Tulane University - Can you keep up with Schiffman?

Jeff Schiffman is a Tulane SigEp alum and a former Chapter Counselor.

Thanks to Bill Hydrick for passing the article along

Tulane University - Can you keep up with Schiffman?

While some people’s motto is “don’t sweat the small stuff,” Jeff Schiffman’s motto is simply “ SWEAT!” 

Jeff Schiffman says his spinning class called RIDE “isn’t just about your body; it’s about your brain and your heart.” (Photo from Romney Pilates Center)

As the senior associate director of admission at Tulane University, his schedule takes him all over the world recruiting students. While life on the road can make it difficult to maintain any schedule, Schiffman is dedicated to staying healthy and having fun. 

After he took a spinning class in Los Angeles a few years ago, he was immediately hooked. This led Schiffman to start teaching his own class, a high-energy, full-body workout called RIDE, at Romney Pilates Center in New Orleans. The maxim of his class might be “think with your whole body” but with his musically themed sessions, ranging from ’80s to Beyoncé to Glee, his patrons often forget to think and just have fun. 

“You’ll leave my class covered in sweat,” Schiffman promises, “but it’s my hope with an incredibly positive feeling. RIDE isn’t just about your body; it’s about your brain and your heart.”

In fact, most of Schiffman’s activities in New Orleans center around body, brain and heart, and getting others into the same. Aside from doing triathlons all over the Gulf South, he participates in a boot camp in Audubon Park with Office of Admission staff. 

Through Outreach Tulane, Schiffman started his involvement with Youth Run NOLA, an organization that works to empower underserved students in the New Orleans area by training them to run races like the Crescent City Classic and Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon. 

Schiffman still runs with the same group of students he started with four years ago. And last month he helped Romney Pilates organize a Pride Ride for members of the LGBT community, which had a great turnout from Tulane students and staff.  

In everything he does, Schiffman puts his mind, heart and sweat all in to help others get the most out of theirs.

Tulane Sig Ep Golf Cart Traveler Update

[Thanks to Bill Hydrick for pointing out this article]

Cart Delivers a Message: Go Big Easy!
Mike Strecker

It's about 1,700 miles from Los Angeles to New Orleans as the crow flies, but likely a lot longer the way Greg Thurnher traveled on his trek to raise awareness about the Big Easy's comeback from Hurricane Katrina and its continued appeal as a college town.

In his first venture as a newly minted graduate of Tulane University's Business School, Thurnher set out from Los Angeles on May 20 in a souped-up golf cart that was inspired by his undergrad senior engineering project, making multiple stops along I-10 to stage mini-Mardi Gras parades with a contingent of 10 Tulane students and alumni.

On Friday (June 1), the good-times golf cart rolled into the Crescent City and paraded to the uptown Tulane campus.

"Learning, living and growing at Tulane clearly defined what I now know as my life. I can't imagine attending any other university in any other city," Thurnher says. "I am troubled that others may forgo the benefits of a Tulane education and a life in New Orleans based on misperceptions about what's going on there.

"So I hope this trip will underscore how much a recent graduate believes in the city and how wonderful it was for me to be part of its comeback as a student. Being there and contributing to its recovery is a great experience."

Thurnher says that, while some New Orleans neighborhoods are still struggling, no one should miss a chance to experience what is still the country's most unique city.
After receiving his MBA degree on May 19 from Tulane, Thurnher flew from New Orleans to Los Angeles, his childhood home. The next day, he boarded his golf cart and began to wend his way through the Southwest, veering off to Houston, where he works now, and finally arrive back in New Orleans.

He and his team of supporters made numerous stops along the way in Arizona, New Mexico, Texas and Baton Rouge, La., parading through towns and throwing Mardi Gras beads to promote the Big Easy's ongoing vitality and joie de vivre. Thurnher has dubbed his trip Operation Big Easy Go.
Jack in the Box restaurants sponsored Thurnher's odyssey, providing him and his fellow travelers with food and Mardi Gras-style throws throughout the length of their trip.

"I feel greatly indebted to my university and my city," Thurnher said. "My service in restoration efforts is trivial when compared to those who have 'lived' the restoration every step of the way. I want those New Orleanians and Tulanians to know that their patience and dedication to New Orleans is worthwhile."

Tulane University Magazine - News

Sig Ep Drives Golf Cart from LA to New Orleans

Sig Ep Greg Thurnher Trecks from LA to NO to Show Support for the Big Easy

Tomorrow approximately 2,000 young (and, in some cases, not so young) scholars will become graduates of Tulane University. Our graduates will embark on many diverse paths upon completion of their degrees. One in particular has chosen a less traditional path.

In his first venture as a newly minted graduate of Tulane University's A.B.
Freeman School of Business, Greg Thurnher will set out from Los Angeles the day after graduation on a 1,700 mile odyssey back to New Orleans.

Greg's mode of transportation will be a souped-up golf cart he built as his undergraduate senior project. The purpose of Greg's trip is to raise awareness about New Orleans' comeback from Katrina and its continued appeal as the country's most interesting city and best college town. Greg will make multiple stops along I-10, staging mini-Mardi Gras parades with an entourage of Tulane students and alumni.

Like many of us, Greg has been distressed by the continued negative portrayal of New Orleans in the national media. "Learning, living, and growing at Tulane clearly defined what I now know as my life. I can't imagine attending any other university, in any other city," Greg says. "I am troubled that others may forgo the benefits of a Tulane education and a life in New Orleans based on misperceptions about what¹s going on here."

I could not have said it better myself. While our city and region still face many challenges we need to remind the country, and sometimes ourselves, of how far we¹ve come. You can learn more about Greg¹s trip by visiting http://www.bigeasygo.com/

Although most won¹t embark on a journey as audacious as Greg's, I am counting on all of our graduates, and all of you, to spread the word about our continued recovery. Let everyone know that all the things that made our city great -- our food, our music, our architecture, our culture, our Tulane -- are still here.

Let them know that 1,400 freshmen from around the country and the world have put their faith in New Orleans by enrolling as the class of 2011 and that another 2,000 graduates will leave their hearts here tomorrow. Let them know that they should do the same.

Have a great weekend,
Scott Cowen

Fire Destroys 2nd Tulane Fraternity House

Fire destroys fraternity house Uptown

An early morning fire destroyed a fraternity house near Tulane University Saturday morning.

There were no injuries reported in the incident, which took place at the Zeta Beta Tau Fraternity House at 1006 Broadway. The house was unoccupied with students still on holiday break.

It was the second fire fraternity house fire this week, according to the New Orleans Fire Department.

The fire began around 2:30 a.m. and eventually 59 firefighters and 25 pieces of equipment were used to bring it under control.

The building was believed to have housed 10 students

Second fraternity house burns

Fire Destroys KA House at Tulane

Fire ravages fraternity house
Times PicayuneNew Orleans, LA
January 1, 2007

A two-alarm blaze engulfed a fraternity house near Tulane University late Monday, badly damaging the two-story wood-framed structure and leaving five students searching for a new home. The residents, all undergraduate students at Tulane and members of Kappa Alpha Fraternity, were away for Winter Break at the time of the fire, said Kirby Newburger, president of the Kappa Alpha Alumni Inc., which owns the house at 1036 Audubon St. It took about 70 firefighters over an hour to exinguish the blaze, which started about 9 p.m., said acting fire chief Victor LaCaba. Firefighters are investigating the cause of the blaze, he said.