Joe DeRosa – HQ Press

Let’s get physical: A first hand look at the fitness program at Quinnipiac

By Joe DeRosa

Many people will look to the gym, or even at-home workouts to try and get healthier. However, it’s important that people know the different types of fitness classes they can also take to get fitter for the summer time. Some of these classes are readily available on college campuses and Quinnipiac is no exception.

Over the course of the past week, I have participated in three different fitness classes available at Quinnipiac to show how they can positively affect your health.

My first class was a meditation class taught by Taryn Nelson, a junior at Quinnipiac. In this class, we lied down on mats and listened to a 10 minute recording of an instructor giving breathing exercises.

After 15 minutes, I was feeling extremely relaxed. The deep breathing exercises that I was performing had calmed me down greatly and had made me feel a lot more balanced for the rest of the day.

Next up was the spinning class. For this session, we all sat on exercise bikes which had built-in resistance knobs. For certain exercises, we had to adjust these knobs to increase the resistance we faced on the bike. We also spent a lot of time alternating between sitting and standing on these bikes, which was an extremely fun workout to follow.

My original plan for a third course was Zumba, but due to an underestimation of how sore my legs would be following spinning, I made the decision to sit that one out.

Last but certainly not least, I attended a Bootcamp session instructed by Erin Haft. Bootcamp is an hour-long class which incorporates body-weight exercises in short, intense intervals. Unfortunately, I was the only one in attendance, making the session much shorter. However, Haft still made sure that I was still able to walk away feeling accomplished.

After getting to experience all of these classes, it is evident that the fitness program at Quinnipiac is fine-tuned to make sure that the students achieve fulfilling workouts. Tami Reilly, the director of fitness classes at Quinnipiac, speaks highly of the classes that she oversees.

“There’s always room to improve,” said Reilly. “We’re always looking to bring new programs to campus, or just getting students certified and experienced.”

Reilly hopes that the fitness programs at Quinnipiac can continue to flourish, and that all new additions to the program continue to encourage a welcoming environment.

“My greater goal, if I had to pick one, is to get more (students) to continue to teach when they leave here.”

After experiencing these classes firsthand, I have learned how beneficial fitness classes can be for one’s health. I’ve also found the environments that I was in to be extremely welcoming. Reilly agrees that this is the goal, and has advice for the student that may be intimidated by partaking in these classes.

“Don’t be nervous,” Reilly said. “There’s no such thing as a bad student in our classes and everybody has to give it a shot. You don’t really know what you love until you try it.”

May weekend brings excitement to Quinnipiac students

By Joe DeRosa

With the final days of April approaching, Quinnipiac University faculty and students are preparing for another year of campus tradition — May Weekend.

“I think it’s a fantastic experience and it brings everyone together,” Andrew Zukowski, a senior finance major, said.

May Weekend, which runs April 26-29, is an unofficial campus-wide event where students engage in celebrations on Mount Carmel and York Hill campuses.

Many Quinnipiac students plan to remain on both of the campuses, but are a variety of events taking place around Hamden that many Bobcats will attend.

Many students are thrilled for the weekend to get started.

“It’s a time where everyone gets time together and it builds a student bond, which I feel like we don’t have,” Zukowski said .

However, with the weekend being so close to finals week, some students are holding themselves out.

“I’m studying all weekend,” Dan Pardo, a junior health science major, said.

Pardo expressed his disagreement with the timing of the weekend, claiming that it’s more inconvenient to students than fun.

“It’s an awesome experience, but my only problem is that it’s right before finals,” Pardo said. “I think it’d be awesome if they pushed it back a weekend.”

While the student body prepares for the weekend, so too is Quinnipiac’s Department of Public Safety.

With the imminent presence of drugs and alcohol, Public Safety plans to step up security all around both Mount Carmel — a dry campus — and York Hill.

Some of the department’s plans include placing more officers at the entrances of both campuses, car and bag checks at the main entrances and patrols around the outside and dorming areas.

The Hamden Police Department will also be on high alert for the upcoming weekend.

With the expectation of many gatherings taking place at houses around the town, police will patrol streets with Quinnipiac-owned housing to shut down any potentially large gatherings.

“Fortnite” and “PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds” may be causing issues in educational institutions

By Joe DeRosa

It seems that the influence of video games grows more prevalent every day, even to a point where it might cause concerns.

This idea is evident with the recent success of player-versus-player games, Fortnite and PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds. These two games have found massive appeal amongst people around the country. According to pcgames.com, both games have reached a combined total of 6.5 million reoccurring players.

“I play PUBG when I should be doing work, and I’m in college,” said Chris Brachlow, a senior international business major at Quinnipiac University.

The games, both released in 2017, require the player to survive in a combat zone against 99 other people. While each game has their differences, such as Fortnite’s building mechanic and PUBG’s use of vehicles, the end goal is still the same for both games. This result is something that people who frequently play the games admire.

At the same time, the games also have their issues.

With the release of Fortnite for mobile devices, as well as the upcoming public mobile release of PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, people are growing concerned that these apps are becoming a distraction to people in educational institutions of all levels.

