04 29 14 entire issue lo res

C.U. Holds Open For ums in Presidential Search

At faculty forum, professors discuss issues next president will face, including scal sustainability, faculty turnover

By AIMEE CHO

During an open forum held Monday by the recently-formed Presidential Search Committee, faculty members stressed the importance of having Cornell’s next president prioritize on properly allocating University resources and money

Prof James Cutting, psychology, said it is “absolutely critical” for the new president to focus on Cornell’s Ithaca campus rather than the multi-billion dollar Cornell Tech campus in New York City “[Ithaca is] the central place where all of the education takes

place,” Cutting said “I think it’s great that Cornell Tech takes off and does well it’s also probably good for the Ithaca campus but I’m sorry Cornell is in Ithaca ”

Prof Paul Soloway, nutritional sciences, said he thinks the University may not currently be on a fiscally sustainable path with so many developments planned and in progress

“We have this $2 billion commitment to NYC

Students say next president should come from diverse background, be community-oriented

By ZOE FERGUSON

Staff Writer

Students said they hope President David Skorton’s successor will focus on unifying the Cornell community and will encourage cultural diversity at an open forum for students held by the Presidential Search Committee Monday Four members of the Board of Trustees Chair Bob Harrison ’76, Alan Mittman ’71, Lisa Skeete Tatum ’89 and Ross Gitlin ’15 hosted the forum, which asked students to identify recent initiatives that have

been “critical to Cornell’s success ” and qualities they hope to see in Cornell’s next president, according to Gitlin

Several students mentioned President Skorton’s “approachability” and their hope that his successor would have a similar presence on campus “ O n e thing that stood out to me that I would like to see in our next president was that [Skorton] is so involved,” said Angelica

“I think Cornell really benefits from a president who is concerned with reaching out ”

Cullo ’15 “I think that Cornell really benefits from a president who is concerned with reaching out to the community ” Sam Ritholtz ’14 said the next president should be community-minded and that Skorton has done a “ great job” of trying to work with different communities on campus

“I think when it comes to our future president, one of the biggest things should

be how they affect the campus climate,” said Ritholtz, who is also a columnist for The Sun Jared Landsman ’14 said he appreciated President Skorton’s transparency regarding divisive campus issues

“Whenever there is a big controversy on campus, [Skorton] will be pretty upfront about it,” Landsman said “I would like to see that quality in our new president ”

Many students said Cornell’s next president should focus on issues of cultural

Former Executive Stresses

Importance of Startups

Scott Oki, a former executive at Microsoft Corporation who retired at the age of 44, spoke about the importance of hard work, as well as issues regarding education reform at Cornell Monday

Oki stressed the value of hard work, saying “ too many people don’t know what [it] is ” He also spoke about his college experiences, where he “flunked” out of University of Washington for doing “everything except go to class ” Eventually, Oki said, he graduated from The University of Colorado with his MBA

Oki who worked with a startup company for one of his earlier jobs emphasized the benefit

Forte Career Launch for

- 7:00 p m , B10 Sage Hall Black Holes, The Conservation of Information, And the Holographic Principle 7:30 p m , Schwartz Auditorium, Rockefeller Hall Tomorrow

VIDEO | The Break Free Hip Hop Dance Troupe Showcase Yamatai performed their annual showcase in Bailey Hall on Saturday afternoon

Leonard Susskind

Felix Bloch Professo r, Director, Stanford Institute for Theoretical Physics, Stanford University

PUPIL POETRY

ellians write verse Students may send poetry submissions to news@cornellsun com

“Black Holes, The Conservation of Information, and the Holographic Principle” Wednesday, April 30, 7:30 p m

Schwartz Auditorium, Rockefeller Hall

“Entanglement: The Hooks that Hold Space Together” Thursday, May 1, 4:30 p m

Schwartz Auditorium, Rockefeller Hall The Public is Invited

Literar y Critic Discusses Wilde Trials

By CHRISTOPHER YATES Sun Staff Writer

Literar y critic Prof Shoshana Felman, the Rober t W Woodr uff Distinguished professor of comparative literature and French, Emor y University, lectured about the literary significance of the legal trials of preeminent Victorian playwright Oscar Wilde at Goldwin Smith Hall

Monday Wilde, known for his various writings in the late 19th century, was tried and convicted of “ gross indecency, ” a term synonymous with homosexual behavior, in 1895, according to Felman

Felman said she thinks the trial was a “poignantly ironic spectacle of comic and tragic misencounter between the two competing discourses” of law and literature as well as part of a wider “transhistorical, culturally repeated” pattern of literature and authors being put on trial, Felman said

“At the dawn of philosophy, Socrates drinks the cup of poison by which he is condemned by the Athenians for atheism and corruption of youth, and similarly, Wilde is put to trial for homosexuality and his obscene, youth-corr upting work,” Felman said

Felman also noted there were sever-

al “unique” aspects of the trial, including the laughter during the legal proceedings

“Time after time, Wilde [threw] the audience into unexpected fits of laughter which interrupt the cross examination,” she said

Though the Victorian court convicted Wilde, “history reversed the judgment” of the conviction in that his plays are now performed more often in England than any playwright other than Shakespeare, according to Felman

Felman’s work showcases the complicated relationship between art and law, and is “crucial” to contemporary discussions, according to Prof Philip Lorenz, English

“Felman’s exploration of the encounter between literary and legal discourses opens up a space that is crucial and difficult to navigate, and that resists being circumscribed and forced into a decision, Lorenz said “It’s a matter of power, freedom, and the problem of repetition ”

Felman made a point that though the Wilde trial took place over a centur y ago, Wilde’s defense for the “rights of all writers” is still applicable to contemporary debates regarding the value of literature, according to Felman

“This is very relevant today we

are all concerned with this fight for literature Financial leaders think that the humanities should be cut, ” Felman said “We are all concerned with the cause and dignity and meaningfulness of literature and I think this is what Wilde is trying to make an apology for ”

Students said they agreed that Felman’s lecture was “timely” and relevant to current issues facing the humanities at American universities, according to Megan Kruer grad

“It’s very timely because I was an undergraduate at Emory University during a period of budget cuts [to humanities departments], and it was very interesting to see Prof Felman integrate the sorts of questions faced by institutions in the current academic climate,” she said

Sarah Aquilina ’14 said she “really appreciated” how Felman closed the lecture by relating the idea of literature on trial to the defense of literature or the crisis in the humanities today

“Felman’s reconfiguration of the way we might normally think of the Wilde trials a testimony on homosexuality as a means of ‘getting literature out of the closet’ was incisive and illuminating,” she said

Christopher Yates can be reached at cyates@cornellsun com

Dialogue Project Course Tackles Issues Through ‘Positive’ Con ict

By LUSINE MEHRABYAN

A month after winning the James A Perkins Prize, the University’s highest diversity-related honor students of Education 2610: Intergroup Dialogue Project say the course has been “life-changing” in its ability to explore issues of intergroup relations, conflict and community

The course which has been offered in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences since fall 2012 is structured in a way that emphasizes on dialogue rather than following a regular lecture or discussion-style format, according to Jake Wright ’16, a student involved in the religion group of the Intergroup Dialogue Project

