Cornell Report Summer 2023

Cornell Report

WWII vet finally walks at graduation

Fred Taylor ’43 left campus in February of his senior year to enlist in the Army Air Corps Reserve for World War II. Although he completed his degree, he missed his graduation ceremony.

Eighty years and eight Cornell College presidents later, Taylor led the Class of 2023 in turning their tassels at Commencement, receiving his diploma at age 101, on May 14, 2023.

“I was amazed the Class of ’23 took right to it, and applauded,” Taylor said by phone the day he returned home to California. “It really

makes up for what I missed. It feels like I’ve completed my experience at Cornell College.”

Taylor arrived early and was met by Director of Alumni Engagement Zoe Russell, who took him on a Cornell purple golf cart for a pre-Commencement campus tour and a meeting with President Jonathan Brand. He called it the “royal purple treatment.”

Being on campus brought a flood of memories, he said, “especially at Bowman Hall where Peggy and I met, of course. And

Armstrong, where I had classes and acted in the little theatre.”

After Taylor left campus in 1943 he flew fighter planes, despite his mother’s wishes that he join the military band. The Springville, Iowa, native was married to Peggy Elaine Newberg ’46 for 75½ years before her death in 2020 and taught band in Bayard, Iowa, and the La Mesa-Spring Valley School District near San Diego.

Their daughter, Linda Taylor, wrote President Brand to ask if her father

could attend Commencement. She told him she wanted her father to finally have the special experience of graduation day, “with all the joy that it entails.”

Fred Taylor, who never expected to experience his college graduation, was mentioned frequently during the ceremony and was a focus of the President’s charge to the graduates.

The smile on his face was infectious as he finally experienced his Commencement ceremony, which was 80 years in the making.

MEGAN AMR

Fred Taylor ’43, age 101, walked the stage at Cornell’s Commencement

and led the Class of 2023 in turning their tassels. At left he is joined by family friend Susan McWilliams.

Abe Tubbs ’94 The

Darrell Wheeler ’81 Trust

inner compass

Katie Brown ’06 Promoting women in STEM

Cornell

You Said

A GLIMPSE OF PRE-TITLE IX WOMEN’S SPORTS

I read your story about Title IX with interest. Before graduating from Cornell in 1975, I had limited opportunities to compete in intercollegiate sports. I participated in competitive swimming and tennis for years before my arrival at Cornell. Shortly upon arrival on campus, I was disappointed to learn that a woman’s swimming opportunities were limited to a synchronized swimming club.

A few of my female classmates and I formed a club tennis team. We found a faculty sponsor who was willing to drive us to a few regional colleges for matches. We had no uniforms or warm ups. I gathered up a few of my mom’s old white nursing uniforms and altered them for a few of us to wear to our tennis matches. Title IX changed opportunities for scores of Cornell women to follow, thank goodness.

Jackie Wright

Weissenburger ’75 Weyerhaeuser, Wisconsin

STUDENTS ON CALL

I was moved by Elinor Ascher-Handlin’s experience volunteering for the Lisbon-Mount Vernon Ambulance and Fire Department. Her empathy will serve her well in whatever her future holds.

Liz Remich Gelasi ’82 Woodstock, Illinois

Said on campus

View the talk at crnl.co/mccunetalk

FACULTY POKER ADDS JOY TO CORNELL LIFE

Thanks so much for running the story of the long-running, low-stakes poker group. It survives, thanks to professors Truman Jordan and Craig Allin and the dedicated players. Decades ago it cemented friendships and still does, added joy to life at Cornell, and never made anyone poorer, just richer.

So much of Cornell remains superb. So great is its model curriculum, dedicated teachers, and learning environment that I missed them immediately upon taking another politics chairmanship at an Eastern college. It proved not to measure up. And it didn’t have a Cornell Report that measured up to the one you lead. You keep the Cornell community connected. Bravo!

Nicholas Berry (politics, 1970–1982) Annapolis, Maryland

We are delighted to publish letters and social media mentions. Tag @cornellcollege to be considered on social media. Send letters to cornellreport@cornellcollege.edu or Cornell Report, Box 1648, 600 First St. SW, Mount Vernon, IA 52314-1098. Submissions are edited for style, length, and clarity.

“What would it mean to disobey the status quo, moving as if there were more people in your world who occupy marginalized positions? I dare you to move more disobediently, to mark yourself different, to begin again.”

Jeffrey McCune ’99, Beta Omicron Distinguished Alumni Visitor

Around the Block

Emma Titus ’23 stands beside her senior art exhibit at the Peter Paul Luce Gallery in McWethy Hall. Her show, “Alterations & Repairs,” featured photos shot on the streets of New York.

Retiring faculty reflect on Cornell

Professors of Biology

Barbara Christie-Pope and Craig Tepper are saying goodbye to the labs in the Russell Science Center, and Professor of English and Creative

What were your first impressions of Cornell?

MOUTON: The campus was stunningly beautiful when I arrived in a snowy January for my on-campus interview! However, it was the people who made the strongest impression. Faculty and students were brilliant, and welcoming. It was clear from the start that Cornell’s culture focused on academic excellence and honoring diversity, and that the faculty respected and cared deeply about their students.

projects and performances, or even the weather—that happen on the Ped Mall, Zamora’s, or the lobby of South Hall. I’ve been incredibly fortunate to have such wonderful colleagues and students.

CHRISTIE-POPE: I don’t know if this is a tradition or a quirk, but I will miss just walking on the Ped Mall and greeting students.

Writing

Michelle Mouton taught her last block. All three faculty retired at the end of the academic year after teaching for a combined 85 years. Before leaving the Hilltop, they took the time to answer some of our questions.

CHRISTIE-POPE: I came for a campus interview in the spring just when all of the trees were blooming. The grounds were lovely. I was nervous but the biology faculty made me feel comfortable. I knew that I would enjoy working at Cornell.

What Cornell traditions or quirks will you miss?

MOUTON: I’ll especially miss the daily, casual conversations—about news of the day, good books, student

TEPPER: At the top of my list is an on-going off-campus capstone research course that Bob Black and I initiated in 1999 when we traveled to the Gerace Research Centre located in San Salvador, the Bahamas, with 20 Cornell students. This research course has attracted hundreds of Cornell students over the past 24 years. The course has expanded to include a field station located on South Water Caye, Belize. Barbara Christie-Pope has been the co-instructor for the course since 2012. Over the years, student research has focused on the rich coral reef marine life.

From the left: Barbara Christie-Pope, Craig Tepper, and Michelle Mouton. MEGAN AMR

How did your teaching style change over the years?

CHRISTIE-POPE: I used to tell few stories, was very intent on stating only the facts and concepts. I now teach more with cases that emphasize the importance of those facts and concepts.

TEPPER: There was no electronic technology in the classroom. We used overhead projectors to illustrate important images in subcellular biology. Some textbooks supplied overhead transparencies that were in color. I don’t recall the year, but I do recall the first class I converted to PowerPoint was my Developmental Biology course. PowerPoint changed the way we taught in the sciences, allowing us to show microscopic images of the cell.

The most dramatic shift was the transformation from talking about science to performing science. The department moved from “canned” labs to a more effective learning experience with open-ended lab research. The focal point of science instruction and learning shifted from the classroom to the lab.

Student life and learning changed dramatically when the department moved into the brand-new Russell Science Center with advanced classrooms and lab facilities, abundant research space, and new science equipment.

How have students changed over the years?

MOUTON: Have they? Cornell students, when I began and now, strike me as curious, engaged, and caring.

TEPPER: Each year, incoming students are more diverse. Each class includes a mix of people of varying gender affiliation, ethnicity, socio-economic status, and learning differences.

CHRISTIE-POPE: I am not sure students have changed much, at least not here at Cornell. The students are the reason

I have stayed here for over 30 years. They are still engaging and challenge me. The students are what I will miss most with retiring.

Any advice for new faculty?

CHRISTIE-POPE: Get to know your colleagues outside your discipline.

MOUTON: This was a great piece of advice I got from a retiring faculty member, and it’s even more important today: instead of making a call or sending an email, walk across campus whenever possible to talk in person.

TEPPER: Try to take time to get to know your students and their stories. Laugh with students, especially at your own mistakes. This breaks the barrier between students and faculty and enhances learning when students realize you are not that different from them. Know when to slow down to give students a breather. Pay attention to student evaluations, but do not obsess over them. Being innovative in the classroom is essential to student success. Mix it up and try new things, but have fun with your students. Most importantly, your colleagues are your absolute best resources.

What are your plans for retirement?

CHRISTIE-POPE: Ride my bike more; read books not related to science; devote more time to my hobbies: knitting, weaving, glass fusing, and gardening.

TEPPER: I plan to spend more time with grandchildren, traveling with my wife, bicycling, and fishing. I am also interested in learning more about photography through an adult education course, and volunteering. However, I might enjoy the freedom of retirement before I decide how and where to volunteer.

SUBMITTED BY BELOU QUIMBY ’19, NOW CORNELL’S CHEMICAL STOCKROOM MANAGER.

Do you have a memorable quote from a Cornell faculty member? Email it to cornellreport@cornellcollege. edu with the subject Faculty

Things my professor said

What Professor of Biology Craig Tepper says when a student asks about something that has yet to be fully understood: “When you graduate from here, continue to research it, become well versed in your interest, win a Nobel Prize, and buy me a sailboat!”

MORE THAN 100 STUDENTS collaborated to bring the excitement of “Evita: In Concert” to the Kimmel Theatre stage last spring. Seventeen student singers and dancers were joined by the musical talents of Cornell’s Symphonic Band, Chamber Orchestra, Concert Choir, and Chamber Singers. The show also featured multiple actors in each role—in the same performance. From left in the front are Sam Dolinsek ’24 (as Che 1), Sophia Mitchell ’24 (as Evita) and Tre Austin ’25 (as Che 2).

One COURSE

PATRICIA ROZEMA: FANTASTICAL FEMINIST FILMMAKER

Norma and Richard Small Distinguished Professor of English

Leslie Kathleen Hankins

SYNOPSIS

First-year writing seminar immersing students in the work of one independent filmmaker, culminating in a live interview with her.

WHAT STUDENTS LEARN

Hankins has taught courses on film in many ways, but this is the first time she structured a course around one female director. She chose independent Canadian filmmaker Patricia Rozema, whose woman-centered films such as “I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing” break the Hollywood norm.

Learning to write well is the ultimate goal of this course, part of Cornell’s first-year English writing requirement. But what sets this writing course apart is the focus on research to strengthen the students’ writing and interviewing.

“The first day of the class I told them we were going to interview Rozema on the last day of class. It upped the ante—not by me being demanding but by their desire to look good in front of the director,” Hankins said. “I wanted them to learn that research is not just something you do in school, it’s a key to knowledge that you want to have. By doing research you are deepening what you know about a topic so you can dialogue about that topic in a seasoned way.”

HOW THEY LEARN

The class saw all her films, read and watched her interviews, read and wrote movie reviews, and planned a hypothetical Rozema film festival. For the final project they each asked one probing question during the Zoom meeting, and then wrote a paper analyzing the interview and what they learned.

“The interview was the

highlight of this semester, and it was stunning and surreal to truly be in the presence of Patricia Rozema,” said Thea Keuning ’26. “She was vivid and brilliant, and I died with excitement every time she addressed me by name.”

Hankins said it was exciting to structure the course around real-world research skills.

“I could sense the students’ enthusiasm and witness how much more they were invested in their writing when they felt the stakes were meaningful to them. It was not just generic writing for an assignment but for a real world moment with someone they admired,” she said.

Professor Hankins

Movie poster for the film “I’ve Heard The Mermaids Singing.” Image used courtesy Patricia Rozema.

The first day of the class I told them we were going to interview Rozema on the last day of class. It upped the ante.

Alumni center displays WWII medals

Harlan L. Nelson ’42 was killed in action during World War II in 1944. Nearly 80 years later his three service medals—the Distinguished Flying Cross, Purple Heart, and Air Medal—are now on display at the Scott Alumni Center.

During his senior year at Cornell, Nelson participated in the Civil Aeronautics Authority course, which is thought to be the precursor to the Naval Flight Academy that was held on campus. Nelson held the position of treasurer of Alpha Tau Alpha his junior year and

president during his senior year. He was on the golf team and participated in intramural sports along with his ATA fraternity mates.

Nelson’s widow, Katherine Kopello-Nelson Mathias ’45, gifted the medals to the college upon her death.

Harlan and Katherine were married in 1943. She later remarried and lived abroad for the remainder of her life. One of Katherine’s sons, Robert Mathias ’72 , attended Cornell.

Over a quarter century of Student Symposiums

On April 29, 2023, Cornell College and the Center for Teaching and Learning sponsored the 26th annual all-college Student Symposium, providing a forum for students to present their scholarly and creative work to the college community. Students gave 15-minute oral presentations, followed by five-minute Q&As. Posters were displayed on the Orange Carpet, drawing a large number of onlookers from the Cornell community.

SOME OF THE ABSTRACTS AND PRESENTATIONS:

Tracking Great White Sharks in Gansbaai, South Africa

The Effect of Generation Z’s Political Participation on American Polarization

A Kinematic Analysis of Mound

Versus Flat Ground Baseball Pitching Biomechanics

Working for Wellness: Motivation Styles and Well-Being Outcomes in the Workplace

The Game of Romcoms and Reimaginings: Reviving an 18th Century French Play

MEGAN AMR

Ask the Expert

By Assistant Professor of Biochemistry Catherine Volle

WARNING: you are about to enter the post-antibiotic age of medicine

The first commercially available antibiotics revolutionized human health. A severe bacterial infection, which used to be a death sentence, was now curable by taking a few pills. But from where did the compound responsible for killing or disabling the bacteria come? When I first ask my microbiology students this question, many know about Alexander Fleming and his accidental discovery of penicillin.

The original bacteria fighter: microbes

However, the real answer is other microbes, primarily yeasts, molds, and bacteria. Almost all of the commercially available antibiotics were first made by microbes as part of an evolutionary arms race. Microbes have to compete for limited resources. Imagine a microbe that develops a chemical compound that kills its competitors in the nearby vicinity. That’s a highly desirable microbial weapon for the microbe that wields it. However, co-opting these

weapons may be our undoing and cause us to run headfirst into the post-antibiotic age of medicine, where bacteria are unaffected by all commercially available antibiotics.

When what saves us can hurt us

The most pressing problem with using microbe-derived compounds as antibiotics is that the bacteria making the compound (our original microbe warrior killing its nearby neighbors) is, of course, already resistant to its own chemical weapon—which means that antibiotic resistance exists in nature and can spread to other bacteria living in the same ecosystem. New mechanisms of resistance can also appear randomly. Bacterial genomes change frequently, and the right change in the right place can render the antibiotic ineffective, making that bacterium (and all the future bacteria it spawns) resistant.

