PCCW eNEWSLETTER

Winter 2006

WELCOME BACK. This is the second edition of the PCCW eNewsletter, which is designed to keep our members up-to-date with each other’s jobs, travels, families, activities, musings and anything else we want to share. We’re still calling it the eNewsletter, but are looking for a name with razzle-dazzle. Any and all suggestions welcome to Sally Jacobsen at sallyjacobsen@optonline.net.

WE CAN HARDLY WAIT! Our annual meeting is only weeks away - March 30 - April 2 in Ithaca. The theme will address sustainable development and is titled, Cornell: Building Today for a Better Tomorrow, Cornell Women Laying the Foundation.

Registration on Thursday will be extended until 7:30 p.m. to accommodate long distance travelers. But do try to get to the Statler by 6 p.m. because we will be kicking the weekend off with a wine tasting directed by the very knowledgeable and entertaining Giuseppi Pezzotti of Hotel School fame. Dinner will feature Tommy Bruce, who will speak on the “Branding Cornell” initiative.

Friday sessions will include presentations on sustainable development from the personal (estate planning) to the local (Cornell and Ithaca) to the global community. Lunch will be at the new West Campus dorm with a tour and information on what makes that dorm “green.” Afternoon meetings will feature green developments in design in business, buildings and landscaping. That will be followed by the always popular member introductions and dinner with a surprise speaker.

On Saturday, committee meetings will be held in the morning, and the annual lunch, organized by the Student Life committee, will be held with upper-class women. The afternoon will feature trips to a variety of campus sustainable development initiatives and then the Affinito-Stewart Grant recipients and leadership panel. Dinner will wrap up that day’s events.

Sunday morning will be devoted to networking and committee chair reports and a farewell from President Margie Turner. Of course, each day will begin with the (optional) campus walk led by Jane Brody.

All the most current registration and program information is available at http://pccw.alumni.cornell.edu/events/spring06/default.html.

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NEW MEMBERS. We will welcome more than a dozen new members to the annual meeting. Their bios will be on the PCCW website shortly.

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FALL REGIONAL MEETINGS. Between the middle of October and the middle of November, 105 members - more than a third of our membership - attended one of the 10 meetings held across the country. Jill Siegel, of the Alumnae Relations Committee, pulled together a summary of the events and included photos for many of them.

Read about the events and see the slideshow at http://pccw.alumni.cornell.edu/events/fall05/default.html.

IT’S NOT TOO EARLY to start thinking of ideas for next fall’s meetings. Please send them along to Anita Miller, chair of the Alumnae Relations Committee at milleranit@aol.com.

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IOWA JUMP CORNELL ON NEWS. The announcement of Cornell's 12th president on Saturday, January 21 involved a bit more drama than the University had anticipated, for reasons that speak well for the Search Committee's choice. It seems word of Dr. David Skorton's plans to leave the University of Iowa so startled his fans across the state that someone let it slip. So on Friday, January 20, the day before Cornell trustees officially elected Dr. Skorton, Iowa media had the story. Because of a press embargo, Cornell declined to confirm the news until a scheduled noon press conference on Saturday. Even so, the story appeared on the Daily Sun's website on Friday night and in the Ithaca Journal and New York Times on Saturday -- as Dr. Skorton and his wife were on their way to Ithaca.

Here are a few of the comments reported by Clare Kellert of KCRG-TV in Iowa City on Friday night: "Those who work closely with him say Dr. Skorton has been an integral part of Iowa’s economic growth. And President Skorton has been a stand-out university leader. And off campus, many call him the best salesman for the entire technology corridor. 'He was a catalyst in bringing Cedar Rapids and Iowa City together to operate as one unified region. It's no wonder people are sad to see him go. Although he's only been president for three years, Skorton has a long history in eastern Iowa. President Skorton has been a part of the University of Iowa for 25 years. Many who worked with him say Iowa’s loss is Cornell's gain."

