Latest news with #HunterCollege
New York Post
a day ago
- Entertainment
- New York Post
I'm a grandma of 3 and just graduated from college — now I'm taking a millennial-style ‘gap year' and celebrating with my new Gen Z pals
This new grad is celebrating with a post-college rite of passage — a gap year — only she's doing it in her 70s. At 74, Dorotea Levy de Szekely — grandmother of three and self-proclaimed lifelong learner — just graduated with a bachelor's degree from Hunter College, proving it's never too late to hit the books or rewrite your own story. 'My motto has always been, 'Don't let age be your cage,'' the witty Upper East Sider told The Post, walking in Hunter's 228th commencement at the Barclays Center on Friday, alongside more than 3,300 grads. Born and raised in Argentina, the stylish silver scholar had a decades-long detour before snagging her degree. After a cruel teacher in the first grade told her she'd 'never' finish high school due to a learning disability, Levy de Szekely avoided college entirely, despite an unshakable love for learning and a longing to pursue higher education. 5 Argentina native Dorotea Levy de Szekely longed to learn, so she went to college as a senior student. Stephen Yang 5 She is among more than 3,000 graduates attending Hunter College's 228th commencement on Friday. Stephen Yang 'You always learn, and I worked my life towards that verdict,' she told The Post. 'But every time I walked by a university, I felt this sadness and longing inside, as I wanted to go there and learn. 'Thankfully, here at Hunter College in New York City, this is the only place in the world I think that welcomed me, notwithstanding my age or who I am.' Her college comeback began in 2017, when she enrolled at the Borough of Manhattan Community College and earned her associate's degree in 2019 with a flawless 4.0 GPA as the co-valedictorian of her class. Then came Hunter, where she racked up a 3.98 GPA, triple majored in German Language and Literature, English (with a concentration in Creative Writing), and Studio Art — and made BFFs more than half her age. 5 Levy de Szekely's inspiring motto: 'Don't let age be your cage.' Stephen Yang One of them, a 20-year-old classmate named Babsi, is 'younger than my granddaughter,' Levy de Szekely noted — and yet, they've become such close pals that Babsi came to cheer her on at graduation and even set up a WhatsApp video call so a classmate in Pakistan could watch, too. 'I thought this was very moving,' a delighted Levy de Szekely said. After the ceremony, which would also be attended by her proud children and grandchildren, the brainy besties planned to celebrate with burgers at UES hotspot, JG Melon. Levy de Szekely's passion for people — and prose — shaped her college experience. 'For me, it's so important to look you in the eye and know who you are,' she explained. 'Sometimes it comes across as if you're nosy or curious, but I'm always very interested in the human being who's sitting across from me … being less ignorant about the other person makes you more compassionate. 'I made great connections at Hunter because I'm always asking everyone, you know, 'Who are you, what motivates you, where are you from?'' It wasn't just fellow students who made an impact — professors left their mark, too, especially those who helped nurture her love of literature. 5 She enrolled at the Borough of Manhattan Community College in 2017 and earned an associate's degree in 2019. Stephen Yang 'I love creative writing and history … There's so many things,' she said, revealing the brainy books and subjects she devoured. 'Like, we were reading Franz Kafka in German and studying the problems that arise when translating it to English or any other language,' she recalled. 'That's, I think, something very interesting.' Her literary tastes skew philosophical and are especially inspired by early 20th-century Austrian author Stefan Zweig. 'He said something that stuck in my mind — that history decides for you,' Levy de Szekely told The Post, adding that Zweig's writing resonates with her as it proves that even the smallest choices can shape the course of history. Now, instead of backpacking through Europe like many Gen Z grads, Levy de Szekely is taking a 'gap year' her own way — by devouring books on her own time. Levy de Szekely, who speaks an astonishing four languages — Spanish, English, German and 'some French' — later plans to tutor in Hunter's German department and prep for a master's degree in English at CUNY's Lehman College or Hunter. 5 Levy de Szekely has a particular fondness for the work of early 20th-century Austrian author Stefan Zweig. Stephen Yang 'I would love to pursue a Master's in English,' she said, admitting, 'I'd love for it to be creative writing, but it's going to be difficult.' She's even dabbling in fairytale rewrites — including a fresh take on 'Little Red Riding Hood' that honors 'powerful women.' One thing's for sure: she's not slowing down. Forget Sudoku, too — Levy de Szekely says eternal curiosity and an open mind are all you need to keep the mental gears turning at any age. 'As I say, learning is a journey. It's a life journey. So you have to learn,' she explained with a hint of philosophy. 'In life, you cannot live without learning, even if you don't know that you're learning.' Or, as her father used to tell her: 'The day I cannot learn something anymore, I will be dead.' Clearly, this grandma's just getting started.
