Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
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H1N1 influenza follow-up from President David Skorton
3:15 p.m., Sept. 16, 2009 Dear members of the Cornell community: I am writing to follow up on our email of last week regarding the H1N1 influenza and its impact on the Cornell community. As you know, we suffered the loss of one of our students last Friday from complications related to H1N1 influenza. The…
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Statement from President David Skorton on death of student
5:30 p.m., Sept. 11, 2009 Dear members of the Cornell community: It is with deepest sadness and regret that I inform you of the loss of one of our students today at Cayuga Medical Center. Warren J. Schor, 20, died of complications related to H1N1 influenza. The university has been in close contact with Warren’s…
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Flu update
8 p.m., Sept. 7, 2009 Dear Colleague, H1N1 flu is on the rise on college campuses, just as predicted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the health care community. Cornell is no exception. Gannett has seen or spoken with over 291 students with influenza-like illness in the past two weeks,…
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Flu update for students
Sept. 4, 2009 Dear Cornell student: H1N1 flu is on the rise on college campuses, just as predicted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the health care community. Cornell is no exception. Gannett has seen or spoken with more than 140 students with influenza-like illness in the past two weeks.…
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President Skorton issues welcome at start of new academic year
Aug. 26, 2009 Dear Cornellians: Welcome to a new academic year at Cornell. I want especially to welcome the new members of our community to the Cornell family. It’s also a pleasure to greet returning students and faculty and staff colleagues. Reflecting on last year’s enormous challenges and accomplishments allows me another opportunity to share…
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David Skorton’s year end statement
July 2, 2009 Dear Cornellians, Following an eventful year at Cornell and in anticipation of another that looks to be equally challenging and promising, I want to thank you for the work we have done together and to share with you my pride in the accomplishments of our entire community, in Ithaca, New York City,…
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Cornell issues alert about theft of computer containing personal data
June 23, 2009 Cornell University Vice President for University Communications Tommy Bruce issued the following statement today. Cornell University has learned that a university-owned computer that was stolen in early June contained the names and Social Security numbers of approximately 45,000 current and former staff and students and some dependents. The university is not disclosing…
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University issues statement on local tragedy
June 5, 2009 New York State Police confirmed today that the woman whose body was found in an Ithaca park June 3 was Caroline Coffey, a researcher in biomedical engineering at Cornell University. Troopers also confirmed that Coffey’s husband, Blazej Kot, a graduate student in information science at Cornell, was hospitalized after a short car…
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Board approves moving forward on Milstein Hall
May 24, 2009 Cornell University President David Skorton issued the following statement after the university’s board of trustees announced actions this past weekend that include moving forward with construction of Paul Milstein Hall and the Herbert F. Johnson Museum of Art’s extension. The Cornell Board of Trustees at its recent meeting unanimously supported my recommendation…
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Travel advisory
April 29, 2009 In response to the growing concern over the swine flu (H1N1 influenza), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that U.S. travelers avoid all nonessential travel to Mexico. Accordingly, Cornell University strongly advises against travel to any country appearing on the CDC travel health warning list. Please be aware that…
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Cornell’s Gannett Health Services issues precautions about swine flu
April 27, 2009 Dr. Janet Corson-Rikert, executive director of Gannett Health Services, issued the following statement about precautions to take regarding the swine flu. News reports of cases of human infection with swine influenza have naturally created public health concerns among members of the Cornell community. The university’s Gannett Health Services is working closely with…
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Update on construction projects
April 15, 2009 Earlier this year, I extended the construction pause, instituted on November 3, 2008, in order to conduct a thorough review of the priority of new capital projects and maintenance projects and re-calibrate the university’s capital budget to better align funding sources and proposed uses. Except for projects already ongoing at the time…
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Staff Retirement Incentive application acceptance
April 10, 2009 I am pleased to announce that the university leadership has approved funding for all 432 applications to the Staff Retirement Incentive (SRI) program. Prospective retirees will receive a written notification delivered through the U.S. postal service to their respective homes addresses. In addition, all applicants received an e-mail notification today that includes…
