Skip to Main Content
New York University's independent student newspaper, established in 1973.

Washington Square News

New York University's independent student newspaper, established in 1973.

Washington Square News

New York University's independent student newspaper, established in 1973.

Washington Square News

Meghna Maharishi

Meghna Maharishi, News Editor

Meghna Maharishi is a first-year in LS planning to major in Politics. As someone who’s lived in New Jersey her whole life, she will probably try to convince you that it’s not that terrible. In the rare event she’s not in the office reporting and writing, you can find her probably buying overpriced coffee, browsing through record stores or endlessly watching Bon Appetit videos on YouTube.

All content by Meghna Maharishi
The Incarceration to Education Coalition, joined by Student Labor Action Movement, protest outside the Kimmel Center for University Life in spring 2017. IEC protested NYU's inclusion of a box on its application that asks applicants to indicate criminal history. (WSN File Photo)

NYU to Create a Scholarship for Formerly Incarcerated Students

The scholarship, created in conjunction with the Prison Industrial Complex Committee and Incarceration to Education Coalition, will begin in the 2020-2021 school year.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor May 31, 2019

NYU will offer a new scholarship for formerly incarcerated students beginning fall 2020 as a result of a prison divestment campaign by the Prison Industrial Complex Committee and...

Steinhardt flags fly above its Washington Square East building. (Staff Photo by Alana Beyer)

Board of Trustees Announces Law Firm Aiding Investigation Into Steinhardt

After a month of silence on its investigation of the sexual harassment allegations against Michael Steinhardt, the Board of Trustees named the law firm aiding its investigation and listed resources members of the NYU community could use to share any experiences with Steinhardt.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor May 13, 2019

The Board of Trustees announced in an email to the NYU community on Monday that law firm Ropes & Gray LLP is aiding it in its investigation of trustee Michael Steinhardt —...

Professor Avital Ronell (pictured) will return to NYU in the fall after being found responsible for sexual harassment last year. The Student Government Assembly published a letter on Friday condemning her return. (via Wikimedia Commons)

SGA Condemns the Return of Professor Accused of Sexual Harassment

After it was revealed that a professor accused of sexual harassment would return to teach at NYU in the fall, the Student Government Assembly published a letter condemning the professor and the university.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor May 10, 2019

The Student Government Assembly published a letter on Friday condemning the return of German and Comparative Literature Professor Avital Ronell — who was found responsible for...

A fire has broken out in a building on East 12th Street and University Place. (Staff Photo by Min Ji Kim)

Fire Erupts on University Place

There were no serious injuries after a fire at an office building on University Place, but two people went to the hospital for smoke inhalation.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor May 8, 2019

Firefighters put out a fire that erupted on the fourth floor of an office building on 99 University Place Wednesday evening near the School of Professional Studies building on...

Seniors' names on the steps of the Kimmel Center for University Life. (Photo by Akshay Prabhushankar)

Transgender Students’ Deadnames Placed on Kimmel Steps, NYU Begins to Address the Issue

The names were placed on Kimmel’s stairs to thank seniors who donated to the 1831 fund. After complaints by transgender students, the university has offered to replace the names of any affected seniors.
Meghna Maharishi and Victor Porcelli May 8, 2019

After an effort to recognize seniors who donated to the 1831 Fund by placing their names on the stairs of the Kimmel Center for University Life, some transgender students and allies...

Students from NYU Divest called for the university to become carbon neutral at protests on campus last year. (Photo by Tony Wu)

Impact of NYU Divest’s Resolution on University Sustainability Initiatives Remains Unclear

After working with students, faculty and administrators to revise its resolution for months, it is now unclear how much NYU Divest’s decarbonization resolution will impact university policies on sustainability.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor May 7, 2019

After a resolution that called for NYU to divest from fossil fuels and gas plants that use fracking passed in the University Senate in April, it is now unclear how much the resolution...

Fraternity members sued NYU over what they claim are false hazing allegations. (Photo by Tony Wu)

Student Files Lawsuit Against NYU Over Allegedly False Hazing Charges

A student filed a lawsuit against the university in April after the Office of Student Conduct found him and several other members of a fraternity responsible for a hazing incident that burned multiple students. The incident ultimately led the university to ban the fraternity from campus.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor May 6, 2019

A student filed a lawsuit against NYU last month alleging that the university wrongfully concluded that he was involved in a fraternity’s hazing incident that inflicted burns...

(Courtesy of NYU)

NYUAD Appoints New Vice Chancellor

Mariet Westermann will oversee NYUAD’s academic, administrative and operational affairs.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor April 29, 2019

NYU Abu Dhabi announced that Mariet Westermann will serve as Vice Chancellor of the school following a 10-month global search. As Vice Chancellor, Westermann will serve as the...