New York Post
14-05-2025
- Politics
- New York Post
Trump admin backs Jewish professor's discrimination case against CUNY school
The Trump administration filed federal court papers backing a Jewish professor who claimed she was subjected to a hostile work environment fueled by antisemitic, Israel-bashing protests at CUNY's Hunter College. CUNY-Hunter filed a motion to dismiss the civil rights lawsuit filed in Manhattan federal court by Leah Garrett, chair of the Jewish Studies Center, saying the vitriol was protected by free speech under the First Amendment. But the US Department of Justice headed by Attorney General Pam Bondi intervened in the case Monday, filing a 'statement of interest' stressing the importance of abiding by the federal civil rights law that bars discrimination and subjecting employees and students in educational institutions to a hostile workplace. Advertisement 4 Leah Garrett of Hunter CUNY from her faculty profile with the Jewish Studies Center. 'CUNY Hunter may not simply rely on the First Amendment to avoid any scrutiny of whether it is liable under Title VI (Civil Rights law] for its failure to prevent disruptions that Dr. Garrett contends contributed to a hostile work environment,' the 26-page brief filed by the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division said. 'The First Amendment does not prevent CUNY Hunter from regulating material campus disruptions that may contribute to a hostile work environment under Title VI [of the civil rights law].' Advertisement In her suit filed last December, Garrett ripped the public university's leaders for turning a blind eye to antisemitic demonstrations across its Upper East Side campus in the aftermath of Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023 terror attacks on Israel. Garrett claimed the school allowed students to brandish posters with blood dripping from a Star of David and demanding Zionists be expelled. She also begged officials to cover up swastikas drawn on Israeli hostage posters around campus, claiming their hands were tied over bureaucratic and legal reasons, according to the suit. The Lawfare Project, the Jewish legal civil rights group representing Garrett along with the private law firm Alston & Bird, applauded the Justice Department's intervention. 4 A group of National Students for Justice in Palestine protest the filming an episode of CBS show, FBI: Most Wanted at Queens College of City University of New York (CUNY) on July 23, 2024 in New York City, United States. Anadolu via Getty Images Advertisement 'This is a critical moment in the fight against institutional antisemitism,' said Brooke Goldstein, founder and executive director of The Lawfare Project. 'The DOJ has made clear that public universities cannot look the other way while Jews are harassed, threatened, and silenced. This marks a turning point—federal civil rights laws apply to Jews, and schools that fail to uphold those protections will be held to account.' A Hunter College representative said the school cannot comment on pending litigation. 4 Protesters are pushed to the ground after blocking a CUNY security car from entering Brooklyn College during a pro-Palestine protest on May 8, 2025 in Brooklyn, New York. Michael Nigro/Pacific Press/Shutterstock Advertisement 'Hunter College has no tolerance for antisemitism or hate of any kind, and we're committed to fostering a safe and welcoming campus environment for everyone,' the spokesperson said. The rare intervention in a federal lawsuit is just the latest example of the Trump administration's aggressive crackdown on private and public universities that it claims are failing to stop anti-Israel protests that spew Jew hatred. Hunter is not the only CUNY campus in the crosshairs. 4 Leah Garrett of CUNY Hunter gives a talk on Mad Magazine in 2019. Last week, anti-Israel agitators brawled with cops at Brooklyn College after they set up a tent encampment and disrupted final exams. The melee drew outrage from Brooklyn lawmakers, who demanded CUNY brass take swift disciplinary action. Meanwhile, Trump's Joint Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism announced Tuesday that it cancelled another $450 million in grants to Harvard University after it said the Ivy League school 'repeatedly failed' to quell race discrimination and antisemitism on campus. The president's campus monitors in March also scrapped $400 million in federal grants to Columbia University over the Morningside Heights school's 'failure to protect Jewish students from antisemitic harassment.' They're also threatening to revoke visas and deport foreign students who engage in disruptive protests and illegal activity.
