Fordham Fashion

Last weekend, I had the privilege of modeling for Fordham's up and coming fashion magazine known as FLASH. The wonderful ladies that run this were inspired to create it just this past year in the fall of 2012, and have been largely successful in drawing students' attention. The magazine, published online, is described as being for those "interested in fashion, arts, journalism, and publishing." 

Their first edition, published last week, contained inspiration for Spring Weekend styles in anticipation of the GroupLove concert and the Great Gastby-themed dance. A variety of photos and articles featured advice on dressing both appropriately and fashionably for rocking out on Martyr's Lawn for all the ensuing festivities. Their next edition, anticipated to come out in early May, will feature pictures of Fordham students in years past with present students recreating the looks of the styles from those years. I highly suggest everyone take a look and support FLASH: you won't regret it!

http://issuu.com/flashfashionmagazine/docs/flash_magazine_pdf_final_preview 

Spring Weekend

Probably the most exciting weekend of the semester, if not even the whole academic year at Fordham, is lying ahead of us: Spring Weekend!
 

Spring Weekend is a Fordham tradition. It takes place every year on the last weekend before students begin final exams and is organized by the Campus Activities Board (CAB).

It is a weekend full of activities, such as movie nights, dance parties, comedy shows. (You can see this year's program to the right) And the best thing about the variety of entertainment is that everything is for free! 

The highlights of the weekend are probably the party on Friday night in the parking lot, the day-long open-air concert on Saturday with BBQ, and the semi-formal dance on Saturday night. 

It is a great way of ending your year at Fordham, because, let's be honest, Finals are not a fun way of celebrating the end of the year. You get to enjoy a fun weekend with all of your friends before finals start and you will all go home for the summer. 

Pre-Law at Fordham

I was fortunate enough to shadow tours during our Spring Preview day last week (which was gorgeous—blooming flowers, great weather, happy people), and a lot of prospective students and parents asked me about being Pre-Law at Fordham. You may not realize it, but Fordham is a terrific place to start your journey to law school.

 

Freshmen who declare Pre-Law are put in a Pre-Law symposium where they are exposed to a variety of different types of law and learn valuable information about law school applications from a variety of speakers. They are put on our Pre-Law dean’s email list, which you can also be added to if you simply ask. Dean Erin Burke sends out emails about potential internships and interesting speakers. In fact, it was through Dean Burke that I found, interviewed for, and earned my first legal internship in Manhattan.



Dean Burke and the other deans' offices are in Keating

Fordham also boasts competitive Mock Trial programs on both its Rose Hill and Lincoln Center campuses if you are looking for an introduction to legal thinking, great friends, or a place to polish your public speaking skills. Furthermore, there are Fordham alumni working in the legal industry all over New York. I know federal law clerks, paralegals, and lawyers of all ages who work in Manhattan. I met them all through Fordham. If you’re interested in a legal career, this is the place to be.

As the semester draws to a close, finals are quickly approaching and it is crunch time for every college student. As stressful as the end of the semester can be it is extremely important to plan your study schedule ahead of time and find time to relax. Fordham offers great resources for students to de-stress during this crazy time. In addition to yoga classes every wednesday, meditation classes, the counseling center, and group therapy sessions Fordham offers many fun end of the semester activities. Since it is the end of the year, Spring Fling is coming up, which is basically a big bar-be-que on the Outdoor Plaza with tons of free food, and fun games and activities! This year's theme is "Horror in April!"

In addition to Spring Fling, the Under the Tent dance is also coming up on the last day of classes! Everyone will be dressed up and there is an awesome DJ! It is a great way to blow off some steam and have a good time before finals begin! At the end of every semester Fordham has a Midnight Breakfast for all of us hardworking college students. There is a huge breakfast buffet, which includes waffles, bagels, muffins, pancakes, eggs, and so much more! Everyone really enjoys the free food during the craziness that is the end of the semester, and it makes students feel really appreciated! So, as hectic as the end of the semester is, there are still plenty of fun activities going on to help students take a break and relax!

Spring Preview

On Sunday, April 14th, thousands of prospective students flocked to Fordham University for one last chance to see what the Rams have to offer before they decide on what college to attend in the fall.  This year's Spring Preview saw an increase in the amount of people that came to visit our campus.  Over 30,000 prospective students and families participated in campus tours, Father McShane's presidential speech, and various panels and lectures offered around campus.

It was a beautiful day here in the Bronx, and the Rose Hill Society, Fordham's student tour guides, encouraged everyone with an Instagram account to take photos around campus and upload them with the hash-tag #FordhamSP for Spring Preview.  Over 250 photos were uploaded using this hash-tag with some showing our gothic-style buildings like the residential hall Queens Court, or Fordham's very own "student beach" Edward's Parade, which is more commonly known as Eddie's.

A student studies outside Queens Court, a freshmen residential hall

Students are seen here enjoying a beautiful spring day on Eddie's

As the final deadline for deposits nears, I am reminded of four years ago when I was in the same position as these prospective students.  I had already submitted my deposit before my Spring Preview, and when I came to visit that one last time, I was completely confident with my decision.  Fordham has so many wonderful things to offer--whether it be our beautiful campus, our proximity to New York City, our amazing campus-wide activities, or our fantastic and friendly student body, there is something for everyone.  I look back on my four years here with a huge smile and know every day that I made the right choice to attend Fordham University, and I would do it all over again if I had the chance!

Fordham Retreats

I had a chance to go to an Emmaus Retreat last weekend through the Fordham Campus Ministry at the beautiful retreat house in Goshen. As a student who does not consider religion as a part of life, it was refreshing to reflect on my four years of collegiate life.

