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Fordham College at Rose Hill: Enrollment 3,949 (fall 2014)

Enrollment continued to rise at Fordham College at Rose Hill, which now comprises more than 42 percent of all the University’s undergraduates. The college continues to successfully compete for academically strong students because of its focus on its Jesuit mission and signature programs like honors, pre-health, pre-law, and undergraduate research.

The college identified new goals: advancing its core curriculum advising plan, enhancing digital liberal arts programs, and promoting students’ information literacy, all of which require collaboration with faculty and with University divisions including information technology.

After an extensive search process, the college hired Maura Mast, PhD, who is both the college’s first female dean and its first from a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) background.

The college introduced minors in cybersecurity and in peace and justice studies, and a joint major in math and computer science.  In addition, FCRH fully implemented its programs in integrated neuroscience and new media and digital design.

The fall 2014 entering freshman class had an average SAT of 1245, its percentage of minority students was 22.6, and its international enrollment was 4.8 percent.

Gabelli School of Business: Enrollment 2,237 (fall 2014)

The Gabelli School of Business completed its undergraduate and graduate unification and took action in four areas—academic excellence, globalization, personal and professional development, and pedagogical innovation—in pursuit of becoming a “top 25” business school.

The school surveyed other schools’ methods of promoting faculty excellence, won state approval for a PhD program, and refined its integrated business core to give students more options for applied or serving learning. The first cohort of student entered the new full-time MBA program, which provides a team-based, ethics-driven curriculum.

Research centers gained more exposure through various events like the lecture on patient-centered cancer care organized by the Global Healthcare Management Innovation Center  and Mount Sinai. The school hired a senior director of personal and professional development who began to reassess career advising and other functions.

The school pursued cross-disciplinary programs like a revitalized JD/MBA, and the faculty approved a secondary concentration in entrepreneurship for students with majors other than business administration. The Gabelli program in London gained traction at other universities, with 14 non-Fordham students signing up.

The fall 2014 entering freshman class saw an average SAT of 1279, its percentage of minority students was 23.9, and its international enrollment was 7.6 percent.

Fordham College at Lincoln Center: Enrollment 1,887 (fall 2014)

The college welcomed 475 freshmen, the largest incoming class in its history, drawn from the largest-ever applicant pool. New programs include a major in humanitarian affairs and a minor in fashion studies; the college also set up a committee to consider joint efforts with the Gabelli School of Business, newly located on the same campus.

The campus was transformed by the opening of the new building housing Fordham Law School and McKeon Hall, an undergraduate residence hall. The college’s music program was strengthened by a $100,000 gift from Jim Dineen, GABELLI’56, and a number of FCLC alumni received national recognition in theatre, film, and television. The college newspaper, The Observer, placed third out of 200 in the New York Press Association’s Better Newspaper Contest.

The FCLC fall 2014 entering freshman class had an average SAT of 1239, its percentage of minority students was 41.5, and its international enrollment was 8.2 percent.

Fordham School of Professional and Continuing Studies: Enrollment 1,226* (fall 2014)

The school kicked off its first graduate program, focused on cybersecurity, and made progress in drafting a master’s of health care administration—for launch in fall 2016—in partnership with the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.

In its first international collaboration, PCS joined with the Graduate School of Social Service to host nine social work students from China Youth University.

In 2014-2015, the school landed its first corporate training contract—in collaboration with the Institute of American Language and Culture—to offer English classes to Ernst & Young employees whose first language is Chinese.

*includes both credit-bearing and non-credit-bearing students.

Linda Popovic beamed at her husband Paule, a Rose Hill custodian, as Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham, ribbed him for rooting for New York’s underdog teams: the Jets, the Nets, and the Mets.

She nodded knowingly when Marco Valera, vice president for Facilities Management, said that in Paule’s 20-years at Fordham he never once called in sick or was late.

