An Elephant Never Forgets

By ryan | February 16, 2001

Dear Lynah Faithful:

This space is now an ad to remind you to please show up on time and to be loud this weekend.

I wouldn’t want to be accused of telling you how to act or what to do, but I would just like to remind you of a few things that should make this the perfect weekend to go crazy.

For starters the Red is in second place in the league, with four of its final six games at home. The squad is by-and-large getting healthier, and seems on the verge of making a great run. Sure Doug Murray is hurt and the team hasn’t scored much recently, but Murray was almost not going to play anyways due to previous injuries and it’s not like this team lacks offensive opportunities. This is a squad with a chance to make a run for the ECAC regular-season and tournament championships.

The more noise you make to support your alma mater, the better those odds get.

The next point is that the Red is 5-4 at home this year. Last year the team lost three games at home all year. Clearly, the Faithful doesn’t play the game and can’t take the credit or blame for a home record, but the Faithful can make Lynah the most intimidating rink to play in the nation. It doesn’t decide games, but it doesn’t hurt your beloved squad either.

But now for the extra benefits of going to the games this weekend. In addition to what it may do for the squad, you all should have a good time this weekend. Each of these teams did something REALLY stupid last year.

Starting with Dartmouth (since the Green will be here tonight): Do you remember the Dartmouth game here last year? Yes, Cornell did lose 3-2, but the second goal was one of the most memorable in recent memory. Dartmouth goalie Nick Boucher celebrated what he thought was the Green’s fourth goal of the game with just 2:40 left in the contest. So the genius wanders over to section A to taunt the Faithful about his upcoming victory. Only problem for Boucher was that it wasn’t a goal, and David Adler ’00 picked up the puck and shot it into the empty net. The goal got the Red within one, but the team was unable to convert again and force overtime.

Moral to the story? Boucher has proved that he is a solid goalie when he is in net, but pretty easy to score on while he celebrates non-goals. If I were to sit in the stands this weekend, I think I would try to remind him that he is part of perhaps the most boneheaded play in Lynah in years.

And just when you belived there could be no better ammunition than what you have on Boucher, in walks Vermont tomorrow night. In case you have forgotten, Vermont’s hockey team was unable to compete for most of last season due to hazing violations, which it then proceeded to idiotically lie about.

Indeed, because I’m jealous that I can’t cheer, I have taken the liberty to dig up the story. According to the AP, the University of Vermont “acknowledged that recruits to the school’s ECAC Division I hockey team had been coerced into drinking large amounts of alcohol, parading naked while holding one another’s genitals and engaging in other degrading activities.”

Now, ignoring what other degrading activities could have taken place — given that they were already walking around naked with a bunch of other guys and getting to “know” one another in what is commonly refered to as the “elephant walk” — it seems that even someone who hasn’t been out of the stacks of Olin in two weeks could find something funny to say about this group of CataMOUNTS.

Obviously, this is a dream weekend from a heckler’s point of view. I can’t wait to hear what you all come up with. You all have a reputation for being the one of the most creative crowds in the nation — prove it. It doesn’t get much better than that.

That goes back to my opening, that you should want to be there on time and want to be loud. Not only can you help the men’s hockey team, but you might miss something really amusing.

Besides, for all of you rushing, if you come to the games it’ll help you delay drinking for a couple of hours — after all, you never know what others might make you do when you consume large amounts of alcohol.

Archived article by J.V. Anderton

Search Continues for New Dean of Students

By ryan February 19, 2001

The University administration will continue accepting new nominations while searching for the next Robert W. and Elizabeth C. Staley Dean of Students. John L. Ford held the position for eight years at Cornell before resigning last December to become vice president and dean of campus life at Emory University. Meanwhile, Tanni Hall ’76, associate dean of students, is filling the vacancy this semester as the interim dean of students. “As usual with these sorts of things, the University is taking lots and lots of steps with input from many different groups,” Hall said about the search process. The search, however, focuses entirely on tenured faculty members, and thus Hall and several other potential candidates cannot be considered to fill the position in the future. Susan H. Murphy ’73, vice president for student and academic services and chair of the dean search, explained the strategy as an effort to maintain strong ties between academic and student life. “I am confident that among our tenured faculty we’ll find a good match,” Murphy said, speaking on behalf of the committee composed of 17 administrators, faculty, staff members and students. “If we don’t find the right person among the tenured faculty, we will broaden the search, but I am confident that we will,” she said. The recommendation that a tenured faculty member hold the Dean of Students position began with a committee chaired by the former Dean of the School of Industrial and Labor Relations, David Lipsky, when the entire structure of the Dean of Students Office was being reexamined. Ford, taking over as Dean of Students in 1992 after the merger of the offices of Student Union and Activities, pioneered a new role for the position. The first faculty member to hold the position, Ford previously worked as a lecturer and then a tenured faculty member in the College of Human Ecology from 1972 to 1992. While there has been little doubt that a suitable candidate can be found from Cornell’s pool of professors, some committee members and students expressed concerns about restricting the search so early on. “I have a minor concern that we’re leaving out someone really talented for the position by limiting our initial search to tenured faculty members,” said one committee member under the condition of anonymity. “Because I think there will be good candidates, I am not worried,” said Uzo Asonye ’02, Student Assembly president, about the search. He added, however, that he could name many administrators and staff members from Campus Life who would make strong candidates if it were not for the tenured faculty restriction. The committee hopes to fill the position by the end of the spring semester, thus ending the all-encompassing search process that began last fall when Ford announced that he would leave Cornell. “I’m thrilled that, in this case — unlike with the College of Engineering dean search — the University is seeking student input,” said Kira Moriah ’03, a search committee member. “Whenever someone is being hired who works so closely with students, I think it is essential to have students in the search process.” The Dean of Students works as the primary liaison between students and the administration. Serving under the Division of Student and Academic Services, the Dean of Students oversees fraternity and sorority affairs, new student programs, the Student Activities Office and Willard Straight Hall. The position directly influences the more than 550 student organizations that receive support and advice from the Student Activities Office. In addition, the Dean of Students directs Cornell United Religious Work, one of the country’s first interfaith college programs, which comprises of more than twenty affiliated communities. Hall, serving as interim dean for the second time in addition to maintaining her regular duties as associate dean of students, described the full agenda for this semester — a schedule which is made busier as the University works to complete the North Campus Residential Initiative. “We’re always moving forward, setting priorities with a certain initiative,” Hall said, adding that she is “treating the job as if it were [her] own,” in order to keep the organization healthy. Hall last served as interim dean in the spring of 1999 when Ford spent the semester at the University of Chicago as an American Council on Education Fellow. Reflecting on the internal search process, Hall said that she thought it was appropriate because selecting a tenured faculty member would ensure that whoever holds the job is “really knowledgeable about Cornell.” Although Murphy could not identify the candidates so early in the process, she said that the pool is already looking strong. “I believe that the partnership we can form with a member of the faculty in that position has many benefits as we move forward on the living-learning initiatives, and as we work to make President Rawlings’ vision to be the best research University for undergraduates a reality,” she said.Archived article by Jennifer Roberts
Campus Celebrates Black History Month

