“Less gas, more ass!” was the chant heard around Washington Square Park today, as a dozen body-painted students frolicked in their underwear for Mother Earth. “To celebrate this fabulous broad,” the event page says (I assume they’re talking about Mother Earth), “we’re lettin’ loose, cutting those sullied winter coats off your fabulous bods, and exposing the fierce flesh that she gave us…”

Another example of caring for the environment when it’s convenient or a legit method of bringing awareness to the environment? Regardless, I’m pretty sure more people were paying attention to certain body parts than the signs being held up.

The best reactions were those I overheard. One NYU guard sarcastically described it as “nice publicity for NYU.” To which another replied, “Hey c’mon. This is afternoon delight, man.” A construction worker on his lunch break summed up the spectacle perfectly: “Where else?” Indeed. Only at NYU.

More pictures from NYU Local photographer David Alvarez after the jump.

Tommy Head, Stern ‘11
At 20, Tommy Head has done much more than most people his age. He’s the founder of Childhood Cancer Society, a non-profit organization that pays the various bills of families with kids who have cancer or blood disorders. His inspiration? He was diagnosed with ITP, an autoimmune disease, at the age of seven. Now he seeks to help children in similar situations with his organization.

He got the idea for the organization shortly after the tsunami hit in late 2005. He realized he wanted to help, but decided to focus on something familiar, something “close to my heart,” as he puts it. Now running three years strong, the organization has already helped dozens of affected families. He continues to run the day-today operations with the help of his family and a board of directors. This, in addition to his Stern workload, has made Head a very busy person.

He believes that the people involved with the Reynolds program would help him “be able to make some changes in the world, especially in the world of children with cancer.” If you wish to help him out, the organization sells on its website teddy bears wearing the charity slogan – “Kids are beary special.” – for $15.

Shane Crary-Ross, Silver ’11

Shane currently has two ideas in the works. The first, Sustainable Silver, is the Silver School of Social Works’ green initiative. It has three main focuses: operational sustainability, academic sustainability, and getting students involved. Crary-Ross and those involved with the initiative want to lessen their school’s environmental impact as much as possible. However, it’s her second idea that I find the most interesting.

It’s called the Green Canteen, an experiment designed to show local businesses and the school’s dining halls that going green is a sustainable business model. The Green Canteen will start in the fall, with a table set up in the lobby of Gallatin. The plan is to sell soups and rice dishes five days a week, using products from local farmers and other green places. Crary-Ross hopes that the Green Canteen will show businesses that the risk and cost involved with going green is minimal and will allow them to remain competitive. The positive environmental impact is the desired result.

She plans on recruiting students from the Food Studies program to cook the food, citing her lack of culinary skills. Be sure to check it out once the fall semester rolls around.

Genesis Briggs, Tisch ‘11

Briggs has been an independent artist since she was thirteen years old and has released three albums. Now at NYU, she is working on her new “baby project:” The Children’s Album, a hip-hop album she hopes will be used as an education tool to start conversations in classrooms about social issues like teenage pregnancy, teen drug use, and religious and racial tolerance. It’s not your typical hip-hop album; no cussing will be allowed (She doesn’t cuss herself), and all the songs will be sung/rapped by children. “I want to develop a product that parents can be proud to listen to with their kids,” she said.

How does she plan on distributing the album? Through her own company: Open Sky Artworks. The company is not limited to just music, however. Briggs hopes to sign many independent artists of all types. Poets, musicians, composers, performers, painters and writers can all have a place at Open Sky.

She got a lot of her ideas for songs from homeless people because they have “been through a lot” and because a lot of them are “crazy.” “When you speak with crazy people,” she said, “you know, it opens up your mind.” She does acknowledge that it can be dangerous, so advises to “make sure it’s daylight.” Check out some of her music here.

Amanda Raposo, Silver ’11

She went into the School of Social Work because she wanted to do some good. Well, after a semester of volunteering at First STEP (Services to Empower Parents) at Bellevue Hospital, Rapposo became frustrated with the impossibility of helping a group of women with whom she felt a connection: teen mothers. Personal circumstances of these young women prevented them from pursuing services that Raposo was able to provide, and they still had many other needs that couldn’t be met, like supportive housing. Her experiences “brought to my attention how deep the social issue was,” she said, “that there was definitely something that needed to be changed. She found a kindred soul in Reynolds scholar Jessica Mason, whom she met at a Christmas party. From their conversation emerged the idea of Baby’s First Home.

Baby’s First Home is a residential program for homeless teen mothers and their children, specifically mothers who have aged out of foster care (ages 17 to 21). When it opens, it will be the only long-term housing program of its kind in the five boroughs of NYC. With help of her dad, a real estate broker, the organization was able to get a building in Almherst, Queens for the program.

