Autumn Has Arrived at Rose Hill

It's autumn here at Rose Hill, which is a very busy time for Fordham students. We are in the midst of midterms right now, so the library is busy with people studying. However, everywhere you go on campus, you hear people talking about their Halloween costume ideas and even some plans for Thanksgiving! 

Fall Foliage here at Rose Hill

I always look forward to the different holiday events on campus, especially events that involve food! Many of the Residence Halls have gone apple picking, which I always enjoy. However, I particularly enjoy the fun food options available around the holidays. Our dining services always do a great job of incorporating the holidays into the menus. One of my favorite days to eat on campus is the Thursday before Thanksgiving because there is a big Thanksgiving meal in the main cafeteria (The Caf).

As a Resident Assistant in a freshman Residence Hall, we have a lot of upcoming programs to celebrate autumn and all of the associated holidays! Queen's Court has always had our traditional costume dance in the basement on the night of Halloween. It's dark and spooky, but so much fun! We also have pumpkin painting, Halloween movie nights, and even a program to make autumn air fresheners to keep those rooms smelling nice! 

Wherever you are reading this, I hope that it is as beautiful as it is here at Fordham when autumn arrives. The leaves are changing, and autumn is in the air!

Tea at The Plaza

While living on campus, students can take advantage of various programs offered in the residence halls.  From games to movie viewings, there is always something being run by a building's RAs (resident assistants).

Recently, I was able to take part in my favorite program to date!  A few RAs from Campbell and Salice-Conley Halls joined together to plan a program to tea at The Plaza.  Residents were able to request to attend the program a few weeks before it was held, and twenty students were able to partake.

My roommate & I enjoying our tea

We traveled to the Palm Court one Saturday afternoon to enjoy tea, scones, finger sandwiches, and pastries in the famous Plaza Hotel.  We each paid only $15 to attend the elegant affair, making what is typically an expensive NYC experience much more affordable!

Our special "Fordham University" tea menus!

It was such a unique and fun experience that allowed me to cross one more thing off my NYC bucket list!

ILCGB - Living in and Connecting with the Global Network

If you're enrolled in business school, applying to business school, or have any interest in the business world whatsoever; two things have been engraved into your mind -- networking and the global perspective. While the Gabelli School pushes students to study business with a global perspective, Fordham students have unlimited reign when it comes to expanding their studies, whether it be through a club or class like FairTrade or studying abroad for a semester. One option for sophomores wishing to take their professional network to the next level is the Integrated Learning Community for Global Business, or ILC-GB.

Signing in at the European Conference

Located in O'Hare Hall Residential College, ILC-GB combines living with learning as do nearly a dozen other Integrated Learning Communities on the Rose Hill campus. As the name states, ILC-GB focuses on global business, and is open to all sophomore residents on the Rose Hill (even FCRH students may apply!). Like most ILC's, everyone on our wing of O'Hare has one class we all take together in a classroom inside our residence hall. While it technically is a class, ILC-GB is very personalized and focuses on preparing students for networking and attaining great careers and internships as a result. A typical "class" isn't even really a class, and typically consists of guest speakers. These guests are typically Fordham Alumni and have ranged from managing directors of hedge funds to the CEO of Lacoste.


ILC-GB also offers students opportunities to get outside the classroom and expand their network by taking students on trips to special events, like the European Conference at Harvard University. Fordham took care of transportation, registration, and even our lodging expenses at the Revere Hotel. The conference was an incredible experience and a great way to broaden your perspective on how business and politics interact across the Atlantic, and also enabled us to be able to network and converse with MEP's (members of European Parliament) and other professionals involved with the policy of the EU.

A group of ILC-GB residents leaving Harvard

While ILC-GB is a superb experience for sophomores that I would recommend to everyone in Gabelli, Fordham offers three excellent ILC's for freshmen that you can apply for when you apply for housing in the early summer, and more info on those can be found on Fordham's website. 

Residence Hall Programs at Rose Hill!

I've lived on campus for almost two years at Rose Hill, so I know plenty about all that the residence halls have to offer. I lived in Alumni Court South my freshman year, and I am now living in O'Hare Hall. Over my time in these halls, I've attended many programs that have helped to expand my horizons and let me experience new parts of the city. Here are some of my favorite programs that my residence halls have sponsored so far at Fordham!

Kayaking
My first week of freshman year, my Resident Assistant took us into the city for free kayaking on the Hudson River. The weather was beautiful and we got to see the city in a breathtaking new way that none of us had before. It was a great way to meet new people and we all really enjoyed the experience!