Paule was one of 14 Fordham employees recognized on Dec. 11 at the 32^nd 1841 Awards ceremony, honoring contributions of workers from facilities and custodial operations and the support staff on the occasion of their 20^th and 40^th anniversaries.

“You make the place run,” Father McShane said to Paule and the other honorees. “You do it with grace, humor, quiet strength, and staunch devotion to your colleagues. You make us a true family.”

For Popovic, his time at Rose Hill began after his arrival from Montenegro. Linda joined him shortly thereafter, leaving the then war-torn Albania. Together the couple raised two children. Their son is now a Rose Hill campus freshman and they hope to send their daughter to Fordham in 2016.

“You can’t beat that,” said Paule.

The personal journeys of the 14 honorees, many of who came from other nations, could likely fill several books. But when asked for specifics, discretion wins the day. Custodian Jorge Yanez deflected the question.

“It’s like a family,” he said.

Indeed, family was a word repeated throughout the ceremony. Several of the honorees raised their kids on campus—many of whom were at the ceremony.

“When I started here my daughter was nine months old,” said Rosa Giglio, an executive secretary in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology. “Who would’ve thought I’d last here long enough to see her become a senior here?”

For Ruth Gibson, the lone 40-year medalist, both her daughter and granddaughter have fond memories of playing on Eddies Parade. As a switchboard operator, Gibson has been the first point of contact for anyone calling the University for the past four decades. One could say she is, essentially, the voice of Fordham.

Her daughter Melissa Hill said she remembers sitting on her mom’s lap learning how to plug in switchboard cords, while her granddaughter Jazmin Sheppard said she remembers pushing buttons. Today, Gibson uses a computer system.

But besides taking adept leaps in technology, Gibson said she has also calmed parental jitters over the decades. More than once she’s left the office to comfort a student when a worried parent called the University. And more than once she’s handed out change from her purse when a student’s “meal swipe” didn’t work.

“After all, a child has to eat!” she said.

For some honorees, Fordham students become their charge—and the students return the honor. For Melba Diaz, a senior secretary for the ROTC, yesterday was an honorary Mother’s Day, as dozens of cadets turned out to recognize the woman fondly known as “The General.”

“I haven’t always been at ROTC, but for the last eight years the reward for me has been for me to see these men and women become responsible soldiers,” she said, her eyes welling up. “At their commissioning I always cry, because I feel like they’re my children.”

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Fordham College at Rose Hill (FCRH): Enrollment 3,649 (fall 2013)

During 2013, Fordham College at Rose Hill focused on four goals, two of which were advancing the University’s Jesuit mission and improving recruitment, advising, and retention of students.

The college collaborated more with the Jesuit Community and University Mission and Ministry, expanded service learning, and began a spring break “Urban Immersion” service experience. Eight core and elective courses with a Bronx-based service learning dimension were offered.

Science programs expanded, with Fordham’s membership in the Bronx Science Consortium giving students research opportunities at Albert Einstein College of Medicine and The New York Botanical Garden. Also, 315 students and 95 faculty mentors took part in the Undergraduate Research Symposium.

International programs in Pretoria and London enjoyed strong participation, and a pre-health study-abroad program began at Javeriana University in Cali, Colombia.

Pre-law enrollment increased and student interest surged in pre-health education.

The college offered “Faculty E-Grants” to promote digital instruction of liberal arts courses, an initiative that continues this year.

By the numbers, FCRH saw an average SAT of 1265, a minority percentage of 24.5 and a 25 percent increase in international enrollment.

Gabelli School of Business: Enrollment 2,001 (fall 2013)

Among the Gabelli School’s priorities for 2013-14 were globalization, personal and professional development, and pedagogical innovation, all within the philosophy of “business with a purpose.

Applications for the new program in global business at Lincoln Center surpassed expectations, and the inaugural class yielded an average SAT score of 1310. There was higher enrollment of Gabelli School students at the Fordham London Centre, new study tours were added in Tokyo and Turkey, and 30 percent more students reported some kind of international experience.

