Talk:Fordham University

GA Review

This review is transcluded from Talk:Fordham University/GA1. The edit link for this section can be used to add comments to the review.

Reviewer: Jzsj (talk · contribs) 16:08, 14 June 2017 (UTC)

I am in the process of reviewing this article. Jzsj (talk) 16:08, 14 June 2017 (UTC)

Location of Good Article review

Drown Soda, was the GA review done on another talk page or work page? I ask because I don't see any commentary from the reviewer in the "GA Review" section transcluded above. If so, could you copy and paste it to this talk page with a link to where it came from? Rjjⁱⁱⁱ (talk) 06:09, 13 January 2024 (UTC)

@Rjjiii: It has been a number of years so I cannot recall much about this—I do see there is no GA review on the talk page, which is abnormal. I see in my personal talk page archive that there were a couple of posts made by the reviewer, but not a review proper(?) -Drown Soda (talk) 06:23, 13 January 2024 (UTC)

That's okay, thanks for checking. It's not uncommon for new reviewers to place reviews somewhere other than the review's page. Sadly, the reviewing editor has passed, so there's no telling. Take care, Rjjⁱⁱⁱ (talk) 06:32, 13 January 2024 (UTC)

Fordhams ridiculous tuition rate and rise

The school raises tuition incessantly under Tetlow and the virgin moderator of wiki won’t even allow it on the page Alexmilton1755 (talk) 00:42, 1 September 2024 (UTC)

Tuition up 10% in two years

This should certainly be stated in the article Alexmilton1755 (talk) 01:03, 1 September 2024 (UTC)

This doesn't sound notable to me. It approximates inflation and likely tracks increases in expenses. It also appears to be WP:RECENTISM. The tone of the original edit also was decidedly non-neutral, violating WP:NPOV. I disagree with including it. Bahooka (talk) 01:21, 1 September 2024 (UTC)

Request edit on 23 October 2025: It is incorrect to call President Trump an alumnus. While he did attend, he never graduated from here.

My apologies for deleting the reinstitution of the edit without discussion. I am new to editing Wikipedia and did not understand the mechanisms.

The lead sentence of the final summary paragraph notes, "Fordham's alumni and faculty include current President Donald Trump..."

This is not true as Trump did not graduate from Fordham. While he did attend for two years, he did not obtain any degree. He could be considered an alumnus, not an alumni as stated.

Further, the summary paragraph is not the location for this information. Information about his length of attendance is noted later in the article under the "Alumni & Faculty" heading with the line "President Donald Trump attended for two years and studied economics but left in 1966, transferring to the University of Pennsylvania." While the heading still is slightly misleading, the sentence is clear regarding his time at the institution.

Lastly, many notable people have attended the institution and received degrees (honorary or academic); however, none of them are listed in the summary by name. Instead, titles of the alumni are listed. Should one feel the need to include Trump in the summary, only his title should be given with the link to the wiki page for the US presidency for consistency. ~2026-59306-7 (talk) 03:47, 28 January 2026 (UTC)

• What I think should be changed:
• Why it should be changed:
• References supporting the possible change (format using the "cite" button):

69.74.46.2 (talk) 17:21, 26 October 2025 (UTC)

References

Donald Trump listed as alumni in summary.

The lead sentence of the final summary paragraph notes, "Fordham's alumni and faculty include current President Donald Trump..."

This is not true as Trump did not graduate from Fordham. While he did attend for two years, he did not obtain any degree. He could be considered an alumnus, not an alumni as stated.

Further, the summary paragraph is not the location for this information. Information about his length of attendance is noted later in the article under the "Alumni & Faculty" heading with the line "President Donald Trump attended for two years and studied economics but left in 1966, transferring to the University of Pennsylvania." While the heading still is slightly misleading, the sentence is clear regarding his time at the institution.

Lastly, many notable people have attended the institution and received degrees (honorary or academic); however, none of them are listed in the summary by name. Instead, titles of the alumni are listed. Should one feel the need to include Trump in the summary, only his title should be given with the link to the wiki page for the US presidency for consistency.

(Also, my apologies for deleting the reinstitution of the edit without discussion. I am new to editing Wikipedia and did not understand the mechanisms.) ~2026-59306-7 (talk) 03:46, 28 January 2026 (UTC)

Thanks for opening this discussion!

First, Trump is an alumnus. As explained in our article about alumni, an alumnus is simply a former student. It's not the same as being a graduate. And "alumnus" is simply the (male) singular of "alumni."

In my experience, it's typical for presidents who are alumni to be specifically named in the lead sections of articles about their colleges and universities. I imagine that many editors believe that it's such a singular and noteworthy office that has been held by few people that they should be named. It also helps readers know exactly who we're talking about when we say that a president attended the institution. Most other alumni are not usually named as there are simply many more of them and it's not practical to name them all although I seem to recall that some articles do include footnotes that list all of the alumni who have held a particular office when it's mentioned in the lead section.

You're welcome to wait a while to see if other editors respond here. If they don't, feel free to post a brief, neutral message in this Talk page where other editors who edit college and university articles hang out. ElKevbo (talk) 05:09, 28 January 2026 (UTC)

Appreciate the response, but it is not factual.

It is not, in fact, typical for US Presidents to be named the lead sections of articles about their colleges and universities. According to the wiki page listing the education of all Presidents, there are 38 institutions listed of which only five who note the President by name in their summary:

• Eureka College: notes Ronald Reagan who graduated and maintained a close connection with the college. There is even a Ronald Reagan Museum and Peace Garden.

• Hiram College: notes James A Garfield. Interestingly, Garfield transferred to William College who does not note him although he graduated from there.

• Occidental College: noted Barack Obama. Obama also transfered and is not noted by his graduating institution (Columbia University)

• US Military Academy: lists Ulysses S Grant & Dwight D Eisenhower, among other notable alumni as part of their "Long Grey Line"

• Ohio Central College: Warren G Harding

To this end, Hiram College and Occidental College are in the same position as Fordham, and I would move they also not mention the Presidents by name, instead using the office title. (That is not the main point of the discussion for this thread; therefore, I will take it to the appropriate pages. I just wanted it noted for consistency.)

This leaves 33 listed colleges and universities (or 86%) not naming any former US President in their summary section. Should any of them note there was a US President in attendance or as a graduate, they refer only to the office/title.

Lastly, it should be noted the University of Pennsylvania, where President Trump obtained a degree, does not note him by name in the summary. It is listed as "3 presidents of the United States", with the link to the government office.

I move the edit should be made that President Trump be removed from the summary and instead listed as "a presidents of the United States" with the link to the government office. This is edit is consistent and clarifying. You may note it in the footnote as you wish, but the standard text should be edited as above. ~2026-59306-7 (talk) 18:02, 28 January 2026 (UTC)

Nice job looking into this further! I'm convinced and you're welcome to make the edit. Thanks for looking into this further and sharing your findings. ElKevbo (talk) 03:41, 29 January 2026 (UTC)

I sincerely appreciate that! I will make the changes now. I will also propose the same change to Occidental College for consistency. (Hiram, upon further research, is part of the Garfield Trial and seems to have deeper ties to the institution.)

(This is the same user. I've decided to create an account so I can be of further assistance as needed.) RaeCKo (talk) 17:36, 1 February 2026 (UTC)