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Cornell FRESH Program. Submitted by the Student Life Committee. A principal element of PCCW’s mission is to provide opportunities for career counseling, internships, networking, and mentoring for Cornell’s undergraduate women. To that end, we have challenged ourselves to provide the broadest possible participation of PCCW members in the university’s extern programs. If you can, and have not signed up to participate in the FRESH program over Spring Break, we urge you to do so. The FRESH Program involves hosting a freshman at your workplace for one or two days during spring break. Sponsors may also offer informational interviews if their current work setting does not easily accommodate job shadowing. We encourage members who are retired or in transition, as well as those actively employed, to participate. To participate, go to: http://www.career.cornell.edu/alumni/volunteerOpportunities/jobShadowing.html.
Program: Spring Break (March 18-25, 2006), Recruitment: December through January. Please submit your applications as soon as possible. The listing of sites goes up on Jan. 24. It will be updated regularly until Feb. 6, the date that FRESH applications are due. Questions? 607-255-9046.

More information on PCCW committees is at the end of the individual contributions.

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MEMBER CONTRIBUTIONS. Home and Garden TV? Multicultural books? International consulting? What are our member up to now? Read all about it at http://pccw.alumni.cornell.edu/news/newsletters/winter06_members.html.

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YOUR GIFTS AT WORK … Supporting Women at Cornell, submitted by Margie Turner. PCCW members continue to be very generous in giving to our alma mater – so much so that two major endowments have been established in our name.

The first is the Affinito Stewart Grants (A-S Grants) established by our founders, Lilyan Affinito and Pat Carey Stewart in 1992. This Endowment currently totals $661,217. It supports competitive grants that provide annual funding to assist women faculty who are early in the tenure process at the University. We know that these dedicated teachers face considerable hurdles in the tenure process. Not only do they carry a teaching load, they must undertake successful research projects and in many cases deal with maternity leaves and family responsibilities. Recipients have told us that our grants, which support their research process, have been a key factor in receiving tenure. The A-S grants range from $1,000 – $12,500. Since their inception, more than $307,500 has been awarded to 134 women at Cornell.

Second are the PCCW Leadership Grants, funded by annual pledges and gifts of PCCW members. This endowment fund currently totals $1,010,315. Its grants range from $3,000 to $20,000. Established in 2004 with gifts by members and friends to the previous Cornell Capital Campaign, the Leadership Grants support the mission of PCCW by expanding and strengthening our relationships with women students and young alumnae; increasing the number of women in tenured faculty positions and deanships; and providing counsel to the University on key issues affecting women. These competitive grants fund a wide range of projects that provide research experiences to aspiring undergraduate scientists, support their extra-curricular and sports initiatives and offer assistance with personal challenges they may be experiencing at the University. For instance, last year the grants included:

• Providing research support for undergraduate women in the Colleges of A&S, Agriculture and Engineering,
• Assisting the Cornell Women’s Chorus in its efforts to enrich the chorus by funding the basics of a development effort (computer, software, etc.) and, even providing a mentor to insure that the program would be successful,
• Supporting Leadership Program initiatives for students in HE,
• Contributing support to reduce serious health issues among female students at the University, particularly in areas of high risk drinking and self-injurious behavior.

In addition to providing funding for these programs, PCCW members select each year’s recipients through our Grants Committee. Chairs Elaine Abelson and Maryam Wehe welcome your participation on the committee. If you would like to help contact them via email at pccw-mailbox@cornell.edu.

See an article on the Affinito-Stewart Grants in Engineering Magazine: http://www.engineering.cornell.edu/news/engineering-magazine/archives/cem-fall-2005/Grant-for-Graphics.cfm

And here’s the news release Cornell sent out in June about the grants:

