Justin Morrill's lasting impact
Justin Morrill's lasting impact
It was a pleasure to read Carol Kammen's well-researched and thoughtful article about the early years of Cornell ("Prologue," September/October 2012). The importance of our past is often forgotten and marginalized in today's world, where almost every other word and thought is usually tech related. Fortunately, pros such as Ms. Kammen provide a balance in our academic community. Kudos to her for a job well done!
I read with interest the article on the Morrill Land Grant Act. I'm sure a number of Cornellians have been beneficiaries of their forefathers' purchasing of raw federal land through this act. In my case, my mother's great-grandfather started his ranch in San Joaquin County, California, on a land purchase from the State of Virginia to help finance VPI (Virginia Tech). The pioneer farmers/ranchers, as well as the new universities, were winners in these transactions and hastened the development of the West.
100 Candles
Re: "A Literary Century" (Cornelliana, September/October 2012): Having enjoyed my mother's hundredth birthday bash last June, I was pleased to read about M. H. Abrams's. But I hope that by the time I am 100, in 2047, a hundredth birthday will be as ordinary as a fiftieth.
I was happy to see the article on Professor Abrams reaching his hundredth birthday—and apparently still active and healthy. Wonderful.
When I was an undergrad, I remember hearing that Abrams was working on his major opus: a history of metaphor in Western literature. What an enormous undertaking—I wonder if he ever completed it. In any case, I wish him many more productive and healthy years. He was an inspiring teacher.
Dissenting Opinion
Re: "Money Matters (July/August 2012): Although Alan Krueger '83 says, "I try to keep politics out of my job," the entire article is slanted, quite naturally, in support of the Obama Administration and its policies. Krueger cannot be faulted for this, of course. After all, he works for Obama! However, why is the CAM editorial staff comfortable with what can only be referred to as "blatant electioneering" by the magazine at this phase of the election season?
Ed. Note: We're always comfortable featuring Cornellians doing important public service work, regardless of their party affiliation (or lack of one).
NYC Tech and the Humanities
Re: "Getting Technical" (May/June 2012) and other CAM stories about the Cornell NYC Tech campus: President Skorton is to be commended for using his influence as an accomplished scientist and leader of a major university to advocate publicly for the value of the humanities. Writing in The Hill, a newspaper covering the U.S. Congress, Skorton reminded lawmakers that the humanities "are essential to preparing students to adapt to rapidly changing workplaces where careful reading, effective writing, critical and creative thinking, and the capacity to adapt are more important than narrow technical skills, essential for businesses to survive and thrive in international markets, and to our national security. Perhaps most important, the humanities are the cornerstone of understanding what it means to be fully human—an understanding that we ignore at our peril."
I would urge President Skorton and other Cornell leaders to take this message to heart, not only on the main campus in Ithaca but also in developing the new curriculum, faculty, and student body of Cornell NYC Tech. So far, I have not heard of any plans to include humanists in the work of imagining, researching, and developing that will characterize the new campus. President Skorton's own words about the importance of humanists' habits of mind for successful business and government innovation point to the necessity of including them.
Correction—
September/October 2012
Authors, page 18: Due to an error in the alumni database, we published an incorrect year for the awarding of Daniel Mark Fogel's PhD. The correct year is 1976, not 1979.