INDEPENDENT SINCE 1880
The Corne¬ Daily Sun Vol. 131, No. 111
THURSDAY, MARCH 19, 2015
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ITHACA, NEW YORK
16 Pages – Free
Opinion
Arts
Sports
Weather
Doing Too Much
Float On
Making Gains
Mostly Sunny HIGH: 36º LOW: 18º
Kevin Milian ’15 discusses the tendency for Cornell students to ‘overanalyze’ situations. | Page 6
Jack Jones ’18 says Modest Mouse’s new album, Strangers to Ourselves, is ‘disappointingly stale.’ | Page 9
Men’s lacrosse came out victorious in a nailbiter against Colgate. | Page 16
Faculty Members Talk Costs,Benefits From Revenue Enhancement “I think there is already potential for a good, smooth transition.” President David Skorton
CONNOR ARCHARD / SUN SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER
President David Skorton Discusses Change in University Leadership By SUN STAFF
By the end of this academic year, the University will see the departure of several senior-level administrators — President David Skorton will leave in June to head the Smithsonian Institution, Susan Murphy ’73 Ph.D. ’94 will retire from her post as vice president for student and academic services and former provost Kent Fuchs began his presidency at the University of Florida at the beginning of this year. In an interview with The Sun earlier this month, Skorton said he believed this transition between leaderships and such turnover was a “good” thing. He explained this in the context of when the Board of Trustees approached him to consider another five-year term as president. “I told them I didn’t want to do it because … fresh ideas are very important in such a complex [and] changing entity,” he said. “Every year,
roughly a quarter of undergrad students turn over. Every year, new graduate and professional students come in. Faculty and hiring staff turnover occurs. And so, I think it’s good for the leadership to turn over as well.” Skorton said the Board of Trustees, whose tasks are to “hire and release the President,” is a major force of continuity between change in leadership. He added that “direct interaction between incoming and outgoing executives” is another factor that plays in continuity. “Murphy, after 21 years, will still be around here in another role and she will make herself available if the new person wants advice,” he said. “So I think there is already potential for a good, smooth transition. … I know there will be a chance for some interaction between people who are doing the job and people who are going to be doing it later.” Skorton also said he has had consistent inter-
By JONATHAN SWARTZ Sun Senior Writer
During a faculty forum held Wednesday afternoon, faculty members shared their perspectives on the pros and cons of revenue enhancement to improve the University’s financial future and encouraged new academic initiatives to provide budgetary relief. According to Dean of Faculty Joseph Burns Ph.D. ’66, astronomy, the goal of the forum — entitled “Revenue Enhancement: At What Cost? To What Benefit?” — was to engage more faculty in some of the ongoing discussions on revenue enhancement. Because all of Cornell’s colleges have already increased or plan to increase both the number of professional Master’s degree programs and the number of students within them, the forum primarily addressed how creating new Master’s degrees can act as a source of further revenue for the University. The first speaker, Prof. Ronald Ehrenberg, industrial and labor relations, said he has been fortunate enough to live in the golden age of the private research university. “Being a faculty at Cornell has been and continues to be a great gift,” he said. “Public research universities make our problems look insignificant.” Ehrenberg said in recent years, the University has been able to increase See FORUM page 4
A gorge-ous day
See SKORTON page 4
Ithaca Landlord Pleads Guilty to 122 Counts of Violations in Court By MADELINE COHEN Sun Assistant News Editor
Ithaca landlord Aaron Pichel, co-owner of a property in the DeWitt Park Historic District, “plead guilty to 122 counts of violations” in court on March 11, according to a release from the City of Ithaca. Pichel, who was charged with violating City of Ithaca and New York state codes, has agreed to pay up to $20,000 in fines for multiple charges, including the overall decrepit
condition of the building located at 102 East Court St. “2009 inspections of the premises revealed the dilapidated condition of the property and Pichel was ordered by the Building Commissioner to make repairs to the structure,” according to the release. Despite the fact that the city conducted an additional building inspection in 2013, Pichel made none of the mandated repairs. He was then charged with “numerous violations” in July 2014.
He plead guilty to violations such as the failure to maintain a property wthin the DeWitt Park Historic District and failing to obey orders of the building commissioner, according to the release. He paid a $5,000 fine after pleading guilty to the violations and signed an affidavit for the court to hold $15,000. Pichel agreed to bring the property up to code standards in approximately six months. If See LANDLORD page 4
MICHAELA BREW / SUN SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR
Snow melts in the Fall Creek Gorge, a sure sign that spring is approaching.