The Next Big Thing

The Media Shapeshifter

One of the many successful Honors College alumni that were invited to speak at the Honors Brunch last week was Mark Ginocchio, who graduated from Adelphi just seven years ago, and currently works as a corporate communications editor at STV Incorporated. Here is his take on working in media.

Marinova: Did you always know you wanted to work in media? What influenced your decision?

MG: I have always loved to write so I knew even early on in high school that I wanted to do something with my life that involved the written word. I ended up gravitating towards media writing (specifically newspapers and magazines), because in addition to storytelling, there’s an element of problem solving that comes with being a reporter, and I love that challenge. You can never approach a news story knowing exactly what it’s going to look like at the end, because there are so many variables. You need to speak with certain people, and you need to find the details – and sometimes in those details new wrinkles present themselves that must be addressed. It was one of those things where the more I did it, the more I wanted to keep doing it. When I was in college, I spent the last two years interning at Newsday on Long Island, and being immersed in that environment at a legitimate competitive newspaper assured me that I was making the right decision.

Marinova: What does your current job with STV entail?

MG: Many companies/institutions have a corporate communications team. At STV, which is an engineering, architectural and construction management firm that is headquartered in New York City, the corporate communications team is responsible for providing company information to employees, and to external sources like the clients we work with, our competitors, and in some cases, the media. As the editor, I’m responsible for our two primary publications – the company newsletter which provides news distributed only to our employees, and our company magazine, which is a promotional tool we distribute to our clients that let them know what kinds of projects we’re working on. In both cases, I assign or write, edit and oversee layout and distribution of all written materials.

Marinova: What do you like about your job?

MG: My company is doing a lot of great work on both coasts of the country and in Canada, so there’s a lot going on, and therefore a lot to write about. To assist me with my reporting, I’ve visited a number of job sites around the country, which give me a unique perspective of the kind of work we do. The engineers, architects and construction managers I speak with are also immensely talented, and it’s worthwhile getting to speak with people who are legitimate leaders in their respective industries.

Marinova: What are the challenges of working in media? What is your personal strategy of dealing with them?

MG: I have the unique experience of working and witnessing both ends of the media spectrum. Before joining STV, I worked for five years at the Stamford Advocate, a daily newspaper in Stamford, CT. The challenges that came with that job were immense. When you’re working at a smaller daily, you have to always be looking out for the next story or there will be a gaping hole in your coverage. It’s a job that requires persistence and a thick skin because there are a lot of people out there who don’t want to deal with the media. At STV, we’re looking to control our message a bit more since these publications are meant to be both informative and promotional for the company. So each article involves a lot of time and energy to make sure it strikes the perfect balance.

Marinova: How did you decide to go to college at Adelphi?

MG: I grew up nearby Adelphi on Long Island and had attended a number of events on the campus while I was in high school. A family friend then passed on some information about the Honors College there, which piqued my interest even more. During my interview with Honors College Dean Richard Garner, he did an amazing job of selling the university to me, that I knew it was the right fit.

Marinova: What was your experience as an undergraduate student? Were you involved in any organizations on campus?

MG: I’ve always felt that your education is only as good as the work you put into it so I was a very involved student. I was editor in chief for a few years of the Delphian campus newspaper, but was also involved in Student Government Association (Honors College Senator) and InterACT – a performing arts group on campus which I believe has since changed its name.

Marinova: You are partially responsible for the existence of The Delphian?

MG: I was part of a group of students that was integral in bringing it back after the newspaper was disbanded by a former president of the university. When I was a freshman at Adelphi, the Delphian came out every few months, which I thought was insufficient given how the university was growing. I helped to petition the university to get better equipment and technology that would enable us to produce a newspaper in far less time, and I recruited everyone I could find to help us out with writing, photography, layout, business development… pretty much everything. It was a lot of work, and a lot of sleepless nights, but it paid off. By the time I graduated, the Delphian was regularly publishing every two weeks.

Marinova: What was you experience with the Honors College? What was your favorite class?

MG: The Honors College was an outstanding educational experience for me. It’s difficult for me to pick a favorite class because they are all wonderful in their own way. Modern Condition got me thinking about different ideas as a freshman, and I read some of my favorite books to this day, when I was in Human Condition. The junior and senior seminars I took, which included a class on dystopian films, and another seminar on children’s literature, were integral in not only getting me to think differently, but to discuss (and argue) differently.

