March 2016 - CUNY Faculty Protests Funding Cuts

By Abrian De Luna

 On March 10. A rally led by the CUNY Rising Alliance took place outside Governor Cuomo’s office in downtown Manhattan.  The protest was a response to the governor’s plans to cut state funding to CUNY by $485 million in spite of a budget surplus. 

The atmosphere in the few minutes before the rally began was calm, though hundreds of people were present.  There was a casual intermingling amongst the participants.  A few people in the crowd had musical instruments such as a saxophone, drums and trumpets.  Several student led news groups such as Revelation and The Independent were passing out papers and flyers.  The majority of people wore a green article of clothing to signify that they were part of District Council 37,  public employees union of New York or one of their supporters.  CUNY Rising Alliance was joined by other groups such as The CUNY Student Senate and Alliance for Quality Education.  A great portion of the rally attendees held signs that read “Invest In CUNY, Invest In New York” and “CUNY IS FOR THE PEOPLE.”

            Jahmila Joseph, assistant associate director at District Council 37, inaugurated the rally with a speech emphasizing that DC 37 members have not gotten a raise or a contract in the last seven years.  She cited the increased cost of tuition, rent and MetroCards, and said nearly 7,000 of the 10,000 DC 37 members have been making less than $15 an hour, many of whom are parents of CUNY students and graduates working for CUNY.  The protesters booed in response to these revelations.  Joseph’s speech was followed by testimonials from former CUNY alumni about how CUNY had served them, including one who recalled acquiring his first internship through CUNY.  Neither Governor Cuomo nor anyone from his office responded to the rally.  

            Dani Lever, a spokeswoman for Cuomo, told Politico that “CUNY is the way to higher education and a better life for more than 250,000 students, many whom are the first in their family to attend college, or are new Americans and New Yorkers.  The governor has always been a champion and advocate for these students and is committed to ensuring this system remains strong.”  Lever added that, “the express focus of the governor’s plan is to direct additional resources to the classroom and faculty by finding ways to reduce bureaucratic costs and consolidate back office functions.  There is no scenario in which this plan would adversely impact CUNY students and to suggest otherwise is simply untruthful.”

            The protesters practiced a variety of chants and jeers that were used as they marched to their next destination. One chant was in Spanish, going “Cuomo escuchas, estamos en la lucha! (Listen Cuomo, we’re in the fight!).”  Another one was “Public funding-no tuition hikes!”  A third was “Students, faculty and staff unite-same struggles, same fight!” Some even broke out into a song, accompanied by music, shouting “Education is a right!”  and “We are the people’s university!”  The protesters continued as they made their way, escorted by police, from the governor’s office to the rally’s second destination at the Community Church on West 35thstreet.

A CUNY rally against funding cuts on March 10, 2016. Photo by Dave Sanders.

September 24, 1998 - Guiliani: Out For Blood Regardless Of The Vein…I’m All Tapped Out!

By Jennifer Del Castillo

In May, some unexprected news about Assesment tests came from the Board of Trustees, due to what many view as unfair pressure from Mayor Guiliani. Whereas CUNY students previously were “allowed” to attend any city university (if accepted), regardless of whether or not they had passed all three required tests, now, according to the dictated standards of Guiliani, if you don’t pass the test , you should not get a decent education

            Not to knock Bronx Community College, but some students decided to go the college with a somewhat higher level of education and a greater challenge.  Some students decide to attend Lehman rather than going to Bronx Community, but as of September 1999, if you fail any of the three tests, you will no longer have a choice. Only community colleges will be offering any remedial classes, so as a student, you will have to sacrifice your desires, goals and personal preference, once again.

            The three tests are given in Reading, Writing, and Mathematics, (the RAT, WAT and MAT).  These are basic tests that show your basic level of high school education, which in the city isn’t normally too great.  The problem is, they’re punishing students for not having what they weren’t given to retain.  And despite the fact that all students have to pass these tests sooner or later to graduate, the Board of Trustees, by passing this new law of sorts, is making the assumption that people are taking these tests seriously.

