About

This website is the result of a unique research project undertaken by first year Macaulay Honors students at Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY) under the supervision of Mike Owen Benediktsson, Madison Priest and Christina Nadler. The interviews, images, and research collected here were collected entirely by students, as part of their coursework for the People of New York City seminar, or Seminar II, an interdisciplinary class on the past and present of the city’s neighborhoods, with a focus on migration and immigration. Learn more about Macaulay at Hunter College and People of New York City here.

A note on navigating the site: There are over 80 profiles of New Yorkers on this site. You can access them directly by clicking on “Profiles,” but there are several other ways to navigate “Their New York.” For instance, if you click on an emotion, like fear, you’ll find a series of quotations from the profiles related to that feeling; clicking on the quotation will then direct you to the relevant profile. Or take a look at the pictures in “Portraits.” And check out the menu bar for even more ways to navigate the site!

Teaching Staff / Site Editors

Mike Owen Benediktsson is an Assistant Professor of Sociology at Hunter College, and the coordinator of the People of New York City seminar at Hunter. His research focuses on urban sociology, and more specifically, the role of the built environment and everyday material objects in social life. Visit his faculty page at Hunter here and his personal website here.

Madison Priest is an Instructional Technology Fellow (ITF) at Macaulay Honors College and a Ph.D. Candidate in English at the CUNY Graduate Center. Her work focuses on twentieth-century American literary production across intersections of race and gender. You can find her personal website here.

Christina Nadler, PhD, holds a doctorate in Sociology from the CUNY Graduate Center and is an Instructional Technology Fellow (ITF) at Macaulay Honors College. Her dissertation argued for the consideration of denial as a sociological problem as well as a psychological one.

Student Contributors

Catherine Stratis is a Macaulay Honors student at Hunter College following the pre-medical track and pursuing a major in Human Biology and a minor in English. She was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. Read her post here.

 

Fionna Du is a student at Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College pursuing a major in Human Biology and minor in Environmental Science. She had lived in Gravesend, Brooklyn, her whole life until dorming in the city. Read her post here.

 

Emily Guzzardi is a student at Hunter College, part of the Macaulay program. She is from Westchester County, New York. Right now she is planning on majoring in Biology, but she is unsure what career she will pursue.

 

Ella Blicker is a freshman at Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College double majoring in biology and music, on a pre-medical track. She is from Westchester County, New York. Read her post here.

 

Rhia Singh is a a student in the Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College pursuing a major in Computer Science. She has lived in multiple locations, but currently resides in Kips Bay, Manhattan. Read her post here.

 

Abigail Calumpit is a pre-medical student in the Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College pursuing a major in Economics and a minor in Psychology. She was born in Philippines but moved to the United States at the age of six. She grew up in predominantly immigrant neighborhoods of Queens such as Maspeth and Elmhurst, but currently resides in a small neighborhood in Long Island. Read her post here.

 

Samantha Xing is a student of the Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College double majoring in Human Biology and Chinese Language and Literature. She immigrated to the United States from Hainan, China when she was 5 and currently lives in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn. Read her post here.

 

Cheryl Chen is a student of the Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College pursuing a double major in Chinese Language and Music, with a minor in Japanese Language. In her free time, she enjoys listening to music and watching YouTube videos, occasionally going down rabbit holes, as one does. Read her post here.

 

Simran Kaur is a Macaulay Honors student that is currently on the premed track. She is interested in psychology and advocacy, and her favorite show is Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

 

Dora Gelerinter is a Macaulay Honors and Chinese Flagship student at Hunter College. She is on the pre-law track and hopes to pursue an English major. Dora loves to dance, travel, and write poetry in her free time. She is the daughter of a Chinese immigrant mother and a Caucasian father and was raised in Midwood, Brooklyn. Read her post here.

 

Maria Campo is a Macaulay Honors College student at Hunter College pursuing a major in psychology and a minor in sociology.  She grew up on Long Island in the small town of Miller Place. She loves music, sushi, the beach and spending time with her family and friends.  Read her post here.

 

Samantha-Marie Helmy is a Macaulay Honors College student at Hunter College majoring in Chemistry and potentially Mathematics. She was born and raised in Staten Island with Egyptian immigrant parents and older brother. She is a part of Hunter College’s swimming and diving team and loves to travel. Read her post here.

 

Alice Tsai is a Macaulay Honors student at Hunter College pursuing a major in Psychology with a concentration in Behavioral Neuroscience on the pre-med track and a minor in Economics. Her parents immigrated here from Taiwan, so she was born and raised on Long Island with her older sister and younger brother. Alice loves travel, food, and photography, and enjoys playing piano and swimming in her free time. Read her post here.

 

Michelle Gaykov is a Macaulay Honors College student at Hunter College majoring in Biology with a concentration Behavioral Neuroscience on the pre-veterinary track. She is the daughter of two Russian immigrant parents alongside one older and one younger brother.  Read her post here.

