Membership Check-In

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Since my last message to you in May, did you travel the country (or maybe the world), make your way from the kitchen to the deck to grill some sumptuous repast, or do something else enjoyable? Whatever you did, I hope that it has been fun. After all, the goal for summer is to enjoy it!!

With the summer season now past, the fun doesn’t have to end – but those of us in the cooler climes may have to make some adjustments. No more swimming in the ocean for a while without traveling some distance, and only a few weeks left to enjoy cocktails and al fresco dining on the deck or at a fine dining locale.

Look to your inbox for announcements about upcoming class events in Class of 1974 email messages as well as on our class website .  If you haven’t yet heard, there is a Homecoming event for our class scheduled to take place in October in Ithaca, as well as more RED Talk webinars in the coming months. For additional information on any of these activities, visit the Events page on the class website.

The season has changed and so has the fiscal year. As of July 1, we are in the University’s new (2026) fiscal year and, if you are not on auto-renewal and if you have not yet gotten around to renewing your class membership, now is the perfect time to do so while it is on your mind. This simple step allows us to continue sponsoring activities for you and all of your classmates. You can access the renewal form in the “Pay class dues” section of the page.

 A list of those who have already paid their 2025-26 class dues can be found here. This list was current as of September 2. If your name is not on this list but you believe that you have paid your dues prior to this date, please contact Kate Freyer (kate.freyer@cornell.edu) in Alumni Affairs & Development to resolve the issue.

Until the next time…

RED Talk with Poet Julie Kane ’74–Tuesday, Sept. 16–Register Now

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Classmate Julie Kane , the former Poet Laureate of Louisiana and the 2025 Louisiana Writer Award recipient, is our Class of 1974 RED Talk webinar speaker this coming Tuesday, September 16th at 8pm ET.  Registration details below.  Julie is the author of six books. She’s taught at the high school and college level, and she’s received multiple awards and recognition for her work.  She served as a Fulbright Scholar in Lithuania.

Julie’s writing career started in the early 1970’s when she was a student in Cornell’s innovative creative writing program which continues to be among the top programs in the US for poets. In our webinar, Julie will talk about how Cornell became a hotbed of creative writing.  She will also speak about one of her mentors, the beloved and legendary poetry professor A. R. Ammons  who taught creative writing at Cornell from 1964 to 1998.

Register here for the Sept. 16 webinar featuring Julie Kane ‘74

Learn more about Cornell’s creative writing offerings and history here.

I hope you will join me and fellow classmates for this special talk.  See you Sept. 16.

School Bells Ringing at Cornell, New RED Talk Sept. 16

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Those bells you are hearing are certainly school bells; summer is nearly over around the country and definitely over at Cornell. Our Class of 1974 is gearing up for another busy year, starting with a RED Talk webinar by classmate Julie Kane on Sept 16 at 8pm ET.  Details below.

This is the first week of classes on the Hill. Cornell President Mike Kotlikoff recently sent out a communique:

Welcome to the beginning of the academic year, and welcome to Cornell! I’m glad to be setting out with you on another year of learning, exploration, and discovery, and particularly glad to welcome so many new students from across the country and around the world.

The Cornell Class of 2029 is one of the largest in our history, with 3,862 undergraduates from all 50 U.S. states and 97 countries. Nearly 20% of our first-year students will also be from the first generation in their families to earn a college degree. Together with our thousands of new graduate and professional students, they join a community that has, for 160 years, embodied Ezra Cornell’s vision of “an institution where any person can find instruction in any study”: a world-class university with a land-grant commitment, embracing diversity as a driver of our excellence, and seeking always “to do the greatest good.” 

 Cornell has succeeded, and achieved the stature it has today, because of our rock-solid commitment to our shared values, and to the community that makes our ambitions possible — celebrating our differences and respecting the diversity of opinions, backgrounds, and ideas that make up Cornell.

With uncharacteristically sunny and warm weather in Ithaca the past few weeks, Cornell students have enjoyed a very promising start to the new academic year.  Check out many of Cornell’s social media sites for photos of happy students and parents on campus! (Instagram, Facebook, X)

In Class of 1974 news, we hope you will join the next installment of our Class of 1974 RED Talk webinars on Tuesday, September 16th at 8pm ET, featuring our classmate Julie Kane who was recently named the 2025 Louisiana Writer Award winner. Julie was the Louisiana Poet Laureate from 2011-2013 and is professor emerita of English at Northwestern State University.  Please register for this free virtual talk here.

Bring on the Fall,

Summer Breeze Makes Me Feel Fine…

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Thank you, Seals & Crofts. (I played this 1972 song when I was a WVBR DJ.)  Hope your summer is proving equally enjoyable.

Just thought I’d interrupt briefly to recap what our [Notable] Class accomplished this past academic year. Coming off our 50th Reunion, we offered two more RED Talks.  These were live webinars, hosted by classmate John Foote, with the first one featuring Corey Earle ’07 with an updated version of our time on the hill from ‘70-’74, and the second one featuring classmate John Williams of Frog’s Leap Winery in California. Together, these webinars were viewed by more than 100 of you, so look for this series to continue this fall. If you missed these talks, you can watch the recordings here.

