As a talented and aspiring dancer, Sydney Guine, FCLC ’24, has no doubt that she made the right decision enrolling at Fordham. Though only a freshman, she is looking forward to pursuing her passion for dance along with all the other exciting opportunities that come with college life.

Dance has always been a major part of Guine’s life, so it is no surprise that she decided to enter college as a dance major. “I’ve been dancing since I was three,” she said, “so for fifteen years.” When applying to colleges last year, Fordham’s Alvin Ailey BFA program for its dance majors really stood out to Guine. Students in the program are able to take their dance classes at the Alvin Ailey dance studio while taking their academics at Fordham’s Lincoln Center campus, which Guine found really appealing. “I didn’t want to go to college for dance and not get an education,” she explained. “Since Fordham had a program where you can do both, I really liked that.” 

As much as she was attracted to Fordham for its opportunities in dance, the school’s location in New York City also made an impact on Guine’s enrollment decision. Originally from Los Angeles, she was already accustomed to city life, but desired a change in scenery when it came time to choosing a college. “I knew I wanted to leave L.A., and I wanted to be on the East Coast,” she said. “Obviously, New York is the closest thing to L.A. you can get on the East Coast, so I thought this was perfect.”

So far, Guine is loving her time at Fordham, though she admits that the pandemic has hindered her experience as a college freshman, to which most first-year students would probably attest. She especially misses the chances for “in-person mingling,” whether in an academic or social setting. All of her classes are online except for dance, so her “friend group is mainly dancers and roommates of dancers.” She doesn’t mind Zoom, but the online environment does pose challenges to socializing and forming relationships with classmates. The lack of in-person activities outside of class makes it even harder to meet new people on campus. Elaborating on this struggle, Guine stated, “It’s kind of awkward to just knock on doors and be like, ‘Hey, can we be friends?’,” 

Nonetheless, Guine assured me that finding opportunities to explore the city during the pandemic “hasn’t been a problem.” One of her favorite activities to do with her friend group has been thrift shopping. “We’ll go out on the weekend and find new places to shop and eat,” she added.

Like many freshmen, Guine has no definite plans for her future at Fordham as she is still getting accustomed to the campus and college life in general. However, she has given much thought to possible career paths after college that complement her love of dance. “My dream after Fordham is to join a modern or contemporary company, ideally Philadanco [Philadelphia Dance Company] or Dallas Black,” she said. But Guine is not restricting her options to one city, or even one country, as she is also considering joining a dance company in Europe. “I want to dance and travel with the company all around the world,” she said. “That’s the dream.”

Guine’s Fordham experience so far probably reflects that of most current college students, especially freshmen. However, her story shows the importance of maintaining a determined and optimistic attitude, even in these trying times. The pandemic caused Guine to start her college journey under unfavorable circumstances, yet it has not stopped her from enjoying all that she can and setting impressive goals for life after graduation. Hopefully things will soon return to normal so that she can take full advantage of everything that Fordham and New York have to offer.