December 2005

Steen plans to paint his kitchen. He has one gallon of robin’s egg blue paint. Steen can paint the room by himself in four hours. Mary has agreed to help Steen and is bringing three gallons of sea mist green paint. On her own, Mary could paint the room in two hours (she’s just that much more efficient). If Steen and Mary mix their gallons of paint and work together, in how many hours will Marco arrive with the coffee and donuts?

The answer to this and other equally compelling questions can be yours if you enroll in one of Cornell’s stellar MBA programs.

It’s about Time
Nate Rupp, Angela Horne, and Scott Wicks have taken inspiration from Xin Li, Director of Service Innovations and Resource Planning in CUL, Cornell EMBA ’05, and embarked on the road to their own MBA degrees. It is a journey. Imagine having a very full personal and professional life. Then add another twenty-five to thirty hours each week of reading, homework, classes, team meetings, quizzes, and projects, and you get a sense of the level of commitment involved when pursuing a degree while working full time.

It’s about Space
Luckily, the three of us were able to take advantage of a compressed, seventeen-month program offered for the first time as a two-institution, multi-location, international Boardroom Executive Masters of Business Administration degree. This degree is offered by Cornell University’s Johnson Graduate School of Management in partnership with Queens University School of Business in Kingston, Ontario.

The Program boasts:
Boardroom sessions are delivered by state-of-the-art, real-time, interactive videoconferencing—an exciting learning technology that offers opportunities unavailable in a traditional classroom. This technology is used to link Boardroom Learning Teams located in selected cities in the United States and Canada.

There are several “boardroom” teams across North America—two teams in Vancouver, one in Calgary, two in Toronto, one in Ottawa, one in Montreal, one in Rochester, one in Manhattan and, most importantly for the three of us, one in Ithaca.

It’s about Time
The program consists of Saturday classes—three Saturdays of class, one Saturday off (usually), rinse and repeat (!). Seven of us come in at an unpleasantly early hour on Saturday morning to take part in the day’s two class lectures. Some of the boardroom teams meet before class at 8:00 or 8:30, start class at 9:30, break for lunch at 1:30, resume afternoon class at 2:30, and then call it a day at 6:30. But there’s more. In addition to the three Saturdays on, one Saturday off schedule, at three points in the program all participants from Canada and the United States gather together over a two-week period to participate in a 24/7 intense immersion of business learning experience. The curriculum covers several key learning themes: management fundamentals, strategic thinking, international business, innovation and entrepreneurship, corporate social responsibility, and leadership.

By the time we finish in November 2006 (less than a year to go, not that we are counting down!), we will have learned how to use statistical methods to plan which direction an organization should take, how to predict whether or not a new product or service will succeed, how to evaluate financial instruments, how to read a company’s annual report, why successful teamwork is important, and why some business choices should be made instead of others. We will be able to use all these tools in leading and setting the strategic direction for an organization.

Team is Only Sometimes a Four-Letter Word
When you’re sitting in your fourth meeting of the day and wish you didn’t have to talk to another human, do you sometimes remember the saying "there is no “I” in team" and wish you could scream? Wouldn’t it be so much easier if we could do everything ourselves and not need to collaborate on projects? Do you find yourself fantasizing occasionally about how efficient everything would be if there were fewer meetings and fewer teams?

If you answered “yes”, then the Boardroom EMBA might not be for you. As soon as we arrived in Kingston for the first week of EMBA boot camp, we were assigned to the teams we would work with for the next seventeen months. Unlike the students enrolled in Cornell’s Palisades EMBA and residential MBA classes, the Boardroom students remain with their specific Boardroom team for the entire seventeen months. Our teams’ time together will culminate in fall 2006 with the completion of an international business plan that will involve travel to at least one global destination (and possibly several). Teams range in size from five to nine members. Three students have left the program since June, and we currently have sixty students, eight of whom are women. Some teams have no women, and one team has three.

Nate is part of the “virtual” Ithaca/Rochester team, nicknamed “Virtually Gorges,” comprised of two Cornell employees and three executives from Rochester. Scott and Angela are members of the Ithaca-based team, the cleverly-named FingerLakesFive, and they work closely with two executives from BorgWarner and one executive from Lockheed Martin. Teams are comprised of individuals with vastly different backgrounds, goals, and personalities. Sounds a lot like CUL, doesn’t it?

To help the teams reach “high performance,” a good deal of support is provided from the first day of classes in Kingston. We were led through a series of excellent team-building exercises that might sound a bit absurd but were extremely powerful. One of our favorites was called “Bombardment.” Think past the war analogy and consider this scenario that occurred on day two:

Each of us prepared a short summary of our top accomplishments, things we are most proud of, often events not related just to our careers but also our families and overall life path. We then sat in a very close circle and someone was chosen to be first to reveal this very positive overview of his/her life. A paper bulls-eye was placed on his/her lap. (Remember, at this point we had known the other members of our teams for fewer than twenty-four hours. Feeling nervous yet?) Then, the rest of the group kneeled one-by-one in front of the person who had just shared their story of accomplishment. (You must be nervous by now! We all were!) Each kneeling person had taken short notes on small stickers while listening to the other person’s story and now placed those notes onto the bulls-eye. The stickers were meant to capture the essence of each of us.