            The problem with the test is that most people don’t really know how to student for them…so they don’t.  NUT, when they do fail the tests, they take part in tutoring programs, and classes that help students’ study for and better understand these tests. I for one failed for my mathematics assessment test.  When I heard the news, I enrolled in a free tutoring session in the Gillet Hall Math Lab. I like most Lehman College students, came to school because I wanted to be here.  Who has time to neglect work and party?  Nobody I know on campus at Lehman College. It’s about doing what has to be done.  So, for me, like many other students, there was no problem studying for the test, going over my mistakes, and learning something from them by the time I had earned my 61 credits.  The current alternative though, deprives me of this option.  I think if this rule has existed back when I first enrolled in 1995, my college career probably wouldn’t have ever existed.  

            Not that I want to speak on my own behalf, it’s just that I’m the perfect example.  I know for a fact, that the time when leaving the atmosphere of high school, I was not ready to go right into an unpleasantly similar scene.  If it had come down to going to a community college or coming here, I probably wouldn’t have even come to school.  And look at me now.  I am a college senior with a 3.0 etc.  GPA, and enough professorial residue lurking about inside my head to actually feel like I’ve learned something.  I find this to be the better alternative than a 50 cent raise every six months.  But we don’t really matter.  And what do the efforts of daily tutoring sessions mean when you have a point about how much slack you exactly can pull.  Shoving weight around when he can’t even lift it. Guiliani pulls a muscle trying to look at the burdens we carry every day.  

            And it’s not just a few people who will suffer because of this new rule.  Up to 13,000 entering students fail at least one of these tests per year.  And with the already lacking situations that most Community Colleges face, many are wondering how these schools are possibly going to be able to carry the burden.  “I don’t know where we will put them,’ said Carolyn Williams, the President of Bronx Community College.

            Schools enacting the new rule in September 1999 are Baruch, Brooklyn, Hunter and Queens Colleges.  Other schools will be enacting the rule in September 2000, such as our very own Lehman College, John Jay, Staten Island, New York City Technical, and City Colleges. Last but not least, Medgar Evers College plans on enacting the rule in September of 2001.  

            The supposed reasoning behind this that they want to abolish all remedial courses at senior colleges.  And since City Universities are trying to establish themselves as academic contenders to other people, they’re forgetting exactly who it is that they’re supposed to be serving.  They’re relying on sacrificing the education of one man, to show the already learned man something he already knows, but doesn’t much care about anyway. 

            Many people are calling it discrimination based on the fact that CUNY is a 70% minority system with 40% minorities failing all three of the tests.  I call it another case of Fooliani striking again, after midnight, during the day, it doesn’t matter, as long as he gets his point across.  We can wear our garlic necklaces or stock up on silver bullets, the choice is ours.

Rudy Giuliani made controversial changes to CUNY’s assessment and admission polices in 1998.

February 5, 1981: CASA’s President Wins In Disorderly Election

By D. Leon Smith

Arnold Burton, President of C.A.S.A. at Lehman, has been elected Vice Chairman for Fiscal Affairs to the University Student Senate. Burton, a member of the party opposing incumbent Lenny Shine, will assume responsibility for his new position immediately.  Garth Marchant succeeds shine as Chairperson of the organization.

The election was full of tension and ill-manner.  Delegates from colleges supporting Marchant led the meeting in anger and anarchy.  Elizabeth Garcia, senator delegate from Lehman, questioned Shine on a lawsuit brought against him and Chancellor Kibbee by an old inside associate, Fredi Washington. Delegates backing Mr. Shine were visibly annoyed with Garcia for bringing up this issue, which had never made it to litigation proceedings.  Shine replied that the suit is unjust and that he was always open to questions and Garcia was trying to discredit Mr. Shine and swell support for her party.

            Two other parties opposing Shine were led by Jerry Savage and Nathaniel Dolphine.  Savage received 6 votes and Dolphine a humongous 3 (try not to laugh).  A second vote was taken after Dolphine and Savage were eliminated.  The end result, Shine 17- Garth 24, was an unexpected defeat.

            Shine’s reputation as Chairman of the U.S.S. was of the highest esteem and credibility.  He had very close ties with several members of the Board of Trustees and a trusting relationship with Chancellor Kibbee.

            Among Shine’s contributions to C.U.N.Y. in 1980 were his blocking Mayor Koch’s proposed tuition increase and a secure commitment for Governor Carey to block implantation of the Education Department’s new T.A.P. regulations.  He later initiated a lawsuit against the State Education Department to overturn the new T.A.P. regulations.

