Relay for Life at Fordham!

Spring is around the corner, and that means that Fordham College at Lincoln Center's Relay for Life event is coming up! This year is FCLC’s 8th annual Relay, and the planning committee is working to make sure that it’s the best yet!

Eunice Jung (FCLC '20) sits in the plaza to get Fordham students excited about Relay for Life.

In order to get students excited and informed, FCLC’s chapter of Colleges Against Cancer hosted a Relay for Life Kick Off to spread the word about the event and the cause. At the Kick Off, students could register and form their teams.

Relay for Life is a globally recognized event created by the American Cancer Society. It focuses on team fundraising and solidarity in order to raise funds and awareness for cancer research. There are thousands of Relay for Life events every year, and FCLC's will be happening on Friday, April 21st from 4:00pm- midnight!

FCLC's Relay for Life is Friday, April 21st! 

To register for Relay for Life at Fordham College at Lincoln Center, visit crowdrise.com/relayfordhamLC!

NYC Winter Ball

This past Friday, Fordham Lincoln Center held its annual Winter Ball at The Current down at Chelsea Piers. The Winter Ball is a tradition at Fordham Lincoln Center, where students and guests dress up in formal wear and eat delicious food provided by the restaurant that the event is being held.

Students from all class levels attend this event and mingle with friends and other classmates. There is a DJ, who is very interactive and encourages students to dance. Most of the night is spent dancing, in between eating the different meal courses. 

What is so fantastic about this event is that it gives students a chance to relax, since it is usually held on the last day of midterms. Also, it allows them to mingle with their peers and sometimes even some of the staff, since some of the school administrators attend the even as well. I myself have attend all the Winter Balls that have taken place during my three years at Fordham and have had a grand time. 

If you are an FCLC student, I highly recommend attending this event. You will not regret it! 

Post By: Elizabeth Athy

I Promise-- NY Really IS Your Campus

You’ve probably heard the slogan “Fordham is my school, New York is my campus.” It's simple and to the point, but it can be hard to understand what that phrase means in practice. I, for example, thought it meant that we went to a lot of museums and shows in the city for class and recreation. We do service in the city, explore the city, and figure out its secrets. This semester, however, I am gaining a deeper appreciation for what my "campus" can offer me.

The New-York Historical Society on Central Park West

The castle-like American Museum of Natural History is
just across from the NYHS (and Shake Shack!)

 My early American material culture class meets weekly at the New-York Historical Society. Founded in 1804, the impressive building sits on some great real estate. It is on the Upper West Side, facing Central Park and beside the American Museum of Natural History (do I have any secret Night at the Museum fans?). It is a block from Shake Shack (New York’s equivalent to In ‘n’ Out with even better shakes) and a short walk from bakeries, clothing stores, restaurants, and even a Trader Joe's (which will become more exciting when you are in college and cook for yourself).

At Fordham Lincoln Center to catch my
evening Ram Van back to Rose Hill

The NYHS is a museum and a library devoted to the history of New York, which is also the history of America. New York has been inhabited for over 450 years and is rich in the period my small seminar class is examining, early America. A material culture class focuses on objects as a way to understand the people who created them, traded them, bought them, and used them. You’d be surprised to know how little we actually know about colonists, including the number of female traders, the fact that we imported china in the 1700s, and a fashionably designed house was more important than a big house for more than a century. Our class is using items from the museum and our professor’s collection as a launching point for class discussion ranging from the quotidian (witch’s lantern, candle mold) to the refined (solid silver spoons, two-toned teacups).

Class is easy to get to from Rose Hill, with free Ram Van passes to and from Lincoln Center. In good weather, I can stroll through Central Park to class. In bad weather, I can hop on the subway, which the history department has been kind enough to subsidize for us. For me, it's a great excuse to get into the city in the middle of my school day. It might be the same for you, in a couple of years!

REPOST! Alumni Spotlight: Lincoln Center Alumna Teams Up With Admissions

Check out this awesome article published by Fordham Notes! Fordham alumni are great and always willing to help young Rams make some very important decisions!

In the nearly two years since Hillary Fisk, FCLC ’12, graduated from Fordham, she has continued to be an advocate for the University—just as she was as a student. At Fordham College at Lincoln Center, she was a member of the Lincoln Center Society, a group of student ambassadors who help prospective students get to know the University. She led tours of campus and answered questions about Fordham from high school students and their parents. Now she’s a member of the Fordham Alumni Support Team (FAST), a national network of alumni who support the recruitment efforts of the Office of Undergraduate Admission.