This was repeated for each person and it was an amazingly effective way to build a team. We really felt as though we would do anything for the others and still remember comments made during that session; this helps us focus on the positive when our team is fracturing a bit from stress. One of the best aspects of the Boardroom program has been its concentration on our individual strengths. Yes, each of us is trying to improve our overall skills, but we’re also solidifying the areas in which we already excel. This is a model that might be well used in workplaces in general.

A key element of our team-building sessions was the development of a set of team “norms.” These are unique to each team but share certain common points. Personal expectations (especially around grades) and accountability, how and when we will communicate, and related details were discussed at length as the teams were being formed. We’re not always keen to go back and challenge each other when a norm is broken, but we do try to adhere to the team’s ground rules.

Our team’s success depends on many factors, not least of which is organization and flexibility. FingerLakesFive, for example, has met most Sundays from 8:00 to noon or so. We’ve also had a weeknight in-person meeting at Sage Hall or via teleconference. This helps us stay on top of class assignments (which are usually weekly and not trivial in nature). Balancing our work schedules with our team and school demands has been, for some of us at least, the most difficult aspect of the program. Unlike our undergrad (or even previous master’s) days, we don’t have the luxury of studying all day. Work, family, and school must be juggled simultaneously and constantly. That the class content is so new and challenging is an added distraction.

To further help us succeed, each team is assigned a professional facilitator who speaks with us individually every month or so to check on our progress. This person has worked with executives for many years and is keenly aware of best practices for high performance teams. The three of us have the same facilitator, a kind, wise woman who is nonetheless tough on the issues that really matter. Much of what we are learning from her and our teams is being directly brought back to our units at CUL.

Getting Started
“So … what did it take to get where you are today?” We’re glad you asked that question. If you think this program could be for you, consider attending one of the information sessions that are held on campus in the spring. You will learn more about the structure of the program and how it fits or does not fit your life style. We can’t stress enough how important it is to think through this decision and gather as much information as possible before you decide to start your application. We all applied at different times during spring 2005, and each of us would have welcomed more time between being accepted and starting classes. If you can make your decision early, you will have more time to consider the following steps:

1. The application. Although it’s a brief document, the application is your chance to explain to the faculty and program chair why you should be considered for the program. This document is your first test for writing succinctly.
2. The test. Yes, you thought the opening word problem was a joke. Think again. The program requires prospective students to complete an entrance exam called the CMAT, the Cornell Management Aptitude Test. Like the well known GMAT, this test assesses your reading and critical thinking abilities but is shorter and concentrates on the areas of highest importance to the Cornell/Queens staff.
3. The interview. Once you receive an acceptable grade on the CMAT, you will meet with the program director to sell yourself to the program. What will you bring to the Boardroom experience? Think of this as your meeting with Donald Trump as a participant on “The Apprentice.” Actually, the program director is quite inviting and, to the best of our knowledge, hasn’t fired anyone yet.
4. The money. This program is not inexpensive by any measure. Cornell has provided a tuition waiver as part of its employee benefits package, but staff is still responsible for the income tax on that benefit and the program fees. This year, the program cost was $89,000. Of that figure, Cornell covered $73,400 in tuition, leaving fees of $15,600 to be borne by the employee. To this we add income tax equal to about $24,000.

For those doing the math, that’s a forty-thousand-dollar commitment. However, the Cornell/Queen’s program has a number of advantages over some others. Although we each considered different criteria in choosing to enroll in the program, these advantages include:

1. Not having to travel to Binghamton, Rochester, Syracuse, or Palisades, New York, in the dead of winter for classes.
2. The Cornell MBA “brand,” which is more widely recognized across the country than other MBA degrees. The Cornell/Queen’s pedigree is reflected in a number of rankings that have come out in the months since we enrolled. In its latest rankings, BusinessWeek ranked the Johnson School number seven in the United States and the Queen’s School of Business number one internationally. Even though forty thousand dollars sounds expensive, Cornell employees can earn a “world class” MBA at a fraction of the usual cost through the employee degree program.
3. The opportunity to study faculty who are experts in their fields.
4. The international flavor of the program; it is one of the few programs that bring together students from both countries.

What We’ve Learned (So Far)
Just as each of us had different reasons for enrolling in the program, so each also has had different learning experiences and been able to apply different lessons to our current positions. Rather than having to wait until November or December 2006 to apply what we have learned, we have immediately been able to apply some of these lessons during the work week.

Nate’s Perspective
Two learning experiences I have been able to bring back to work immediately are what it means to be part of a great team, as well as the mindset to begin thinking strategically about an organization’s products and services. As previously stated, we spent a large portion of our time in Kingston participating in a series of team exercises meant to introduce our team members to one another and build a well-functioning team. One of the first project leads I took on upon returning to work after EMBA “boot camp” was the redesign of the Library Technical Services (LTS) Web site. The LTS Web team consisted of a diverse group of nine people from different LTS units, including Music, Mann, Olin, and Kroch. I saw that this diversity in team membership might result in a diverse number of opinions, and I thought that by bringing the team together to talk about our values and goals for the project, I could instill a culture in which we would value one another’s opinions and insights. To that end, I asked a senior LTS manager to lead the team in a session in which we talked about what each of us wanted to get out of serving on the LTS Web team, how the team members would interact with one another; and how we would handle communication, decision-making, and conflict. Since we are all passionate about this project, there have still been heated discussions about certain topics, but I feel that getting together with Marty helped set the stage for a productive semester free, for the most part, from tension and dissension within the group.