LS is announcing a First Year Away Program site in Madrid. (via NYU)

LS Expands First-Year Away Program to Madrid, Steinhardt Adds FYA Program in Paris

In an interview with WSN, LS Dean Julie Mostov discussed the college’s plans to add another first-year away site in Madrid and how Steinhardt plans to start the program, as well.
Meghna Maharishi and Victor Porcelli April 26, 2019

Liberal Studies will be expanding its first-year away program to Madrid by 2020, and the Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development will begin its own first-year...

Students from NYU Divest called for the university to become carbon neutral at protests on campus last year. (Photo by Tony Wu)

Decarbonization Resolution Passes University Senate

After months of collaboration between activists and the university administration, the decarbonization resolution passed the University Senate.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor April 25, 2019

A resolution to decarbonize the university passed at a University Senate meeting on Thursday with 47 votes in favor of the resolution and 40 votes against. Decarbonization calls...

Steinhardt flags fly above its Washington Square East building. (Staff Photo by Alana Beyer)

Board of Trustees Continues Investigation into Steinhardt, Does Not Specify a Timeframe

As the Board of Trustees continues to investigate one of its members, Michael Steinhardt, it is unclear when the investigation will end or if changing the name of the Steinhardt school is a possibility.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor April 23, 2019

NYU’s Board of Trustees launched an investigation after seven women in Jewish philanthropic organizations claimed Michael Steinhardt — the namesake of the Steinhardt School...

CAS senior Kelsey Moore, a Public Policy and Africana studies major, was selected to be the 2019 CAS valedictorian. (Staff Photo by Alana Beyer)

CAS Valedictorian Hopes the Honor Encourages POC Students

Kelsey Moore will deliver a speech at the school's baccalaureate ceremony on May 21.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor April 22, 2019

Right before spring break, CAS senior Kelsey Moore received an email from the dean’s office. It instructed her to go to the office to accept a graduation award, but she was unsure...

Professor Avital Ronell (pictured) will return to NYU in the fall after being found responsible for sexual harassment last year. The Student Government Assembly published a letter on Friday condemning her return. (via Wikimedia Commons)

Professor Accused of Sexual Harassment to Return to NYU

After an 11-month Title IX investigation found Professor Avital Ronell responsible for sexually harassing her doctoral advisee and led to her suspension, the professor will return to NYU to teach in the fall.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor April 22, 2019

German and Comparative Literature Professor Avital Ronell — who was found responsible for sexually harassing a former graduate student — will be returning to teach at NYU this...

Food options from NYU dining halls. (WSN file photo)

Like NYU, Barnard Drops Aramark for Chartwells

Barnard announced Thursday that it will drop Aramark and switch to Chartwells after students protested Aramark’s ties to prisons.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor April 12, 2019

Barnard College decided to drop Aramark as a food service provider in favor of Chartwells in an announcement on Thursday. The Compass Group subsidiary will take over the college’s...

Matthew Hedges, a British doctoral student who was imprisoned last year in the UAE, and his wife, Daniela Tejada, at their wedding. (Courtesy of Matthew Hedges and Daniela Tejada)

‘You Can Be Detained for Anything’: Academics Discuss Protecting Academic Freedom Abroad

In light of his sentencing in the UAE, U.K. postgraduate student Matthew Hedges and other academics advocated for increased protections for academic freedom at an NYU talk.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor April 10, 2019

Limits on academic freedom in countries such as the United Arab Emirates and China — where NYU has satellite campuses — have resulted in disappearances, imprisonment, censorship...

An Aramark truck parked on the NYU campus. NYU will be ending its contract with Aramark. (Photo by Marva Shi)

Students Say New Dining Service Provider, Same Problems

Students don’t understand why NYU decided to switch to Compass Group for dining services because, like Aramark, Compass Group also has connections to prisons.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor April 1, 2019

After months of deliberation, NYU confirmed last week that Aramark will be dropped as the university’s food service provider. The controversial company, which has been on campus...

Steinhardt flags fly above its Washington Square East building. (Staff Photo by Alana Beyer)

Namesake of Steinhardt Accused of Sexual Harassment

Michael Steinhardt, who the Steinhardt school is named for, was accused of repeated patterns of sexual harassment in an article published in The New York Times.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor March 25, 2019

Philanthropist and billionaire Michael Steinhardt — the namesake of the Steinhardt School of Culture, Education, and Human Development — was accused of sexual harassment by...