            All three delegates from Lehman were voting with the opposition.  Immediately after Garth was announced the victor, Elizabeth Garcia, his ally from years past, threw herself into Burton’s arms in celebration.  While the voting was going on, Sam Farrell, President of the Black Student club was seen communicating with members of Garth’s party. It was Sammuel Farrell, a public accountant , just back from Africa, who had planned the defense.

            Mr. Marchant in his election speech to the delegates, promised to make an issue of the 10-year plan, a report submitted by the Board of Trustees as a guide for future policy making.  He also said the plan was dangerous to the students of CUNY. Marchant also spoke against the new G.E.D regulations saying that they have a tremendous effect on the students of CUNY.  Shine gave his farewell speech to the Board of Trustees on January 25th, after Marchant introduced his Executive Committee, including Arnold Burton.

At the Leading Edge of the Women’s Movement

by Charlotte Linde

“The personal is the political.”  This was a slogan of the Women’s Movement (or what we now call second-wave feminism). I offer  some reflections on being part of a social movement without explicitly recognizing that a social movement was happening and that I was part of it.

I entered Hunter College in the Bronx (laterLehman College)  in  1961,  at the age of 16, after 5 years at Hunter College High School. (I like to say that I was a high school dropout, but formally, it was an early enrollment.)

Hunter High School was at that time, an all-girls school. The most dramatic part of moving to college was being in a coed environment. Half my fellow students were boys! (I use the terms of the time, in hopes of giving a feel for those times.)

Although Hunter High School as a college prep school was academically demanding and very competitive, there were still aspects of the culture’s view of the place  of  women. In  speech class, a required class, someone asked why we needed to learn Robert’s Rules of  Order.  The answer  was  “When you are married, you could very likely find yourself as the president of the local chapter of the  Women’s  League of Voters, and you’ll need to know them.” Nothing about needing them in Congress.

In both high school and college, part of my education came from magazines for girls and young women avidly: “Seventeen Magazine,” “Mademoiselle.” Not yet “Cosmopolitan.” I needed to know how to style my hair, how to choose lipstick, and how to be in the world as a girl. All these magazines gave the same message. Be smart but not  too  smart. Be competitive but not too competitive.

Be a good enough tennis player to give your boyfriend a good game,  but  be sure to lose to him most of the time.

From the earliest moment that I noticed these messages, I was frustrated and outraged. If you didn’t want me to be smart, why did you even bother to teach me to read? I felt that I was being asked to hold one arm behind my back and gracefully pretend I only had one arm. Other women were having these same frustrations, but if there was an ongoing conversation about this, I  was not part  of it. I never spoke about it to anyone.  At that point, my personal experience was not political.

In 1963, Betty Friedan published “The Feminine Mystique,” now considered one of the markers of the beginning of second-wave feminism. I found it in the library, and read it again and again.  I was an 18-year-old college student, not the frustrated suburban housewife she wrote about. But I recognized perfectly the constraints and deceptions she described and felt an astonished relief that someone was seeing and naming what I saw, but as she said, did not have a name for.

Betty Friedan’s revolutionary book The Feminine Mystique sparked the beginning of second-wave feminism

Again, I  did  not   speak  about   this to anyone. It was not yet for me a movement, or the subject of political activism. There may have been organizations forming  in  college around women’s issues, but I was not aware ofthem. I did not join a women’s group until the early 70s, when I was in graduate school.

My college experience also contained a counter-theme. I joined the collegenewspaper as a cub reporter, c and worked on it throughout my college career, finishing aseditor in chief. I never intended tobecome a journalist. I think I joined partly because I liked to write, and partly because I liked thepeople on the paper. Andamazingly,  to someone coming from an all-girls school, it was a coed group, men and women working together. I learned not only how to work with male colleagues, but how to have male friends. Not boyfriends. Friends. That opened up to me an astonishing vista: a world in which women and men were allpeople,with feelings, capacities, desires,fears, eccentricities.

 We have now moved on from second-wave feminism to fourth wave. I hope we can come to a new metaphor,  because the problem with waves is that there is never an end to them. On the newspaper, as we were writing, editing, doing layout, taking the paper to the printers, we were colleagues. It was not perfect, of course. There were many instances of what would come to be called sexism, many misunderstandings and unfair acts. But perhaps the most important thing I learned was that there could be a weakening of the barrier between the “opposite  sexes,” in  which at times, for a moment, I could live in a world in which everyone is people.