Marinova: Do you see a correlation between your professional success and the fact that you were part of the Honors College? Please give us an example if you can.

MG: As I mentioned earlier, the Honors College really helped to shape the way I thought and talked about whatever it was I was studying. If anything, it allowed me to always be flexible and thoughtful about whatever I was writing about. I didn’t come to the media industry only being able to comfortably write about one or two topics because my education provided me with such a wide range of subjects that were completely immersive. When I started Adelphi, I thought I would one day be a sportswriter because I really liked baseball and football. But in my professional life, I’ve written about business, politics, engineering, architecture, sports, health, and many other topics. I believe I owe a lot of that to the diverse education I received.

Marinova: In your daily life, do you still make references to the literature you read as an Honors student? When you think of the classes you have taken, what work stands out?

MG: Well, I think if I quoted sections of Marx or Freud in my office I would probably get strange looks, but there are authors and movies that I’ve sought out on my own because of something I’ve read in the Honors College. In Human Condition I read a book, “Wrestlers Cruel Study” by Stephen Dobyns, which was great because it presented a highly philosophical (and comical) bent to the “gimmicks” of professional wrestling, and it also made me seek out other Dobyns novels like “Church of the Dead Girls.”  After reading Ovid’s Metamorphoses for a senior seminar, I went back after the fact to reread some of the Shakespeare’s plays that were influence by Ovid.

Marinova: You met your wife at Adelphi. Please tell us about that (everyone loves love stories!).

MG: My wife, Erin Hadley, was a year ahead of me in the Honors College, but we still managed to take a few classes together. We also had some mutual friends because one of my suitemates was in her freshman orientation group and they had maintained their friendship. That’s what brought us into contact with each other, but in reality, Erin is my best friend in the world and that’s what’s kept us together into marriage. And because we share so many interests, even if we weren’t in the same class as each other, we both got to share in the experience because we would were always sharing books and papers with each other.

Marinova: How do you see yourself 10 years from now?

MG: The world we live in now is constantly changing so I’ll try and keep this simple. In 10 years, I hope to be still writing, still married to Erin and hopefully have a family.

Marinova: What advice would you give to Honors College students who are also interested in media? Did you find your professional path immediately after graduating?

MG: I was fortunate enough to have a professional job within a month of graduating.  As for advice for future media mavens, I think the key is to be flexible and open to using your talent in a way that is both spiritually and financially fulfilling. When I graduated, I thought I would spend my life in newspapers, but the newspaper industry is struggling so immensely now, it would have been irresponsible for me to not see how I can use my talent elsewhere. You just have to familiarize yourself with all of the possible outlets for your craft. And like a lot of creative jobs, you have to have a thick-skin and be okay with rejection.

Honors College Networking Event in April? Tell us what you think!

Whether you have already figured out what you want to do for a living, or you are still wondering which is the right career choice for you, there is no doubt that networking can help you in both cases. If you meet someone who has graduated and has been in the work force for at least couple of years, you will probably get a better idea of whether you want to work the kind of job that person has and how to get such a job. Therefore, I thought it would be useful for undergraduate Honors College students to meet up with people who have some real-world experience. The only questions are:

1) Would you attend an event for the purpose of networking with successful Honors College alumni?

2) If yes, what kinds of career opportunities are you interested in (so we can invite alums from the professional fields that match your preferences)?

If you are reading this post, please comment below or email me at svetla.marinova@yahoo.com.

Alumnus Profile: Robert J. Meekins

The Rational Rebel

My most important criterion when selecting my first interviewee was that I wanted to start my blog with a familiar face – someone that we have recently seen on campus and whom we can easily identify with. The first name that popped into my head was Rob Meekins – the epitome of determination and perseverance, who not only impresses with his perfect 4.0 GPA, natural business sense, and eloquence, but also pleasantly surprises with his charming smile and approachability.

Rob graduated Adelphi summa cum laude in 2006 with a major in Political Science. He served as Student Government Association president, was inducted into Omicron Delta Kappa national leadership honorarium and Pi Sigma Alpha national political science honor society, and received prizes for Best Honors Thesis in Humanities, Best Senior Political Science Paper, Outstanding Political Science Graduate, and the President’s Student Leadership Award.