According to Wright, being able to engage in a dialogue in a classroom was a “unique” experience

“It’s different from debate,” Wright said

Hi, my name is

“You are not attacking anybody or not trying to persuade anyone of your thoughts you are just putting your thoughts on the table and letting others hear them It is understanding how a person thinks the way they do, but not necessarily agreeing with them ”

“[Dialogue] is understanding how a person thinks the way they do, but not necessarily agreeing with them ”

The dialogue encompasses three important concepts, according to Wright: empathy for others, active listening and putting all assumptions on the table (The course is

divided into different topics that range from religion and race to gender, with dialogues on each topic taking place on different days of the week for the entirety of the semester, according to Wright)

For students in the religion-focused group, which meets Mondays, such issues as abortion, gay rights and religious education in schools were discussed during the first three weeks of the course, according to Wright

The latter part of the course focused on an intergroup collaboration project, in which students worked on a group project that aims to “enrich one ’ s surrounding community” through lessons learned from the dialogue

One group interviewed religious leaders about controversial topics and examined how views and texts differ between religions, according to Alyssa Troutner ’15

According to Troutner, some of the ques-

tions asked included “How do you feel about restrictions on space for religious activity?” or “Can marital separation be allowable under any circumstances?”

“What we gathered from the interviews is that everyone realizes that the world is changing and it’s not realistic to ignore sexuality, for example,” Wright said “Religions are starting to be more modernized, more accepting and religions are evolving ” Wright and Troutner said they think it is important to open an arena for these dialogues

“The terminology we use enables us to look for conflict in positive ways, ” Troutner said “We need to have empathy for others, become active listeners, and understand where another person is coming from ”

Lusine Mehrabyan can be reached at lmehrabyan@cornellsun com

7 5 , 0 0 0 , i s a w a rd e d a n n u a l l y t o o n e p e r s o n f ro m e a c h o f t h e s i x i n h a b i te d c o n t i n e n t a l re g i o n s i n t h e w o r l d Sh e a c c e p t e d t h e p r i ze o n Mo n d a y a t a c e re m o n y i n Sa n Fr a n c i s c o M a n B u r n e d i n C a m p i n g F i r e B e h i n d I t h a c a S h o p p i n g C o m p l e x

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C o m p i l e d by Ta l i a Ju b a s

Students: Next Cornell President Must Focus On Issues of Diversity

STUDENTS

Continued from page 1

d i v e r s i t y, i n c l u d i n g R i z p a h Bellard ’15 who said she appreciated President Skor ton ’ s effor ts to increase campus diversity

“I definitely want to see that followed on by the next president,” Bellard said Bellard added that Skor ton ’ s successor should be “somebody who has a diverse background” and is knowledgeable of how people of different races may have different experiences “ on campus and worldwide ”

Michael Gross ’15, however, said while he “ can see an inclination to appoint someone w i t h a m o r e t e c h n i c a l b a c kg r o u n d , ” t h e n e x t p r e s i d e n t should also have well-rounded interests

“I would urge the committee to consider someone who might have priorities for the liberal ar ts on campus, ” Gross said Other students, such as Jesse Go l d b e r g g r a d , s a i d t h e n e w president should play a role in creating more discussion in the c l a s s r o o m a b o u t c u l t u r a l a n d

s

b s t a n t i v

w

y s t h a t g o beyond the numbers ” Michael Collaguazo ’14 also said it is “impor tant ” to have more representation of students of color in science, technology, engineering and math fields

“ There are so many oppor tu-

nities that people in a diverse community can take par t in, as long as we can reach out to t h e m , ” C

“Having the president’s voice in that would be ver y impor tant ” Shannon Cohall ’14 said she f e l t

“huge talking issue” at Cornell, but that suppor t for minority students was not sufficient

Multiple students referenced t h

C

Sur vey, saying it indicated room

multicultural environment The

regarding diversity and bias inci-

repor

action that are listed in [the

need to be priorities on this

’14, president of the Student A

hardcore priorities

Goldberg agreed, suggesting that gender and racial variation should play a direct role in the

President

“If we were to see in the next fe w months that the final candidates were all white men, that would be ver y disappointing to a lot of people,” Goldberg said

Zoe Ferguson can be reached at zferguson@cornellsun com

Oki Discusses Education Reform

MICROSOFT

Continued from page 1

of working with a startup

“I was in charge of marketing, research and product development, ” he said “If anyone has an opportunity to do a startup, do it It was an amazing experience I worked my butt off ” Eventually, Oki said he went into consulting, where he came a c ro s s t h e Mi c ro s o f t Corporation He described his inter view with Bill Gates as “ one of the strangest inter views [he has] ever had ”

“ I w a s o f f e re d t h e j o b a t Microsoft for half the salar y and half the stock options of [the consulting job I was working],” he said “But I was smart enough to take the lower paying job ”

Ok i we n t o n t o b u i l d Microsoft’s international operations as a special manager When he searched for people to help run the international operations, Oki said he looked for three things in the candidates: start up e x p e r i e n c e , p ro f i c i e n c y i n t h e English language and candidates that were smarter than him After Oki retired at 44, he said he had to “figure out what to do for the rest of [his] life ”

“I have ser ved on over 100 nonprofit boards and personally founded and co-founded 20 nonprofits,” he said “[I keep my]

nose to the grindstone tr ying to make a difference ”

Oki said one of his innovative plans is to “ engage the bottom of the philanthropic pyramid ” One such way he has been doing so, he said, is through his “microcharity ” website seeyourimpact org

“Other charities depend on big donors to keep the lights on

There has got to be a better way to engage the bottom of the philanthropic pyramid,” he said “I can only count on one hand the amount of people I have seen my money impact And each time we have seen them, it has prompted us to give more ”

Ok i c l o s e d h i s l e c t u re by speaking about his latest project and the subject of his 2009 book: Education reform

“I am not a writer [ Writing the book] was one of the hardest things I have ever done,” Oki said “[But] if we are going to reform our education system, it is going to be on the backs and shoulders of teachers good teachers ”

Each student who attended his lecture was presented with a c o p y o f t h e b o o k , t i t l e d Outrageous Learning

The lecture was hosted by the Society of Asian Scientists and Engineers

Samantha Delouya can be reached at sdd47@cornell edu

New P resident Should Review C.U. Financial

Strateg y, Faculty S ay

we ’ re contractually obligated to spend money there And I look around and see so much constr uction going on around here, and I wonder if we ’ re going to be bleeding red ink in 10 years, ” he said “I would ideally like our president to have a 20 to 30 year vie w for the University, well beyond their tenure ”

In addition, Prof David Wilson, molecular biology and genetics, said he feels that funding for scientific research is at an “all-time low ”

“Economic pressures are much greater than they’ve ever been, and we can ’ t just keep raising tuition,” he said “One of the things that’s always bothered me is that the [graduate] schools are subser vient to undergraduate schools ”

Another issue raised at the for um was the lack of suppor t for ne w professors

Prof Dennis Miller, food science, said Cornell needs a president who can foster a climate that is suppor tive of and attractive to ne w assistant professors

“A large number of Cornell faculty will be retiring in the next five to 10 years Today’s intense competition for research grants and our increasingly high expectations for excellence in teaching make it more and more challenging to succeed as faculty members,” Miller said “A lot of our Ph D candidates are not aspiring to academic careers How can we be better mentors and examples for our graduate students and junior faculty members?”

