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Student Coalition Seeks Alternative Funds By DIAMOND NAGA SIU Deputy News Editor
Students from various NYU activist groups including SLAM, Divest and Amnesty International came together last Monday to form the Alternative Endowment Coalition. The coalition came about after repeated frustrations with how the university’s endowment is spent and meets every Monday. Currently, members are planning how to gather funds from alumni and present to student families in hopes to unite student voices to gain influence on where university funds go. Gallatin sophomore Hannah Fullerton said they plan to leverage their large donation sums to get NYU to agree with student concerns. “We are fundraising an alternative endowment to give us leverage to invest through a democratic, student-run way, rather than by a board of trustees handling the finances,” Fullerton said. “Right now, it’s all in the formation stage, but we want to have a board established within the month and a board of students who will manage this money and deter-
mine where it gets to go.” She does not believe that currently the school’s money goes to the correct places such as financial aid. While students joke about things such bad dining hall food and slow elevators, she believes it is important to open up that conversation to identify why such high tuition rates do not fix these issues. The coalition plans to fix that. CAS senior Kelly Davis said even though this is her last year at NYU, she hopes the coalition can influence the Board of Trustees to make better investments by demanding more moral, supportive and sustainable actions from the university regarding how it spends funds. “I refuse to let go of new projects with this much power and energy and importance just because I am leaving,” Davis said. “I am doing this for the students who are at NYU now, for those who were here, and most of all for those who will come to NYU. Now is the time to put as much energy behind this as we are able to make sure it moves forward.” When asked about how this group
Student Roundtable for Liang Conviction By REBECCA OH Contributing Writer NYPD officer Peter Liang is facing up to 15 years in prison for second-degree manslaughter — a sentence and conviction which has led to tens of thousands Chinese-Americans in New York City to rise up in protest. Liang was convicted on Feb. 11 of manslaughter in the killing of an unarmed black man named Akai Gurley. On Friday, NYU Law held a roundtable discussion concerning what Officer Liang’s conviction means in terms of the broader issue of police brutality, and why Asian-Americans might be divided on the judiciability of this case. Vice President of the NYU Chinese Student Society Jeremy Cheung, who is a sophomore in the joint CAS and Wagner public policy program, said he sees the difference in how Asian-American officers and white officers may be treated as evidence of systemic injustice, rather than the conviction of Liang itself being unjust. “I believe that Darren Wilson — the [officer] who shot Michael Brown — should be charged and incriminated as well as all other white police officers accused of police brutality,” Cheung said. “Since this did not happen, I see [the conviction of Peter Liang] as an example of covert racism towards Asian- Americans.” However, Cheung added that this does not absolve Liang of his crimes, calling him a criminal
who should be sanctioned just like every other officer. CAS sophomore and secretary of the Asian-American Woman Alliance Amanda Tiew said the recent outcry by AsianAmericans in favor of dropping charges against Liang has been very disappointing. “By demanding ‘justice for Peter Liang’ we effectively demand the same white privilege that has been unfairly afforded, time and time again, to officers like Darren Wilson and Timothy Loehmann,” Tiew said. “The Asian-American community should realize that we as people of color are inevitably disadvantaged by the same white supremacist system and over-militarized police force that operate in this country.” Sarah Hsu, a second-year law student and co-chair of AsianPacific American Law Students Association, commented on how the diversity within the AsianAmerican demographic results in a splintering of views on cases such as Liang’s. “I think it goes to show that we get so few opportunities to see such great rallies, so that [the rallies are] sort of heartening because it’s kind of great to see that Asian-Americans can be passionate about social-political issues — [to see that] the power is there,” Hsu said. “I think that could be pushed for more productive, constructive uses, like this dialogue.”
Email Rebecca Oh at news@ nyunews.com.
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The Alternative Endowment Coalition is a student-run NYU group formed to discuss and form plans to alter NYU’s endowment budget. would affect NYU’s endowment as well as what the school thought about it, John Beckman, Vice President of Public Relations at NYU, did not comment on the coalition. Stern senior Samir Goel wants to create a transparent financial system for students and wants this organization to create an open dialogue regarding the university’s issues, goals and outcomes. “The AEC will impact students by bringing them together, exposing
them to new viewpoints and helping the improve their abilities to push social issues across,” Goel said. “I think it will impact the university by forcing them to take seriously student demands for change and explore ways in which students can be integrated into the decision making process and focus on social returns in their decision making process.” His priority in joining the coalition was to shift the way the university views financial and social
CRIME LOG Feb. 26 to March 4 By THE NEWS TEAM The NYU Department of Public Safety received nine reports of larceny, two reports of harassment, two reports of controlled substance, one report of forcible touching and one report of criminal mischief between Feb. 26 and March 4.
Larceny On Feb. 26 at 9:05 p.m., a student declined to notify the police about his missing laundry hamper from Second Street Residence Hall. He left his hamper in the laundry room at 8 p.m. and discovered it was missing when he returned at 9 p.m. On Feb. 27 at 7 p.m., a student filed a police report for his missing iPhone in Bobst library. He left the phone on his desk at 6:55 p.m. when he went to the restroom, and it was missing when he returned at 7 p.m. On Feb. 28 at 12:30 p.m., a student filed a police report for his missing laptop computer. He left it unattended at 10 p.m. in Bobst library to visit the vending machine, returned to it at 10:15 p.m. and realized it was missing at 11:20 a.m. the next day. On Feb. 29 at 2:30 p.m., a student declined to notify the police about $200 cash missing from her backpack that was unattended from 11:00-11:15 a.m. in Bobst library. She was in Bobst and realized the money was missing from her wallet at 2 p.m. On Feb. 29 at 9:45 p.m., a staff
member reported 12 laptop chargers missing from Dibner Library. They were last seen on Feb. 26 at 11 p.m. Police notification was declined. On March 1 at 9:30 a.m., a student reported that his two guitars were destroyed and his paintings were stolen when he returned to his room in Brittany Residence Hall on Feb. 29. His roommate returned the paintings and will reimburse him for the damage done to his guitars. On March 2 at 12:25 a.m., a student reported that she left her Canon Rebel EOS camera in her room in Weinstein Residence Hall on Dec. 28 and that it was no longer there on March 1. Police notification was declined. On March 2 at 11:45 a.m., a student reported that he left his bag with his Canon DSLR camera and two lenses at 721 Broadway, and that the bag was brought to the Post Production Lost and Found on Feb. 29 at 11 p.m., but that the camera and one of the lenses were missing on March 1. Police notification was declined. On March 3 at 6:50 p.m., a student reported that at 10 a.m. he left his bag with a watch, heart rate monitor and clothing in a locker at the Silver Center that would electronically unlock at 3 p.m.. His bag was no longer there at 4 p.m.. Police notification was declined.
Harassment On March 1 at 1:09 p.m., a student reported that her former
priorities. He wants a mutually beneficial relationship between the coalition and its various students by exposing activists to business and exposing business-minded students to activism. By involving multiple activist groups, the coalition hopes to enact change in multiple areas of social injustices.
Email Diamond Naga Siu at dsiu@nyunews.com roommate was sending her unwanted emails and telephone messages and pushed her head against a wall in Gramercy Green Residence Hall on Jan. 24. NYPD was not notified. On March 2 at 11:55 a.m., a student reported that while he was walking west on W. 8th street at 6:20 p.m. on March 1, two unknown males approached him, asked to use his phone and threatened injury if he didn’t comply. The student left the situation and entered the West 4th St. subway station through the 8th street entrance. Police were notified.
Controlled Substance On Feb. 28 at 10:14 a.m., a call was made requesting a wellness check of a Palladium student resident. When Public Safety arrived, a small amount of marijuana was recovered. On Feb. 29 at 7:15 p.m., Public Safety responded to a report of an alleged controlled substance in Gramercy Green Residence Hall. A small amount of marijuana was recovered.
Forcible Touching On Feb. 28 at 12:30 p.m., a student reported that an unknown male groped her at the Violet Ball in Bobst Library. The student declined notifying the police.
Criminal Mischief On March 4 at 10:50 a.m., a Public Safety Officer reported that there was graffiti on the exterior wall of Coles Gym facing Bleecker Street.
Email the news team at news@nyunews.com.
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Man Seeking Housing, Not Scams By MOMACHI PABRAI Contributing Writer
PHOTO BY SHAWN PAIK
The NYU Student Labor Action Movement protested gentrification practices at the Moelis Institute.
