Our Story: Plugged In

We asked our upperclassmen team members and some of their friends to answer the following question: “How and why did you choose your major?” Our goal for this to be able to shed some light on how different people chose different majors, and hopefully help underclassmen gain insight into what they want to study!

For our "Seniors" series, team member Sam Barrett and senior Jacob Dietle explore how he’s been able to find community in extracurricular events, in the rugby team, and in general at Fordham, as well as his journey with mental health.

As a continuation of our "Meet the Team" series, team members Shannon and Rhett talk about Senior and Freshman years in Covid and small moments that bring the Fordham community together.

Team members Molly and Sam talk about small world moments, music as a way to transport a person back to a memory, and the joys of human connection.

Team member Shannon Zipfel speaks with her friends Eliot Schiaparelli and Sarah Kowaleski, two seniors at Fordham College Rose Hill, about their friendship since freshman year, their favorite Fordham memories, and what makes the Fordham community so special.

This episode, we are doing things a little differently. This episode is your opportunity to “Meet The Team”! We asked our team members to introduce themselves and answer three questions: Why did you join the Our Story team? What is one thing we need to know about you to understand who you are? And what is your favorite Fordham memory?

Team members: Molly Henschke, Mia Behrens, Liza Kottler, Bridget Poole, Emma Claire Marvin, Kelly King, Reece Brosco, Olivia Higgins, Rhett Bailey, Sam Barrett, Sammy Bittman, Shannon Zipfel, Willow Scott, and Alex Makatsaria

Team member Molly Henschke talks to Khadija Aslam about being Muslim during the holidays, Ramadan, and the time she ruined Christmas for her kindergarten classmates!

Team member Liza Kottler speaks with Bella Iazetta about Catholic traditions during Christmas, how the holiday has changed for her, and some of her favorite holiday-season activities.

Team member Reece Brosco speaks with Chirayu Shah about family time, Jain tradition, and his love of hot cocoa.

Team member Molly Henschke speaks with Char and Sophie, the heads of Secular Student Alliance about secular life at a Catholic institution, starting a new club, and how they have been welcomed, despite religious differences.

Here are the links mentioned in the episode:

Secular Student Alliance instagram: https://instagram.com/fordham_ssa?igshid=hjmn5fq0ztfc

Petition: https://www.change.org/p/joseph-m-mcshane-change-fordham-university-health-center-s-policies-on-sexuality?utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=custom_url&recruited_by_id=7450bfe0-77f6-11e9-875b-8586f1d60ece

Ethical Directives for Healthcare: https://www.usccb.org/resources/ethical-religious-directives-catholic-health-service-sixth-edition-2016-06_3.pdf

Team member Sam Barrett talks to Patrick Sawyer about some of the clubs he's involved in, his running journey, and his love for the Bronx.

Team member Debra Chieco speaks with Helen Stevenson, Editor in Chief of the Fordham Ram, about the importance of trustworthy journalism, changes made due to Covid, and how the Ram has shaped her Fordham experience.

Team member Willow Scott speaks with Hani Jawabrah, leader of Advocates for a Palestinian Perspective about family, memories of Palestine, and speaking out.

Liza Kottler talks to Julia and Mary Sparago about life as identical twins, their love of K-Pop, and pushing each other out of their comfort zones.

Shannon Zipfel talks to Vicky Kalpaxis and Mason Rowlee about being friends at Fordham and in NYC, bonding over similar interests, and how friendships grow over time.

Kelly King has a conversation with Maggie and Jeanne Riley about friendship between a mother and daughter, higher education's impact on one's personal growth, and the ways Fordham has changed.

Sam Barrett talks to Mickey and Patrick Stack about living abroad, family tradition, and their relationship as brothers over the years.

Sam Barrett talks to Bridget Murphy and  Triona Delumpa about faith, music, and a friendship formed through vulnerability and love.

Liza Kottler chats with Caleb Rocha about relationships, family and discovering what you want to major in. 

Rosie McCormack talks with Molly Brodowski about creativity and ruthlessness. 

Team Member Liza Kottler chats with Gil Roberts about fashion, music and friendship.

Team Member Liza Kottler talks with Evan Allan about his experiences in the Ramblers and the Honors program and how they shaped him as a person. 

Team Member Liza Kottler talks community, friendship and theater with Lizzi Hartnet.

Team Member Olivia Higgins chats with John Luke about his time on retreat team and coming out of your shell in college. 

Liza Kottler sits down with senior Kate Courter as they talk about adjusting to being a New Yorker after moving to the big city. 

Ashley Chenery talks with team members Erica Knox about her experience on the Jetes and the importance of being your true self. 

Team Member Liza Kottler talks with Sabrina Zavarelli about the power of casual magic and finding communities that are not communities by design. 

Team member and former storyteller Shannon Zipfel talks with Anna Burianek about the communal and healing power of nature. 

Liza Kottler chats with Emma Paolini about finding strong friendships in Fordham theater, love languages, and the power of being creative. 

Team Member Rosie McCormack sits down with Julia Agos, one of our storytellers from this semesters unfortunately cancelled cycle.

Alex Mandalakis sits down with Our Story Team Member Liza Kottler to chat about finding community in theater, roommates and abroad. 

Team Member Rosie McCormack talks community, loyalty and stepping out of our comfort zones with senior Leila Witcher.

Our Story Team Member Liza Kottler chats with Julia Corbett about finding community at Fordham. 

Senior Elly Rodriguez talks with Our Story Team Member Mia Behrens about her time at Fordham.

Team Member Sammy Bittman sits down with senior Rachel Malak to talk about how she found community during her time at Fordham.

Welcome to Our Story Plugged In, a new podcast from Fordham University's Social Impact Storytelling team! Host Shelby Daniel sits down with one of the founding members of the program, Rosemarie McCormack. They talk about the core mission of the Our Story event,  why storytelling in this medium is important now, and what's to come in the future. Be sure to follow us on Instagram @socialimpactstorytelling for the latest on new episode releases and other events.