Vote for Fordham Seniors as Oscar Correspondents

Fordham seniors Justin Shackil (correspondent) and Garry Van Genderen (camera) are on the ballot to be mtvU Oscar correspondents. See them interview Fordham students at Rose Hill below, and go to the mtvU contest page to vote for them.



Good luck, Justin and Garry—we'll see you on the red carpet.

Director of Creative Writing Lauded

Sarah Gambito, assistant professor of English and the new director of creative writing at Fordham, was awarded one of three Barnes & Noble Writers for Writers Awards for service to the literary community.

Gambito is the co-founder of Kundiman, a nonprofit organization that promotes Asian-American poetry. She is the author of Matadora (Alice James Books, 2004) and Delivered, forthcoming from Persea Books. Her poetry has appeared in The Antioch Review, Fence, Field, The New Republic, and other journals. She is the recipient of grants and fellowships from the New York Foundation for the Arts, the MacDowell Colony, and Urban Artists Initiative.

Russell Banks and Robert Caro are the other two recipients of the 2009 Barnes & Noble Writers for Writers Awards, and Daniel Halpern is the recipient of the inaugural Editors’ Award. Poets & Writers established the Writers for Writers Award in 1996 to recognize authors who have given generously to other writers or to the broader literary community. The title of the awards has been given to Barnes & Noble in appreciation of their sponsorship of Poets & Writers. The awards will be presented at Poets & Writers’ annual gala benefit, In Celebration of Writers, on March 25, 2009 in New York City.

Take the Kastberg Women’s Athletics Challenge

James Kastberg, CBA ’85, and Joanne Krebs-Kastberg, CBA ’87, have issued a challenge grant to help take women’s athletics to new heights at Fordham. They have pledged to match—dollar for dollar, up to $20,000 each year for the next three fiscal years—all gifts made to the Women’s Athletics Cornerstone Fund.

To make your gift today, visit www.fordham.edu/onlinegiving and select “Women’s Athletic Cornerstone Fund” from the Athletics dropdown menu.

You may also contact Lynette Rivera, director of development for Fordham athletics, at
lyrivera@fordham.edu or (212) 636-6589.

Fordham Hosts Nike Super 6 Showdown

The Rose Hill Gymnasium will host some of the nation’s best high school basketball teams at the Nike Super 6 Showdown on Friday, February 13, 2009, beginning at 5 p.m.

The 2009 games include five of the top 30 ranked high school basketball teams, according to the ESPN Rise Boys Basketball Pre-Season Poll: 3rd ranked St. Patrick High School (NJ), 8th ranked Abraham Lincoln High School (NY), 15th ranked Rice High School (NY), 25th ranked Hopkins High School (MN), 28th ranked Paterson Catholic High School (NJ) and Thomas Jefferson High School (NY).

The games kick off with Paterson Catholic vs. Rice, followed by St. Patrick vs. Abraham Lincoln, and closing the event is the Hopkins vs. Thomas Jefferson.

Note that this is not a Fordham event: tickets are required and are on sale for $10 and $15.

Rose Hill Senior and “Team Fire” Raise Money for Cancer Research

Christine Schwall, a Fordham College at Rose Hill senior, has raised $3,390 to date for the American Cancer Society Relay For Life of Fordham University. Her fundraising efforts puts her among the “Relay All Star,” volunteers who raise $2,500 or more in donations. Schwall first got involved with Fordham's Relay For Life two years ago when her father, Alan--a New York City firefighter--was diagnosed with Leukemia. Alan Schwall died less than a year after his diagnosis, and Christine's "Team Fire" raises money and walks at the event in her father's memory.

Schwall, a biological sciences major, plans to pursue biochemistry research. The majority of her fundraising has been through personal relationships, and her team's goal this year is to raise $7,000. “Talk to everyone you can,” she said. “It never hurts to reach out to people. You never know who will say ‘yes.’”

Relay For Life is the American Cancer Society’s signature activity. Teams of people come together and have fun while raising much-needed funds for the organization, and raise awareness of cancer prevention and treatment. The 4th annual Relay For Life of Fordham University will take place on Rose Hill campus in April 2009. For more information log onto their website at www.fordhamUrelay.com.

Dr N’s Rhythm Review on the Web

Mark Naison, Ph.D., professor of African American studies and history, and principal investigator of the Bronx African American History Project at Fordham, debuts his YouTube Rap, "The Palin Effect."

Ignatian Awareness week

Monday, 26 January
12:15 p.m. Rupert Mayer, S.J. Chapel, LL221
Daily Mass*
Presider: George Drance, S.J.
12:45 p.m. South Lounge
“Why are Jesuits in Schools?”
Charles J. Beirne, S.J., Visiting Professor in the Graduate School of Education, consultant on Jesuit Higher Education in Africa, will lead the discussion. Lunch will be served.
5:15 p.m. South Lounge
The Mission
Vincent DeCola, S.J. will lead a discussion of various themes running through this award winning film, starring Robert De Niro and Jeremy Irons as Jesuits working among the Guaraní Indians of South America.

