Ramona Ostrowski

More by Ramona Ostrowski

Eddie Saviano CAS ’13 5/3/2012	Name: Eddie Saviano Hometown: Harrison, NY Class: 2013 Major: English Relationship status: Single HC: You recently switched from a film major to an english major. What prompted your decision, and what has been different now? I changed my major for a few reasons. I didn't particularly enjoy watching old classic movies that film majors were "supposed" to know, I hated most, if not all, Hollywood movies, and I believe that I wouldn't be getting an artistic, individualized approach to film making in most BU classes. I didn't really feel too challenged in COM either, and needed something more stimulating and realized I wouldn't get that if I had to take mostly COM courses. I ended up choosing english last minute; I like to read so that helped the decision, and english covers a lot of diverse topics so I won't get bored. The biggest thing that has been different is I have a lot more work. Much more time has to be devoted to schoolwork now than I used to commit to COM, and all the reading and writing is solo work, so I miss the communal aspect of COM, so I get restless when I know I have to shut myself in for a few hours every day just to keep up with classes. And more work means less partying which, annoyingly, has been a process to adjust. Are you involved in any clubs at BU? I'm involved in TFE, (theater for EVERYBODAY!) which is a comedy sketch group on campus. We do a bunch of crazy, raucous plays in one big show with the best improv group in town, Liquid Fun. The shows are always free, and anybody who is crazy and silly and who has a good sense of humor is encouraged to join! What's your dream job?
Hollywood-Bound: Gaby Grossman (COM ’13) 4/25/2012	The film industry is a notoriously hard business to break into, but Gaby Grossman is well on her way. Gaby is from LA, and came to BU not sure what she wanted to major in, but knowing it would be something in COM. She’s taken many classes here that explore all aspects of filmmaking, but has lately decided that producing interests her the most. She plans to graduate next January and pursue a career in film. Here, Gaby talks about her current projects and hopes for the future. Why did you decide to major in film? It’s gotta be the most fun major there is. What are you working on currently? I am finishing up production on my two thesis films in Production III, BU’s senior most production class. The films are titled “Big Shot” and “Off to the Races.” “Big Shot” is a comedy I co-wrote about a middle school-aged aspiring rapper named Armando. Armando gets teased a lot in school when a rap video he made goes viral. He tries to prove himself through a comeback performance in his school talent show. http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/evanscottmoore/big-shot/ “Off to the Races,” written and directed by Megan Lovallo, is about a twelve-year-old boy who visits his twenty-something year old sister at her apartment unannounced and the evening they spend together. http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/451924651/off-to-the-races?ref=live I am also planning for Fall 2012, which will bring lots more producing!
Sexual Repression meets Musical Theatre: Spring Awakening 4/18/2012	Spring Awakening, BU on Broadway’s latest musical which opens Thursday night, is a coming-of-age story about a group of German teenagers in the late 19th century. It is based on a controversial play by Frank Wedekind, but the musical brings the story into current times with a rock score reminiscent of Rent. The show opens with adolescent Wendla at home with her mother, asking how babies are created. Her mother refuses to tell her anything more than that it happens when a woman loves her husband. The scene then switches to the male lead, Melchior, getting in trouble with his strict teacher for questioning a Latin translation. Immediately we are thrown into a world where adults have complete power and the young characters have only questions. From here, the production progresses through a series of short scenes and musical numbers in which we meet different students and learn about their individual struggles with their newly-realized sexuality and the repressiveness of the adults in their world. Each of the actors playing teens brings a palpable angst to their portrayal, and throws themself into the jerky, angry choreography with gusto. Fiona Brysonand Mike Melkonian, who play all the adult men and women, do an excellent job of setting themselves apart from and above the younger characters through their stern words, uptight posture and condescending attitudes.