Mariam Abukwaik calls for justice. (Photo by Alana Beyer)

Muslim Students Continue to Mourn After Christchurch Shootings

More than a week after the shootings in Christchurch, New Zealand, Muslim students mourn and reflect on what happened.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor March 24, 2019

Silver sophomore Mariam Abukwaik was overwhelmed by the headlines. At least 49 were presumed dead in Christchurch, New Zealand in a horrific massacre which targeted two mosques....

Missing Student Found in the Bronx

Missing Student Found in the Bronx

According to an administrator, missing student Nyamal Pal was found today and is safe.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor February 28, 2019

After missing for nearly a week, CAS senior Nyamal Pal was found safe Thursday morning. Senior Vice President for Student Affairs Marc Wais confirmed that Pal was found in a...

Students walking on NYU’s Abu Dhabi campus.(Staff Photo by Sam Klein)

A Look at the Terms That Built NYUAD

A 2007 provost’s report offered an in-depth look into the initial negotiations between NYU and Abu Dhabi.
Victor Porcelli and Meghna Maharishi February 25, 2019

A 2007 provost’s report offering an overview of the university’s current and potential global sites resurfaced on Twitter last week when English Professor John Archer tweeted...

The “Carceral Crisis: Race, Class and Punishment in America” course in the Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute focuses on providing students with an in-depth understanding of mass incarceration. (Photo by Victor Porcelli)

NYU to Offer New Journalism Minor

NYU’s journalism program announced that it will soon offer a minor in journalism, with tracks in print and online as well as broadcast and multimedia journalism.
Meghna Maharishi and Victor Porcelli February 22, 2019

NYU announced in an email on Friday that the Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute undergraduate program will offer two journalism minors, one in print and online and one in...

Matthew Hedges, a British doctoral student who was imprisoned last year in the UAE, and his wife, Daniela Tejada, at their wedding. (Courtesy of Matthew Hedges and Daniela Tejada)

Hedges Encourages Reflection on NYUAD

WSN spoke with formerly imprisoned U.K. academic Matthew Hedges and his wife Daniela Tejada over academic freedom in the UAE and at NYUAD.
Victor Porcelli and Meghna Maharishi February 19, 2019

British doctoral student Matthew Hedges was tortured last year during a months-long interrogation period and subsequently sentenced to life imprisonment in the United Arab Emirates...

(via twitter.com)

Silver Releases Statement Addressing Racist Email

Following scrutiny after a graduate student tweeted a racist email a classmate sent, Silver School of Social Work issued out a statement condemning the incident.
Meghna Maharishi and Victor Porcelli February 15, 2019

After a first-year graduate student's racist experience went viral on Twitter, Silver School of Social Work sent out a statement acknowledging institutional racism at the school...

Law professor Melissa Murray speaks with renowned journalist and author Ta-Nehisi Coates about mass incarceration, the #MeToo movement and 2020 presidential candidates. (Staff Photo by Victor Porcelli)

Ta-Nehisi Coates Talks Politics at NYU Law

Journalist and author Ta-Nehisi Coates compared his newfound understanding of the #MeToo movement to white people’s’ understanding of civil rights issues after reading his writing.
Victor Porcelli and Meghna Maharishi February 1, 2019

Renowned author and journalist Ta-Nehisi Coates discussed mass incarceration and the #MeToo movement with law professor Melissa Murray in Vanderbilt Hall on Thursday. NYU’s...

A student walks through the NYU Abu Dhabi Campus. NYU spokesperson John Beckman recently made a statement regarding the campus, which has been at the center of controversy during its decade of existence.  (Photo by Sam Klein)

NYU and professors butt heads over NYU Abu Dhabi

NYU recently issued a statement discussing the mounting criticism of NYUAD, maintaining that academic freedom is protected at the campus.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor January 28, 2019

Last week, NYU publicly released a statement to NBC addressing criticism about the lack of academic freedom at the Abu Dhabi campus. In the statement, NYU spokesperson John Beckman...

LS Professor Michael Rectenwald suddenly retired. (via NYU)

‘Anti-PC’ Professor Rectenwald Has Retired

LS Clinical Professor Michael Rectenwald, who ran the Twitter account @antipcnyuprof, unexpectedly retired this January.
Meghna Maharishi, News Editor January 28, 2019

Earlier this January, Liberal Studies Clinical Professor Michael Rectenwald suddenly retired. Rectenwald became a controversial figure within the NYU community through his Twitter...