SLAM Protests to Rename Moelis Institute By LEXI FAUNCE News Editor
The NYU Student Labor Action Movement protested in front of Bobst library on Friday, demanding the university rename the Moelis Institute for Affordable Housing Policy and stand in solidarity with city workers against gentrification. Protesters faced considerable push-back from NYU security officers after the workers were locked out of Wilf Hall, home to NYU’s Furman Center and the Moelis Institute, while attempting to speak with one of their representatives. While students with NYU IDs were allowed to enter the building, community members remained outside chanting, and one individual physically confronted an officer. Community members rallied around the movement as the New York Daily News reported in February that two of Mayor Bill de Blasio’s appointees in charge of his affordable housing plan have ties to developer Ron Moelis, whom the institute is named after. In fact, Alicia Glen, the deputy mayor for housing and economic development, sat on the board of the Moelis institute. In addition, the city’s head of the Department of Housing Preservation and Development Vicki Been ran the Furman Institute for Real Estate and Urban Policy at NYU, a program to which the Moelis Institute donated $2 million. The institute serves as a research center at NYU that gathers data around New York City to develop effective affordable housing solutions in low-income communities. However, SLAM members and union organizers said because de Blasio’s appointees are affili-
ated with the center, this creates a conflict of interest that will negatively impact neighborhoods that predominantly consist of people of color. Gallatin senior and SLAM member Robert Ascherman said it was no surprise that the university supports an institute that furthers the goals of developers that pay their workers low wages. Ascherman also alluded to the fact that NYU has opposed efforts to pay its own student workers $15 an hour. “NYU likes to claim that it is in and of the city,” Ascherman said. “I don’t know what in and of the city means to the people who work on the 12th floor and run the university, but destroying the city, gentrifying the city and backing union busters is not in and of the city.” Although SLAM was unable to speak with a representative of the institute, LS freshman Grace Klein said the NYU community should not give up their fight as gentrification is a major problem in New York City as housing prices continue to skyrocket. “If NYU is supposedly in the city and for the city, how can the administration talk about Ron Moelis as a champion for affordable housing without realizing he is using the city median rather than the neighborhood median?” Klein said. “I think that’s a huge problem for a school that claims it is on the forefront of progressive issues.” SLAM plans to issue a letter to the university and the Moelis Institute requesting the center to change its name to show support for lowincome communities across the city.
Email Lexi Faunce at lfaunce@nyunews.com.
A research team at NYU’s Tandon School of Engineering recently performed a study that investigated Craigslist’s failure to identify and remove up to half of its entries in a timely manner. According to the team’s research paper, 29,000 out of two million listings on the site are actually scams. The study, conducted by Damon McCory, an assistant professor at the Tandon School of Engineering; Elaine Shi, an associate professor at Cornell University; and Youngsam Park, a PhD student at the University of Maryland, aimed to quantify the rental scam issue and also analyze the various types of scams on Craigslist. “The study empirically measures rental scams on Craigslist and the main finding is that there is a diverse range of scams targeting apartment hunters,” McCoy said. “These include credit report scams, cloned listings from other rental sites with the price reduced and bait-and-switch listings that request a subscription to see the listing and other listings of properties.” Before developing an automated methodology to examine comparable scam advertisements, McCoy’s team began by studying anecdotal stories of Craigslist’s scams. They also began their clonal advertisements research by identifying excessively cheap advertisements directly copied from various rental sites. The team found that though many scam advertisements like “clones” are eventually removed off Craigslist, it takes hours before they are even identified. The clonal scam advertisements, for instance, have been listed for more than 10 hours on average
before they are deleted. “Craigslist could use our methods to detect and remove all of the scam listings that we detected,” McCoy said. “Our hope is that Craigslist and other regulatory agencies, such as the Federal Trade Commission, can use the results of our study to protect people looking for rental properties online.” Although many students at NYU opt for on-campus housing, CAS freshman Janice Lu said she decided to browse through Craigslist’s extensive off-campus housing listings, hoping to find some legitimate advertisements. “The fact that Craigslist is having issues detecting fraudulent listings definitely makes me think twice about trusting the site to determine my housing,” Lu said. “It’s obviously not worth a potentially better price if it’s not even valid to begin with. At that point, I’d rather just stick with on-campus housing for convenience, quality and validity.” Other NYU students, such as CAS junior Andrea Ng, are
suspicious of even using Craigslist to look for off-campus housing options. “I bought a desk, a bookshelf and a dresser off Craigslist, and honestly didn’t take any special precautions to check that any of the listings were legit,” Ng said. “I personally wouldn’t want to use Craigslist for housing to begin with. But I hope that Craigslist can post warnings of listings that look like scams or post advice on how to ensure a legitimate transaction.” While the study does propose innovative solutions to detect such scam advertisements, the researchers still think students looking for off-campus housing online should be careful. “Most of these scams advertise apartments well below market value,” McCoy said. “I would advise housing seekers that find online apartment listings that are far below market value to be skeptical and proceed with caution, since it is likely a scam.”
Email Momachi Pabrai at news@nyunews.com.
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NYU Tandon has released a study on Craigslist’s poor spam detection for their advertisements.
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‘Wiener-Dog’ Kicks Off Fusion Fest By DARIA BUTLER Staff Writer
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“Creative Control” is an upcoming film directed by NYU alumnus Benjamin Dickinson.
‘Creative Control’ Shows Virtual Reality By HAILEY NUTHALS Highlighter Editor
NYU alum Benjamin Dickinson’s film “Creative Control” may seem like a black-and-white iteration of Spike Jonze’s “Her,” but calling it that would be an injustice. True, it is centered around protagonist David — played by Dickinson — a marketing executive who is finding less and less joy in the reality of life, both at his job and with his girlfriend Juliette, a free-spirited yoga teacher played by Nora Zehetner. Set in New York in the near future, Dickinson’s world is just like ours, but with our phones and interfaces integrated into our bodies instead of held in our phones and tablets. David, who alternates between pills, booze and drugs of other sorts, is at odds with his life. He constantly finds himself comparing his life with Juliette to the life of his best friend Wim (Dan Gill). Wim, a fashion photographer, spends his time shooting stunning models and sleeping with beautiful women — either those same models or his girlfriend Sophie (Alexia Rasmussen), a practical person who pokes fun at David while the two smoke cigarettes at parties. Sophie, gorgeous and witty, finds herself more and more involved in David’s life once he gets her a job at his marketing company as a favor. Juliette, by contrast, ends up fighting with David constantly. Things get complicated as David, in an increasingly addled state of cross-fades, creates an avatar of Sophie using his new virtual reality glasses. Lines begin to blur between Sophie and David’s creation
of her — having an affair with an avatar does not mean that its inspiration will be aware. Piece by piece, through marvelous cinematography and plot development, David’s life falls apart as the areas of friendship, love, infidelity and reality itself become blurred. Almost before the audience knows it, things climax with a painful fight between David and Wim and by extension, Sophie and Juliette. David’s realities are forced to become a single existence. Abruptly, he is made to give up the VR glasses and, as a result, his virtual love. The real Sophie leaves him in a confused fight, Wim beats him up and Juliette begins to see visions during her orgasms. Gray areas, and even colorful ones, are jolted back into black-and-white. Dickinson’s acting and directing, and the acting of the entire cast, makes what could have been a slower-paced version of “Her” into a skillfully built film that creeps up on the viewer. Filming in blackand-white is a powerful choice that pays off immensely here. Viewers are forced to consider their own realities — or virtual realities — in a very satisfying, though challenging way. The final shot of David and Juliette separated by a physical wall, is both unmistakable and open to speculation. The question lingers — if you could choose a reality, would you keep the one you have? “Creative Control” opens at Landmark Sunshine Cinema on March 11.
Email Hailey Nuthals at hnuthals@nyunews.com.
NYU professor and alum Todd Solondz screened his film “WienerDog” at the Cantor Film Center on Thursday night to much laughter. The film had its world premiere earlier this year at Sundance, and served as the opening for the Tisch School of the Arts’ 2016 Fusion Film Festival, which celebrates women in the film industry. Director Solondz was present at the event, as well as producer Christine Vachon who’s been named the festival’s Woman of the Year. With a cast featuring Danny DeVito, Zosia Mamet, Greta Gerwig and Ellen Burstyn, “Weiner-Dog” follows the journey of a dachshund as she goes through different owners, different names and different phases of life. The story begins with her adoption from the kennel by a lonely little boy who names her Weiner-Dog. The relationship is short-lived, however, as a rather graphic diarrhea debacle results in her being taken to the kennel with the intention of being put down. Instead, the dog moves from owner to owner all of whom, despite each being a brief vignette, are fully realized characters. Although Weiner-Dog is the titular character and the only constant presence throughout the film, she is used more to elevate the absurd and eccentric human characters. While the film remains light-
hearted, its darker undertones add an element of absurdity and discomfort, shown in one particularly morbid scene that lasts just long enough to create unease. Following the screening, audience members were treated to a Q&A with Solondz and Vachon. Attendees were eager to know about the director and producer’s opinions on animals and their inspiration for making the film. His advice for making it in the film industry was simply: “You just make something up and hope you get lucky.” The discussion concluded with a question about the position of women in the film industry. “In the past 25 years, I think some of the differences and progress has been things like when I first started working in film, there were no women on the crew what-
soever,” Vachon said. “We’d be like, ‘That’s a girl DP!’ That was kind of big deal. Now when you see women behind the camera and in other jobs you don’t think about it.” Vachon also commented on the disparate representations of females in film. “The big thing now is how do we change those statistics?” Vachon said. “Some of what I think will change those statistics is that inward thinking, like, how can we be better? ‘Will you be bringing in a diverse group of directors?’ Well, yeah, we will. We try to always do that.” “Wiener-Dog” was acquired by Amazon at Sundance and will be released later this year.
Email Daria Butler at film@nyunews.com.
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“Wiener-Dog,” a film written by NYU alumnus Todd Solondz, was recently shown at the Fusion Film Festival.
