Red Swims in Aruba

By wpengine | January 22, 2004

While the majority of the Cornell student body was home resting up for second semester, the men’s swimming and diving team was spending a considerable amount of time in the pool. Unfortunately for the Red, the pool happened to be located in cold and stormy Aruba. During what is its most rigorous stretch of training of the season, the Red has been working extremely hard to stay in shape.

“We were in Aruba for about 11 days over Christmas break and that is an intense training period for us,” said senior co-captain Jeremy Sample. “We have continued that training over the last two weeks.”

The physically demanding training session along with the grueling travel schedule has worn out many of the Red’s swimmers. On Jan. 9 and 10, the team faced off against EISL foes Navy and Yale. While Cornell edged out Navy by a score of 122.5 to 120.5, it fell to Yale 136.5 to 104.5.

“It is difficult to swim our best when we are training that hard,” said Sample. “We have been really broken down. We didn’t swim up to our potential against Navy and Yale.”

During the meet, Cornell captured four first place finishes with senior co-captain Danny Royce leading the way with a victory in the 200-yard backstroke. Freshman Mike Smit has also been a consistent force for the Red, as he took home first place finishes in the 1000 and 500-yard freestyle events.

“Mike Smit has just been unbelievable,” said Sample. “He has been swimming incredibly well considering the training he has gone through.”

Smit followed up his performance against Yale and Navy with another strong one against Army, taking home the crown in the 500-yard freestyle event. The Red won seven more events, as it rolled past the Black Knights last Saturday by a score of 146 to 93, improving its record to 4-2. It also captured its second win of the inter session, leaving Royce pleased with the team’s effort.

“We have been swimming really well,” said Royce. “I have been really proud of how we have been doing.”

The Red will continue its schedule in Hamilton, N.Y. this Saturday as it battles Colgate.

The women’s swimming and diving team also enjoyed a similar training period in Aruba over Christmas break.

“We really gelled as a team and got in some excellent training sessions in Aruba,” said senior co-captain Jayme Majek.

The training came in preparation for meets against Ivy League rival Yale and Army. In its meet against Yale, the Red has several standout performances, as the team finished with seven first place finishes. However, it was not enough to defeat the Bulldogs, as the Red fell, 166-31. Alyson Melin and Jessica Brookman each took home three first-place finishes, while Lisa Ranzenhofer snagged two.

Looking to rebound from its loss at the hands of Yale, the team faced off against Army at Crandall Pool last Saturday. By a narrow margin, the Red held off the Black Knights by a score of 155-145. The match was as competitive as the score indicated, with Cornell having to win five of the last seven events to complete the victory. Overall, the Red took home 10 of 16 first-place finishes.

“The team performed well against Yale and Army and we pulled out a win against Army that we were really proud of,” said Majek.

With the win, the Red improved its record to 2-6 on the season, beating an Army team that slipped to 3-5. The win can be attributed to outstanding performances by Jayme Majek, Alyson Melin, and Kristin Rayhack, as each were multi-event winners for Cornell.

The Red will look to capture its third win of the season when it meets Colgate on Saturday.

Archived article by Bryan Pepper

eValuating eCornell

By wpengine January 23, 2004

For some universities, online learning has proven to be a shaky business venture. Columbia University’s for-profit program, Fathom, was the industry’s largest until its demise in March 2003 after it failed to turn a profit. Cornell’s program, eCornell, has proven itself separate from the pack in its ability to remain successful despite the volatility of online businesses. In a November release, eCornell said its finances are holding strong — $2.87 million in revenue with $1.73 million in royalties and course payments to Cornell and faculty as well as $1.2 million in the original startup payments to Cornell. Comparisons Rob Gearhart, director of academic programs for eCornell, said that when comparing Cornell’s online education to other major distance learning ventures, one should keep in mind that eCornell has largely focused on business education. Through programs in collaboration with the School of Industrial and Labor Relations as well as the School of Hotel Administration, eCornell offers courses “targeted at business professionals for certificates, not degrees,” Gearhart said. John L. Neuman, CEO of eCornell, has in the past pointed to this key difference separating eCornell from its competitors in the online learning community. “eCornell takes a very different approach to online learning,” Neuman said. “Whereas eCornell targets corporate customers for training and certification programs, Fathom seeks a market of individuals who are willing to pay for courses on a variety of subjects.” This difference has helped set eCornell apart from other ventures since its inception over three years ago in September 2000. Another more recent development at eCornell is its patent-pending teaching method called Learning Molecules. “There is no intention to license the model,” said Ulises Ali Mejias, director of learning systems design at eCornell and the principal architect behind Learning Molecules. “The patent is a way to protect the model. … It is part of our competitive advantage.” The model emphasizes specific methods of learning based around a central method of scenario learning, such as case studies, problems and questions. “The patent-pending model can be applied in any online learning setting … it’s a way of producing efficiently,” Gearhart said. “It’s useful because it establishes a common language with the faculty. … It also allows us to produce content in a cost-efficient way,” Mejias said. “At the same time, it does not compromise teaching methods. In fact, faculty have said that it gets them to think [in different ways].” The model was established nearly 18 months after eCornell’s inception and has stemmed some concerns over the quality and desirability of online learning. According to Gearhart, the data that eCornell collects shows that most professionals enrolled in eCornell say that the experience is “‘as good if not better’ than taking a course face to face. We feel really positive about that.” Gearhart went on to say that “most studies find no significant difference with online learning. … At times it can enable a better learning environment.” It may be no surprise that in light of its success, eCornell is planning to expand to deliver programs in five to nine Cornell units in 2004. “Currently we are talking to an engineering group and units at the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences,” Gearhart said. Gearhart also said eCornell is considering bringing preparatory courses to undergraduate or recently graduated students, “If an arts student wants to be better prepared for the corporate world … we would create a package for students to help them during their senior year or just after they graduate.” However, he noted that they are still simply “toying with the idea.” According to the November release, eCornell hopes its assets will allow Cornell to “innovate with instructional methods, expand the number of online programs offered [and] collaborate between and beyond Cornell’s campuses.” In an editorial appearing in The Sun nearly a year ago, Sun editors wrote that “eCornell and the University should be looking to take the technological aspects of the company that have proven to be effective and implement them within the whole community so that, if eCornell becomes a thing of the past, the University has something to show for the venture.” It seems that just now, eCornell leadership may be taking steps to make that a reality. “We will have a lot to talk about in the future,” Gearhart said. Archived article by Brian Kaviar
Cornell Students Take a Seat on Common Council

