Whether you’re new to campus or have been around for a few years but feel like you live under a rock, our handy guide will introduce you to some terms that every informed Barnumbia student should know.
Art Hoe: The Birkenstock-footed, Fjallraven- Kanken-toting person in your Intro to Art History section, who “shops exclusively at thrift stores” but drinks $5 Oren’s coffees every day.
BCSN: Barnard Columbia Solidarity Network is a coalition of activist groups on campus, which includes the fossil fuel divest and apartheid divest campaigns, sexual violence advocacy groups, labor organizations, and groups organizing against gentrification.
BDS: The acronym that inspires more Spec op-eds than any other on campus, Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions is the centerpiece of Columbia University Apartheid Divest’s campaign to end university investments in certain Israeli companies.
Cannons: Only 90’s kids will remember this pub on the corner of 108th and Broadway. Once brimming with bathroom sex, tabletop dancing and other amazing and disgusting sights, it is now an overpriced Chinese Hot Pot restaurant.
CPS and Furman: Counseling and Psychological Services and Rosemary Furman Counseling Center offer support for a variety of mental health needs to Columbia and Barnard students, respectively. Schedule an appointment or come in during walk-in hours. Additional resources and emergency hotline information are available on their websites.
Manhattanville: The section of West Harlem from roughly W 122nd St. to W 134th St., and the site of Columbia’s ongoing construction of new buildings for graduate programs and some SEAS departments. The Columbia expansion has brought anti-gentrification tensions to a head in the neighborhood.
Mo’ Will: Underwhelming, overpriced, bad fruit selection, good burrata, Morton Williams (Mo’ Wills, Mo’ Willy), is a startlingly apt metaphor for The Columbia ExperienceTM. Westside Market is cheaper.
No Red Tape: No Red Tape emerged in 2014 in response to mounting criticism of Columbia’s gender-based misconduct policies. Their current goals include creating a 24/7 Rape Crisis Center on campus and increasing transparency in adjudicating sexual assault cases.
Scabby the Rat: Large inflatable rat with skin problems deployed by labor organizers when a construction project taking place in the neighborhood isn’t using union workers.