In addition to initiating a team building activity for the LTS Web team, I have brought back to work an interest in strategic, business, and marketing planning. As part of the EMBA program, we have been asked to complete a proposal for a new product or service. I have made contact with a faculty member in the Department of Applied Economics and Management and begun working with her and her team on a plan for her e-Clips product, a Web-based collection of video clips of business men and women discussing their experiences. These clips will be used by faculty to illustrate lectures and by students outside the classroom as a form of case study. We are discussing questions like who the audience for the product is, what different audiences desire in a product like e-Clips, what’s the best way to market our product to those audiences, and what we can charge for a product like e-Clips. In addition, the Metadata Services Division of Library Technical Services (MSD) has begun considering a redesign of its Web site and has taken the opportunity to consider its business and marketing strategy on a broader scale; in doing this, an MSD colleague and I are asking questions about the division’s goals, competencies, customers, and competitors. This discussion will help us to better focus our division’s efforts and guide us in designing a Web site that will “connect” with our customers.

Angela’s Perspective
Personally, an MBA had long been a degree that held my interest. When I finished my MLIS studies, sliding into an MBA was appealing, but I didn’t feel that I had the right mix of worldly experience. I needed to dig deeply into library work first before I could really capitalize on more coursework around topics of strategy, marketing, and financial planning. In the ensuing years, I’ve found myself in several entrepreneurial situations that would have benefited from advanced business training, and so the Boardroom MBA will help with future ventures.

My promotion this summer to Associate Director of the Management Library has increased my supervisory and other duties considerably. During my interview with Danny Szpiro, Director of the Boardroom program, we discussed how an MBA isn’t just about the numbers but will also help the general manager. They specifically court students with diverse backgrounds so that we can learn from each others’ experiences. From the program’s perspective, a class comprised solely of accountants and financial experts isn’t ideal. In class, we examine a multitude of complex organizational situations from a range of angles, wearing hats as diverse as the Chief Marketing Officer to the Human Resources Director, and most of these cases have direct ties in one way or another to my day-to-day activities at the library. How to manage and inspire people is not trivial, and we are learning new techniques for helping improve this already excellent library system. When we tackle topics such as marketing, I find myself reflecting on the ways we already do a good job promoting our services, but I also begin contemplating additional options for sustaining patrons’ interest.

More directly, I work on a daily basis with business school faculty, students and staff. With an undergraduate degree in Russian and English, I have had to learn on the job how to interpret business questions. Being able to see the Johnson School curriculum first-hand, and interact with the faculty at a more intimate level, is invaluable. Recently, I led our instruction team through the most challenging week of teaching we encounter all year, a week of back-to-back corporate finance workshops that support a particular core residential MBA class. The professor who teaches this core class is an internationally renowned member of the Johnson School faculty, and he is also teaching in the Boardroom program. To have the opportunity to work through the same problems (and endure the same weekly quizzes!) that the residential MBAs solve is a unique experience that gives me an edge I wouldn’t otherwise have been able to obtain. When the workshops for his class are revamped over the summer, I’ll be able to bring a new level of insight to the sessions that I just didn’t have previously. Those are the exciting moments, when the connection between theory and real-world teaching merge.

Scott’s Perspective
As mentioned by both Nate and Angela, the ability to apply best business practices in the workplace has been central to the return on investment in the MBA program, an investment which includes the Library’s willingness to permit a flexible schedule, the University’s waiver of the tuition, and our own significant outlay of funds.

As many know, I have been involved in a local product that supports the selection and ordering of new library materials named ITSO CUL. What you may not know is that after two years of presentations about ITSO CUL at several conferences and participating in interviews that were published, CUL staff have created public demand for ITSO CUL. Several of our peer institutional libraries have spoken with us to plan for how they, too, can use ITSO CUL.

I won’t bore you with our current strategies, but will mention that one of the major learning tools of the MBA program is the new venture project that has each student identify a product or service to bring to market. I selected ITSO CUL.

The new venture project involves four deliverables—a proposal for our project, a business brief, a business case, and finally a business plan. Each of these four steps creates a framework that can be applied to most new products and services, even in a library setting. The proposal is simply a short textual explanation of an issue to be explored—should the Library try to support ITSO CUL for other libraries? The brief goes a bit deeper outlining the project and considers such issues as the level of opportunity for success, the size of the potential market, the value to that market, the risks of the venture, the internal and external environment for supporting such a service, the identification of resources required to support the service, a rough business model to serve the product, and a timeline of major issues that require investigation to support the pursuit of venture capital.