Because they are more likely to survive when antibiotics are present, bacteria can build an arsenal of resistance mechanisms, which poses a threat to public health if the resistant bacterium causes

disease. There are now disease-causing bacteria that are resistant to every commercially available antibiotic.

Antibiotic resistance is not a new problem. The first penicillin-resistant bacterium was discovered before penicillin was commercially available. What makes antibiotic-resistant bacteria a crisis now is the lack of novel (or new) antibiotic treatments.

Can we save ourselves from antibioticresistant bacteria?

Research in my laboratory has turned to the ultimate antibiotic: the immune system. It’s the immune system that actively fights the infection. Antibiotics are a weapon to help win the fight. Small proteins called antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) that disable or kill bacteria are an important part of many immune systems. We investigate a specific class of AMPs that poke holes in bacteria, and we want to understand the interaction between these AMPs and the bacterial surface at the molecular level. This information might be used to design new antibiotic compounds, or it might be

added to current antibiotics to overcome certain types of resistance, reviving the ability of our current antibiotic arsenal.

In the meantime, we all share a responsibility to be good stewards of antibiotic use, looking to limit antibiotic usage wherever possible in health care, agriculture, and consumer products. These actions might not stop bacteria from becoming resistant, but good stewardship can slow it down, giving scientists and physicians time to prepare a new set of weapons in our fight against antibiotic resistance.

Professor Volle holds a Ph.D. in molecular and cellular biology and biochemistry from Brown University and served as a postdoctoral fellow at the National Cancer Institute. She joined the Cornell College faculty in 2019.

Hilltop hot sheet

One sensory hour at a time

A new Sensory Room in Cole Library is a quiet, beautiful space with soft seating and sensory items for neurodiverse students or students who just need time away. An Americorps member painted a mural in the room for students who appreciate visual stimulation. Students are able to reserve the room in one hour blocks.

Disc golf expansion on the Hilltop

Five holes have been added to the original nine-hole course, including a hole next to Allee Chapel that cuts right through the Tri-Hall lawn. This central hole is a favorite of Maxwell Lundt ’24, who upgraded the course, because “every time a disc makes it into the basket all three halls can hear it.” Instead of going across the front of campus, and then cutting to behind Tarr Hall, the course now wraps around the back of Russell Science Center and West Science Hall to connect to the holes at Ink Pond.

B.S.S. hits 50

Cornell’s Bachelor of Special Studies degree was first awarded in 1973, when 22% of the class embraced the opportunity to design a liberal arts degree program that met their individual educational goals. All birthday wishes can be sent to the Registrar, who will pass on your regards to the B.S.S.

Extra special piano

Cornell piano students are enjoying the college’s latest piano acquisition, a Bösendorfer Imperial Grand once played by Herbie Hancock, Ray Charles, and other artists at the Ravinia Music Festival. The piano—which has nine extra keys in the bass—was built in Vienna in 1978 and served the Ravinia Festival in Highland Park, Illinois, for 23 years. In 2001 it was purchased by Henry “Harry” Carson ’83, a forensic pathologist whose love of music permeated his life. He bequeathed the instrument to Cornell before his death in 2022.

Garners love Mount Vernon

President Emeritus Les Garner and Katrina Garner established two funds at the Greater Cedar Rapids Community Foundation—one to benefit Cornell, and one to benefit Mount Vernon nonprofits. The Garners moved to a house near campus a few years ago and can often be seen walking their dog Schatzie on the Hilltop. Les retired this year after 10 years as president of the foundation.

Quiet down

Inside Armstrong Hall you’ll find the Black Box and Ringer Recital Studio. There’s an acoustics sound study going on in there to make it more soundproof, thus keeping the peace and quiet for the surrounding squirrels outside Armstrong Hall during their nap time.

PFEIFFER HALL then & now

THEN: 11 students gathered in Pfeiffer Hall lounge sometime in the early years after it opened in 1930. The twin portraits of the Pfeiffers no longer rest on the mantel; now, they hang on the west wall of the lounge.

NOW: 11 students recreated the historical photo inside Pfeiffer Hall lounge with some 2023 energy. Standing from left: Marley Gillespie ’26 and Michael-Sean Ossai ’26. Seated from left: Kaylanna Seu ’25, Parker Townsend ’23, Olivia Cotton ’26, Lillian Leon ’25 (on the floor), Natalie Zenk ’25, Amelia Anderson ’25 (on the floor), Amina-arwa Abdullahi ’26 (on the arm of the chair), and Wybie Warmbold ’26. Reclining on the floor: Adrien Kaplan-Mazur ’25.

Alum

book club Zooms the globe

Unofficially they’re the Hilltoppers, a book club made up mostly of Cornell College alums from the 1960-70s. Maybe a more appropriate name would be Globe Trotters.

Meeting monthly, exclusively through Zoom, no less than three different time zones have had to be coordinated each session starting with the first meeting in February 2021. Organized by Mike Conklin ’69, with Tom Durham ’77 as Zoom Master, the reading has been eclectic, informative, and entertaining.

Each of the 16 members makes a selection, which have included mostly nonfiction titles such as “Red Notice,” “The Splendid and The Vile,” ”In Cold Blood,” and “Cattle Kingdom.” Andy Applebee ’71 has been recorder of the books. Membership also includes Joe Campanelli ’69, Tim DeLong ’69, Nels Lindquist ’71 , Tom Melloy ’71 , Steve Miller ’65 , Tom Ray ’71 , John Schilling ’69, and Preston Sitterly ’69

The Hilltoppers span the globe. Literally. The first 2023 meeting in January had five different time zones represented. For Jack Carbee ’68 , a regular who lives in France, this meant his usual 3 a.m. start. So what time was it halfway around the world in New Zealand, where participant Jeff Hicken ’69 was visiting? It was 3 p.m.

6 out of 7 sisters!

Colleges will often have legacy students—students with a sibling or two also in attendance, or alum parents or grandparents, but it isn’t very often that six out of seven siblings can say they attended the same college. The six Williams sisters who did attend Cornell College must have made their seventh sister, Corita, feel like the oddball of the family. One of the other sisters, Jean Williams Croy ’33, attended Cornell but later left for Iowa State.

That leaves five sister-graduates: Marian Williams Maloy ’33, Virgilia (Jill) Williams ’36, Priscilla Williams Sparks ’38, Naomi Williams Peralta ’46, and Aileen Williams Locher ’48

Cornell must have made a big impression on the sisters’ mother, Leila Lieberknecht , Class of 1910, who attended Cornell in 1906 but had to quit due to an illness. A few years later she married Harold Ralph Williams, and after the 1929 financial crisis, the family moved to Mount Vernon—specifically for the sisters. Mom and dad Williams wanted them to get a quality education from Cornell.

The Cornell education prepped the sisters for their various endeavors: Marian the librarian, Jean the business consultant and employment counselor, Jill the educator, Priscilla the traveling governmental secretary, Naomi the writer, and Aileen the creative who was a seamstress turned floral designer.

During a family reunion in 1979 at Cornell’s campus and held at the same time as the Cornell alumni weekend (similar to today’s Homecoming), Corita got a taste of what life was like as a Cornellian when Cornell’s Alumni Director Bob Majors ’57 named her an honorary Cornellian for the day.

The Cornell connections don’t end with the sisters in this family! Marian’s daughter, Sara Maloy Gabbard ’66, also attended Cornell, as did three of the sisters’ cousins: Paul Sweitzer ’33, Mark Sweitzer ’34, and Harriet Lieberknecht Warren ’35

Whew. That is a lot of Cornellians in one family tree. Know any other families that bleed royal purple such as this one? Email cornellreport@cornellcollege.edu

Virgilia Williams, above, and Marian Williams, left, in the Royal Purple yearbooks.

Fun facts: Chemical stockroom

2,775

NUMBER OF CHEMICALS LISTED IN THE INVENTORY

221

DIFFERENT KINDS OF GLASSWARE STORED ON THE SHELVES

24

DIFFERENT CLASSES THAT USE THE STOCKROOM IN ONE ACADEMIC YEAR

13

OTHER CAMPUS BUILDINGS VISIBLE FROM THE STOCKROOM WINDOWS

2.5

YEARS IT TOOK TO PLAN, PACK, DOWNSIZE, AND MOVE THE STOCKROOM FROM WEST SCIENCE HALL TO RUSSELL SCIENCE CENTER

301

CHEMICALS IN-HOUSE THAT START WITH THE LETTER C

8

NUMBER OF MEMES POSTED AROUND THE STOCKROOM

>250

NUMBER OF BOXES STOCKROOM MANAGER BELOU QUIMBY ’19 OPENS DURING THE YEAR

430+

HOTDOGS, BRATS, AND HAMBURGERS PREPARED IN THE FOOD SAFE SIDE OF THE STOCKROOM FOR THE SCIENCE PICNICS EACH YEAR

Liquid Death

THE COMMON NAME OF THE CHEMICAL USED TO CLEAN OUT THE ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY BURETTES

Work, study, play

By Lisa Gray Giurato

Snow fell before the 2021 season’s first track and field meet. Nathan Watters ’23 tried to stay warm under two sweatshirts and by the end of the meet, the weather swung upwards to 85 degrees and Watters sported a new sunburn. Iowa’s unpredictable weather and the challenges of running athletic events does not faze Watters, who is not just a student-athlete who calls his teammates his family, but also a work-study student in the Athletics Department.

Watters worked at the local rec center in his hometown of Maquoketa, Iowa, before coming to Cornell and sometimes still puts in a few hours when he is back home. At Cornell he started as a ball boy and handled laundry for the department. Before long he was an assistant to the athletic director, tackling the twin projects of paperwork organization and documenting the trophies.

Now he helps run athletic events under Athletics Communications Director Kerry Kahl and Assistant Men’s Basketball Coach Zach Schlabaugh, and there isn’t a team on campus that he hasn’t been involved with at some point.

“He’s played a huge role in getting all of our webcasts up and running at every venue,” Kahl says, “but really anything we need he’s there to lend a helping hand with event setup. He’s been so valuable with a lot of behind-thescenes elements in athletics. Very unselfish, true team player. Tireless worker. Great attitude. As loyal to the college as they come.”

The easy-going Watters is majoring in business administration with a minor in psychology and both seem like a good fit for this energetic senior. Early on at Cornell, he took a psychology course with Professor William

Dragon and the student who always knew he wanted to major in business clicked so well with Dragon that he decided to add on the minor.

“It felt fun and it was so interesting to see how the brain works,” he says. “And the parts that explain how you can get people to work well as a team and work better as a unit, well, if I’m trying to be a business guy who wants to manage people, why don’t I learn how people can work better with psychology?”

Watters is passionate about the concept of a team, in sports or in business.

Much of his time at his work-study job, Watters sets up and manages the livestreaming that enables fans to watch the games without being there in person. He makes sure the sound system and cameras are set up and working. On the day of, he ensures everyone who is working the sporting event is where they need to be and ready to get their jobs done.

“I show up 30 minutes early and make sure everything is set up for the game, and then I get to stay and watch my friends who are athletes play in the game. With the block plan, and class being done by 3 p.m., it’s easy to do athletics and work.”

Or it might be that Watters makes it look easy.

On a given day, he’s in class from 9–11 a.m. and 1–3 p.m., at practice by 3:30 p.m., heads up to the Hilltop Café for dinner at 5:30, and then returns to the Small Athletic and Wellness Center in time to prep for a basketball game. He stays for two hours or until the end of the game, hits the shower, and is studying for the next day’s class by 9 p.m.— the epitome of “work-study.”

“He’s been so valuable with a lot of behind-the-scenes elements in athletics. Very unselfish, true team player. Tireless worker. Great attitude. As loyal to the college as they come.”

KERRY KAHL

ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR

DARRELL WHEELER ’81

Trust your inner compass

By any definition of the word, Darrell Wheeler ’81 is a success. The path he traveled to achieve success, however, was circuitous and often uncertain. He changed his major three times at Cornell, he left med school after one year, and his first job after earning his doctorate in social work fell through.

Today Wheeler is a university president. He is also a past president of the National Association of Social Workers, and his life’s work led to an appointment on the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS.

“My career path has been full of things that I stepped out on and wasn’t fully sure about. They weren’t totally baked. And many people have looked at me and said, are you sure you want to do that? And my answer in all honesty is, I’m not sure, but I’m compelled to do it because it feels right and I’ll figure it out as I’m going,” Wheeler said. “I think that adaptability, that fortitude, that ability to integrate lessons, has allowed me to function in many different spheres.”

Wheeler’s first major redirection came during his junior year at Cornell. He was set to study in Germany when low enrollment canceled the program. So, he made an appointment with Professor of Sociology Charlotte Vaughan and applied to a program in Denmark, where he completed a comparative study of healthcare systems in Denmark and the U.S.

The Cornell sociology graduate then worked, went to med school for a year, joined the Air Force, and earned a master’s degree in social work from Howard University, followed by a master of public health degree in health administration and a doctorate in social work, both at the University of Pittsburgh.

At Pittsburgh he researched gay men’s health and became interested in health disparities, administration, and policy. His HIV-related dissertation led to funded research, followed later by the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS and to the HIV Prevention Trial Networks Scholars Program, which fosters career development among underrepresented scholars.

After a career in higher ed teaching and administration he became president of SUNY New Paltz in 2022. Throughout the years he has modeled the type of intimacy and connectivity he experienced at Cornell.

“That has actually given me a signature mode of engaging,” he said. “It’s that right balance of content and directiveness and compassion that I think going to a school like Cornell College gave me—the opportunity to explore, without the rigid parameters that I’ve seen in other institutions where it was do or die every step of the way.”

Wheeler said he and Donovan Howard, his partner of 28 years, have built a life he loves, and he is enjoying a new phase of life as a university president.

“I keep looking out the window in the distance at the Catskill Mountains and the campus here. And sometimes you just pinch yourself and go, how did I get here?” he said. “I try to keep a sense of humor and humility about the whole thing. That this isn’t about Darrell Wheeler … it is really about what difference does it make? And the icing on the cake is seeing so many young people that I’m able to engage—these next generation scientists. And it’s not over yet. I’m still enjoying the ride.”

— DEE ANN REXROAT ’82

“It’s that right balance of content and directiveness and compassion that I think going to a school like Cornell College gave me— the opportunity to explore, without the rigid parameters that I’ve seen in other institutions where it was do or die every step of the way.”

