped with film and DVD projectors.

The exhibition begins at the Plaza entrance to the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts and spans the first two floors of the library, accessible by stairs or elevator.

To get involved with theater preservation, you can support the archive for free with a New York Public Library card. Contacts and additional information about the exhibition, archive appointments and research can be found at the New York Public Library TOFT website.

The exhibit commemorating TOFT’s 50-year anniversary also includes audio and video recordings of Broadway performances.

PHOTOS BY AVERY LOFTIS/THE OBSERVER

NYPL’s Theatre on Film and Tape Archive contains over 8,000 video recordings of theater and film performances.

The NYPL’s “Focus Center Stage: 50 Years of the Theatre on Film and Tape Archive” exhibit displays playbills of some of the Broadway shows TOFT has recorded over the years.

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Ram Jams: Ozzy Osbourne’s Brilliantly Dark ‘Patient Number 9’ Is a Perfect 10 The Prince of Darkness’ latest album sees a king defiantly standing over his throne

By NOAH OSBORNE Contributing Writer

Genre: Hard Rock, Metal On a Playlist With: Black Sabbath, Metallica, Foo Fighters Two years ago marked the beginning of a new era of darkness for the world in the shape of the COVID-19 pandemic, which saw a stagnating music industry where many anticipated releases faced unfortunate delays.

However, Ozzy Osbourne led the charge and dropped the extraordinarily optimistic “Ordinary Man.” Two years later, on Sept. 9, 2022, Osbourne returned with a modern magnum opus in “Patient Number 9,” a haunting hailstorm of dark brilliance.

A haunting hailstorm is truly the only description of Osbourne’s 13th studio album — hard and relentless, yet there is an odd sense of beauty through all the pervading darkness of its songs as they rain down on listeners. The darkness is indescribable in the sense that it has been seen before in his discography with albums like “Bark at the Moon,” “No More Tears” and “Ozzmosis,” which were released in 1983, 1991 and 1995 respectively.

What’s different about Ozzy’s trademark darkness in 2022 is how polished it sounds. The work is uncompromisingly a hard rock/metal album, yet it has the rare potential to be listened to and enjoyed by people who do not typically listen to those genres.

For all of the album’s nostalgia-inducing rapturous riffs that whisk audiences away to the musical wonderland of the ’80s and ’90s, there is nonstop scintillating singing from a 73-year-old Osbourne whose voice has held up so well. Audiences are sure to be in a perplexing state of awe considering all they’ve heard about his health issues after his Parkinson’s diagnosis, a degenerative nervous disorder for which he received surgery for in June.

The opening and title track “Patient Number 9” is where Osbourne’s odyssey of the ominous begins, delving into life as a patient afflicted with mental illness in an asylum. Between the riffing of guitar legend Jeff Beck and doomsday drumming of Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Chad Smith, Osbourne excellently slithers in to deliver the spine-tingling verse: “Hiding the pills inside your mouth / Swallow them down then spit them out / I hear the laughter scream and shout / No tomorrow.”

By the time listeners arrive at the first riotous guitar solo halfway through the song, they may feel as if they themselves are the patient Osbourne alludes to in a straitjacket — except they won’t want to leave, because there’s no way of telling what’s coming next

with the storm. The album excels in its unpredictability.

Throughout the 13-track LP, Osbourne proves that he is a sonic sorcerer, as he makes switches to his lineup every other song. Where “Patient Number 9” sees Beck on guitar, the infectious track “Parasite” sees metal master Zakk Wylde on a tear.

Osbourne even taps into his Black Sabbath days, reuniting with Tony Iommi for the epic “Ozzmosis”-esque ballad “No Escape From Now” and the humorously hard “Degradation Rules.” One would be forgiven for thinking these frequent changes are questionable on the surface. However, these changes keep things fresh as each song sounds different, yet astonishingly consistent.

A surefire favorite for fans will be “Nothing Feels Right,” which has Wylde monstrously shredding for a solid minute, followed by Osbourne emotionally delivering, “I’ve been calling out for someone / Mouth around the gun / Nothing feels right / Nothing feels right.”

The track is Osbourne’s response to the headlines he’s made regarding his battle with Parkinsons and almost sounds like a dismissive middle finger to the now-bizarre notion of him being bedridden.

Where 2020’s “Ordinary Man” offered more glimpses of optimism, “Patient Number 9” sees Osbourne surprisingly diving deeper into what made him a multi-generational mainstay in the music industry — his unrepentant affinity for darkness.

The Bottom Line: “Patient Number 9” sees Ozzy Osbourne catching lightning in a bottle five decades into his illustrious career, as he takes listeners through a dark descent of unparalleled brilliance in 2022.

The Valleys: “Evil Shuffle” The Verdict: 10/10

The Peaks: “Patient Number 9,” “Parasite,” “No Escape from Now” and “Nothing Feels Right”

COURTESY OF EPIC RECORDS

Ozzy Osbourne’s “Patient Number 9,” released on September 9 is the musician’s 13th studio album.

LOGO BY LARA FOLEY AND ROXANNE CUBERO/THE OBSERVER RECORDS GRAPHIC BY ROXANNE CUBERO/THE OBSERVER

OCTOBER 3RD

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The Oslo Freedom Forum is coming to New York! Join the Human Rights Foundation for an afternoon of talks and performances by the world’s top human rights defenders, including Russian grandmaster Garry Kasparov, North Korean defector Yeonmi Park, Iranian journalist Masih Alinejad, and more.

