Fordham University???

[capella]

Does anyone know anything about Fordham University? It's in the Bronx, right? Is it safe? My husband might be working at a summer camp there for a few weeks this summer and I wanted to scope out the area.. Thoughts??? Info??

[dacrunkest]

My cousin Joe goes there. The area is fine, and yes it's in the bronx. It's a good part of town and the college makes it very lively.

[SWMOchick]

My cousin Joe goes there. The area is fine, and yes it's in the bronx. It's a good part of town and the college makes it very lively.
Joey the Butcher? ;):

[dacrunkest]

Joey the Butcher? ;):

nope that's my uncle. I mean Joey Bagadonuts.

[wordsmith]

I'm pretty sure we have a board regular who went there...

[SmilesSoSweet]

My cousin just graduated from there, but from the Tarrytown campus. She was at Marymount, I think. And she did live in the Bronx during part of her college years.

That's all I know about the college. Before she went there, I never heard of it.

[winneythepooh7]

It's safe. There's areas nearby that I wouldn't personally go wandering around at night, but that could also be anywhere in NYC. ETA: I am talking about the Bronx campus. Lincoln Center you definitely shouldn't have any problems. Also I think the Westchester campus is also probably pretty decent.

[bleepbloop]

Fordham seems like a pretty well gated campus, if you start going into the "shopping center" area where the metro north is then it starts getting pretty ghetto, and might be overwhelming if you don't know the area well. Generally though the campus seems really beautiful and it's right near the Bronx Zoo and the Botanical Gardens (and a White Castle ! ha.) The traffic is pretty miserable there though.

[tiredreporter]

I went on a campus tour at Fordham with a friend who was thinking of transferring there about six years ago.
I remember it being a nice school and I never felt in danger. It is gated.
I went to a university in a bad area in a major city and also never felt in danger. It has been my experience that the schools themself are relatively safe it is just the surrounding area you have to watch out for.

[Skyblade]

Totally random side note.......I used to work for a company that placed advertisements in college newspapers. My job was to contact the school newspapers to get pricing, sizing, contact info, etc. I remember Fordham University because its school newspaper would NEVER call us back. It was like a running joke in the office if one of the account managers wanted you to try and get info from Fordham.

[arrow]

It's a gorgeous campus. I almost went to grad school there, so I checked it out pretty completely. Expenisve though. The area surrounding it is pretty crowded and crazy, and it's right on both the subway AND the metro north, so it's easy to get in and out of there if you live farther out.

[SunnyCee]

I went to Fordham! I graduated last year. The area campus is beautiful and very safe. The area around it is also safe, as long as you act sensibly and not walk by yourself in the middle of the night. Right around Fordham is Little Italy, the Bronx Zoo, the Botanical Gardens...there's quite a bit there. Going there for four years, of course I heard things happening to people, but that's expected in a city. Nothing ever happened to me, and I normally felt safe there (that's coming from a white girl in her early twenties).

[capella]

What would be the easiest way to get there if I were to fly up to visit? La Guardia? How about transportation from the airport? Logistics? Help?? He leaves this morning and will be gone until July 20th!!! :cry:

[winneythepooh7]

I don't know what airline flies into which airport for you. I tend to like JFK better because public transporation is more accessible (you have the airtrain which goes straight to the subway or LIRR at Jamaica). Honestly, if you fly into Laguardia, I believe there are some city busses, but it would probably be easier to just "cab it" from there. That can run you probably at least $50.00 to get to the Bronx from there. The airtrain is $5.00 and then you can get a Metrocard for a couple of dollars. Google MTA NYC so you can see the subway and bus maps. There's also a feature on the MTA site where you can plan your trip via public transporation.

[cameralady]

What would be the easiest way to get there if I were to fly up to visit? La Guardia? How about transportation from the airport? Logistics? Help?? He leaves this morning and will be gone until July 20th!!! :cry:
You can fly into either Newark, JFK, or LaGuardia Airport.

From Newark, you can either take NJ Transit to Penn Station, take the subway to Grand Central, and take Metro North to Fordham-or walk one block east and take the D or B train to Fordham Road.

From LaGuardia and JFK, you may as well cab it, as the subway does not go directly to either airport. By the time you takes the bus to the subway, it'd be faster to take a cab.

I think LaGuardia is physically closer since it is in upper Queens, and by car, one can easily hop on one of the two or three nearby bridges into the Bronx.

P.S. If you need more specific information about how to get there by mass transit, PM me.

ETA:
I went to Fordham! I graduated last year. The area campus is beautiful and very safe. The area around it is also safe, as long as you act sensibly and not walk by yourself in the middle of the night.

The neighborhood may seem a bit rough around the edges if you are walking from the Grand Concourse (although you can take a bus down Fordham Road), but SunnyCee's statement holds true. (It certainly held true for my alma mater, which was also located in a working-class, urban area.) Translation: Use street smarts, and don't walk around looking like a clueless tourist! :)

[arrow]

True, it's faster by cab, but you'd save yourself $40-50 if you take the bus to the subway! However if you are not accustomed to NYC and it's transportations system, the convenience may be worth the cost of a cab.
Laguardia is faster if you are going to go the bus-to-subway route, for sure. Also faster by cab, because if you came from JFK you'd have to drive all the way through Brooklyn, into Queens (or Manhattan) and then to the Bronx.

[cameralady]

True, it's faster by cab, but you'd save yourself $40-50 if you take the bus to the subway! However if you are not accustomed to NYC and it's transportations system, the convenience may be worth the cost of a cab.

That's the thing. The way there may easily confound someone who is not familiar with the subway. For example, from LaGuardia, she'd have to take a bus to the subway. If there is any track work or detours, that would confuse things even more. :)

But I just remembered an relatively easy way there from LaGuardia-M60 bus to Frederick Douglass Boulevard (8th Ave) and 125th Street, and catch the D train. Allow about an hour for travel time.

[capella]

Whew! I'm already confused. I think I will PM some of you when it gets closer to when I plan on going up. I don't know which weekend I can go so... The hubby says there is a shuttle that goes to the school, but I don't know about that since my phone died halfway through the conversation.

[winneythepooh7]

I was actually going to suggest looking into a shuttle, but didn't know if they had something like that due to the time of the year. Honestly, I don't think you'd have a lot of trouble taking public transportation. People are generally friendly despite the stereotypes of New Yorkers and are willing to point you in the right direction. You can always ask at the airport how to get to certain routes, like the bus if you fly into Laguardia. I think the airtrain from JFK is really easy. It takes you to the E train which would get you to the subway trains you need to take to the Bronx. I can understand though if you've never been to NYC before, public transportation can be incredibly overwhelming.

[cameralady]

Capella, check your PM box. ;)