Faculty members also expressed desires for a president that sees the impor tance of a well-rounded and far-reaching education

Prof Adam Smith, anthropology, said he thinks that includes pushing against the “economization of education ”

“Students look at majors with an eye towards what will earn them the most money when they graduate,” Smith said “ We need a president who will model the antithesis of that ” Pr o f A b i g a

“We need someone who can articulate an encompassing vision.”

P r o f A d a m S m i t h

C o h n , linguistics, added that she

studies

“ We need to continue

y about global engagement as it relates to scholarly activities,” Cohn said “I want someone ver y much like President Skor ton who has a profound commitment to and understanding of the role of international education ”

Faculty members also discussed cer tain personal characteristics they would like to see in the ne w president All agreed that being a Cornell graduate is not a necessar y prerequisite

“I totally embrace the idea that [he or she] doesn’t have to be an alumnus [or alumna],” Cohn said “But we do want our next president to be an academic, which means that they went through rigorous academic training and have ser ved at least par t of their career as a hands-on academic ”

Prof Kevin Hallock, economics and industrial and labor relations, said he would like the search committee to consider whether candidates have exhibited the fairness, objectivity and their ability to work well in high-pressure situations

“How someone deals with a crisis is really impor tant [For example,] how would they deal with a financial crisis?” Hallock said

Smith added that one of the key roles of the president should be prioritizing a comprehensive vision for Cornell

“ W h a t m a k e s h i g h e r e d u c a t i o n s o

a r moment? We need somebody who can ar ticulate an encompassing vision,” he said “ We need a visionar y ”

The presidential search process will last about six to nine months, according to Prof Jonathan Culler, English, a faculty representative on the Presidential Search Committee Culler said that after the committee takes input from the Cornell community, the process will then become confidential

“ The kinds of candidates we hope to interest in this position do not want it to be known [at their current jobs] that they are considering becoming the president of Cornell,” Culler said

Tr u s t e e Ja n Z u b r ow ’ 7 7 , c h a i r o f t h e Pre s i d e n t i a

Se

r c h Committee, said the committee will conduct “ ver y deep and thorough” research on all of the candidates

“ We will speak to the candidates’ references, but we will also have our own data points through people that we know The [Internet] also helps a lot you can learn a lot from the web,” Zubrow said Spencer Stuar t, a member of a search firm that will assist Cornell, said that the best predictor of a candidate’s future behavior is his or her past behavior

“As long as you understand their past behavior, you have a good chance of extrapolating and seeing how they’ll per form in this role,” Stuar t said

HALEY VELASCO ’15 Editor in

CATHERINE CHEN 15

CAROLINE FLAX ’15 Associate Editor

NICK DE TULLIO ’15 Web

RACHEL ELLICOTT ’15 Blogs Editor

ELIZABETH SOWERS 15

CONNOR ARCHARD 15

ANNIE BUI 16

KAITLYN TIFFANY ’15

KATHLEEN BITTER ’15

CHARDAE VARLACK ’15

EMILY BERMAN 16

NICOLE HAMILTON 16

LICHTENSTEIN 16

YANG 15

ARIELLE CRUZ 15

MICHELLE FELDMAN 15

TYLER ALICEA 16

Woman for P resident: Ful lling Our Founding

Cornell University has a long histor y of which we should be ver y proud And now, as we work to shape the next era at this institution, let us ensure that our future preser ves and expands that strong legacy of the past This university was founded on the principle, “ any person, any study” and after nearly 150 years,

Committee to consider a candidate that would become Cornell University’s first female president Despite skepticism and criticism from h

15

’15

’16

JAYNE ZUREK ’16

’17

’16 Hannah Kim ’14 Madeline Salinas 16

S E N D US YO U R F E E D BA C K.

opened up the University’s gates to women who desired to pursue an education He called this coeducation a “ great experim

young girls and women across the countr y For example, Dr Robin E Bowen was recently named president of Arkansas Tech University, the first woman to ser ve this p o s i t i o n D u r

Fitchburg State University, Bowen helped develop and grow game design and chemi s t

Donna E Shalala helped University of Miami raise the funds necessar y to secure “its position among top U S research univ e r s i

These women not only challenged the glass ceiling in order to earn their positions, they also bring to life oppor tunities for women in the STEM field and in research labs

EMILY ’ s List is an organization that is dedicated to providing leadership oppor-

According to its stated vision, “the influence of women office holders leads to the adoption of a host of progressive public policies to ensure that women have equal oppor tunities at home, in the workplace, a

I want a president who will not only ensure that this campus is equipped with resources that will expand our learning. ... I want a president who will continue to inspire us.

sphere

If we adopt this vision and apply it to the landscape

created, the gender

Continue the conversation by sending a letter to the editor or guest column to o pi n i on @co r ne l l su n . co m.

Letters should be in response to any recent Sun news article, column, arts piece or editorial They should be no longer than 500 words in length HA VE Y OU R VO ICE HE AR D.

Guest columns should be your well-reasoned opinion on any cur rent campus issue or controversy They should be no longer than 800 words in length

s Resource Center When Cornell empowered women with this rather unprecedented oppor tunity, it was proven that limiting the minds and talents of women in turn limits the growth of society The women w h o h a v e s i n c e matriculated among the Ivy towers have become writers, scientists, CEOs, stock analysts and even a Su p r e m e C o u r t Justice It is because of our founder that t h e e d u c a t i o n o f y o u n g g i r l s a n d women is no longer considered an experiment, but a right Ye t , t h e w o r k t o w a r d g e n d e r equality in the field of academia is far from over According to Fo r b e s , t h e A m e r i c a n C o u n c i l o n Education repor ted, “23 percent of college presidents are women, a marked improvement over 1986’s 10 percent But in a prof e s s i o n t h a t i s o f t e n a s s o c i a t e d w i t h women (75 percent of U S school teachers, not including professors, are female), the number is shockingly low ” For Cornell to return to its role as a leader of gender equality, the Presidential Search Committee should actively consider a female candidate to fill the role of President Skor ton ’ s successor According to the above ar ticle, during the search for a university’s president, men are often more privy to the information necessar y to be considered “It wasn ’ t called the ‘old boys’ network’ for nothing,” said ACE President Molly Broad in the ar ticle

S i n c e 2 0 0 6 , S k o r t o n h a s o v e r s e e n impor tant growth on this campus, and the s t u d e n t s , f a c u l t y a n d s t a f f d e s e r ve t h e most qualified leader to ser ve as his successor I am therefore not demanding that the committee confine its search to only female candidates; rather, I ask that the committee extend its process and information to women outside “‘the old boys’ network ’” The lack of information limits capable women from aspiring to the position Yet, if the committee makes clear that it will extend its search to qualified women, they will realize that “President of Cornell University” is not an impossible goal

“ You cannot be what you cannot see, ” s a i d Fo r m e r M i c h i g a n G o v Je n n i f e r

