Cornellians Connecting with
Coe
Making new friends: Cornell and Coe College
students pose together after a fun day
Pinicon Ridge Park.
Alumni Profile
What Ever Happened to . . .
Chao-Ling Wu?
Tatiana Batson and Melanie Duplessis
demonstrate their canoeing skills during
the student retreat on Sunday, September 16
at Pinicon Ridge Park.
Graduated:
2000
Major:
Biochemistry
Hometown:
Houston, TX
Current
address: Erie,
PA
Career update: Student
Fond memories of Cornell: “My best
memories at Cornell are the friendships
I made.
I’ll never forget the
friendly atmosphere on campus. But
more important, I will always remember
all the faculty and staff who helped me
get this far in life. There are really
no words to express my gratitude, but I
must say, ‘Thank you for all your
support’.”
Celebrate
Homecoming!
Current students and
returning alumni are
cordially invited to a
social at the BACO House on
Friday, October 12 from 5:00 – 7:00
p.m.
Members of the PALS Program are
especially encouraged to bring their
first year student partners so they can
meet our illustrious alumni! Light
refreshments will be provided for our
guests and EVERYONE is welcome!
On Saturday the campus community
can show their support for the Rams
football team in their matchup with
Dubuque at 1:00 p.m. A complete
listing of all Homecoming events can be
found on line at:
http://cornellcollege.edu/alumni/h
omecoming/
Student Spotlight
Name: Kanwardeep
Sethi
Hometown: Kobe, Japan
Major: English
Year: Senior
Hobbies/interests:
Writing short stories
and poetry; reading
novels, comics,
philosophical
articles; martial
arts, tennis, taking
walks, and British
comedy.
What he likes about
Cornell:
“Strangely enough, the quiet.
It’s like a
glass of cold water to me.
The grass and
the parks are just wonderful places to lay
about and let my mind wander. There’s also
just the sheer amount of new people I have
access to here, though I suppose that
applies to any college. I like to observe
people, and getting a good look at the
Western psyche as opposed to the Eastern
psyche is quite interesting.”
Future plans:
“I’d like to be an editor,
but being an English teacher is something
I’m looking at right now as well. I would
love to be a psychologist – it would work
great for me since I’ve got a good handle
on the human psyche just by observing and
experimenting with people’s reaction to
things.
Too bad it’s not too likely,
though.”
“Difference Matters”
Embracing Difference as a Positive Force
November 16 and 17, 2007
The Office of
Intercultural Life
will be hosting a
diversity conference
which will focus on
the pervasive issue of
social identities
(race, gender, class,
sexuality, age,
ability and
nationality) and how it affects our
society. The Office is accepting proposals
from anyone whose topic is consistent with
the general theme of the conference which
promises to stimulate, challenge, entertain
and educate. Our aim is to discover the
many ways in which we are alike and to
recognize and value the ways we are
different. Questions and proposals may be
submitted to Ken Morris, director of
Intercultural Life.
Advice from
Abroad
By Stephanie Lampkin
Are you interested in exploring
different cultures? Do you love
to travel? Then check out the study abroad
opportunities that Cornell has to offer!
There are many programs available whether
you want to travel to a different state or
a different country.
Off campus courses
taught by Cornell faculty usually involve
additional
costs
and
require
advance
planning.
Consult the course listings
below and the instructor for a complete
description of the class, prerequisites,
deadlines and costs.
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ANT 6-222 Applied Anthropology
(Bahamas) Monagan
ART 67-103/67-202 Drawing I/Ceramics
I (Mexico) Hanson
BIO 1-321 Ecology (Wilderness Field
Station, MN) Black
BIO/BMB 6-485 Biological Problems
(Bahamas) Black/Tepper
ECB 1-254 Enterprise and
Entrepreneurship in U.S. Economic
History (Chicago) Hejeebu
ECB 2-258 Economics of Sports
(Memphis, TN) Savitsky
ENG 5-240 Theatre, Architecture and
the Arts in England (England)
Mouton/Hankins
ENG 1-350 American Nature Writers
(Wilderness Field Station, MN) G.
Freeman
GEO 9-223 Geology of National Parks
(Hawaii) Walsh
GEO 6-255 Modern and Ancient
Carbonate Systems of the Bahamas
(Bahamas) Greenstein
GEO 6-329 Geology of a Region (New
Zealand) Denniston
HIS 8-369 The Transformation of
America’s Second City 1880-1940
(Newberry Library, Chicago) Stewart
MUS 9-353 Wagner and Wagnerism
(Chicago) Martin
REL 1-276 The American Dream (St.