Lehman College Past to Present

By Felicia Rivera

Donated by the U.S. Navy, the Bell of the War- shipU.S.S. Columbia. Photo by Felicia Rivera.

Many Lehman students strolling across campus may not know that they’re walking on a historic campus. This is the same ground that newly enlisted women and participants of the first United Nations Security Council also walked, containing a great deal of history and interesting facts. In the 1930s, Lehman’s Campus was previously Hunter College and named “Hunter in the Bronx” or “Hunter Uptown Campus.” It opened in 1931 and served as a two-year college for female students in their freshman and sophomore years. After a decade, Hunter College Uptown was to serve other purposes too.

During World War II, Hunter College vacated the premises and the uptown Bronx campus was leased to the United States Navy. In 1943, it became a main training site for women in the military. The US Navy named the campus the USS Hunter and trained thousands of Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service (WAVES). This was the location where elite women of the US Navy went through boot camp. Three years later, after the war ended, the US Navy closed up shop and vacated the premises. The US Navy, in honor of this period, donated the bell of the USS Columbia, which according to the National Museum of the US Navy, was a ship that saw action in World War ll. The ship’s bell can be found on the side of the Old Gym Building right across from the library for anyone who wants to give it a ring.

The Lehman College Old Gym Building is where the bell of the U.S.S. Columbia warship can be found. Photo by Felicia Rivera.

According to an article written by Hunter College’s sixth President John J. Meng, in March of 1946, the UN Security Council convened in its first home in this country, the gymnasium on the campus. In August, the Council concluded its first session and the 30-acre campus was again taken over by Hunter College and in addition to women, had separate classes for former veterans. Hunter College gradually became coed in 1951. By 1967, Hunter College departed from the Bronx Campus altogether. In 1968, Lehman came into existence. After consideration of  many  names, the college was named after Herbert H. Lehman, in honor of his public commitment. Herbert H. Lehman was born in New York City to German immigrant parents. According to the Hall of Governors NY Government website, he was a successful businessman, four-term-serving governor and US Senator. In addition, he was the first director-general of the UNNRRA (United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration).

Lehman opened its doors inJuly 1968, according to the Lehman website and Dr. Leonard A. Lief, who was a former faculty of the English Department at Hunter College. He became its first President, a position he held for more than 20 years. When on Lehman’s Campus, one can find the library, which opened in 1980 and was dedicated in his honor.

Nearby Developments Hold Promise to Revive Lehman’s Neighborhood

By Perla Tolentino and Tom Stoelker

Goulden Avenue. To the west of the road is the Jerome Park Reservoir and to the east is Lehman’s Science Building, Gillet Hall, Public Safety, Child Care Center, Shuster Hall, Davis Hall and Carman Hall. Photo by Perla Tolentino.

The Lehman community anchors crucial changes in nearby development and infrastructure that holds the promise to transform the Kingsbridge area. Lehman sits at the heart of a large tract of public land that’s just over a mile long and nearly half a mile wide. Educational institutions, train yards, parks, and the city’s water supply cluster together. The properties run from Kingsbridge Road in the south to Mosholu Parkway in the north. There is a considerable history of improvements on Lehman’s campus (See Lehman College Past To Present by Felicia Rivera ). Contrariwise, external developments have arrived slowly.

The largest and most significant proposed development is the Kingsbridge National Ice Center (KNIC), set for the armory located between Reservoir and Jerome Avenues, which is expected to transform the former military facility into the world’s largest ice rink with nine rinks and a 5000-seat stadium. The total cost of the project is expected to be $355 million. Last summer, developers told Crain’s that they had negotiated $170 million in financing with Citibank to cover the first phase of the construction, though the bank did not confirm. Aside from the support of the city, the developers, Citibank and other governmental agencies uphold the project.

“NYC Economic Development Corporation (EDC) remains committed to supporting the Kingsbridge National Ice Center, which is anticipated to boost economic development and recreational activities for young children and families in the North Bronx,” said EDC’s Assistant Vice President of Public Affairs, Shavone Williams.