Robert has worked as a consultant, intern, and assistant editor for the Adelphi University Web site, local high schools, and nationally recognized publications, including the World Policy Journal, before deciding to become a business person. He is now a partner and executive director of a tutoring company, Medschool Tutors, that he established together with a close friend in the summer after his graduation. Rob’s specialties are in the areas of essay craftsmanship, public speaking, and admissions, so he definitely has some good advice for those who are currently applying to jobs or grad school, or are considering doing so in the near future.

In the beginning of the Q&A, Rob and I focus primarily on his rather controversial undergraduate career, and later on, our topics range from practical tips on writing the perfect cover letter to interpreting religion. I certainly learned a lot from him and I hope that you will enjoy reading the interview as much as I enjoyed conducting it.

Marinova: How did you end up coming to Adelphi?
RM: I actually started my college career at Penn State and after my first semester I ended up thinking that I didn’t really want to stay in school. However, when I came back to Long Island and decided that I wanted to go back to college, I chose Adelphi and I ended up falling in love with this place and wanting to stay. Having the Honors College made my experience that much more appealing.

Marinova: How does someone as academically successful as you are decide not to be in school?
RM: I call this period of my life an existential crisis. I was becoming very anti-establishment and I thought I might learn more independently rather than in an organized way.

Marinova: I am surprised that a rebel like you decided to study government structures and became a poli sci major.
RM: I have always had ambitions for public service but I am more excited about the leadership and strategy involved in politics, the history of it, and how it applies to today. International relations is the field that interests me more than just political science.

Marinova: It seems then natural that you would want to be involved with the Student Government Association at Adelphi.
RM: I had not really done anything like that before Adelphi. In high-school, since we did not have a student government because I went to a religious and rather authoritarian school, I filled the role of the loud-mouth and the person who criticized unappealing decisions since I was a good public speaker. SGA was very small when I first became part of it. My friend Matt was already involved and he convinced me to become a Commuter Senator. Then I was Parlamentarian for two years, and then I was elected President. However, I knew as soon as I had my first position that I had to change many things about SGA in order to be able to remain part of it. I was annoyed by the impotence of the association. The only things that people talked about were food and laundry machines, as important as they are. I wanted SGA to be more involved in other aspects of the school; I wanted to turn it into more of a force that has a role when it came to real big decisions that the administration was taking. I had a grander view about SGA - that it would be involved with curriculum, faculty-student interaction, construction projects, interaction with the board of trustees, scholarships, budgeting issues, etc. However, these are long-term goals and in one year, I did not have enough time to see them to an end. It would be sad to see this organization fall back into the pattern I found it in. Those involved in it need to have a backbone in order to have the administration be concerned about what SGA would say about certain decisions. It is a force with a lot of potential that could be utilized.

Marinova: There aren’t too many Honors College students involved in SGA these days. How has being an Honors student affected your experience in SGA?
RM: Just from an electoral strategy point of view, I knew that the Honors College is a tremendous resource in terms of mobilizing students to vote for me. Of course, being better informed and more well-rounded contributes to being a good leader. Dean Garner also helped me in this respect by being there to advise me. However, there is no direct relationship between being an Honors student and being a good asset to SGA. In my mind, I would hope that more Honors kids get involved in SGA if they manage to overcome the requirements to run for executive positions because I believe that not being able to run for certain positions handicaps the organization as it prevents capable leaders with big ideas from getting elected. I myself was almost prevented from running for president when my rival for the position filed a motion that I should not be allowed to run for president because one version of the constitution stated that parlamentarians should not have the right to do so because they are not technically on the executive board. I tried to resolve this issue by presenting some very compelling arguments, which were rejected because I was not liked. My next step was to stage a rebellion during an SGA meeting when I invited in my supporters and orchestrated a “coup” in order to get the chair of the elections committee to overturn my opponent’s motion. When I was finally allowed to campaign, there was less than a week left, but I had a very good strategy and it worked. It was fun!

