The Cornell Daily Sun (https://cornellsun.com/tag/dyson/)
“The purpose of the Dyson Students of Color Coalition was to empower students and get the message out there that we support and accept diversity,” said Michelle Reiss ’20, a founding member of the Coalition.
Six days into the Spring semester, founding Dean of the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business Soumitra Dutta resigned, after a little more than a year and a half in the post. Weeks later, still not a word from Cornell on the reason. A Sun reporter even went to the former dean’s home to find some answers, to no avail. Of course, as a private nonprofit institution, Cornell has no legal obligation to be transparent about personnel movements. A stench of mismanagement, however, stinks to high heaven. Most, including myself, had initial doubts about the endeavour.
Students pointed out the Dyson School’s scarcity of resources for Black and Hispanic students, the socioeconomic barriers to competitive business clubs and the lack of more required courses on diversity.
The Dyson Inclusion and Diversity Program and Anabel’s Grocery hosted a hunger banquet simulation in Mann library on Tuesday to increase awareness on Cornell’s campus of global economic insecurity.
“We have agreed to and signed a Memorandum of Understanding between the Provost and the dean of College of Agriculture and Life Sciences,” John Dyson ’65 said in a Saturday address to the Board of Trustees. The MOU will allow the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management to be a part of both the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and the recently approved College of Business, according to Dyson. “The CALS dean will be involved with all major decisions, and in case of disagreement with the [College of Business] dean, issues will be resolved by the Provost,” Dyson said. “[It is] truly a shared school with a balanced mission between business and its traditional agricultural and NYS Land Grant missions.”
Approved by the Board of Trustees Saturday, the College of Business will merge the Dyson School, the School of Hotel Administration, and the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management. “It was hard not to feel betrayed by a new plan altering an agreement made with me and my brother Peter only five years ago.” — John Dyson ’65
Dyson addressed the Board of Trustees prior to their Saturday vote, explaining his concerns about the proposed College of Business and recounting his talks with Provost Michael Kotlikoff and Dean of CALS Kathryn Boor ’80.
The Dyson Atrium in Sage Hall — the home of the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management — received a makeover during winter break with the addition of new furniture, an updated sound system and the installment of more electric outlets. Last semester, a small group of faculty, staff and students with architecture and interior design backgrounds worked together to create a space that would accommodate the events and students using the atrium, according to Amanda Sloane Shaw, associate dean for student services of the Johnson School. “The Johnson program prides itself on being a really close-knit collaborative community.” —Amanda Sloane Shaw
Renovation plans began last semester when the committee made design decisions to enhance the events that would take place in the atrium, according to Teodoro Guzman grad, chair of the student council facilities. “We have high tables around the perimeter for informational conversations, tables of various sizes to accommodate diverse group types, soft seating areas for more relaxed conversations and bigger desks with power outlets for more extended work sessions,” Guzman said. In addition, Guzman said state of the art LED lighting and new recycling bins, as part of a new waste management campaign, were installed.
Plans for the College of Business — which were announced Dec. 14 — would merge programs from the School of Hotel Administration, the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management and the Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management.
The proposed College of Business will combine programs from Cornell’s School of Hotel Administration, the Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management and the Johnson Graduate School of Management.