This ‘Dry Powder’ Doesn’t Ignite By EMMA GOLD Contributing Writer
Despite the fact that there have been less than a dozen performances to date, the anticipation for “Dry Powder” at The Public Theater has been immense. Even before the first preview performance, the production was extended until May 1. The four-person cast includes screen stars John Krasinksi, Claire Danes, Sanjit de Silva and Hank Azaria, drawing buzz from those outside the theatrical sphere. Directing the play is Thomas Kail, a theater favorite who recently skyrocketed to popularity after his success directing “Hamilton” and “Grease Live.” Written by Sarah Burgess, “Dry Powder” tells the story of a private equity firm in midtown Manhattan led by three main partners, played by the aforementioned trio of stars. When the play starts, the firm is already mixed in risky financial decisions, most notably an extravagant engagement party for Rick (Azaria), the head of the firm. The firm’s existence hinges on the success of a deal managed by the optimistic and empathetic Seth (Krasinski).
However, the high tensions over the deal’s success lead to clashes over its execution, and turmoil ensues. The play is bookended by Jenny (Danes), a ruthless partner at the firm, preparing to give a speech to senior NYU business students. A lot of technical financial terms are employed, which at times can be confusing. However, Burgess effectively establishes a common vocabulary paired with sharp-witted comedy, which saves audiences from getting lost in the IPOs and due diligences. The staging and design elements of “Dry Powder” greatly heighten its conceptual intrigue. The play is set in a round arena, and the set, designed by Rachel Huack, is comprised of a low, bright blue wooden platform with some matching rehearsal blocks on top. To compensate for the minimal set, the lighting design by Jason Lyons is crucial. Panels on the walls of the theater light up and pulse with transition music, and most importantly, the lights illuminate an essential concept: this play is directed like a chess game. There is a faint grid on the stage’s main platform, and the
actors almost exclusively move laterally between these lines. During transitions, light illuminates a board game-like gridded path upon which the characters walk, evoking their own predetermined paths throughout the story. The predominance of light to visually supplement characters is a smart directing choice on Kail’s part in revealing the dynamics of finance and the intangibility of money. There is constant discussion of excess, but the audience never sees any of it. The performances were not particularly flooring, given some noticeably flubbed lines and even flubbed character names. The actors will likely settle into the play during previews, but the buzz surrounding Danes and Krasinski is just buzz. Nonetheless, the play itself is still fairly successful. “Dry Powder” avoids being exceedingly dry, but it’s unlikely to explode in the future. “Dry Powder” runs at the Public Theater at 425 Lafayette St. until May 1.
Email Emma Gold at theater@nyunews.com.
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‘VICE’ Screening at NYU Tackles Emotional Journeys By ADRIENNE MESSINA Contributing Writer
Over 150 students gathered last week to watch a pre-screening of HBO’s Emmy award winning documentary series, “VICE” produced in partnership with the VICE Media Network. Brought to students through the collaboration of the Stern Tisch Entertainment Business Association and HBO, the event included pre-screenings of two exclusive “VICE” segments and a Q&A with investigative journalist and VICE Media correspondent Isobel Yeung and executive producer Tim Clancy. Both segments, “Meathooked” and “Beating Blindness,” were covered by Yeung, with whom WSN spoke after the event. “Meathooked” is an investiga-
tive report of the global meat industry which, as Yeung explained during the Q&A, is clearly a wellworn topic but one that she felt she could report from a different perspective. The story took her and her team all the way to Brazil where viewers saw very shocking footage of the slaughtering of cows, from the snapping of necks to the skinning and processing of parts. This segment did not leave out anything that make audiences squeamish. It continued with information about the realities of our out of control meat consumption, unsustainable farming methods and outlook for our future. “Beating Blindness” covered advancements in technology to cure and improve blindness. In the Q&A, Yeung acknowledged that this piece was a bit refreshing
since many issues “VICE” covers are quite dark — even dangerous — while this one was more optimistic. It principally followed the story of one man’s emotional journey as the subject of a new eye technology — or as he called it, “the iPhone 1 of bionic eyes.” The segment also covered the touching experience Yeung had in Africa watching a few impoverished people be cured of blindness through a simple cataracts surgery, as well as a woman’s sad story of overwhelming confusion after gaining sight. “The topics that get the most attraction and feedback are human issues,” Yeung said. “Every day when I’m out in the field I feel something.” The following Q&A with Isobel Yeung and Tim Clancy allowed
students to ask questions about their experiences working for “VICE,” the segments from the screening and the process of creating the series. They expressed that their hope is to pose questions for the viewer, not to answer them. They explained that in a culture in which investigative journalism is in decline, VICE still manages to cover unique issues by trusting that viewers share their interests. “More often than not, if a topic is trending, it’s all the more reason for us to not tackle it,” Yeung said. Yeung said that working for Vice is a journalistic experience like no other. “It’s one of the only places where you can get a fully immersive journalism experience,” Yeung said. “I travel the world and experience
things I never thought I would get to. I’m so grateful.” “VICE” airs Sundays at 9 p.m. on HBO and HBOGo.
Email Adrienne Messina at entertainment@nyunews.com.
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NYU’s Stern Tisch Business Association recently hosted a VICE screening in collaboration with HBO.
Fall Out Boy Brings Back the Mmrs By HAILEY NUTHALS Highlighter Editor
If “Boyz of Zummer” was the least appropriate lineup for a tour in the history of tours, “Wintour is Coming” was the follow-up that clearly broadcasted “lesson learned.” In fact, at least at Friday night’s stop of “Wintour,” everything that could go right did. Opening up the show was PVRIS, the fledgling band from Lowell, MA fresh off of Warped Tour this past summer. Their synth-infused punk filled Madison Square Garden with perfectly balanced sound. Though it was clear that their comfort zone was somewhere closer to a club than a stadium, nothing could stop the power behind Lynn Gunn’s vocals. Nothing makes a crowd of mostly teenage pop-punk girls feel more welcome and excited to be at a show than an incredible set fronted by a woman who can sing songs like “St. Patrick” almost as easy as breathing. The
band’s chemistry was palpable, and the energy was constant throughout their set. Close on their heels was AWOLNATION, who took the drama — and the rock — to a whole new level. With jaw-dropping lighting effects that had masterfully crafted synchronicity to the songs, AWOL blew past the indifference that graced the faces of those who had only known “Sail” up until that moment. Frontman Aaron Bruno made the stadium shrink in size until it was his plaything; a small room where he and his incredibly talented friends could jump about and bounce off the walls. Leaving the instrumentation to the rest of the band gave Bruno the chance to really interact with the entire audience. By the end of the set — which finished with an anthemic rendition of “Sail,” complete with the whole crowd fist-pumping and inexplicably caught up in a wave of togetherness and strength — anybody left in the audience who wasn’t a fan was
probably also the sort of person who walks slow in the middle of the sidewalk on Broadway. Last but never least, Fall Out Boy took the stage to a sold-out crowd and a flurry of fake snow that fluttered from the ceiling as thousands of fans gleefully sung along to “Irresistible.” Artfully selected videos played behind the boys as Joe Trohman strutted across the stage to counter Patrick Stump’s skipping. The set, a mix of older hits like “Grand Theft Autumn” and later releases like “Uma Thurman,” flawlessly carried the crowd through a night of heart-aching nostalgia or, for the newer fans, undeniable connection. There was even a Bowie tribute tucked cleverly into “Save Rock And Roll,” with not-so-subtle blue-and-red lightning emblazoned across b-roll of Mars and outer space. It was a set, night and tour for love, friends and idols.
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Fall Out Boy’s bassist Pete Wentz took the stage with the rest of the band at Madison Square Garden with PVRIS.
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The Students Fixing Bike Shares By TAYLOR NICOLE ROGERS Staff Writer
Getting around New York City is rarely ever easy. Luckily for NYU students, NYU’s Office of Sustainability offers a completely free alternative to taxis and the subway that is good for the planet too — NYU Bike Share. Nicholas Gordon, manager of the Office of Sustainability, believes the Bike Share Program is not simply another way to navigate the city, but also an important part of the NYU community. “The program is completely run by students and that’s how we like it. A lot of other universities just hire a third party vendor that brings in some sort of a Citi Bike type program where they take care of the
bikes and maintain everything, but it’s not really connected to the community,” Gordon said. “We like the fact that our program is very invested in students.” Among those students is Gallatin senior Pio Tsai, one of three student volunteers who run the program. Tsai also said that the most important part of the program is the community that surrounds it. “This whole program started basically because we’ve had such hard-working students that are really passionate about making bicycling at NYU accessible to everyone,” Tsai said. “We have three students, 4,000 registered users, 60 bikes and 14 dorms. We split up all the dorms between us three.” Tsai does not think the busy nature of the city streets should
discourage anyone from riding. “I hate the perception that people have that biking in New York City is dangerous and that only a certain few can bike here,” Tsai said. “The graduate students are the most passionate about the program. They’ve been outside of college and appreciate the amenities the university provides. When it’s nice we get up to 30 rides a day, but I have seen only about five accidents while I’ve volunteered here.” Tsai also emphasized that the program is always looking for new riders and volunteers. According to Gordon, the program’s dedication to building community does not stop with the NYU student body. “We donate a large number of bikes that can’t be recycled into our fleet to a non-profit we work
PHOTO BY TAYLOR NICOLE ROGERS
NYU’s Bike Share program is a free and convenient way to get around the city. with,” Gordon said. “Workshops, group rides and all sorts of activities are done with those bikes for students in low-income communities. We try to be very connected on the commu-
nity side and I think that’s what we want to keep strengthening and expanding.”