Marinova: You are also the founder of Kappa Sigma at Adelphi. How did that happen?
RM: I almost prefer sometimes to start my own things rather than join other people’s organizations, something that certainly played a role in business later in life. When I chose to start Kappa Sigma, I cared a lot about extracurricular life at Adelphi and I noticed that male Greek societies were lacking. At that moment, there was literally just one fraternity, which was about to collapse and it did collapse. After experiencing Greek life at Penn State, where it is thriving, I knew I wanted to be involved in that kind of thing at Adelphi too, but I never wanted to go through the process of joining a fraternity. Therefore, knowing that I had enough quality guys to be with me in this, I decided to establish Kappa Sigma. I chose the organization deliberately because of the values that it stands for: leadership, fellowship, scholarship, and service. Greek life contributed a lot to my social life. Some of my best friends from college are my fraternity brothers.

Marinova: Let’s move to your professional experiences. How did you end up becoming a partner in a tutoring company?
RM: I had many twists and turns when I was graduating from college the way I did when I was entering it. During most of my life I expected that I would go either the academic or the legal route. Toward the end of my career at Adelphi, I became more interested in the classes that I was taking with Prof. Rizopolous so I figured I would get a PhD in History. I actually applied and got accepted to some nice programs. I was ready to go to Boston University which offered me one of their best fellowships.

Marinova: How do you say no to that?
RM: Well, in the last minute I realized that I was not ready to commit 5-6 years of my life to a program. At that point I was still thinking about switching to law school and business was not a natural choice for me.

Marinova: What made you change your mind again?
RM: My high-school friend and business partner John got me into the idea of tutoring after he did SAT tutoring in the Washington, DC area while going to college in Georgetown. After coming back to NY to go to medical school and working for another tutoring company for a while, he decided to recruit some people to work with him. However, he did not have a structure for his business and I helped him establish that in the summer after I graduated from Adelphi. During that summer, we decided to turn this small business into something that had regulations, better marketing, and goals. We started with little money and we put together a simple website. I remember not knowing what to do about photos, so I came to the Honors College and I asked my friend Zori [Davidkova] to take pictures of the more photogenic people I knew to serve as models. So we got off the ground but it was slow because neither one of us had a business background, and we were essentially learning. We knew we were smart and we could talk to people and we had to learn how to sell our product. This was difficult because I have always been better at selling things I do not directly benefit from than things that involve someone paying me for them. I read The Little Red Book of Sales, which helped me a lot and I recommend it. But confidence was key and once you believe in what you are providing, it is not as hard to do it. Necessity also played a role because I knew that when we weren’t making any money, I had to push myself harder and get results. Our goals have also morphed into goals that are more natural to me and that made it easier to market something that is my own. I still particularly don’t like telling people how much things cost.

Marinova: How did you learn how to tutor?
RM: I worked as a Writing Tutor here at Adelphi and I have always liked to help my friends. However, I owe my tutoring skills to my partner John who has tutored thousands of hours and taught me what he knew. I was fortunate enough to have good instinct to pick up what he told me and aggregate experience and ideas that worked. I tutor writing, the verbal part of the SAT and the GRE. However, I am not a natural tutor and I am much better at supervising. The funny thing is that I have never taken my own standardized tests very seriously. Even though I scored in the 90th percentiles, I couldn’t stand studying for those exams or got any tutoring and I did not manage to go to Stanford or Yale. Maybe that is why I feel a desire to help students who have to take these exams now. What tutoring does is, it provides discipline to allow you to study hard so that you can get into good schools.

Marinova: Most of the tutors that work for you actually graduated or currently attend highly ranked schools such as Columbia and Yale. How does your background at Adelphi measure up to that of your coworkers?
RM: I have to prove myself to them and they have to prove themselves to me because I am their employer. It is a two-way relationship. I know that I have savvy to show them and I have never had a loss.

Marinova: Do you sometimes wish you went to the kinds of schools that your coworkers graduated from?
RM: Sometimes I do. However, the Honors College is like a microcosm of a highly ranked school and I don’t even know whether it is better to be in a school where there is only that, because that could be like living in a bubble. Maybe it is better to have the Honors College as a refuge, but once you walk outside, you encounter many different people who have intelligence that they use in different ways. You don’t need to have a certain stereotypical educational background in order to succeed. In business I see a lot of people every day who are quite untypical and that makes me believe that you can not judge a person by the place where they went to school. You have to give them a chance because otherwise you might miss opportunities or you are underestimating people because you are overconfident.