As much as I struggled through the Business Decision Models course (and I did pass), I learned just enough about some tools we can apply to the mountains of data the Library generates from various services and processes. How do these data relate to each other? Are these relationships significant—do they matter? While I may never have a need to apply directly the laws surrounding the distribution of sample data and associate its relation to the larger population, a few days back I was having a conversation with a consultant about various approaches as to how we might market ITSO CUL, and I realized that what we were discussing was prime for a decision tree (a structure that allows you to examine several choices and the consequences associated with those choices as a whole picture to help you understand the levels of risk or benefit from taking any one course of action compared to any other course of action). You are probably saying, “Oh no! What have they done to poor Scott that he now thinks in terms of the probability of risk and plots it out graphically in the form of a tree decision model?” Sometimes I wonder the same.

At five months into the program, I can already see the beginnings of a return on the significant investment of both time and money. As hard and exhausting as the program may seem, there is light—well, there will be light—at the end of the tunnel soon. And I will have learned so much along the way. No, I have not mowed my lawn nor cleaned my house in months. But I have pushed myself, taken a challenge I never dreamed possible a few years ago. As the saying goes—“no pain, no gain.” Based on the level of pain already endured and lurking just beyond the horizon, I expect major gains.

An MBA Top Fifteen: or Three Librarians’ Initial Impressions of an Executive MBA Program (with Apologies to David Letterman)
In addition to learning skills that we have applied immediately in our work environments, we have taken away a number of impressions that will stay with us long after we finish the program. These include:

1. The Queen’s University School of Business building looks remarkably like Sage Hall, home to Cornell’s Johnson Graduate School of Management. Twins separated at birth?
2. During the second residential week, even Ithaca-based students live at the Statler Hotel. Watching the sun set over the lake while sitting in your king-sized room is awe-inspiring. Ithaca really is gorges.
3. No offense to CUL’s excellent accounting staff, but accounting class is as evil as a librarian would expect it to be. Cash flow? Up, please. Balance sheet? Okay, if you insist. On the bright side, at the next cocktail party held by accountants, you’ll never again confuse The Gap with GAAP (GAAP = Generally Accepted Accounting Principles, the rules by which accountants live)!
4. What were we doing with our weekends before classes, assignments, and three-hour-Sunday-morning final exams became a part of our lives?
5. BDM sounds like a form of torture. And it was. BDM is the abbreviation for the class called Business Decision Models, a course that kept us awake at night wondering about the normal distribution of linear regressions in a world where $49 and the number of 20-point wooden ducks in a carnival game mean the difference between passing and failing.
6. Did you know that there is an answer (within a 95% confidence interval) to the age-old question—how many angels can fit on the head of a pin? All you need is your z-score, an Excel spreadsheet, and a certain Queen's University professor.
7. Some curves are straight lines.
8. A strong organizational culture is a good thing, but it doesn't necessarily have to be like that of Mary Kay.
9. The Ivey School of Business and an Ivy League school of business are definitely not the same thing.
10. We’re glad we didn't buy stock in Nortel.
11. You really can turn in an assignment on Friday night, go to class on Saturday, and take a final exam on Sunday without collapsing from lack of sleep.
12. It's okay if your lawn doesn't get mowed for two weeks.
13. So that's why they don't have accountants on Jay Leno, David Letterman, or Conan O'Brien!
14. Engineers and librarians really can get along (well, most of the time).
15. Beware of margin-sucking maggots!

In Closing
Is the Boardroom EMBA for you? We have intended this article to be an honest overview of the challenges we’ve encountered and the rewards we’re reaping from too little sleep and too many team meetings. This is a wonderful opportunity to learn more about not only business (which, scary though this statement may be to some, isn’t all that different from the library in which we currently work) but about ourselves, too. We are developing skills that will serve us well long after we’ve passed our last exam and read our last mandatory Harvard Business School case. For each of us this was the right time to tackle something wildly challenging and we’re already applying new ways of thinking to our jobs here at CUL.

Finally, we’re more than happy to talk with anyone who is interested in pursuing this degree; let us share our experiences so that you can realize your own dreams.

Extra Credit—Sample CMAT-like Question

A - B + 4/27 = 0
A + B - C/45 = 66.23597
What is the value of D?

a.) 14 - 5X
b.) 7 (always a good answer if you are guessing)
c.) chocolate (always a good choice if you have no answer)
d.) a and b
e.) c and d

Cat5 in Cancun: Hurricane Wilma

Michelle Eastman

My planning for a beautiful beach vacation started many months ago. But, the one thing that I was not able to plan for was a hurricane.

México was our destination of choice, and then specifically the Riviera Maya area because the snorkeling was known to be pretty good, which my husband, Greg, and I enjoy very much. Our resort, the Barcélo Maya, was about one hour south of Cancun, and about 20 minutes south of Playa Del Carmen and Cozumel (the small island in the eye of the hurricane).

Our departure date was set for early morning on Tuesday, October 18. Over the preceding weekend we watched the news with great concern, learning that Hurricane Wilma was heading towards the Yucatan Peninsula with a vengeance. On the morning of October 17, I contacted my travel agent to inquire about alternative dates, but was told that we had no options since the Cancun airport was still open and receiving airplanes. We could either stay home and forfeit our money, or travel into harm’s way and hope for the best. In hindsight, we obviously made the wrong choice.