The school strengthened its hiring pipeline among mid-tier and smaller firms, and 75 percent of 2014 graduates received an employment or academic admission offer.

Innovations in teaching included more consulting-style projects and business simulations. The school also joined with Stanford University to develop the University’s first MOOC (massive open online course).

By the numbers, the Gabelli School saw an average SAT of 1277 and a minority percentage of 27, and rose two points to No. 38 in Bloomberg’s Businessweek rankings.

Fordham College at Lincoln Center: Enrollment, 1,765 (fall 2013)

Fordham College at Lincoln Center expanded students’ research activities and exposure to the neighboring community. It offered a new Arts and Research Showcase for students, a career fair, and the pre-business council, all which demonstrate the value of a liberal arts degree.

The college developed new performance opportunities at Jazz at Lincoln Center. The college also began preparing for new majors in new media and digital design and in humanitarian studies, and several faculty positions were approved to support the influx of new students. Applications to the college grew 57 percent, to 12,260.

The FCLC Mock Trial team placed 2nd among 15 in regional competition, and the student-run Observer newspaper took several awards from the New York Press Association.

By the numbers, FCLC saw an average SAT of 1240, a minority percentage of 41, and a 30 percent increase in international enrollment.

Fordham School of Professional and Continuing Studies: Enrollment, 950 (fall 2013)

Enrollment grew at the School of Professional and Continuing Studies, particularly among veterans, who now make up 25 percent of the student body. Eight percent are in the post-baccalaureate pre-med/pre-health program, a new growth area.

The school prepared for the fall 2014 launch of its first graduate-degree program, a master’s in cybersecurity.

Under the auspices of the Graduate School of Social Service, the school has a collaborative agreement that will allow undergraduates from China Youth University to complete the undergraduate social work curriculum and receive a bachelor’s degree. The school is also fostering stronger collaboration with other Fordham schools to develop new projects.

Who she is

Office Manager/Budget Officer for Development and University Relations (DAUR). A 15-year veteran of Fordham, Biddle works behind the scenes to manage the inner operations of the 100-member DAUR team.

What she does

“My job has three parts. I’m responsible for the operation of the office including, but not limited to, the provision of keys, office/cubicle nameplates, ordering supplies, coordinating the set-up and installation of computer equipment, and networking with facilities to repair any problems that could affect the office. I’m also responsible for overseeing the departmental budget; bill payment; filing and record keeping; and troubleshooting vendor problems. Finally, I am involved in the hiring process, including processing the paperwork necessary to post positions, maintenance of job descriptions, and advertising. It’s a very interesting job—no two days are the same!”

Before DAUR

“I started at Marymount College in 1999 and worked there through 2002, when Fordham and Marymount consolidated. Then, in 2005, I got my job here in DAUR.

“At Marymount, I worked in the development office—first in gift processing and then in alumni relations. I got to know a number of alumnae. I also loved to work on Marymount reunions. It’s an event that you work on for months and months, and at the very end you get to see it all fall into place.”

And before that…

“I started my career at the New York Telephone Company, which later became Verizon. I began there when I was in high school, working part time as an operator, and stayed after graduating from college. I worked for a number of years as a demand and revenue forecaster. My job involved developing an aggregate forecast for the business market using econometric and time series analysis. I would compare my forecast with my counterparts’ forecasts. Their forecast would be developed by looking at construction activity and the other factors that influence demand on a local basis. We would compare our results, reconcile on a number, and, finally, come up with a forecast for the corporation.”

Keeping it in the Family

“I’m married to a wonderful man, Jim, and I have two beautiful daughters and two absolutely gorgeous grandchildren—Lauren, who is 3, and Connor, who is 9 months.

My daughter Jamie is a 2008 graduate of the Gabelli School of Business, and my nephew, brother-in-law, and cousin are also graduates of Fordham. So I have strong ties to the school.”

