By: Dr. Jonathan Lawrence, Contributing Writer “Say what you mean and mean what you say.” My conflict management professor said this many times as a guide for good communication. If everyone did this on a regular basis, there might be fewer conflicts because we would all be clearer in what we say. Even so, there would be some conflicts because communication involves people taking turns as speaker and listener. Just because the speaker is clear in what they say the listener m

By: Helena Kottas, Assistant Features Editor This past Monday marked the 20–year anniversary of the October storm in Buffalo, N.Y. On Oct. 12, 2006, Buffalo went from a calm 62 degree day to a wild snowglobe within hours. This storm was especially unusual because it hit so early in the season, when Buffalo was still experiencing high to mild fall temperatures and many of the trees had yet to lose their leaves. Around 3 p.m., the city was covered in lake effect rain that no on

By: Brendan Hammond, Contributing Writer The Canisius University Little Theatre had a very successful start to their show season with “Inherit the Wind,” directed by Jamie Kosten. The production brought together courtroom drama, humor and moments of personal conflict, offering an exciting opening to the year. Following a schoolteacher’s trial for teaching evolution, “Inherit the Wind” asks its performers to navigate both heated public debate and the quieter consequences of s

By: Madison Howard, Features Editor Whether she is spending time with friends, baking something for others or participating in campus activities, Mia Impastato values the connections she builds with the people around her. A special education major at Canisius, Impastato describes herself as outgoing, caring and determined. Outside the classroom, she participates on the Canisius acrobatics and tumbling team as a top, and serves as sisterhood development chair for Phi Sigma Sig

By: Helena Kottas, Assistant Features Editor Ever wonder who's behind your favorite stories in The Griffin? Meet the editors, get to know their personalities and find out what makes being part of the paper special. Each week, we’ll be highlighting a different group of editors who help bring The Griffin to life. To kick things off, we’re introducing our news editors, Javohir and Cooper! First off, meet Javohir Aminov, a sophomore Animal Behavior, Ecology and Conservation (ABE

By: Andrew Nowel, Editor-In-Chief Canisius alumni are all over western New York, the United States and even all around the world. Most leave Buffalo to begin their careers outside of the confines of a small city to explore what else is out in the world we all live in. For Chandra Redfern, a psychology and criminal justice graduate of Canisius, service has always been the key component of her job at Buffalo Federation of Neighborhood Centers (BFNC). Redfern returned to Canisiu

By: Madison Howard, Features Editor A newsroom is rarely as quiet or serious as the finished product might make it seem. Between story assignments, editing, photos, meetings and deadlines, there is always something happening in The Griffin newsroom. Staff members move from one conversation to another, help each other with stories, make plans between assignments and, sometimes, spend more time with the same person than they probably realize. Every newsroom has its own personal

By: Madison Howard, Features Editor Every year, books across the country are challenged or banned from schools and libraries because of their content. Banned Books Week, held Oct. 4–10 this year, brings attention to those challenges while highlighting the importance of access to books and the freedom to read. The week is not only about the books that have been removed from shelves. It also creates an opportunity to ask why certain books become controversial, who decides what

Byline: Katie Dusza, Managing Editor This past weekend, the Buffalo Humanities Festival took place downtown at the Erie County Public Library. The two–day event hosted by the University at Buffalo’s Humanities Institute, held space for several organizations and universities, including Canisius, as well as other members of the community to talk about how western New York can support fact–based research and reporting in a time where public media is actively being threatened.