So, we arrived in Cancun safely on the 18th and enjoyed a nice evening, and then had one full day of vacation before the resort began making final preparations for the approaching Category 5 hurricane on Thursday.

Hurricane Preparations

Thursday morning started out overcast and a bit windy. The red flag was raised on the beach, which meant danger and no swimming allowed. We watched as preparations took place throughout the resort all day.

All the lounge chairs were stacked and placed in the pools. There were many workers at the resort but we also saw several of the resort’s guests helping by carrying the stacks of chairs from the beach to the pool. It was quite impressive teamwork.

The resort also brought in many crews of workers to fill and place large sandbags along the walkways to the beach. They anticipated large wave swells from the storm and were doing what they could to prevent more damage.

The idea that a real hurricane was coming was beginning to sink in but still seemed a bit surreal. In the meanwhile, the workers were calm but were certainly all business at that point in the day.

All the water recreation equipment (kayaks, boogie boards, water trikes, hobie cats, and rescue boat) was moved from the beach hut to a building farther inland. We later found out that the equipment didn’t fare too well, and most of it ended up in the trees anyway. In the lobby, all the furniture was moved out and stored in the Agavé restaurant. The windows of the gift shops were taped. All the jewelry in the showcases was removed and put in the safe. The TV monitors were removed. The large planters were moved. Everything that could possibly be moved was moved.

At one point while we were trying to talk with our travel representative in the lobby, there were two workers removing all the blades from the ceiling fans and wrapping the motors in plastic. Okay, we were thinking, so this really is going to happen. The same preparations were taking place in the restaurants. The ceiling fans were dealt with. The tables and chairs were tied down. All the china and such were moved inside. No more buffet for a couple of days ….

There was a crew of six men working to board up the windows of one of the enclosed restaurants. The windows faced a shallow decorative pool of water, and these workers walked through the water with their street shoes on to get the job done. They worked through the rain showers, smiling at us the whole time. The beachside restaurants were closed and all the furniture moved and secured. The theater received the same attention. Chairs and tables were secured. The speakers were wrapped in plastic. The exterior signage was removed.

In the guestroom buildings, the garbage cans were stored away, and the casual seating and planters were moved. Too bad they didn’t move the ice machines because Wilma moved them herself.

The beach was fabulous, and we walked it as often as we could. We had one favorite cove with a particularly nice area of palm trees planted fairly close to the water. As we walked through them on Thursday afternoon, there were already three of fifty trees down because of the high waves. We wondered how many would be left standing after the hurricane.

On one of our pre-hurricane walks, we ventured a bit farther toward the point than we should have, I guess, because when we turned around we realized that two of the resort’s security guards were following us. They told us they were only concerned for our safety, and that if we were too far away when the hurricane came, we would have been in danger. Gulp. They said the wind is so loud you cannot hear, and the rain comes so hard you cannot see. Needless to say, we didn’t go back to that cove again that day.

In the early afternoon on Thursday, we made plans with some new friends to meet for dinner. However, the security officers told us that the resort had established a curfew and was requiring that all its guests be in their rooms at 6 pm that night. Whaaaat! It is getting really serious now. There would be no dinner for us. So, being the tourists that we were, we went to the lobby to see if the curfew was really true. It was true. The lobby was full of many people that were being evacuated by their travel companies. We met two different couples that were there on their two-week honeymoons, both only three days into their vacations. They were being evacuated. We were sad for them, but then again we didn’t know what was in store for us. They were probably better off in the end.

On our last final beach walk of the day, we came across a large group of security guards gathering for what appeared to be a meeting. It was actually a bit reassuring knowing that there were so many people that were going to be looking after us during the hurricane. Then we realized there was a priest there praying with them for their safety through this storm. We were quickly ushered away from the beach and back towards the guest buildings. This is when we were officially told to “go to our room.” Sigh. The 6 pm curfew was being strongly enforced.

Confinement
At six o’clock on Thursday evening, we were instructed to go to our room, where we spent the next three days and nights. Each building and each floor had security people watching over it and protecting the guests. We were told that the walls of the rooms are 12 inches thick and the bathrooms are reinforced with 20-inch walls. The resort was built to withstand this type of storm. So if worse came to worse, we were to stay in the bathroom and sleep in the bathtub. We were told to pack all our belongings, put the suitcases in plastic bags, and put them on the top shelf in the closet.

A box dinner was delivered for each of us that included a sandwich, a breakfast bar, two pieces of fruit, and two bottles of water. At the time we were told that the breakfast bar was in case breakfast service the next day was interrupted. Little did we all know that it would be three more days before we could go to the buffet again.

Thursday night was fairly uneventful, but Friday came, and so did Wilma … she stayed all day long. No food or water was delivered as the wind and rain was tremendous. Greg and I were okay with food as we gathered what we could from the buffet the day before at lunch (rolls, fruit, and water). Not everyone did though. Friday night the winds roared and rattled our sliding glass door. The rain came down the hallway sideways and began seeping under our door. We spent a lot of effort devising a way to keep the water out. We raided the housekeeping closet and collected extra towels. It was an ongoing battle.

