4
April
2008
“Still in your hour of need, / Let it be understood no man can supersede, / Our sacred bond of sisterhood. / Omigod! Omigod you guys!” -Legally Blonde The Musical
When looking at colleges, I was usually put off by schools sporting large Greek systems. With Animal House in mind, I figured anything this group had to offer would be a little over the top for my Midwestern, nerdy (and admit it – if you’re coming to Cornell, you’ve probably felt nerdy at least once) self.
When I came to Cornell, I never even realized how many students were involved in the Greek system. I met a whole range of Cornellians – engineers, athletes and international students – all involved in different houses. At Cornell, our Greek system is made up of three facets – the Multicultural Greek Letter Societies, the Panhellenic Association (sororities) and the Interfraternity Council (fraternities) and there really is a house for anyone who wants to be involved. We do a second semester recruitment at Cornell, which I think is beneficial because students have time to adjust to Cornell and decide if the Greek system is for them.
My brother Daniel and I at his Egyptian themed pledge party
I felt the Greek system was a good way to be involved on campus, so I decided to go through recruitment. Despite freezing temperatures and tons of snow, I actually found the process to be pretty fun. I liked meeting all of the different sisters and visiting each of the different houses.
The pledging process can be time demanding depending on the organization, but many students also enjoy it. Cornell has a very strict anti-hazing policy not only for Greek organizations, but all groups on campus.
Most Greeks choose to live in their house sophomore year, and sometimes upperclassmen do as well. All of the houses are scattered around campus, and many are quite large, historic and impressive. Most have their own chef who cooks dinner every night.
So what goes on in the Greek system? Last weekend, for example, I dressed up as Tinker Bell for the Tridelta (my house) invite party, one of our many social events this semester. The next evening the Deltas and I walked throughout the night to raise money for the American Cancer Society at Relay for Life. We also have intramural sports teams, dinners with professors and participate in a variety of Greek community activities – in fact, we won Greek Week last year!
Tink!
When I say on tours that Cornell has “one of the largest Greek systems in the country” because of our size or that “about 30% of students are Greek,” it may seem like it takes over the campus. The Greek system is a large, active and positive presence on our campus, and it is important to note our organizations are very inclusive, not exclusive. Some of my best friends are Greek, some are not, and almost every student on campus would say the same. Those who are not Greek often take part in Greek activities, and vis versa.
The reality is that the Cornell Greek system is a great way to find a community at Cornell with common interests. But guess what, there are endless other ways to also find a community to live in or be part of on our campus, such as the hundreds of student clubs, co-ops and program houses.
Posted under Cornellia
1
April
2008
“The indispensable first step to getting the things you want out of life is this – decide what you want.” -Ben Stein
Congrats! Welcome to the wonderful world of Cornell. I know when I received my acceptance I felt excited, nervous, happy and unsure. Was Cornell the right choice for me? How would I make my decision?
Here is my advice.
Think! Explore! Discuss! Surf (the web – or ocean if that is a possibility). Smile – don’t take yourself too seriously, you ivy leaguer you! And come to Cornell Days if you can (what ultimately made me decide Cornell was right for me). Oh and check out this blog! I’ll be posting many entries in the coming days about all of the Cornell info that can seem befuddling as an incoming student. But be sure to let me know if you have any specific topics you’d like me to address!
And most of all . . . Welcome to Cornell!
Posted under A Day in the Life of, Cornellia
31
March
2008
“Imagination has a great deal to do with winning.” -Mike Krzyzewski
No, I’m serious. Check out Inside Higher Ed’s Academic Performance Tournament for all of the details. Look who’s crying now Stanford!
Posted under Cornellia
28
March
2008
“I believe that every person is born with talent.” -Maya Angelou
It’s in!! Our speaker at graduation this year will be Maya Angelou – and I could not be more thrilled! She is amazing, inspirational and also adorable!
Posted under Senior Shenanigans
26
March
2008
“We must never forget that art is not a form of propaganda; it is a form of truth.” -John F. Kennedy
After spending my summer in Northern Ireland, I was inspired to take this class in order to learn more about the politics at play across the Pond. As specified in the title, Professor Van Morgan provides an overview of both social and governmental forces present throughout Europe.
One of my favorite aspects of the class is that scholars visiting campus and events related to European topics are well integrated into our coursework. So far, my favorite one was viewing the movie The Rape of Europa. Not only was the film engaging, but also conveniently located at our own Cornell Cinema right on campus.
The Rape of Europa documents the Nazi’s pillage of one-fifth of the artworks of Europe. The movie also explores the experiences of the Monument Men, a group of American soldiers dedicated to protecting and restoring the historic art treasures of Europe. The Monument Men were not only incredibly adorable, but their stories were also incredibly amazing.