Also, nearly 100 of you participated in Cornell’s Giving Day in March to support our undergraduate scholarship recipients.  And several hundred of you paid your Class dues between last July and this past June.  Thank you!

Our pre-game event at Fall 2024 Homecoming, hosted by classmates Lou and Roberta Bandel Walcer, featured great food and a tour of the Center for Life Science Ventures in Weill Hall.  Lou just retired last month as Director and Founder of that Center.  (A life-long entrepreneur, Lou launched Cornell’s first on-campus incubator in 2011.)

We continue to follow the success of our Scholarship recipients, both of whom graduated in May. Our Class of 1974 scholar, Summer Parker-Hall ‘25, majored in Communication, served as one of our Reunion student clerks, and led the Big Red women’s basketball team.  Our Christopher Reeve ’74 scholar, Ashley Alexander ’25, double-majored in Government and Performing Arts and contributed to both on-stage and backstage roles in productions at Cornell’s Schwartz Center for Performing Arts.

And many of you (classmates) continued to work on completing your Memory Book page.  The Memory Book is a feature we introduced in our 50th Reunion year.  Nearly 700 classmates completed a page in the Book.

Coming this fall! More Class activities!  Stay tuned!

Cornell Matters! It Matters to Me! I Hope it Does to You!

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As the immediate Past President of our Class and just one year after our 50th Reunion, I was asked to provide some reflections as we end this school year.

Very moved by President Kotlikoff’s Reunion State of the University Address and his words that “Cornell is not perfect” but how extraordinary and important it is, I joined the new Cornell Matters Campaign.

Cornell Matters–That got me thinking.  How does Cornell matter to me?  How does it matter to you?  And how can our [Notable] Class of ’74 help it matter more?

At our 50th Reunion our class gave me the most wonderful gift–a beautiful watercolor, Cornell Oak.  I look at it every day and it brings me joy as I think about my time on campus, the friends I made then and the many more since then through our work together and shared love of Cornell and our Class of ’74.

So yes, Cornell matters to me!

If Cornell matters to you, consider joining Cornell Matters.

If our Class of 1974 matters to you, consider paying class dues.  Paid or unpaid, you are forever a member of our class but a little extra cash helps our class do good things.

If your Cornell friends matter to you, check out their pages in our Cornell Class of ’74 50th Reunion Memory Book–hard copy options will be available later this year.

And, because we want to know what matters to you, stay tuned for a class survey coming this Fall.

Like the Cornell Oak, Cornell University and our [Notable] Class of 1974 have deep roots and branches that reach wide.  This matters!

Please be well!

PS: It’s not too late to make a year-end gift to Cornell.  Click here before June 30th.

Cornell is not Perfect

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….but it is extraordinary. These were the words of President Mike Kotlikoff in his State of the University address in Bailey Hall at Reunion this past weekend. I strongly encourage you to take 30 minutes and listen to Mike’s talk. (Fast forward to 19:32.) He tackled, head on, the challenges facing higher ed and Cornell in the current political environment.  He spoke passionately about the vital contributions that Cornell and other U.S. universities are making that have a positive impact on nearly every person in our country and in the world.

Reuntion 2025 – State of the University Address

Universities like Cornell are not a nice-to-have, but rather a must-have.  They should neither be taken for granted nor denigrated. Mike was candid in saying that Cornell, like its peers, can and must do a better job talking about the important work being done by institutions of higher education.  But he was absolutely unapologetic about who and what we are.

Regardless of where you are on the political spectrum, we are all Cornellians. Listen to Mike’s talk and my bet is that you will be a proud Cornellian. And if you want to help ensure Cornell will continue its legacy of being the “land grant college to the world,” sign up for Cornell Matters.

Graduation Time & Campus Photos

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At this time of year it seems the world is filled with caps and gowns and long, sometimes wise (and many times not so much) commencement speeches. On the Hill it was a very cold and wet (call that “soaked”) Cornell commencement weekend for about 6,000 graduates. President Mike Kotlikoff gave his first commencement remarks as president, about the things that make Cornell Cornell—worth a read, right now, because, even half a century (!) after our own graduation, it still speaks directly to us.

Our class can be proud of the fact that we had two exemplary graduates marching: our Class of ’74 Scholar Summer Parker-Hall ’25 (pictured below with Touchdown) and our Christopher Reeve ’74 Scholar Ashley Alexander ’25 (pictured below with Mary Berens ’74 and Paul Feeny). Both young women had a positive, life-changing experience at Cornell and are very appreciative of the support our class provided. This (your) support made a difference!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Commencement marks the end of the 2024-25 academic year—a memorable one in large part for what was going on at the University and in the outside world. To capture the highlights of the year, the Cornell Daily Sun ran a Year in Photos. What’s most interesting about this retrospective is that it is the students’ sense of what made the year special. Channel your inner 20-year-old and take a look.