Email Taylor Nicole Rogers at features@nyunews.com.
The Good, the Bad, the Doughy Gallatin Show Fashions Techstyles By ABIGAIL WEINBERG Deputy Features Editor
I’ve never eaten a New York bagel that I didn’t like. However, bagels can vary greatly in terms of taste and texture. I tried every bagel-selling vendor within a one-mile radius of campus. Here is a definitive list of the best and worst of them, with the price of a plain bagel with cream cheese as a point of comparison.
A. Bagel Bob’s 51 University Pl. Cash only $1.99 There are no frills at Bagel Bob’s — just good, oldfashioned bagels. The bagels are crunchy — sometimes enough to scrape the top of your mouth — but their airy texture and pure, doughy flavor makes them the best bagels around. The store is conveniently located just a few minutes walk from Bobst, and it offers a 10 percent NYU student discount.
B. Bagels on the Square 7 Carmine St. $3 credit card minimum $1.95 Bagels on the Square is located on Father Demo Square and offers huge, cheap bagels around the clock. The bagels are baked to a delicate golden brown so that the exterior cracks pleasantly with any pressure. The dough is light, soft and buttery — almost overwhelmingly buttery. The best thing about this shop is
that it’s open 24/7, making it one of the few places in New York that can satisfy your weird 3 a.m. bagel cravings.
C. Space Market
E. Street Carts
1 University Pl. $5 credit card minimum $2.00 Unlike their crunchier counterparts, these bagels are allaround chewy. The dough feels somewhat flat and dense, but the flavor is right where it should be. Space Market offers decent bagels at a decent price right on campus, plus a 10 percent student discount. The averageness of these bagels, however, pales in comparison to the bagels at the neighboring establishment, Bagel Bob’s.
D. Murray’s Bagels 500 6th Ave Card accepted $2.75 Murray’s is a cute, spacious shop with old-timey decorations and plenty of seating. The atmosphere, however, does not make up for the store’s major shortcoming: subpar bagels. At first glance, the gigantic bagels seem almost appetizing enough to merit their exorbitant price. Upon first bite, however, the un-
suspecting consumer will find difficulty attempting to gnaw through a tough lump of bread. Murray’s has its pros, like its varied salad and deli options, but its bagels ultimately fall short.
Locations vary Cash only $1.00-$1.25 I hesitate to refer to the bread served at those street carts as “bagels” because they contradict the high acclaim of New York bagel. These bagels are big and doughy-looking, but just one bite will show them for what they are: hard, tasteless chunks of semi-stale bread. Consumption of these bagels is only acceptable when you’re running late to class and need to put something in your stomach, or when you only have $1 in your pocket.
Email Abigail Weinberg at dining@nyunews.com. D
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By GABRIELLA BOWER Beauty and Style Editor
Students and alumni of the Gallatin School of Individualized Study explored the intersection of technology and fashion at the annual Gallatin Fashion Show. This year’s theme was Techstyles, held on Thursday, March 3 in the Jerry H. Labowitz Theater for the Performing Arts. Before the show began, Gallatin alumna Colby Jordan gave opening remarks tracing the history of fashion and its relationship with technology — from Alexander Wang’s integration of heat technology in the F/W 2014 collection to the aestheticizing of the Apple Watch. Jordan then sat down with Gallatin professor Peder Anker, who specializes in the sciences and is a published author of “Global Design,” to discuss the intersection of science, technology and fashion. The discussion segued seamlessly into the presentation of 16 very unique fashion collections all under the umbrella of science and technology. From futuristic designs to sustainable creations and repurposed ensembles, every collection had its own distinct theme. The designers — who were both current students and alumni — had the opportunity to introduce their work and credit their inspirations before presenting to the audience. Gallatin sophomore Mackenzie Leighton has been involved with the show for two years now. She said the show helps spark her creativity. “I wanted my collection this year, ‘The Natural World,’ to be a playful and refreshing representation of the space we inhabit when we strip away the modern definitions of science and technology,” Leighton said. The clothes used various fabrics
such as burlap and canvas all in earth tones and clearly pulled textures from the ground such as fields of grass and heaps of wool. Every ensemble was paired with a unique mask that were reminiscent of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” Emily Bell, a Gallatin senior, had always been interested in the show since her freshman year. This year was the first opportunity where she had time to dedicate to creating a collection and she used her concentration as the central focus. “As soon as I saw that the theme was science and technology I began brainstorming ways to take it in an unexpected direction,” Bell said. “Since I’ve spent a large amount of time in my Gallatin concentration studying mutually assured destruction and the Cold War, I began to think about how technology simultaneously destroys and protects us.” Other nnotable collections include: “Seen: The Visibility Project,” a social commentary on our society’s effects on the female image, each look marked with an X on a part of the female figure society is often fixated on. “Deus Ex Machina,” a collection of utilitarian and structured shirts was an effort, as stated by the student designer Matthew Clay Russo in the show lookbook, to expose how “the manufacturing process is shrouded from the public consciousness.” Whether students were pushing their creativity to new heights or integrating their concentrations in unexpected ways, this year’s Gallatin Fashion Show: Techstyles was surely not lacking in self-expression. Emily Bell is an editor-at-large at WSN.
Email Gabriella Bower at gbower@nyunews.com.
NYUNEWS.COM | MONDAY, MARCH 7, 2016 | WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS
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FEATURES
EDITED BY KENDALL LEVISON FEATURES@NYUNEWS.COM
How Dollar Pizza Stays Afloat By RILEY GOODELL Contributing Writer
VIA FACEBOOK.COM
Tommy Hilfiger and Runway of Dreams recently collaborated to create a collection dedicated to disabled children.
Hilfiger Adapts Line for Disabled Children By CARSON KESSLER Staff Writer
Synonymous with self-expression, fashion continues to evolve to create more opportunities for an individual to reveal personal style preferences and represent oneself in a way that is unique to him or her. Although self-expression sounds like a universal freedom, the opportunity to choose styles unique to oneself proves inaccessible for individuals with disabilities. Of the 73 million children in the United States, one in 20 lives with a disability. Working towards the goal of inclusion and accessibility, Mindy Scheier and Tommy Hilfiger teamed up to create a collection which addresses the needs of children unable to wear popular styles because of their disability. The founder and visionary of Runway of Dreams, Scheier realized her son’s dreams of wearing a pair of jeans like everybody in his middle school shouldn’t be a dream for any child — it should be a reality. Scheier passionately searched for a way to grant her son, who suffers from muscular dystrophy, his wish to wear a simple pair of jeans. Since 2013, Scheier’s mission, as stated to Fashionista.com has been “to provide more accessibility to adaptive clothing for those with disabilities.” Meeting with CEO of Tommy Hilfiger Americas Gary Sheinbaum, Runway of Dreams began its partnership with the multinational apparel corporation. The adapted clothing collection includes 22 pieces for boys and girls, sizes 4-20 and 4-18 respectively. Each style crafted with Velcro or magnet closures, functionality and adjustability is what the collection strives for, providing disabled children with the ability to dress oneself. The collection is not meant to set children with a limb difference
or muscle disease apart from their peers, so Hilfiger ensured this universal inclusiveness by matching each design to the corresponding design from the TH Kids Collection, as well economically accessible with costs ranging from $18.50-$42.50. The collection includes a variety of styles, ranging in color and occasion. A few of the collection’s looks include a boy’s button down, collared shirt with faux buttons to conceal a magnet closure for easy dressing; a babyblue dress designed with magnet closures along the back; and a variety of jeans ranging from jeggings, skinny and straightleg styles to address the needs of every demographic. With its wide-ranging success, the label is working two seasons ahead on future children’s fashions. The Tommy Hilfiger x Runway of Dreams collection not only provides differently-abled children the opportunity to lessen the gap between themselves and their peers, but also addresses the need for the fashion industry to apply modifications on children’s lines, as well as both womenswear and menswear ranges. Scheier told Fashionista. com, “Similar to plus-size departments, our goal is that there’s an adaptive department for every brand and retailer. It’s an enormous department that’s not serviced by the industry. There’s so much opportunity.” Aside from the stylish fashions modified by simple adjustments to ease difficulties and promote inclusivity and accessibility, opportunity is exactly what the collection provides the public: a chance to express oneself with no hindrances, to be included with no obstacles and to expand the fashion industries with no boundaries.
Email Carson Kessler at bstyle@nyunews.com.
