I would like to extend my gratitude to all members of the campus who assisted with an extremely successful Family Weekend. 1750 parents and students participated in a variety of events over the weekend of October 27-29.
Events new to the schedule this year included a Faculty Keynote Address on Friday which featured Jason Hamilton from Biology enlightening our family members on sustainability; on Saturday night the Martin Luther King Jr. Scholars Dinner brought together alumni, parents and students connected to this successful program.
The second annual Parent Keynote address was given by Jerry verDorn, Emmy Award winning soap opera star from CBS’s Guiding Light and currently from ABC’s One Life to Live. Mr. verDorn had the parents laughing, crying, cheering, and spellbound throughout his presentation. Mr. verDorn is the proud parent of Jake ’06 and Peter, an Ithaca College junior.
The highlight of the weekend was clearly our students! The student organization performance showcase and expo had 9 student organizations perform to a standing room only crowd in Emerson Suites. Thank you to these groups for sharing their talent with our families: Amani Gospel Singers, Rhythm n’ Shoes, Ithacapella, IC Hip Hop, ICircus, IC Dance Team, Muevete, IC Cheerleading, and Spit That! and to Cornell Woodson for serving as event emcee.
The Saturday evening Cultural Student Talent Showcase further highlighted our talented students. Emerson Suites was full once again and parents were treated to amazing performances by: Nicole Wright, IC Muevete, Ernie Bell and Sharlene Nichols, Amani Gospel Singers, Jaylene Clark, Soleful Sounds, and Ninoshka De Leon Gill and Maddie Smith. Special thanks to KUUMBA Repertory Theater student organization for coordinating this event.
The talents of our students were further highlighted by the School of Music Concerts which took place Friday night, Saturday night, and Sunday afternoon. Each of these concerts played to a sold-out Ford Hall.
The family members stayed busy learning about Ithaca College at a variety of events including Open Houses held by each of the academic schools; a discussion on the summer reading; a poetry reading at the library; tours of the Circle Apartments; recreational sports events including a 5K walk/run and much, much more.
Special thanks to Conference and Event Services for making sure that the logistics of the many events of the weekend were handled without a hitch; to Facilities for getting things set up and keeping everything looking clean and beautiful; to Catering for keeping everyone well fed; to the many people across campus who planned and organized individual events; and to our students for sharing their time and talents. Without the full cooperation of all members of the College community this event could not be successful. Thanks to all – I know the parents appreciated your hard work and so do I.