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Cornell announces actions to lessen pressure on endowment
March 6, 2009 Dear Members of the Cornell Community: I write to update you on the state of our university as the economy worsens around the world and at home. Even though Cornell’s financial situation has become more challenging, I remain confident in our collective ability to re-imagine the university in ways that will not…
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Cornell announces retirement incentives for long-service staff
Feb. 27, 2009 To the Cornell Community: Today President David Skorton joins me in announcing two new voluntary retirement programs available to our long-serving staff that will provide them with meaningful options during these difficult financial times, while also helping to reduce overall spending at the university. The national and global economy has continued to…
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Vandalism on the Arts Quad
Feb. 12, 2009 President David Skorton today issued the following statement on events on the Arts Quad over the past few days involving the theft and vandalism of an installation denouncing the violence in Gaza. It’s often said and it bears repeating, especially on issues deeply felt on all sides: As an institution of higher…
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Trustees approve budget cuts to safeguard strength of Cornell
Jan. 25, 2009 To the Cornell community, Following several months of planning by the university leadership and thorough discussions at its meeting last week in New York City about the best ways to manage the university’s finances in the face of the continuing economic crisis gripping the nation, Cornell’s Board of Trustees yesterday voted unanimously…
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Comments on New York Governor David Paterson’s 2009 State of the State Address
Jan. 8, 2009 President David J. Skorton: By protecting the core of the Empire State’s higher education infrastructure, Gov. Paterson has astutely signaled that our children’s education is key to the future of New York. He clearly understands the long-term economic advantages that higher education will provide the state. The bottom line is that New…
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University statement on Department of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics
Dec. 22, 2008 The College of Engineering today announced that the Department of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics (TAM) will merge into the Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (MAE). Effective January 1, 2009, the Director of MAE will assume responsibility for all TAM resource decisions, including budget and space allocation. Engineering Dean Kent Fuchs…
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2008 end of year message
Dec. 16, 2008 Dear Colleagues: I write to update you on Cornell’s recent financial challenges and to share a few thoughts as 2008 passes into 2009. Since my last communication, when I previewed the scope of the challenge brought on by the financial crisis on Wall Street, the markets have continued to deteriorate and the…
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Statement from President Skorton
Oct. 30, 2008 Members of the Cornell community: I write to update you on our handling of the current financial situation and to invite you to a series of public fora to discuss our way forward. The recent meeting of the Cornell University Board of Trustees and subsequent meetings of university and collegiate leadership have…
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Reminder: Expression of personal and institutional opinion
Oct. 27, 2008 Dear member of the Cornell community, Recently, we distributed an email to the Cornell community, requesting that you exercise caution when using university resources, including e-mail, to express personal partisan or political opinions. If read literally and out of context, portions of the memo would prohibit common uses of university resources (e.g.,…
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Engineering Quad posters
Oct. 23, 2008 The following statement is from Cornell University Vice President for University Communications Tommy Bruce on a recent incident on Cornell’s Engineering Quad. Early Wednesday morning, Oct. 22, a College of Engineering staff member noticed signs posted along a walkway on the Engineering Quad and removed them out of concern that proper authorizations…
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Ensuring continued excellence at Cornell
Sept. 26, 2008 I write to share some thoughts and information regarding our university at a time of financial volatility in our state and nation. Recent news raises concerns about our personal finances as well as those of the university. From the outset, let me underscore the overall soundness of our university’s financial position. Nevertheless,…
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Statement on intolerance
Oct. 11, 2007 President David J. Skorton acknowledges constraints imposed by global economic upheaval, but says solutions must preserve Cornell’s high standards in academics and employment. Recent incidents in our community and elsewhere serve to remind us that intolerance remains a continuing problem in American society. Despite the progress we have made as a campus…
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