Peer mentoring, she says, is a major part of their program. They want to establish connections with NYU and Columbia, hoping that there will be a dialog between both sides, and also to raise awareness of the issue. You can help out by volunteering, donating goods or money, or just showing them your support. Just check out their website.

After a quick perusal of the approximately thirty-four departments listed on the CAS website, I learned basically two things. First, a lot of these websites are not very pretty and/or user-friendly, and second, if you’re looking for internship resources from your respective departments, don’t expect to have much luck. After going through the list, I found only six departments with any sort of internship listings. Out of the six, only three (Journalism, Politics and Environmental Studies) are updated frequently.

Granted, some of the programs aren’t very practical for internships (like Luso-Brazilian Language and Literature), but the lack of any internship listings for departments like Economics or Art History is somewhat appalling. Just somewhat. After all, a lot of these departments might have secret internship listservs that only their students are privy to. In any case, if your departments don’t, or if yours does, but doesn’t update frequently, your best bet would be Wasserman. Careernet is pretty legit, and has tons of internship and part-time job listings. Of course, you’d have to get a username and password first from Wasserman, but I’m sure you’re already on that.

The program is open to sophomores from each undergraduate school. This year’s batch of finalists is an impressive one, with each finalist bringing a different idea to the table. From helping homeless teen mothers to aiding citizens of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, their ideas span the entire spectrum of social entrepreneurship. A list of the finalists and their ideas after the jump.

Who do you think deserves the scholarships? Let us know in the comments.

- Shane Crary-Ross (Silver School of Social Work): The Green Canteen, an on-campus sustainable lunch stand, using produce from local farmers; Sustainable Silver, a green initiative designed to help bring sustainable practices to the Silver School of Social Work.
- Amanda Raposo (Silver School of Social Work): Baby’s First Home, a supportive housing project for teen mothers in New York City; working with previous Reynolds winner, Jessica Mason.
- Anna Egorova (School of Nursing): Blood donation awareness through a series of educational presentations at colleges; also plans to improve the nursing profession in Russia by instituting extension courses for nurses in Russian hospitals.
- Genesis Briggs (Tisch): Open Sky Artworks, a label that “will produce, market and distribute poetry, paintings illustrations, music novels, films and any other artwork that is produced by the youth for the youth.” Currently working on a Hip-Hop Children’s Album, an education tool to be used in classrooms.
- Allen Tullos (Tisch): A production company that is run almost entirely by high school students. The business, for high school students interested in film, offers “an opportunity to gain practical knowledge, produce professional-looking short films at a young age, and earn a modest wage doing enjoyable work.”
- Nandan Rao (Tisch): A network to “link trained artists and students to young artists in underprivileged communities” to help young artists “create and distribute their art at a level competitive with the art community at large.” Also, specialized micro-universities in rural areas, dedicated to particular natural resources in the area; an organization that “publicly displays the environmental and social sustainability of consumer goods businesses; a cooperation that “binds together small businesses” with the same values, and “encourages labor-sharing between these businesses.”
- Eden R. Jeffries (Steinhardt): Plans to bring “action-oriented awareness through the arts on a national and global scale” for particular social problems. Wants to collaborate with “already established organizations and with peers to conduct arts for social change programs in various underprivileged communities.”
- Gabriela M. Tejedor (Steinhardt): Looking to “link together both education and artistic expression.” Envisions a program with a “cause and effect model,” with students researching global issues and creating an “active representation and reaction through different mediums of artistic expression.”
- Paola Mariselli (Stern): A tri-component one-year program focused on the three C’s: Career counseling, Community service, and Culture and the arts; program seeks to benefit “underprivileged, high-achieving high school students in the community by helping them become well-rounded individuals.”
- Tommy Head (Stern): A non-profit organization that benefits families afflicted with childhood cancer. The organization pays medical bills, and other bills brought on by the “financial strain of childhood cancer.”
- Maya Cohen (CAS): Plans to work on behalf of abused and neglected children and teenagers.
- Francesca Eick (CAS): Plans to continue her work with Keep A Child Alive, an HIV/AIDS non-profit organization, and develop additional women-centered programs focusing on health and economic empowerment.
- Anna Escobar (CAS): Plans to establish a network of students to engage in social issue advocacy and activism through the medium of documentary film; her first project will focus on the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
- Erika Hval (CAS): Plans to launch a program that focuses on nutrition and health; also, the program will provide people with information on low-cost healthy food.
- Nicholas Jensen (CAS): Plans to start a youth-friendly voting organization to work toward making registration easier and lowering the voting age to 16.
- Lilly Padia (CAS): Plans to run an educational program for high school students that focuses on unconventional education, leadership and community.
- Stelios Phili (CAS): Plans to turn his fledgling website, popsense.com, into the next large-scale medium for the written word.
- Michelle Pomeroy (CAS): Plans to run an awareness-oriented media campaign along with a service organization that promotes constructive interfaith interaction.
- Nathaniel Reuter (CAS): Plans to develop an outdoor education program for young people that will instill appreciation for the environment and teach outdoor living and leadership skills.
- Patricia Schneidewind (CAS): Plans to continue her work as a founding member of a school for underprivileged girls and young mothers in Tanzania.
- Jessica Tsang (CAS): Plans to work to make urban planning environmentally conscious, especially in developing nations; also plans to implement a program of “green therapy” for urban youth.
- Ken Zhao (CAS): Plans to foster technological innovation through a new forum, sponsored by both academia and industries, which works with high school and college students who want to use their scientific skills to enact positive change.