Relaxing on the Hudson

Cronuts
If you've been in NYC, you've heard of the world-famous Cronut. Half croissant, half donut, these delicious treats can be found only at Dominique Ansel Bakery. Our RA took some of us to go try these pastries for ourselves. We had to leave very early in the morning and stand outside in the cold for a few hours, but it really paid off. The cronuts were delicious, and I would definitely do it again!

Apple Cinnamon Cronut

The Colbert Report

Before Stephen Colbert was hosting Late Night, he was hosting one of my favorite shows, The Colbert Report. My roommate and I won tickets through our residence halls and got free tickets to the show. We were selected to sit in the front row and we even got to high-five Stephen. It was an experience that neither of us will ever forget!

My roommate and I with our tickets!

All in all, the residence halls here at Rose Hill host awesome programs which allow students to experience all that New York has to offer.

Top Ten Differences from being a Freshman to being an Upperclassman

 1.  You are able to choose you schedule

Coming in to Fordham as a freshman your schedule is handed to you. However, after that, you are able to choose your own schedule. This is a great way to take classes that interest you and plan a schedule that fits your daily routine. If you are a morning person, like me, you can choose to sign up for all of the 8:30s!

2. You take classes at the Lincoln Center Campus

Whether its because a course is only offered down at Lincoln Center or because you just want to get into the city for classes and have an excuse to venture into the city, as an upperclassmen you may find yourself taking classes down at Lincoln Center. I am currently taking a graduate Geometry course at Lincoln Center on Wednesday nights and it’s a great change of pace and its, surprisingly, great being able to get into the city at least once a week.

3. Your dorm style changes, if you are living on campus.

For those who choose to live on campus, as a freshman you will live in a single room dorm in either a double or a triple. The bathroom, at least in most of the residence halls, will be communal. Not to worry, this is how you will, surprisingly enough, meet most of your friends freshman year! As a sophomore you will once again live in a double or triple with an added bonus of the bathroom being in your room. Finally, as a junior or senior you will have the opportunity to live in an apartment style dorm which includes a living area, a kitchen, bathroom and single or double rooms.

4. The number of classes that you are required to take decreases

Once you become a junior, you are only required to take four classes whereas underclassmen are required to take five. The reasoning behind this is that students, in their junior and senior years should be getting internships and volunteer opportunities to prepare them for life after Fordham. Since  I want to be  a teacher, I currently volunteer by tutoring girls at the Rosedale Center in the Bronx.

5. You begin to take more classes for your major

In my personal experience, as I advanced through Fordham I slowly began to take more classes per semester that applied to my major than to the standard core. I am a math major and last semester all four of my classes were math classes!

6. You take on leadership roles within clubs and organizations

The clubs and organizations that you choose to join freshman year will play a big role in shaping your Fordham experience. For this reason, while you may just be a general member during your freshman and even sophomore years, as you become a junior or senior you may take on E-board (Executive Board) positions and hold more responsibility. I am not the Club Liiason of the Polish Club which I have been involved with since my freshman year.

7. You realize that office hours are the best resource around, and they are actually very helpful

As an underclassman I always hesitated to go to my professors office hours. However, after being here for three years,  I now go to at least one office hour, practically every day.

8. You become more focused on the future

As graduation approaches, you begin to think more about your plans for the future. I am currently working on graduate school applications to get my masters in Secondary Education.

My friends and I as underclassmen. 

9. You know your way around Arthur Avenue, the Bronx, and NYC more.

Once you become an upperclassmen you begin to know the best pizza place, the best restaurant on Arthur Avenue, the cheapest place to get groceries and the best places to hangout with friends. Additionally, all of your trips into the city as a freshman make you a master at the subways and cool things to do in the city.

10. You know the ropes

As a freshman everything is new and exciting. You are exploring where your classes are, what your professors are like, who you will be friends with, what clubs and activities you will become involved in and what you will do on the weekends. As an upperclassman you have been able to get settled in and can now enjoy all that Fordham has to offer, and believe me, from experience, it has a lot to offer!

Still great friends as upperclassmen! 

With all of this said, not everything changes as you move from being an underclassman to an upperclassman. For me, while all of these changes were taking place the one thing that did not change was my group of friends. I am glad that I have been able to share all of my experiences with them! 

