Campus news
Kristýna Horáková (left) and Nikola Ročňáková, students of the Gymnázium K.V.Raise in Hlinsko
Living Czech life, leaving Prague behind
By Shuan Sim and Tori McCarthy
Students at NYU in Prague seldom go native, but a small group recently had a short glimpse at the life of ordinary Czech high-school students.
Ten NYU students took part in a brief home-stay October 14 with students of the Gymnázium K.V.Raise in Hlinsko, a town 153 kilometers southeast of Prague.
“One of the things about NYU is that the kids live in a bubble,” NYU instructor Dinah Spritzer said. “They tend to hang around other students and don’t make an effort to hang around other Czechs.”
Student council officers (from left): Ryan Bender, Krystina Cermakova, Michael Ibragimchayev, Demetra Sherwood, Sydney Stanback and Christina Chen
Student council plans tricks, treats and turkey
By Tori McCarthy
The student council of NYU in Prague is planning several events to soothe homesick students during the fall semester.
In addition to a Thanksgiving feast in November, the council is also coordinating a Halloween Party October 31 at the Vysmátý Zajíc club in Old Town.
“There will be tons of candy,” Co-President Sydney Stanback. “People will have the ability to choose the music that they want to hear, and of course costumes are heavily encouraged.”
Vladimír Černý
Helping (and learning from) innocents abroad
By Shuan Sim
Vladimír Černý, 26, is graduate student at Charles University in Prague studying religion, philosophy and ethics. This semester is his third as an NYU RA. He spoke with The Prague Wanderer about his work as an RA, and how the name of his band might sound Nazi-like to a Czech person.
The Prague Wanderer: What do you think are the differences between American college students and Czech ones?
Vladimír Černý: Americans ask more questions, because I think they know a lot about “how” — how to ask, how to find information. Czech students know more about “what” — about facts. A big difference is that American kids are more focused in their knowledge. Also, I think Czech students are more grown up in some sense.
Jay DeYonker
NYU alum ditches Manhattan for Máchova
By Tori McCarthy
Jay DeYonker spent the Fall 2009 semester in Prague as part of New York University’s study abroad program. Two years later, he’s back – not as a student, but working as a first-year residential assistant in NYU’s Máchova dorm.
Jay talks to The Prague Wanderer about his experience transitioning from Times Square to Wenceslas Square as well as his experience as a member of the LGBT community here in the Czech Republic:
Tom Davisson is not ready to leave Prague, but local authorities tell him it's time to go.
Students sent home early over visas
By Dan Fitzgerald
Czech authorities have order five students enrolled in NYU’s study-abroad program in Prague to pack their bags and go home early.
The five students faced deportation after their visas expired in April. A sixth, Samuel Greenberg, escaped a deportation order when he received a visa extension from Spain, where he studied last autumn
Like Greenberg, the other five students were studying abroad last semester and did not apply for student visas in their home country as required by Czech law.
Citizens of the United States and many other countries may travel to the Czech Republic and stay as tourists for up to 90 days. Such travelers are on their honor to leave the country again within that time. NYU’s Prague program lasts 118 days.
Honors program immerses students in Czech culture
By Dan Fitzgerald
A whirlwind tour of Prague’s Old Town, a Czech history lecture from NYU professor Jan Urban and a visit to Terezín were only some of the events that NYU’s College of Arts and Science Presidential Honors Scholars attended during their weeklong visit, March 14–20.
The scholars spent their time with a combination of academic and cultural events. Scholars attended lectures and guided tours during the day and went to the theater at night. One evening, they attended La Traviata at the Prague State Opera, while on another they saw The Makropulos Affair at the Estates Theater.
NYU instructor William Miller says the curve makes for a more competitive classroom.
Stern students fight each other for grades
By Dan Fitzgerald
Smaller class sizes at NYU in Prague this semester mean fewer available As for business students.
All courses in the Leonard N. Stern School of Business grade according to guidelines known as the Stern Curve: Only about 25% of students will receive As, 40% Bs, the rest Cs or lower.
With just three students in his radio journalism course, NYU instructor Rob Cameron can give each student more individual attention.
Small classes surprise students
By Dan Fitzgerald
Decreased enrollment at NYU’s Prague campus has translated to the smallest class sizes that NYU students are ever likely to encounter. Currently, 136 students are enrolled in 57 available courses. Some classes have as few as three students.
From left, Student Council Treasurer Christina Apollonio, student Marcus Richard, Secretary Dana Skerry, President Jenny Liang and faculty advisor Darina Batorova.
Student council kicks off semester
By Joseph Cappabianca
The spring-semester student council took office January 26 and immediately began planning events to foster a sense of community among NYU students in Prague.
“I feel like Student Council is a great way to meet not just the students in the program, but the RAs and other staff at NYU,” said President Jenny Liang.
Taťána le Moigne, country director for Google's Czech-language mirror, spoke to NYU students Nov. 16.
Google.cz director explains finer points of localization
Text and photo by Cassidy Havens
Search Google.com for “NYU” and you get a lot of pages from the main campus in New York City, but you have to dig pretty deep before you find a link to the study-abroad program here in Prague. Do the same search on Google.cz, however, and the local program is the sixth result.
