Global Classroom

By ryan | February 16, 2001

Think 10:10 is early?

Every Wednesday, rain or shine, 40 graduate students in the School of Industrial and Labor Relations rouse themselves in the predawn hours for a two hour video-conference class: Global Industrial and Labor Relations.

“It is early, but a great way to get started,” said Jim Smith, grad, a member of the 6 a.m. class. “We get to see the whole world coming together and Cornell is leading.”

The class focuses on the effects of globalization on industry and labor relations, national unionism and regional employment regulations.

Using Pic-Tel video conference technology, Cornell students participate in class discussions with representatives from automobile manufacturer General Motors; SK Telecom, a Korean cellular, paging and wireless Internet service; and PDVSA, a Venezuelan oil company at their offices across the globe.

Sites are located in La Grange, Ill., Grand Blanc, Mich., Detroit, Mich., Antwerp, Belgium, Zurich, Switzerland, Seoul, Korea and Caracas, Venezuela.

“We would like to include even more external participants,” said Prof. Harry Katz, course instructor. “Eventually we want to recruit unionists and government officials.”

The class is the second in a series of five that are intended to extend over five semesters. The first in the sequence concentrated on global human resource management and the remaining three will focus on organizational changes, dispute negotiations and international law, respectively.

“The corporations participating currently have not committed to all five courses in the sequence but we hope they will continue,” Katz said.

The class, affectionately referred to as the global classroom, will consist of nine video conference calls and four web broadcasts from the course website. Participants exchange ideas via a television screen during the conference calls and dialogue flows both ways.

The four website broadcasts will all be based out of Cornell have no opportunity for visual feedback. However, the external participants can ask questions during class via e-mail.

The web is also used as a discussion forum. Students will utilize chat rooms and the discussion board on Course Info to work on international team projects.

“Some of the problems we have to tackle in our group projects are going to be actual problems faced by the corporations,” said Michelle Aimes, grad.

The class is held in English to facilitate fluid discussion, Katz said. A simultaneous translation into other languages would disrupt any lucid conversation.

“The dialogue had been pretty good so far,” said Katz. “But that is easy for us to say because we are a nation of English speakers.”

Katz and students were fascinated with Pic-Tel software.

“The technology is Star Trek-ish,” Smith said. “It is the most exciting part [of the class].”

The technology was purchased by ILR eight years ago and used to connect extension offices back to the mail office in Ithaca.

“We discovered that once we have the signal, we can send it to another country as well as we can to another part of New York,” Katz said. “So we constructed a new classroom with Pic-Tel technology built in.”

Currently, the ILR school has three rooms dedicated to Pic-Tel.

Though there is some delay while switching between sites, both the picture and sound come through clearly.

“Every time it happens, I am amazed that it works!” Katz said.

Archived article by Rachel Einschlag

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