Marinova: That way of thinking gives many people hope that not having an Ivy League school on their resume doesn’t necessarily mean that they will not be able to get a good job.
RM: It depends. If you want to get a job that requires a higher level of education, then you obviously need to go to a good grad school. However, beyond that, it is a fact of life that the name of your college matters to some firms, but not to all. It is more about how you present yourself and there are two things that count a lot: your interpersonal skills and your writing because a phone call or a cover letter is the first impression that your potential employer gets from you. In terms of that, your personal statement is what could separate you from the rest and it is important that you find a way to talk about yourself in an engaging and creative way. I read job applications all the time when we hire new people and it is incredible how much personal statements blend in. If a person is coming from a good school, but their writing sucks, I couldn’t care less what their education is.

Marinova: How does one set oneself apart from the rest through writing?
RM: In order to make the reader want to get to know you, you need to know your audience and take responsible risks when writing in order to make the reader want to invite you to an interview. If your audience is conservative, you will obviously take fewer risks. When it comes to job hunting, there is a book called Guerrilla Marketing for Job Hunters which offers some interesting strategies about getting attention from an employer in a creative way. That is the most important thing – you need to get a chance. Most people do not go past the resume and cover letter stage because it is so hard to tell people who you are in one page. Make sure you give people a flavor of who you are in a vivid way, rather than in a boring way.

Marinova: What was your favorite class in the Honors College?
RM: I loved Prof. Rizopolous’ Origins of WWI class. It was the second class that I had taken with him, and then I followed up on that with a series small group of tutorials with him on history topics.

Marinova: So you are more of a history person than a Poli Sci one?
RM: I actually like to read more political science-related sources: newspapers, journals, magazines. I do not have so much fun reading history books unless they are supplemented with discussions.

 
Marinova: Is that why you declined Boston University's History PhD offer?
RM: I wanted to continue to do things the way I interacted with people at Adelphi. Being in a PhD program just didn’t appeal to me in the end of the day. If I’m going to go back to school, and there is a really good chance that I will, it would probably be law school. The truth of the matter is that I’ve always thought to myself, if there is one thing I can do well, that is to be a litigator. My mind and my talents lead me in that direction.

Marinova: What did you like the most about Adelphi?
RM: By the time I graduated, I liked almost everything about Adelphi. One of the most important things I learned is that opportunities exist, as long as you make things happen. In my first year and a half at Adelphi, I didn’t make things happen as much as I did once I got to my junior and senior year. At that point I started to understand Adelphi; I understood how I fit here, whether it was within the Honors College, or in extracurricular activities and in terms of social life. One of the things that was enriching once I knew what was available to me was that I got a chance to utilize all of my skills. I would have liked more time to do this. In the Honors College I had the stimulating and educational seminars of Prof. Rizopolous which allowed me to develop my thinking, considering cause and effect. So that covered the intellectual point of view. And then I was able to utilize my passion for service and leadership through SGA and my fraternity among other things. I really felt that I was on top of my game here: I had all these opportunities, but at the same time there were enough challenges to prevent me from getting bored.

Marinova: You received the Best Honors Thesis in the Humanities award for your senior thesis. What did you write about?
RM: I wrote a survey of all the literature written about the role of the British foreign secretary’s role in the final days of the July Crisis which led up to the outbreak of WWI. So basically, in history, we ask whether leaders did the right thing and why. I used secondary sources for the most part, but I used literally every secondary source that was available and I wrote my own review of the literature adding my own opinion. I had somewhat radicals ideas in my paper and I enjoyed discussing them with professors Sullivan, Starkey and Rizopolous during my defense.

Marinova: Were you nervous about defending radical opinions?
RM: Not at all. It was actually a lot of fun because Starkey and Sullivan went at me. Especially professor Starkey because he was very familiar with the topic. But I was happy with the thesis I had written and I knew that they could either agree or disagree with me but that wouldn’t negatively affect my grade.

Marinova: What would you change if you could go back to the point in your life when you applied for the History PhD?
RM: I probably would not have applied again. I would have probably gone directly to law school. However, thinking in retrospect, I am not sure whether that would have been the right thing to do. I know that things are fine now and I have definitely learned a lot from having the business that I have, so it is hard to tell whether I did the right thing. What I learned though is that I should always second-guess my instincts because I tend to change my mind a lot. Therefore, I am not sure whether I would have been better off if I went straight to law school. What I do know is that if I could start a business again, I would be better prepared because it would not be my first time anymore. One thing that frustrated me was that in the beginning, I allowed my business to overwhelm me a little bit and my partner was also a little disorganized. If you ever have to choose people to start a business with, do it with people who know your weaknesses. If you are working with friends who will yes you to death and enable you all the time, you are going to have a hard time keeping your business running. Of course, it has to be an agreeable relationship. Having someone who can really complement you and steer you in the right direction if you are on the wrong track is invaluable.

