Name: Greg Inzinna
Year: Junior
Hometown: New Rochelle
Major: Psychology
Clubs, Organizations, and Teams:
I’m part of a variety of intramural teams, I teach swimming, and an upcoming board member of the National Society of Leadership and Success at MC.
What are a few of your hobbies?
I Play guitar try to play intermural soccer, I like to run, and I like to write.
What is your favorite part about being an RA?
“Being an RA isn’t a job, it’s a lifestyle. Sometimes it can be the most stressful and overwhelming thing in the world, but it pays off when people feel at home in the building and hang out at our programs. Last week I saw that people were watching the Sunday football game so I decided to get Buffalo Wild Wings for everyone and make it an event. Over 100 people came and it was awesome.”
Why did you choose Manhattan?
“Honestly, it was the closest to my house and all I thought I could afford was to commute to a school. I think that was the wrong reason to initially come here, but I got lucky. I can’t imagine being in a better place with better friends.”
What is a typical day in the life of RA Greg?
“I actually have 3 days without classes and so people think I have a lot of free time. But when I’m not in class I’m working on a major psychology research project about the science behind beauty and attraction and I’m writing a book about my late schizophrenic grandpa. I try to make as much time as I can to see my friends, but I usually have to end the day with some type of meeting with either my Res Life bosses or people with roommate issues.”
Tell me more about this book. What is it about?
“I first learned about the products of my grandfather’s schizophrenia, violence and paranoia. I judged him harshly because of this, but as I looked into his life by asking my family about him, I learned that there was a lot more to him than what most people judged him by. I found that he was an amazingly generous and intelligent person who people isolated because of the stigma surrounding schizophrenia. In his day, people actually treated schizophrenia like it could be passed like someone could catch a cold. I want to break down this judgment that people impose on each other.”
How has your view of your grandfather changed since you started the project?
“I actually see a lot of himself in me. Which, to some extent, is scary. It’s not an everyday fear, but being his grandson, I am at a much higher risk to develop schizophrenia in my early 20s than most people. I trust that my family and friends would not turn their backs on me like they did to him, but he probably thought he could trust his loved ones as well. And how can I expect others to not make snap judgments of schizophrenia when I judged my own grandfather?”
Have you been working on this the whole semester?
“I’ve actually wanted to tell his story for a while but realized that now is a good opportunity because my teachers are overseeing me writing so the school can pay me to do it. It’s exciting. Hopefully I can get published within the near future. ”
What is your dream job, and how do you plan on getting it?
“My goal has always been to be a therapist. I love listening to people and for whatever reasons people have always liked to confide in me. My dream job is always changing, and I think that’s a good thing. It might not exactly be to listen to people in therapy sessions, but I want to help people communicate with each other. This might be as a relationship therapist or as an author but I’m always learning the best way I can do that.”
What is your go to quote to live by?
“Give a man a fish and he’ll eat for a day, teach a man to fish and he’ll eat for a lifetime, leave the dude alone and he’ll figure it out.” -Louis C.K