SUNY NEW PALTZ

Teach what you love

Six Cornell faculty offer expertise on their fields and why they are passionate about teaching them.

The mathematical mind

By Assistant Professor of Mathematics Melanie King

Professor King teaches applied mathematics to solve real-world problems.

Her research interests include applications of mathematics in image analysis and math education. Besides mathematics, her interests are broad and include a love for the arts: dance, music, and spoken word.

Knowing math is your passion

You know you’re a mathematician when … you enjoy problem-solving, with equations and variables, just for the sake of it. All those calculations that everyone else would prefer to do in the calculator, you like to do them by hand when you can. These are the early signs of a mathematician, since most math done in high school is focused on calculations.

Love of math itself

The first mathematicians didn’t have calculators and computers, so all computations were done by hand. Moreover, many of them were also philosophers, physicists, and astronomers. Mathematics, in context of a problem from another discipline, is applied mathematics. Another category is pure mathematics. This is mathematics where people study objects that are defined theoretically, outside the context of any particular application. Studying these objects is enjoyed for the love of math itself. Mathematicians, in essence, are logical, creative problem-solvers with the ability to think from the abstraction of definitions and theorems, rather than exclusively from physical realities.

Logical language

No one really knows what it is like to be a mathematician until you are in close proximity to research mathematicians and you’re able to get a glimpse into their world. I took the plunge into the deep end and went to graduate school, where I learned to ask questions that pry into the inner workings of the mathematical mind.

I would summarize the mathematicians’ skill set in three main points: we are able to calculate quickly; we figure out a logical path from beginning to end, correcting errors along the way; and we interpret mathematics as a logical language.

Mathematicians read symbols like others read sentences, since the symbols have a context in the language and can be interpreted by that context. Moreover, it is very important that mathematicians are able to conclude when a statement, equation, or proof is logical. Without this skill, we are not able to apply mathematics to problems with accuracy and certainty.

Ask questions to develop skills

Most often, mathematicians start with examples of mathematical objects and ask questions about them. We obtain an understanding of how fundamental objects work, such as differential equations, manifolds, geodesics, Lie algebras, and other representations. I mention these theoretical objects, but consider as a simple example, the equation: f(x)=ex

If someone were to ask, “What is this?,” a person familiar with this function may say an exponential function. A mathematician may respond: it is a function whose derivative is one at x = 0, a function whose derivative is itself, a function with asymptotic behavior, a function that solves a linear homogeneous differential equation, a function whose base satisfies a limit relating to continuous compounding.

We know how to accurately describe this function just as an NBA player knows the weight, bounce, and aerodynamics of a standard league basketball. It is this deep level of understanding that excites mathematicians and compels us to either conduct research, teach it, or apply it to the pressing problems of today’s world.

Presence and play

By Assistant Professor of Studio Art Alex McKenzie

Professor McKenzie enjoys researching and studying sound design and sound design installation, digital and internet culture, and memetics. He holds an M.F.A. in time-based art.

Time: the loop and pendulum

I arrived at Cornell upon the retirement of Professor Emeritus Tony Plaut ’78. Despite the variety in our creative interests, the prevalence of clocks in his final retrospective caught my attention, as I frequently integrate the clock as a motif in my own work. My graduate studies centered around time-based art, work intended to be experienced over time: performance, video, and sound. While I have worked across all the aforementioned disciplines, I often look at time itself as a subject and material. I am captivated by the tension between repetition and change. This often manifests in the form of loops or a pendulum’s swing—two structures that cycle through space only to return to their starting point.

Space: it’s better to be there

As an artist I am always thinking about things three-dimensionally (especially prints and drawings)—how does this exist as an installation?—how do these pieces respond to other artworks in the same room? As we continue to flood the internet with a steady stream of flat digital content, I increasingly find art has its power in physical presence and experience in space.

Artworks that have always evoked a visceral response in me are those that engage with architecture (Ann Hamilton’s “Event of a Thread,” Janet Cardiff’s “Audio Walks,” Yayoi Kusama’s “Infinity Mirror Rooms,” or Zimoun’s sound sculpture installations).

Sound: seeing and hearing

Culturally we divide music and art as unique creative endeavors. However, many composers and musicians push their work toward the visual and likewise visual artists manipulate sound as a material.

For me this comes back to space. Space is the obvious unifier between the auditory and the visual. Both are frequencies that bounce from surface to surface until they enter into and are translated by our eyes, ears, and minds.

Digital culture: Command+C

Though I do not consider myself a digital artist I do find immense inspiration and curiosity in digital culture and technologies. My recent collaboration with Dana Potter—“Retrack,” is indicative of this interest—curating imagery from online archives and social media feeds to produce digital collages and augmented reality (AR)-triggered sound compositions.

I want my students to understand “digital art” as a continuation and expansion of physically-based art mediums and engage in project-based learning that integrates digital and physical media.

Play: It is lighter than you think

Lastly, I feel I must include my commitment to play. I write this not as a declaration of expertise but as a reminder to myself. As an artist I use play to explore new ideas and as an educator I use play to help students push their own boundaries.

The tendency to look at the world through a macro lens has, in recent years, been one of existential crisis evident in and perpetuated by continued political division, climate change, and the pandemic, for example.

Play is open to failure.

Don’t be afraid to find wonder in the smallest of creative acts, don’t be afraid to play

Botanical entanglements expand our insights

By Assistant Professor of English and Creative Writing Katie Sagal

Author of “Botanical Entanglements: Women, Natural Science, and

the Arts in Eighteenth-Century England” (University of Virginia Press), Professor Sagal is an expert on 18th-century literature and science studies, women’s writing, and critical plant studies. She also teaches classes on science fiction, video games, and fan fiction.

Science studies is an act of decolonization

Academics discuss decolonizing the humanities, but true decolonization means more than citing Black, Indigenous, Hispanic, Asian, and other people of color scholars. It refers to a new way of thinking about how we study the field, and whose stories about scientific study we privilege over time. For example, some excellent recent scholarship features medical research and botanical bioprospecting, and their intersections with Indigenous and enslaved populations as a holistic subject, not one that has to be linked to whiteness or European science. This can support Cornell’s efforts to make diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility (DEIA) issues part of every class, not just speciality courses or programs.

Science studies is capacious

Scholarship on the history of science and its intersections with literature focuses on more than just chemistry or physics, or even how various disciplines pop up in literature. We can study watercolor paintings, dye-making journals, personal letters, apothecary recipes, and even dress patterns to learn about historical scientific labor beyond the famous published books. Moreover, with the inclusion of animal studies, insect studies, critical plant studies, queer studies, Indigenous studies, and various other critical methodologies, we expand our insights, our observations, and what we can share with our students.

Science studies can tell us more about our history

While generations of scholarship in the history of science focused on the famous white male thinkers of the 17th to 19th centuries, only recent decades addressed women’s participation in the sciences. Emerging scholarship (including my

book) focuses on how reconceptualizing what we mean by “scientific labor” can show us that women were much more involved in scientific study than we previously thought. It wasn’t all white lab coats and beakers! This can also help advocacy efforts for increasing gender diversity in STEM fields.

Science studies will teach us more about literature

Studying the history of science isn’t just about focusing on texts with scientific components or influences. Knowing historical ideas about human biology can help us understand race relations in literature, which can then provide insight into the cultural context of literature that doesn’t even directly discuss race. Likewise, knowing about historical garden design can offer context for why descriptions of landscape can help us interpret characters and plot. Ultimately, this makes literature more interesting, accessible, and important to modern college students.

Science studies can link the past and present

New and forward-thinking scholarship in the history of science encourages us to think about not only the topics of concern from past scientific eras but also their ways of thinking about nature and the world. When we see colonial and enlightenment ideologies still influencing our environmental policy, we recognize that we need to shift our cultural way of engaging with nature in order for any real significant change to happen. People in the 18th century often saw the Earth and its resources as an inert backdrop for their own gain, not as something to be valued on its own. We need to change that attitude.

Education for healthy bodies

By Associate Professor of Kinesiology Lewis Kanyiba

Professor Kanyiba is interested in health and physical education pedagogy, sports and exercise psychology, and youth sports. He also enjoys studying sport administration, history and philosophy of physical education, and technology application in movement science.

Humanics philosophy disposition

Teacher education relates to working with others, and especially children. Education is a collaborative process that involves learners, parents, and teachers. You must love being around children, and you must be intrigued by the opportunities to be innovative in helping a student who is struggling in any of the three learning domains: concept (cognitive), skill (psychomotor), or a sense of belonging (affective).

Anatomy and physiology (A&P)

The fun part about A&P is that as a professor or student, you are a model, learning about your own body! You must know all 11 body systems and how they function to keep you alive. If we are learning about health or different types of kinesthetic actions, there will always be reference to either structures or functions of molecules, cells, tissues, or organs in our bodies.

Human growth and development

Tracing life from a single cell through zygote, embryo, infancy, early childhood, adolescence, young adulthood, to adulthood and how body systems and developmental psychology relate to each of these stages is critical. Most importantly, you need to understand how the systems involved in movement, metabolism, and emotions interact with each other to enhance quality of life.

Know essential numbers

You need to know numbers and the associated vocabulary generally agreed upon to represent healthy bodies and behaviors.

For example, your body is made up of about 37-40 trillion cells, and each cell depends on oxygen as fuel to keep you alive, even when asleep!

At rest, a healthy heart is expected to beat 60-72 times per minute, which is also commonly known as a pulse rate. Your heart pumps blood to itself and the rest of the body at a rate of five liters per minute, and 120/80 mmHg represents a healthy blood pressure.

Physical activity has many benefits including aiding the veins to drain blood back to the heart, and the recommended daily moderate to vigorous physical activity is between 75 to 150 minutes per week, or 10,000 steps per day.

You are expected to take in between 2,000 to 2,500 calories per day, depending on many factors that include metabolism and activity levels. Rest is as important as your dietary-caloric intake or levels of physical activity, and you are expected to sleep about seven to eight hours per day.

Pedagogy

You will need to master theories of intellectual development and theories of how we learn to move and perform sports at proficient levels, and apply this knowledge when selecting materials and teaching styles. You will need to master classroom management and assessment, and be prepared to teach diverse learners. You need to learn how to collaborate with other professionals and also know the use of appropriate instructional technology and teaching aids.

Conducting and consuming research

You should be able to understand published credible research related to health and physical education. You should understand the research process including research design, research methodology, data collection, data analyses, and how to correctly interpret data. You should also be able to use various data analysis software in coding, storing, analyzing, and presenting data.

Reinventing engineering education

By Assistant Professor of Engineering & Physics Danielle Grimes

Professor Grimes has internationally published research papers and years of diversity research in engineering. Her dissertation for her Ph.D. in engineering education was about “stereotype threat,” breaking pre-existing notions about what it means to be an engineer.

Engineering education is evolving

Engineering education is an ever-evolving field that investigates everything from how to better teach to how to better recruit future engineers. I was fortunate enough to become the first graduate in the engineering education Ph.D. program at Mississippi State University. As part of my studies, I investigated learning theories as well as motivational theories that impact learners.

What it means to be an engineer

Through my initial research, I found that women and minorities oftentimes have problems situating their identities into engineering due to pre-existing stereotypes about the field. I eventually came across the term “stereotype threat,” and it became the topic of my dissertation. Stereotype threat is the fear of fulfilling a negative idea about a group that one belongs to. My investigation into this topic drove me to better understand how motivational theories and experimental classrooms could be used to access diverse populations by breaking these pre-existing notions about what it means to be an engineer.

Doubt leads to stereotype reinforcement

Stereotype threat can increase a person’s stress to the point of negatively impacting performance and self-efficacy. In simple terms, the fear of proving a negative stereotype “correct” can cause a person to doubt themselves more and, in turn, drive down their motivation—and even their ability to perform academically. People who encounter stereotype

threat often feel the need to perform above average to feel that they belong.

Focus on their strengths

The question for me, as an instructor, then became how to avoid these negative stereotypes in the classroom so that diverse students could find a better sense of belonging, even in the face of perceived failures. I found that women who are successful in engineering tended to focus on the design and creativity aspects of the field. Therefore, I began to design my classrooms to invite greater creativity and real-world application, mostly through project-based learning. All members of a team are asked to identify their own strengths prior to the project beginning, which allows them to navigate around what knowledge they may lack and focus on the strengths that they bring.

Knowledge is gained through failure

Stereotype threat also heightens students’ fears of failure. These fears often obstruct students from seeing that they can be successful, and that failure is often just a part of the learning journey. By setting up a problem-based learning environment, I can plan for students to have minor “failures” throughout their projects, facilitating the perception that there is valuable knowledge gained through failure. I have found that students of all backgrounds are usually able to situate their identities and have greater self-efficacy when taught using these models.

By focusing on self-efficacy and resolving their fear of failures, I aim to allow every student the opportunity to form an identity in engineering, regardless of background.

Statistics for all, and all for statistics

By Assistant Professor of Statistics Tyler George

Professor George’s interests include data science, data analytics, advanced regression, hypothesis testing, and statistics education. He loves solving problems while learning about other fields of study.

I became a statistician and an educator for three primary reasons:

1. I loved solving problems. I discovered this early when I was 5-years-old while playing my favorite video game— Donkey Kong Jr. Math. In middle school, I discovered I also really liked working with others and helping others solve problems.

2. I enjoy learning about all fields of study, from chemistry to art. Statistics offers methods that I can use to work on and solve problems across many areas. Most fields have a growing need for data analysis and are becoming more data centric.

3. Statistics was opportunity—providing research, teaching, and industry opportunities. Today, statistics and data science are both in the top 10 growing job markets in the U.S.

Long story short, I chose statistics because I am an indecisive problem-solver. Now I teach statistics courses to prepare future statisticians and data scientists, and to give other students the statistical analysis skills they need to be successful in fields such as psychology, biology, and political science—a goal and dream come true.

Putting the fun in learning statistics

I have been working with statistics educators around the U.S. on class testing and improving an open source education statistics game and associated activities that emulate real research experience within a classroom. This game makes

learning statistics fun and successfully gets students engaged. The Greenhouse game uses Iowa farm data to simulate growing crops and to allow students to investigate factors that contribute to high (or low) yield and profit. Students make initial choices in the game and then use data visualizations and analysis to inform future choices and to achieve greater success. They then tie their results to prior research and summarize their results. In my introductory statistics courses at Cornell, we finish off the activity by having a competition to determine who can make the most profit in one year of growing crops.

Making statistics more accessible

The Greenhouse game and activities is one of many Open Education Resources (OERs) available to learn statistics. I use and contribute to OERs in statistics and data science to make education more cost effective and accessible. Contributing to this ecosystem is a large focus of my efforts beyond the classroom.