Dollar pizza. Two of the best words to a hungry belly on a budget, or more concisely put, an NYU student. But for most, the transactional exchange revolves around ease and convenience rather than concerns of quality and production. There are over 1,000 pizzerias in Manhattan, all with varying levels of taste, flavor, and style. So how does one choose? CAS sophomore Marisa Alexander cites location and price as her two main criteria when on a quest for her next pie. “It’s a nice break from New York prices,” she said. This sentiment is unsurprising and felt by many savvy New Yorkers, who understand high prices to be an inevitable aspect to city life. But what about the other side of the counter? We talked to a local dollar pizza joint to inquire about how they stay afloat amidst relentless competition. 2 Bros, perhaps the most widely
acclaimed dollar pizza chain in the city, has grasped hold of this budget business model, securing a near monopoly in the area. Another notable option is the often overshadowed, Percy’s Pizza on Bleecker and McDougal, right in the heart of Greenwich Village. Unlike the greasy, chaotic ambiance that usually comes with places of this nature, Percy’s takes on a unique and cozy vibe. But what’s their “secret sauce” to maintaining high quality at miniscule prices? It’s Thursday afternoon and Percy’s Pizza manager Umit Karaman can be seen busily sliding pizzas into their widebricked ovens, cleaning the kitchen and preparing the store for the rush hours to come. Because of the store’s low prices, he takes on far more responsibility than the average manager to ensure the overall operations run smoothly. “To control cost, we can’t hire too many people,” Karaman admitted, but he gladly takes on the extra work, knowing that it is part of what makes the experi-
ence special for so many people. Karaman said that his work days can often add up to 19 hours, spent supervising and working to keep the business top-notch. But even with countless long and draining days, he has never considered raising the one-dollar price. “We make it all ourselves here, and we know it’s not worth just $1,” Karaman said. “But we want it to be accessible for everyone.” Perhaps what makes Percy’s unique is the care and forethought put into the customer experience as a whole. Karaman’s mission is to provide low-cost pizza while creating a peaceful and inclusive environment so that anyone can come and enjoy a little sliver of their favorite food. “I don’t do anything special, I just run an honest business and make good pizza,” Karaman said. “How much money you have in your pocket? That’s all you need.”
Email Riley Goodell at dining@nyunews.com.
Runway to Wardrobe Faces Scruitiny By SOPHIE FAY SHAW Staff Writer The most important people in the fashion industry aren’t the designers, editors or models — they are the consumers. Without them, the industry would have no reason to exist. Many highfashion brands are attempting to satiate the consumers’ needs by showing see now, buy now — or direct-to-consumer — collections at Fall 2016 fashion weeks. This means that the collections currently being shown will be immediately available to shoppers online or in retail spaces. The see now, buy now approach is being met with mixed reviews. Ralph Toledano, the president of Mode à Paris, adamantly opposed the idea of direct-to-consumer collections. Synchronizing fashion shows with retail availability changes the idea of seasonal collections. Without all designers adopting the practice, some designers are releasing collections for the current season, while others are showing collections designed for six months from now. Karl Lagerfeld, creative director of Chanel, Fendi and his namesake brand, also rejected the direct-to-consumer strategy. In an article from businessoffashion. com, Lagerfeld expressed that direct-to-consumer may be able to work alongside traditional runway shows, but there are many production complications that could arise. Designers would have to begin producing the
clothing six months in advance of fashion week, and keeping the collection from any media would be difficult. While designers that showed at Paris decided to stick to tradition, there are several from New York and London fashion weeks that will be giving direct-to-consumer collections a try come fall. One of the designers already embracing the new consumer trend is Diane von Furstenburg, who chose to include a see now, buy now capsule collection within her Fall 2016 Ready-to-Wear show. You can anticipate directto-consumer collections in Sept. 2016 from Tommy Hilfiger and Burberry as well. As Milan’s Fall/Winter 2016 Fashion Week came to an end, it seemed that Italian designers became wary of direct-to-consumer approach. Not wanting to fully commit, Prada, which
showed Feb. 25, featured two new handbags on the see now, buy now platform. Following the show, the Pionniere and Cahier bags became immediately available for purchase at select Prada stores in Milan, London, Paris and New York. For those who can afford to purchase pieces straight from the runway, direct-to-consumer collections are ideal for staying on top of the latest fashions. The consumer-centric practice may disrupt the status quo, but it’s a win-win for brands that want immediate profit and shoppers who can’t wait for the clothes to reach the racks. Now that the idea is out there, it’s unlikely that see now, buy now will be eliminated for the sake of the traditional fashion calendar.
Email Sophie Fay Shaw at bstyle@nyunews.com.
STAFF PHOTO BY JAKE QUAN
The “See Now, Buy Now” approach that designers at the Fall 2016 fashion have adopted has been met with criticism.
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WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS | MONDAY, MARCH 7, 2016 | NYUNEWS.COM
Four NYU Startups to Watch
By Kendall Levison, Features Ed
COURTESY OF LEONARD LAW
STAFF PHOTO BY KENDALL LEVISON
STAFF PHOTO BY ANNA LETSON
COURTESY OF PETER RY
MEDPILOT
HEARTY START
JOZII
HOMESWIPE
Rakinur Alam
Josh Gelinas
Brandon Tyler
Michael Lisovetsky
Elevator pitch
MedPilot wants to change the way patients pay for healthcare. The company identified two main issues with medical billing: patients often never see the bills, and bills can also be too high for patients to afford. Instead of getting statements through the mail, MedPilot sends their users email or texts when payments are due. And if you aren’t able to pay on time, the company’s software creates a customized payment plan based on your income.
NYU connection
MedPilot’s co-founder Rakinur Alam and chief technology officer Leonard Law both graduated from the Tandon School of Engineering. Tandon’s “i2e” motto, which stands for “invention, innovation, and entrepreneurship,” encouraged Alam to build his own company. “An idea is just an idea until you execute on it,” Alam said in an email. “At NYU we were encouraged to execute on our idea rather than just dream about it.”
Advice to college entrepreneurs
If you’re an NYU student dreaming of a startup, Alam said you should start working on it while in school. “It takes the right team to take an idea and turn it into a company,” Alam said. “I would like to suggest to all future entrepreneurs to network with people, make friends and don’t be afraid to share your ideas. You might just find your first partner in crime, and together you can build the next big thing.”
Elevator pitch
Elevator pitch
NYU connection
NYU connection
For as little as $3, Hearty Start allows you to sponsor breakfasts for homeless individuals around New York City. Donors log onto the site and choose how often they’d like to donate a sandwich — daily, weekly or monthly. Hearty Start partners with local delis like Le Basket to make the sandwiches, which are delivered by Hearty Start employee Munoz Price, who once struggled with homelessness himself. Two members of Hearty Start’s team, Konig Chen and Josh Gelinas, are current NYU sophomores. Chen studies hospitality and acts as the nonprofit’s Program Director for Distributions and Finance, while Gelinas is an economics major and fills the role of Program Director of Operations and Fundraising. Hearty Start is also a semifinalist in NYU Entrepreneurs Challenge, in which it’s competing for a $200,000 prize.
Advice to college entrepreneurs
As a student himself, Gelinas encourages his NYU peers to go out and seek the realworld challenges by a startup. “There’s no better way to gain a lot of experience — not just with business, but relating with people, putting yourself out there, selling things — than to do a new company,” Gelinas said. In addition to the ventures sponsored by NYU like the Leslie eLab and the Entrepreneurs Challenge, Gelinas said that being in New York is a huge advantage for students who want to start a business. “I transferred from the University of Texas, and from what I’ve seen NYU is one of the best schools to be at to be an entrepreneur.”
Students who have searched from a summer job or internship online know that there are hundreds of sites to choose from, but Jozii aims to simplify the process. The site searches through jobs posted around the web on places and then picks out jobs that they think will appeal to students. You need a college email to sign up, so employers posting on Jozii can customize their listings to current students and recent grads.
Jozii was founded by Brandon Tyler, who graduated with a degree in media, culture and communication from the Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development. For Tyler, it was his experience trying to get a job that led to Jozzii’s creation. “I tried Craigslist, I looked on Monster, I jumped on NYU Simplicity [now NYU CareerNet] and even a lot of alumni job listings,” Tyler said. He eventually found his first part-time job as a sales associate only after being approached by a recruiter for Abercrombie & Fitch at the Starbucks on campus.
Advice to college entrepreneurs
While graduation might seem far off for some students, Tyler encouraged them not to let their time in college slip away. “You’re here for four years and those four years fly by quicker than anything,” he said. Even though you might be nervous about striking out as an entrepreneur, Tyler said college is the best time for students to start building their skills. “If they even think they have an idea, the time is now to try that out,” he said. “You have so many resources that you will not have once you’re not at a university.”
Elevator pitch This app distills the complicated process of finding an apartment into a few clicks and swipes. Filters like “building with elevators” or “allows pets” help you narrow your search, and HomeSwipe verifies each listing to eliminate duplicates and fakes. When you finally see an apartment you love, swipe left to save it for later or to chat with the listing agent. Swiping right dismisses the listing. HomeSwipe is like Tinder for apartment hunting. NYU connection Michael Lisovetsky, founder and CEO of HomeSwipe, graduated from Stern last year with a degree in finance. While his coursework gave him the background information he used to start HomeSwipe, it was the experience of apartment hunting that lead Lisovetsky to the idea. “Being in New York City and experiencing how difficult it is to find an apartment really made the problem obvious in my mind,” Lisovetsky said. Advice to college entrepreneurs When Lisovetsky looks back on his own college experience, he said that there are many things he wishes he’d done differently. “Instead of reaching out to people like me — NYU alumni who were doing what I wanted to do and a few steps ahead — I decided to learn the hard way,” Lisovetsky said. While Lisovetsky regrets not learning from others’ mistakes, he said that students still shouldn’t be afraid to try something new. “The way you learn is just by doing,” Lisovetsky said.
