Fordham Conversations

This week Fordham Conversations features stories about membership. Whether you're a member of a social club, or a member of a community, there are pros and cons to membership. First, we talk to Alan Linn. He's the owner of the Norwood Club on W 14th St in Manhattan. Norwood is one of the most exclusive social clubs in NYC, designed as a place for creative minds to come together. Then, urban planner and Fordham professor Cecil Bakalor talks about how city projects might not be the best thing for members of the Bronx community.

Human trafficking is often associated with large sporting events, like the Super Bowl.  So in preparation for the game The Tri-State Coalition for Responsible Investment has joined a number of groups who are working to raise awareness about the issue and deter this form of modern day slavery.  

Sister Pat Daly is a Dominican Sister of Caldwell and Executive Director of the Tri-State Coalition for Responsible Investment.  She’s joined by Margot Morris, the Associate Program Director of the organization.  We also hear from Kate Combellick, a clinical associate professor of communications and media management at the Fordham Schools of Business. She explains the possible economic reasons someone may become a victim of human trafficking.

This week on Fordham Conversations we take a literary trip through the gritty streets of the South Bronx with Fordham Professor Dr. Mark Naison and his new book “Pure Bronx”.   It’s a story about a young couple and the means they use to try and escape the poverty, desperations, and frustration that can sometimes come with living in New York City’s poorest borough.  There’s also a cast of characters that provide an opportunity for the reader to see the South Bronx through a variety of different, ethnic points of view. 

This week on Fordham Conversations is all about art in the Bronx. David Storey, visual art professor at Fordham University, talks about art's relationship to New York City and how it has spread to the outer boroughs. Then, Chris Williams travels to the BronxArtSpace in Mott Haven on the opening night of the 'Portals and Interventions' exhibit. He talks with curator Linda Cunningham and artists Marita Ibanez, Rosemarie Fiore, Vidal Centeno, and Xavier Figueroa.

Dr. Joseph Ponterotto’s latest book “A Psychobiography of Bobby Fisher” attempts to understand the mind of arguably the world’s most famous chess player.  Also, WFUV’s Viridiana Castelan reports on a group of Bronx students whose meet-and-greet with Yankee’ shortstop Derek Jeter encouraged them to immerse themselves in reading.

This week, Fordham Conversations is about housing and how people from different generations go about buying a house. It turns out Baby Boomers have different attitudes towards home ownership than Millennials (the generation born between 1980 and 2000), and they’re buying different types of houses. Jessica Lautz, director of member and consumer research at the National Association of Realtors, talks about a buyer and seller generational trends. Then, Fordham Professor Emily Rosenbaum explains why some people are waiting until they are older to own a home and how this compares to previous generations.

Fordham University was once a stomping ground for U.S. President’s, war heroes and leaders in a number of prestigious fields.

The Jesuit institution, formerly known as St. John's, has a long and storied history. Students faced with fighting each other during the American Civil War. The greenland around Keating Hall (shown above) served as a training ground for students heading off to the western front in WWII. We learn this and more on this week's Fordham Conversations with guest Debra Caruso as she discusses her book Fordham University and the United States: A History.

On this week’s show, Fordham Professor Maureen Tilley tells us all about Christmas traditions and the stories behind them, some you may know and some you may not. From the horrifying folkloric Krampus to the reason we celebrate on December 25, why we exchange presents, and why Santa lives in the North Pole. Dr. Tilley is a professor of theology and medieval studies. 

Fordham University professor of Law and Founder and Director of the Fordham Urban Law Center, Nestor Davidson discusses  the legal questions that arise as cities begin to grow.

This week on Fordham Conversations, Fordham Philosophy professor William Jaworski talks about reconciling the spiritual world with the physical world. He discusses the Aristotelian concept of "hylomorphism" and how's he's adjusted it for the modern world.