Learning statistics by experience

By nature, statistics is interdisciplinary. I spent my first few summers at Cornell working with students on research through Cornell’s Summer Research Institute. One project included creating an interactive dashboard to publicize and display Iowa watershed water analysis. Next, in collaboration with Chemistry Professor Cindy Strong, a statistics student explored historical Iowa pottery data. These two projects represent the interdisciplinary nature of statistics, including professionals from chemistry, archaeology, and statistics.

ABE TUBBS ’94

Abe Tubbs ’94’s basketball career at Cornell earned him a place in the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame. He was twice named first team All-Midwest Conference and twice honored as conference co-most valuable player. A 6-foot-8-inch intimidator, he blocked 28 opponents’ shots his senior year while averaging 22 points and seven rebounds a game.

Today Tubbs is co-president (with his brother, Brig) of Ohnward Bancshares, a holding company founded by his grandfather and a partner in 1967. Tubbs also serves as CEO, president, or director of the company’s various banking groups, composed of 18 offices in 14 eastern Iowa towns. He has been a senior officer of Ohnward since 1998.

Learning the value of teamwork, Tubbs said, was the most important benefit he gained from sports.

“A team-based experience is something I always look for in job candidates,” he said. “There is something irreplaceable about working hard with others toward a common goal.” Properly cultivated, he added, teamwork fosters deep and meaningful relationships, and that was the greatest legacy of his Cornell coach, Gary Grace.

Because Ohnward operates mostly in small towns, personal relationships are critical to the success of its banks and companion services, which include investment management, insurance, real estate, and farm management.

“Our mission is to make a positive

difference in the lives of everyone we touch,” Tubbs said.

Tubbs majored in economics and business, graduated with honors, and earned an MBA from the University of Iowa. He credits Cornell’s block plan for developing discipline and focus, skills demanded by his multiple responsibilities. Although he lives in Anamosa, the day’s work might take him to any of six counties.

“I move around a lot. I have multiple offices. I try to be where I’m needed and be out of the way where I’m not. We have very talented people who don’t need me making daily decisions,” he said. Ohnward has 260 employees and banking assets exceeding $1.5 billion.

Tubbs served six years on the board of directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, one of 12 such districts that regulate banks and provide research to help guide monetary policy. The directorship is an honor—only three of nine directors are bankers—and also a duty. Tubbs regularly interviewed community leaders about economic trends and reported his findings so that the views of Iowans could be heard in Washington.

Tubbs has strong connections to Cornell. A gift from Tubbs and his wife, Nicole Claussen, resulted in a fitness area of the Small Athletic and Wellness Center being named in their honor.

Tubbs has remained close to Coach Grace and to Brent Brase ’90, current head women’s basketball coach, who was a young assistant when the two met. Brase played a key introductory role as Tubbs’s eldest child, Ava Claussen-Tubbs ’26, considered transferring to Cornell from Arizona State, where she felt dissatisfied with her experience in a student body of thousands. She opted for the Hilltop, telling her father, “Everyone here is so nice!”

DAN KELLAMS ’58

The values of teamwork

“A team-based experience is something I always look for in job candidates. There is something irreplaceable about working hard with others toward a common goal.”

ROBYN

Caring for the Campus

By Dee Ann Rexroat ’82

Think for a moment about what drew you to Cornell.

It’s nearly impossible to do without visualizing the idyllic hilltop setting, the park-like grounds, and the arrangement of brick buildings connected by the Ped Mall. We often take for granted that everything that happens here—the teaching, learning, performing, competing, living, and working— depends on the smooth functioning of the physical campus.

A team is on-call 24–7 to make this happen. Led by Director Luke Fischer with Assistant Director Cari Morgan, that 17-person team is responsible for keeping buildings safe, warm, and dry, and the grounds clean, cut, and comforting. This includes a great deal of behind-the-scenes functions like managing utilities, event support, and responding to approximately 5,000 work orders per year.

“Basically we love, serve, and care for the campus,” Fischer says.

If you have noticed a marked improvement in campus buildings and grounds in the past 12 years, it’s because President Jonathan Brand made it a priority. Renovations, new construction, and the overall beauty of the historic campus were prominent in the two strategic plans to date under his presidency—and follow important work done on campus before him.

“We love our campus,” Brand says, repeating the strong sentiment Fischer makes about the college’s home. “We cherish and prize our campus, and that makes what Facilities does even more important. We operate like a small city with plumbing, lighting, carpentry, HVAC, and grounds. We have tree plans, lighting plans, and accessibility plans. And then there’s the look and feel of our campus. We want not just alumni but prospective students and their families to come on this campus and get goosebumps.”

Brand says Facilities staff take to heart the central focus of the most recent strategic plan: recruiting, retaining, and supporting students.

“One of the things I admire about the Facilities staff is that they are so engaged with our students. They’ll stop and talk to somebody. That is an emblem of a great Cornellian. They’re living our strategic goals and values—making campus a welcoming place for everyone, recruiting and retaining students, and really serving and supporting them.”

Among students, Donivan Jones ’24 has one of the highest rates of facility work order requests. As Student Senate President he often needs event setup or assistance with

Basically we love, serve, and care for the campus.

Luke Fischer Facilities Director

There is always a curveball that makes the day interesting. People are not coming to us to tell us that everything is working perfectly ... We get to help students, faculty, and staff make things better.

Cari Morgan Facilities Assistant Director

Often the Facilites staff is the first to arrive on campus in the mornings, especially when there is snow to remove.

projects such as installing hammocks and adding holes to the disc golf course.

“It surprised me how much they were willing to work with a student,” he says. “They were wonderful to bounce ideas off, as well as actually getting things done.”

Saving buildings and squirrels

Taking care of 68 buildings and 129 acres on a National Historic Register campus is a challenge, even with a team of 13 maintenance techs, two directors, a construction projects manager, an office coordinator, and the eyes and ears of Campus Safety during nights and weekends.

Some tasks evolve through the seasons, from planting and pruning to snow removal to mowing to prepping buildings for move-in day. Monitoring, maintenance, and long-term planning is ongoing. So is maintenance of the large array of mowers, chain saws, trimmers, leaf blowers, specialty equipment, a carpentry shop, plumbing shop, and 16 vans and trucks filled with everyday hand tools and supplies.

Work orders submitted by students, faculty, and staff keep the job interesting and unpredictable—like the day a

It surprised me how much they were willing to work with a student. They were wonderful to bounce ideas off, as well as actually getting things done.

Donivan Jones ’24

MEGAN AMR

A team member in the maintenance building checks his iPad for an equipment notification at a different facility: the Russell Science Center. All the techs carry iPads to track their work orders, to access building controls and equipment schematics, and to order parts.

team member had to trap a campus squirrel in order to cut off the cone-shaped DQ® lid stuck around its neck.

“There is always a curveball that makes the day interesting,” Morgan says. “People are not coming to us to tell us that everything is working perfectly, so it is always an interesting challenge to work with our team and others on campus to fix situations. We get to help students, faculty, and staff make things better in their environments.”

Handling events and catastrophes

The Facilities team is also the backbone of major campus events including Homecoming and Commencement. Their team provides planning, setup, and teardown—which, like so much of what they do, often goes unnoticed when done well.

Catastrophic challenges are rare but in 2020 there were two. The pandemic closed classrooms in the spring, and Facilities mobilized to provide campuswide protections (barriers, filters, sanitizers, cleaning agents) in time for a fall reopening. Then just before school was to start, a derecho hit

Mechanical systems are located in the Penthouse, or top level, of the Thomas Commons, where Maintenance Technician Tommy Thomas uses his iPad to validate the operations of an air handler and hot water lines.

We want not just alumni but prospective students and their families to come on this campus and get goosebumps.

President Jonathan Brand

Luke Fischer Director

Mount Vernon with winds up to 140 mph, damaging buildings and causing the loss of 217 trees. Facilities again refocused and led the process of rebuilding the campus—an ongoing project.

Also under their purview is oversight of new construction, renovation, and repairs as complicated as restoring the 1882 King Chapel with historical integrity. New construction brings added square footage to maintain. Since 2018 building capacity has increased by 74,333 square feet with the Russell Science Center footprint and additions to the Richard and Norma Small Athletic and Wellness Center.

The aging 170-year-old campus poses its own challenges. Addressing deferred maintenance and taking on routine projects, like tuck pointing, insulating, and roofing, all need to happen along with the day-to-day and seasonal routines—with everything competing for budget dollars.

The bottom line, Fischer says, is that Facilities exists to make sure the college can meet its mission: “We take care of all the problems so students can learn.”

21st century historic campus

In the last few years technology has taken a larger role, with a recent move to all-electronic work orders, asset tracking, and capital management. All maintenance techs carry an iPad to track their work orders, order parts, and access building controls, building plans, and equipment schematics. The system tracks expenses to help determine whether to repair or replace the equipment.

Fischer and Morgan can watch the system from their laptops at home to make adjustments online or to determine when an issue requires an on-site solution.

As amazing as this sounds, technology poses its own challenges. It expands faster than the team can reasonably implement or train for. And some new equipment allows only certified technicians to provide maintenance.

Large infrastructure improvements made four years ago reduced energy usage over 20% by installing high-efficiency boilers to remove the final eight buildings from the old campus steam plant and by upgrading nearly every building with LED lighting. One small example of the results is that once or twice a week lighting work orders have dwindled to once per quarter. Fischer is looking for additional sustainability models and recently contracted the purchase of natural gas, saving the college up to $300,000 a year.

Getting things done

Gary Stinocher started as a maintenance technician in 2012 and says he has seen a steady improvement in the grounds and buildings since then. That’s due to two things, he says: resources and people.

“Last summer a coworker needed to have his building prepared for move-in after he lost both of his parents within two weeks,” Stinocher says. “Everybody pulled together and we got it ready in one day.” When the coworker returned, his building, Pauley-Rorem, had been checked from top to bottom, repairs made, filters changed, painting done, locks in working order, and beds in place.

A well run organization is fundamentally service-oriented, says President Brand, and he is most proud of the Facilities team for modeling that.

“I have a really special feeling about them because they do so much to support this college, more than people know,” Brand says. “ Our Facilities staff works hard. They want to support the students as well as our faculty, staff, guests— frankly anyone who comes onto our campus—and they get things done.”

The bottom line is that Facilities exists to make sure the college can meet its mission: We take care of all the problems so students can learn.

Maintenance Technician Dustin Burnett repairs a motor in the maintenance building’s electrical workshop. Each team member has areas of strength and they all do a little of everything. MEGAN

Maintenance technicians often work behind the scenes, or, in this case, above it where Tommy Thomas checks the pizza oven exhaust fan on the Thomas Commons rooftop.

What Facility Services does

• Supports departments in their primary functions

• Inspects, maintains, and improves 68 buildings (approximately 1 million square feet) for use by faculty, staff, students, parents, alumni, visitors, guests, and community

• Inspects, maintains, and improves 129 acres of grounds and athletic fields

• Manages utility usage and promotes and implements sustainability measures

• Monitors and adjusts heating, ventilation, and cooling systems

• Assists with event planning, setups, and teardowns

• Manages custodial services

• Continually trains on new equipment, systems, and personal skills

• Responds and assists in emergency situations

• Plans and manages capital projects and construction

• Maintains college vehicles

• Repairs damaged property

• Understands and implements government regulations

• Coordinates freight receiving and delivery

• Manages locks and keys

KATIE BROWN ’06

Promoting women in STEM

Katie Brown ’06 is pursuing a unique set of passions. One is testing explosives. Another is strategizing ways to attract women to STEM careers. There’s also Irish step-dancing.

Her interests are as diverse as her liberal arts education at Cornell, where she majored in chemistry and minored in music, performing on bassoon and steel drums. Now Brown is a scientist at the Naval Surface Warfare Center Indian Head in Maryland, where she has researched explosives for the U.S. Navy since 2020. She said she finds her work challenging and very rewarding.

“I test explosives on the small scale to try to predict their performance on the large scale, and we are especially concerned with testing those explosives that are safer to handle,” said Brown. “It is a national security role where, at the end of the day, we want to protect service men and women and give them the tools they need to be safe and do their jobs well.”

Brown earned her doctorate in physical chemistry from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, then worked for seven years at Los Alamos National Laboratory, first as a postdoctoral fellow and then as a scientist.

She was a top student at Cornell, earning Phi Beta Kappa status as a junior. She remembers the chemistry program both for its rigor and the fun they had.

“The chemistry department had such a good time. It was just a great faculty group. Anytime I get to visit campus that’s who I want to go see,” she said, citing professors Cindy Strong, Charley Liberko, Craig Teague, Truman Jordan, and Addison Ault.

“I still look up to Cindy. She’s so smart and so nice,” she said.

Brown recalled a prank during

Advanced Inorganic Chemistry in which all the students who were 21 made mimosas in class without Strong knowing. “Cindy found out about this on Facebook three years ago and was not happy!” she said, laughing.

Her earliest Cornell memory is her music audition, which still makes her smile.

“Bassoons are not the most wellknown instrument, and I was very used to people at my high school saying, what is that? I played my song, and [Professor] Marty Hearne looks at me and he goes, ‘What instrument are you playing?’—meaning the brand—and I just looked at him and said, ‘it’s a bassoon.’ ”

He laughed, and then so did she. She received that music scholarship and the bassoon gave her what she calls a big brother and sister at Cornell, the first and second chairs of the bassoon section, Jen Schneidman Partica ’04 and Lance Till ’03. “After band every day, we would sit there for another 10 minutes and they would impart their Cornell wisdom on me,” she said.

The pace of Cornell’s One Course At A Time curriculum continues to impact Brown’s work.

“The thing I’m best at at work is that last-minute push and just getting it done. The problem is I still want three days off every month!” she said.

Brown is optimistic that more and more women will enter STEM fields.

“We’ve made a lot of progress getting and maintaining women in my field,” she said. “And we’ve started to have conversations about not just women, but racial diversity. We talk about strategies and how to improve that pipeline of women. It’s not going to be fast, but I think we’ll get there. We need more Cindys.”

—DEE ANN REXROAT ’82

“The thing I’m best at at work is that last-minute push and just getting it done. The problem is I still want three days off every month [a block break]!”

KATIE BROWN ’06

Alumni News

WEB EXTRA

See a livestream of McCune’s talk at crnl.co/mccunetalk

Beta Omicron Distinguished Alumni Visitor Jeffrey McCune ’99, director of the Frederick Douglass Institute for African and African-American Studies at the University of Rochester, spoke to a crowd on the Orange Carpet about “Disobedient Things: Learning How to Read Again.”