Marinova: Any tips about choosing what to do once you graduate? How did you talk yourself out of going to a program you weren’t sure about?
RM: I guess you have to make a judgment about what matters most. I tell my students all the time, listen, we are going to give you the kind of help that you need and we are going to figure out what will work for you. But if your heart is not in it, all of this effort is worthless. The difference between people who are not happy with their decisions and those who are satisfied is that the latter know what they want to do and are able to say to hell with the consequences. In order to be confident about what you want, you have to train your mind to not think about the negatives that will be part of every decision. If you can come to grips with the facts that no one way is perfect, you will be able to make decision-making much easier. There are only so many hours in a day, in a month, in a week, so it’s just a matter of doing. The more you do during those hours, the more results you will see. It is okay to be unable to choose between careers, but only as long as you hesitate early on. A point in your life will eventually come when you have to commit to one path because otherwise you will end up being confused your entire life.

Marinova: You had second thoughts about going to college initially and ended up dropping out and then going back to a different school (Adelphi). What would you tell incoming Honors freshmen about how to enjoy their experience here?
RM: Dive in! I do get the impression that the best way to experience the Honors College is to overcome your intimidation first. Yes, there are a lot of smart people in the Honors College, but everyone has something to offer. So contribute what you have. One of the great things here is that there is a lot of interaction and if you want to be part of it, you can be and you should be. It is awesome to walk into the Honors College and see people having conversations with each other and to know that you can hear an informed opinion from each one of them. So there is a lot to be learned, both from the classes and from the students. Then, on a personal level, don’t be afraid to get engaged with Dean Garner, DDC, Prof. Rizopolous, Greg [Mercurio]. They could be your tremendous allies and they were for me. I nearly left Adelphi too because I was not sure whether I wanted to be in school, and Dean Garner supported me with advice through this tough time. When it comes to the classes, take as many as you can, especially if you want to go to grad school in the Humanities or Social Sciences. I do not think there is more effective preparation for a grad school career than taking the seminars offered by the Honors College. They have a high level of intellectual stimulation and they will teach you the methods of analysis that are used in grad school too.

Marinova: You mentioned that you were hesitant about staying in school and then you ended up graduating with a 4.0. How do you do this?
RM: I am just the kind of person who would be getting straight As and then the next day I would tell my professors that I really don’t want to do this anymore. For a while I thought that I wanted to teach myself through solitary reading somewhere in the woods. That is when I stopped going to Penn State. Then I changed my mind again and I came to Adelphi.

Marinova: I have heard people say that there is a gap between Honors and non-Honors students. What is your take on that?
RM: I think the existence of such a gap is an illusion. First of all, it is based on the assumption that the Honors College contains all the smart people in this school. Even if that were true, people need to have reality checks too and we need to communicate with people of different educational background. On the other hand, the fact that there are smart people here and maybe our system of classes is generally better than that of other academic schools, that also does not mean that we can not find friends among the rest of the school. For me it is a case-by-case thing. I always treated people individually and never found a gap between me and the groups I interacted with. After all, this is one of the basic principles of integration and civility. Similarly, I would hope that someone from an Ivy League school will not automatically judge me negatively because I went to Adelphi. I know many smart people who are outside of the Honors College. The only thing that would get my blood boiling is if someone said that the Honors College is not worth being here. I would simply disagree with that statement.

