Welcome home, class of 2029
Under the Arch
Welcome home, Class of 2029
A guide to your first semester at college from WSN.

Letter from the Editors
Dear readers,
Your stories will soon be set in the bustling streets of New York City — and your commute will resemble the one shown above. As you begin to recognize faces around the Village and discover your go-to study spots, the pandemonium of attending college in a metropolis will start to die down. And maybe, some of our editors’ recommendations can help along the way.
Life in the city is undeniably overwhelming, and New York’s cultural chaos doesn’t stop when you enter your classrooms and dining halls. When faced with constant noise and a never-ending news cycle, it can be hard to filter through everything you hear. That’s why factual, reliable and fair journalism is critical to keep tabs on the world around you.
For more than 50 years, Washington Square News has served as an information hub for the NYU community by offering ethical — and entirely independent — reporting. As a student-run publication, WSN strives to serve the students, faculty and families who want to understand the many facets of NYU’s undertaking. Whether you’re curious about Greenwich Village’s latest art gallery or the protest you walked by in Washington Square Park, WSN’s staff works tirelessly to keep you in the loop.
Welcome Home is WSN’s first Under the Arch issue of the academic year. Designed as a resource for incoming students, the magazine features guides and personal accounts about everything from the best local restaurants to hidden histories around NYU’s campus. From Bobst Library to the Philippines, writers, photographers, illustrators and editors work on this issue throughout the summer. While we find ourselves missing the newsroom — and a common time zone — we do it because we strive to serve our readers in every possible way. In this case, that means offering our experiential knowledge to students like you.
This year’s Welcome Home issue would not have been possible without Multimedia Editors Kyra Reilley and Allina Xiao, whose illustrations brought our stories to life. A special thanks to Photo Editor Alex Woodworth and Creative Director Julia Smerling for lending their photography expertise to the cover shoot and featured photos. Thank you to Lauren Ng, Krish Dev, Anjali Mehta and Sidney Snider for their editorial contributions, and especially to Ella Sabrina Malabanan, our one-person copy team who fact-checked the issue. Your work does not go unrecognized.
Finally, WSN thanks you for your support. We hope that this issue inspires you to explore your new home, and maybe invite some of your welcome week friends along for the ride. You never know who might stick around.
Welcome home,

Dharma Niles
Editor-in-Chief

Grayson Stotz
Magazine Director

Karina Rower
Magazine Director
Oh, the places you’ll go!
5 types of
students
you’ll
meet at
NYU
Welcome
By Annie Emans, Staff Writer
From chronic complainers to party animals, here’s a guide to the fellow first-years you’ll meet during your debut week at NYU.
The Village before NYU: hidden histories of campus sites
By Julia Kim and Daphne Zhu
A campus in the city that never sleeps has a past that doesn’t either.
Photo Essays
5 green spaces to unwind in the city
When Washington Square Park starts to feel more draining than grounding, these urban oases offer a quieter escape.
By Krish Dev, Digital Director
Lost in New York, found through photography
How street photography helped me see myself in the stories of strangers.
By Julia Smerling, Creative Director
A New York state of mind
By Anjali Mehta, Deputy Managing Editor
What I’ve learned about prioritizing my mental health in a big city, from an Applied Psychology major.
A note on higher education
By Dharma Niles, Editor-in-Chief
What federal changes might mean for your time at NYU.
Developed for web by Karina Rower and Grayson Stotz

Grayson Stotz is a sophomore studying journalism and neural science at CAS. When he’s not splitting his time between two majors with no overlap, he’s...

Karina Rower is a sophomore studying magazine journalism and computer science at the Gallatin School of Individualized Study. She loves oversharing to...

Samson Tu is finishing his B.A. degree in politics with a thesis on the state of civil society development in the People's Republic of China. Synthesizing...

Alex Woodworth is a sophomore studying public policy and economics. When not taking photos, you can find him at a Yankees game, searching for the best...

Julia Smerling is a junior studying photography and imaging. She is from West Palm Beach, Florida, and you can find her writing poetry, obsessing over...

Allina Xiao is a junior studying computer science at CAS. When she's not switching her third minor again, she can be found enjoying her fourth semester...

Kyra Reilley is a junior studying interactive media arts at Tisch. You can probably find her bouncing between all her clubs or catching the subway to her...