Teen Voices: Turning Up the Volume on Healthy Media 4/13/2012	We all know the media can be overwhelmingly toxic, but no one is more negatively impacted than teen girls. Luckily, Teen Voices is here to help. As their mission statement says, Teen Voices supports and educates teen girls to amplify their voices and create social change through media. They do this through an after-school journalism, mentoring and leadership program for teen girls. The program produces a print magazine twice a year with content written by teens, targeted towards teens, as well as a website with content that is updated daily, and receives over 320,000 page views annually from around the world. 85 teen girls from around Boston, approximately 80% of which are from low-income families, participate in the program each year. They are guided by the Teen Voices staff, and by about 60 local college students who serve as mentors to the girls.
BU Daily Free Press April Fool's Article Forgets that Rape Jokes Aren't Funny. C'mon Guys, Really? 4/2/2012	By now, I’m sure most of you have heard about The Daily Free Press’s insensitive, un-humorous and distasteful April Fools “joke” issue, in which the paper renamed itself The Disney Free Press and proceeded to publish a cover story in which a female BU student was roofied and then “gangbanged” by seven members of a fraternity. I know, hilarious. The DFP did not publish the text of the article online (perhaps rethinking it?), but Jezebel has posted it. Some highlights: “Seven frat dwarves were arrested last night after they allegedly drugged and gangbanged a Boston University student in an Allston Village cabin.” “The girl...woke up wearing no clothes with seven BRO dwarves laying naked in bed with her.” “The fraternity is known for its rousing parties where the 'cocktails flow freely and bitches are easy,' according to a BU student who wishes to remain anonymous.” Okay. I’m not even sure where to start this discussion. First of all, rape should never, ever be taken lightly as a joke. Treating such a serious issue as fodder for humor is a hallmark of rape culture, something of which the BU community has been actively struggling to eradicate. That being said, this is not a “too soon” issue; this article would have been inappropriate in any context, at any time. In their defense, the DFP editors have released a formal apology, which included saying, “We know that even though the stories were meant to be jokes, simply writing them perpetuated rape culture.” Absolutely. I’m so glad they recognize that now. But why even publish it in the first place?
BU Takes Back the Night 4/2/2012	On Friday night, BU’s Center for Gender, Sexuality and Activism hosted a Take Back the Night rally and march. The point of Take Back the Night is to break the silence surrounding sexual assault, and to bring attention to the rape culture which permeates our society. At 7 pm, approximately 200 students and faculty members gathered on the BU Beach to hear keynote speaker Megan Andelloux, also known as Oh Megan (http://ohmegan.com/), give a speech entitled “It All Starts With an Orgasm.” Megan bravely discussed her own experience with sexual assault, and the way she has come to grow past it. Following this talk, there were speeches and skits about what does and does not qualify as consent. Did you know, for example, that you are legally unable to give consent if you are under the infuence of drugs or alcohol? This topic was followed by speakers about being a bystander to street harassment and assault. Around this time, candles were distributed and lit. The darkening night was filled with flickering flames as three survivors of sexual assault took the stage and told their stories. They set the tone for small group discussions, which involved groups of people, led by representatives from The Center, standing in circles and sharing personal experiences. The idea was for survivors to break through society’s insisted-upon silence regarding issues of sexual assault. Many survivors feel ashamed of what they have been through because of society’s tendency to blame victims for actions which were forced upon them. This leads to many assaults being unreported, and survivors feeling like they have nowhere to turn for help. The purpose here, then, was to give survivors a safe space where they could talk and feel supported by a community.
Beyond the GSU: Underappreciated Restaurants Around Campus 3/27/2012	It’s so easy to get into a food rut. Between the dining halls and the GSU, BU offers a pretty wide (though not always appealing) variety of dining options. Even when venturing beyond dining points, most of us tend to gravitate to the same few restaurants—Nud Pob, anyone? But this week, dare yourself to try something new. Here’s a few tips to get you started: Crispy Crepes Café, 512-A Park Drive: Just over the St. Mary’sSt. Bridge in South Campus, this hidden gem has become my favorite go-go brunch spot. Despite its plain exterior and unassuming décor, the food is delicious. The sweet crepes, many featuring Nutella and fruit, are a delectable indulgence, while the savory crepes offer a more hearty start to the day. The menu also features more standard breakfast options as well as lunch and dinner items. If you’re dining here, though, I recommend you try a crepe. You won’t regret it.