Senior Vice President for Student Affairs Marc Wais talks to members of the IEC. (Photo by Sayer Devlin)

University Agrees to Meet Activists’ Demands on Aramark After 155-Hour Occupation

The Incarceration to Education Coalition ended their 155-hour long occupation in Bobst and Kimmel after NYU agreed to meet some of the organization’s demands, but NYU said “the University cannot make pledges that bind its actions in future years.”
Meghna Maharishi, Deputy News Editor December 9, 2018
The Incarceration to Education Coalition ended their 155-hour long occupation in Bobst and Kimmel after NYU agreed to meet some of the organization’s demands, but NYU said “the University cannot make pledges that bind its actions in future years.”
Students walk past protestors who are demanding a response from NYU regarding its dining services on the steps of Kimmel.

IEC Moves Days Long Occupation to Kimmel Stairs

Members of the IEC have now moved their occupation of Bobst to Kimmel, hoping to escalate their protest of NYU’s dining services.
Meghna Maharishi, Deputy News Editor December 6, 2018
Members of the IEC have now moved their occupation of Bobst to Kimmel, hoping to escalate their protest of NYU’s dining services.
NYU's Student Government Association drafts a petition, joining the over 200 professors who urged NYU President Andrew Hamilton to condemn the UAE government late last week. (Courtesy of Aizaz Ansari)

Students Support Faculty Letter, Urging Hamilton to Respond to NYU’s UAE Relationship

Hamilton told faculty signatories in an email that he had spoken to senior officials in the Abu Dhabi government as well as Durham University’s vice chancellor about Matthew Hedges’ life sentence.
Meghna Maharishi November 28, 2018
Days after 224 faculty signed a letter urging President Hamilton to Condemn the UAE for sentencing UK postgraduate student Matthew Hedges, the SGA has drafted and circulated a letter in support of the faculty’s letter.
 NYU's Abu Dhabi campus. NYU faculty held a townhall to discuss the university's relationship with the satellite campus. (Courtesy of Aizaz Ansari)

Hamilton to Address Faculty Concerns About UAE

With its degree-granting campus in Abu Dhabi, NYU remains inextricably tied to the United Arab Emirates as its government received international condemnation over the imprisonment of a British doctoral student — that the government has since pardoned.
Alex Domb and Meghna Maharishi November 26, 2018
With its degree-granting campus in Abu Dhabi, NYU remains inextricably tied to the United Arab Emirates as its government received international condemnation over the imprisonment of a British doctoral student — that the government has since pardoned.
Chief Political Correspondent for the Jerusalem Post, Gil Hoffman, talks to the Realize Israel club about being a Jewish student on campus regarding issues such as BDS and the Pittsburgh shooting. (Photo by Alina Patrick)

Jerusalem Post Correspondent Talks BDS on Campus

Realize Israel invited chief political correspondent Gil Hoffman to speak to students about BDS and Israeli politics.
Meghna Maharishi, Deputy News Editor November 13, 2018
Realize Israel invited Chief Political Correspondent Gil Hoffman to speak to students about BDS and Israeli politics.
Students at a town hall discuss free speech on campus in the wake of Milo Yiannopoulos. (Photo by Sam Klein)

Liberal Studies Hosts Town Hall on Milo Yiannopoulos and Free Speech

Liberal Studies hosted an open dialogue session with LS students to discuss their thoughts on free speech on campus after the postponement of Milo Yiannopoulos’ canceled appearance.
Meghna Maharishi, Deputy News Editor November 8, 2018
Liberal Studies hosted an open dialogue session with LS students to discuss their thoughts on free speech on campus after the postponement of Milo Yiannopoulos’ canceled appearance.
Chartwells, a division of Compass Group, will replace Aramark as NYU's dining service provider starting this summer. Recently, Aramark revamped Third North Courtyard Cafe (pictured above) to Harvest Table in its attempts to continue its contract. (Photo by Tony Wu)

Rebuking Aramark, Students Pressure NYU Dining Services

SGA passed a resolution to boycott food service providers such as Aramark, Compass Group USA and AVI Foodsystems because of their relationships with prisons, although all three companies expressed interest in submitting a proposal to NYU’s bidding process.
Meghna Maharishi, Deputy News Editor November 5, 2018
SGA passed a resolution to boycott food service providers such as Aramark, Compass Group USA and AVI Foodsystems because of their relationships with prisons, although all three companies expressed interest in submitting a proposal to NYU’s bidding process.
NYU Divest during a rally in 2016. (Photo by Jake Quan)

Student Decarbonization Efforts Gain Momentum

NYU Divest’s campaign for decarbonization may now finally be heard by the University Senate in a week, while NYU Divest plans to amplify its resolution by hosting a rally on the same day.
Meghna Maharishi, Deputy News Editor October 29, 2018
NYU Divest’s campaign for decarbonization may now finally be heard by the University Senate in a week, while NYU Divest plans to amplify its resolution by hosting a rally on the same day.