The Rosemary Biddle Award

In September, DAUR established the “Rosemary Biddle Award for DAUR Core Values Distinction” and bestowed upon Biddle the inaugural award. Created to honor Biddle as an exemplary employee, the annual award will recognize a member of DAUR who demonstrates an “unstinting dedication, a strong commitment to excellence, and a high level of professionalism while fostering compassion and care for others through their work.”

“When Roger Milici (vice president for DAUR) announced it, I was flabbergasted. Everyone has been so compassionate, especially helping me to care for my husband, who is a stroke and cancer survivor. I’ve been able to take Jim to doctors’ appointments and be with him during critical moments. I’ll be forever grateful to DAUR management for helping me balance what was going on in my life with my work, and to my peers, who have been very understanding.

“To be blessed with an award was just totally unexpected. I’ve been richly blessed by being part of the Fordham team.”

The partnership, which is part of the college’s effort to enhance its music major, has students practicing in a space next to Dizzy’s Club Coca-Cola. Matt Buttermann, teaching artist and program manager for instruction-based education programs at JALC, said that’s enabled them to bring in performing artists to work with the students before or after their sets at Dizzy’s.

Members of the chamber jazz ensembles performed two sets from their current repertoire on Nov. 8 at JALC’s Ertegun Atrium prior to performances of “Celebrating Bobby Hutcherson: Life of a Legend.”

On Monday, Dec. 8, Fordham Jazz Night, all jazz chamber ensembles, the jazz orchestra, and the guitar ensemble will perform at 5:30 p.m. at the Irene Diamond Education Center, along with guest artists and a contingent of Fordham dancers.

—Photos by Chris Shinn, Kathryn Gamble and Rick Lozier

“Suicide is the second leading cause of death among college-age students,” said Jeffrey Ng, Psy.D., director of Fordham’s counseling and psychological services. “This period of life presents a unique set of stressors, including increased academic demands, financial pressures, identity struggles, increased autonomy, and so on.

“In addition, various mental health problems might be more likely to emerge during this age period, such as certain psychoses, bipolar disorder, and depression.”

The grant, Ng said, will allow Fordham to strengthen its existing infrastructure by engaging the entire campus community in mental health and suicide prevention efforts. In particular, increased awareness will help reach students who have historically underused mental health services or who the National Action Alliance for Suicide Prevention have identified as high-risk, including veteran, LGBT, international, and particular ethnic and racial minority students.

“The grant funding will allow us to augment what we’re already doing to support our students,” Ng said. “We’re working to communicate to our entire community of faculty, staff, administrators, coaches and others that suicide prevention and mental health promotion is everyone’s responsibility—we all have a role to play in the wellness of our student body.”

The grant has four overall objectives:

• Enhance students’ coping and resiliency skills by delivering stress reduction seminars and disseminating the Stressbusters mobile application.
• Increase identification, support, and referral of students in distress or at an increased risk of suicide by providing “gatekeeper” trainings and developing suicide prevention peer education programs;
• Increase help-seeking behaviors among students by enhancing partnerships with on- and off-campus constituencies and developing peer-driven public awareness campaigns to reduce stigma, shame, and misinformation about mental health;
• Improve student access to mental health services by increasing visibility of on- and off-campus mental health services and resources.

Engaging the community—especially students—will be among the most important elements of Fordham’s suicide prevention efforts, Ng said. Students can help with normalizing and de-stigmatizing the use of mental health services, which some students may hesitate to use due to fear or shame.

“The most effective way to decrease stigma is through peer-driven advocacy and promotion,” he said. “Messages and information about mental health and wellness are most powerful and effective when they come from our peers.”

When you go to your doctor’s office for the test, everything comes back normal. But lurking somewhere inside, there is, in fact, an abnormality—it just did not occur during your office visit.

“You’re out of luck,” said Gary Weiss, Ph.D., an associate professor of computer and information sciences.