The difference between the two Googles is the make-up of search results. When users search with Google.cz, they receive results which are skewed toward the Czech Republic and the interests of people who live there.
Cyril Svoboda. Courtesy photo.
Czech Republic is odd man out after Lisbon
By Cassidy Havens
Cyril Svoboda insists that cooperation and cohesion within the European Union is necessary if Europe is to thrive. It’s a view that puts the chairman of the Czech Christian Democratic Party at odds with his country’s president.
“Europe is to stay together, but splitting is going on,” said Svoboda. “The Czechs not ratifying the Lisbon Treaty is an example.”
Svoboda gave a lecture entitled Implications of European Union Lisbon Treaty for the Czech Republic on NYU’s Prague campus October 20.
Hiroshima–Nagasaki runs until November 14
Exhibit commemorates nuclear bombing victims
By Cassidy Havens
A new exhibit at Prague’s New Town Hall pays tribute to the victims of the 1945 bombings of Japan that brought the world into the age of nuclear war.
The exhibit Hiroshima–Nagasaki 1945–2010 includes a printed excerpt from U.S. President Barack Obama’s speech in Prague on April 2009: “As the only nuclear power to have used a nuclear weapon, the United States has a moral responsibility to act.”
A Civic Democrats poster features Prague 2 Mayor Jana Černochová endorsing ODS candidate Jan Paluska.
A quick guide to local elections
By Lindsey Berlin, Nancy Ryerson and Michelle Tanaka
Photos by Michelle Tanaka
Wonder what’s behind all those goofy campaign posters? Czechs go to the polls October 15–16 to vote in Senate and local elections.
Two thirds of the 81-seat Senate are up for re-election. Each party presents 27 candidates, one for each senate seat being contested. A senate term is six years. In the senate elections, each voter cast his or her vote for a party and cannot cross party lines in their selection. To win a seat, a party must receive at least 50 percent of the vote in that particular race. This is often not the case, so there are run-off elections two weeks after this weekend’s polls.
A participant poses a question to panelists at the UNYP 2010 Symposium. Photo by Cassidy Havens
Calling for a personal stake in the future
By Cassidy Havens
“Yes we can” isn’t just a slogan.
A recent conference on the NYU campus in Prague demonstrated how ordinary individuals can play a role in preventing and resolving global crises.
NYU’s Richter classroom on the first floor Richtruv Dům was filled with academics, students, prominent Praguers, and everything in between for the University of New York in Prague (UNYP) 2010 Symposium on October 8.
Former Czech President Václav Havel addresses the 13th Forum 2000 Conference last year in Prague. Courtesy photo.
Leading international thinkers address Prague conference
By Cassidy Havens
Former Czech President Václav Havel launched the 14th annual Forum 2000 Conference in Prague with a dire warning. “Unless our civilization grapples with its short-sightedness, its stupid conviction of its omniscience and its pride, I am certain it is heading for catastrophe,” Havel said in his remarks at the opening ceremony at the Prague Crossroads Centre.
UNYP professor Bill Cohn, one organizer of the symposium. Courtesy photo.
Local symposium to deal with global issues
by Nancy Ryerson
On October 8, NYU students will have the opportunity to discuss global issues with prominent intellectuals from both Prague and the United States at a symposium sponsored by the University of New York in Prague (UNYP) and NYU.
The theme of this event is Meeting Crisis with Wisdom: Charting our way forward in politics, business, finance, law and education.
Forty-one percent of Czechs have offered bribes. Photo illustration by Cassidy Havens.
Corruption widespread in Czech Republic
by Sonam Shah
When Christeen Rico, a 20-year-old New York University student studying in Prague, was slapped a fine of CZK 700 (about $40) by a Public Transport inspector for having an invalid metro ticket, she quickly weighed her options and took the hassle-free way out – by giving the requested bribe.
Student council members (from left): Katya Leonov, Zach Feldman, Bonnie Ding, Dillon Kelly, Sarah Cruz, Chantel Williams.
Pilot student council hits ground running
by Lindsey Berlin
The week of October 6 marked the first week of work for the student council of NYU’s study-abroad program here in Prague. The council is a pilot program for later NYU-in-Prague semesters, to see how student-organized events change and enhance the study abroad experience.
The student council’s goal this semester is to utilize student initiative to organize fun, well-attended events which will augment the study-abroad experience, said Jessica Majkowicz, one of the advisors to the student council. She hopes the staff-organized but student-run council will give a voice to students so that events will represent what the students want to spend their time doing.
Students gathered information on internship opportunities at the September 2 internship meeting on campus. Photo by Cassidy Havens
Internships offer lessons outside the classroom
by Cassidy Havens
Intern or die.
While the phrase may be a bit overdramatic, not having an extensive list of impressive internships is the equivalent of having a GED over a high school diploma for most students—not that there’s anything wrong with either, but one just sounds better than the other.
Jitka Kalašová, NYU in Prague’s internship coordinator and administrative assistant, believes internships do affect a student’s career in the future. “This experience gives [the students] a chance to learn hands-on what it is like in a specific office and if the career that they are considering is indeed one that they would enjoy on a day-to-day basis. Of course, it is always helpful to have this kind of experience on their [resumé], and it can also provide professional contacts for the future,” she says.