Emmaus retreat definitely does have spiritual and religious aspect, as it was built on the core beliefs of the Jesuit living. However, it does not mean that the student must be active in his or her religious life. Reflections do not have to be religious, but dig into the deeper emotional self-thoughts and apply it to one’s regular lifestyle. In addition to meditating on self-actualizing life assessments, students are given free time to mingle with one another, widening their friendship circles.

The Campus Ministry does a great job in matching students’ eating habits, as varieties of food are available at their disposal. Moreover, the retreats are managed by students, which motivate the students to be more active and engaging in Fordham clubs and organizations.

Besides, everyone needs a little break out of his or her busy lives. Fordham offers great selections of retreat, where students are to take the most out of school’s offerings. As a senior, it definitely was a treat, as one must pay extreme amounts of money in order to get away from the city - $30 dollars filled with food and relaxing activities are worth it!

WFUV - Public Radio from Fordham University

  WFUV 90.7 is the radio station found on Fordham's Rose Hill campus, but it's not your typical college radio station.  WFUV is an NPR-affiliated public radio station, where Fordham students can learn about radio production firsthand, alongside professional staff members.  Located in the basement of Keating Hall, it is, to me, one of the most interesting parts of Fordham!

  Students are able to become involved with WFUV in various departments, including news, sports, and engineering.  If you are interested in journalism, the news program will allow you to learn the tricks of the trade as you report on NYC-related stories yourselves.  Students with an interest in sports can train with the sports department, experiencing firsthand the world of sports journalism.
  If you are interested in audio engineering or videography, the engineering workshops and internship opportunities are a great choice.  You work alongside WFUV's engineering department, assisting with live audio and video recordings of bands in Studio A (you can see/hear some of the performances here!), one of the studios found within WFUV's production facilities, among other tasks.
  Currently I am an intern in the engineering department, where I have learned about audio, video, and editing techniques and concepts, but, more importantly, I have been able to apply them.  Being a part of WFUV has allowed me to see firsthand what it is like to work in a media-production environment, as I also gain useful skills.
  It has been a wonderful experience, and I highly recommend that any interested (current or future!) students check out WFUV at wfuv.org!

The Fordham Advantage

Often times I get asked ‘why Fordham?’, and whether it be from my parents, a prospective tour group, my high school guidance counselor, or a job interviewer, I give the same answer. What is great about my school, what makes Fordham the place to call home, is something that admissions statistics or a thousand tours may not be able to tell you, and that’s that, at Fordham, you have the freedom and the encouragement to be any kind of student you want to be.

Only two?? Yeah right!

This might be a strange concept especially for a high school junior or senior because, a lot of times in the media and such, colleges/college students are portrayed one of two ways: the crazy fraternity/sorority four-year party or the no-fun never-ending study session. These are bad stereotypes, of course, but it doesn’t change the fact that these are actually ways in which some colleges operate. If you asked any current student to label Fordham in this manner I guarantee you that they would find it impossible; the real beauty of Fordham is that you have the best of all worlds—academics, social life, professionalism, athletics, and a big ol’ city in our backyard.

Take me for example, who, for all intents and purpose, is your average sophomore student. On any given day, I could be downtown interning in the morning and in class by mid-afternoon. I could catch up with friends in the cafeteria and then we could all head to a Rams baseball game. Before the night is over we could explore the neighborhood hotspots and still have time to just hang out and play some glow-in-the-dark Frisbee on Eddie’s lawn. Fordham isn’t just a school for academics or just one for athletics or one just for parties or even one just to prepare you for a career, but it IS a school for you—whomever you decide to be. 

From Small Town to City

I grew up in a very small town. Although my high school was a large regional public school, combining two towns, I still felt a little claustrophobic. When I was college shopping, I wanted a place that I had a good group of friends, but also one where I had independence without feeling like big brother was watching. Fordham was the perfect embodiment of this desire.  My freshman year I took part in Urban Plunge, a program I would recommend to any incoming freshman, and within the first few days I had made friends that I know I will have for the rest of my life. Additionally, as a member of the track team, I have a family surrounding me in that sense.

All of that being said, I still feel that I can strike out on my own. I recognize many faces on campus, but definitely not all. When the campus starts to feel small, Fordham students can go to the Lincoln Center campus for class or events, or any other part of the city for that matter. The school is as small or large as you make it. Fordham is a place you can customize to your taste, and that is the reason so many love it.

Staying Fit!

One of the biggest concerns I have heard from graduating seniors is how to stay healthy in college. Students either are too shy for a gym setting, feel they not good enough for varsity sports, or simply just unaware of all of the opportunities schools like Fordham have to offer. But let me just say there is more than enough here to keep everyone happy!

Like to work out in a gym? Well, we have three. All of our gyms are stocked with amazing equipment too! There is the field house with basketball courts, a track, and a pool as well as two other gyms for the entire  student body. Our newest gym was opened this past fall and has many top line exercise machines. Treadmills, bicycles, and ellipticals, all of them with their own TV and iPod charger! It's probably the most amazing gym I have ever seen!

Other that just working out indoors, a good percentage of our students run outdoors as well too. Our huge and beautiful campus is perfect for going on long jogs through the green and lush outdoors. And if that's not enough for you, the Botanical Gardens is right across the street and is also amazing for a relaxing walk or jog. Oh and by the way, it's free admission for Fordham students too!

Our new gym also has a studio and is open for yoga, spin, boot camp, and zumba classes as well! So seriously, don't worry about staying fit at Fordham as there are many ways to accomplish your daily exercise routine!