Globe and Mail
08-05-2025
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Improving your relationship with your boss starts with being more aligned on priorities
Interested in more careers-related content? Check out our new weekly Work Life newsletter. Sent every Monday afternoon. Melody Wilding, an executive coach and professor of human behaviour at Hunter College in New York City, believes that most of the stress and frustration people experience with their bosses is fixable, because it stems not from pure incompetence or antagonism but a lack of awareness on both sides about how to work together effectively. 'Most professionals know they need to manage up but few know how to do it well,' she writes in her new book Managing Up. The first step, she advises, is to adopt a strategic, investigative mindset. As you start to see your boss less as a gatekeeper or overseer and more like a human being dealing with their own pressures, distractions and demands from higher-ups, you will begin to discover what drives their decisions and unlock how best to communicate with them. That may seem unbalanced. Making the relationship work better is falling upon your shoulders. But she asks you not to view it as making your boss's life easier. It's about taking control of your own work experience. 'Even if you have a good relationship with those above you, why settle for good when it could be great,' she writes. 'Consider it an investment in your satisfaction at work.' You will need conversations with your boss to ensure better alignment, so you don't seem pulled in 100 different directions or spend so much time trying to decipher cryptic feedback or mixed messages. You want to figure out how your work fits into the bigger picture and make sure you and your boss agree on success. 'No more emotional drain from doing what you think your boss expects, only to get it wrong and face frustration and disappointment,' she says. 'You can replace any simmering tension with a sense of shared purpose and understanding.' Beforehand, she suggests spending some time figuring out your one-year vision – what work would be like 365 days from now if it was the best possible situation. What would you be doing? Who would you be interacting with? What would make the day energizing and fulfilling? What key projects might you be leading? What organizational changes can you foresee now and how can you best prepare? That will allow you to understand where you want to steer. Now you are ready to get into your boss's head. In upcoming one-on-one meetings and more general conversations with your boss, she recommends weaving in questions like: If it's your first time bringing up alignment or the relationship with your manager has been rocky, she warns you will need to ensure the questions don't seem to come out of nowhere by indicating your overall desire to understand things better. And the answers won't necessarily be crystal clear. You will undoubtedly need to dig deeper with further questions. Bringing yourself in alignment with your boss can help improve the relationship dramatically. You will want to supplement that by subsequent observation and conversations on issues like differing styles, how to get beyond bottlenecks and take greater ownership of your work, providing feedback to the boss on frustrations such as their lack of vision to favouritism to other colleagues, how to position yourself for promotion and remuneration. Managing up is part of your job. Harvey Schachter is a Kingston-based writer specializing in management issues. He, along with Sheelagh Whittaker, former CEO of both EDS Canada and Cancom, are the authors of When Harvey Didn't Meet Sheelagh: Emails on Leadership.