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NYUNEWS.COM | MONDAY, MARCH 7, 2016 | WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS
NYU Entrepreneurs Festival 2016 By Yeho Hwang, Staff Writer
In an effort to promote entrepreneurship initiatives on campus, Tisch Hall hosted the fifth NYU Entrepreneurs Festival, an event that brings together students, alumni and professionals to foster innovation and exchange ideas in the startup industry. Frank Rimalovski, the Executive Director of Innovation Venture Fund and Entrepreneurship Programs, discussed his five keys of entrepreneurship: opportunity, education, persistency, proactivity and prudence. “A lot of entrepreneurs are well-trained experts in their fields,” Rimalovski said. “I would argue successful entrepreneurs are organized, calculated adventurers.” The festival featured three keynote speakers that have been successful in their fields: Libby Edelman, who is the senior vice president of fashion at the shoe brand Sam Edelman; Ragy Thomas, CEO and founder of Sprinklr; and Guy Story, a co-founder of Audible. CAS junior and member of the organizing committee William DeLay said the ultimate goal of the festival is to connect students who have ideas with investors. “It’s an effort to show sponsors a snapshot of entrepreneurship at NYU by first showing the clubs, then having a venture showcase,” DeLay said. “It’s an example of NYU’s prowess.” In total, 12 alumni ventures and 20 student ventures were represented at the showcases. One of those ventures, MedTimes, founded by Tandon senior Yasir Ali. The startup acts as a platform that allows medical patients to get live updates of hospital wait times via text message. Ali, who is currently taking a leave of absence to promote his startup, chose to attend the event because he was drawn to the festival’s inspiring atmosphere. “I love the vibe that comes out of the festival,” Ali said. “Everyone’s trying to achieve the same goal even though they’re in different markets. I think the overall goal brings everyone together. I love that positivity.” Throughout the weekend, attendees actively visited booths and panels, asking questions and exchanging business cards. For Kierthi Shaminathan, a part-time MBA student at the Stern School of Business, the weekend was a way to get advice on starting his own company. “I feel like attending the panels and interacting with startups would be a good place to get information,” Shaminathan said. “I wanted to see some of the challenges people faced and how they got over those challenges.” As the festival drew to a close on Saturday night, the three co-chairs of the organizing committee — Stern junior Lori Berenberg, CAS senior Daniel Tuchman and Tisch junior Lewie Kloster, sat down to discuss why they chose to be involved in the festival. “We’re hoping to encourage and inspire anyone in the entrepreneurial community to pursue their dream and build what they really see,” Tuchman said. After all, Kloster said, entrepreneurship is a very useful tool to students of any background. “The entrepreneurship mindset can be applied to so many professions,” Kloster said. “We can lift stereotypes and plug [entrepreneurship] into other industries like film.” Entrepreneurs of all levels of experience have a wealth of NYU resources at their disposal, including the Leslie eLab, Blackstone LaunchPar and W.R. Berkley Innovation Lab. For many, it is where their desire to crack the scene is forged, and in these resources they can get one-on-one assistance on how to build and grow a business. “It’s a really exciting time for an NYU entrepreneur,” Berenberg said. “What’s going to happen next year? I don’t know. But if there’s somebody out there in the world considering starting a venture as an NYU student, absolutely do it now.”
Email Yeho Hwang at features@nyunews.com.
PHOTOS BY LILY XING
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WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS | MONDAY, MARCH 7, 2016 | NYUNEWS.COM
OPINION
EDITED BY RICHARD SHU OPINION@NYUNEWS.COM
GOVERNMENT
Even New Jersey Is Too Good for Chris Christie By SHIVA DARSHAN Staff Writer After Chris Christie’s endorsement of Donald Trump, six New Jersey newspapers were so fed up with the time and money he continues to waste even after his presidential bid has ended that they called for his immediate resignation. Christie’s clear opportunism and his reversal of opinion regarding the billionaire tycoon have been the test of his home state’s patience with their exasperating governor. As a multiethnic state with a heavy immigrant population, New Jersey’s interests are completely contrary to Trump and his rhetoric. Though the calls for his resignation are well-deserved, this
endorsement is only the latest example of Christie putting his political career before the interests of his constituents. As he campaigned from July of last year to this February, Christie completely abdicated his responsibilities as governor. When the MidAtlantic states were about to be pummeled by Snowstorm Jonas in January, Christie did not return to New Jersey until New York Mayor Bill de Blasio reproached him into doing so. Even then, he was back in New Hampshire campaigning the next day, claiming that there was not any flooding or permanent damage even though towns in South Jersey were under five feet of water. Meanwhile, Trenton continues to
suffer from a budgetary crisis that Christie left behind in his wake. For the sake of his own campaigning, he has delayed addressing the budget shortfall and multiple credit downgrades caused by his naive revenue predictions and tax cuts for the wealthy. All the while, severe cuts in education, effective tax hikes on working-class families and attempts to abolish New Jersey’s affordable housing agency
hurt middle- and working-class New Jerseyans. Christie’s actions have proved him to be both negligent, incompetent and no longer fit to represent New Jersey. Even when Christie was in New Jersey, he was still focused on his presidential bid. Christie vetoed a bill banning the use of gestation crates — boxes that isolate and immobilized pregnant pigs — which received 90 percent support from New Jerseyans. Christie vetoed the bill because in Iowa, the crates are standard practice and banning them in New Jersey could have hurt his electoral prospects. In the debates, Christie loved touting the fact he cut funding for Planned Parenthood in New Jersey. However, he only saved New Jersey $7.6 million, min-
iscule given he also lost a 9-1 federal matching grant because of the cut. Since 2012, Christie has repeatedly shown New Jersey that he cares more about his post-gubernatorial political career than he does the Garden State. Since August of last year, a majority of New Jerseyans have called for his resignation. Maybe he just didn’t hear them, given that he spent most of 2015 out of state. Even after all that, Christie continues to neglect his state and his immediate duties to go out-of-state and campaign for Trump. New Jersey shouldn’t waste any more of its time with its ineffectual leader; it is time for Christie to resign or be recalled.
Email Shiva Darshan at opinion@nyunews.com.
CITY
Cities on Both Coasts Mishandle Homelessness By EMILY FONG Deputy Opinion Editor Taking a walk through any part of San Francisco reveals much of the city’s natural beauty: rolling hills, stunning architecture and verdant squares around every corner. But equally apparent to any visitor is the amount of homeless individuals on the sidewalks. The homeless population of San Francisco has long been a fixture of the city, but the numbers as of late have been increasing. Many homeless are simply people who are down on their luck, displaced by the new prosperity in a region that draws much of its fame and in-
famy from its proximity to Silicon Valley. But as tensions and tempers flare between the encroaching walls of gentrification and those who find themselves forced out of their old homes, the parallels between San Francisco’s issues with homelessness and New York’s are clear. Both cities are struggling mightily with the sheer numbers of homeless people visible on the streets, many of whom have been recently driven out by high housing prices and lack of job opportunities. New York has been in denial of its problem for a long time, with Mayor Bill de Blasio acquiescing and admitting that homelessness is not a condition that
can be easily and quietly dealt with. The amount of homeless people has been steadily rising in the city, reaching a peak of over 60,000 people counted in New York’s shelter system. To solve this conundrum, San Francisco and New York have been trying out many different fixes, and neither has really found a solution. San Francisco’s myriad of plans have either failed entirely or not
produced a definitive result, with many members of the homeless population resisting being moved into protective housing shelters. San Francisco is currently trying to deal with the repercussions of years of disorganization, failed policy and mixed messages from the city’s administrations. New York would be wise to not follow San Francisco’s lead. The de Blasio administration has at least been trying to keep ahead of the tide by moving the homeless either into shelters or by busing and flying homeless families out of city limits entirely. However, those policies are unsustainable, and without more focused attempts to rehabilitate and provide for
the homeless, New York might have a similar situation on its hands. The de Blasio administration showed that it was capable of utilizing its resources to provide housing and shelter for homeless populations early this year. As winter storm Jonas struck the East Coast, the city really made an effort to keep centers and shelters open to more people looking to wait out the storm. The challenge now is whether or not the city can sustain that level of aid for the other 364 days of the year, not just in times when the public outcry is deafening.
Email Emily Fong at efong@nyunews.com.
CITY
Baseball Tobacco Ban Strikes Out By ABRAHAM GROSS Deputy Opinion Editor On Feb. 25, the New York City Public Health Department endorsed legislation banning the use of smokeless tobacco — namely chewing tobacco — from all sports arenas. “Unfortunately, our young people repeatedly see professional athletes, especially baseball players, using smokeless tobacco, making this practice appear socially acceptable,” said a senior legal counsel for the department, who also cited the growing use of this form of tobacco among city youth as justification for supporting the legislation. However, until more practical changes are put forward by the city’s Pub-
lic Health Department, this ban is merely a publicity ploy that will do little to stem tobacco use in the city. One of the key pieces of data cited by the department’s legal counsel was that smokeless tobacco use by young New Yorkers has ostensibly doubled from 2007 to 2013. But no claim was made that the increased popularity of chewing tobacco among city youth was accompanied by a similar increased use in sports arenas or by baseball players. Even if such a correlation was shown, proof would be required to convincingly demonstrate that tobacco use among players caused more youths to take up the habit. One would expect the Public Health Department to work on a scientific basis, avoid-
ing spurious causation and supporting legislation backed by proven trends. Jumping on the political bandwagon may earn the department some popularity points, but it corrodes the weight of its endorsements in the long term. Furthermore, it is probably no coincidence that the department’s spokesman has used very specific data, as national data shows cur-
rent tobacco trends among youth are not a rising epidemic. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, in a summary of tobacco trends among adolescents, showed that the recent spike in chewing tobacco use among students in 12th grade was still at a low from a peak in 1995. Cigarette use among this same demographic has continued to steeply decline. Perhaps as conventional cigarette use has waned, less common means of ingesting tobacco have gained in popularity to fill the market gap — but this is about as speculative as the implied association between baseball player tobacco use and use among city youth. A ban on chewing tobacco in
sports arenas may very well reduce consumption among adolescents, though there is little evidence that this will be the case. On the other hand, the success of the campaign against cigarettes — which Center for Disease Control Director Tom Frieden attributes to increased taxes, FDA regulation and antismoking campaign ads — shows what does work. Until the New York City Public Health Department makes a greater effort to target smokeless tobacco in a direct and meaningful way, its efforts against baseball players will hit few home runs.