CONTRIBUTE

We love receiving updates. Submissions may be edited for style, length, and clarity. Submit your news to crnl.co/classnews

1940s

Florence O’Kieffe Beeman ’43, Tulsa, Oklahoma, retired from professional social work and college teaching and now lives independently in a lively retirement community. She was predeceased by her son, James D. Beeman ’70, and her daughter-in-law, Elizabeth Hoyer Beeman ’69. She enjoys visits from her son, Bill, her daughter, Adele, and her three grandsons and their families—including five great-grandchildren.

1960s

Last winter Mary Rice Bandt ’61, North Oaks, Minnesota, and her husband, Carl, snowshoed across the lake to Sandbar, their local watering hole.

Mary Annis Hart ’61, Tampa, Florida, recalls heading to Chicago after graduation to seek employment. Her first job was in the U.S. Labor Department’s Chicago Bureau of Labor Statistics on the first Consumer Price Index revision since WWII. “We learned that we were among the first women hired for this position. It was rumored that women had not been hired in the past because the job required extensive travel at a time when it was considered inappropriate for women to travel alone. I suspect that the new hiring policy was a supply and demand issue, but we had the job, and we ran with it.” Mary moved to Tampa, Florida, in the early 1970s and formed a corporation for managing racquetball and tennis facilities. In the late ’80s she took a position as litigation support software director and paralegal coordinator in a law firm. “We were a lucky generation in many ways.

We were raised during the fabulous ’50s, and were on the cusp of the many changes that occurred in the ’60s and forward. Yes, as women we met challenges in the workforce, but we survived to see those changes still resonate today

and benefit current and future generations,” she writes.

Joel Parrott ’61 and Karilyn Kirlin Parrott ’62 moved to La Crosse, Wisconsin, in August 2021. Their new apartment in a senior independent-living facility has a wonderful view of the Mississippi River. They regularly enjoy concerts, joined the Bridges United Methodist Church, and live just 30 miles from their daughter and son-in-law. They report that downsizing and moving to sensible housing has worked out well for them.

Judy Norman Svengalis ’61, Des Moines, Iowa, and her son had a wonderful trip to Ireland and England in 2022. They went to County Westmeath in Ireland to search for an ancestor and meet a researcher, and also visited Blarney and Guinness. A highlight of their time in England was an after-hours trip to Stonehenge.

Carole Baskerville Carson ’63, Castelnau-le-Lez, France, published “Blackbird,” a fictional autobiography she began after graduating from Cornell. The book, available on Amazon, is dedicated to Cornell English Professor Winifred Van Etten. “Blackbird” is part of a four-part series. “My Mother’s Daughter” will come out next, then “The Perfect Mother.” The fourth book is “The First and Last Lesson.” “You can imagine how excited I am to see the books come to life in print, given this has been a lifelong project!”

Asked by his class agent to write about transitions, Tim Frazer ’63, Concord, New Hampshire, said he and his wife, June, moved from the Midwest to New Hampshire, where June started working for Democratic candidates and got elected to the Statehouse at 75. They shared a very active life in Alcoholics Anonymous. They were in their 80s when the pandemic hit and, with June a liver transplant recipient, they had no in-person meetings or church services for a year. But Tim adjusted well to Zoom gatherings. “So, several times a week, I can share a period

of centering prayer with recovering friends all over the world, and I got into AA’s corrections correspondence program. I email every day with a guy in a Florida prison, and another guy doing a life term in California.”

Richard Williams ’63, Chicago, Illinois, writes that his transitions have been small. After law school he returned to his hometown, Chicago, and remained there. He still works in the law business, going to work in Chicago almost every day. “I am lucky indeed, as I enjoy my days.”

John Gelb ’64, Cabin John, Maryland, reports that while there is nothing exciting going on, he is healthy and exercising (mostly walking) as much as he can. He and his wife, Susan, visited their son and grandsons in California last year and go to their beach house with their daughter and granddaughter when possible.

Bill Horn ’64, Clermont, Florida, and his wife, Judi, spent the holidays in Dallas, Texas, with family. Aside from the “normal” health issues, they keep busy with workouts, water aerobics, and club meetings.

Judy Anderson Mettler ’64, Monticello, Iowa, is active with book clubs and gardening.

For the past several years, Janet Thompson Myers ’64, Olean, New York, has been busy in the Olean Food Pantry Community Garden. She says that somehow the weeds seemed to take over at the end of last season. The work they were doing to plan for the future spring season spurred planning for the future. “... in all aspects of our lives, there are ways to contribute to the future. Whether we are here to see it or not, we are part of it,” Janet writes.

Donna Nielsen Pfeil ’64, Granger, Indiana, and her husband, Dick, were honored for their 35 years of community engagement by Granger Living. Though very active in Granger, they spend part of the winter at their home in Florida, while also maintaining a 122-year-old home on a lake in Michigan. It keeps them both busy.

Janet Collins Shannon ’64 and Larry Shannon ’68 moved from Illinois to Lawrenceville, Georgia, to be closer to their two daughters and four youngest grandchildren.

Dave Syfert ’64, Vilas, North Carolina, and his wife, Gerry Smith, relocated again to Charlotte for the duration of the winter. As he says, “too raw for us up in the North Carolina mountains till spring.”

After almost 40 years as a rheumatologist, Frank Vasey ’64, Tampa, Florida, now runs Tampa Antiques and Books, the family business. He reports that 35 years ago while in his role at the University of South Florida, he and colleagues reported side effects of silicone breast implants to the FDA. After 35 years the FDA agreed, and Frank is extremely pleased.

Elizabeth Ward Waggener ’64, Williamsburg, Virginia, and her husband, Michael, haven’t done much traveling since the pandemic, but they spent the summer at their daughter’s place just outside of Durango, Colorado, in the San Juan Mountains. They found the air extremely invigorating, and, back in Virginia, they had trouble adjusting to the hot, heavy, humid air. Liz is now teaching at the College of William and Mary’s Literacy for Immigrants program and studying Korean.

Barbara Whipple ’67, Houston, Texas, traveled to Mexico in February. Her parents bought a timeshare there in the 1980s, and she’s been going to Cancun for 40 years. She says she has many wonderful memories there with her parents, Jo Eckerley ’69 has visited many times, and Helen Smith ’67 will be joining her this year.

Jack Carbee ’68, Eaton Rapids, Michigan, and Marseillan, France, released his third novel, “The Monument,” based on Operation Peg, a WWII cooperative venture between 16 U.S. paratroopers and a small band of French Maquis designed to disrupt the German supply chain in the south of France in 1944. He’ll soon release his first collection of “kid lit,” “The Adventures of Too Short Thomas.”

Marty Rieke Fuller ’68 and Will Fuller ’67, Bluffton, South Carolina, report that Will is still golfing at his age or under, and they have a puppy. Their children and families live in New Jersey and Wichita, Kansas.

Joe Gebhardt ’68, Bethesda, Maryland, helped Gov. Wes Moore and Lt. Gov. Aruna Miller win their history-making campaign in Maryland. Moore is the state’s first Black governor. As part of the transition team Joe shared his expertise in worker’s rights on the Jobs & Workforce Development Committee.

Leslie Carlson Hanson ’68, Wayzata, Minnesota, is phasing out her professional work and still keeping some volunteer and board work. She enjoys cooking, Netflix, and Apple TV.

Bill King ’68 and Janet Schultz King ’68, Reading, Pennsylvania, ventured to Jamaica on an all-inclusive trip.

Lyn Ward Page ’68, Evanston, Illinois, and her husband, Joe, continue their love for theatre and the arts, as well as all of the cultural advantages Chicago offers. Both continue leading a Shakespeare reading group via Zoom.

Eric Trimble ’68 is president of Trimble Funeral Home & Crematory in Moline, Illinois, and serves on the board of Selected Independent Funeral Homes, Group 4, covering nine Midwestern states. He is past president of the Illinois Funeral Directors Association, served on the American Board of Funeral Service Education, the Illinois Funeral Directors

and Embalmers Licensing and Disciplinary Board, and on the Selected Board of Directors from 2018 through 2021. Outside of funeral service, he is a regent of The Lincoln Academy of Illinois, a ThirtyThird Degree Mason, and participates in community affairs.

1970s

Lars Clutterham ’70, Downey, California, reports that their 50+2 reunion “was, literally, a once-in-a-lifetime experience. It brought back treasured college memories, and I was especially delighted to be involved with the music for our three-class alumni dinner evening.”

Trudy Hoag ’70, Golden Valley, Minnesota, reports that Homecoming for the classes of ’70, ’71, and ’72 provided a nice combination of events with individual and joined classes. She traveled to the reunion with Mary Ann Mead ’70 and Marilyn Norton ’70 Lars Clutterham ’70, Mary Ann, and Trudy led the program on Saturday night, getting all three classes participating in a sing-along of favorite music from their college years in between solos. “Since we had been doing all the planning by long-distance Zoom, we spent a part of the reunion weekend doing final rehearsals in Armstrong Hall in a recital hall that had once been an art gallery. Since Lars, Mary Ann, and I had basically lived in Armstrong during our years at Cornell for our music and theatre work, it was a bit of déjà vu to be rehearsing in it again. It was wonderful to work together

“As women we met challenges in the workforce,” recalls Mary Annis Hart ’61, “but we survived to see those changes still resonate today and benefit current and future generations.”

after all these years, both for the dinner program and for the Sunday Memorial Service. The very best part of the reunion was seeing, reminiscing with, and reconnecting with friends. It is a joy to be back in touch with so many people, both the ones I had kept up with and those I had lost contact with over the years.”

Mary Thompson

Ingvoldstad ’70, Lake Oswego, Oregon, notes that the 50+2 reunion went far beyond her expectations, with the best part being reconnecting with Cornellians. As people shared memorable stories from college, she was reminded of the historical significance of those times—the Vietnam War, the Civil Rights movement, the changing role of women.

“I also was deeply touched by the Convocation on Saturday morning. Distinguished alums shared their personal accomplishments, and President Brand, with obvious affection and pride, summarized Cornell’s accomplishments. As I listened, I was once again filled with gratitude for Cornell: my own education, the wonderful things Cornell continues to do, and the amazing people, both past and present, in the Cornell family.

Susan Morrow Petrosky

’70, Edina, Minnesota, writes that Homecoming and the 50+2 reunion was a magical weekend at Cornell. “There was beautiful weather, a gorgeous campus, interesting speakers,

nostalgic music, priceless conversations with classmates, and sharing memories of those who are deceased. Fifty-two years disappeared back to 1966–1970, and we felt young and energized again. How lucky we are that Cornell was a part of shaping our minds.”

During the 50+2 reunion David Wilson ’70, Elk Grove Village, Illinois, had a special moment when two Cornellians who were very active in the operation of KRNL-FM joined him for lunch. David was KRNL’s general manager, and the three talked about what they had done after Cornell. “They shared their stories with me, thanked me for my leadership and for how KRNL had impacted their futures. Their KRNL experience defined their career paths. They both work full-time or part-time in broadcasting. Their stories made my day.”

Michael J. Bellito ’72, Wheeling, Illinois, took his first vacation since his stroke 10 years ago, and traveled to Disney World with his daughter and family. He also published his sixth book, “The Absolutely True Story of the Homemade Beatles Tie and Other Short Stories.” His other five books are “Ten Again,” “First Time Around,” “Abner’s Story,” “The Silent Journey,” and “The Hilltop” (about Cornell). All are available on Amazon.

Daryl Boness ’72, Hartford, Maine, stepped down from the U.S. Marine Mammal Commission in 2023, after serving under three U.S. presidents. He continues as editor-in-chief of the journal Marine Mammal Science. He and Leslie Poland Boness ’72 continue to enjoy life in Maine, where they renovated a 200-year-old house nearly 20 years ago that has been in Leslie’s family for four generations.

An article on noncompete agreements by David Brezina ’75, Chicago, Illinois, was published in the Illinois State Bar Association (ISBA) Intellectual Property (IP) Law Section Newsletter for February 2023. While still a Cornell

student working part-time at a law office, David researched noncompetes for the first time. David is a member of the Section Council for the ISBA IP Section Council and teaches as an adjunct professor at University of Illinois-Chicago School of Law.

Nancy Wickersham Haaheim ’75 and Gary Haaheim ’75, Chaska, Minnesota, had a challenging year that required hospitalization at the Mayo Clinic for treatment of Gary’s lower back disc problems. But they enjoyed Christmas with family and are thankful their daughter, Katie, and her family moved in with them.

Bruce Hillner ’75, Richmond, Virginia, notes that since his friend Tricia continues to thrive as COO of the Arts Council of Anne Arundel County, he’s rented a small vacation home in downtown Annapolis, about two miles from her house. He enjoys joining her for cultural events, and their families met for Thanksgiving. His travel highlights include the Penn Relays in Philadelphia and a few days in Stockholm with Tricia, followed by five days in Switzerland.

Robert Pierce ’75, Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, and his wife, Pam, were among the first to visit Australia in 2022 after the country opened up. They visited Pam’s son and daughter-inlaw in Brisbane. Last summer they spent several months in their Georgia home completing several house projects. Bob writes, “One of my few regrets as a liberal arts college graduate has been not having taken a religion course. I enrolled in a class titled ‘Education for Ministry.’ I am working up the courage to start swimming on a more regular basis.”

Bill Smale ’75, continues to travel in Southeast Asia. Follow his adventures on folksytravel. com

Jim Swift ’76, Edina, Minnesota, continues as a professor of maxillofacial surgery at the University of Minnesota. He and his wife, Lori,

“There was beautiful weather, a gorgeous campus, interesting speakers, nostalgic music, priceless conversations with classmates, and sharing memories … 52 years disappeared back to 1966–1970, and we felt young and energized again. How lucky we are that Cornell was a part of shaping our minds,” wrote Susan Morrow Petrosky ’70.

have three grandsons who live in the Twin Cities area. Their daughter, Meagan, and her husband also live in the area.

Mark Van Etten ’76, Sarona, Wisconsin, reports he hasn’t fully settled into a routine since retirement. “I now understand the comment I’ve often heard from retirees: ‘I don’t know how I had any time for work!’” He and his wife, Bev, traveled to southern Indiana to visit Steve Palmquist ’76 and Nancy Niemann Palmquist ’76 at their cabin in Brown County.

Anne Davis Grothe ’77, St. Louis, Missouri, returned to the Hilltop for Homecoming ’22 to catch up with Pam Burg Ketchum ’77 after many years. “The weekend provided a wonderful opportunity to reconnect with other classmates and to explore Cornell’s beautiful campus with its many renovations. A highlight was being present for Tony Plaut ’78’s retrospective exhibit in McWethy Hall.”

