Seminar 2 Encyclopedia

The Peopling of Astoria, NY

Professor: Sofya Aptekar
ITF: Fiona Lee
Campus: Hunter College
URL: http://eportfolios.macaulay.cuny.edu/sa14

This website showcases the work of Macaulay Honors students at Hunter College in Seminar 2: The Peopling of New York in spring 2014. Focusing on the neighborhood of Astoria in western Queens, students investigated the role of immigration and migration in shaping the New York City’s identity— past, present, and future. Students maintained a Class Blog, discussing issues such as immigration, diversity, public space, gentrification, segregation through analyses of current events. As a supplement to their final research papers, they also created short documentaries that showcased a selection of their findings about the neighborhood.

Making it in New York

Professor: Jackie Brown
ITF: Fiona Lee
Campus: Hunter College
URL: http://eportfolios.macaulay.cuny.edu/collectiveproject/

This website presents students’ findings and reflections on what they learned in addressing the question, What does it take to “make it” in New York? Popular media, as captured in the music of Frank Sinatra (“If I can make it here, then I can make it anywhere…”) and of Jay-Z and Alicia Keys (“New York/concrete jungle where dreams are made up/there’s nothing you can’t do/Now you’re in New York”), New York City is pictured as a city of endless opportunity for those who have what it takes. Working in groups, students explored the question from a range of perspectives: people who are or who have experienced homelessness; adult English language learners; workers handing out free newspapers at subway stations; subway commuters encountering solicitors; and Hunter College students on the topic of diversity.

Students opted to use Prezi to showcase their findings, a tool that worked especially well when they presented their research and website to their peers in person. For readers encountering the site on their own, the text accompanying the Prezi slideshows, as well as on the page explaining the overall theme of the project, is a helpful guide that ties together the wide range of perspectives presented. The header image, a modification of an image of the well known piece of graffiti art created by a student in the class, also captures the themes of struggle, defiance and fortitude reflected in the stories the class encountered in completing the project.

Trailblazing Through Greenwich Village

Professor: Bernadette McCauley
ITF: Fiona Lee
Campus: Hunter

This website was created by Macaulay Honors students at Hunter College as part of their first-year seminar, The Peopling of New York, taught by Professor Bernadette McCauley. As part of their neighborhood study of Greenwich Village, each student conducted an individual investigation on a topic of their choice and produced a documented research paper which presented their findings. For the website project, the class chose to present their research papers as news articles, organized in three different sections: People; Culture; and Politics & Controversies.

Urban Ethnography

Professor: Ida Susser
ITF: Fiona Lee
Campus: Hunter
URL: http://eportfolios.macaulay.cuny.edu/susser11/

Professor Ida Susser’s class looked at three varied area and five neighborhoods in New York: Chinatown, the Greenpoint/Williamsburg area, and Harlem/Morningside Heights. Students completed entries on specific issues in each area, such as Columbia’s involvement in the community and street vendors in Chinatown. The class conducted interviews, went on walking tours, and provide video, maps, bibliographic resources, and demographic information.