Tuesday, 27 January
12:15 p.m. Blessed Rupert Mayer, S.J. Chapel, LL221
Daily Mass*
Presider: Rev. Terrence Klein
5:30 p.m. McMahon 109
Meet the JVC (Jesuit Volunteer Corps)
Come and meet the Jesuit Volunteer Corps members who are currently serving in New York City. It’s a great chance to find out more about life in the JVC. Former JVC Director Vincent DeCola, S.J., will also be on hand with information. Dinner will be provided.
6:10-7:45 p.m. Blessed Rupert Mayer, S.J. Chapel, LL221
Interfaith Zen Meditation
Roshi Robert Kenedy, S.J., Jesuit priest and zen master, will speak about the Jesuit mission on interreligious dialog and lead zen sitting meditation. All are welcome! Healthy refreshments will be available after the meditation.

Wednesday, 28 January
12:15 p.m. Rupert Mayer, S.J. Chapel, LL221
Daily Mass*
Presider: Robert R. Grimes, S.J.
7 p.m. McMahon 205/206
Black Robe
Damian O’Connell, S.J., will lead the discussion, following a viewing of this engaging movie about the challenging relationship between the Jesuits and Native Americans in the 17th century and the implications for interreligious dialogue today. Light dinner will be served.
9:30 p.m. McMahon 6G
Mass in McMahon 6G
Join other students for Mass in an informal setting in Fr. O’Connell’s suite. Refreshments will be served following Mass.

Thursday, 29 January
11:30 a.m. TBA
Ambassador Luncheon
Campus Ministry will host the student ambassadors and will discuss the Jesuit Catholic identity of the University.
12:15 p.m. Rupert Mayer, S.J. Chapel, LL221
Daily Mass*
Presider: Patrick Ryan, S.J.

Friday, 30 January
12:15 p.m. Rupert Mayer, S.J. Chapel, LL221
Daily Mass*
Presider: Damian O'Connell, S.J.
1 p.m. Lowenstein Plaza
Ice Cream Social
Join us on the plaza for some ice cream and good company.

*Themes of the Spiritual Exercises will be addressed at daily Masses.

Ignatian Awareness week celebrates the rich Ignatian heritage
with which Fordham has been blessed.

The events of this week are aimed at helping us to appreciate this heritage
through the work of local Jesuits and their colleagues. For more information, contact Campus Ministry at campusminlc@fordham.edu.
FREE FOOD AT ALL EVENTS!

English Professor Stalking Edgar

Leonard Cassuto, Ph.D., professor of English at Fordham, is up for an Edgar. Cassuto’s book, Hard-Boiled Sentimentality: The Secret History of American Crime Stories (Columbia University Press, 2008) is on the ballot for the 2009 Edgar Award in the Best Critical/Biographical book category.

The winners will be announced at the 63rd Annual Edgar Awards Banquet, held on Thursday, April 30, 2009, at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Manhattan. 2009 marks the 200th anniversary of Poe’s birth, and Cassuto’s 20th year at Fordham.

First awarded in 1954, the Edgar, in honor of Edgar Allan Poe, is given by The Mystery Writers of America to the best in mystery fiction and nonfiction produced the previous year. Past winners include James Lee Burke, Dick Francis, Elmore Leonard and Ken Follett.

Fordham University Association Hosts Winter Wonderland Fun

Fordham staff and faculty came together for the annual Winter Wonderland luncheon organized by the Fordham University Association (FUA) on Jan. 9 in the McGinley Ballroom on the Rose Hill campus. Approximately 75 staff shared holiday stories and lunch while preparing for the return of the student population.

Patrick Ryan, S.J., vice president for University mission and ministry, opened the afternoon with a prayer of thanksgiving. Preparing for the feast, he added:

“Tomorrow we diet.”

Ann Gannon, co-president of FUA, handed out prizes at the post-luncheon raffle, which included tickets to South Pacific at Lincoln Center and the New York Philharmonic.

The Fordham University Association is comprised of members of the faculty, administrative, clerical and maintenance staff of the University. The group is sponsored by the Office of the President. FUA’s goal is to sponsor events and activities that bring the Fordham community together for fun and fellowship.

FUA also is planning a Bring Your Child to Work day in April, as well as the annual Easter Egg Hunt.

–Gina Vergel

Rose Hill Alumnus Named to Top Administration Post

Central Intelligence Agency veteran John O. Brennan (FCRH ’77) has been named deputy national security adviser for homeland security in President-elect Obama’s administration. Brennan served as Obama’s foreign policy and intelligence adviser during the presidential campaign, and will now advise the president on counter terrorism.

Brennan was interim director of the National Counter-terrorism Center immediately after its creation, and since 2005 has served as CEO of The Analysis Corp. Since 2007, he has served as chairman of the Intelligence and National Security Alliance.

An intelligence officer since 1980, Brennan began his career in the CIA's Directorate of Operations. He has served with the Department of State as a political officer at the U.S. Embassy in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; in a variety of analytic assignments in the Office of Near Eastern and South Asian Analysis in the Directorate of Intelligence; and was in charge of terrorism analysis in the DCI's Counterterrorist Center during the Gulf War. Brennan has also served as the CIA's daily intelligence briefer at the White House; the executive assistant to the director of the CIA, and as deputy executive director of the agency.

Brennan earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Fordham, including study at the American University of Cairo. He received a master’s degree in government with a concentration in Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Texas at Austin in 1980.