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Volume 107, Issue 19
October 29, 2025
Fordham Hosts Symposium to Discuss Benefits and Ethical Concerns of AI
Christopher Rodgers Looks Back on 23 Years in Student Affairs
By SIENNA REINDERS
By NORA MALONE
Fordham University hosted a symposium on responsible Artificial Intelligence (AI) on Oct. 16 and 17. The event was co-sponsored by Fordham, IBM, New York University (NYU) and the Global AI Alliance and brought together representatives from seven institutions who are part of the alliance. The two main themes of the symposium were “legal regulation” and “trustworthy AI,” highlighting issues related to healthcare, ethics, security, justice, governance and safety, according to Z. George Hong, Ph.D., chief research officer and associate provost for research at Fordham. “This symposium marks Fordham’s first large-scale collaborative initiative as an AI Alliance member,” Hong said in an email. “Offering participants a rich mix of perspectives and engagement opportunities.” The event involved 48 speakers, five paper sessions,
After 19 years in the position of dean of students at Rose Hill, Christopher Rodgers is stepping into the role of vice president for Strategy and Operations. He was promoted in May but has since continued to serve in the Dean of Students role. Now, it has been announced that his replacement, Kevin Williams, Ph.D., will fully take over on Nov. 3, though Rodgers said he will aid in the transition. “It’s very important that the students see the Dean of Students as the person that they can go to,” Rodgers said. “I’m gonna be doing my darnedest to help [Williams] with that transition. But he’s an experienced guy and he already, as a professional, knows what he’s doing along those lines.” In an interview with The Fordham Ram, Rodgers reflected on his career path that led him to the dean of students position and now the role of vice president for
NEWS EDITOR
LEO SOREL FOR THE FORDHAM RAM
Jim McDermott and Gregory Maguire discuss Maguire’s famous novel, “Wicked.”
Understanding ‘Wicked’ness: A Discussion with Author Gregory Maguire By EMMA LEONARDI ASST. NEWS EDITOR
Fordham University’s Center on Religion and Culture hosted Gregory Maguire, author of “Wicked,” in a rare public appearance on Oct. 23. The event, a discussion moderated by theater critic and entertainment writer Jim McDermott, centered around the intersection of spirituality and art, Maguire’s approach
to faith as a gay Catholic man and the journey of “Wicked” from page to stage — and now to screen. McDermott began the discussion by asking about how Maguire’s current life looked, considering the amount of attention “Wicked” is being given. “It is a very peculiar world to live in when the entire continent seems to go pink and green,” Maguire said. “I’m living
Fordham Co-Founds Jesuit Research Alliance By SIENNA REINDERS NEWS EDITOR
Fordham University founded the Global Research Alliance of Jesuit Universities (GRAJU) on Aug. 5 with six other Jesuit universities. The alliance aims to foster global and interdisciplinary research, promote funding of research projects and advance and uphold the Jesuit mission, according to its website. “Guided by Ignatian values of excellence, justice, and service to humanity, Fordham partnered with Jesuit higher educational institutions to establish a global research community dedicated to shaping a more hopeful and just future through research,” said Z. George Hong, Ph.D. chief research officer and associate provost for research at Fordham, in an email. The other founding institutions include Georgetown University,
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Fordham College Democrats Debate Republicans
Ateneo de Manila University in the Philippines, Instituto Technológico y de Estudios Superiores de Occidente (ITESO), Universidad Jesuita de Guadalajara in México, Sogang University in South Korea, University of Deusto in Spain and University of Namur in Belgium. According to Hong, the initiative builds upon the Fordham Faculty Research Abroad Program, which was established in 2018 to promote research collaborations among Jesuit institutions and universities worldwide. “To build on this success, Fordham identified an opportunity to create a broader, more sustainable global network that would deepen scholarly partnerships, promote interdisciplinary innovation, and advance mission-driven SEE GRAJU, PAGE 5
9 Opinion Regulate Smoking The Students Say: We Don’t Want the Smoke
in my own fantasy bubble of everybody sees what I see.” However, Maguire also noted the impact his family had on his separation from the eye of fame. “I was saved from a certain kind of contamination, I think, by the mere fact that my obligations to my children were more important than my obligations to the needs of SEE WICKED, PAGE 4
SEE AI, PAGE 5
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
SEE RODGERS, PAGE 4
Fordham Faculty Attend Migration Justice Conference in Rome By SIENNA REINDERS NEWS EDITOR
Seven faculty members from Fordham University’s Initiative on Migrants, Migration and Human Dignity traveled to Rome earlier this month for a conference at the Vatican titled “Refugees and Migrants in our Common Home: Mobilizing Academic Communities.” The event lasted from Oct. 1 through Oct. 3 and included presentations and discussions on migration justice. The conference was organized by several groups, including the Center for Migration Studies of New York and Villanova University, according to an article by Fordham Now, to facilitate discussions to create three-year action plans about migration justice. “It was primarily focused on how universities could be
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mobilized to bring both research, teaching and service in support of migrant communities and refugee communities,” said Gregory Donovan, an associate professor of communication and media studies and a member of the Initiative on Migrants,
Migration and Human Dignity. Six other members of the initiative attended the conference, including Carey Kasten, Sarah Lockhart, Alma RodenasRuano, Leo Guardado, Jim McCartin and Annika Hinze. Other attendees included SEE ROME PAGE 5
@MIGRATIONJUSTICEATFORDHAM FOR THE FORDHAM RAM
Fordham faculty members attended a migration conference at the Vatican.
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