By ryan February 19, 2001

Tantalizing aromas of African delicacies wafted through the dining halls and the sounds of gospel graced Bailey Hall in the Festival of Black Gospel concerts commemorating Black History Month. The Festival of Black Gospel (FBG) sponsored three days of activities last weekend. Guest choirs included Touch, the Community Workshop Choir, Dickson Guillaume and the Haitian Interdenominational Mass Choir. “It’s kind of exciting to see so many students just hanging out with their friends,” said Estrella Howell ’01. “It puts things in perspective. I have energy for tomorrow.” To commemorate its 25th anniversary, FBG engaged in a history of gospel. Throughout the performance on Saturday, the audience heard a narration of important facts about the evolution of gospel, beginning with the days of slavery. Orange, green and blue lights accompanied the dancers who performed African dances. Several small groups sang a cappella and the Mass Choir — consisting of students, faculty and community members — sang contemporary gospel songs. The audience clapped along with the choirs. “FBG is a blessing to the campus. I think it’s good for the Cornell community to come out with the Ithaca community to interact and praise the Lord,” said Michelle Scott grad, a member of the Mass Choir. The Robert Purcell Community Center Marketplace Eatery hosted a night of African foods Thursday to celebrate Black History Month. Some food selections that were served included bacon cheddar grit patties, fried plantains, doro-wat chicken and baby mustard greens. Okenshield’s treated students to the same cuisine Friday night. “On our part, it was a success,” said Kyle Polzella ’02, a marketplace eatery student manager. “We had a plan for what we wanted, [and] I think that it went pretty well.” Black History Month events will continue this week in celebrating the achievements of African Americans. A showing of “Malcolm X” will be presented Wednesday night in the Ujamaa Main Lounge.Tantalizing aromas of African delicacies wafted through the dining halls and the sounds of gospel graced Bailey Hall in the Festival of Black Gospel concerts commemorating Black History Month. Guest Choirs The Festival of Black Gospel (FBG) sponsored three days of activities last weekend. Guest choirs included Touch, the Community Workshop Choir, Dickson Guillaume and the Haitian Interdenominational Mass Choir. “It’s kind of exciting to see so many students just hanging out with their friends,” said Estrella Howell ’01. “It puts things in perspective. I have energy for tomorrow.” To commemorate its 25th anniversary, FBG engaged in a history of gospel. Throughout the performance on Saturday, the audience heard a narration of important facts about the evolution of gospel, beginning with the days of slavery. Performances Orange, green and blue lights accompanied the dancers who performed African dances. Several small groups sang a cappella and the Mass Choir — consisting of students, faculty and community members — sang contemporary gospel songs. The audience clapped along with the choirs. “FBG is a blessing to the campus. I think it’s good for the Cornell community to come out with the Ithaca community to interact and praise the Lord,” said Michelle Scott grad, a member of the Mass Choir. The Robert Purcell Community Center Marketplace Eatery hosted a night of African foods Thursday to celebrate Black History Month. Some food selections that were served included bacon cheddar grit patties, fried plantains, doro-wat chicken and baby mustard greens. Okenshield’s treated students to the same cuisine Friday night. “On our part, it was a success,” said Kyle Polzella ’02, a marketplace eatery student manager. “We had a plan for what we wanted, [and] I think that it went pretty well.” Black History Month events will continue this week in celebrating the achievements of African Americans. A showing of “Malcolm X” will be presented Wednesday night in the Ujamaa Main Lounge.Archived article by Kelly Samuels