College Shorts Cornell Still Doesn't Know How E-mail Works

Author: Andrea Gissing

E-mail Error Embarasses Cornell

Five-hundred-and-fifty high school students were given the gift of a second chance last Wednesday. Unfortunately, it was the result of an accidentally sent e-mail message from Cornell University's college admissions office and was quickly retracted. The office sent welcoming letters to 1,700 early-decision applicants, including 550 who had already been rejected in the December decision.
The university promptly followed-up with an e-mail admitting that a mistake had been made. The university offered its apologies "for any confusion and distress [the previous] message has caused." The letter said that the congratulatory e-mail was the result of a "systems coding error." Cornell officials also stated that the school had failed to meet its goal of treating all applicants "with sensitivity and respect."
According to college admissions officials, mistakes at admissions offices are not uncommon as many offices process thousands of applications within a few weeks. What makes this incident extraordinary is the number of students affected.
The Dean of Undergraduate Admissions Angela Griffin-Jones said she was notified of the error at 9 a.m. She said that the office had been behind on sending out the letters of congratulations. In the rush to send them out in a timely fashion, a clerical staff member entered the wrong data to download the names.
Griffin-Jones said that this is the first year that the Cornell admissions office has used internet capabilities so extensively in their admissions correspondence with students.

Source: The New York Times


Winning World Trade Center Memorial Designed by U. Penn Faculty

The winners of the international competition for the new design of the World Trade Center in New York City are University of Pennsylvania architects Daniel Libeskind and Gary Hack. Libeskind is a Paul Philippe Cret Professor of Architecture as well as the principal architect of Studio Daniel Libeskind. Hack is the dean of the university's Graduate School of Fine Arts and the chairman of the Philadelphia City Planning Commission.
The plan they entered was selected out of 435 submissions because it was considered "visionary." It creates a "powerful and moving setting for a permanent memorial" while still being a feasible design to construct. The project concentrates on the symbolic space at Ground Zero, intending to represent the city's mourning for the victims and the area's rebirth. The plan includes a spire rising 1776 feet, which would make it the world's tallest building. Additionally, the buildings are arranged so that every year on Sept. 11 a sunbeam will illuminate the site from 8:46 a.m. to 10:38 a.m., the time frame from when the first plane hit to when the second tower fell.
The memorial's plan will be finalized on the anniversary of the World Trade Center attacks this year. It is predicted that the entire plan will take a decade to be constructed.

Source: U-Wire


Victims of the Nightclub Fire Honored

Monday night, hundreds of people gathered to honor and pray for the victims of the Rhode Island nightclub fire that killed 97. The fire was ignited by pyrotechnics used by the band Great White during their performance at The Station nightclub in West Warwick, R.I., on Feb. 20.
The "Statewide Interfaith Memorial Service for the Families and Victims of the West Warwick Fire" was officiated by leaders from the Christian, Jewish and Muslim faiths.
Gov. Donald Carcieri also came to pay his respects. Carcieri was also praised for his handling of the tragedy during the service. "This is a deeply sorrowful time. We have suffered a great tragedy and the depth of that pain is shared by the whole state," he said.
Carcieri also praised the efforts of firefighters, rescue and medical workers, clergy and the community for their support. "We have seen our community unite like never before. This has been an entire state reaching out and embracing its own," he said.
There was a prayer vigil at the West Warwick Civic Center following the service.

Source: U-Wire