Committee will look at Slope Day restructuring

By Jacquie Powers

Susan Murphy, Cornell vice president for student and academic services and chair of the President's Council on Alcohol and Other Drugs, has appointed a committee to develop recommendations for restructuring Slope Day into a safer, healthier event.

Slope Day is the traditional celebration of the end of the school year that takes place on the university's Libe Slope. In the past, the event has been marred by safety problems, many related to the abuse of alcohol. The Slope Day Steering Committee, chaired by Dean of Students Kent Hubbell and comprising students, faculty and staff, will seek public input on its preliminary recommendations before submitting a final report to President Hunter Rawlings in February. The committee is part of the President's Council on Alcohol and Other Drugs.

"We recognize that Slope Day is popular and fosters a sense of school spirit," Murphy said. "In order to preserve this celebration, significant changes must be made to minimize the risk of alcohol-related problems."

The charge to the committee specifies that the proposed strategies should:

• provide a festive opportunity for students, staff and faculty to celebrate together;
• ensure public health and safety, including a dramatically reduced risk of alcohol-related medical emergencies;
• establish a climate of civility consistent with the value of freedom and responsibility;
• comply with New York state law, city of Ithaca ordinances and Cornell policy;
• restrict attendance to members of the Cornell community and their guests; and
• minimize interference with class instruction.

The committee also was instructed to address the problem of gatherings with alcohol that occur at locations off Libe Slope before, during and after the event. The committee's recommendations are to include means for meeting the criteria in the charge by Slope Day 2002 and assuring their fulfillment by Slope Day 2003.

Members of the committee include:

• Students: Uzo Asonye, president of the Student Assembly; Scott Belsky, Student Assembly Finance Commission; Tamara Webster, Multicultural Greek Letter Council; Jason B. Conn, president, Interfraternity Council; Mark Greenbaum, Student Assembly; Diane Horey, Slopefest/SOS; Pete Ippel, Renaissance; Abeezer Tapia, Student Assembly; and Trevor Tarpley, Interfraternity Council.

• Faculty: Robert Babcock, professor emeritus, policy analysis and management; Andrew Bass, professor and chair of the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior; and Sheila Danko, associate professor of design and environmental analysis.

• Staff: Peggy Beach, associate director, Campus Life; Catherine Holmes, associate dean of students; Tim Marchell, director of alcohol policy initiatives; Ricardo Morales, associate director, Office of Minority Educational Affairs; Suzy Nelson, associate dean of students, Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs; Curtis Ostrander, deputy chief, Cornell Police; Joe Scaffido, assistant dean of students, Office of Student Activities; and Sgt. Kathy Zoner, Cornell Police.