Saturday morning--the winds and rain were still quite strong. Hurricane rookies that we were, we had hoped that the storm would pass quickly and all would be back to normal by Saturday. No such luck with this storm. That morning, we watched as one of the resort’s delivery trucks came up the sidewalk and stopped. Three workers (with no raincoats) began carrying trays of food into our building. Cold scrambled eggs, sausage, and hashbrowns never tasted so good. Our building was one of the lucky ones to receive a food delivery though. Our new friends with two young kids were in the next building and never received a breakfast delivery that day.

Saturday night--the weather was still quite wet, but another delivery of food was made for dinner (chicken, pasta, and veggie). By Saturday night most of us were going stir crazy and were ready to get out of our rooms. So we gathered in the hallways and spent time getting to know each other. If nothing else good comes from this trip, we can say that we met so many interesting people and have some new friends all over the country.

Three Days Later
Sunday morning dawned a bit brighter. Workers were already picking up the debris on the property and in the buildings. Rumor spread that the buffet was preparing for breakfast in the restaurant. Hurray!

After breakfast we took a walk around to see what we could see. We walked back to our favorite cove and weren’t surprised when we found all the palm trees were down.

The beach suffered quite a bit of erosion. We were able to see many interesting things from the ocean. This crab was hanging on with all his might.

The staff at the Barcélo was amazing. Everyone was working together to clean up the property. By late in the day on Sunday, they were already replanting many of the palm trees that had been blown over. The debris was collected and removed. The pool was cleaned and opened on Monday. The restaurants were cleaned and ready for guests. There was a bucket brigade in the theater removing the standing water. There were nearly twenty people all working together. We cheered as they finished their work. They wanted to clean the place up so they could put on a show that night … and they did!

On Monday, we saw the housemaids working in the front gardens cleaning up the debris. We were so impressed at the work ethic of the staff. They saw the work that needed to be done, and they did it.

After Wilma went through, we were desperate to find a way home and to contact our families, especially when we saw what the news was broadcasting about the aftermath of Wilma. We knew our families would be very worried.

There were no working phone lines and no cell phone reception at the resort. We were told that there was cell phone reception in the nearby town of Playa Del Carmen. So, on Monday morning we decided to travel to Playa to call home. Fortunately for us, we met Leslie who was planning to do the same thing and agreed to share a cab with us. I say fortunately because we were not able to get reception with our cell phone, but Leslie did and was incredibly generous in letting us borrow her phone to call home.

Our cab ride was a bit unnerving, hearing the “thud thud” as the cab drove over the power lines that were down across the road. Destruction in the streets of Playa was immense. This picture shows just one of the debris piles in the street.

On Tuesday morning we met with our travel representative. He told us that we would have to rebook our departure flight from Cancun, which meant we would have to make another trip to town to make a phone call. Thank goodness for Leslie, as she let us tag along with her again. After lots of discussion, we were finally told that we were booked on a flight for Saturday. It wasn’t what we wanted to hear, but at least we now had a sense of when we would be going home.

Trying to Get Home
Wednesday was a nice day. It was the first day we spent relaxing and enjoying the beach. We actually ended up snorkeling with Leslie and her family. Then we spent Wednesday evening having dinner and drinks with some of our other new friends. It was a nice day. Back in our room at 12:30 am, we received a message from our travel representative, Anthony. He stated that he had new information about the Cancun airport, and that there would be a flight out on Thursday and he wanted to get us on that plane. Anthony said that he would have a bus at the hotel at 3:40 am, and he suggested that we pack up and be ready to go for our best chance to get on that flight on Thursday.

After we got the message, we went to the lobby to see if Anthony was still there so we could talk to him to make sure we heard the message correctly. He was still there. This man worked tirelessly for us. He was wonderful.

Given that the airport was still closed, and there was chaos around it, the Mexican military had taken over the airport. We were told that the government was going to allow each U.S. airline to bring in two airplanes in an effort to evacuate its citizens. Anthony was trying to get us on one of those planes. He could not get us boarding passes. The only way for us to get a boarding pass was to wait in line with thousands of other people trying to get out of Cancun. So we packed up, and went to the lobby to wait. At 4 am the bus arrived. We loaded up with two other families, and were on our way within five minutes … the bus was not waiting. Leslie and her family were on this bus with us.

Anthony rode the bus with us and gave us very specific information about what was going to happen. The roof of the airport had collapsed and the airlines were not working out of the airport. They had created temporary locations around the city. The first stop to drop off people was at a school. Mind you it was 4:45 am, pitch black, with no streetlights. There was still a curfew in the city, and no one was allowed to walk around at dark unescorted. We watched as our friends, Leslie and Chuck and their kids, got off and we wished each other luck. That felt very strange not knowing what their experience was going to be getting out of Cancun.