Louis, MO) Vernoff
REL 9-370 Advanced Topic: Religions
of Tibet (Tibet) Sacks
SPA 6-302 Advanced Conversation
(Bolivia) Lacy-Salazar
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SPA 7-365 Advanced Topic: Bolivian
Culture and Civilization (Bolivia)
Lacy-Salazar
Students
interested
in
both
Cornellsponsored
and
other
off
campus
study
programs
should
contact
Gayle
Luck,
director of the Office of International and
Off Campus Study for more information
including opportunities for volunteering
and working abroad.
What’s Up??
October 10: Fran Wilshusen Lecture 3:30
p.m. Hedges
October 12: Council on Multiculturalism
11:45 a.m. Stockholm
October 12: ICL and Alumni Social 5:00
p.m. BACO House
October 13: Homecoming PALS Event:
Football Game 1:00 p.m.
October 18: “You Mean There’s Race in My
Movie?” 6:30 p.m. Hedges
October 22 and 23: Stoner House Study
Table 8:00 p.m.
October 28: EOTW Halloween Party (Kroul
Farm)
November 1: Day of the Dead Display on the
OC
November 2: Student Leaders meeting 11:30
a.m. Magee DR
November 2: EOTW Culture Show 6:00 p.m. OC
November 5: Clothesline Project on the OC
Halloween facts we bet you didn’t
know!
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In China the holiday is known as the
Feast of the Hungry Ghosts
In Mexico, families picnic on the
graves of their relatives
Irish children carve turnips for
their jack ‘o lanterns
In Great Britain, Halloween was once
known as Mischief Night
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In Czechoslovakia chairs are placed
around the fireside for each family
member and their spirit
Germans put their knives away so the
spirits won’t be harmed
Doors and windows are left open in
Poland to welcome spirits
Scottish custom once included
throwing cabbages, turnips – and even
bottles – at doors
Halloween is believed to have
originated with the Celts in Ireland
as far back as the fifth century B.C.
There is no talking at the dinner
table during the African Dumb Supper
– it encourages spirits to come to
the table
If a girl puts a sprig of rosemary
and a sixpence under her pillow, she
will dream of her future
husband
In Britain, nuts were used as
magic charms against the
Devil
Certain bones of the black
cat were believed to grant wishes or
make a person invisible
Hearing an owl hoot meant someone was
going to die; the remedy was to turn
your pockets inside out
Cultural Connection is a monthly newsletter focusing
on students, programs and services supported by the
Office of Intercultural Life.
Questions, comments or guest columns may be submitted
to Box 2604.
You may also contact the office if you wish to be
added or dropped from the mailing list.
Cultural
Connec
tion
October 2007
Homecoming: A History
At this time of year, virtually every
high
school
and
college
in
America
celebrates Homecoming. Fall means football
and a football game was the impetus that
inspired the nation’s first homecoming in
1911 at the University of Missouri.
The
Mizzou
Homecoming
website
(confirmed by other sources) claims the
distinction of “inventing” this cherished
tradition in 1911 to encourage their alumni
to return to campus and support the Tigers
as they battled their archrivals, the
University of Kansas Jayhawks. Trailing in
the series (which commenced in 1891), head
coach and athletic director Chester L.
Brewer searched for an idea to promote
interest and fill the stands. By involving
the entire campus community, his idea
quickly caught the imagination of current
and former students.
Thus began the
tradition of a pre-game parade and pep
rally; the football game that followed
attracted an astonishing 9,000 fans.
By
including its alumni in this annual event,
the University of Missouri influenced the
autumn activities of our nation for years
to come. Interestingly, Mizzou also boasts
of having the “oldest football rivalry west
of the Mississippi” – a distinction usually
applied to a different set of opponents.
Cornell
College:
A
Sesquicentennial History (Heywood
and Thomas, 2004) declares that
Cornell
played
its
first
intercollegiate football game in
1882; however, the first recorded
game was against Tipton in 1888.
In 1891
Cornell and Coe College played for the
first time; Cornell won decisively with a
score of 80 – 0.
Mizzou asserts that their series with
the Tigers is the oldest rivalry, also
dating from 1891.
An e-mail inquiry to
clarify this point had not been answered at
press time.
Cornellians
enjoy
many
traditions
shared by other colleges and universities
along with a few original ideas of their
own.
Although a homecoming parade has not
been held since 2003, a dedicated committee
plans and sponsors a pep rally, fireworks,
a pie eating contest, a Homecoming King and
Queen contest, a bonfire, a purple-andwhite
“spirit”
day,
a
residence
hall
decorating contest and a dance.
This year
students are invited to “paint the town” in
cooperation
with
local
merchants
whose
large display windows will be used to
promote
Homecoming
throughout
the
community.