Cornell alumnae group awards three research grants ITHACA, N.Y. — The President’s Council of Cornell Women (PCCW), an alumnae group that serves as an advisory council to Cornell University’s president, has awarded its 2005 research grants to three women faculty members. Established in 1992 to help advance the careers of women in academia through support of research leading to tenure, PCCW’s Affinito-Stewart Grant Program has presented more than $462,000 to 151 women at Cornell. The program is named to honor the group’s founders, Lilyan Affinito, a 1953 graduate of Cornell, and Patricia Carry Stewart, a 1950 graduate. Both are presidential councilors, trustees emeritae, and members of the Cornell University Council. This year the three grant recipients will receive a total of $33,000 in funding from PCCW. Grant applications were reviewed by a committee of 26 faculty members who rated them according to scholarly merit, research design, feasibility and relevance to promotion and tenure. Nine PCCW members, most of whom are academics from other universities, reviewed the faculty-rated proposals and awarded the grants. Non-academic reviewers focused on how critical a role the project would play in receiving tenure and whether other sources of funding might be available. Faculty members who received 2005 Affinito-Stewart grant awards are: Kavita Bala, assistant professor, Computer Science, for "Constrained Texture Synthesis for Computer Graphics" ; Michelle Campos, assistant professor, Near Eastern Studies, for "Palestine Between Empire and Nation: 'Civic Ottomanism' in a Shared Homeland, 1908-14"; Nancy Wells, assistant professor, Design & Environmental Analysis and The Bronfenbrenner Life Course Center, for "The Effect of the Environment on Obesity in Low-Income Families: Influences on Physical Activity and Diet". PCCW was established in 1990 with the mission of advancing the involvement and leadership of women students, faculty, staff and alumnae within Cornell and throughout its many constituent communities. There are 305 members.

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CORNELL CHORUS, Nancy McAfee writes: My charge was to oversee the Cornell Chorus's use of the PCCW grant funds ($10,000) and to help them think through strategies and future directions. I began meeting with Chorus leaders last summer and quickly put them together with Carol True-Palmer in the Development Department of the Arts and Sciences College under whose jurisdiction music groups fall. We wanted to make sure the chorus' development efforts meshed with those of the university and that their efforts were expended with maximum efficiency. We had two meetings with the undergraduate women, Carol True-Palmer and Scott Tucker, the director of both the Men's Glee Club and the Chorus to identify a plan. The most pressing need is to identify and cultivate Chorus alumni in order to grow the Chorus endowment. To do that the Chorus needed to purchase and upgrade technology equipment, update their alumni database and create a long-range plan for alumni cultivation. The PCCW money has been used to purchase a new computer and a copy/scanner, and hire someone to update the Chorus database by adding information from the university database. Since data cannot be directly imported from one database to the other, improving the Chorus information involves a time-consuming - but necessary - transfer of data. While it may seem odd to spend $10,000 largely on labor, I and the others believe it will put this group in a splendid position to capitalize on alumni gifting opportunities in the future. This will help them build an endowment, which will in turn insure a secure future for the Chorus. The PCCW grant has been the catalyst for the kind of planning that will put the group on sound footing. Besides material support, it has really helped them by providing a sense that they are valued and important to the University community.

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REACHING OUT TO CORNELL WOMEN STUDENTS IN D.C. As part of the PCCW Challenge to reach out to Cornell students, four Washington-based PCCW found a formula that works for them and the students. PCCW members are Eileen Barkas Hoffman, Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service; Terri Ann Lowenthal, consultant; Laura Wilkinson, Weil, Gotshal and Manges LLP; and Carolyn Jacobson, Coalition of Labor Union Women, who served as moderator. In November, they held their third “Life After Cornell: Getting There From Here” panel discussion with Cornell in Washington students. A recent alumna, Jill Keller, DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary LLP, who had participated in the Cornell Summer in Washington, was added to the group. The brown bag lunch is hosted by Cornell Center in Washington Director Linda Jarschauer Johnson. Seven students attended the session, which is informal and conversational.

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SPEAKERS BUREAU, The Alumni Relations Committee is organizing a Speakers Bureau, made up of PCCW members willing to be speakers or panelists at PCCW events or Cornell events in their city or region or around the country (when you're traveling for other reasons). As this is a voluntary activity, no honorarium is available. We hope that the opportunity to share your expertise with other Cornellians will be satisfaction enough. Please consider signing up for this new initiative. For more information, contact Nancy Mills at NLM5@cornell.edu. We aim to have the Speakers Bureau up and running by February 2006. If you are interested, please complete the Speakers' Bureau questionnaire at http://pccw.alumni.cornell.edu/docs/speaker.doc.

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