Protruding from the trees in the background are the new Jeromehousing development and the gigantic Kingsbridge armory across; both seen from Lehman’s Old Gym. Photo byPerla Tolentino.

The rank “largest” was also given to the military complex in 1914 when the New York Tribune named it the largest armory in the world. The armory transformation saga began in 2009 when City Council rejected a remodeling plan to turn the armory into a mall by the Kingsbridge Armory Redevelopment Alliance. The Ice Center plan, led by New York Rangers legend Mark Messier, launched in 2013. In that same year, an environmental impact statement published by EDC revealed the projects’ site plan, which includes a perspective view from Reservoir Avenue and West Kingsbridge Road, the main and upper ice levels, east-west-north-south sections and elevations, and an overall conceptual view of the project.

The Northwest Bronx Community & Clergy Coalition (NWBCCC) and 25 other community organizations won a historic Community Benefits Agreement for the project to move forward. The agreement assures KNIC will provide living wage jobs, of which 51 percent will be reserved for Bronx residents. Also, 51 percent of procurement will be reserved for minorities and women-owned businesses. Free access to ice rinks will be granted to Bronx Title I schools and community-based organizations. Finally, a technical assistance fund will be developed for local small businesses and a commitment to no big-box retail or supermarkets within the facility.

Nevertheless, some business owners doubt the project will eventually take place and believe the armory is only attractive for profit and won’t benefit the community.

“All these projects were announced but never accomplished. I think the armory looks good to make money. People come, request funds and then disappear. I think it’s pretty obvious,” said a small-business-owner whose store operates across from the armory. In a 2018 interview with the Meridian, the merchant, who asked to remain anonymous, said most owners near the armory operate their business without a lease. Organizations such as the Commercial Lease Assistance Program have been offering help. Some Lehman students are also concerned with the ice-rink development.

“My concern is how this project will affect Lehman students, neighborhood residents, and local business owners being pushed out because of high rent, caused by a new attraction that is at the expense of the community,” said Lucinda Jones, a sophomore majoring in social work who lives near Yankee Stadium. “I’m also concerned with the parking around the area. For me, that is very important. I imagine how hard it will be for everyone who lives in this area to park their vehicles once this project ends.”

“My concern is how this project will affect Lehman students, neighborhood residents, and local business owners being pushed out because of high rent.”

- Lehman sophomore Lucinda Jones

Meanwhile, as the Ice Center plan continues amidst a foggy future, other projects have already started.

The Jerome Park Reservoir located across the west side of campus is currently undergoing a $15 million revitalization that will strengthen the 770 million-gallon water supply system and make it more attractive to pedestrians. According to the NYC Department of Environmental Protection, the modernization of the 94-acre reservoir will end in 2021. Inaugurated in 1905, Jerome Park Reservoir was built as an additional source of water storage within the city. Previous renovations in 2000 and early 2010 connected the water-supply to the newly constructed Croton Water Filtration Plant activated in 2015. Current restorations include a full rehabilitation of two water gates, the installation of a security camera system, and the replacement of the 10-foot-high fence with a view-friendly 4-foot-high fence. The basin serves a small but crucial purpose. Today, 10 percent of New York City’s drinking water is processed through this basin. Some students think that city funds shouldn’t be used for remodeling.

“I’m not familiar with some of the changes occurring around the community or the importance of it, but I think there should be more libraries and more access to knowledge resources,” said Joshlyn Rodriguez, a 26-year-old English and professional writing senior who lives in Castle Hill. “It would be nice to see more funds used towards the renewal of the system of public schools.”

Remodeling projects similar to that of Jerome Park Reservoir are taking place east of Lehman. The Jerome Avenue Retaining Wall reconstruction across Lehman’s Jerome Avenue gate consists of the installation of a new water main, the remodeling of the sidewalk, curb, side streets, landscaping of Jerome Avenue and Parkview Terrace. The project is operating under a budget of $15 million and is projected to end in the summer of 2019 according to the NYC Department of Design & Construction’s spokesperson, Shoshana Khan. Some students agree the community is changing slowly yet progressively.

“I think there are not many changes in the community, but I’ve noticed somenew buildings,” said Yireh Trimarchi, a 24-year-old health services administration senior. “Maybe in the future things will change and there would be a noticeable difference that will make a big impact.”