Committees
The Graduate Student Association has several committees that work hard to ensure that our annual events run smoothly. Volunteers for each committee are recruited during the first GSA meeting each year.
GSA Symposium
Heather van den Berg, Jennifer Shirk, Jill Cohen, Alex Kudryavtsev, Ursula Mahl, Brent Boscarino
Every January before classes start, the DNR GSA hosts a symposium for students, faculty and staff to share their research ideas and results. The Symposium committee is responsible for organizing the event, including sending out the call for abstracts, arranging the schedule, purchasing food and beverages, and organizing moderators for each session. This committee works hard, but the symposium is well worth the effort!
Desk Czar
Eduardo Carillo-Rubio
Wandering through the halls while doing your reading? Sitting in the stairwells working on problem sets? You need some office space! Contact the desk czar.
Prospective Students Committee
Rebecca Lohnes
A committee formed in response to the mixed experiences of visiting students. The committee will serve as a resource of contacts for students interested in graduate school in DNR.
Ellis Hollow Picnic
(to be determined at Spring GSA meeting)
Volunteers are needed for all aspects of this picnic - set up, clean up, grilling, getting food and drinks, etc. Most of the details of the picnic are planned over the summer, but volunteers will be needed to help out the day of the picnic.
Photo Board
Heather Hudenko, Alex Kudryavtsev
The photo board committee is in charge of taking or collecting pictures of all current graduate students and updating the photo board located in the stairway on the first floor of Fernow. The photo board is updated at the beginning of the fall semester, and in the spring semester if needed. The time commitment is minimal.
Disco In Fernow
Matthew Mirabello, Willie Fetzer, Nighthawk Evensen
The Disco In Fernow was started in 2001 by former DNR student and honorary member of the committee, Brooke Zanetell. The Disco usually takes place early in the spring semester. This committee is responsible for creating all the magic of a disco on the third floor of Fernow Hall. Their duties include organizing food and beverages, gathering volunteers, filing appropriate paper work, hiring a DJ or selecting music, and setting up and cleaning up Fernow. This committee is vital to the GSA, and most of the time commitment takes place early in the spring semester.
Spring Formal
Peter Stevens, Matt Mirabello, Nighthawk Evensen
The Spring Formal takes place in March or April. The Spring Formal committee is responsible for finding a location for the party, organizing volunteers to help set up and clean up, purchasing food, and hiring a DJ or selecting music. This committee is also responsible for organizing the auction that takes place during the formal. Auction items are solicited from graduate students and faculty members, and the items are auctioned off during the formal in both a silent auction and a live auction. The auction is an important fundraiser for the GSA, so this is a vital committee!
Spring Migration
(to be determined at Spring GSA meeting)
At the end of the spring semester, the GSA hosts a BBQ/picnic at the Arnot Forest with the option of camping out. This committee is responsible for organizing food and beverages, filing the necessary paperwork, and gathering volunteers to help with managing the grill and cleaning up. This is a fun committee, and the time commitment is minimal.
Faculty Meeting Representative
Robin Debruyne
The faculty meeting representative has an important responsibility: attending the monthly faculty meetings and keeping the GSA up to date on what topics are most pressing to the faculty. The representative is responsible for attending meetings and sending an e-mail update to the graduate student list serve to share the faculty meeting topics and ideas.
Disco Ball Committee
Jenifer Shirk
This committee is responsible for asking graduating students and their respective advisor if they would like to have the disco ball at the final presentation for the student. The committee is also responsible for setting up the disco ball and spotlight at the seminar.
Happy Hour Committee
Willie Fetzer, Laura Eierman
THHC (The Happy Hour Committee) is in charge of providing the necessary goods for Happy Hour each Friday on the 3rd floor of Fernow. The committee is responsible for publicity of the weekly event, buying beer and snacks, and returning the empty bottles. This is a crucial committee, but does require weekly dedication.
Speaker Committee
Scott Perez, Peter Stevens, Jennifer Shirk, James Watkins
Each year, the GSA sponsors an outside speaker. The committee determines who to invite to speak, organizes the visit, and files the appropriate paperwork. Arrangements that need to be made for the speaker include transportation, lodging, meals and their schedule. Occasionally, speakers are asked to give two presentations: one for the Department of Natural Resources, and one for the Cornell community. The committee is responsible for scheduling and advertising these presentations. This committee works hard, but the speaker is well worth the time and effort.
GSA Website Committee
Nighthawk Evensen (dte6)
Manage and update all information on the GSA website. Create and update student profiles, events, committees, symposium abstracts, etc.
Greening Committee
Stefanie Hufnagel-Eichener, Jim Watkins, Peter Stevens, Laura Martin, Hannah Shayler
This committee deals with all things related to making Natural Resources as a department, and as collection of individuals and buildings, more environmental conscious and sustainable. They raise awareness and provide opportunities to make daily office life more sustainable. They have worked to get recycling and/or paper bins in every office, change seminar purchasing guidelines, and have leaking faucets repaired. The committee has presented a plan of action to Chair Dr. Marianne Krasny who responded positively to our efforts and instituted the DNR Sustainability Committee including faculty, staff, and students.
Spring Workshop Class
Jill Cohen, Charlotte Acharya, Laura Eierman, James Watkins, Ursula Mahl
A working group for assembling the content of a spring semester 2008 course on the intersection of the natural and social sciences in Natural Resources research and applications.
Office Chair Committee
Stefanie Hufnagl-Eichiner
This committee is a cooperation between students, staff and Department Chair working to provide back-friendly chairs to every student in DNR. Most students have got individually adjustable chairs, mostly hand-downs from renovations across the College. Let the Committee know if you need a chair, we will find you one. Lisa Bishop-Oltz and former Chair Dr. Barb Knuth have been instrumental.
Weekly Seminar Series
Amielle Dewan
This committee is in charge of organising the production of the weekly Department Seminars, held at 3:30 PM on Tuesdays in Fernow 304. Members are responsible for obtaining and arranging refreshments, wideotaping the seminar so that it may be available on DVD to those who missed it, and promoting the series amongst grad student.
DNR GPSA Representative
Nighthawk Evensen (dte6)
Conduit for bringing Natural Resources grad student interests concerning issues outside the scope of the department itself to the graduate student government. This representative sits on the Council of Representatives for the Graduate and Professional Student Association (GPSA), and has the task of ensuring that any macro-changes in the graduate school community take Natural Resources student interests into account. Nighthawk also sits on the GPSA Finance Commission, which distributes funds generated from graduate student fees to student groups. Any DNR student seeking to know more about how student groups can obtain funding should contact him as well.