Some Food for Thought

When I came to Fordham, I was definitely nervous about the food. My mom is an amazing cook, so I was not looking forward to the dreaded "college food." However, I have been quite pleased with Fordham's dining options. They offer many options, so I am able to enjoy a well-balanced and varied diet while I'm away at Fordham. Although the food is good at Fordham, I must say that I still crave food from home. Therefore, I take full advantage of the kitchens in the Residence Halls. The upperclassmen Residence Halls have kitchens in each suite, and the underclassmen Residence Halls have community kitchens for the residents to share. With multiple grocery stores close to campus, I am able to run to the store whenever I am craving something that is not offered in one of the Fordham dining centers.

As a freshman RA, I have found that food is a big draw for residents to attend programs. Many of my programs involve food in some way. I have regular hall dinners with my residents in which I cook dinner for all of the girls in my hall. For the last snow storm, several residents in the building helped me bake cookies for all of the men and women who were shoveling snow for us on campus. We saved some cookies for ourselves, though!

Cherry Lemon Bars

Food is a great way for people to get to know one another. I have found that whenever I bake or cook, people in the building come down to the kitchen to see who's cooking what. I always try to make extra so that I can share whatever I'm making with others. I am certainly not the only one who does this in my Residence Hall. A sure way to make new friends in college is to offer some freshly baked cookies to your neighbors. It's always a good idea to hang around the kitchen on snowy days when you don't feel like walking outside to get food because someone will probably be coming down to the kitchen to make something to share very soon.

Back With a Bang: How Fordham Starts Off the New Semester Right

The first week of Spring Semester classes is officially over here at Fordham, and I’m so glad to be back in New York City with my friends and classmates. Beginning a new semester can be stressful at times, and at first I felt nervous about taking my Spring Semester courses at the Gabelli School of Business. However, as soon as I got to campus, I felt a lot better about beginning my new classes because of all of the fun, stress relieving activities that Fordham offered this past week.

Just as students jump back into their classes at the start of a new semester, they also have the opportunity to jump back into fun activities going on at the university. Starting during the very first week of this semester, students had the opportunity to attend promo dinners for fundraisers, club fairs, and Bingo! My personal favorite activity this week was the O’Hare Residence Hall Winter Carnival. Resident Assistants and Directors in O’Hare Hall organized a fun night of winter festivities, complete with hot chocolate, cookies, and even an ice skating rink! My friends and I had a great time at this event, and it was a fantastic way to welcome everyone back to Fordham.

The ice skating rink was right on the Rose Hill Campus for O'Hare's Winter Carnival! 

Here at Fordham, there is always something interesting going on. Even at the start of the new semester, Fordham Rams know how to hit the ground running and come back with a bang! Coming back to campus to start a new semester really feels like coming home for me. Every semester, I realize more and more that there truly is no place like Fordham. I am so happy to be back on campus again, and I am really looking forward to Spring Semester’s future Fordham activities!

My roommate and I strapped on some skates and hit the ice after we went to the gym! 

Giving Thanks...My Experience as a Freshman RA

A Few of the Halloween Air Fresheners

This year, I am a Resident Assistant in Loschert Hall, which is one of the five freshman Residence Halls. My floor is co-ed, but my hall is completely female. In total, I have 43 female residents in my hall. As an RA, I am responsible for being a resource to every resident, building a sense of community within my hall and the building, and ensuring that the residents adhere to Fordham policy.

A Flyer for a Program

My favorite part of being an RA is definitely programming. Each RA has a budget for programs, which means that we can do really fun things with our residents without them having to pay for anything. While I have a ton of program ideas, I really try to find out from my residents what kind of programs they want. Recently, I ran a program to make Halloween-themed air fresheners with oranges and cloves after hearing several residents complain about stinky roommates. This Friday, my hall is having a Girls' Night Movie Night. Next week, we will be having a floor dinner. I will be cooking, so hopefully everything comes out okay!

November Bulletin Board

I also love decorating our hall. We have a bulletin board, which I update each month. For November, I decorated our bulletin board with an autumn tree. I had each of my residents email me something they were thankful for, and I put each of their responses on a leaf on the tree. Tied to this idea of giving thanks, we are doing weekly Sunday Service Projects for the month of November so that residents have the opportunity to give thanks to various groups. Some of these projects will be writing letters to veterans, baking cookies for security, and making Thanksgiving cards for retired Jesuits. 