We were the next drop-off. Delta Airlines had set up their temporary location on the grassy median outside the AeroMexico office. It was still pitch black outside. We were quickly ushered off the bus, and gathered our luggage. Anthony pointed and said, “Go get in that line, and don’t lose your place. That position in line is your best opportunity to get a boarding pass for a flight out today. Good luck.” Then he got back on the bus because he had more people to drop off, and was gone. There we were, alone in the dark with hundreds of other stranded tourists.

We waited and waited. We had been told that the Delta desk would open at 7 am. When the sunrise came, we looked around and were able to see our surroundings. It was then that we realized that we had been sitting under some downed power lines with broken glass everywhere. We listened to the sad stories of some of the tourists in Cancun that had been evacuated to shelters during the storm. Quietly we felt very grateful for the three days in our room.

The rumor up and down the line was that there would be two Delta planes leaving Cancun that day, and that the first plane would hold 250 people. At that point, people began wandering up and down the line counting their position in the line. We came to understand that we were actually standing at about 230, and felt fairly confident that we would be going home that day, but were still quite anxious. The line started to move but was agonizingly slow. Several Delta agents walked up the line answering questions as best they could.

When it was finally our turn at the desk, our hearts almost dropped when we were signed on as passengers #245 and #246.  Again, we were told, “Don’t lose your boarding pass. You won’t get on the plane without it.” All the ticketing was done by hand, of course, as there was no power in the city still. After we received our boarding passes, we were moved to another staging line to wait for the buses to come to take us to the airport. Traffic was quite heavy in the streets, and it took a long time for the buses to come. For some reason, even though we had boarding passes in our hands, we were still uncertain that we would be going home, until we were actually sitting on that airplane.

It took five buses to get all of us for that first plane. It was all handled very orderly. At one point while waiting in line, a Delta representative drove up in his truck and began handing out bottles of water to the people waiting in line. In such an awful situation, I think they did what they could to try to make us comfortable.

After we were moved to the second staging area, we looked at the remaining line behind us. There were so many people still left. We wondered if they would all be going home that day, or how many would be turned away and told to come back the next day. In our minds, we just kept thanking Anthony for getting us out of the hotel so early so that we could be in line early.

If we hadn’t been able to get a boarding pass, Anthony would have come back to get us later that day and take us to another resort for the night. Then we would have had to get back in line again the next day to do this all over again.

The bus ride to the airport was very quiet. We all just looked out the windows at the destruction left by Wilma. Trees were down, power lines down, signs twisted, windows broken. We were leaving, and yet all the people that live in Cancun would be dealing with this for many months to come. Definitely a bittersweet moment.

The military had blocked the entrance to the airport and was allowing only the buses through. There had been so many people going directly to the airport to get a boarding pass and yet the airlines weren’t even there. Chaos. Our buses went directly to the terminal. Our luggage was unloaded, and then we were unloaded and lined up again. We were getting good at standing in line. After a short wait, we were escorted into the terminal, directly to the screening area, through a temporary gate, onto a shuttle bus that took us right to the airplane.

One of the stewardesses commented that she had never seen an airplane loaded so fast as that one was. I think other people also had the same fear that for some reason they would be denied boarding on that plane. Every single seat on that plane was occupied, and happily. The Captain walked through the cabin and welcomed people aboard and tried to make us feel comfortable. He was very nice and understanding of the plight that so many had been through. He was going to take us home, and we were happy.

As soon as the plane took off the runway, everyone cheered and clapped. We were on our way, and it was very emotional for everyone. The same reaction came as soon as we touched down in Atlanta. Relief. Delta in Atlanta was ready for us. They had an entire area available just for our flight, as everyone on that plane needed to rebook the next leg of their flight home. We were again placed in a long, snaking line. People were exhausted, hungry, and smelly, and tempers were beginning to flare, but most everyone was patient and cooperative. Greg and I were thrilled to be able to get a flight back to Syracuse that night, and to still have time to get some food before the next plane left. We arrived home at 11 pm on Thursday night to happy hugs and kisses from our families.

This hurricane was an interesting experience, but not one that we wish to ever experience again. Thanks to everyone for their well wishes for us and everyone else affected by Hurricane Wilma.

~ photos provided by Michelle Eastman

Matthew Connolly is a new programmer analyst in Library Technical Services. After graduating with a degree in electrical engineering from Cornell, Matt worked as an engineer at Porous Materials, Inc., a local manufacturer of scientific instruments.

Alex Hamel is a new public services assistant in Access Services. You'll see Alex working at both the Olin and Uris circulation desks. Alex recently graduated from Grand Valley State University with a Bachelor of Arts.

After five years with the National Science Digital Library (NSDL),
Diane Hillmann is returning to the Library wearing a new hat: Research Librarian. Diane will be working on her new NSF-funded project, the NSDL Registry, as well as other projects in the process of definition and funding. In addition, she will continue her activities with the Dublin Core (she is editor of “Using Dublin Core,” member of the Usage and Advisory Boards, and administrator of “AskDCMI”). Diane looks forward to rejoining the CUL community and is in the process of scheduling a series of metadata classes for library staff.

Lonnie Hinkle is a new public services assistant in the Annex Library. Lonnie previously worked in the Shipping and Receiving Unit as a temporary staff member.