Byline: Madison Howard, Features Editor Coming off Revive the Culture Week, the Afro–American Society is continuing its efforts to create opportunities for students to connect, celebrate Black culture and build community at Canisius University. Revive the Culture Week brought students together through a series of events, including game night, movie night, Paint & Sip and Welcome to the Yard BBQ. The week gave students opportunities to socialize while celebrating different par

By Andrew Nowel, Editor-In-Chief Have you ever wondered what being a professional really feels like? As anyone older than 25 will tell you, it’s not fun. However, work can be fun if you make it fun. For S.J. Velazquez, a Canisius alumnus, her work isn’t just about getting a job done, it’s about carrying out the Jesuit legacy that Canisius taught her. Velasquez graduated Canisius in 2007 with a communications degree as well as a religious studies degree. At the time, Canisius

By Dr. Jonathan Lawrence, Contributing Writer With midterms approaching, are you feeling stressed? Do you have so many things to do that the thought of adding anything else causes you to stress even more? You may even have tried to prioritize your to–do list so that you can do the most important things first, but what do you do when they all seem important? The Jesuit concept of “Magis” or “More” may offer some guidance. Father John Bucki, SJ, who was the director of Campus M

By: Paige Apps, Contributing Writer Every September, my family has an unusual tradition: We argue over bears. A few years ago, my uncle introduced us to the annual tradition of Fat Bear Week, a bracket–style competition where people around the world vote for their favorite brown bear at Katmai National Park and Preserve in Alaska. What started as something my uncle showed us has become something my family looks forward to every year — a close second to the Kentucky Derby. We

By Dr. Jonathan Lawrence, Contributing Writer Where is God? How can we know anything about God? Why does God allow bad things to happen? How do we make sense of the conflicting claims different religions make about God? People have struggled to answer these questions for centuries. Some people have argued that God is all–powerful, all–good and all–knowing, so that whatever God does must therefore be good. Others have blamed bad things on the devil or other personified forms o

By: Helena Kottas, Assistant Features Editor In case you haven’t heard, or felt the chill in the air, this past Tuesday, Sept. 22, marked the start of the autumn season. For some, this brings excitement for new activities, but others may feel sad and start to dread the long winter ahead. Although we can’t keep the heat forever, there are so many fun activities to do during fall in and around Buffalo even though it’s a bit cooler out. For most Buffalonians, fall means one thi

By: Madison Howard, Features Editor Nearly 3,000 people gathered at Canalside on Saturday, Sept. 19, but they did not all arrive for the same reason. Some came to remember someone they had lost, others came to support someone who has struggled with their mental health and some came simply to stand alongside a community that believes suicide prevention deserves to be talked about. Together, they participated in the Buffalo Out of the Darkness Walk, an event organized by the Am

By: Andrew Nowel, Editor-In-Chief This Saturday, the Canisius women’s basketball team will host the third annual “Golden Griffin Shoot–A–Thon” as the team prepares for their 2026–2027 season. A way to fundraise and build community spirit, the Griffs are excited to welcome fans back to the Koessler Athletic Center (KAC) for a fun–filled day of prizes, music and friends. The idea was brought to Head Coach Tiffany Swoffard and her staff by Lindsay Hieronymus, an assistant coach

By: Brendan Hammond, Contributing Writer Griffs, get ready for a beloved Canisius campus tradition: Griff Weekend! With the start of fall, a fun tradition returns to campus as alumni recount stories from their time on campus while current students enjoy the cool, crisp weather of September in Buffalo. The festivities span Friday night to Sunday morning. The highlight of the weekend is, of course, “Fall Fest”, which will be on Saturday from 4–7:30 p.m. in the Bart Mitchell Qua

By: Brendan Hammond, Contributing Writer The Canisius University Little Theatre is proud to announce its first show of the year, “Inherit the Wind”. Written by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee, it was first produced in 1955. The play fictionalizes the 1925 Scopes Monkey Trial, in which Tennessee teacher John Scopes was prosecuted for teaching human evolution in violation of state law. Rather than simply dramatizing the historical trial, Lawrence and Lee use it as a vehicle

By: Dr. Jonathan Lawrence, Contributing Writer Have you done an Examen? Don’t worry, it’s not another exam – you’ll have enough of those in the next few weeks. The Examen is a regular process of spiritual reflection about how things are going and making plans for what comes next. Ignatius of Loyola taught the Jesuits to end each day by asking themselves when they felt close to God, when they felt distant from God and what they will do differently the next day. Even if you’re