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Salaam Aleikum, Cornell 2.0

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In the fall of my sophomore year, I underwent the Cornell rite of passage of enrolling in Psych 101. Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning, I arrived in Statler Auditorium with my cup of gimme! coffee in just enough time to hear Prof. James Maas greet the class with “Salaam Aleikum.” The daily Arabic greeting paid homage to our classmates who took Psych 101 through videoconferencing at Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar. This shared experience — spanning from Ithaca to Doha — was my first introduction to Cornell’s evolving role in higher education and global society at large.

The changing nature of Cornell’s purpose and function was evident in much of last week’s news. The cover of The Sun last Friday featured two stories, side-by-side: “New Office Connects C.U. to Corporations” and “Skorton Addresses University Trends in Global Initiatives.” Both last Sunday and Monday, The New York Times featured articles on Education City, the higher education complex in Doha that is home to Weill Cornell Medical College; the med school and its students were referenced several times. These are all manifestations of the latest trend sweeping University policy, plans and long-term vision and outlook. Cornell’s purpose extends beyond its traditional function — providing “instruction in any study” to “any person” on Ithaca’s campus. The University is now a transnational institution determined to serve the global community.

The Sun reported on Friday that “Cornell’s different corporate programs are estimated to receive about $500 million per year,” a level of corporate involvement similar to other research institutions. These contributions include major gifts, research grants and on-campus recruiting from companies as varied as PepsiCo, Citigroup and various agribusinesses. The University’s extensive relations with corporations are becoming increasingly formalized and institutionalized with the development of campus departments to coordinate corporate involvement. The distinctions between academia and the business world are blurring and the boundaries between Cornell and the “real world” are becoming increasingly fluid.

The University’s outreach extends beyond some of the world’s most notable corporations. In a commencement address, the Chronicle of Higher Education and most recently a public address on Ithaca’s campus, President David J. Skorton called for the development of a “global university initiative.” Citing figures by the World Bank, the World Health Organization and UNICEF, he envisioned a movement that utilizes the resources of higher education to “help resolve the socioeconomic inequalities that threaten our country and the world.” Skorton sees Cornell as the leader of such a global movement; providing instruction to any person in any study has evolved substantially since Ezra and Andrew founded Cornell in 1865.

Education City in Doha, Qatar was profiled in great detail by The New York Times. The Times discussed the higher educational complex’s extensive opportunities for women, the diverse — yet overwhelmingly wealthy — student body, the opening of Qatari minds to Western ways of thinking and Education City’s funding by the Qatar Foundation. Education City is notable for its creation of the “global classroom” and it’s likely that it will be the precursor of similar endeavors in the future.

Cornell’s image, purpose and role in the greater global community are clearly changing. Cornell has become an institution with an ambiguous definition; its resources and strengths can be applied to almost any sphere. While this is an exciting transformation, I’m intrigued as to what this means for the undergraduate experience at Cornell. What opportunities do these various initiatives, in three relatively distinct spheres, mean for students inside and outside the classroom? Will group projects for some classes entail working with a liaison from Citigroup, or the World Health Organization, or with our classmates in Doha? Will Libe Café be replaced by a videoconferencing center as the hub of group brainstorming and work? Will partnerships with corporations or non-governmental organizations become the norm for our over 800 student organizations?

How can Cornell broaden its influence while remaining, above all else, a university committed to educating and enriching the lives of its students, faculty and staff? As the University’s focus extends beyond the Ithaca campus, it is absolutely necessary that the current strengths of the undergraduate experience, such as access to world-class faculty and research, diverse and high-quality educational opportunities and the development of multiple living-learning communities, are preserved and further enhanced. The current challenges facing the University, including the creation of a diverse yet cohesive campus community and the maintenance of the sound physical and emotional health of all of Cornell’s students, must also be addressed and ameliorated. A thriving and engaged — both educationally and socially — student body is the foundation of Cornell University.

I wrote in October about the national debate over the state of higher education in America — whether or not universities now resemble large corporations and focus on output, reputation and image — and stated that “a continued commitment to the individual undergraduate and graduate experience at Cornell will ensure the University avoids joining such a trend.” That commitment is needed now more than ever as Cornell ventures into the global community, equipped with broad visions and a loosely-defined institutional identity.

Integrating the student experience with the University’s outreach efforts may be the best solution to such a challenge. From joint collaboration with a Qatari classmate on a research project in Psych 101 to receiving credit for doing research with an economist at the World Bank about microcredit’s role in reducing global inequality, the possibilities for student engagement are vast. It is becoming apparent that this external awareness will characterize the Cornell University of the 21st century. Salaam Aleikum, Cornell 2.0.

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