By wpengine
The Straight’s game room, a pool hall that has operated above the building’s main lobby since 1925, may soon become part of Cornell’s past. The game room is currently closed, and the S.A. will soon hear proposals to turn the room toward other uses. According to Kent Hubbell ’67, the Robert W. and Elizabeth C. Staley Dean of Students, the game room has been put on hiatus because it was too expensive to operate. “Staffing it was getting to be an expense that wasn’t even beginning to cover the revenue that was coming in,” he said. “We get a lot of competition from North and from West [Campus game rooms, managed by Campus Life]. Nobody was using the game room and the lack of revenue prompted the Associate Dean for Business to close it.” Hubbell described several possible new uses for the room, including as a space for events and meetings, or as a Kinko’s copy center with some space reserved for other uses. Students from the Cornell University Billiards Club (CUBC) are fighting to keep the pool hall open, saying it is part of the Straight’s history and the best place to play pool on campus. Jaime Barrera grad, CUBC Treasurer and leader of the club’s effort to protect the game room, said his organization has met Monday through Friday nights at the Straight for the past two years. “This semester we’re forced to use RPCC, where the rates are higher,” he said — a regular fee of $5 per hour, compared to $3.75 when the Straight game room was open. “There is no other place in Ithaca to play except bars,” he added, noting that the downtown pool hall Rack-N-Roll recently closed as well. S.A. is slated to discuss the issue on Sept. 18. Although the Office of the Dean of Students will ultimately determine the future of the room, Hubbell stressed that he wants students to have a voice in the decision. “We don’t have any desire to act unilaterally on these issues,” he said. “We continuously solicit how the building is being used, from both the S.A., the A-Board [the student Willard Straight Hall (WSH) Administrative Board] and other student organizations.” Hubbell said WSH Building Services Manager Linda Reynolds will present his office’s views at the S.A. meeting. CUBC representatives also hope to attend, according to Barrera. “We’re going to also try to get on the docket to get heard, so we can present our side of the story,” Barrera said. Although the club is not yet officially on the agenda, Barrera said the S.A. seemed receptive to the idea. Club members have prepared a survey about the future of the game room, and are canvassing students on campus in hopes of garnering support for their position. Hubbell said he welcomes the club’s involvement. “I think it’s good to have a conversation about [the game room] — is Kinko’s the best use of the space?” he asked. “At this point it’s strictly a proposal … we will go forward based on strictly how the students feel about its use.” According to Hubbell, if the space were to be used for Kinko’s, some of it would also be set aside for other uses. The space around the large front window could be used for seating and possibly to keep one or two pool tables open, he said. Hubbell said the Kinko’s itself would be a “full-service copy center,” suggesting it would be larger than the one in the Statler Hotel and stay open longer. “It would be readily available to students who need to make use of it,” he said. Responding to students’ objections, Hubbell said, “Of course there’s a great tradition of having it as a pool hall — there are a lot of traditions in Willard Straight … but we’d like to make the highest and best use of these spaces.” “To his credit, Dean Hubbell said his overall goal was to make Willard Straight a more animated place where students will want to be,” Barrera said. “But I don’t really see how Kinko’s is going to help do that.” Hubbell said his office will try to resolve the issue within the next four weeks. “Obviously we’d like to get the space in use as soon as possible,” he saidArchived article by Peter Flynn
By wpengine
With the onset of structural changes in management this year, students of the Cornell Commitment programs will face significant adjustments. Provost Biddy (Carolyn A.) Martin announced in late July that a review of the programs’ budget and structure would lead to necessary alterations alleviating the currently difficult fiscal period. The Cornell Commitment program is comprised of three undergraduate recognition programs: Cornell Tradition, the Meinig Family Cornell National Scholars and the Cornell Presidential Research Scholars. Although each group acts individually, their funding and organization is overseen by Commitment. Cornell Tradition offers 600 fellowships each year based on work experience, service, academic achievement, and demonstrated leadership. Students can receive up to $4,000 a year in loan replacement upon completion of service requirements and obtaining a minimum GPA. Presidential Research Scholars are offered the opportunity to work with a faculty mentor on individualized research projects. The program requires fewer activities than Cornell Tradition. The Meinig Family Cornell National Scholars are a group of students who upon applying to Cornell were nominated by their respective colleges to participate in the program. Less than two percent of the student body is nominated for this honor. Opportunities in the program include stipends and sponsorship for student internships. Benefits from student involvement in these programs include various internships and research projects. Martin stressed that no financial support or scholarship provisions will be reduced for students involved. The financial review mainly examined how to cut costs within the administrative side of the programs. Based on the review’s results, significant changes in staff have been made and efforts will be launched to raise money for parts of the program that are not currently endowed. The changes went into effect on Aug. 1, when the Cornell Commitment programs began officially reporting to Susan Murphy ’73, vice president for student and academic services. Murphy’s division will program activities that relate to students and alumni. “Internship opportunities will continue to be an important component of all three Commitment programs, and funding will also continue to be available for key aspects of each individual initiative,” Martin wrote in a recent letter to students affected by the changes. Among the goals of the newly configured staff are increasing relations with campus offices such as the Public Service Center and the Office of the Dean of Students, as well as enhancing relationships with faculty who are currently involved with the research students. “When we had conversations about workforce planning for the programs, we looked at the roles involved and tried to align them with the right people,” Murphy said. “Much of what the staff does involves the students when they are here during the year, so we decided that it was better to bring them closer to a department that works with student activities.” To ensure that faculty connections remain strong with the programs’ students, Murphy will work closely this year with Isaac Kramnick, vice provost for undergraduate education. The strengthening of faculty ties will be particularly important for the Presidential Research Scholars. “[Kramnick] brings a faculty perspective and an overarching perspective on what we do for education,” Murphy said. “He and I will continue to work on pairing students with faculty and strengthening those connections.” Recruitment and financial aid functions will remain under the management unit led by Doris Davis, associate provost for admissions and enrollment. “My unit has launched a new initiative to provide increased visibility for the Commitment programs during our admissions recruitment activities, and we are in the process of sending a special Commitment mailing to prospective students,” Davis said. “By more closely aligning the recruitment and financial aid functions with the respective departments in my unit, and aligning the student programming activities with the departments in Vice President Murphy’s unit, we have strengthened the core mission of the Commitment programs.” Despite the new administration, the Cornell Commitment programs’ objectives and goals for helping students remain unchanged. “We look to continue the tradition that has already been established and to maintain a strong identity for each program within Cornell Commitment. These changes have been made to benefit the students and allow the program to run more efficiently,” Murphy said. Although it is still too early in the year to gauge the effects of such alterations, Martin is confident in their ability to improve the programs. “I am convinced that these changes will allow us to address current budget constraints while maintaining the integrity of the Commitment programs and their benefits to students,” she said.Archived article by Jennifer Thompson