Journalism

Leila

Posted on by Nicole DiGiose

Every few weeks you can find a crowd of Purchase College students in the Food Co-Op waiting to sing along with singer-songwriter, Leila Hegazy.

The sophomore majoring in studio composition from Staten Island says she chose to come to Purchase instead of her number one choice, Berklee College of Music, because it was the smartest financial decision. She says that it’s great because the campus is friendly and she gets to do what she loves.

Hegazy’s singing began when she was a child. “I enjoyed singing as a kid. I made up songs in the shower.” She smiles. “I sang about glue and crayons and teddy bears. I also enjoyed singing in front of people.” Read More

The Purchase Independent

Posted on by Nicole DiGiose

An article I wrote for my journalism class in February 2010.

Students on the Purchase College campus have recently noticed a change in their weekly newspaper, The Purchase Independent. It hasn’t been as satisfying to them as many of the previous issues have been.

From the seniors who have been flipping through The Purchase Independent every Thursday to the curious crowds of freshmen, their talk about the beloved college publication is the same: The Indy is lacking material to write about.

Editor-in-chief, Mariel Loveland, a senior Creative Writing major from New Jersey says that it isn’t only The Purchase Independent that is struggling for stories to cover, but the college’s online news source, The Brick, also does not have much to write about. She says it’s because many Purchase students do not want to be involved in campus activities, and therefore, nothing much happens on campus.

“There also aren’t many people who are interested in writing for the newspapers here. Everybody would rather be drinking and partying,” Loveland says. “The Purchase Independent is like a community, we’re all really close and very accepting. People don’t understand that you don’t have to write.” She says that there are also layout positions, and that you don’t have to be a part of the newspaper to submit your articles, comics, or anything else that is considered intriguing to the student body. Read More

Nerdy Jock

Posted on by Nicole DiGiose

An interview of a classmate in my journalism class (February 2010).

Scott Duwe, a 21-year-old journalism major is half jock and half geek. He’s come a long way to stand where he is, being that SUNY Purchase is the third college the Long Islander has attended.

Compared to SUNY Farmingdale and University at Buffalo, Duwe says, “Purchase is really chill, really small. That’s why I like it.” He also says that unlike his previous schools, Purchase offers great Journalism classes, and pursuing a career in Journalism was always something he was drawn to do.

“Sports are my life and my passion,” Duwe says. “I’ve been a ticket plan holder for the Yankees for years. I go to about 10 to 15 games a year.” He dreams of one day being a sports broadcaster. Although he has no specific favorite sport, he says, “Baseball is my favorite sport to play, and I’d like to cover it.” Remaining a true sports fan to his state, he says that his three favorite sports teams are the New York Yankees, the New York Rangers, and the New York Jets. “I live and die with my teams,” he says.

“I’m a jock when it comes to sports, but I really am a nerd. I’m just a big geek.” He shares that the first word he had spoken wasn’t the typical “mama” or “daddy,” but instead, “turtle.” As a toddler, Duwe was a fan of the cartoon that aired on television in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. He says that Raphael is still his favorite character from the show. Next to the turtles, he also enjoyed Power Rangers. To this day, he still catches some episodes by downloading them off of the internet. Read More

Illuminated Stripes

Posted on by Nicole DiGiose

An interview I covered for The Submission Magazine in December 2009.

See pictures at http://www.TheSubmission.net, Issue 26.

Ding! The doors rumble as they slide open and I follow Jeff Gardner into the elevator of the Neuberger Museum. I’ve heard about his design, Illuminated Stripes, but was not expecting such vivid color. Jeff, in his heavy jacket, smiles as my eyes explore the flashy column of colors on the back wall. Deep blue rests on yellows, oranges, reds, and purples that are stacked on bright green. Similar colors race up the dark panels as streaks of light. Jeff looks amused as the gray doors clash together, forming in large, white, vertical print: Neuberger Museum of Art.

Neuberger_Museum_Elevator.jpg

The $3,800 project began with pulling the measurements from all of the wall panels, in order to install the vibrant ones. Jeff jokes that if Oxford Color, the vinyl printing company, didn’t hang the panels, it wouldn’t have looked as good because he wasn’t sure how to do it.  He focuses on the humming lights above us and points. He and some classmates deconstructed them, cleaned the dusty glass panels in the ceiling, and by himself, set up the lighting exactly the way he had it planned out.  I am mind-boggled as he explains the technicalities of the plexiglass strips that are dazzling the walls with color.

“They are 2.5 inches by 95 inches.” He presses a hand on the wall while still making eye contact and explains, “the reason for the dimensions are because behind the strips are little indents that are all separate panels, it’s not a continuous wall.”  He goes on to say that the lighting strips he used are paper-thin strips of LED lighting that he ordered from China. They were $4.45 per linear foot there, which is much cheaper than Port Chester’s $17.00 per strip. After receiving the lights, he figured out the amperage to effectively brighten up the elevator. Each strip needs only one amp of power, and the lights put out 12 volts of energy.

Jeff takes a step back and inspects the floor, his palms face upward as he outstretches his arms. The floor was never in the original budget, but his design wouldn’t be complete without vinyl flooring.  He, along with some help, put the hickory vinyl plank flooring together. “One of the interns that work at the museum and I were in here for four and a half hours on our knees, peeling and sticking,” he says, imitating the movements of peeling and sticking with his hands.

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