Gr a n h o l m , a c c o r d i n g t o A B C Ne w s Therefore, actively engaging women in the search process will not only present the candidates with a vision of women in leade r s h i p, b u t w i l l e x t

their education into

and begin to draft t h

r p l a n s On college campuses, women are designing their futures as t

However, if our university president helps shatter that ceiling, women will understand that their futures are theirs alone to shape

The committee asked us what attributes we are looking for in the next president of Cornell University To that, I respond that I want a president who will not only ensure that this campus is equipped with resources that will expand our learning and maintain a safe environment; I want a president who will continue to inspire us Sher yl Sandberg said, “Leadership is about making others better as a result of your presence and making sure that impact lasts in your absence ” A female president will prove that limitations placed on you by others are not permanent She will prove that despite the obstacles that inevitably s t a n d b e t w e e n u s a n d o u r g o a l s , a n engaged and educated mind will enable us to overcome them And because of the oppor tunities she created for the next generation of thinkers and dreamers, even in her absence we will know her impact Ezra Cornell imagined this school to be a place that empowered people of all genders, backgrounds and races He opened its classrooms to all of those who wished to better themselves and as a result, better t h e c o m m u n i t y A n d w h i l e h i s “

experiment” is over, our work is not If we use the presidential search committee as an oppor tunity to expand the university s legacy, we will become an institution that promises “ any person, any possibility ”

Jennifer Mandelblatt is a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences She can be reached at jpm367@cornell edu Guest Room appears periodically this semester

Ross Gitlin | Trustee Viewpoint

Remembering Three Civil Rights Heroes

From the earliest days of our founding, Cornell University has maintained a commitment to advancing civil rights This is remarkable given the era in which our school was established In 1865 the same year as our founding Abraham Lincoln had just approved the 13th Amendment to the United States Constitution that formally abolished slavery Yet, even in the midst of this era of segregation, our University affirmed its motto to be “ an institution where any person can find instruction in any study ” When Ezra Cornell was asked whether an African-American student could attend his University, he simply replied: “Send him over if he is smart and can make it in the world ”

Over 45 years later, our third President J G Schurman, reaffirmed the University’s commitment to “ any person ” when he said: “At Cornell, all University doors must remain open to all students, irrespective of race or color or creed or social standing or pecuniary condition ” This endorsement to ensuring access for all students, in addition to our land grant mission, has distinguished Cornell in preparing its students to tackle the greatest issues confronting society

Of course, eloquent principles and soaring aspirations do not always translate into reality, and, just a few weeks ago, we commemorated the 45th anniversary of the Willard Straight Hall Takeover This event in our history reminds us that though we have an unwavering commitment to achieving an inclusive environment at Cornell, we have at times fallen short throughout our history The Straight Takeover reminds us further of our task to ensure that every student feels welcomed and supported on our campus

Just a few years earlier in the decade when Willard Straight Hall was taken over, a young man named Michael Schwerner ’61 graduated from

This endorsement to ensuring acces all students has distinguished Cor in preparing its students to tackle th greatest issues confronting society.

Cornell While here, Schwerner led a successful effort to desegregate the Alpha Epsilon Pi fraternity, as Greek life had mirrored, to some extent, the segregationist patterns that still existed in America In 1964, Schwerner travelled to Mississippi for Freedom Summer to assist with voter registration Throughout his time in the south, Schwerner was blasted with hateful speech, called derogatory names and received hate mail and imminent death threats, but he continued to fulfill his commitment to equality During that summer, on June 16, the Ku Klux Klan torched Mt Zion Methodist Church, in a violent response to Schwerner’s request to the church that it make its facilities available as a freedom school Days later, when Schwerner travelled with two other civil rights organizers James Chaney and Andrew Goodman to Mt Zion Methodist Church to investigate the attack, the young men were apprehended by the Deputy Sheriff and thrown in jail When they were finally released from jail, at approximately 10:00 p m , the Klan had mobilized and shot and killed James Chaney, Andrew Goodman and Michael Schwerner

The murder of these civil rights workers is seen as a monumental event in the landscape of the civil rights struggle Now, nearly 50 years following their deaths, a group here at Cornell composed of alumni, students, staff and faculty, is advocating to create a prominent outdoor memorial outside of Anabel Taylor Hall to honor these three men and other Cornellians involved in the Civil Rights Movement Memorials matter A D White, in his final Annual Report to Cornell University’s Board of Trustees in 1884-1885, said: “Memorials exercise a great and steady educating influence in the domain of morals The potential memorial that would honor the work of Chaney, Goodman and Schwerner and others would serve an enduring purpose This is because these young men embodied the very spirit of Cornell, founded upon the recognition of equal rights and access for all, ideals that are the bedrock of our nation I fully support the proposed memorial, as I believe it can serve as a reminder to all Cornellians of both the sacrifices that have been made as well as the work that still needs to be done to promote equality and justice

As our academic year draws to a close and we approach the 50th Anniversary of Freedom Summer and the murders of Chaney, Goodman and Schwerner, I challenge us to critically reflect upon how we can embody the same spirit embraced by three young men over 50 years ago Our approaching Sesquicentennial allows us time to inquire about, and perhaps internalize, the charge that accompanies our identity as Cornellians to work to improve the world and to address our most pressing problems Chaney, Goodman and Schwerner fulfilled that charge, and our generation of Cornellians should aspire and strive to do the same here in Ithaca, as well as beyond

Comm en t of the day

“It’s bad design to redevelop this facility into ONLY housing We need more housing, the City Common Council, among other entities, to stop standing in the way of good development housing and otherwise Redeveloping this facility into housing only would be a big mistake ”

EcoAdvocate

Re: “County Considers Proposals for Former Librar y Space,” News published April 25, 2014

Jacob

Glick | Glickin’ It

Ready for Hillar y, but not Revolution: Cornell’s Crisis of Politics

Ic o n s i d e r m y s e l f a

m o d e r a t e l y p ro g re ss i ve De m o c r a t I

b e l i e ve t h a t Pre s i d e n t

Obama’s Affordable Care Act is a vital addition to our social safety net; I shudder to think what havoc Supreme Court-

l e d a s s a u l t s o n vo t i n g

r i g h t s a n d c a m p a i g n

finance restrictions will wreak on our democracy; I consider attempts to roll back safe access to abortion and birth control to be abhorrent; I think our immigration system, that ever-churn-

i n g e n g i n e o f t h e American Dream, is in dire need of liberalization and reform; and I know

t h a t e ve r y o n e o f u s ought to be able to marry whomever we love

And yet I have spent much of the last month wondering

w h y I s u d d e n l y feel like a grumpy old man a John Mc C a i n , i f yo u will of campus politics I watched in horror as the Pre s i d e n t o f t h e Student Assembly

t h ro u g h p l e b i s c i t e b u t through the discretion of a n e l e c t e d c o m m i t t e e

Instead of accepting their d e f e a t , Re s o l u t i o n 7 2 s u p p o r t e r s h a d t h e temerity to assume that simply because their own priorities were not perfectly mirrored by the S A , the S A must be illegitimate

The embittered supporters of Resolution 72 thus continued to link many progressive Cornell goals curbing sexual assault, lowering prohibit i ve t u i t i o n r a t e s , a n d embracing the LGBT t o t h e m a c ro - p o l i t i c a l a n d c l e a r l y d i v i s i ve Resolution 72 That, I have argued, was their goal all along; to link up opposition to Israel, in whatever capacity, to the