Email Abraham Gross at agross@nyunews.com.
NYUNEWS.COM | MONDAY, MARCH 7, 2016 | WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS
OPINION
EDITED BY RICHARD SHU OPINION@NYUNEWS.COM
POLITICS
STAFF EDITORIAL
Trump Attacks First Amendment Rights By PARIS MARTINEAU Staff Writer Earlier last week, GOP frontrunner Donald Trump boldly declared his next enemy in his seemingly never-ending battle with everything that makes America worthwhile: libel laws. Trump stated that if he was elected president he would open up US libel laws so that when the media writes negative and horrible and false articles, wealthy men like Trump can sue for damages. Of course, Trump’s own frequent appearances on front covers of newspapers were not cited as the inspiration for this declaration. The laws in question deal with the charge of libel, which is essentially any form of written defamation that results in a detrimental effect towards an individual’s reputation, sense of self or business. Libel is an extremely convoluted and difficult issue. As libel has no tangible evidence — it exists in the realm of thoughts, feelings and other tangential as-
pects of everyday life — the rules surrounding its identification are murky at best. One fact that is clear, however, is that libel is intrinsically tied to the First Amendment, as prohibiting or punishing “libelous action” would require a court of law (or Donald Trump) to prohibit or punish a form of speech. Through cases such as New York Times Co. v. Sullivan, a judicial precedent has been set, requiring that “actual malice” be proven in libel cases. Actual malice stipulates that the plaintiff in a libel case must prove that the publisher knew the libelous statement was false or that they exercised reckless disregard for the truth. This is very hard to prove, and rightly so. Without this layer of protec-
tion, the media would become a self-censoring entity motivated only by fear. If men like Donald Trump could sink news sources with hefty legal fees over every little statement made against him, it would have a chilling effect in newsrooms across the country. It is a horrific truth that members of the Republican Party — members who often march for the abolition of gun control laws, touting their Second Amendment rights — continue to support a candidate who promises to essentially tear apart the rights guaranteed by the First Amendment. Libel laws are a key component of our country’s commitment to freedom of expression. Freedom of speech is the First Amendment — the first one. If Trump can attack the basis by which we define ourselves as a nation without even the slightest drop in polls, it is terrifying to imagine where the American people will draw the line, if they ever do. Email Paris Martineau at opinion@nyunews.com.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
If NYU Won’t Take Action, We Will By OLIVIA MARTIN, EMILY BELL AND DAVIS SALTONSTALL Incited to act by NYU’s systemic failure to answer to community demands, engage in meaningful discourse, uphold human rights and maintain transparency, a growing group of students are in the process of forging an independent decision-making body led by students. The newly-formed Alternative Endowment Committee will be responsible for guiding an alternative endowment fund which students, faculty and alumni who share our dissatisfied view of university decision-making can donate to. The student coalition will responsibly invest the funds in companies that have positive impacts on society and generate competitive returns. Only when NYU meets the demands of our coalition will the funds be transferred to the school. Decision-making power at NYU rests in the hands of the Board of Trustees: a unilaterally appointed body comprised primarily of wealthy real estate agents and financiers. It is at this board’s behest that the
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global network university upholds an international network of labor exploitation and perpetuates economic inequalities. This broken image of the university can and must be repaired, and the Alternative Endowment Coalition will play an instrumental role in those repairs. It is our hope to leave a legacy of social change that is tangible and durable. We recognize that money is power. While the Board of Trustees make decisions that reflect that truism, the Alternative Endowment Committee seeks to transcend the material concerns of a profit-seeking culture and leverage the university’s monetary motivations in order to maintain transparency, divest from extractive industries and commit to ethical labor principles throughout NYU’s global empire. While we welcome the efforts of our president, Andrew Hamilton, to bring diversity to the student senate and work with students to reduce debt, we see independence as the only solution to pressing issues. The change we want to enact in the university has not, and will not, come from within it. The Committee wishes to be a solution to
the issue of student disenfranchisement. At the very least, we want a seat at the table to engage in meaningful dialogue and challenge the values held by the university. Our academic and social environment should be welcoming of our diverse backgrounds and values. It is time that we create this environment for ourselves. This is our community and our money. As stakeholders, we want our university to reflect us, just as we will reflect the university once we are alumni. We need your voice to help build this vision. We want to empower students to compete with the Board of Trustees’ vision for the school. We meet on Monday evenings from 7:00 to 8:30 p.m. in the University Residence Hall Lounge Conference Room and apply for positions in the fund between now and March 11. Olivia Martin is a former creative director of WSN. Emily Bell is an editor-at-large at WSN.
Contact the writers at olm215@nyu. edu, eb1911@nyu.edu and rds417@ nyu.edu.
Committee Offers Progress, Scapegoat
In an email sent to the university on Wednesday, President Andrew Hamilton introduced a new committee dedicated to reducing NYU’s cost of attendance. The Affordability Steering Committee will include deans, faculty members and students. While the idea of having a committee comprised of various members of the NYU community is a sound one, it does open the system up to the pitfalls of bureaucratic redundancy. Without sufficient accountability and transparency, the Affordability Steering Committee could be doomed to live in a state of administrative limbo. Hamilton’s actions are a nice change of pace from the Sexton administration’s. Whereas the Sexton administration largely eschewed transparency — a strategy that earned him multiple votes of no confidence from NYU faculty — the new affordability committee offers a direct link to the NYU community at large. Committee seats will be held by an equal number of students, faculty and administrators, thereby ensuring at least some representation of opinions that don’t come from the ivory penthouse. The formation of the Affordability Steering Committee is a good first step towards finding potential solutions to two of NYU’s trademark issues: affordability and administrative openness. While the inclusion of NYU faculty and students is a step in the right direction, it still is unclear whether the committee will have the power to significantly affect university policy, or merely become an echo chamber of complaints without action. The spectre of Sexton’s 2031 looms over the board both as a symbol of how not to deal with NYU’s stakeholders and as one of the biggest and most obvious obstacles to affordability that is still in place. The committee needs to create and establish concrete changes to NYU’s finances beyond minor economizing on the edges. Only then will the community be able to tell whether Hamilton is serious about making NYU affordable. Without clear accountability or parameters, the committee is at risk of being used as a scapegoat, to offer the administration plausible deniability. Forming a committee with faculty and students doesn’t mean anything if the committee can not enact meaningful change in the administration’s practices. The committee may provide Hamilton access to the collective wealth of ideas available in the NYU community, but the administration must increase transparency to prove how it will do so. What the committee actually does, who it’s accountable to and to what degree its information will be public must be made clear to the NYU community. Without these measures, the administration will find it difficult to convince faculty and students that their concerns are actually being heard. We want honest, community-driven change, and with the right measures in place, the Affordability Steering Committee could easily provide it. Without these measures, the committee will just be another complaints department for our gripes to go straight to voicemail.
Email the WSN Editorial Board at editboard@nyunews.com. EDITORIAL BOARD: Richard Shu (Chair), Emily Fong (Co-chair), Abraham Gross (Co-chair) STAFF PHOTO BY SAM BEARZI
Send mail to: 838 Broadway, Fifth Floor New York, N.Y. 10003 or email: opinion@nyunews.com WSN welcomes letters to the editor, opinion pieces and articles relevant to the NYU community, or in response to articles. Letters should be less than 450 words. All submissions must be typed or emailed and must include the author’s name, address and phone number. Members of the NYU community must include a year and school or job title.
WSN does not print unsigned letters or editorials. WSN reserves the right to reject any submission and edit accepted submissions in any and all ways. With the exception of the staff editorial, opinions expressed on the editorial pages are not necessarily those of WSN, and our publication of opinions is not an endorsement of them.
