Campus Involvement: Fordham's Commuting Student's Services at Rose Hill

During my first year of college, I was confused and scared. I was a commuting student, I had very few friends, and I felt alone. I wanted to be involved, but going to clubs alone was very intimidating. It was really hard being a commuter. However, I made the decision to join the Commuting Students Association. When I attended my first meeting, I met a wide variety of people with a wide variety of faces. These people were extraordinarily welcoming with arms open wide. Joining was the best decision of my life. I met a fantastic group of students, attended numerous events, and made a new "Fordham Family." This was my first step into involvement within the Fordham community. 

Last year's CSA members at Thanks-Give-Away

As one of Fordham University's three government organizations, the Commuting Students Association's (or CSA for short) role on campus is to create a fun, inclusive environment for commuting students. We do so by promoting new policies that will make commuting easier and increasing commuter involvement on campus by programming commuter friendly events every semester. Our two biggest events on campus are Thanks-Give-Away, a charity event to support Part of the Solution, and Commuter Week, a week dedicated to appreciate our commuters on campus. All CSA's events are available for all Fordham students (both residents and commuters), and are typically free admission. If you are interested in getting involved with commuter life, our meetings are on Monday, starting at 1 PM in McGinley 237, and are open for all to attend. 

 Our Commuter Assistants at our annual Commuter BBQ

Another important resource available to commuters is Fordham's commuter assistants (or CAs for short). They are the counterpart of the resident assistant for commuters on campus, and are designed specifically to assist freshman commuters ease into their first year of college. They are a great resource for these new commuters because they serve as both a mentor and a friend. Our CAs are specially selected based on their involvement, personality, and experiences here on campus. They are a resource available at anytime who can give a wide variety of information about Fordham to their students. They also program several events throughout the year; for example, monthly pool tournaments or holiday related events. I can definitely say that my commuter assistant, Andrew Santis, had helped me adapt to the Fordham community, and helped me get to the place I am today. If you are interested in learning more about our commuter assistants, visit the McGinley Student Lounge during lounge hours.

CSA's executive board at our Fall Retreat

Follow CSA on Facebook and Twitter for updates on our events!!! 

How to Find Fresh Fruit (And Vegetables) at Fordham

One major cliché about college life is that everyone overdoes it on junk food, especially during the first year. Often foods that are unhealthy can be the quickest and cheapest options, and for busy college students on a budget, it is tempting to just grab some chicken fingers and fries whenever there’s a gap between various classes and club meetings. But recently I have made a discovery at Fordham that is helping me stay on the straight and narrow in terms of maintaining a healthy diet: the St. Rose’s Fall CSA.

The St. Rose’s Fall CSA is a community sponsored agriculture program (hence the initials – CSA) that, for a fee, sends fresh fruits and veggies from nearby Norwich Meadows Farm to Fordham’s campus for any student or administrator that wants to sign up for it. All the food is fresh, organic, and grown locally. This semester a few friends and I went in on a fruit share to cut down the cost and now for less than $30 per person, every week for nine weeks we get to pick up some delicious fresh fruits to enjoy.

There is a wide variety of vegetables to choose from

Last Thursday was our first delivery and we came home with three pears, a carton of grapes, and about two pounds of plums. What’s so great about the CSA is that not only am I staying on top of eating healthy, but I’m also helping support the local agricultural economy because we pay the farm directly, so there is no middleman. In fact, participating in the CSA ends up being a cheaper option than if I was to purchase my fruit from a regular grocery store.

Picking out some delicious plums

I’m sure that when you think of going to school in New York City, you don’t really think you’ll be getting the freshest fruits and vegetables around. However, Fordham’s sustainability efforts offer students an awesome way to stay healthy despite the temptation of eating a bag of chips for a snack in between classes everyday. I feel really fortunate that I can take advantage of it!

If you would like to know more about the CSA, this link explains everything in more detail: https://fordhamsustainability.wordpress.com/csa-faq/