Come home to the Hilltop

OCTOBER 6-8, 2023

HOME OMING

& REUNION WEEKEND See crnl.co/homecoming for more information.

Marta Sesbeau Hershner ’77, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, is retired from teaching and administration in the Cedar Rapids area, and she and her husband, Steve, travel as much as they can.

Martha Adams Bohrer ’78, Oregon, Illinois, has resumed travel in retirement. She and Tim had two trips in 2022 to Patagonia in South America and to the former Yugoslavia. “We enjoy visiting our son, his wife, and our two grandchildren in Rogers, Arkansas, and are exploring parts of Missouri on our way. I enjoyed viewing the sandhill crane migration in Nebraska with fellow Cornellians Karen Krull Robart ’78 and Hollie Sailer Hart ’78. At home we keep busy with vegetable gardening and caring for our woodland and prairie. Life is good.”

Since he retired in 2022, Rich Carlson ’78, State College, Pennsylvania, has been focused mostly on his health. He lost

20 pounds, lowered his blood pressure to the normal range, did physical therapy for old injuries, and largely caught up from decades of sleep deprivation. He’s also done a lot of reading and a little bit of writing.

Nancy Horney Davis ’78, Elmwood, Illinois, retired from EP!C, a not-for-profit providing services to people with disabilities, where she was a grant writer and leadership coach. She’ll continue to do some leadership coaching and training as an independent contractor. She and her husband, Steve, now have three grandsons, and her mother, at age 100, lives next door.

Randi Lewis ’78, Denver, Colorado, joined Ruth Box Westfall ’78, Susan Gross Olezene ’78, and Claudia Wegrzyn Carle ’78 last fall on the Oregon coast for a long, fun-filled weekend hosted by Claudia. They walked the beach, talked and talked, went

crabbing, and saw some Pacific Northwest trees, beaches, and sights.

Tony Plaut ’78 expresses his appreciation to all the friends, colleagues, and alums who attended his retrospective exhibition in McWethy Hall’s Luce Gallery last fall. He is now fully retired from Cornell College and is settled nicely in Petaluma, California, with his partner, Arden Kwan ’83

Londy Greeno Reidy ’78, Santa Clara, California, retired in 2022 after 35 years working as a school psychologist in Colorado and California, where she led specialized teams for the assessment and diagnosis of children with learning challenges. “The best part of my career, and what I miss the most, is teaching the social emotional learning classes that I developed along with mindfulness strategies.” Now she’s spending time visiting her family and two grandchildren in Colorado; her sons in San

Cornell College will proudly honor these alumni during

Homecoming 2023

Arthur Reis Jr. ’68

Distinguished Achievement Award

Dr. Reis is a pioneer in single crystal neutron diffraction using pulsed sources. He worked at Argonne National Laboratory and the U.S. Air Force before co-creating the Volen National Center for Complex Systems, a research center focused on understanding the brain, intelligence, and advanced computation at Brandeis University. Reis continues to research early detection of infectious diseases using molecular biology DNA amplification methods. He served as provost and dean at Brandeis, developing novel teaching methods to instruct non-majors in science.

Lisa Chen ’12 Young Alumni Achievement

Following graduation Chen joined Teach For America in New York City. After a few years in the classroom, she transitioned into leadership positions at Success Academy, Harlem Village Academies, and Uncommon Schools. She is now the chief people officer at Prospect Schools, a leading diverse-by-design K-12 charter network in Brooklyn, New York.

Michael Allen ’68 Leadership and Service

Allen has been a pioneer in the e-learning industry since 1970. He was the innovative force behind one of the most successful authoring tools ever created, Authorware, as well as ZebraZapps, a visual-based authoring and publishing system for creating serious learning games and simulations. He is a writer, conference speaker, and recognized industry leader.

Tim Wynes ’83 Leadership and Service

Wynes has been a Class Agent for 25 years. He established the first student legal services clinic at the University of Missouri School of Law. He has also held presidencies at Black Hawk College, Dakota County Technical College, Inver Hills Community College, and the Iowa Valley Community College District.

Francisco and San Luis Obispo; and her youngest daughter in Richmond, Virginia.

Ruth Box Westfall ’78, Mahomet, Illinois, reports that she retired from AT&T, went to school, and is deciding what she’ll do next.

Lu Ann White ’78, Johnston, Iowa, had the fortunate opportunity to attend

Homecoming 2022 for husband Barry Russell ’71’s 50+1 reunion. “I was able to see and experience our classmate Tony Plaut ’78’s remarkable art exhibit, recognizing his years of service to Cornell and Cornell students as an art professor. His art work was comprehensive and so creative. It was so refreshing to see.” She reports that many Cornellians came for the art exhibition, including Bruce Montgomery ’78, Robynn Moon Montgomery ’78, Gordon Hellwig ’78, Yvonne Brooks ’78, Pam Burg Ketchum ’77, and Jim Simpson ’78. Although she is on some committees for the state bar associations, Lu Ann is not practicing law these days. She is on the board of, and has been doing some volunteering for, the local food pantry and clothes closet and organizes community service projects for her local Rotary.

Gayle Stevens Wilcox ’78 and Paul Wilcox ’78, Burnsville, Minnesota, both retired from pastoring congregations in the Iowa Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. Paul concluded his career by serving on the Bishop’s Cabinet as a district superintendent and later, Circuit Hub Ministries coordinator. They moved to Burnsville and Paul returned to Iowa to ride RAGBRAI last summer. Since then he’s been finishing the basement; built an upstairs laundry room; and hauled, cut, and laid flagstone for a firepit area after redirecting a fountain. He didn’t need to leave home to go on a mission trip this year—their home has been his mission! Gayle is working through several medical issues and assisting at home. They are active at Hamline Church United Methodist in St. Paul.

Jerry Worsham ’78, Cave Creek, Arizona, still works as an environmental and natural resources lawyer. He has two grandchildren and highly recommends the experience. Jerry is a season ticket holder to the Arizona Cardinals, and after watching them go down in flames with a 4-13 record, he thinks he may qualify for a refund. He’s had a few lunches with fellow Gamma Tau Pi alum Ken Golden ’79, and says he’s regularly “harassed” by Paul Barrows ’78

Gary Blanks ’79, Montgomery, Illinois, enjoys retirement, especially spending time loving his six grandchildren. Gary is also taking care of his mom, who has progressive Alzheimer’s. He writes that he’s living every moment as if it’s his last, and that, in his opinion, the class of 1979 was the best Cornell class ever!

Dan Brady ’79 and Sue Helfers Brady ’79, Edgewood, Kentucky, shared a major 2022 highlight—attendance at their daughter Shannon’s wedding to Paul McDonald in Chicago. The event included 11 bridesmaids, 11 groomsmen, their 24-yearold pet turtle and pet dog as honorary flower girl and ring bearer, and the groom sitting in with the band on the trumpet. The story about the pets joining in the ceremony was posted by the Fox Weather Channel.

Ken Golden ’79 and his wife, Lynne, Gilbert, Arizona, spent four weeks in Mérida, Mexico, where their son and daughterin-law live. They experienced the Día de los Muertos celebration for the first time. Ken was interviewed by a local TV station, asking about his reasons for participating, and he talked about the differences between American and Mexican culture regarding the way that death is viewed. He was particularly struck by the way that American culture often pretends like death doesn’t happen, while Mexican culture celebrates death.

Gail McRill ’79, Walcott, Iowa, planned to retire this summer after 45 years as a music educator. Gail has taught choral and general music, as well as orchestra, in two states, grades K-12, and in both public and private schools.

Lee Moran-Cankar ’79, St. James City, Florida, taught junior high science for a few years after Cornell, but ended up in banking. She was married and divorced, and then remarried to form a blended family now with five adult children and four grandchildren. She and her husband, Bruce, recently celebrated their 25th anniversary. They enjoy a second lake home in the Smoky Mountains of North Carolina, to which they evacuated when Hurricane Ian struck. Their Florida house suffered a fair amount of loss, but Lee shared that the experience illustrated how beautiful things can come out of tragedies. People and agencies rushed in to help, and Lee says “it was humbling to be on the receiving end of these services. When you experience a tragedy, it restores your faith in mankind. I believe that most people are compassionate, caring, generous, and good.”

Jeanie Franz Ransom ’79, O’Fallon, Missouri, continues her writing career. She’s mostly writing essays these days, but is also working on a children’s picture book about birds. She does a lot of birding, hiking, and volunteering. Jeanie recently received an award in a creative nonfiction essay contest for her essay “Leaving,” which centers on how collecting leaves in the fall helped her process her mother’s Alzheimer’s-related decline.

Dan Ricklefs ’79, Englewood, Colorado, reports that his daughter, Claudia, was recently published in a scientific journal.

1980s

Freya Brier ’80, Bellevue, Washington, and Scottsdale, Arizona, swung back into

Steve Adrian ’87 keeps up with Casey Jones ’87, a district associate judge in Cedar Rapids. Judge Jones and classmate and district court judge Fae HooverGrinde ’87 both serve Judicial District 6 in eastern Iowa. “What are those odds?

So great that Cornell, and specifically the Class of 1987, is well represented here!”

travel with a fury. She took a two-week biking and hiking (and eating and drinking) trip to Italy in June 2022, followed by a trip to Hawaii in September, then to Vancouver, B.C., to run a 10K, and to the wine country of Walla Walla, Washington, for the annual new vintage tasting festival. The Italy biking trip inspired her to buy an e-bike, and she happily tackled the hills around her Bellevue house with the luxury of assisted pedaling. For the five-plus months she’s in Arizona, Freya sees Tom Durham ’77 and Martha Hemenway Durham ’78, as well as Jim McPherrin ’77 and his wife.

After retiring from over 35 years in the restaurant business, Jim Sierszyn ’81, Burlington, Wisconsin, has taken up the pen as a freelance writer in the Christian marketplace (see his writing at jimsierszyn.com).

Michelle Krezek ’85, Boulder, Colorado, and her partner retired in 2022 and have settled into it by spending winters in South Carolina and summers in Colorado. This summer they plan to travel to Alaska in their campervan. But first will be the annual Cornell Gal Pals get-together, this year in Santa Fe with Addie Wallace Morrison ’87, Connie Mixon ’88, Elizabeth Heffernan ’88, Diana Daskalos Corcoran ’87, Liana Overley Allison ’89, and Liz Daleske ’85

Steve Adrian ’87 has become a Texan, having lived in Dallas for 10 years. Steve, who worked in the wholesale

jewelry business for 20 years, reports his kids are grown and employed. He keeps up with Casey Jones ’87, a district associate judge in Cedar Rapids. Judge Jones and classmate and district court judge Fae Hoover-Grinde ’87 both serve Judicial District 6 in eastern Iowa. “What are those odds? So great that Cornell, and specifically the Class of 1987, is well represented here!”

Gail Cummings Andersen ’87, Portland, Oregon, loved visiting Cornell in October 2022 to see wonderful classmates during their 35th reunion. Her kids have ventured off to Chicago, Flagstaff, Arizona, and Eugene, Oregon. She continues to work in nonprofit fundraising.

Susie Wedes Beaumaster ’87 and Paul Beaumaster ’85, Northfield, Minnesota, became grandparents to Georgia. Their son, Jack Beaumaster ’20, is in law school in Wyoming and worked at the U.S. Attorney’s office in Yellowstone last summer. Their son, Will, is at the University of Minnesota. The empty nest allowed Susie and Paul to travel to South Africa to visit their Rotary exchange student and go on a safari.

Bill Bremner ’87 and his wife live in a loft in the heart of the North Loop in downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is vice president of merchandising and product design and development for Rockler Woodworking and Hardware. Bill bikes year-round and is picking up woodworking. Their three daughters are grown,

ABOVE: Alumni and friends gathered at Fuel coffee shop in Mount Vernon during Homecoming 2022 to celebrate with Tony Plaut ’78, who had recently retired from Cornell’s art faculty and whose retrospective art exhibition was part of the weekend’s festivities. Seated, clockwise from left: Jeff Courtman ’77, Margie Harger Wilch ’79, Rachel McDavid ’80, Karen Mickler, Yvonne Brooks ’78, Bruce De Groot ’79, Arden Kwan ’83, and Tony Plaut ’78. Standing, left to right: Jim Simpson ’78, Sue Deibner ’78, and Pam Burg Ketchum ’77.

RIGHT: Left to right: Arrows Molly Swanson ’96, Catherine Walworth ’95, Shannon Furr Bobertz ’97, Sarah Hebert Chiovarou ’97, and Rebecca Hansen Peschong ’95 gathered in Nemacolin, Pennsylvania, to celebrate Rebecca’s 50th birthday.

ABOVE: Celebrating with Rebecca Sullens ’09 at her wedding reception are (back row from left) Kegan Kiner ’10, Rebecca Girard Kiner ’09, Rebecca Sullens ’09, Samantha Hebel Perkins ’12, Nicole Casal ’18; and (front row) David Kugler ’09.

LEFT: Taylor Sedlacek ’14 (left) married Harrison Brōcká on July 30, 2022, in Denver, Iowa. Liz Litteral ’14 (right) traveled from Colorado to serve as a bridesmaid.

REBECCA SULLENS ’09

PAOLO VERZANI

with one living in Minneapolis, one in Los Angeles, and the third is a wanderer, currently in Kauai, Hawaii.

Dan Burgess ’87, Boulder City, Nevada, is nearing 20 years with American Family Insurance. He started as an agent, spent several years as a sales manager, and the last six years as a business consultant. His wife, Jennifer, is an insurance producer for American Family. Their oldest, Taylor, lives in Idaho Falls, Idaho. Their son, Connor, lives at home and is a junior at UNLV. The youngest, Pilar, also lives at home and attends the College of Southern Nevada. They also have two dogs and two cats.

Karen Radke Byrnes ’87, Gurnee, Illinois, is in her 30th year at Roycemore School and serves students with learning differences. She wants Cornell to know that she uses her degree teaching European history! She also serves as a mentor to rookie teachers.

Tim Hicks ’87, Luling, Louisiana, and his wife have been living in Louisiana for 35 years and in the LulingHahnville area since Hurricane Katrina. He’s been an environmental geologist for 19 years. Their kids are 23 and 28, working and living not far from mom and dad.

Kate O’Loughlin Hornung ’87, Iowa Falls, Iowa, retired from the Iowa Falls School District in 2021 after 33 years of teaching (32 in the kindergarten classroom). She finds it’s hard going cold turkey leaving daily life around youngsters, so she continues to substitute teach now and then. Kate returned to the Hilltop for her 35th reunion and had a great time catching up with classmates.