Finally, for those of you who missed the Class of ’74 RED Talk Redux webinar by John Williams of Frog’s Leap a few weeks ago, here’s the link.

Enjoy the start of summer!

Let’s Go Red!

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Happy Memorial Day!  If you’re looking for something fun to do tomorrow (Monday 5/26) midday, tune into ESPN and watch the Big Red men’s lax team take on the Maryland Terrapins for the national NCAA lacrosse title–1:00pm EDT on ESPN.

To make tomorrow’s game even more interesting, Cornell vs Maryland lacrosse is a storied rivalry—some consider the 1976 championship game be the greatest lacrosse game in NCAA history.

Our Big Red is the number one-ranked lacrosse team in the country and we have the best player in the country, CJ Kirst. And what is most impressive is that we are showing a bunch of big time athletic schools that true scholar-athletes can play the game at the highest level.

(Classmates Peter Kaplan and Bill Howard at yesterday’s semi-finals.)

So fire up the grill, grab your beverage of choice, put on some some red, and cheer for the Big Red!

Let’s Go Red,

PS: To learn more about or relive Cornell’s storied Lacrosse history from our time, check out We Showed Baltimore.  Let’s show them again! #LGR

Spring Check In from Membership Chair Bill Walker

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First, thank you to those who completed the mini survey mentioned in my March message. The information that you provided gives us additional insight into the types of class activities that you would like our class to sponsor or conduct.

So, Spring has sprung, now what?? Are you planning (more) vacations, registering for courses at CAU, making plans to meet up with friends and former classmates, or something else? Whatever it is, be sure to relax and have some fun!!

With the myriad of communications that you receive from Cornell, you may wonder which are from your [Notable] Class and which are from other areas of the University. You can always identify our Class of 1974 communications – both electronic and printed – by the unique class logo at the top. So, if you see the logo, read away! The exception is those who have opted for email messages to be sent in plain text format which, by definition, contains no photos, logos or other graphics.

Regarding communications sent from various areas of the University, as far as I can determine, there is currently no university-wide communication schedule or coordination. Our class, however, has developed a preliminary communication schedule for the purpose of coordinating the distribution of all of the messages (printed and electronic) that come to you from our class. We are working toward a more comprehensive schedule that will avoid overloading your inbox with messages from us at any given time – unless, of course you don’t read your email on a regular basis!

I made reference to issues with the renewal and auto-renewal processes in my March message. As a result of my discussions with Alumni Affairs and Development on that topic, the process to address questions and resolve issues has been simplified. All questions pertaining to renewal or auto-renewal, such as your status (e.g., Is it active?) or related problems, should be directed to Kate Freyer via e-mail (kate.freyer@cornell.edu). Questions regarding class membership plans or strategy should continue to come to me.

A list of class members who are ahead of the game by already renewing their 2025-26 class dues can be found here. This list is current as of 4/30/25. If you have subscribed to the auto-renewal process, your name is not yet on this list as this process does not charge your credit card until after the new fiscal year begins on July 1. A few weeks ago, you should have received my April membership letter via postal mail. If you do not wish to use the online process to renew, you may mail in the dues card that was included with the April letter.

End of Semester Update, Hawk Babies, May 13 Wine Webinar Reminder

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This week marks the end of Spring semester classes.  The Ithaca campus definitely has an end-of-year vibe!  Notable happenings:

  • The number one-ranked men’s lacrosse team in the country: our Big Red (of course!) which beat Princeton on Sunday, in a hard-fought, back-and-forth game, to win the Ivy Tournament Championship and begin its march to the national championship.
  • The hatching of Big Red’s and Arthur’s 2025 brood of red-tailed hawk eyases (look it up!)
  • The news-but-no-clarity on the US government’s threat to pull back $1 billion in research funding from Cornell. President Kotlikoff held a recent town hall to share his thoughts about the ever-evolving situation.  Cornell also signed on to a “Call for Constructive Engagement” letter, with 600 other schools, organized by the AAC&U.

  With spring comes planting season and our classmate John Williams, owner and winemaker of Napa Valley’s iconic Frog’s Leap, tells us the vineyards are in full bloom. Join us Tuesday, May 13 at 8:00 pm ET for a free Zoom talk by John about his 45 years in the wine-making business. (This is a redux of John’s Think Like a Grapevine RED Talk at our 50th Reunion.)  Register here for this sure-to-be-entertaining talk. Note: If you are so inclined, drop by your favorite wine shop and pick up a bottle (or two) of Frog’s Leap to enjoy!

Finally, you should have recently received, via US mail, our invitation to pay your Class of 1974 dues for 2025-26.  Dues help pay for our class website, mailings, class events and more.  Thanks in advance for supporting the class by paying dues.  You can pay online here.

Hope to catch you on the wine webinar next week.