Curtain Up: Kaylyn Bancroft (CAS/CFA ’14) 3/21/2012	Most BU students spend around 12 hours a week in class. For sophomore Kaylyn Bancroft, it’s more than twice that number. She is a double major in CFA and CAS, pursuing a BA in Psychology and a BFA in Theatre Arts. Normally double majoring is impossible for theatre students, since the School of Theatre is a conservatory program that requires a huge time commitment. But with patient scheduling, a few summer classes and a lot of dedication, Kaylyn is making it work. HCBU:Why did you decide to audition to be an acting major? KB:Theatre has always been my passion and my dream. But there were always other subjects I was interested in and as theatre is not the most dependable field, I talked myself out of majoring in it when I was applying to colleges. A year later, I knew I had to give myself a shot at following my dream (not to be dramatic). I’ve been fortunate enough to land in an amazing theatre program and still be able to continue studying Psychology as well. How is your schedule this year, now that you're double majoring? Scheduling is probably the hardest part—my School of Theatre classes are difficult to schedule around. But with a lot of planning ahead it is possible! I spend much more time in class now (about 32hours per week), which makes it a little more difficult to manage my workload. This year has worked out beautifully so far, though. And I’m having so much fun, which makes it easier to tackle the challenges. Is it difficult to balance the two very different courses of study?
Putting an End to Rape Culture 3/6/2012	Rape culture. It’s a scary term, especially when it’s applied to our own culture--the culture of the campus we call home. In light of recent events on campus, the Center for Gender, Sexuality and Activism held two open meetings on February 29th to discuss whether or not there is a prevalent rape culture at BU, and how it can be combatted. Dean Elmore was present for one, and the other was a town hall meeting. The first order of business was to establish a working definition of rape culture. Here is what was established, with a few modifications: Rape culture is a culture that doesn’t understand what consent means when one engages in sexual relations. Rape culture is a culture where rape allegations aren’t treated seriously, or are made fun of. Rape culture is telling one gender how to prevent rape and telling the other gender nothing. Rape culture promotes the idea that a certain gender deserves to be attacked or attracts violence and sexual assault because of the way they’re dressed. Rape culture promotes the idea that rape isn’t perpetuated by people you know but rather by deranged people who attack you in the night (while in fact, according to the Boston Area Rape Crisis Center, 75% of all survivors know their attackers, a number which rises to 90% of survivors on college campuses). Rapists, misogyny and institutional tolerance cause rape culture, definitely not the way people act or dress.
Ballroom Dancing Through Life: Emily Shoov CAS ’12 3/2/2012	We’ve all got extracurricular activities, but for most of us, they don’t involve the words waltz or cha-cha, and there are no glittery costumes. For Emily Shoov (CAS ’12), however, these are standard elements. She ballroom dances, taking lessons at Dance Fever Studio in Newton, MA and competing an average of three times a year. These competitions are usually in Massachusetts, but she has gone as far as New York City and Las Vegas in the past, and is considering an upcoming one in Costa Rica. Here, she tells Her Campus all about how Ballroom has become an integral part of her life: HCBU:What kind of dance do you do? Emily:I do both International styles of Ballroom at the moment: Standard (waltz, tango, foxtrot, quickstep, viennese waltz) and Latin (cha-cha, samba, rumba, paso doble, jive). I took a few years off from Standard but in my last competition I was doing both styles. I do Pro-Am which means at competitions I dance with my coach (he's the “Pro” and I'm the “Am”) but theoretically only I get scored. When and why did you start dancing? I've been dancing in the broad sense since I was really little. Ballet-tap-jazz in elementary school and then swing lessons for a few months when I was eight or nine. I started Ballroom (albeit American style) the summer before my sophomore year of high school in a little studio in Merrimack, NH called Papermoon. My cousins had started taking group lessons and I went one day to watch. It just looked like so much fun and I really loved the music so I started in the “teen class” with them and pretty soon afterwards I started taking private lessons and doing competitions and showcases. What is your favorite part about dancing and competing?

drupal statistics