November Door Decorations

On the first of each month, I also replace the name tags on each door. For November, I made turkeys, which ended up being a much more time-consuming project than I originally anticipated, but it was worth it since my residents seem to really like them! I really try to decorate our hall as much as possible. I know that Fordham is not home for my residents, but it is a home away from home. Therefore, it is important to maintain a friendly and inviting hall at all times. 

Having 43 residents means that we have a pretty big family, but that is just part of the fun! I have a truly great hall, so I am thankful this month for my residents who have made my first semester as an RA absolutely amazing! Hopefully I have helped to make their first semester at Fordham just as amazing.

Honey, I'm Home!

While it is sad to leave home for the first time at the beginning of freshmen year, there is no doubt that you will make yourself right at home in Fordham's spacious and diverse residence halls! Each residence hall on campus has its own unique attributes, and you won't be able to resist the views from your window! Some dorm rooms are traditional two-person rooms, while many upperclassmen rooms on campus are apartment style; they include bedrooms, a kitchen, a living space, a dining room, and a bathroom! 

Below is a compilation of pictures from dorm rooms all across campus! If you were to come on a campus tour at Rose Hill, we do our best to showcase a freshmen residence hall. Here are some pictures from upperclassmen residence halls. While this post only features a few of the residence halls, descriptions of all the halls can be found online at www.fordham.edu. Enjoy!!!

O'Hare Hall Residential College: A traditional residence hall that includes double and triple rooms. Each room has its own bathroom! The hall has versatile social and study lounges throughout, and free laundry in the basement! There are multiple integrated learning communities (ILC) including: Wellness, Science Integrated Learning Community, Integrated Learning Community - Global Business, and West Wing: Integrated Learning Community for Ignatian Leadership and Civic Service.

Walsh Hall: This residence hall consists of apartment-style housing. About 500 students live in this 13-floor building, in two and three bedroom apartments. There is free laundry within the building, and many of the apartment have beautiful views of campus and of the city! Walsh Hall is only steps away from Edwards Parade and Keating Hall. 

Martyr's Court: This is a freshmen residence hall complex that consists of three sections: Lalande, Goupil, and Jogues. Each section is named after a Jesuit Martyr. This hall includes traditional double rooms and a small number of single rooms. There are 15 community lounges with kitchenettes throughout the complex, and 17 study lounges. There is also free laundry in each section of Martyr's Court. This hall also houses the freshmen Science Integrated Learning Communities in the Jogues section. The SILC is a great way to jumpstart your science career, whether you are majoring in a science field or are thinking about pre-med. The SILC offers tutors and a surrounding community that you can learn from.

Single room in Martyr's Court

Campbell, Salice and Conley Halls: The integrated learning community within these halls is designed to meet the unique needs of seniors and junior during the transition into the "real world." The learning community helps develop the special skills that are needed after college. These halls were erected in 2010 and consist of apartment style housing. Between 4-6 people live in each apartment in either single or double rooms, and each apartment has its own living space, kitchen, and bathroom. Plus, there is air conditioning and free laundry!

Weekend Update!

The dining area in my dorm in Walsh!

Jessica Timko

This weekend was the first weekend that everyone was back on campus, and this is also the first year that my roommates and I are living in Walsh, an apartment style residence hall.  My roommates and I love to cook, so this Saturday we hosted a "Ramily" dinner for our friends who live down the hall from us.  We made a pasta dinner and enjoyed a fun night filled with good friends and good food.

The NYC skyline from the Hudson River!

Yuliana Veyberman

Even though I grew up in the city, it's still lots of fun to act like a tourist once in a while. My friends and I took advantage of the beautiful weather on Friday to take an evening cruise around the Hudson - we got the prettiest photos of the NYC skyline (and yes, we Instagrammed them all).

Collage of my Sunday activities!

Teresa Swindal

On Sunday, my friends and I took the ram van into Lincoln Center to get Sunday brunch. We ate at Le Pain Quotidien, a restaurant and bakery right by Columbus Circle. It was pretty affordable and the food was great! After that, we walked over to New York Fashion Week at Lincoln Center. Although we did not go to a show, we were able to see all the crazy and unique outfits of people walking around, which was awesome!

The quaint inside of Freemans.

Emily Tanner

This weekend I went into the city to do some exploring, and of course get some yummy food! I explored SoHo and the surrounding areas and was SO happy to be back in the city. I went to this amazing restaurant hidden at the end of an alley called Freemans. It was delicious, I got the 5 cheese macaroni! There's nothing like a Saturday spent in the city with the people you love, finding new and interesting places in areas you'd never expect!