Marinova: We all dread graduating. Is there something that became more fun after you graduated?
RM: First of all, I had a hard time graduating too because I did not want to leave what I had here at Adelphi. It took me a while to adjust to that change and I still keep in touch with this school. I do research for Professor Rizopolous and I am still and adviser to my fraternity. However, once I finally adapted, I had to take on the challenge of having my own business. The problem is that when you own your company, nobody supervises you and makes you work. Every single moment, there is almost nothing guiding my actions except for my own consciousness. Of course, I have obligations related to those who work with me, but that only goes so far. I would warn people about having a service-oriented business – it tends to take up a lot of time and it might intrude into your life more than you want it to. Even though I have coworkers to count on, a lot of urgent matters wait for me to resolve after office hours. Therefore, I would not recommend having a small business for people who are very private. For example, I present my business in a certain way and I always tell people to call me if they have any difficulties. This means that I have to follow through or I will disappoint them. Other than that, one thing that has become defining of me since I graduated is that I live in Manhattan. I grew up on LI, but I feel that Manhattan is where I belong and I feel very comfortable there, except for the fact that it is expensive. I love living on my own there and I love the social life. One of the things that shock people about me is that despite all the things that I do, the way that I speak and the accomplishments I have had, I am really a fun guy and I enjoy having a good time.

Marinova: Which Honors College book do you still think about? You mentioned that you were fond of Paradise Lost.
RM: This is one of the books that had a very deep impact on me. I am not sure whether I would read the whole text again, but it is definitely a phenomenal read. I went to a Catholic school and I have always struggled with the fundamental ideas of free will and faith in Christianity. I thought that John Milton managed to present one of the most compelling arguments for creation in an indirect way. The fact that it is poetry rather than prose works to his advantage. Maybe if he had written a dissertation of why to believe, such a piece of writing would not be as convincing. I do not consider myself religious, but I am open-minded enough to appreciate his argument.

Marinova: You seem like the kind of person who has sustained a critically thinking mind beyond graduation date. How has that played a role in your professional life?
RM: I do not let things slide and I do question most arguments that are presented to me. However, one should be careful not to take this to an extreme because living a life where you can not make any assumptions would be exhausting. You need to be able to accept certain basic truths and question everything else selectively or you might go crazy.

Marinova: So bottom line is, remain sane.
RM: Remain sane at all costs! :-)
 

Introduction

This is my very first blog post and I am just as nervous about it as I was when I first entered the Honors College four years ago: not knowing what to expect or whether I would be able to live up to what was expected of me. Let me start by explaining what the purpose of this blog is and why it is called “The Next Big Thing” and then my intro will probably seem more relevant.

When applying to the Honors College, all of us have certain expectations or ideas about the future value of this extra effort we are willing to commit ourselves to. This is so, because we all realize that being part of the Honors College is not just about fulfilling certain requirements, such as taking extra classes and writing that oh-so-dreaded senior thesis; it is also about being able to contribute to an environment that is challenging by nature. How does one contribute to something already challenging? Well, that is the question I have been trying to find an answer to for quite some time and I think this blog might help me clarify this, at least for myself, and, hopefully, my posts will inspire others to reach their own conclusions.

There is no one way to measure someone’s contribution to an idea or educational institution. Adding original perspectives to class discussions, winning a scholarly award, or just being naturally talented  – these are all ways in which we more or less live up to the expectations we have set for ourselves as Honors College students. But what I listed are examples of things we currently do, while in school. However, being on the verge of this scary thing called graduation, I wonder what it means to “live up to the expectations” once you are on your own, without the challenging environment of the Honors College to push you forward. That is how the idea of this blog was born: it is a place where current Honors College students learn what happens once you graduate. It is called “The Next Big Thing” because these are the expectations many of us have when we decide to put ourselves through the rigorous curriculum of the Honors College – that studying harder will help us become something we are proud of.

In the upcoming months, I will be trying to identify Honors College alumni who have not only “lived up to the expectations,” but also still carry the Honors College ideals in themselves. I think we can all learn from the experiences of those who were in our shoes a couple of years or a decade ago and I certainly hope that knowing more about our predecessors will allow us to find out more about the kind of people that we are or want to become.

I am currently on the search for worthwhile perspectives to write about, but in the meantime, I also want to share two important announcements with you:

• Symposium, the Honors College Journal of Ideas, is looking for new submissions! If you have a paper, poem or creative writing piece you are proud of, e-mail it to Dean Della Croce, DELLA@adelphi.edu. Your submission could be from ANY class you have taken, not just Honors College classes. The only requirement is that you are an Honors College student.

• The Student Government Association Day is Wednesday, October 28 from 11am till 3pm in the UC Lobby. Come and meet all S.G.A. senators and enjoy free food, music, and giveaways!  As your Honors College senator, I will be giving away environmentally-friendly reusable Honors College-personalized water bottles. I hope to see all of you there!