“It’s addicting,” said Steele Brogdon, a junior at Seawanhaka High School in Floral Park, New York.

When asked if people in his school play the game, Brogdon said that “tons of them” do.

“Once you start playing it, you just don’t stop,” Brogdon added.

Elena Bertozzi, a Quinnipiac game design and development professor, believes that the distraction these students may have from the game could be fixed by removing cell phone use from class rooms.

“I know that having students on their phones during class is incredibly distracting, which is why I send people out of the room if I see them doing it,” said Bertozzi. “I think it is harder for high schools to deal with this problem. I think the only solution is to not allow cell phone use during class.”

With the concerns of distracted students becoming more common, EPIC Games, the developer of Fortnite has responded to the matter. The company placed a message on the mobile version of the game’s loading screen, which specifically reads, “Mr. Hillman says stop playing in class.”

This was done after the company heard a teacher’s plea to have the company create a message to his students after they were getting distracted in his classroom.

With this message now in the mobile version of Fortnite it is yet to be seen if the public release of the mobile version of PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds will follow suit.

Toys R’ Us Store Closings Bring Feelings of Nostalgia to Quinnipiac Students

By Joe DeRosa

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Toys R Us is closing its doors nationwide. While local students are disappointed about losing the experience taking a trip to the toy store, they understand the change in today’s toy culture has contributed to the close.

“I think it’s kind of sad,” said Pat Pitts, a junior journalism major at Quinnipiac. “Everything they [kids today] want is on electronics or something like that, so they don’t have that toy experience that you and I had growing up.”

In its long history, Toys R Us has emerged as an important part of the childhoods of Quinnipiac students. Ben Kuru, a freshman marketing major at Quinnipiac even had a specific memorable experience.

“My favorite thing there was a bike that I got to ride around there a little bit,” said Kuru. “The workers there were really friendly and it’s unfortunate that the place is closing down.”

Over the past year, Toys R Us has faced a series of financial miscues that have led to the company’s downfall.

On September 18th the company declared bankruptcy after being over $5 billion dollars in debt. Four months later the company announced that it would be closing over 100 stores across the country.

By March Toys R Us announced its liquidation, leading to the closure of over 700 nationwide locations.

While debt is arguably the biggest contributor to the company’s demise, some saw different reasons for Toys R Us’s decline.

“I noticed that their video game section wasn’t that drastic,” said Shannon Marmot, a junior public relations major at Quinnipiac. “They tried to base it more on board games and I feel like that was a huge downside to them.”

Others saw issues with the pricing of the items in the store.

Kuru said he thought prices at Toys R Us were “a little bit out there,” but it’s not the only reason he thought the toy store failed.

“Kids are more into technology than they are into physical toys nowadays,” said Kuru.

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Lori Hershman, an employee at Evan’s Toy Shoppe in Hamden, Connecticut, had similar feelings on children’s shift towards technology.

“I see in restaurants that they’re playing with iPads instead of coloring books,” said Hershman. “In cars, they’re watching movies or playing games instead of looking out the window.”

Amy Cavallo, a sophomore finance major at Quinnipiac, said there could have been a way to save the store.

“If debt was truly the issue…I think at that point you really need to refocus your business practice on repaying,” said Cavallo. “You could’ve invested that [money] into repaying your loans.”

With the end of the Toys R Us in sight, Hershman is concerned that the absence of the company could have a negative effect on children.

“If there isn’t a toy store and they couldn’t get what they want, that would be detrimental. It’s important for kids to have that experience of saving their pennies and getting that toy they’ve wanted,” said Hershman.

Toys R Us has commenced liquidation sales in all of it’s nationwide locations. The company is anticipated to run out of money by May.

Spring break: A look at student trips around the world

Quinnipiac’s Spring Break has passed, but the memories the students have made will last them a lifetime. Below is a compilation of pictures from some of the students’ experiences during their time off.

One of the many beaches visited by Chris Brachlow during his trip to Costa Rica.

Another view of the beach during the sunset.

Christina Bruno had the opportunity to visit the Sistine Chapel in Vatican City.

Bruno also had an opportunity to visit the Colosseum in Rome.

Megan Thorogood had the chance to visit Ireland during St. Patrick's Day. — Megan Thorogood had the chance to visit Ireland during St. Patrick’s Day.

Not every student had to go abroad to have an unforgettable experience, as Danielle Yostpille spent her time at Disney World in Florida.

Lauren Clearly was also able to go to Ireland, taking in some of the breathtaking scenery to country has to offer.

There were also some students who used their time off to attend a service trip to Haiti. Cassandra Krebbs had the opportunity to work with some of the communities in the country. — There were also some students who used their time off to attend a service trip to Haiti. Cassandra Krebbs had the opportunity to work with some of the communities in the country.

Dealing with mental health in college: Three stories

Original artwork created by Amanda Shuttleworth

By Joe DeRosa

In this podcast, I share the stories of three people who have all suffered from mental health issues. I also interview a counselor at Quinnipiac University and students from around the campus to get their perspectives about mental health problems. This project is devoted to encouraging people to become more aware of what people may be going through, as well as what they can do to help them.