Shannon Gleba

Staff Writer | Copy Editor | Senior Writer

I will never forget my first weekend on Manhattan College’s campus when I attended The Quadrangle’s fall semester workshop. When we sat around the conference table, I remember being so intimidated because everyone seemed so smart and like they knew exactly how to handle every situation.

After four years on the newspaper, I still agree that everyone is so smart, but there was absolutely no reason for me to be intimated. During my time here, The Quadrangle and its writers have been one of the most constant and welcoming parts of my life and I am so grateful to have known everyone I have come in contact with.

Now that I move on to the next step of my life, I cannot imagine college without the weekly meetings, endless interviews, but most importantly—the lessons I have learned. Thank you to everyone who has made this experience so special, I would never have wanted it any other way!

To all of the future Quadrangle scholarship recipients, keep working hard and make the rest of us proud! To all of the staff writers that come after me — take your time, be smart, and never take advantage of your time here.

All the best,

Shannon Gleba

Alexa Schmidt

Asst. A&E Editor | Features Editor | A&E Editor | Managing Editor

Entering Manhattan College with The Quadrangle scholarship was equally exciting and terrifying. I had never written for a newspaper before, so I imagined all the embarrassing ways I could fail, and perhaps even lose the scholarship. But I entered the newsroom, and everything changed. There were road bumps along the way, and I learned some major lessons about journalistic integrity and ethical standards. With encouragement and patience from upperclassmen and mentors, I found my literary voice, and haven’t looked back since. To Rose Brennan and Tom Callahan, both of whom have left a lasting impact on my life: thank you.

The Quadrangle would open doors for me that I did not anticipate. I have been able to meet many people here, from students to professors, to staff and coaches, to advisors and accomplished alumni. I have become a collector of stories and a storyteller. I am grateful for the power journalism can hold, and for finding my passion in Features and Arts & Entertainment.

To Gabs, Shannon, Garrett, Sophia and Sam, it truly has been a wild ride, and I am so proud of what we have accomplished in our four short years. Here’s to the future.

To all the writers, never stop writing, and to the readers, never stop reading.
Alexa

Gabriella DePinho

Staff Writer | Web Editor | Asst. News Editor | News Editor |Editor-in-Chief | Senior Writer

When I came in as a freshman on scholarship for The Quadrangle, my plan was to do the bare minimum to maintain it. I knew my sister, Michelle’16, loved her time writing for The Quadrangle and made some cool memories, but I just didn’t think that would be my story. And I was right, that wasn’t my story. My story is that I absolutely fell in love with writing for The Quadrangle, I switched my major to English and communication with a concentration in journalism, changed my career plans and never looked back.

During my time at The Quadrangle, I’ve reported on students who recorded their own music, sexual assaults on campus, the access control policy, Spring Fest, a bolt found in a lunch wrap, the current budget deficit, and so much more. It’s all been more than I could have ever imagined I would do.

But the work I’ve been able to do does not exist in a vacuum. The Quadrangle is a team and a family and there’s a lot of people
I need to express my thanks and gratitude for. I am grateful for every Quad alum who pushed me upon recognizing I was ready to do more reporting than I believed I was capable of; for Tom Callahan, our former advisor, who believed in my abilities as a freshman; for my peers who worked with me, who challenged me, who made me a better person and reporter; for Nick Gilewicz, our current advisor, who patiently answered my endless questions and has been our tireless advocate; and for every person who has picked up the paper and read it.

The reporting that The Quadrangle does isn’t just fluff. We have covered some real, serious and important matters, and I know this firsthand, as I have worked on a number of those stories. In reporting on those stories, occasionally, The Quadrangle has inspired change or, at least, kept community members informed so they could advocate for change in their own way. Every article I have ever written comes from a deep respect for the community I have been a part of for the past four years — even when the article was about an upsetting issue people would have preferred for us to not write about. I reported on these things because I want Manhattan College to keep being better. And I know the staff behind me will keep reporting on the tough stuff to keep demanding better of the college that we all deeply care about.

I’m proud of many things I did during my time in college, but my work with The Quadrangle will always be what I’m most proud of. My work may not have always been perfect, but it was the way I chose to serve this community and I would like to believe I served it in a meaningful way.

I still don’t know where life is taking me next, but because of The Quadrangle, I know I’ll be just fine.
Gabs