Also discussed in the film were the fates of pieces of art caught in controversy regarding their rightful owners after the war. One of these disputes included the golden Gustav Klimt portrait pictured here (click on it for more info). But seriously, you all should check out the website for the movie to see if it is playing near you (I’m requiring my parents to attend the Cleveland showing this weekend!) As far as documentaries go, it ranks near the top of my list!
Posted under A Day in the Life of, Cornellia
25
March
2008
“Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars . . .”-Unknown, on a card from Robyn
Here is why everyone wants to be a Cornell student right now!
- We (practically) set the Arts Quad on fire annually! Have you heard of Dragon Day? It’s one of our favorite traditions at Cornell. Here are some of Sarah’s pictures from the day to intrigue you into learning more . . .
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Our sports teams rock! Yeah
Hockey! Yeah
Men and Women’s Basketball (the first time one Ivy League school has had both teams qualify for the tournament in the same year, by the way!) We’ve got some Big Red Spirit going on. Even though we didn’t necessarily dominate the post season, tons of credit goes out to the hard working student athletes.
-
We have celebrities! Like fellow blogger
Jen, I also spotted
John Cleese recently walking down East Avenue.
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We engage in international adventures! I’m not the only one who had a happy passport this spring break. Many of my friends spent their time on a
tour of China with the
Chorus and Glee Club.
-
We support women! Congrats to the cast of the
Vagina Monologues! This was my first year in the production, but the 10th year it has been performed at Cornell. We sold around 1000 (yes I know!) tickets, and the proceeds will benefit the
Advocacy Center in Ithaca. Thanks to everyone who came to our show and helped us work towards stopping violence against women everywhere. And a special shout out to fellow Life on the Hill blogger
Jenna for directing!!
Me rocking out after the performance with flowers from my wonderful friends!
Posted under A Day in the Life of, Cornellia, Senior Shenanigans
17
March
2008
“A vacation should be just long enough that your boss misses you, and not long enough for him to discover how well he can get along without you.” -Anonymous
Long time no chat. It’s been pretty crazy at Cornell (updates to follow shortly) but spring break is finally here. I’m writing this from a posh little internet cafe in Montreal, Canada. While most spring breakers try to soak up the sun (especially after – err, more like during – an Ithaca winter) my roommates and I decided to head North for culture, food, shopping and French. Oh yeah, and snow drifts that make accumulation in Ithaca look lame. So far, we haven’t been disappointed.
Posted under Senior Shenanigans
25
February
2008
“Oh Mister Sun, Sun / Mister Golden Sun, / Please shine down on me” -Childhood Song
Heading home down the Slope this afternoon, I couldn’t help but close my eyes and bask in the 30 something degree gloriousness that is currently Cornell. During an otherwise somewhat sleepy Monday, a dude wearing shorts, Frisbee players on the Arts Quad and a little bit of Jack Johnson on the iPod provided hope that warmer days are on their way.
Granted, that will probably be in two months. Nevertheless, I cracked open a Crystal Light lemonade and dubbed today my midwinter summer afternoon. Bottoms up.
Posted under Cornellia
24
February
2008
“Truly great friends are hard to find, difficult to leave and impossible to forget.” -G. Randolf
I clocked about thirty hours last week at work and should have done just as many in the library with prelim season rolling into Ithaca. How do Cornell students ward off stress and seasonal affective disorder here? Well, we find a little help from our friends. In my case, I often rely on my roommates, Robyn, Sarah and Alex.
Living with a hotelie is always to your advantage. Case in point.
Yep, I pretty much have the most fabulous, beautiful, intelligent and down right awesome roommates ever (see above if you have any doubts). We all lived on the same hall freshman year, so props to the blind rooming process at CU. Sarah, Alex and Robyn are always willing to listen to a story, share a laugh or keep me in line. They even let me, the nerdy American Studies major, throw a Super Tuesday party a few weeks ago. This soirée featured yours truly dressed as “Super Tuesday Woman.” Now that’s roomie love.
Posted under A Day in the Life of, Cornellia, Senior Shenanigans
24
February
2008
“A woman with a voice is by definition a strong woman. But the search to find that voice can be remarkably difficult.” -Melinda Gates
My friends and I have been checking out a great new class at the gym called Muscle Pump. According to my nutrition professor, weight baring exercise is especially important for women to keep strong bones. While everyone else is trying to work off the excess calories on the elliptical for Spring Break ‘08, we’ve been buffing up (ok, we’re no Arnolds . . . yet) and stocking up our calcium for the future.
We know Cornell women have to be strong to put up with all of the academic challenges, extracurriculars, stress and hills all of us find on this campus. In fact, Jamie Reed ‘01 has gotten so strong that she’ll be featured on American Gladiator. You go girl!
Posted under Senior Shenanigans