However, Weiss said, if the capability to monitor your heart were built into your smartphone, “you could be monitored over a longer period of time, as opposed to just a few minutes, which provides a lot more data.”

Mobile health and smart technology

With the advent of smart technology, that capability has become a reality. Originally designed to give doctors access to patients in remote, rural areas of developing countries, mobile health platforms have since proliferated. In just seven years, these devices have grown increasingly more complex. They can now accomplish tasks as simple as counting the number of steps you take and as sophisticated as checking glucose levels in your blood.

Weiss, who is the director of Fordham’s Wireless Sensor Data Mining (WISDM) Lab, has been making a foray into the field of mobile health by applying his research on activity-recognition to the newest member of the “smart” family, “smartwatches.” The WISDM lab’s latest work builds on the Actitracker, an application (“app”) for Android-based cell phones that the lab launched in 2013.

Using a built-in sensor called an accelerometer, the app detects and identifies the user’s physical activities, such as sitting, walking, jogging, standing, or climbing stairs. It then compiles the results so that the user knows how many minutes per day are spent sitting, standing, etc. When the app “learns” the nuances of its user’s movements using a built-in “self-training mode,” it yields results that are up to 98 percent accurate.

“The project was funded because of its potential to help combat obesity,” said Weiss, who received a National Science Foundation “Smart and Connected Health” grant for the project. “But it can really help with a lot of issues. For instance, tracking how someone walks could detect if they have any gait problems. Or we might be able to track depression if someone is spending the majority of the time lying down.”

Integrating Actitracker with smartwatches will make the app even more sophisticated, Weiss said, because it will be able to detect activities such as eating or drinking.

“A smartphone in your pocket is limited, because it really can only detect your leg motions, specifically the top of the legs. The smartwatch, though, will also be able to detect hand motions to identify activities like eating and drinking,” Weiss said.

For those who need to monitor their diets, having an app that can call attention to food intake can be invaluable. For instance, Weiss said, when the watch detects that you are eating, it could prompt you to add an entry to your food diary. Or, when it detects that you are drinking something, it might ask about the sugar content of your drink and advise accordingly.

Smartwatches arrive at the WISDM Lab

Sophomore Andrew Johnston is one of the students working on smartwatches in the WISDM lab.

“The accelerometer and gyroscope give feedback in terms of the number of steps you’re taking and there’s also a heartbeat sensor to take your pulse throughout the day,” said Johnston, a computer science and mathematics major.

“No one is doing activity-recognition with smartwatches right now, so we’re looking to corner the market there.”

Johnston is also doing research in biometrics, the study of distinctive, measureable human traits such as fingerprints or DNA. Johnston’s research focuses on using biometric markers for identity and security purposes—in other words, using things like voice or gait recognition in lieu of passwords.

“The problem with passwords is that they’re really weak,” Johnston said. “People who come up with them design them to be memorable. Which means that most of the time they’re also guessable.”

The process involves just a few steps, Johnston said. For instance, if you wanted to program a smartwatch to open a locked door using gait recognition, you would first demonstrate to the watch how you walk. Then the watch and the door would be programmed to associate your particular gait with the action “unlock door.” Thus, when you approach the door, the watch and door compare your walk with the profile on file, and if they match, the door unlocks.

“Moving to biometrics would make it more difficult for someone to get unauthorized access, because it’s a lot harder to guess how I walk than to guess something I use as my password,” Johnston said, adding that biometrics could ultimately be used for social media profiles and even electronic bank accounts.

Currently, the team is conducting experiments with the smartwatch and plans to have it integrated into the Actitracker app within six months. In the meantime, Weiss has submitted another grant proposal to the National Science Foundation to continue expanding their work with activity recognition—including integrating the app with social media so that users can broadcast their results.

“There are companies interested in this type of technology. Some startups have contacted us,” Weiss said. “All of this is now becoming technologically feasible because of the ubiquity of these powerful devices.”