By wpengine January 23, 2004

While most Cornell students greeted the new year with parties and promises of self-improvement, Michael Taylor ’05 and Gayraud Townsend ’05 celebrated by pledging to serve the City of Ithaca. On Jan. 1, following the swearing-in of Ithaca’s first female mayor, Carolyn Peterson, Taylor and Townsend took an oath of office to serve on the Ithaca Common Council. They were joined by eight other city council members. According to Taylor, the proceedings were simple. The city clerk read an oath and the council members affirmed it with the words “I do.” All of the members received an official badge of the City of Ithaca, representing their positions on the council and their commitment to the city. “It was just a really good feeling inside,” Townsend said of being a part of the ceremony. “I’m having a really fun time so far.” Townsend and Taylor have made history with their joint commitment to represent Cornell students in local government — this is the first time that two students have held seats on the council. Townsend’s position spans a four-year term while Taylor’s lasts two years. Both students serve the fourth ward of Ithaca, which includes most of Collegetown and part of West Campus. The area’s residents consist almost entirely of Cornell students — 97 percent, according to Taylor — although there are also permanent residents and parts of the University in the district. Townsend and Taylor recognize that students, permanent residents and University administrators often have conflicting needs and expectations for fair legislation. “It’s going to be hard,” Townsend said of bringing the three different groups together. “I’m very optimistic about it. Mike and I will get to the issues that we feel are most important.” One of these issues involves rental housing in Collegetown. “The rates of Collegetown housing have really skyrocketed,” Taylor said. He hopes to improve the experience for students renting off-campus by providing some guidance in signing contracts and working with landlords. “Students … often are subject to exploitation and aren’t aware of their rights,” Taylor said. Additionally, Townsend addressed the need for attention to retail development and the beautification of Collegetown. The issue Taylor currently wants to address and improve during his term in office is a piece of legislation attempting to change the city’s noise ordinance. According to Taylor, the previous council worked on a proposal that, if passed, would represent an “irresponsible piece of policy.” Taylor explained that under the proposal, an aggravated noise offense, one step up from a regular noise offense, could have unnecessarily harsh consequences for students. The maximum punishment for a first offense is a $1,000 fine and/or prison for fifteen days, or 200 hours of community service. The minimum fine is $250 or 50 hours of community service. After a second offense, the penalties become even more severe. Although he said the intentions of the legislation may have been innocent — to keep the streets quiet enough for residents — Taylor believes that this policy could hurt unsuspecting students. He hopes to make more effective changes to the proposal when the new council addresses it, so the city can control the noise level for residents and target repeat offenders while respecting the rights and needs of students. Townsend also wants to improve the relationship between students and the Ithaca police. He hopes to make both groups more aware of what is expected of them and wants to help brief students on standard procedures for interacting with the police. City Attorney Marty Luster, also a visiting professor at Cornell and a former New York State Assembly member, said, “I think the mayor is thrilled that they’re on.” He added, “I think they both will bring a lot of energy and enthusiasm to the council. I look forward to working with them.” The Cornell community also appears excited to have student representation in Ithaca’s government. “Without having someone from the student perspective on the council, the democratic caucus would be missing a key perspective,” Taylor said. “We are very privileged to have an area of our city that is dedicated to college life,” Townsend added. And, with the addition of two students, Ithaca has a city council that is beginning to look more like the community it represents.Archived article by Stephanie Baritz