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THE OBSERVER September 14, 2022

www.fordhamobserver.com

Arts & Culture

15

New York Fashion Week From Students’ Perspectives

Fordham Lincoln Center students volunteer at and attend fashion shows around the city for New York Fashion Week

COURTESY OF TYLER BELL

Tyler Bell and Lori Wiggins, both FCLC ’23, were two of many Fordham students who took advantage of living in the city to attend one of the fashion world’s largest events of the year.

COURTESY OF SHERIDAN TYSON

Sheridan Tyson, FCLC ’23, volunteered at numerous Fashion Week events, from casting calls to prepping models backstage before the show.

By OLIVIA STERN Arts & Culture Editor

From the hallways of Lowenstein to runways across Manhattan, Fordham students are taking advantage of the events around the city for this year’s New York Fashion Week (NYFW).

This year’s NYFW runs from September 7 to September 14, with designers, such as Christian Siriano, Rebecca Minkoff, Prabal Gurung, Cynthia Rowley and Tory Burch, putting their spring season designs on display.

The main location for events took place at Spring Studios on 50 Varick St., but exhibitions and runway shows happened all over Manhattan.

Fordham students participated in a number of ways — from spectator to volunteer, there were plenty of opportunities for anyone interested in the fashion world.

ISABELLA SCIPIONI/THE OBSERVER

Isabella Scipioni, FCLC ’23 and opinions editor for The Observer, attended a Punk Majesty show, a fashion company founded by Alicia Amnesia.

COURTESY OF TYLER BELL

Nike and Simon Porte Jacquemus, a French fashion designer, collaborated on a line of athletic wear for this Fashion Week display.

COURTESY OF SHERIDAN TYSON

Makeup artists put finishing touches on their models before one of the week’s fashion shows.

COURTESY OF SHERIDAN TYSON

Fashion models pose for their final looks at the Mister Triple X fashion show in clothes designed by Erik Rosete.

Fun & Games Editor Irene Hao

un & ames

September 14, 2022 THE OBSERVER

Crossword: PRESS START

BY IRENE HAO

Across 1). Bottoms up 7). “____ ____ grip on yourself” (2 wds) 11). Noodle soup found in Little Saigon 14). Town in New York State 15). “Once ____ a time”

16). ____ ____, ____ ____, and “the” are indefinite articles (2 wds) 17). *Acting out 19). Private research university in upstate New York (Abbr.)

20). Wooden pin 21). Japanese recipient of Nobel Prize in Physics in 1973

GOGEN GAME

BY IRENE HAO

23). Denounce 27). *Cold War, for example 29). More professional, like a golfer perhaps?

30). Underscore 32). Exclamation of ire: “Oh, ___!” ___ 33). “How do we know you’re not ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ too?”

34). *Something you may say to a friend when you lose to them 39). “I ____ ________ ____fit 2day!” in text (2 wds) 40). Since, over text 42). Welcome rug? (2 wds) 45). Forest opening 46). *Improve 47). Genes that form by mutation on chromosomes 49). P!ATD song, “Hey Look Ma, ____ ____ ____ It” 50). Low bank of coral 51). Computer screen or monitor (Abbr.)

52). *iPads and iPhones have this 60). Rub out on paper, vowels only 61). Possesses 62). Private evening gatherings 63). Computer storage device that replaces a hard disk 64). Bird den 65). Part of life for many retirees (2 wds)

Down 1). Automobile 2). Type of health insurance plan type (Abbr.)

3). Flotsam or Jetsam 4). Opposite of WSW 5). Breaker or tearer 6). Massachusetts city known for witch burnings 7). Gentleman 8). Allergy-relieving pen prefix 9). 2000 pounds is a ____ ____ 10). Exasperating 11). Like a leech or freeloader 12). Japanese poems 13). The White Rabbit is never ____ (2 wds) ____ ____ 18). Famous final battle between Zuko and Azula: ____ ____ Kai 22). Friendly; like a butterfly 23). Done mouth-to-mouth or hands-only 24). Spoken 25). Unraised or unboosted, perhaps (2 wds) 26). Fated 27). Wacky; eccentric 28). “___, Sister of the Angels” by__ Joseph-Michel Pollet 31). Crown 35). Everyone has a couple in their closet, colloquially 36). Machu Picchu’s country 37). You feel it in your throat when public speaking

38). Not dressed 41). Rare digestive disorder caused by tumors (Abbr.)

42). They’re often found in oil, pastas, salads, and sauces 43). Catchy acronym to remember order of operations 44). Instrument that measures engine speed in rpm, shortened 45). Propylene ___ ___; colorless sweet liquid found in seasoning blends and packaged foods 48). Wonder Woman’s weapon 53). Be indebted to 54). “Not” prefixes 55). Timezone for Chicagoans (CST) 56). Empty 57). Epoch 58). Test recording electrical brain signals and activity 59). Bended leg joint, phonetically

Instructions:

Insert letters to form the listed words, moving between adjacent cells horizontally, vertically or diagonally in any direction. Insert the remaining letters of the alphabet (except Z) in the grid so that all the listed words are spelled out in this way.

1. BOX 2. COEQUALITY 3. GULF 4. JOKY 5. MYTHICAL

SUDOKU

BY IRENE HAO

6. NEAR 7. SCALP 8. STROBE 9. VEND 10. WHIP

ABCDEF GHIJKLM NOPQRS TUVWXY

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATIONS AND PAGE DESIGN BY TARA LENTELL