Whether it had been decades or just a year since they were last on campus, the Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) alumni who reunited on June 14 found a different Fordham from the one they had left.

“A lot has been going on,” Robert Grimes, S.J., dean of FCLC, told the nearly 600 alumni from the classes of 1969 through 2013 at the annual FCLC reunion.
Their alma mater now boasts two new academic majors—integrated neuroscience and environmental studies—as well as a now-flourishing music major, and will soon have its new Fordham School of Law building and undergraduate residence hall up and running.

“We hope and expect that next year at the reunion we’re going to be offering you tours of that building,” Father Grimes said.

This year, alumni had two new events to attend. The fourth installment of Fordham at the Forefront, sponsored by the Office of Alumni Relations, kicked off the evening’s events.

“The goal of this initiative is to demonstrate Fordham’s leadership in areas that are of importance and concern, highlight our best and brightest faculty, and deliver a measure of lifelong learning to our alumni base,” said Michael Griffin, assistant vice president for alumni relations.

The event featured Christiana Peppard, Ph.D., assistant professor of theology, science, and ethics, who presented, “Water: Oil in the 21st Century,” a discussion of the global fresh water crisis.

Peppard, who recently spoke on a two-part series on TED-Ed, an extension of the popular TED talks, told the alumni gathered in the 12th-Floor Lounge/Corrigan Conference Center that although oil seems to be the most vital resource of the 21st century, the availability of fresh water is in fact an equally—if not more—urgent matter.

“Fresh water is essential for us, and there is no substitute,” Peppard said. “But our current rates of demand and extraction exceed our supply.”

In spite of how blue our planet appears from space, it has a deceptively small amount of potable water, she said, because 97.5 percent of the earth’s water is seawater. Freshwater accounts for a mere 2.5 percent, and, of this, 70 percent is locked in glacial forms. The remainder is groundwater, which comes in the form of surface water and aquifers, or deep, underground caverns of water.

Industry has begun tapping aquifers; much of the agriculture of the Great Plains relies on water from these sources. However, once water is drained from an aquifer, it cannot be replaced—meaning that relying on this source of fresh water is utterly unsustainable.
“Aquifers have been referred to as ‘fossil water,’ because once you use them, you lose them,” Peppard said.

She warned that unless we get serious about topics such as aquifer depletion and global climate change, and embark on water-saving strategies such as desalination and water conservation, the world could face a global water crisis.

As the alumni in the audience tackled these implications during a spirited Q&A, other alumni traded water for wine downstairs in the Pope Auditorium with Holly-Anne Ruggiero, FCLC ’03. Ruggiero, the artistic director of imPULSE Theatre, presented Wine Lovers: The Wine Tasting Musical, a hybrid between a wine-tasting and a musical comedy.

Later, alumni gathered on the plaza for hors d’oeuvres and dancing. Delia Peters, FCLC ’85, chair of the FCLC Board of Advisors, and Rocco Andriola, FCLC ’79, co-chair of Excelsior | Ever Upward | The Campaign for Fordham for FCLC, presented the alumni class gift to Father Grimes.

This year, their gift totaled $2.7 million, thanks to generous gifts from two prominent alumni, including a $500,000 gift to rename the Center Art Gallery.

The rest of the evening brought time to reminisce.

“It feels weird to be back,” said Emily Krzan, FCLC ’08, who was celebrating her five-year reunion. “I remember standing by those doors after my parents had just dropped me off, and now it’s done.”

Many returning alumni were struck by the sight of the rising building and other new structures on campus.

“When I was here, there weren’t even computers in the library,” said Margitta Rose, FCLC ’87.
For others, feelings of nostalgia ran parallel to feelings of pride.

“My dream was to graduate from Fordham,” said Florette Vassall, FCLC ’98. “So being back here is a dream come true.”

As Weather Heats Up, Fordham Follows Suit

Mother Nature bathed the Rose Hill campus in heat the weekend of May 31, but Jubilarians were undeterred, as an all-time high of close to 2,000 members of the Fordham family attended Jubilee festivities.

Not to be outdone, a smaller but equally boisterous crowd of former Rams made their voices heard two weeks later at their June 14 reunion at the Lincoln Center campus, unofficially bringing to close another academic year.

Photos by Bruce Gilbert and Chris Taggart

Charles Priolo, FCLC ’74, was reflecting on his time at Fordham, along with his wife Debra Pena-Priolo, FCLC ’74. The Priolos were two of nearly 600 Fordham alumni who gathered at Robert Moses Plaza for Fordham College at Lincoln Center’s (FCLC) 12th annual reunion on June 15.

Bathed in the late afternoon summer sunlight, attendees shared fond memories, danced to the sounds of a live disc jockey, and noshed on pot stickers, sushi, and chicken skewers.

The Priolos were also celebrating a new chapter, as they’d dated for two years in college and then went their separate ways, marrying others and raising children.

When they reunited in 2004 at their 30th reunion, they were single again, and in 2010, Charles proposed to Debra at the 10th FCLC reunion. They were married this past May.

