By Katie Meyer

In his second “University Community Monthly Update” email to the student body, Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of the university, provided updates about goings-on at Fordham’s various campuses, ranging from cyber security awareness to combatting racial injustice.
He began with an update on the university’s Middle States Steering Committee. The group is a part of Fordham’s membership in the Middle States Association of the Commission of Higher Education, an organization in which colleges and universities are accredited through peer evaluation. The Steering Committee is tasked with carrying out a self-study of Fordham’s affairs ahead of Fordham’s next evaluation, scheduled for next semester.

In his email, McShane reported that the Steering Committee had, after three years of “research, analysis and broad input from Fordham faculty, administrators, staff, students and alumni,” presented a draft of the self-review. The members also met with Fordham’s Board of Trustees and other administrators, faculty and students, as well as two special assistants to the president at Boston College.

McShane also brought up National Cyber Awareness Month, which was in November. The University Information Security Office hosted events throughout the month focusing on phishing, which the office defines as “for the malicious attempt to acquire sensitive information such as credit card numbers, social security numbers, and passwords.” To drum up student response to the phishing-related outreach, the office put out an interactive quiz on the subject, which showed students firsthand how sophisticated some phishing scams can be. Entrants to the quiz were all entered into a raffle for an Amazon gift card. Students could also win a gift card if they won a contest for designing the best ad about cybersecurity.

McShane also addressed the recent rise in racial justice activism at both Lincoln Center and Rose Hill. Particularly, he highlighted Fordham’s efforts to address the call for a further discussion on race, writing on the university’s first Racial Justice Teach-In, which was held at both campuses and was spearheaded by the Undoing Racism Collective at Fordham University, and co-sponsored by the Dorothy Day Center. McShane reported that the events drew more than 300 participants, and quoted the event’s organizers in describing the teach-in as “a space to explore the realities and impacts of racism, and to take collective action to address personal and structural racism.”

He also gave particular attention to the Dorothy Day Center’s work on race issues, calling the office “deeply involved in University racial justice initiatives,” and noting that staff members have been guests and presenters at other teach-ins, gatherings, and discussions on race.

McShane wrapped up his address to the student body with a rundown of major figures who appeared at Fordham and Fordham-related events over the past month. One of the most notable visitors was Pulitzer Prize-winning author Junot Diaz, who spoke at Rose Hill in an event entitled titled ‘You Are Not Dominican’: Race, Identity, and Diaspora. McShane also listed off Charlie Rose and Mike “Doc” Emrick as prominent figures who have come into contact with Fordham; both received awards at WFUV’s On the Record event, which was hosted in Fordham’s law school.
Additionally, former New York State Attorney General Eric Holder was awarded the annual Fordham-Stein Prize, and Óscar Cardinal Rodríguez Maradiaga, SDB, Archbishop of Tegucigalpa, Honduras spoke on a climate change panel at Lincoln Center.