Cornell, like most similar institut is filled with liberal-minded stud who yearn for positive changes society without seeing society completely reconfigured

Ulysses Smith ’14, voluntarily submitted to a takeover by a few dozen

s t u d e n t s w h o , b e c a u s e they were unhappy with the outcome of democrat i c p ro c e s s e s , d e c i d e d that democracy was altogether too mainstream And my horror only continued, in the weeks that have followed, as coupapologists in The Sun and elsewhere subscribe to the convenient narrative that this takeover of t h e St u d e n t A s s e m b l y was a somehow noble exercise in the democratizing potential of students devoted to change

It was not

L e t ’ s b e c l e a r : t h i s coup would have never occurred had the S A

n o t t a b l e d Re s o l u t i o n

72 This tabling if not the most well-considered political move in history was completely inkeeping with any democracy that functions not

progressive mandate that C o r n e l l i a n s h a ve l o n g c h e r i s h e d Wi t h t h e i r t a k e ove r o f t h e S A , Re s o l u t i o n 7 2 d e a denders took another step towards radicalizing otherwise innocuous issues of campus discourse and gravely endangered our politics

On c e t h e S A h ad b e e n s o n o n c h a l a n t l y ove r t h row n , t h e

anyone saying so does n o t u n d e r s t a n d t h e word Democracy, at its core, involves a respect of institutions, even if t h a t re s p e c t i n vo l ve s severe external pressure in order to accomplish one ’ s goals If SJP and i t s a l l i e s h a d s e t u p camp outside Willard St r a i g h t Ha l l a n d d e m a n d e d t h e S A change its procedures or re c o n s i d e r Re s o l u t i o n 7 2 , t h e y w o u l d h a ve b e e n u n i m p e a c h a b l y w i t h i n t h e re a l m o f democratic protest long present at Cornell It w o u l d h a ve b e e n re s p e c t a b l e a c t i v i s m , w h e t h e r o r n o t o n e agrees with it But in t a k i n g ove r t h e S A , s u p p o r t e r s o f Resolution 72 appeared n o t u n l i k e t h e ve r y thing they purport to hate most, by quite literally occupying a legitimate, democratic insti-

St u d e n t s ’ A s s e m b l y opened its agenda of hotbutton issues and forced a l l t h o s e w a t c h i n g t o endure a litany of bloviations that sought to tie re l e va n t p ro g re s s i ve issues to Cornell’s “ corporatism,” “imperialism” and “settler colonialism” In short, everything was brought back unnecessarily to Israel and the specter of Resolution 72 There was no true devotion to progressivism at the Students’ Assembly, o n l y a p u b l i c i t y s t u n t that drew these tenuous l i n k a g e s , u n d e r t h e facade of progressivism, in order to prove that the S A ’ s only relevant sin, i t s re j e c t i o n o f Resolution 72, somehow m a k e s i t i l l e g i t i m a t e Smith, in a stunning act o f p o l i t i c a l c ow a rd i c e , agreed; he apologized to t h e “ St u d e n t s ’ A s s e mbly,” even as its leaders s o u g h t t o d i s e m b owe l the organization he is e n t r u s t e d t o l e a d He later pled with them to a l l ow Pre s i d e n t Da v i d Skorton to speak, proving that it is folly to give the keys of the castle to a n a rc h i s t s a n d t h e n expect to get them back if you ask nicely What happened at the S A two weeks ago was not democracy, and

tution simply because the legal and political c o n s e n s u s u n d e r l y i n g this institution does not support their immediate g o a l s A f e w d o ze n u n e l e c t e d C o r n e l l i a n s dictating an agenda is n o t d e m o c r a c y, b u t mobocracy It is shameful to suggest that these e f f o r t s t o d e m o l i s h C

n a n c e i s anything but infantile Reform is one thing, coups are another I will end this column with a warning Cornell, like most similar institutions, is filled with liberal-minded students who ye a r n f o r p o s i t i ve changes in society without seeing society comp l e t e l y re c o n

“Ready for Hillary” but not ready for the revolution If false crusaders for democracy continue to hijack legitimate political debate on campus for their own vainglorious

C

unable to inculcate the

tomorrow that we have become accustomed to p ro d

T h e re i s room for radicalism, of course, but that radicalism cannot become the banner beneath which all progressive students are

Ou

political debate cannot become a dual option

h

ment anarchy and arch-

for authority A failure to avoid this will alienate

Cornellians from

y must be a part Let’s hope the Class of 2018 does better than the Class of 2014 in preserving our campus politics Our University, in many ways, depends on it

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

S o m e t h i n g L i k e

SEAN

Arts and Entertainment Editor

I am grinning like an idiot It has been three days and my face is still frozen like the Joker’s as I hum to myself like a madman I can ’ t help it Every once in a while, this happens: Theater catatonia Symptoms include spontaneous dancing, uncontrollable lip-syncing and periods of glee lasting longer than six hours There wasn ’ t a single audience member in the Schwartz’s Flex Theatre that was not afflicted the mysterious malady when the lights came up after the world premiere of Far From Canterbury this past weekend Something magical happened and I can hardly explain it Perhaps it was the collective feeling of being a part of something important, something historical and unforgettable

After nearly two years of development and writing, Far From Canterbury has finally opened to the uncontainable excitement of much of the Cornell community A modernized, yet fantastical adaptation of “The Wife of Bath’s Tale” from The Canterbury Tales, Far From Canterbury creates a world of its own, in which fairy tales are real and act to inform the masses about important current events The story follows a not-sovaliant knight and his two best friends as they travel the kingdom searching for what women desire most Of course, their journey becomes all the more complicated by a mystical oracle who claims to have the answer they seek

Canterbury is almost entirely the brainchild of senior music major Danny Bernstein, one of Cornell’s greatest artists and success stories in recent memory, and those aren ’ t even my words he has already had the great honor of receiving the Cornell Council for the Arts 2013-2014 Undergraduate Artist of the Year Award for his work on the show Bernstein was singlehandedly responsible for the entire creative development of the musical, from writing the show’s book, lyrics and music, generally the work of three or more people This would be a nearimpossible feat for most playwrights, but Bernstein excels at almost every aspect of the musical’s production

The greatest strength of the work was, in my opinion, the songwriting and composing Anyone familiar with Danny Bernstein’s past work knows that he has a knack for writing some of the catchiest and funniest songs you’ll hear in a long time Seriously, search his name on YouTube You won ’ t be dis-

appointed Canterbury has all the trappings of a musical hit it’s got your “I want ” songs, the comic relief song, the 11 o ’clock number but Bernstein injects real sincerity into each and every song The characters’ emotions and intentions drove every song, and this allowed them to connect to the audience in ways I have rarely seen a musical achieve My personal favorites were “Strangers” and “Just the Beginning,” a sweet, heartfelt duet and a fierce ballad of independence, respectively To single out favorites would do the score an injustice, however, because you would be hard-pressed to find one stinker in the entire show