Yahoo
19-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘Not in our name': Jews in NYC say Trump attacks on Gaza activists not about fighting antisemitism
NEW YORK — As the Trump administration escalates its campaign against international students and Palestinian activists, Jewish New Yorkers are increasingly refuting the idea that the president's efforts are actually about fighting antisemitism. After Columbia student Mohsen Mahdawi was arrested at his U.S. citizenship test in Vermont, a group of his Israeli classmates penned a letter against his detainment, which they called immoral. A day later, a wide-ranging coalition of Jewish organizations issued a statement rejecting what they call a 'false choice' between Jewish safety and protecting democratic principles. 'Trump doesn't give a damn about Jews,' said Sarah Chinn, an English professor at Hunter College who has family in Israel. 'This is part of a concerted attack on higher education — that's it.' During a nationwide day of campus protests, one Jewish speaker in Lower Manhattan said he felt compelled to speak out against Trump's deportation efforts as Jews 'of conscience.' Further uptown, a leftist Jewish group held a 'Seder in the Streets,' where activists condemned the federal government's actions. For Aharon Dardik, 24, an Israeli-American student at Columbia, the Trump administration's crackdown is not only the stuff of headlines, but an active threat to his friends. Dardik, who helped found a Jewish group at Columbia calling for a ceasefire, and Mahdawi took a class together on peacemaking and negotiations. They were working on a 65-page framework for a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, when the activist started pulling back from daily life. After Mahmoud Khalil, another Palestinian activist at Columbia, was detained on March 8, Mahdawi stopped texting friends, relying on the encrypted messaging platform Signal for communication, before a 'self-imposed house arrest' because he feared the government, Dardik said. He was detained Monday by federal immigration authorities. 'As Israelis who knew him very well, we wanted to write a bit about more broadly, what it means for the administration to be doing this in our name,' Dardik said, 'and how simple it was for us, as people who know Mohsen well, to see how preposterous of an understanding of Jewish interests the United States government has — if it's something they care about at all.' Dardik and his classmates' open letter topped 400 signatures by the end of the week. 'Many of us experienced the past year and a half on Columbia's campus in a deeply personal and emotional way,' read the memo, which was first published in the Jewish news outlet The Forward. 'We are deeply impacted by the experiences of antisemitism and hate on our campus, and disheartened by the lack of nuanced dialogue on campus and within society at large about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.' 'However, we adamantly oppose the use of the immigration system as a punitive political tool and an alternative to the criminal justice system when no crime has been committed.' On Tuesday, American Jewish organizations from three denominations — Reform, Conservative and Reconstructionist Judaism — released a joint statement against holding activists for constitutionally-protected speech and threats to federal research funding. 'We at JCPA have been speaking out on this since the first arrest, making clear that two things are true at the same time,' said Amy Spitalnick, CEO of the Manhattan-based Jewish Council for Public Affairs, which convened the groups. Spitalnick went on to say that she met last week with about 50 Jewish students at Columbia, part of a leadership program at Hillel, who shared the feelings of American Jews more broadly: 'The deep, rightful concerns they have about how their university has handled antisemitism over the last year and a half — and concerns that the administration is now exploiting that fear.' The Trump administration has defended its actions, saying it is a privilege and not a right to study on American college campuses. In recent weeks, the federal government has taken immigration action against visa and some green card holders for pro-Palestinian activism and minor legal infractions, such as a speeding ticket. In the cases of Khalil and Mahdawi, the government alleged their advocacy could have an adverse effect on foreign policy interests to combat antisemitism. (Their lawyers deny the claim.) The Columbia Jewish Alumni Association, an organization formed during last school year's campus protests, has reviled both activists on social media and questioned public sympathy for them in the aftermath of their arrests. But Chinn, the professor at Hunter, part of the City University of New York system, said antisemitism is 'clearly pretext' for the Trump administration's actions. 'I understand why some diaspora Jews feel very connected to Israel. It's like in your bones,' Chinn said. 'The same way if you're a child or grandchild of a Palestinian refugee, this is generational trauma.' 'I don't think being angry is by definition violent.' On Thursday, hundreds of faculty and students from Columbia, CUNY and other New York colleges participated in a national day of action for higher education, where students and faculty held rallies on campus, before marching from Washington Square Park to Foley Square. Jonah Inserra, a New York University student and member of its graduate student union, started his speech in the Federal Plaza, just steps away from where Khalil was first held in immigration court, by arguing for the importance of standing up 'as a Jew of conscience.' 'We at NYU have so far been spared the kidnappings and arbitrary arrests of organizers and protesters,' said Inserra. But he accused college administrators of missing the moment to get organized. 'The total abdication of responsibility for the lives and well-beings of their students by the highest levels of university administration has left the task of securing our safety and our futures wholly to us,' he continued. 'And the number of people here today tells me that we are rising to meet the occasion.'