“Students can go online all they want to read about Fordham—class ranks, SAT scores—but if they tour the school or talk with me, they can make a more personal connection. I talk about what it was like to go to Fordham, live in the dorms, be a part of the community,” says Fisk, an executive assistant in government relations for Hewlett-Packard in Washington, D.C. “That’s a lot of what FAST is about.”

John Donahue, FCRH ’10, an admission counselor in Fordham’s Office of Undergraduate Admission, says that during the most recent admission cycle, FAST members met with prospective students at 37 college fairs in Texas, Louisiana, California, Illinois, Virginia, Ohio, and elsewhere. “Alumni really help us be in more places than we can be as a staff,” says Donahue. “They bring a different perspective and often that perspective is something that a student can struggle to find. Sometimes it rings more true for someone to hear from an alumnus. It can be a powerful conversation.”

Hillary Fisk, FCLC '12, FAST member

Fisk attends college fairs in the D.C. area, where she speaks to high school students and their parents about Fordham. She also attends the Fordham Alumni Chapter of D.C.’s annual regional reception, where prospective students can speak with an admission counselor and meet alumni who work in a variety of fields. “I had a great experience at Fordham, and I want to give back because of what it gave to me,” says Fisk. “I love sharing my story with prospective students.”

The Springfield, Mo., native began her Fordham story after meeting an alumnus. During high school, Fisk spent a summer at Northwestern University in a theater arts program. She took a class taught by Broadway producer John Johnson, FCLC ’02, who would go on to win a 2013 Tony Award for his work on the play Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike. “I talked with him and heard about his experience. He loved Fordham and said to go on a tour,” Fisk says. “After visiting campus, I knew it was where I wanted to go.”

At Fordham, she studied political science and secured several internships in New York City and Washington, D.C., including positions at the congressional office of U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt of Missouri, NBC’s Nightly News with Brian Williams, and MSNBC’s Morning Joe.

Fisk headed back to her hometown after graduation to be director of campaign operations for former Missouri state treasurer Sarah Steelman, who was seeking election to the U.S. Senate. Steelman lost the primary election, but Fisk took that campaign experience to Tampa, Fla., in August 2012, and worked as a production coordinator at the Republican National Convention. “It was an amazing experience to see it and understand it from the inside,” Fisk says. “Everything I had learned in my political science courses at Fordham, I got to see at [the convention] live and not just from CSPAN on my TV.”

In October 2012, she moved to Washington, D.C., where she’s found a job and community to fit her education and interests. In her position with Hewlett-Packard, Fisk supports the government relations team’s lobbying efforts in the United States and Latin America. Fisk also spends time playing bingo with local military veterans as a member of the Daughters of the American Revolution, a volunteer women’s service organization. “She’s a really good example of what people can do with their Fordham education,” says Donahue.

For more information on FAST, please contact John Donahue at jdonahue@fordham.edu.

—Rachel Buttner

FCLC's Commuter Freshmen Mentors

In a previous post I wrote about getting involved as a commuter on campus. I mentioned that every incoming commuter to FCLC is assigned to a Commuter Freshmen Mentor group, but I didn't go into detail about exactly what the CFM program is. As a CFM to a great group of freshmen, I wanted to shed some light onto this program that we are so proud of at FCLC.

2011/2012 CFMs

This year, the Commuter Freshmen Mentor program consists of 13 upperclassmen commuters who guide new students through their first year of college by maintaining a connection with them throughout most of the year. Previously, the program would only last during the fall semester, but due to its success, it is now being extended though March. The reason behind the CFM program is to help freshmen transition to college not only as students, but as commuters as well. Being a commuter has its ups and downs (so does being a resident); as commuters ourselves, the CFMs know this first hand. Going to college can be one of the most transitional times in a person's life, many students choose to dorm and this usually comes as a huge change to them - they are away from family and friends at home and they experience freedom that comes along with being a resident on campus. However, commuters are never very far from home. We must balance our home lives and our college lives at the same time - many of us deal with factors such as curfews, household responsibilities, and jobs near home among many others.

Having a CFM is a great resource for new commuting students, they can relate to us because we deal with many of the same things that they do, plus, we've gone through the transition period as freshmen ourselves. I'm a CFM because I want new commuter students to feel as if they are a part of the Fordham community; as a part of my job I hold office hours when my freshmen can come and speak to me (I've helped a few of them with their spring semester schedules), I send out weekly emails so that my freshmen are always in the know about what's happening on campus, and I host outings for my CFM group. Recently, I took my group for a trip to the Waffles and Dinges cart in front of the Time Warner Center, they loved it! We has a great time and I was so happy with the turnout, but most of all, I was glad to see these new students making connections and bonding as a group. The CFM program is constantly expanding and improving and I can't wait to see where it goes in the coming years.