As is always the case with Schwartz shows, the cast was comprised of Cornell’s most talented young actors and singers Not a single cast member, from lead to ensemble, was wasted, with every actor getting their fair share of limelight and laughs The performance made use of an extensive stable of “storytellers” who provided everything from scene transitions to backing vocals and eccentric side characters

The cast was led by Alex Quilty ’15, who played John, the knight sent on the quest to save his own life Quilty has never disappointed me, and his performance in Canterbury was no different Although his stellar dramatic performances in Titus Andronicus and Sweeney Todd this past year cemented his ability to play menacing and brooding villains in my mind, his comedy chops are beginning to equally impress me Between last semester ’ s Company and now Canterbury, Quilty has proven that he is equally skilled at evoking laughter as he is fear

Sarah Coffey ’16, another Cornell performer with an impressive track record, played opposite Quilty’s John as Dolores, the oracle with the answers he seeks Ever since seeing her as Cathy in The Last Five Years, I fell in love with her emotional and heartfelt performances, and Canterbury has proven to be her greatest performance to date

That being said, I was truly blown away by Steve Markham ’16 and Elana Valastro ’17 Their performances as Marcus and Agnes, John’s best friends, stole the show in every scene they were featured, but for different reasons Markham was easily the com-

edy highlight of the night, drawing riotous laughter from the crowd on innumerable occasions Impeccable comic timing and physicality gave him a surefire charm that drew my attention, even when he wasn ’ t speaking dialogue Valastro, in her first performance here at Cornell, killed every song she was featured in Her performance in “Just the Beginning” gave me chills down my spine, and even when faced with microphone stand difficulties, her singing stood out as the best of the night The couple had some of the best chemistry I have seen on stage before and I am glad they were both given the spotlight they deserved

The show wasn ’ t perfect; there were some unnecessary subplots and odd narrative choices we sort of lost John’s character somewhere along the way, and I found myself caring more about the rest of the characters more but nothing that can ’ t be remedied with further work and workshopping It is key to remember that this show was written by an undergraduate, an impressive feat in of itself The fact that the show succeeds in so many ways is a testament to Danny Bernstein’s immense talent as an artist When he graduates at the end of this semester, Cornell will be losing one of its greatest minds I can ’ t think of a better legacy to leave behind than Canterbury

Sean Doolittle is a sophomore in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences He can be reached at arts-editor@cornellsun com

Motown, Mo’ Problems: Lisa D’Amour’s Detroit

The “American Dream” is a well-tread and often cliché subject in the last hundred years of American literature, especially in live theatre I’m sure most high schoolers have groaned at some point as their English teachers droned on about The Great Gatsby or A Raisin in the Sun or The Grapes of Wrath or pretty much anything by Arthur Miller We get it; Success isn’t all it’s cracked up to be Suburbs are big, evil, Stepford Wives factories of disillusionment and discontent Detroit, a recent play by Lisa D’Amour presented by

The Readers’ Theatre of Ithaca, establishes a fairly standard plot: Two couples find themselves cracking in the idyllic, but dying suburbs of some city Over the course of 90 minutes, however, the play opens itself up, revealing a refreshing new spin on a weary topic

This year seems like an appropriate time to revisit and critique our notions of “making it” and prosperity Given the recent recession, Internet privacy issues and corporate shenanigans, suburbia is once again an apt symbol for American insecurities and various misgivings Detroit does a magnificent job catching the audience up to what’s been going on since Joe Keller and Willy Loman had their way with America: The suburban facade lies in decay, but its residents continue to act their parts as if they still lived somewhere that’s green The very homes themselves begin to fall apart throughout the play, as umbrellas and porches give way under the strain of postcard perfection W

y implies a setting, I get the feeling that i t i s s i m p l y m e a n t t o s t a n d a s a metaphor, with all the implications that the city of Detroit brings The characters never make mention of Motor City, or any real location to speak of, leaving the play’s message to apply to just about any American town across the nation The fact that the city filed for bankruptcy three years after the play was written is surely just a coincidence

Mary (Effie Johnson) and Ben (A J Sage) seem content with their suburban lifestyle and appearance of happiness Ben has recently lost his job as a loan officer, but he intends on starting his own small business, providing financial advice to those in need of an economic pick-me-up They meet their new neighbors, Sharon (Camilla Schade) and Ke n n y ( Ga r y We i s s b ro t , m y b ro t h e r i n Converse), a couple of aging eccentrics with a few secrets of their own, and immediately gravitate toward them, mostly because they just don’t know anyone else in their neighborhood Sharon and company bemoan the fact that “there’s no real communication anymore ” After a friendly barbeque between the neighbors, the couples’ personal lives and lies become intertwined and begin to unravel at the same time Drug abuse, alcoholism and infidelity are all dragged out of their perfect, pastel homes and beaten on the perfectlymanicured lawn

That is not to say that the play is all doom and gloom Quite the opposite, in fact The play is, more often than not, ferociously funny A very dark comedy, the play cannot help but lure laughter out of the audience even when the subject is hard to talk about This was in no small part thanks to the great comic efforts of the four actors who consistently cracked me up, even with something as small as a facial expression Given the minimalist staging of the play, the actors were given the extra burden of interacting with a set that existed only in their mind The physical comedy and pantomime are worth seeing

in their own right from opening an umbrella to grilling steaks and drunk-grinding, the actors sell every movement As realistic and complex as the characters are, their actions often delve into sheer ridiculousness, amplifying the surreal nature of the play Director and Readers’ Theatre Founder and Artistic Director Anne Marie Cummings and Assistant Director Chris Dell emphasize these elements, often breaking the fourth wall and using the actors as props and symbols w h e n t h e y a re n ’ t , yo u k n ow, a c t i n g Cummings, an alumna of the prestigious d r a m a p ro g r

University, has decided to stage Detroit within the Theatre of the Absurd, focusing on the illogical, irrational and almost unreal nature of the play to great success

While I only got to see Detroit approximately midway through the rehearsal process, I could immediately tell that the production was being handled with care and great attention to detail Cummings, Dell and their talented cast do a wonderful job bringing this Obie-winning play to Ithaca and I would def-

Commons to see it if you get the chance

Detroit will be performed May 2 through May 4 at Cinemapolis Tickets are available in advance through the Readers’ Theatre website and at Cinemapolis at the price of $10 for students (with ID) and $12 for the general public

Sean Doolittle is a sophomore in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences He can be reached at arts-editor@cornellsun com

Beyoncé and the Illuminati Pop cultural cult worship

I’ ve written all over Facebook, Tumblr and The Sun about my personal infatuation, as well as the nation-wide infatuation, with Beyoncé, and especially with 2013’s surprise visual album (if you haven’t watched it yet, there’s no excuse for you as a person) But Internet sensations and albums-of-the-moment aren ’ t historical rarities in and of themselves What is unique about our collective love for Queen Bey is that much of the rhetoric surrounding it is damn near cult-like (I’m referring to a human woman who is, in essence, just exceptionally talented at singing and dancing and commanding her eyebrows as a “Queen” in this very sentence )