Saw Htoo is a new public services assistant in O/K/U Collection Maintenance. Saw has previously worked in the Tavoy City Library in Burma.

Susan Kendrick is a new public services librarian in The Johnson Graduate School of Management Library. Susan comes to us from Vassar College where she worked as a Visual Resources Technician. She holds an MLS from Pratt Institute and a BA in Studio Art from SUNY Stony Brook.

David Kuo is a new IT support assistant in DLIT. David comes to us from New York City where he worked as an IT Coordinator at Charles B. Wang Community Health Center.

Tami Magnus is the new Director of Library Accounting Services. Tami comes to us from the University Budget Office where she worked as a financial analyst. Prior to coming to Cornell in 2001, Tami worked for various state agencies in Broome and Tioga counties. She received her bachelor's degree from Houghton College and her MBA from Binghamton University.

Annemarie Morse is the new Coordinator of Computer Facilities in the Engineering Library. Annemarie comes to us from Crop and Soil Sciences where she worked as an Information Technologies Engineer.

Liz Muller is a new technical services assistant in Database Management Services. Liz is a recent graduate of Cornell University and has a degree in History of Architecture and Urbanism.

Liane O’Brien is the new part-time administrative assistant in Collections, Reference, Instruction, and Outreach (CRIO). She comes to us from the School of Industrial and Labor Relations where she worked as an assistant to the Committee on the Status of Women in the Economics Profession.

Richard Paige is a new public services assistant in O/K/U Collection Maintenance. Richard comes to us from Cornell Plantations where he was a grounds worker.

Paw Pha is a new public services assistant in O/K/U Collection Maintenance. Paw previously worked in a library in Burma.

Diane Schumacher is a new public services assistant in the Annex Library. Diane recently worked as a cashier at Borders in the Pyramid Mall.

Adam Swanson is a new preservation assistant in Preservation and Conservation. Adam recently worked as an eighth grade art teacher in Bloomington, Minnesota.

Wendy Thompson is a new public service assistant in O/K/U Collection Maintenance. Wendy previously worked as a freelance graphic designer at Starling Studio.

Ken Tiddick is a new public service assistant in O/K/U Collection Maintenance. Ken comes to us from the Suburban Cortland--Ithaca Shopper where he worked as an advertising representative.

Promotions

Lynn Thitchener was promoted from a Reference Specialist into a Librarian position in September. She is now a reference and instruction librarian in the Olin and Uris libraries' Department of Collections, Reference, Instruction, and Outreach. Colleagues may remember that Lynn received the CUL Outstanding Performance Award in 2001 and managed to complete her degree while working full time. She received her MLIS from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School of Information Studies in May 2004.

Lindsay VanBerkom has recently been promoted to a public services assistant IV in O/K/U Access Services.

Congratulations

Congratulations again to Stuart Basefsky, ILR Catherwood Library, and Elaine Westbrooks, Mann Library, who recently received their medals for the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Librarianship. Their awards were announced in the May 2005 issue of Inside CUL.

Congratulations to Mae Leckey and Julie Jones of the Law Library. Julie’s photo of Mae was included in the most recent issue of the American Association of Law Libraries’ publication AALL Spectrum (volume 10, no.3, December 2005), in their cover story called, “A Day in the Life of the Law Library Community: A Collection of Photos Taken by AALL Members April 10-16, 2005.” Julie submitted a photo of Mae whose caption read: “Mae Leckey prepares unique catalog records for recent additions to the Cornell Law Library’s collection, ensuring that library users are able to find the materials they seek.”

C. Herbert Finch Honored with State Archives Award
Herbert Finch, former Assistant Director of Cornell University Libraries and former President of The History Center in Tompkins County, has been posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Award by the New York State Board of Regents and the New York State Archives. Finch was also recently recognized by The History Center in Tompkins County with an award bearing his name:  The C. Herbert Finch Award for Excellence.  Herbert Finch passed away in April, 2005. See Kaleidoscope MAY 2005 for his Obituary.

The award was accepted on behalf of Finch by long time friend G. David Brumberg, Cornell University American History Librarian Emeritus, on October 6, 2005 at the State Education Building in Albany.  This award is the highest honor bestowed by the State Archives.  It pays tribute to significant, long-lasting contributions to the identification, accessibility and use of historical records in New York. This is only the second time the award has been presented since its inception in 1991.

The Distinguished Service Award honors Finch’s lifelong commitment to archives and history.  Over the course of his 32 years at Cornell University Libraries, he built comprehensive documentary and manuscripts collections, led the Labor Management Documentation Center, and initiated the Historical Documents Inventory, an accomplishment of immeasurable significance that lists the holdings of 1250 repositories in New York State and became a model for many states around the country.  Finch was instrumental in persuading New York to establish a State Archives, which is now the second largest state archive in the nation. (From "History Happenings," The History Center's e-newsletter, The History Center in Tompkins County)

Congratulations to Brenda Marston and Sarah Simpkins who welcomed into the world Matthew Mendal Simpkins Marston on October 21st at 1:06 a.m. Matty joins his older brother Grady who is already learning to take care of him.