Renting season is upon us. I know this because every day now, I get interrupted by at least two groups of clueless freshies looking for their first real home as they parade through my room.

They gawk at my spotless décor, all the while exclaiming to themselves how well-decorated everything is and how, “It’s absolutely perfect! We’ll take it!”

Only they never do. Or else the tours would cease.

When Kenneth Glover, the veteran Ujamaa housing director, was abruptly reassigned to another dormitory this summer, backlash from the Cornell community reflected overwhelming support for Glover and his community-building initiatives within the residential college. Many saw the move as an attack on Ujamaa, which was established in 1972 to foster and promote black heritage at the University, and the outcry prompted the administration to temporarily reinstate Glover’s position for a year.

Earlier this year Campus Life launched a review of our residential program houses, a process each academic unit experiences every seven years or so and one that Student and Academic Services has adapted for our many units. Just this year, University Health Services and Intercollegiate Athletics completed their accreditation / certification reviews by national organizations. Recently, the Hunter R. Rawlings III Presidential Research Scholar Program, the Prefreshman Summer Program and the Dean of Students Office, to name but a few, went through formal program reviews. Regular reviews are necessary to ensure the quality of the programs and services we offer our students.