Of course Beyoncé has recently revealed herself to be an extremely articulate proponent of what the Crunk Feminist Collective refers to as “homegrown feminism” the sort that reminds elitist, academic and old-fashioned feminists that feminism could use some serious rebranding Her association with the “Ban Bossy” campaign spearheaded by Sheryl Sandberg is a further reminder that her music and cultural persona is far from apolitical or mindless But even this, music with something to say, doesn’t uniquely account for selling 617,000 digital copies of an album in a single weekend

It’s difficult to put a finger on what exactly motivated the exaltation of a pop star to such an extreme degree

However, in a 2013 New York Times article about inequality and the modern celebrity, George Packer explains how economic downturns produce grossly inflated opinions, and even worship of, pop cultural icons In times of economic and societal uncertainty, we willfully morph our celebrities from entertaining and successful members of society who we choose to emulate in minor ways into “untouchable, god-like creatures that are meant to be worshipped as something superhuman, ethereal beings we mere mortals can never become ” Current economic and societal uncertainties being given, this helps explain Beyoncé’s position in cultural acclaim, as well as, maybe, her position in popular derision

Guest Room

After all, the most obviously cultish of the Beyoncé descriptors, is her frequent Internet-nut-job association with the Illuminati, and the hunt for Illuminati symbolism in her lyrics and music videos There is a seemingly endless plethora of Internet sites dedicated to breaking down Beyoncé’s music, her videos and even the details of her personal life in an effort to prove her affiliation with the group

A YouTube video that I stumbled across during the Google-search-history-destroying research I did for this article, called “Illuminati Message Superbowl 2013,” proclaims Beyoncé and Destiny’s Child 2013 Superbowl act a declaration of allegiance to the Devil It totally makes sense, ya’ll: “Destiny’s Child is a reference to the chosen one, the son of perdition, the anti-Christ!!!” this video claims (!!!!) The basic theory is that Destiny’s Child recently recorded a song called “Nuclear,” and their presence at the Super Bowl was orchestrated to set off a chain reaction leading to nuclear warfare Basically the San Francisco 49’ers played in the Super Bowl that year, they’re from San Francisco and some gay people live in San Francisco Gay people are the devil Also, in The Sum of All Fear, Ben Affleck calls Morgan Freeman while he is at a Baltimore Ravens game to tell him that a nuclear bomb is about to drop Baltimore Ravens! Not only the opponent of the 49’ers in Super Bowl XLVII, but also a team represented by a bird that is creepy as all fuck And black Black like the BLACKOUT that happened in the Mercedes-Benz Superdome right after Destiny’s Child bowed gracefully to the Devil and left the stage

Another fan fave: “Drunk in Love” was analyzed in depth on IllumantiWatcher com, which noted all of the times that Beyoncé holds her hair over one eye That seems like something you might do at the behest of Tyra to look pretty sexy and cool, but actually it’s a reference to the All Seeing Eye The trophy that she stumbles around with at the beginning of the video has a beauty queen on top of it “ or maybe the goddess Semiramis” and also features an inverted pyramid, which was, allegedly, used as the official seal of King Solomon, giving him the ability to control demons, spirits and animals through magic

It seems strange that the accusations are so single-mindedly racialized.

While the Satanic Panic of the 1980s was focused on heavy metal groups that sometimes did actually talk about worshipping the devil, this decade is somewhat inexplicably fascinated with the evils of popular music which has no obvious connection to Satanism Theories of Illuminati affiliation may have started with the predominantly white metal bands of the ’80s, but they have almost entirely shifted onto the shoulders of black rap and hip-hop artists since their revival in the early 2000s God Like Productions, a Reddit-type site for biblical conspiracy theorists, claims that this is because “The Black race is the same color as soil and the surrounding night for a reason It’s carbon There is no life without carbon It is the key to spiritual power ” As the somewhat whiter realm of pop music stylistically manipulates dark symbolism easily as often as hip-hop or rap does, it seems strange that the accusations are so single-mindedly racialized as strange, maybe, as the fact that Bill O’Reilly’s qualms with Beyoncé’s “Partition” video cites only statistics on teen pregnancy for black females, on the lack of role models for black females, somehow conflating Beyoncé’s marital sex to be the equivalent of all sex had by all black women, which he views as singularly reckless, inexplicably dangerous and resultant in reproduction that he seems personally offended by, all under the guise of concern for young women

In his (monumental) 2013 essay collection, White Girls, Hilton Als dissects the jealousies that live on every border defining race, gender and sexuality At one point Als semi-fictitiously describes the white woman ’ s response to a black gay couple, saying that he witnessed “white women who had been denied nothing most of their lives feeling bitter about [us] because they could not be part of ‘ us, ’ but continuing to be attracted to us past the point of reason since they lived to be disappointed ” Later the roles are reversed, as one of these men looks at a female friend and says “Did I love her or want to be her? Is there a difference?” Beyoncé willfully fills a very unique role in our popular culture her brand of feminism redefines the historic hypersexualization of black women, rebuffs white feminism’s well-known failings and while what she does is not for white girls, they are still hopelessly attracted to her While what she does is probably not for anyone in particular, we all love her enough to want to be her

Paired with Packer’s assertion that “the celebrity monuments of our age have grown so huge that they dwarf the aspirations of ordinary people, who are asked to yield their dreams to the gods,” the deep, hidden bitterness of the white bystanders to this ultimate exaltation of a black woman, gives us a rough approximation of what makes Beyoncé a cult/cultural phenomenon Whether we love her, want to be her, or want to accuse her of Satanic/demi-goddess powers, must of what we feel about her seems to exalt her as more than human In a time when we distrust institutions schools, governments, banks, political parties, religious organizations we trust celebrities who are “ as intimate as they are grand” and who “offer themselves for worship by ordinary people searching for a suitable object of devotion ”

Or more simply put: “I see how we are all the same, ” writes Als, “that none of us are white women or black men; rather we ’ re a series of mouths, and every mouth needs filling: With something wet or dry, like love, or unfamiliar and savory, like love ”

Kaitlyn Tiffany is a junior in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences She can be reached at arts-and-entertainment-editor@cornellsun com Guest Room runs ever y Tuesday

I Am Going to Be Small by Jeffrey

m e d i a s h ow i n g Ma n z i e l t h e He i s m a n w i n n e r w h o e ve r yo n e w a n t s t o p a r t y w i t h