 

Ryan Fuenmayor is a Macaulay Honors College student at Hunter College. He is majoring in Psychology, in the Clinical Psychology track, and minoring in Spanish. He was born and raised in New York City and currently resides in Queens with his dog, Chili. Read his post here.

 

Christina Kwan is a Macaulay Honors College student at the Hunter-Bellevue School of Nursing. She was born and raised in Sunnyside, New York, although Manhattan’s Chinatown has also played an important role in her upbringing. In her free time, she loves to read, write, travel, and explore the city with her friends. Read her post here.

 

Jeremy Ignatius Barlington III is a Macaulay student and an iguana wrangler in Southeast Texas. In his spare time, he works for a secret arm of NASA with the aim of making Pluto a planet again. He has thirteen siblings, twelve of which are naked mole rats. You can find more information here.

 

Jordan Yaqoob is a student at the Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College. He is pursuing a double major in Biology and Computer Science. He grew up in Queens and currently lives in the Bronx. Read his post here.

 

Brandon Chin is a student at the Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College. He is currently going down the pre-med path and is undecided on his major. He lives in Queens. Read his post here.

 

Sreejan Saha is a student at the Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College. He is currently on the pre-med track pursuing a major in Biochemistry. He was born in Bangladesh and raised in Jamaica, Queens. Read his post here.

 

Tiffany Fermin is a Macaulay Honors College student at Hunter College. She is pursuing a double major in Computer Science and Economics and a minor in Mathematics. She was born and raised in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. Read her post here.

 

Sonia Hafeez is a Macaulay Honors College student at Hunter College. She is on the pre-med track pursuing a major in Human Biology. She was born and raised by immigrant parents in Borough Park, Brooklyn. Read her post here.

 

Christina Valeros is a Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College pursuing a double major in Human Biology and Sociology, with minors in Public Policy and English. She cares deeply about all kinds of literature and art. The daughter of Filipino immigrant parents, she was raised in Bayside, Queens. Read her post here.

 

Katherine Gee is a student at the Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College pursuing a major in Biochemistry on a pre-pharmacy track.  She enjoys drawing and animating in her free time, and grew up in Flushing. Read her post here.

 

ManYi (Joyce) Gao is Macaulay Honors student at Hunter College on the pre-med track and pursuing a double major in Biology and Studio Art. She enjoys painting and playing the guitar and ukulele in her free time. She was born in China and moved to Bensonhurst, Brooklyn as a child. Read her post here.

 

Daniela Shill is a Macaulay Honors College student at Hunter College, majoring in biology with a double minor in psychology and English while on the pre-med track. She grew up in Coney Island, Brooklyn as the daughter of Russian immigrants. Read her post here.

 

Stephanie is a student at the Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College. She is on the pre-medical track, majoring in biology and double-minoring in psychology and Spanish. She enjoys spending time with her family and friends, playing sports, and doing studio art.

 

Gazi Ohi is a student at the Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College. He is majoring in biology and minoring in Arabic. He participates in his community and works with the Muslim Students’ Association for a safe zone. The son of two Bangladeshi parents, he was raised in Woodhaven, Queens. Read his post here.

 

Kana Tateishi is a Macaulay Honors student at Hunter College who is grateful she escaped from her suburban home in Rockland County. In her free time, you can find her exploring her passions as a sociology major by wandering around obscure art galleries while wearing crocs unironically, and discussing the societal implications of the American education system. Read her post here.

 

Dominika Tomczyk is a Macaulay Honors student at Hunter College. She began her studies after a gap year, training in ballet professionally at the Bolshoi Ballet Academy, which inspired her to pursue a degree in Nutrition and Dietetics. She loves to spend her time dancing, cooking, and learning from her Eastern European family. Read her post here.

 

Amna Cheema is a Macaulay Honors student at Hunter College with a passion for baking and the culinary arts. She plans on majoring in Bio-Chemistry and attending medical school and traveling across the globe helping those in need. Read her post here.

 

Sumaita Hasan is a Macaulay Honors student at Hunter College majoring in English and Film, and minoring in music. She is passionate about the arts and singing.

 

Andrew Zheng is a Macaulay Honors student at Hunter College, tentatively majoring in Chemistry while pursuing the pre-medical track. His other academic interests include mathematics and computer science, which have found their way into his coursework. The son of two Chinese immigrants, he currently lives in Rego Park, Queens and enjoys playing chess and the piano in his spare time. Read his post here.

 

Shanjeed Ali is a student at Macaulay Honors College at Hunter College who is planning to major in Chemistry or Biology and minor in Computer Science. He is a Brooklyn native who loves science and history.

 

Elise Wang is a student at the Macaulay Honors College at Hunter college planning to major in Psychology with a Concentration in Behavioral Neuroscience and minor in Public Policy. She was born and raised in Flushing, Queens. She enjoys to spend her time volunteering and engaging in public advocacy. Read her post here.