Perry Horwich ’87, Las Vegas, Nevada, is a physician and partner with Desert Radiology specializing in musculoskeletal radiology. He provides medical support to the Vegas Golden Knights, Vegas

Raiders, and the UNLV athletics department. He and his wife, Rebecca, are parents to 9-yearold son George.

Becky Cloeter Johnson ’87, Minneapolis, Minneapolis, loved connecting with classmates at the 35th reunion. Her twin sons are now college graduates and she and Jeff Johnson ’86 enjoy life in the Twin Cities and staying in touch with other Cornellians close to home and some of those far away!

Mo Johnson ’87 is living in Luxembourg for a year working for Epic Games as the Global Head of Tax. “And yes,” she says, “tax can be fun.” She is also balancing the responsibilities of an aging mom, a house in New Hampshire, and a team (and car) in Cary, North Carolina.

Sandy Shelby Klinkey ’87, St. Charles, Illinois, has three horses and four dogs and enjoys competing in Working Equitation with the horses. She and her horse, Doc, won

a belt buckle for the Midwest Region and finished the year ranked #1 nationally in their division. Her two daughters are grown, and Sandy is in her 13th year working with Elgin Community College to assist those traditionally underserved, ages 17-24, develop hard and soft skills to become work-ready and self-sufficient.

Ray Llorca ’87, Cedarburg, Wisconsin, and his wife, Dawn, are Wisconsinites as of 2016, working hard in manufacturing (Ray) and dentistry (Dawn) with no plans on the horizon to retire. Why? Lots of expenses and college down the road for three kids.

Karen Friedhoff Mertes ’87, Blacksburg, Virginia, will celebrate her first family wedding–that of her fourth child, a son. She has two daughters in Chicago and one in Sacramento.

Chris Nelson ’87, Batavia, Illinois, is chief of staff and director of communications for the Kane County State’s Attorney in Illinois. His work centers on strong advocacy for criminal justice reform. He’s been doing this work for 16 years, after 16 years in the newspaper business. His son attends Xavier University in Cincinnati and his daughter is in high school. He and his wife celebrated their 22nd wedding anniversary.

Ira Skeebey ’87, Fletcher, Ohio, is celebrating 29 years at McCormick Equipment Company. His son, Jayden, just graduated from high school. Ira and his wife are busy with the Rolling Thunder, a POW-MIA advocacy organization for which Ira serves on the board.

Gretchen Baudhuin Tombes ’87, Midlothian, Virginia, shares that she has lived on the East Coast since graduating from Cornell. For the past two years she has been human resources manager for a small software company. Ten years prior she worked in the county library system. She has four kids: her two oldest are working and thriving; one daughter studies nursing at University of Virginia;

and the youngest daughter just finished high school. She also has two grandkids.

Elaine Hayes ’88, Iowa City, Iowa, traveled to San Diego in 2022 to celebrate her daughter Taylor and son-in-law Michael’s marriage on the beach in Del Mar, California.

Denise Horak Melchert ’88, Mount Vernon, Iowa, retired from teaching middle school math after 34 years in the classroom in Cedar Rapids, ending her career at Harding Middle School with a dual role of teacher and instructional coach. Career highlights include achieving National Board Certification in 2005 and recertifying in 2015. She looks forward to spending more time with her husband of 33 years, Patrick Melchert ’88, and their four grandchildren, and DIY projects. Patrick celebrated 30 years of working at Transamerica in Cedar Rapids and was promoted to senior director of operations in February.

Jay Andersen ’89, Portland, Oregon, caught up with Leah Gauler Hamilton ’89 last summer in Chicago.

1990s

Lance VanGundy ’91 and his wife, Kristin, moved to a lake home on Lake Thunderhead, Missouri. He is releasing book three in the Rune Fire Cycle, an epic fantasy series that “is my escape since Cornell taught me how to write and well ... I’m terrible at golf!” He plans to attend a Tau reunion with his brother, Jason VanGundy ’94, this summer.

Kaitlynn Lewis Griffith ’93, Rochester, Vermont, kicked off a large remodel on a home that she and her husband, Joel, bought as a fixer-upper in March 2020. From their house on the top of a mountain in the middle of Green Mountain National Forest, they look at two of the tallest of the Green Mountains and from their driveway they see two more. Kaitlynn was promoted at the

Joe Cole ’00 has a full schedule of finish carpentry, including heading up major renovations on Frank Lloyd Wright’s Unity Chapel. He and Christy Hamilton

Cole ’01 also have a wood-fired pottery business, Windy Ridge Pottery, in Mineral Point, Wisconsin.

Law School Admission Council to senior vice president of product and is leading the launch of an exciting new product. “A fun part of that project is that Cornell is part of our product pilot and President Brand serves on our Advisory Council, so I get to interact with Cornell for work.” She enjoys watching her four kids as they live their adult lives across the country.

Michael Hofmann ’93, Greenwood Village, Colorado, and a colleague were named the American Lawyer’s Litigators of the Week for a defense verdict after a two-week trial in a $1 billion dollar dispute involving a privately held Colorado corporation. Along with trial work, Michael also has a varied appellate practice, which in 2022 included winning a property tax appeal for Vail Resorts in the Colorado Supreme Court and arguing another appeal arising from Vail Resorts’ COVID closure. He and his wife spend most of their time on their two daughters’ activities. “It’s a busy and fun life.”

After 30 years in teaching, Jane Moniak Jurgensen ’93, Ames, Iowa, is grateful to have found a career that keeps her challenged and entertained. She writes that her 26 years at Ames High School have been amazing, and she looks forward to closing out her career as a Little Cyclone. The third of her three sons just graduated, and she’s looking forward to being an empty nester.

Chris Oberbroeckling ’93, Marion, Iowa, has been an agent with Farm Bureau Financial Services since 2005 and writes that “I love being able to work with people each day to protect their livelihoods and futures.” He and his wife, Leah, have two sons and two grandsons. He officiates for high school basketball and umpires for high school and college baseball.

Rosalyn Bunda Popham ’93, Wheaton, Illinois, traveled to Paris twice last year. The first time was with her teenage son, and later with dear friends. She still works for endurance events, shifting from the rules and officiating of the race to forward command and contingency plans for the events.

Shannon Furr Bobertz ’97, Columbia, South Carolina, was named chief of staff for the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources. She celebrated Rebecca Hansen Peschong ’95’s 50th birthday along with fellow Arrows Molly Swanson ’96, Sarah Hebert Chiovarou ’97, and Catherine Walworth ’95 in Nemacolin, Pennsylvania.

Becky Tessmann ’98, Rhinelander, Wisconsin, started a master of science program in education-clinical mental health track at the University of Wisconsin-Superior.

Hans Hinrichsen ’10, Fitchburg, Wisconsin, was promoted at ETC (Electronic Theatre Controls) to software development manager for the Entertainment Controls group, leading the software team that makes the lighting consoles in use on Broadway, the West End, and countless colleges and schools around the world—including Cornell!

2000s

WEDDING

Rebecca Sullens ’09 to Ryan Buchanan, Sept. 24, 2022

BIRTHS

Leo Bennett Luitjens Moericke, Aug. 11, 2022, to Amy Luitjens ’01 and Jason Moericke

Reed Mikhail Osinovskiy, Jan. 12, 2023, to Alexandra Myers ’05 and Misha Osinovskiy

Niko Davis Policard, Oct. 8 2022, to Holly Davis ’06 and David Policard

Declan Anton Cork, Sept. 30, 2022, to Brittany Sperl Cork ’09 and Tyson Wundrow Cork

Shanna Metzler Robinson ’00 lives in Moline, Illinois, with her husband, Josh, their two children, and two dogs. She’s in her 23rd year of education, which started in Mesquite, Texas. Working for Mississippi Bend Area Education Association as a reading recovery teacher leader during the pandemic, she found herself leveraging her national network to problem-solve how best to provide virtual services to the most at-risk learners. “This ended up being an incredible opportunity for growth and

possibility! An interesting by-product of all our work was an article we published in the Journal of Reading Recovery detailing the possibilities of leveraging expertise to solve new problems.” Shanna was recently hired by North Scott Community School District, adding instructional coach to her role.

Christy Hamilton Cole ’01 and Joe Cole ’00 live in Mineral Point, Wisconsin, with their daughter Cleo. Christy is in her second year of a clinical master of social work program and is working for a nonproft focusing on child-care issues. Joe has a full schedule of finish carpentry, including heading up major renovations on Frank Lloyd Wright’s Unity Chapel. Their wood-fired pottery, Windy Ridge Pottery, is still open online, by appointment, and during special events in Mineral Point.

Amy Luitjens ’01, St. Paul, Minnesota, welcomed baby Leo in August, who joins his brother Luca. Amy was promoted to managing director at EAB, an educational services firm, in December 2022.

Anna Norstedt ’02, St. Paul, Minnesota, quit her job in March 2022 due to the end of the mask mandate, worked at a private school, and returned to her job in the same district but at a different worksite in January 2023. “I am so happy to be back! My favorite pre-K activity is making slime.” She visited Seattle in 2023.

Sarah Heller Hofer ’03 lives in Geneseo, Illinois, with her husband, Brian, and their son and daughter. She’s been an insurance agent at Hanford Insurance for 10 years. Brian is the principal of a local elementary school. Sarah is learning to navigate life as the mother of a high schooler. “Life doesn’t slow down between football, basketball, volleyball, softball, and baseball, but we are enjoying the ride!”

Alexandra Myers ’05, San Diego, California, had a baby in January with her husband, Misha. Baby Reed is growing

well and loves spending time with his uncle Marc Myers ’05

Holly Davis ’06, Minneapolis, Minnesota, reports that Niko Davis Policard was born in October 2022 and joins older brother Xavi (2 years) and Holly’s goddaughter Nessa (3 years). “The house is full, but (most of the time) it is a lot of fun.” Holly is director of people operations at SumOfUs, an international campaign for corporate accountability.

Jo Ella Adelung Hoye ’06 and Brian Hoye ’06 live in Lenexa, Kansas, where Jo Ella was re-elected to the Kansas House of Representatives and sworn in on Jan. 9, 2023. She serves as a ranking minority member on the House Federal and State Affairs Committee and is a member of the Transportation and Transportation and Public Safety Budget Committees. Brian is a section manager in Burns & McDonnell’s Environmental Services Practice working on environmental site investigation and remediation projects. Their son, William, just finished fifth grade so they’ve added band, piano, swimming, and basketball to their activities. William also convinced them to get a dog, Tonks.

2022 was a big year for Brittany Sperl Cork ’09. She and her husband, Tyson, moved to Fond Du Lac, Wisconsin. She was promoted to senior level at her position as a financial specialist with the state of Wisconsin, and her husband started a job at Ernst & Young as an auditor. They added two kittens to the household, bought a new vehicle … and became parents to Declan Anton Cork in September. Declan was born just a few hours after his cousin, and Brittany’s parents were excited to become grandparents and welcome grandbaby #1 and #2 on the same day.

Former Cornell career coach and student life director Rebecca Sullens ’09 married Ryan Buchanan on Sept. 24, 2022, at the Bean Farm in Scotch Grove, Iowa. The bride and groom are both members of Cedar Rapids

Prairie High School Class of 2005 and the ceremony was officiated by Rebecca’s best friend from Cornell, David Kugler ’09. Rebecca was surrounded by 21 members of her Cornell family including current students, current and former staff, and alums. After eight incredible years on staff at Cornell, as of late January Rebecca is now overseeing Leadership for Five Seasons and business support programs at the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance. She also completed her master’s degree in organizational leadership in August through Goodwin University.

2010s

WEDDINGS

Leather Berndt ’10 to Cody Wenman, May 16, 2020

Taylor Sedlacek ’14 to Harrison Brōcká, July 30, 2022

Meghan Kuhn ’15 to Marc Lewis ’15, Sept. 9, 2022

Mallory Turner ’17 to Mitchell Daily, Feb. 18, 2023

BIRTHS

Skylar Allyn Wenman, May 10, 2022, to Leather Berndt ’10 and Cody Wenman

Romilly Wuchte Hoffman, Oct. 26, 2022, to Lauren Wuchte ’10 and Will Hoffman

Theodore Edward Hebel Perkins, Dec. 30, 2022, to Samantha Hebel Perkins ’12 and Thomas Hebel Perkins

Eleanor Darla Hass, May 10, 2022, to Crystal Kephart Hass ’15 and Tyler Hass

Athena Louise Mattern, Aug. 28, 2022, to Ella Peitz Mattern ’16 and Buddy Mattern ’16

Chloe Rebekah Pavlik, Feb. 11, 2023, to Laura Wetzel Pavlik ’16 and Timothy Pavlik ’16

Leather Berndt ’10, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and her husband, Cody, welcomed their first baby, Skylar, on May 10, 2022. They also got to have their wedding reception in October after much delay due to COVID, the derecho, and the baby. They were married in May of 2020 in a very small family ceremony. Monique Portwood ’10, Leather’s Cornell roommate, was present as maid of honor. Monique returned for the reception in 2022 along with bridesmaids Mary Mortensen ’10 and Ellen Pfannenstiel ’10

Hans Hinrichsen ’10, Fitchburg, Wisconsin, was promoted at ETC (Electronic Theatre Controls) to software development manager for the Entertainment Controls group, leading the software team that makes the lighting consoles in use on Broadway, the West End, and countless colleges and schools around the world— including Cornell!

Korey Miller ’11, Urbandale, Iowa, is celebrating five years as a managing partner and co-founder of DM Capital, Inc. as well as two-and-a-half years as chief business officer and cofounder of Innovation Refunds.

Michael Baca ’13, Coralville, Iowa, was named to the board of the Special Olympics of Iowa. He works as an administrator for the Hawkeye Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center and for the Center for Disabilities and Development. Michael has served as a basketball mentor for Special Olympics New Mexico, and during his time at Cornell he was a Unified Sports Day volunteer for Special Olympics Iowa. He serves on several other committees and councils, including the Pediatric Disaster workgroup, UIHC Hospital Operations Council, and Fire and Life Safety Workgroup.

Dan Carney ’14, Chicago, Illinois, along with his dog, Dewey, finally set down some roots by purchasing a condo in the Edgewater neighborhood of Chicago. In the spring you may see Dan on the lakefront zooming by you on his bike!

