INDEPENDENT SINCE 1880
The Corne¬ Daily Sun Vol. 132, No. 32
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2015
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ITHACA, NEW YORK
16 Pages – Free
News
Science
Sports
Weather
Testing the Waters
Having a Field Day
On the Run
Partly Cloudy HIGH: 67º LOW: 43º
The pipe of Lake Source Cooling, which uses water from Cayuga Lake, will be cleaned for the first time ever. | Page 3
Students are working to construct a sustainable campus of homes in Little Falls, N.Y. | Page 8
The women’s cross country team placed second at Paul Short Run in Pennsylvania this weekend. | Page 16
Colleges Nationwide Plan to Launch New Application Platform
Demolition derby
By SAMANTHA ACRICHE Sun Staff Writer
KIKI LI / SUN MULTIMEDIA EDITOR
A group of 80 public and private universities announced plans on Sept. 28 to improve the college admission process by launching a new application platform. The group, which includes all eight Ivy League institutions, is known as the Coalition for Access, Affordability and Success and aims to reshape the traditional approach to admissions and increase educational access for low-income families and underrepresented groups. The coalition formed in response to barriers low-income students often face in the college admissions process. They plan to launch a new application website which they hope will make the process more broadly accessible.
An excavator tears down the remnants of the Chapter House, which was destroyed in a fire on April 14 that also displaced 40 students and destroyed the adjacent apartment building.
See ADMISSIONS page 4
Jury Remains Split in Tan’17 Trial After Days of Deliberation By REBECCA BLAIR Sun Assistant News Editor
Jurors deliberating in the trial of Charles Tan ’17, who faces charges for the murder of his father, told the judge they were unable to reach consensus Tuesday after a sixth day of deliberations. Monroe County Court Judge James Piampiano responded by issuing the jury an “Allen charge,” an instruction for the jury to continue deliberations and a request for those in the minority to reconsider in the hopes of avoiding a hung jury. If the jury cannot eventually reach a unanimous deci-
sion, the judge will have to declare a mistrial and the case will be retried. “Start with a flesh slate,” Piampiano wrote in the Allen charge. “Do not feel bound by how you felt before, whether you favored conviction or acquittal. Have the courage to be flexible.” Tan was arrested last February after his father was discovered shot dead in their Pittsford, New York home, and subsequently charged with second degree murder. During his trial, Tan’s attorneys argued that his father had been abusive to both him and his mother, and that the prosecution failed to prove that Tan ever even held the murder weapon — a
shotgun — according to The Democrat and Chronicle. During their first six days of deliberations, jurors passed the judge nearly two dozen notes asking for additional information or to see evidence. “We’ve seen in earnest how much they have sought to educate themselves during deliberations,” said Assistant District Attorney William Gargan, the prosecutor in the case. While both sides have said they are hoping the jury can reach a verdict, both have vowed to continue on in the event See TRIAL page 4
Medical College Rebrands Ag Quad Renovations to Cost $9.6M
Weill Cornell Medicine reemphasizes discovery,teaching, patient care By ANNIE BUI Sun Managing Editor
of a strategic expansion” that has affected all of WCM’s programs, including the medical college, Weill Cornell Graduate
Weill Cornell Medical College announced Tuesday a new name and “The esteemed brand — Weill Cornell physicians and scientists at Medicine — which will Weill Cornell Medicine will “more comprehensively capture the full scope” of continue to be the institution’s mission. trailblazers.” The new name will bring together the three President Elizabeth Garrett main principles of the institution — “to care, discover and teach” — under School of Medical Sciences and one umbrella, according to Weill Cornell Physician Sarah Smith, director of media Organization, according to the University. relations for WCM. The announcement of the new name is the “culmination See WEILL page 5
By JENNA RUDOLFSKY Sun Contributor
A $9.6 million plan to renovate the infrastructure and landscaping of the Ag Quad will begin the summer of 2016 and is slated to be completed ahead of the 2017-18 academic year. The project will be completed in two phases, with the first phase focused on the infrastructure of the quad and the second phase focused on the landscaping, according to David Cutter, the University’s Landscape Architect. The renovation of the infrastructure, which will begin next summer, will dig up walkways around the quad in order to replace several underground utility corridors, Cutter said. In addition to a new working underground, the renovation plans include the installation of new lighting, additional blue lights for security, a rain garden
and social working spaces for students, Cutter added. In particular, the social working spaces, which will be small plazas in front of Mann Library and Roberts Hall, will have
benches and tables for students to use, Cutter said. “[The Ag Quad has] been abused for the last few years, so See QUAD page 5
COURTESY OF CORNELL UNIVERSITY
Bird’s eye | A rendering depicts the Ag Quad following renovations.