Yahoo
19-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘Not in our name': Jews in NYC say Trump attacks on Gaza activists not about fighting antisemitism
As the Trump administration escalates its campaign against international students and Palestinian activists, Jewish New Yorkers are increasingly refuting the idea that the president's efforts are actually about fighting antisemitism. After Columbia student Mohsen Mahdawi was arrested at his U.S. citizenship test in Vermont, a group of his Israeli classmates penned a letter against his detainment, which they called immoral. A day later, a wide-ranging coalition of Jewish organizations issued a statement rejecting what they call a 'false choice' between Jewish safety and protecting democratic principles. 'Trump doesn't give a damn about Jews,' said Sarah Chinn, an English professor at Hunter College who has family in Israel. 'This is part of a concerted attack on higher education — that's it.' During a nationwide day of campus protests, one Jewish speaker in Lower Manhattan said he felt compelled to speak out against Trump's deportation efforts as Jews 'of conscience.' Further uptown, a leftist Jewish group held a 'Seder in the Streets,' where activists condemned the federal government's actions. For Aharon Dardik, 24, an Israeli-American student at Columbia, the Trump administration's crackdown is not only the stuff of headlines, but an active threat to his friends. Dardik, who helped found a Jewish group at Columbia calling for a ceasefire, and Mahdawi took a class together on peacemaking and negotiations. They were working on a 65-page framework for a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, when the activist started pulling back from daily life. After Mahmoud Khalil, another Palestinian activist at Columbia, was detained on March 8, Mahdawi stopped texting friends, relying on the encrypted messaging platform Signal for communication, before a 'self-imposed house arrest' because he feared the government, Dardik said. He was detained Monday by federal immigration authorities. 'As Israelis who knew him very well, we wanted to write a bit about more broadly, what it means for the administration to be doing this in in our name,' Dardik said, 'and how simple it was for us, as people who know Mohsen well, to see how preposterous of an understanding of Jewish interests the United States government has — if it's something they care about at all.' Dardik and his classmates' open letter topped 400 signatures by the end of the week. 'Many of us experienced the past year and a half on Columbia's campus in a deeply personal and emotional way,' read the memo, which was first published in the Jewish news outlet The Forward. 'We are deeply impacted by the experiences of antisemitism and hate on our campus, and disheartened by the lack of nuanced dialogue on campus and within society at large about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.' 'However, we adamantly oppose the use of the immigration system as a punitive political tool and an alternative to the criminal justice system when no crime has been committed.' On Tuesday, American Jewish organizations from three denominations — Reform, Conservative and Reconstructionist Judaism — released a joint statement against holding activists for constitutionally-protected speech and threats to federal research funding. 'We at JCPA have been speaking out on this since the first arrest, making clear that two things are true at the same time,' said Amy Spitalnick, CEO of the Manhattan-based Jewish Council for Public Affairs, which convened the groups. Spitalnick went on to say that she met last week with about 50 Jewish students at Columbia, part of a leadership program at Hillel, who shared the feelings of American Jews more broadly: 'The deep, rightful concerns they have about how their university has handled antisemitism over the last year and a half — and concerns that the administration is now exploiting that fear.' The Trump administration has defended its actions, saying it is a privilege and not a right to study on American college campuses. In recent weeks, the federal government has taken immigration action against visa and some green card holders for pro-Palestinian activism and minor legal infractions, such as a speeding ticket. In the cases of Khalil and Mahdawi, the government alleged their advocacy could have an adverse effect on foreign policy interests to combat antisemitism. (Their lawyers deny the claim.) The Columbia Jewish Alumni Association, an organization formed during last school year's campus protests, has reviled both activists on social media and questioned public sympathy for them in the aftermath of their arrests. But Chinn, the professor at Hunter, part of the City University of New York system, said antisemitism is 'clearly pretext' for the Trump administration's actions. 'I understand why some diaspora Jews feel very connected to Israel. It's like in your bones,' Chinn said. 'The same way if you're a child or grandchild of a Palestinian refugee, this is generational trauma.' 'I don't think being angry is by definition violent.' On Thursday, hundreds of faculty and students from Columbia, CUNY and other New York colleges participated in a national day of action for higher education, where students and faculty held rallies on campus, before marching from Washington Square Park to Foley Square. Jonah Inserra, a New York University student and member of its graduate student union, started his speech in the Federal Plaza, just steps away from where Khalil was first held in immigration court, by arguing for the importance of standing up 'as a Jew of conscience.' 'We at NYU have so far been spared the kidnappings and arbitrary arrests of organizers and protesters,' said Inserra. But he accused college administrators of missing the moment to get organized. 'The total abdication of responsibility for the lives and well-beings of their students by the highest levels of university administration has left the task of securing our safety and our futures wholly to us,' he continued. 'And the number of people here today tells me that we are rising to meet the occasion.'