Taylor Sedlacek ’14, Waterloo, Iowa, married Harrison Brōcká on July 30, 2022, in Denver, Iowa, at the groom’s family home. Taylor is in her final year of law school at the University of Iowa College of Law, and Harrison works as a teacher and soccer coach for the Cedar Falls School District. Following Taylor’s graduation in May 2023, the couple will move to Delaware where Taylor has accepted a position with a global law firm. Liz Litteral ’13 joined the wedding party as one of Taylor’s bridesmaids.

Hannah O’Brien ’15 and her wife, Shawna, bought their first house and moved to Cedar Rapids in early November. She continues to work at MethWick Community as a fitness specialist; Shawna made a huge career change and now is working as a pipefitting apprentice.

Mallory Turner ’17, Salem, Oregon, and Mitchell Daily were married at a small ceremony in Paducah, Kentucky, on Feb. 18, 2023. Mallory and Mitchell (commonly known as M&M) met in 2020 and live with their cat, Macy.

Patrick Leitzen ’18, Cascade, Iowa, published his debut science fiction novel, “Silence of the Stars,” in February.

After taking a year as a stay-athome parent, Matthew Klug ’19, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, accepted a position with Sysco Corporation as a sales consultant.

2020s

Devin Callahan ’21 moved from Des Moines, Iowa, to Boston, Massachusetts, and is enrolled at New England Law | Boston. “It was a big change and not without its many challenges. But one thing that was very familiar was the lengthy readings I grew used to when I was at Cornell. I never realized how grateful I would be for those long readings in Professor David Yamanishi’s classes until I began law school.”

Amelia Ayers ’22 is moving to Sacramento, California, to start a job as a physical scientist with the U.S. Geological Survey under the California Water Science Center.

Gabriella Garcia ’22 moved from Louisiana to Bakersfield, California, to work as a case manager for convicted criminals who have mental illnesses, and to run groups on substance abuse and sexual trauma healing.

Megan Garrison ’22 is serving as a health systems coordinator for Massachusetts General Hospital and Siċaŋġu Co on the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota.

Sydney McDaniel ’22 works at Burns and McDonnell Engineering out of Kansas City as a remediation geologist.

Colt Spencer ’22 opened a gym in Laurel, Montana, with his business partner. The gym serves the community either online or in person. They also offer an app that serves anyone in the world with exercise and/ or nutrition. Colt started their business, called SmoothGainz, in 2021 while attending Cornell.

Sydney Swift ’22 works at Integrated DNA Technologies in Coralville, Iowa, as a chemist.

Maria Thiele ’22, Roselle, Illinois, is teaching first grade at the same elementary school that she went to. Maria is having a great time giving back to the community and is enjoying her first year as a teacher.

Losses

Richard H. Thomas

The Rev. Dr. Richard H. Thomas, whose contributions as chaplain, history professor, and college historian made an indelible impact on Cornell College, died at age 92 on April 24, 2023, in Cedar Rapids.

His dual appointment in 1967 as chaplain and professor eventually extended to include nine years as special assistant to the president, as well as a variety of jobs under four presidents. Simultaneously, Thomas used his talents as a historian in public service to Mount Vernon, Linn County, the state of Iowa, and the U.S. Air Force.

Thomas headed the extensive research and application that placed the entire Cornell campus on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. He later authored Vol. II of the college’s scholarly history, “Cornell College: A Sesquicentennial History, 1953–2003.”

Known as Rev to generations of Cornellians, he taught at the college for 29 years and remained active in the community throughout his retirement, including teaching annually for many years. He developed courses on federal American Indian policy, the internment of Japanese Americans, and Midwest architecture.

He grew up in South Dakota, graduated from Macalester College, earned an M.Div. from Garrett Evangelical Seminary, and held master’s and doctoral degrees from Rutgers. He chaired the Committee for the Restoration of the Iowa Governor’s Mansion, as well as state, county, and local historic preservation commissions. In addition to Cornell’s National Register status, he was largely responsible for Mount Vernon’s two additional National Register districts.

He is survived by his wife, Nancy, three children, including Jan Thomas ’80, and five grandchildren, including Eric Doernhoefer ’13

For a complete obit, see crnl.co/thomas

John R. Bristol ’61

John R. “Jack” Bristol ’61, a nationally recognized parasitologist, professor of biological sciences, and high-level administrator at the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), died Jan. 14, 2023, in El Paso. He was 84.

He majored in biology at Cornell and then taught high school biology in Cleveland, Ohio. He married his college sweetheart, Sally Cook ’61, in 1961 and they had two children, Scott and Kelly. In 1970 he earned a Ph.D. from Kent State and began his long career at UTEP. In 1975 Bristol married his second wife, Lillian Mayberry. They both held degrees in parasitology and shared a lab. Their long collaboration produced an extensive record of scientific publications, presentations, and participation in professional organizations.

At UTEP he held leadership positions at every level of administration except the presidency, including vice president for academic affairs, special assistant to the president for external affairs, and dean of the college of science. He was a Fulbright Research Fellow and consultant for the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation. When he retired in 1998, he continued to serve the university as director of the Texas Western Press.

Bristol was involved in the Woodturners of El Paso and was a member of the El Paso Council for International Visitors, where he served as president; the El Paso Downtown Lions Club where he served as a director; and the University Presbyterian Church, where he served as an elder.

He is survived by his wife and two children.

1961 ROYAL PURPLE

Neil Eckles ’62

Neil Eckles ’62, who was instrumental in bringing Cornell into the information age in the 1990s by sponsoring in-kind trenching to connect fiber-optic cables to buildings throughout campus, died Feb. 26, 2023, in Blue Earth, Minnesota.

Eckles provided quiet leadership and service on Cornell’s Board of Trustees from 1992 to 2011, and as a Life Trustee from 2012 until his death.

At Cornell Eckles was a member of the Gamma Tau Pi fraternity, played in the band, and ran track and cross country. He majored in politics and economics and business, but also valued art and music appreciation courses, once saying, “The single most important thing I gained from my Cornell experience is how to experience life in its fullest sense.”

He attended Cornell from 1957–1962 and holds a B.A. from Mankato State University. After serving in the Marine Corps for three years, he returned to his hometown of Blue Earth, Minnesota, where he was a community-minded leader and entrepreneur. He worked in the family business, eventually rising to chair of the board for Blue Earth Valley Communications.

Eckles and his wife, Susan, were loyal annual contributors to Cornell for more than 50 years.

Eckles’ father, Eldon Eckles ’30, and previous generations of the Eckles family attended Cornell as far back as the 1860s, beginning with his great-grandmother Elvira Powers. She enrolled following the Civil War and was said to have been the housekeeper or secretary to President William Fletcher King.

He is survived by his wife, Susan, son Bill (Karrie), two grandchildren, and a sister.

Ruth Stewart Ballje ’44 , Santa Barbara, California, Dec. 1, 2022

Grace Anderson Horin ’45, Lombard, Illinois, March 29, 2023

Glenna Duhme Palmer ’46, Cambridge, Illinois, Feb. 1, 2023

Carol “Kelly” Chapman Rudd ’46, Janesville, Wisconsin, Jan. 31, 2023

Peggy Newberg Taylor ’46, La Mesa, California, March 30, 2020

Kathie Safford McConnell ’48 , Long Beach, California, Feb. 12, 2023

Jean Carter Peterson ’49, Batavia, Illinois, March 4, 2023

Harriet Ruby Pitlik ’49, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, March 22, 2023

Jane Smith Streiff ’49, Delmar, New York, March 11, 2023

Andrew Kondrath ’51 , Spirit Lake, Iowa, Jan. 15, 2023

Barbara Meerdink Brown ’52 , Galesburg, Illinois, April 20, 2023

William Jones ’52 , Sebastian, Florida, April 16, 2023

Onalee Paul Arnold ’53, Marion, Iowa, Feb. 8, 2023

Clarence “Clancy” Smith Jr. ’53, Forest Lake, Minnesota, March 11, 2023

Patricia Darnall Wakey ’53 , New Lenox, Illinois, April 15, 2023

Janis Oldham Colville ’55, Maryville, Missouri, Feb. 3, 2023

Janet Sweany Blackwell ’56, Dallas, Texas, Nov. 9, 2022

Ronald Brown ’56, Castle Rock, Colorado, Oct. 13, 2021

Sally Lake Paulsen ’56, Arnold, California, March 1, 2022

Ann Gerretson Seybold ’56, Madison, Wisconsin, March 23, 2023

Jack Wright ’56, Pittsburg, California, June 16, 2022

Lawrie Hamilton ’57, Bloomington, Indiana, Feb. 1, 2023

Nancy Hovet Lundstrom ’57, Rockford, Illinois, Jan. 18, 2023

Robert Morrison ’57, Cochranton, Pennsylvania, Oct. 23, 2022

J. William Elliott ’58 , Arden Hills, Minnesota, Feb. 11, 2023

M. Jane Crawford Viner Harding ’58 , Iowa City, Iowa, Jan. 12, 2023

Susan Voss Olson ’58, Gulf Shores, Alabama, March 8, 2023

Marilyn Murdy Murphy ’59, Johnston, Iowa, Sept. 3, 2022

Sarah “Angie” Henning Reynolds ’59, Chama, New Mexico, Feb. 3, 2023

Lowell Jackman ’60, Indianapolis, Indiana, Jan. 31, 2023

Georgeann Grosjean ’61 , Wooster, Ohio, Feb. 2, 2023

Paula Smutny Stutsman Michel ’61 , Harmony, Minnesota, Jan. 22, 2023

Benjamin Whitson ’61 , Aurora, Illinois, April 17, 2023

Judie Atkinson Bey ’62 , Bloomington, Illinois, Jan. 2, 2023

James Cox ’62 , Champaign, Illinois, Dec. 31, 2022

Sharon Palmer Wallin ’63, Wilmette, Illinois, March 21, 2023

Craig Ensign ’64 , Clear Lake, Iowa, Feb. 5, 2023

Marcia Brown Darnell ’65, Dover, Tennessee, July 4, 2022

Willis Kirkland ’66 , Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Jan. 5, 2023

Carol Lace Jenkins ’67, Seattle, Washington, Jan. 28, 2023

Constantine Choremi ’68 , West Des Moines, Iowa, March 14, 2023

Sonja Hoines Lively ’68 , Iowa City, Iowa, March 20, 2023

Jane Diehl Croker ’70, Grand Junction, Colorado, Feb. 15, 2023

Robyn Wolf Spencer ’70, La Crosse, Wisconsin, Oct. 18, 2022

Patricia Tenney Hewig ’71 , Evansville, Indiana, Jan. 8, 2023

William Cook III ’74 , Centennial, Colorado, Jan. 14, 2023

Nancy House-Winiecki ’74 , Dyer, Indiana, Feb. 18, 2023

Scott Richards ’74 , Isle of Hope, Georgia, Feb. 2, 2023

Steven Vosatka ’76, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Jan. 24, 2023

Farris Awwad ’85, Melbourne, Florida, Dec. 8, 2022

Stella Mae Easker, honorary alumna, Cornell secretary and bookkeeper for over 35 years, Marion, Iowa, March 19, 2023

Patsy Sommerville, honorary alumna, Cornell staff member in the alumni and registrar’s offices for over 40 years, Mount Vernon, Iowa, March 3, 2023

The stories we tell

By Jeanna Kadlec ’10

Humans are obsessed with telling stories about ourselves. Religion is one such significant form of meaning-making. What are oral traditions, religious texts, ancient mythologies, and historical records if not varied contextual forms of narrative, of self-reportage? This is who we are. This is our purpose. This is where we have been. This is where we are going.

So what do you do when the story you have been told about yourself in order to make meaning of not only your life but the world and everything in it … suddenly shatters?

I was raised in the heartland as the religious right reached its political height in the early 2000s. I was a rule-following, people-pleasing child, which is to say that, growing up in conservative, evangelical churches in the small town Midwest, I did religion very well. I memorized entire chapters of the Gospels, knew every hymn (and Christian rock song) by heart. Jesus made sense to me, and he provided an order in my decidedly disordered home. Simultaneously, I sparked to feminism at an early age, reading everything about the history of women’s rights that I could get my hands on.

In college this cognitive dissonance manifested in the simple fact that I led a decidedly evangelical women’s Bible study while also being a women’s studies major. I dated, and later married, the guy who led the men’s Bible study—a pastor’s son from what was arguably a city. It would take our marriage, moving to Boston, and my starting an English Ph.D. program—a career path first recommended to me by my Cornell professors—for me to realize that I was gay and, moreover, that my values and lived experience had become entirely contradictory to the evangelical church.

Leaving my marriage and most especially my faith was world shattering, forcing a total reconstruction of identity that I wrote about in my debut memoir, “Heretic,” which came out last fall with HarperCollins.

But whether it’s my upbringing in small town Iowa, in evangelical Christianity, or simply the fact that I’ve been a lifelong student of literature, there are parts of my experience within the faith I remain grateful for: namely, an appreciation for the extraordinary transformation and catharsis that story can provide on both individual and communal levels. My English major gave me new ways to frame and understand the stories that had been handed down to me in church, a way to analyze how seemingly “immutable” biblical stories were, in fact, like so many other universal myths and stories that were passed down over millennia of generations, retold by everyone from Blake and Milton to contemporary romance authors.

This is who we are. This is our purpose. This is where we have been. This is where we are going. This, it turns out, is still true, even when the story is taken outside of a literalist, even fascist approach.

The themes that inform every generation can’t be banned, it turns out. You can’t burn curiosity out of the very essence of what makes us human. We are drawn to stories that will tell us the truth of who we are. We always have been, and we always will be.

Jeanna Kadlec ’10 lives in Brooklyn, New York. Her memoir, “Heretic,” was published by HarperCollins and named one of the “Best New Books” of fall 2022 by People magazine.

“Without scholarships, I would not have been able to attend this wonderful college, and I would not have met my amazing friend group. Who knows where I would be without generous contributions to Cornell and my educational career? My family and I will be forever grateful for your support.”

MAJOR: Anthropology

MINORS : Psychology and Ethnic studies

ACTIVITIES : Cornell Summer Research Institute, Dance, Environmental Club, Alliance

Your Cornell Fund gift helps provide scholarships and makes college possible for students like Anna, and we are grateful for your support. Make your gift today at crnl.co/give alumni.cornellcollege.edu

FROM : Hancock, Wisconsin

Anna Ertl ’23

Students in the Bahamas for the course Movement Across Cultures create traditional paper costumes for Junkanoo, the country’s largest cultural festival. From left are Amelia Brown ’24, Alexis Partida ’24, Megan Gandrup ’23, Kennedy Parker ’24, Kara Rivard ’24, and Jonah Kokin ’24. Associate Professor of Kinesiology Kristin Peterson Meyer ’01 teaches the course. KRISTIN PETERSON MEYER