* The finalists from Gallatin and the finalist from SCPS did not wish to give out their information.

No, I’m not talking about the budget of TBNYU’s dreams, but rather, the personal budget for each student who receives aid. Don’t know what I’m talking about? You’re probably not the only one.

Every student who receives financial aid has his or her own personal aid budget. These budgets were created when we entered as freshmen. I have one and, unless you’re a trust fund baby, you probably have one too. This budget determines how much a student receives in financial aid every year. Sounds pretty standard. But what I found baffling was that the student aid budget isn’t the amount you’ll be receiving from NYU, but rather, the amount of aid you can receive from ALL sources: NYU, the federal government, and private lenders. You cannot receive more aid than your budget allows.

And what if your budget is set at an amount that’s less than the total cost of attendance? It’s like wanting a 10-speed bike, but only having money for a tricycle.

If you need more money, there’s the budget appeal form: a quasi-remedy to your problems that the financial aid office doesn’t advertise. You can request an increase in your budget for things like buying a new computer (up to $2k can be set aside), or to cover the total costs of up to two trips home during the academic year. But you don’t really need to buy anything to get an increase. If you have problems paying for bills and shit, you can successfully appeal for a couple grand (if you’re lucky). All you have to do is write a letter explaining why you would like to appeal your budget, and include proof of your recent expenses (like, if you bought a computer, attach the receipt). You’re going to have to be on top of the ball though and call the financial aid office to check up on your appeal. When I talked to a financial aid counselor about the budget, she informed me that they wouldn’t contact a student if his or her budget were increased.

Don’t see this as the end to all your financial woes, however. A successful budget appeal does not mean that NYU will be giving you more money. It means that, if you need it, you’ll have the ability to go borrow some. (Read: more debt)

It’s important that everyone understands his or her budget. Call the financial aid office and ask them about it. NYU is certainly willing to release the numbers of this budget and it helps to know yours. If anything, it should give some of you one more reason to bitch about NYU.

This year’s All-U Games will be held at Coles Sports Center, and events run the gamut from normal boring stuff like basketball to the hair-raising adrenaline rush of foosball and rock-paper-scissors. The highlight of the event? Sumo wrestling. That’s right—fat suits.

Each school will bring a mascot to the event. Stern, which has had a strong showing in past games, will have a pink slip as its mascot. Alas, one can only hope. But seriously, lame jokes aside, Gallatin promises to bring the year’s most original mascot: the imaginary friend. It goes right along with their imaginary majors/concentrations/whatever-the-fuck-they-call-them.

So if you feel like participating, just show up. Apparently there’s a formal process to choosing a team, but no one really follows it. The games start at 6 p.m. and should last the rest of the night. And then you can go get wasted/high like everybody else.

NYU lore has it that we used to be the Violets, a name fashioned after our school color, which in turn was taken from the violets that grew in Washington Square Park. We even used to have someone dress up as a flower, with leaves for arms, a skintight green bodysuit, and a necklace of purple petals (sadly, no photo evidence can be found). But then, the powers that be at NYU decided to scrap our flower for a more awe-inspiring replacement: our library catalog.

Yes, the ugly, red, “spiked-floor” behemoth that is our library was the inspiration for the lovable (and huggable) Bobcat. The yet-to-be-named Bobcat (its name’s up for a vote on the NYU Athletics homepage) has been a part of our university for over twenty years, taking part in countless sports games and even ballroom dances. And for what it’s worth, I think we should change our mascot. Again.

Bring back the Violet.

Why? Because it’s just really weird. What other school in the nation has a flower as its mascot? NYU is a school that doesn’t fit the established norms, and the Violet as a mascot would certainly further this. Plus, it would be hilarious (and somewhat disturbing) to see someone dressed up as a flower at sports games. It would be even better if NYU reestablished the football team. Then we’d have a Violet prancing around a football field. The image just screams NYU.