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WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS | MONDAY, MARCH 7, 2016 | NYUNEWS.COM
SPORTS
EDITED BY MICHAEL THOMPSON SPORTS@NYUNEWS.COM
Tennis Manages Busy Weekend By TONY SCHWAB Contributing Writer
It was an active week for NYU tennis, with both the men’s and women’s teams playing at home and on the road with mixed results. The women beat William Smith College 7-2 on Friday in Geneva, New York, their second straight win to start the spring season. They started strong with five straight singles wins. Each of the victories were in straight sets, and William Smith never managed to win more than three games. Junior Laila El Dessouki had the largest win, beating Connie Froass 6-3, 6-0. The only victory in singles for Williams Smith came from Sydney Ferry, who beat Violets sophomore Nicole Schnabel in a tough three-setter. The women won two of the three doubles matches handily. Senior Carmen Lai and freshman Fleura Shiyanova won 8-4, as did El Dessouki and freshman Vanessa Scott. On Saturday, the men faced a difficult Skidmore College team in Saratoga Springs, New York. Things started out tough with Skidmore winning the
first four matches against NYU freshman Benedict Teoh, senior captain Sidd Thangirala, sophomore Samuel Khoshbin and Jiri Honajzer. After that junior Matt DeMichiel and freshman Yanik Parsch earned a pair of Violets victories, with Parsch winning a competitive 2-6, 7-5, 10-8 match against Travis Leaf. But in doubles, the men won only one match. Freshman Shrikar Kundur and Thangirala beat Steve Koulouris and Lucas Pickering in a close 9-8 contest, but Parsch and DeMichiel fell to Leaf and Kit Sanderson 8-3. Teoh and junior Sammy Aronson were defeated by Kai Yuen Lueng and Nick Fong 8-4. The women extended their winning streak on Sunday, this time over Rensselear Polytechnic Institute. Lai started things off with a dominant 6-1, 6-1 win over Emily Laudrillard. Going third, Scott beat Melanie Frank 6-2, 6-0. Senior captain Madeline King won a tight match 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 against Pooja Ganesh, and it took a third set tiebreaker for Shiyanova to knock off Maria Salmon 3-6, 6-3, 7-6(5). NYU continued to dominate in doubles, taking two out of three.
Lai and Shiyanova beat Laudrillard and Frank 8-1, while Scott and Dessouki beat Salmon and Andrea Valencia 8-2. The women’s next meet is on March 13 against Brandeis University at home in the Bronx for senior day. The men were also victorious on Sunday, getting a taste of redemption against Vassar College, who they beat 6-3. The majority of singles matches were very competitive, with each team taking three. Vassar won the first two, with Teoh and Thangirala falling to Nick Litsky and Daniel Cooper respectively. Khoshbin then handled Evan Udine 6-2, 6-2. After Vassar won the next match to go 3-1 up overall, DeMichiel and Parsch won back-to-back matches in straight sets to tie things up. With the pressure on, doubles went completely NYU’s way. Teoh and Aronson won their set 8-2, while Thangirala and Kundar won 8-4. Finally, DeMichiel and Parsch won 8-3 to seal a nice win for the team. They face Hobart College next Friday in Geneva, New York.
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Email Tony Schwab at sports@nyunews.com.
Colman Hendershot was a standout performer for NYU’s men’s baseball team despite their loss.
Baseball’s Pitching Shaky in 12-8 Loss By ASHLEY ARNOLD Staff Writer
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Samuel Khoshbin of NYU’s men’s tennis team defeated his opponent in straight sets on Sunday.
After sweeping John Jay College in last Wednesday’s home game in Brooklyn, New York, the NYU baseball squad headed to Sanford, Florida for the 2016 University Athletics Association Championship tournament. The pitching for both clubs was still trying to find its footing early in the season as the Violets took the fall on Sunday against the University of Rochester in a high-scoring contest, 12-8. Rochester opened the scoring in the top of the first inning with two quick runs, managing two runs. The Violets were held scoreless through the first four innings as Rochester extended its lead to 5-0. Sophomore Michael Vokulich finally put the Violets on the board, scoring on a wild pitch. Down 5-1, the game was still well in hand. Rochester pulled through with three more runs to stretch the lead to seven runs in the sixth, but Violets senior captain CJ Picerni kept the Violets alive with an RBI single, scoring Jake Smith to make it 8-2. After this, sophomore Jonathan Iaione singled and advanced to second on a throwing error, scoring Picerni and freshman Col-
man Hendershot to keep the rally going. But Rochester stayed out in front with two additional runs in the eighth. With the game seemingly wrapped up, an offensive explosion in the ninth kept things compelling. Rochester finished off their scoring with a two-run bomb, giving them 12 runs for the game. The Violets lost, but they did not go down easily. Vokulich homered, and Colman Hendershot doubled down the right field line, scoring freshman Ryan Mclaughlin and freshman Jack Walter. Later on, junior Adrian Spitz singled to the third base, scoring Smith to narrow the gap to just four runs. By the end of the night the Violets had fought hard, but did not get the victory they wanted. Spitz acknowledged the team didn’t have an ideal day, but is determined that next time the team is on the field they’ll do better. “It was a rough day,” Spitz said. “We need to battle back.” The Violets will continue in the UAA Championship on Monday, March 7, when they face Brandeis University.
Email Ashley Arnold at sports@nyunews.com.
NYUNEWS.COM | MONDAY, MARCH 7, 2016 | WASHINGTON SQUARE NEWS
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SPORTS
EDITED BY MICHAEL THOMPSON SPORTS@NYUNEWS.COM
V-ball Splits at UVC Crossover By BRANDON HERRERA Staff Writer
Even after a stretch of stronger play and growing confidence, the NYU men’s volleyball has struggled to escape the .500 mark it’s been hovering around for most of the season. This past Sunday, the Violets, 8-8 on the season, had their chance, playing two matches at the UVC Crossover, hosted by SUNY New Paltz in New Paltz, New York. Much like the rest of this season, the weekend brought mixed results as the Violets took care of Behrend in four sets and lost to SUNY New Paltz in the same amount. Each set was relatively close in their first match against Penn State, but 13th-ranked NYU kept finding ways to end up on top. After a hardfought three sets, the Violets found themselves up 2-1. In the fourth and final set though, the team ended the match on an 8-4 run, cruising to the finish line 25-19 to win the match. NYU outscored their opponents by an overall score of 72-58 and registered 60 kills. Senior opposite Colin
NYU’s men’s volleyball team’s Colin LaPorte performed exceptionally in their match against the Lions. LaPorte led all players with 21 kills while also tallying two aces. Junior setter Patrick Merrick assisted on 52 scores. NYU could not sweep the day though as they ran into a tough Hawks team. The Violets did not shy away from the competition and were right behind second-ranked New Paltz, almost forcing a fifth set. After being down 15-9 midway through the fourth set, NYU came
storming back with a 10-5 run to bring themselves within one point of the Hawks. However, they could not close out the comeback though as they eventually fell 25-22 in a close call. With the win, New Paltz is now an impressive 19-2 this season. Senior opposite Phil Bueno registered a game-high in kills with 21, while senior captain Nick Benson had a nice all-around game with nine kills, one ace and six digs.
Despite being the underdogs in this one, Derrick Chiu and his team remain confident that they can compete with the best. “I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that everyone on our team thinks we should have beaten them,” Chiu said. “We definitely had the opportunities to win, but had overall small mental lapses throughout the match that ended up with us losing. Playing close to New Paltz should hopefully
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give us a confidence boost heading towards the second half of the season though.” The men’s volleyball team will look to once again rise above .500 when they face York College on Wednesday, March 9 in the Brooklyn Athletic Facility at 7:30 p.m.
Email Brandon Herrera at sports@ nyunews.com.
Individual Runners Shine Despite Mediocre Track Finish By RACHEL RUECKER Deputy Sports Editor
After hosting last week’s UAA Championships, the NYU track and field teams crossed the harbor to Staten Island to participate in the Eastern College Athletic Conference Indoor Championships this weekend. Though the men’s and women’s teams only clocked in at 28th and 27th, respectively, each crew displayed some strong individual efforts during the weekend. Senior Daniel Rieger competed in the men’s mile race and finished with a 12th-place time of 4:21.39. Though he was disappointed with his outing, Rieger continues to feel hopeful moving forward as the team gets stronger. “I didn’t run my fastest time but I closed hard,” Rieger said. “Things are looking good for outdoor season and we expect to run some fast times.” Meanwhile, the NYU women won a new university record for sophomore Ireland Gibson as she came in fourth place in the 800-meter with a blistering time of 2:16.09. Senior captain Sarah Sisk also competed in the race and finished eighth, with a new personal-best time just under two seconds behind Gibson’s leading mark. Gibson also competed alongside senior Drew Washington, senior Lydia Guo and freshman Danielle
Murray in the 4x400-meter relay. The squad came in sixth, with a solid time of 3:57.59. In other women’s action, senior Becky Turlip also competed, running to a seventh place finish in the mile. Meanwhile, part of the men’s team spent its time on Friday in Medford, Massachusetts competing in the Tufts Final Qualifying meet at Tufts University. Solid showings came from the 4x400m relay team composed of last week’s UAA Most Outstanding Runner Matthew Powers, sophomore Malcolm Montilus, junior Curtis Mann and junior Budd Brown that came in second. Brown also impressed individually, clocking in at third in the 400-meter. Other competitors included junior Caleb Su who came in fifth in the 60-meter race, junior Nick Karam who came in fourth in the mile and senior Max Avila who came in eleventh in the 800-meter race. The next competition for a few of the Violets will be this week in Grinnell, Iowa as they participate in the NCAA DIII National Indoor Track and Field Championships on Thursday. The outdoor season then kicks off afterwards, beginning with the Spring Break Meet on March 17 and 18 down in warmer weather at the University of South Florida.
Email Rachel Ruecker at rruecker@nyuews.com.
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Ireland Gibson of NYU’s Track and Field team ran a new 800-meter record for NYU.
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