GSA Council Meeting

The next GSA Council Meeting will take place on Monday, Nov. 12 from 9:30 - 11:00 am in FMH 308. All GSAS graduate students are invited to attend.

GSA Day of Service

The GSA will be co-sponsoring a day of Native Tree Planting in the Bronx River Forest with the Bronx Neighborhood Initiatives and Development Corporation (NIDC) on Saturday, Nov. 17 from 10am - 1pm.

Come learn about recent changes in our local natural areas and plant young trees to restore the balance of nature. All graduate students are encouraged to participate. Transportation will be provided.

Please RSVP to Gary Gabor at gsa@fordham.edu by Wednesday, Nov. 14.

GSAS Insurance Discount:

Students who have not received their insurance discount and are on scholarships with the exception of tuition scholarship only students, should be aware that the Office of Academic Programs & Support (i.e. Lydia and Jenn Latham's Office) will be requesting the next batch of $400 insurance discount by November 7. If anyone is interested you will need to submit a copy of their bill or a copy of their insurance card to this office (Keating 216/217) by November 7, 2007. Those who have already submitted their copy, they don't need to do anything.

Please note: the insurance discount is a one time stipend for the academic year.

Any questions, contact:

Lydia Ocasio
Office of Academic Programs & Support
Graduate School of Arts & Sciences
Fordham. University
LOCASIO@FORDHAM.EDU

External Fellowships: Regina Plunkett-Dowling

Dr. Regina Plunkett-Dowling will be visiting the following departments, serving pizza and soda, and informing grad students about opportunities for external fellowships - including the Mellon, Fulbright, DAAD, and others - and services available through her office, the Campion Institute, Fordham's Office for Prestigious Fellowships.

Other departments are also encouraged to invite her to visit. To set up an appointment, call her at ext. 2772, or e-mail plunkettdowl@fordham.edu

Economics Department
Tuesday, Nov. 6th
4:00pm-5:00pm

Biology Department
Thursday, Nov. 8th
1:00pm-2:00pm

English Department
Thursday, Nov. 29th
Noon - 1:00pm

Also, as a note: Dr. Plunkett-Dowling is going on leave spring semester - she is travelling to Ireland on a Fulbright Fellowship to teach and conduct research in her specialty, the New Testament.

Graduate students who are contemplating applying for fellowships in the fall of 2008 should stop by Thebaud 107 and introduce themselves before she leaves. She will return her Fordham office June 1st. In her absence, Dr. John Kezel, the Director of the Campion Institute, will work with graduate students.

GSA Working Groups

The GSA would like to announce a new initiative for graduate student research: The GSA Working Group Committee.

These groups aim at fostering interdisciplinary graduate-level research on topics which draw from a number of disciplines.

This fall, three Working Groups are being developed: Ethics, Medieval Thought and Society, and Phenomenological Psychology. Descriptions are available below.

If interested in joining a Working Group, please contact Gary Gabor, Vice President of the GSA, at gsa@fordham.edu . In addition, students who wish to propose new Working Groups are encouraged to contact the GSA.

If you have any questions about Working Groups, please contact the GSA or your Departmental GSA Council Representative (list available at www.fordham.edu/gsas/gsa )


Working Groups Descriptions

Ethics

The Ethics Working Group promotes the collaborative study of theoretical and applied ethical issues in an interdisciplinary setting. Topics are determined by the interests of the group; potential areas include bio-ethics, environmental ethics, issues of social justice, science and technology, and professional ethics. All departments are encouraged to join.

Medieval Thought and Society

The Medieval Thought and Society Working Group utilizes interdisciplinary cooperation to engage medieval worldviews across number of spheres including intellectual, religious, and political thought. Specific topics will be chosen by the group, but the underlying theme will be to explore the connections between medieval thought and its manifestation in medieval society.

Phenomelogical Psychology

The Phenomelogical Psychology Working Group fosters an appreciation for Qualitative Methods in the Social Sciences (Psychology, Sociology, Anthropology, etc.) through exploring the philosophical roots of psychological concepts and methods. Husserl, Heidegger, Sartre, Levinas, and Merleau Ponty are just a few of the philosophers discussed. The forum affords students exposure to deep philosophical thinkers and ideologies and encourages students to brainstorm in a meeting of the minds framework; whereby students from a variety of disciplines share their expertise in various forms of methodology and analysis.