By Jessica McKenzie, Asst. Features Editor
From the time senior Rose Brennan stepped foot on Manhattan College’s campus, she has worked tirelessly to make her time here memorable.
Originally from Stratford, Connecticut, Brennan is one of 20 students in MC who have been awarded The Quadrangle scholarship for their four years. Additionally, Brennan is an executive editor of Lotus Magazine, a lifestyle magazine run entirely by students on campus. She has also been inducted into the Epsilon Sigma Pi Honor Society.
Brennan is a double major in English and Communication with a concentration in journalism. She finds interconnectedness in the two through the idea of storytelling.
“To me, English always has to do with a story and Communication always has to do with how that story is shared—a story isn’t something that should belong to one person, it should be something that’s shared,” Brennan said. She hopes to use her degrees to ultimately go into editing, freelance writing, copyediting, or copywriting.
Brennan acts as a secretary for Music Ministry and Performing Hearts, the all-female acapella group on campus as well as being a member of the concert choir. Three years of her time writing on The Quadrangle have been spent working in the Arts and Entertainment section, appropriately fitting her passions for music and journalism.
She has been editor of the A&E section for two years. This semester, she has stepped down to senior writer to finish off her time on The Quadrangle.
“Through the Quadrangle, I want to instill in the younger generations that the work they’re doing is important. There’s power behind [writing for The Quadrangle] and [younger writers] want to maintain the respectability that comes with that,” Brennan said.
Over the years, she has realized what it truly means to be a journalist. In her sophomore year, Brennan wrote an article about the then turmoil of the Chemical Engineering Department on campus with co-writer, Steve Zubrycky. It took over a year to write due to complex research and interviews. At the end of the school year, The Quadrangle staff awarded it as the Best News Article of the year during their awards ceremony.
“It was something that I put a lot of work into. People were talking about it, and I was very proud of [the article],” Brennan said.
Though Brennan has put forth a tremendous effort in bettering the college experience for all MC students, there are still topics in which she believes future students should have a say in.
“Access control, a mandatory residency requirement—this was all done without consulting the student body. I wish that there was a better way for [upper administration] to communicate with us about what we want as a student body,” Brennan said.
The Quadrangle isn’t the only way Brennan champions for the student body. She works closely with the Lasallian Women and Gender Resource Center (LWGRC) on a number of issues across campus. Most recently, she has worked on the menstrual equity initiative, proposing that the college provide free or greatly-reduced-priced pads and tampons across campus. The initiative was passed in the senate on Nov. 19.
Brennan is also one of two facilitators of the Intimate Violence Survivors support group through the LWGRC. Survivors of intimate partner violence in the MC community can share their stories with one another.
“[The support group] is given the opportunity to learn from each other in terms of the healing process,” Brennan said.
Through her involvement across campus, Brennan strives to make the most of her time at Manhattan. As she approaches graduation, she remembers the inspiring people that fill the campus.
“I’ve grown so empowered by every single person that I’ve met here. I’ve learned from every single person that I’ve met here,” Brennan said.