“We were kids, and we went our way(s), and when we met up again in June ’04, we clicked all over again. We went to dinner the following week, and we’ve been together ever since,” Charles Priolo said.

This year’s reunion was an occasion for alumni to relish the good memories made both uptown and downtown, with the attendance of alumni of the now-shuttered Undergraduate School of Education (UGE), which was housed at 302 Broadway and which pre-dated Fordham’s Lincoln Center campus.

That history was accentuated in an afternoon panel held in the 12th-floor Lounge, where alumni and friends celebrated four FCLC professors who retired this year: Kristin Lauer, Ph.D., associate professor of English, 42 years at Fordham; Astrid O’Brien, Ph.D., associate professor of philosophy, 53 years at Fordham; Fred Harris, Ph.D., professor of French and comparative literature, 42 years at Fordham; and Anne Mannion, Ph.D., associate professor of history, 53 years at Fordham.

Mannion, who graduated from UGE in 1958, marveled at how she was able to land a job teaching there right after she graduated and found herself teaching night school classes to Korean War veterans.

O’Brien, who started in 1959, recalled how the owner of the restaurant across the street from 302 Broadway stayed open all night when New York City lost power in 1965, making dinner for all with a gas range.

“There was such a sense of community, and of working together for a common cause,” she said. “I think we brought some of that with us up here [to Lincoln Center].”

The transition to a new campus was also memorable. A picture of the Lowenstein Center on the day it opened in 1969, surrounded by vast stretches of concrete, illustrated how much has changed since then.

“I can remember walking into the building for the first time with a few of my colleagues from 302 Broadway, and saying well, if we don’t make it as a school, we’ll make it as a bank,” Mannion joked. “It’s softened up a lot over the years since then.”

The future of the campus was on vivid display across the plaza, where the new law school and residence hall building, currently under construction, are scheduled to open in 2014. Robert Grimes, S.J., dean of FCLC, thanked alumni and friends for their involvement in helping the college fulfill a $16 million portion of Fordham’s $500 million capital campaign, Excelsior | Ever Upward | The Campaign for Fordham.

At a ceremony, checks were presented from the FCLC senior class for $54,776, and from the alumni for $475,299.

Father Grimes also singled out the dedication of the retiring faculty by mentioning that this year’s reunion fell upon the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

“It reaffirms that we live in a world created out of love, and our responsibility in life, our challenge in life, our joy in life, is to let God’s love enter into us and, most importantly, shine through us to others. I have seen that love shine through all of you [faculty]in your love of learning, love of your colleagues, and most importantly, in your love of students.”

Charles Priolo, FCLC, 74, was reflecting on his time at Fordham, along with his wife Debra Pena-Priolo, FCLC, 74. Priolo was one of nearly 600 Fordham alumni who gathered at Robert Moses Plaza for Fordham College at Lincoln Center’s (FCLC) 12th annual reunion on June 15.

Bathed in the late afternoon summer sunlight, attendees shared fond memories, danced to the sounds of a live DJ, and noshed on pot stickers, sushi, and chicken skewers.

The Priolos were also celebrating a new chapter, as they’d dated for two years in college, and then went their separate ways, marrying others and raising children.

When they reunited in 2004 at their 30th reunion, they were single again, and in 2010, Charles proposed to Debra at the 10th FCLC reunion. They were married this past May.

“We were kids, and we went our way(s), and when we met up again in June ’04, we clicked all over again. We went to dinner the following week, and we’ve been together ever since,” Charles Priolo said.

This year’s reunion was an occasion for alumni to relish the good memories made both uptown and downtown, with the attendance of alumni of the now-shuttered Undergraduate School of Education (UGE), which was housed at 302 Broadway and which pre-dated Fordham’s Lincoln Center campus.

That history was accentuated in an afternoon panel held in the 12th-Floor Lounge, where alumni and friends celebrated four FCLC professors who retired this year: Kristen Lauer, Ph.D., associate professor of English, 42 years at Fordham; Astrid O’Brien, Ph.D., associate professor of philosophy, 53 years at Fordham; Fred Harris, Ph.D., professor of French and comparative literature, 42 years at Fordham; and Anne Mannion, Ph.D., associate professor of history, 53 years at Fordham.

Mannion, who graduated from UGE in 1958, marveled at how she was able to land a job teaching there right after she graduated and found herself teaching night school classes to Korean War veterans.

O’Brien, who started in 1959, recalled how the owner of the restaurant across the street from 302 Broadway stayed open all night when New York City lost power in 1965, making dinner with a gas range for all.

“There was such a sense of community, and of working together for a common cause,” she said. “I think we brought some of that with us up here [to Lincoln Center].”

The transition to a new campus was also memorable. A picture of the Lowenstein Center on the day it opened in 1969, surrounded by a vast stretches of concrete, illustrated how much has changed since then.