The Bobcat was created to fix something that didn’t need fixing. It was created because the Violet failed to be badass, and so we wanted to change our image. But does that really matter? We’re not a big sports school and we’re not particularly badass anyway. Why the need for this tough image at a school where the students couldn’t care less?

Bring back the Violet.

Photo by Michael Stasiak.

The two designers discovered the royal fabric during their visit to a village that made the cloth, and both fell in love with the material. For Gaston, the fact that kente is entirely handmade (it takes 3 months to make 6 yards) was convincing enough. “There’s kente out there that’s done by machine, but it’s not as detailed. You can tell the difference. It’s not as intricate,” she said.Their preference for the handmade versions of kente is a byproduct of their frustrations with mass-produced clothing. For Bissoon, finding clothes that fit her was difficult. “I would always be altering,” she said. Gaston had issues with what stores had to offer. “At one point,” she said, “I was so tired of going in stores and not seeing what I wanted, and so I just started creating my own items.”

For this reason, customization is a key aspect of Hemma’s business plan: customers will be allowed to design their own clothing. Not only does this ensure a product suited to the customer’s taste (and body size), but it also allows for uniqueness rare in today’s mass-made trends. Each article of clothing will be its own being, so to speak, with each color and pattern telling a different story, every piece woven by a different person.

In buying Hemma products, customers will also be helping Ghanaian school children at La Yahoushua Middle School, where both designers volunteered during their time abroad. A portion of the proceeds from Hemma will go directly to the school. While the exact percentage is still yet to be determined, Bissoon and Gaston are determined to make it a “sizeable” one.

Overall, the two designers wish to bridge the gap between the West and Africa, mixing a part of African culture with Western fashion. “One of the goals of Hemma is to show and represent the fabrics from all around the world,” said Gaston, adding that there are “great quality fabrics in Africa as well.” They wish to “break the stereotypes of what people expect African-inspired clothing to look like.”

Will Hemma Fashions be a success? They certainly hope so. “We would love it to be a force in the luxury market,” said Gaston. The two designers believe that kente’s quality and longevity (and all the pretty colors) will attract future customers. In addition, their belief in bucking the industry’s trends could be a positive factor. The designers don’t want their line to “reflect a certain trend in the industry” or “be a fad.” They’d rather maintain a timeless quality, “items that people can have for a lifetime” and hand down to their daughters. “We’re definitely in it for the long run,” said Bissoon.

To follow their progress, read their blog. They update frequently on their latest adventures in the fashion industry.

Photo courtesy of Flickr user okrahoma, used under CC license.

So how do they do it? Most of it has to do with what they’re not. As cheesy and as corny as it sounds, the NYU fencing team is not just a team, it’s a family. “We always joke that the fencing team is like a family, but it really kinda is,” says women’s team co-captain Eliza Friar (Gallatin ’10), “I have always found it to be a very accepting environment.” Men’s co-captain Jared Hammond (CAS ’10) attributes the team’s success to its teamwork and unity. “The team is greater and more important than anything else,” he says. “We cheer for each other [and] support each other.” CAS sophomore Sophie Ciaravino also agrees. “If you’re not fencing, you should be by their side, cheering them on.” Indeed, the NYU team is known for being especially loud and obnoxious during fencing meets.

Impressively, this enthusiasm doesn’t falter, even with incredibly demanding schedules. These athletes have to balance heavy school loads, fencing practice, and jobs (in some cases, two jobs). In addition, traveling to fencing meets often removes from precious study time for the students. “I don’t know how I do it, to be honest,” says Ciaravino.

At the head of this successful group is Coach Steve Mormando, whose zeal for the sport and the team was palpable even through his emails. Ciaravino describes him as a “fun fellow” who “tries to inspire us.” Indeed, his pump-up speeches have ranged from the ordinary to the downright odd, including a speech that involved a certain rear-ended sexual activity. A champion fencer himself, Mormando, upon becoming the head coach of the men’s team in 1987 (he was already the head coach for the women’s team), brought the team to twenty-five championships between 1988 and 2003, and continues to boast an impressive record. He gives a lot of credit to his assistant coaches. “They make both the program and myself shine,” says Mormando.

“In competition, we go to win,” says Mormando, “Any team that takes NYU lightly will go down.” Indeed, shortly before Christmas, NYU defeated Harvard, who won the Division 1 NCAA championship two years ago. At the NYU Invitation this past Sunday, the team faced other fencing powerhouses and fared well, posting victories against Wayne State and Yale, and qualified a few of their fencers to the regional competition. And 2009 only looks better. “2009 is an exciting year. Each weapon has one, maybe two athletes that can go all the way,” says Mormando. “We have depth. We have dedication. We are NYU. Just does not get better than that.”

Photo: Flickr courtesy of David Sommerfeld.