a n d t a k e p i c t u re s o f h a v i n g a g o o d t i m e a t c o l l e g e Hi s 2 0 1 2 a r re s t ( o r i g i n a l l y c h a r g e d w i t h d i s o r d e r l y c o nd u c t , f a i l u re t o i d e n t i f y a n d p o ss e s s i o n o f a f a k e I D ) , t h o u g h e s p e c i a l l y s t u p i d c o n s i d e r i n g h e w a s a Di v i s i o n I f o o t b a l l p l a ye r, w a s s i m p l y a c o l l e g e f re s h m a n m i s t a k e t h a t o c c u r r e d b e f o r e Ma n z i e l h a d e ve r t a k e n a s n a p a t A & M Fa i l u re t o re c o g n i ze t h e s e o f f t h e f i e l d “ i s s u e s ” a s a n y t h i n g m o re t h a n j u s t a c o l l e g e k i d b e i n g a c o l l e g e k i d i s u n f a i r t o Ma n z i e l T h o s e c l o s e t o Ma n z i e l k n ow h i m a s a n y t h i n g b u t t h e c o n c e i te d , i r re s p o n s i b l e p e r s o n s o m e p o r t r a y h i m t o b e Hi s c o a c h e s a n d t e a m m a t e s h a ve p r a i s e d h i s w o r k - e t h i c a n d s e l f l e s s n e s s Fe l l ow d r a f t p ro s p e c t a n d f o rm e r A g g i e Ja k e Ma t t h e w s , a n o f f e n s i v e t a c k l e w h o k n o w s Ma n z i e l a s we l l a s a n y, c a l l e d h i s f o r m e r t e a m m a t e a “ t re m e n d o u s c o m p e t i t o r, g r e a t l e a d e r, a n d s o m e o n e t h a t I l ove d p l a y i n g f o r I w a s g l a d t o h a ve h i m a s a q u a r t e r b a c k ” Ad m i r a t i o n f o r t h e 2 1 - ye a ro l d q u a r t e r b a c k i s c o m m o n Jo n Gr u d e n , w h o m e t w i t h Ma n z i e l a s p a r t o f h i s E S P N “ Q B C a m p ” s e g m e n t , s a i d t h a t h e w o u l d “ l ove t o h a ve h i m , ” a n d l a t e r c o m p a re d Ma n z i e l t o Bre t t Fa v re A b r i e f l o o k a t M a n z i e l ’ s h i g h l i g h t s o n Yo u Tu b e m a k e s i t c l e a r a s d a y w h y h e w o n a He i s m a n , w h y h e i s a s p e c i a l c o m p e t i t o r a n d w h y s o m a n y f e e l h e i s d e s t i n e d f o r g re a t n e s s T h e Ho u s t o n Te x a n s ow n t h e f i r s t ove r a l l p i c k i n t h e 2 0 1 4

d r a f t A t e a m c e r t a i n l y i n n e e d

o f a b i g - t i m e q u a r t e r b a c k , i t a p p e a r s t o b e a p e r f e c t f i t f o r Ma n z i e l t h e Te x a n t o re m a i n a Te x a n i n t h e N F L Bu t n o t o n l y d o m o s t p e o p l e e x p e c t Ho u s t o n t o p a s s o n Ma n z i e l , s e ve r a l d r a f t p u n d i t s p re d i c t Ma n z i e

whether they are physical, technical or psychological,” Taylor said From the perspective of the athletes, the Penn Relays is one of the best ways to get ready for the anxiety that can happen going into important meets down the stretch

“Meets don’t get much bigger than the Penn Relays It is great to have such a large crowd The energy really helps you compete, ” Jamerson said “You also get to run against some of the top athletes in the world, which always helps you drop some time If I make it to

, w o u l d a t e a m c o m i n g o f f o f a d i s a s t ro u s ye a r, i n s e r i o u s n e e d o f a t o p - t i e r q u a r t e r b a c k , p a s s o n Jo h n n y Ma n z i e l w i t h t h e f i r s t ove r a l l p i c k o n Ma y 8 t h ? L i k e l y b e c a u s e o f t h e n u m b e r o f p o t e n t i a ll o a d e d p l a ye r s i n t h e 2 0 1 4 d r a f t c l a s s , b u t i n Ho u s t o n ’ s c a s e , t h e a m o u n t o f g o o d t h a t Ma n z i e l w o u l d b r i n g b o t h o n a n d o f f t h e f i e l d t i c k e t s a l e s , t e a m n o t or i e t y, n o n - Ho u s t o n f a n i n t e re s t s e e

nationals later in my career, I [will not be] nervous or out of my element I already know what to expect ” The Big Red will be competing next weekend back in Ithaca at the Cornell Outdoor Invitational The coaching staff will be focused on keeping the athletes in shape these next few weeks

“The physical side of the equation is complete and we’ll be working more on the technical and psychological facets of competition,” Taylor said

Sisserson, Jamerson Both Break Freshmen Records at Penn Relays

with his four th place finish after accumulating 6,557 points in competition

A select group of Cornell athletes spent this past weekend in Philadelphia at one of the premier track and field events in the world The Penn Relays is an internationally heralded gathering of athletes from high school, college and professional ranks The Red was represented well at the meet with success in various events and several record-breaking per formances

Notable per formances came from a variety of Cornell athletes Freshman Grant Sisserson took home a Penn Relays record and a freshman record for Cornell with a vault of 17'1" in the Eastern Pole Vault event The dominant SMR team comprised of 200-

m e t e r l e g s f r o m s o p h o m o r e L a r r y Gibson and senior Kinsley Ojukwu, a 4 0 0 - m e

Hor telano-Roig and an 800-meter leg from senior Will Weinlandt won its event with a school record-breaking t i m e o f 3 : 2 1 0 1 T h

Championship of America race beat a school record that has been standing untouched since 1969

Additionally, junior Stephen Mozia took third place in the Championship discus event and ninth in the Championship shot put Freshman Austin Jamerson competed in the decathlon and set a freshman record

L e a r n in g t o

L o v e Ma n z i e l

People love to hate Johnny Manziel It’s understandable, really The kid from Tyler, Texas who became the first freshman to win the Heisman Trophy while under center at Texas A&M is known for his confident personality that has shown both on and off the gridiron

Ben Shatzman

Guest Column

For Johnny Manziel the person as opposed to Manziel the quarterback the widespread accessibility of technology has proven to be his enemy IPhones, Twitter and so on have enabled the media to portray Johnny Football as a sort of reckless, careless, ungrateful person who is more concerned about partying with the hottest babes in College Station than he with his future as a football player

Of course, one must not discount his own stupid decisions that have garnered negative attention, like his arrest in June 2012 Critics point to Manziel’s off the field shenanigans as among his greatest weaknesses His life away from football has caused many to believe that Manziel is unworthy of a top selection in the upcoming NFL Draft, while some have gone even further to call Johnny Football the next Todd Marinovich

But my goodness, give the kid a break If

See SHATZMAN page 11

Despite his success, Jamerson realized that he has space for improvement

“I did my first decathlon of the season and it went fairly well It didn’t go quite as well as my coaches and I would have hoped, but it is a decent star ting point for the season, ” Jamerson said

The women ’ s team also recorded some impressive perf o r m a n c e s a t Pe n n R e l a y s S

Rachel Sorna had a strong finish in the 3000 meter race in which she took home a school record for the third meet in a row The 4x200 meter relay team composed of freshman Adrian Jones, junior Zena Kolliesuah, junior K

Udeme Akpaete broke a school record from 2002 with an impressive time of 1:36 76

Men’s head coach Nathan Taylor said he was proud of his team ’ s accomplishments, but acknowledged that the team has not hit its ceiling yet

“As the coach, I felt like our per formances were a mixed bag Some ver y good Top-5 when you go against 258 colleges is pretty good but not per fect It’s great to win events in front of 50,000 spectators and be on national TV,” Taylor said Taylor said it was satisfying to see Cornell represent-

ed on a big stage, which helps the development of younger collegiate athletes

“Going against the best is a proving ground for kids to compete all out and overcome their fears Competing at the highest levels exposes all of your weaknesses

Women Fall to No. 1 Brown in Dunn Bowl

By ELANI COHEN Sun Staff Writer

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