“I can remember walking into the building for the first time with a few of my colleagues from 302 Broadway, and saying well, if we don’t make it as a school, we’ll make it as a bank,” Mannion joked. “It’s softened up a lot over the years since then.”
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The future of the campus was on vivid display across the plaza, where the new law school and residence hall building, currently under construction, are scheduled to open in 2014. Robert Grimes, S.J., dean of FCLC, thanked alumni and friends for their involvement in helping the college fulfill a $16 million portion of Fordham’s $500 million capital campaign, Excelsior | Ever Upward | The Campaign for Fordham.

Checks were presented at a ceremony from the FCLC senior class for $54,776, and from the alumni for $475,299.
Father Grimes also singled out the dedication of the retiring faculty by mentioning that this year’s reunion fell upon the Feast of the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

“It reaffirms that we live in a world created out of love, and our responsibility in life, our challenge in life, our joy in life, is to let God’s love enter into us and, most importantly, shine through us to others. I have seen that love shine through all of you [faculty]in your love of learning, love of your colleagues, and most importantly, in your love of students.”

This year’s Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC) reunion proved to be more than receptions, reminiscences and revisits with old classmates.

Some 500 FCLC alumni filled Robert Moses Plaza on June 10 to help the college launch its $16 million portion of Fordham’s $500 million capital campaign, Excelsior | Ever Upward | The Campaign for Fordham. The comprehensive fundraising effort promises to deepen FCLC’s presence in New York City.

With just under $12 million already raised for the college, Robert Grimes, S.J., dean of FCLC, urged all alumni and friends of Fordham to get involved in the campaign, which calls for six new buildings and 1.5 million square feet of space to be built on the Lincoln Center campus.

The first phase of the build-out began in April when work started on a new building for the Fordham School of Law.

“It’s a tremendously exciting moment in the history of FCLC, and I can’t wait to see it,” said Father Grimes, speaking under the Reunion Tent. “The campaign promises to expand the college into a campus.”

Dan Rolon, FCLC ’08, a mathematics major, said he hoped that an expansion of the Lincoln Center campus would offer more variety to students, particularly more club space for student activities and more event space, which, in turn, would create more of a campus feel.

“I am sure that new buildings will give FCLC more prestige over other Manhattan colleges,” said Rolon, who studied in the honors program.

Even with its current space shortages (FCLC has barely 100 gross square feet per student), the college has managed to produce some of the nation’s best and brightest, Father Grimes said. FCLC’s alumni include:

• Joseph Vignone, FCLC ’11, who won the University’s first Elie Wiesel Prize in Ethics last year;

• John Benjamin Hickey, FCLC ’85, who won a 2011 Tony Award for his performance in The Normal Heart;

• Jane McGonigal, Ph.D., FCLC ’99, a member of O magazine’s 2010 List of the 25 most powerful women changing America; and

• Annie Parisse, FCLC ’97, an actress appearing this summer in Shakespeare in the Park.

Father Grimes joined Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham, to accept a gift of $7,641 from the Class of 2011, and a combined gift of $2,716,534, from the classes of 1971 through 2010.

“You have been a large part of the University’s most successful fundraising year,” Father McShane said. “Be proud of Fordham, and be our ambassadors to the world.”

Alumni enjoyed an evening that began with lectures by FCLC faculty inside the Lowenstein Center, followed by a buffet on Robert Moses Plaza and music and dancing under the tent.

Members of the Class of 2001 said that 10 years had gone by in a blink.

“It doesn’t feel nearly as long as it sounds,” said Osman Mariano, FCLC ’01, raising a toast with fellow 2001 graduates. “In 1997, when we were freshmen, the music was so different, and there was no Facebook.”

“How about the Internet connection in our dorm room?” said Paul Kim, FCLC ’01. “We were all psyched in our sophomore year because we had dial-up in our dorm room—and it was so bad!”

Even though it seemed superfluous at the time to study a core curriculum, Mariano said that, 10 years out, he appreciates his FCLC education more than ever.

“At the time, I thought, ‘Who cares who Kierkegaard is?’” the psychology major said. “But now I get it. It has opened doors for me, and definitely helped me in graduate school.”

The reunion was a family affair for Sally Steg-Williams, FCLC ’79, her husband, Philip Williams FCRH ’72, GSAS ’74, and their son, Philip Williams, FCLC ’10, who commuted from Queens.

“Back in the ’70s FCLC was more of a commuter school, and we hung out with people in our departments,” Steg-Williams said. “But it was still a wonderful experience. I was thrilled when my son wanted to go here.”

The FCLC reunion also welcomed Fordham students who had attended the Undergraduate School of Education (UGE), which existed at 302 Broadway in Manhattan before the Lincoln Center campus opened in the 1960s. Beatrice Maher, UGE ’45, recalled having to get an undergraduate degree during World War II in just three yearson a campus that had no male students.

Dorothy Turchinsky, UGE ’58, said that in the days before FCLC, the UGE was thought of as Fordham’s “Manhattan campus.”

“We had the coolest campus of all,” she said, “because now it is Tribeca.”