Lit
redemption
Seven senior writers showcase literary works in inaugural narrative nonfiction magazine
Thursday M ay 5 , 2 0 1 1
LAST task
Senior attack’s career gets second chance on South Hill, page 23
Five opportunities seniors should take before leaving Ithaca,
page 13
The Ithacan
A kind
I t h a c a , N . Y.
Volum e 7 8 , I s s u e 2 8
by jacqueline palochko opinion editor
When senior Jessica Arnone heard the news Sunday night that Osama bin Laden, the mastermind behind the 9/11 attacks, had been killed, she was ecstatic. On a Tuesday morning nearly 10 years ago, Arnone’s seventh grade classmates were being pulled to the principal’s office individually. In Manalapan, N.J., almost everyone had at least one parent commuting into New York City. And on Sept. 11, 2001, the students of Manalapan-Englishtown Middle School were being told the fate of their parents. But Arnone, now a senior at Ithaca College, wasn’t called down. She assumed everything was fine — until she went home to find her mother and two sisters crying. Her father, an electrician at Merrill Lynch in the financial district of New York City — blocks away from the World Trade Center — was missing. For three days, Arnone and her family didn’t know if her father was alive. Finally, he was able to call them. When the first plane struck the tower at 8:46 a.m. her father went into the basement, losing cellphone service. After three days, he was able to get out of the debris but not leave the city. Bridges and tunnels had been closed, making it impossible for anyone to leave or enter. But a few days later, he was able to make it back to his family.
of closure
Students react to death of Osama bin Laden
See bin laden, page 5 A large, jubilant crowd reacts to the news of Osama bin Laden’s death Tuesday in New York City, adjacent to ground zero. Jason DeCrow/associated press
Students’ grades continue to rise at colleges across the nation By elizabeth sile editor in chief
Above average is the new average for grading in higher education. While mathematically impossible, this situation is a reality at most colleges and universities across the country. The distribution of grades now swings heavily in favor of As and Bs, and GPAs continue to rise. This grade inflation has been the topic of heated debate in higher education for decades, causing many to question student culture and ability, and what it means to get an A in 2011. Nationwide, the average GPA at both private and public institutions has risen. According to data from 80 schools compiled by Stuart Rojstaczer, a former geophysics professor at Duke University who has researched grading trends for journals and his website, Gradeinflation. com, the average GPA has risen from 2.93 in the 1991-92 academic year to 3.11 in the 2006-07 year. Of more than 130 colleges and universities for which he has the most recent data, more than 43 percent of all grades are As on average. “A is the most common grade now by a lot,” he said. “The gap between [As and Bs] keeps rising. Professors keep grading easier and easier every year.”
Ithaca withholds data With national statistics for average GPAs and grades on the rise, it’s possible
this trend persists at Ithaca College. In 1999, the number of As awarded at Ithaca College had risen by 13 percent in 19 years to 42 percent of all grades. Today, the college refuses to release any data about the distribution of grades at the college. Carol Henderson, associate provost for academic policy and administration, said the college will not release specific data on grade distribution at the college since 1999 but said she did not believe grade inflation to be a problem at the college. Registrar Brian Scholten said he did not have applicable data or a basis for comparison with past data. Yet, past college administrations have been more forthcoming in providing data on the distribution of grades at the college. In 1980, then-registrar John Stanton began tracking grade distribution at the college out of personal interest. Under President Peggy Williams, Stanton released the data to The Ithacan in 1999. From his research, Stanton found that in 1980, the percentage of As was 28.8, Bs was 39 percent and Cs was 18.7 percent. All other grades made up 13.6 percent of grades. By 1999, As rose to 42 percent, Bs and Cs fell to 35.1 and 11. 4 percent, respectively, and all other grades fell to 11.5 percent.
See inflation, page 4
rounding up
Ithaca College data shows an increase in As and Bs given from 1980 to 1999.
2% 2.2%
1.3%
1.3% 1.4%
3.9%
2.7%
1.4%
4.2%
3.3% 31.8%
28.8% 18.7% 39%
1980
A (3.7-4.3) B (2.7-3.3) C (1.7-2.3)
16.9%
1.5%
0.9% 3% 3.6%
2.5%
F (0) Incomplete
42% 11.4%
D (0.7-1.3) Pass
41.3%
1990
1999
35.1%
2011
?
Withdraw
Check out Year in Review, The Ithacan’s year-end magazine, free on campus. find more. online. www.theithacan.org
source: John stanton