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FactsSlang
- Ball - The sculpture on top of Textor Hall. Some people say it’s supposed to be a fish.
- Bo-ghetto - Bogart Hall. This is one of the Lower Quad dormitories on campus.
- Circles - The College Circle Apartments. These fully-furnished apartments are very popular among upperclassmen.
- CSLI - Center for Student Leadership and Involvement. This office is involved with the student organizations on campus.
- C-Squared - Campus Center. This is the main student center on campus.
- Gardens - Garden Apartments. Although not as new as the Circle Apartments, these are popular with students who want to live closer to campus.
- Gym - The Fitness Center. Students don’t say they are going to the Fitness Center to work out. They go to the gym.
- H&S - The School of Humanities and Sciences.
- HSHP - The School of Health Sciences and Human Performance.
- LGBT - Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender. A person is sometimes referred to as this or it is in reference to the Center for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Education, Outreach, and Services.
- Parkies - Students enrolled in the Roy H. Park School of Communications.
- Pub - Popular place (that doesn’t actually serve alcohol) for students to study and socialize. Home to La Vincita.
- Quad - The area in the middle of the main campus buildings.
- Rape Trail - Trail leading from the top of campus to the Circle Apartments. Until very recently, this trail had almost no blue lights to contact Public Safety from, making it sketchy to walk without a group of friends.
- SAC - Student Activities Center. All clubs and organizations on campus have their mailboxes here, and this is where the offices for the Student Government Association are located.
- SASP - Student Auxiliary Safety Patrol. Members of SASP make rounds at 11pm and 2 am or if they get a call about an on-campus party. Because this is a student group, it is often referred to as Students Against Students Partying because they have a reputation for breaking up parties.
- Suicide Bridge - The bridge at Cornell University. Sadly, some Cornell students have taken their lives on this bridge.
- TCAT - Tompkins Consolidated Area Transit. Bus fare is $1.50 each way.
- Whalenites - Music student
- Z-Lot - Another name for one of the freshman lots. Its name fits well because of its distance from most of the dorms freshmen live in.
Things I Wish I Knew Before Coming To School
- Bring a car to campus if you have one and can afford the parking permit.
- Get on the smallest meal plan possible.
- How liberal the city of Ithaca is; no matter what your political party, Ithaca is like no other place you’ve been before.
- How windy and cold it gets for half of the school year.
- If you come in as an Exploratory major (undeclared) or if you are in the Humanities and Sciences Honors Program, you get to register for classes before everyone else.
- Lower-level classes are no indication of how much work is actually involved.
- To have a cell phone with a plan that includes free nights and weekends for those homesick times.
- Transfer students are not guaranteed housing on campus.
- www.campusfood.com has the listings of most restaurants around town that offer delivery, and is an easy resource when ordering food with friends.
- www.ratemyprofessor.com has feedback on professors for most departments, but keep in mind that this information comes from either very happy or very unhappy students, so the reviews are biased.
- www.schedulizer.com offers listings of Ithaca College courses for each semester, so this is a good resource to use before registration to figure out your best class schedule.
- You can’t get a 4.0 unless you get above a 93 percent in every class. That means 90–92 percent is an A-, worth 3.7.
Tips to Succeed
- Ask around about your professors before you register for your classes.
- Check your e-mail frequently.
- Come to campus with an open mind.
- Do your reading.
- Don’t be afraid to approach your professors and ask for help.
- Don’t be afraid to speak your mind.
- Don’t take classes that, instead of listing a professor as teaching it, are listed as being taught by “staff.” This is often taught by a first-semester professor or a professor who already has a heavy course load.
- Get involved with the many organizations on campus.
- Stay informed of campus happenings by reading the school paper, the Ithacan, and watching the school’s television station, ICTV.
- Utilize the services the campus provides, such as the Writing Center and Career Services.
Urban Legends
- Another legend remains that if your roommate dies during the year, you get an automatic 4.0—again, no such thing.
- Legend has it that a student once jumped out of the top floor of one of the towers on campus. That room supposedly has been uninhabited since, but no one can seem to find that empty room, or record of a student falling to his or her death.
- Some students claim to see the image of a swan made out of streetlights when they are in the towers, and others even claim to see a certain four-letter word spelled out with the lights.
- The sculpture on top of Textor Hall, which is supposedly a fish, might roll down South Hill if you’re a virgin when you leave IC.
Traditions
- Convocation - During the first few days after arriving on campus and before classes start, freshmen attend the convocation ceremony where the college president and other school officials address the class. After convocation, the campus community gathers on the Quad to enjoy a picnic. This is the last time the class is together as a whole until commencement.
- Cortaca Jug - In November, everyone on campus gathers at the football stadium to watch the Bombers take on their rivals, the Cortland Red Dragons. This game is known as the Cortaca Jug, and Sports Illustrated calls it the “biggest little game in the nation.” Some game-goers like to participate in what is known as “Kegs and Eggs” before kickoff, but being drunk is definitely not required to have a good time.
- More Traditions - Other traditions include the Ford Fest, a music extravaganza, Senior Week events such as Fountain Day, where all seniors jump in the fountains, and Family Weekend, when the families of students are invited to campus to participate in a number of different activities.
- Prospect Day - This is a celebration on the last day of classes in the spring semester on Prospect St., where a lot of seniors have off-campus housing. Many residents have house parties to celebrate the last day of classes, and it is somewhat meant to be equivalent to Cornell’s Slope Day celebration. Be aware, though, this gets broken up by the cops pretty quickly, so some students prefer to drink on campus or with a group of friends rather than make the trek downtown.
School Spirit
While everyone on campus has an IC sweatshirt, school spirit is not as prevalent here as it is at other schools. Because IC is only a Division III school in athletics, the teams tend to get overlooked. If more students paid attention to the fine talent that IC athletes have, then more students would paint their faces blue and gold and yell, “Go Bombers!” Ithaca College definitely sees its share of school spirit at the Cortaca Jug. Whether the game takes place here at IC or at Cortland, there are plenty of IC students dressed and painted in blue and gold to support the team.
Most Recent Contributing Author
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Hometown: South Jersey
Major: English Maura is left handed and has webbed toes. Contributing Author Internship
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