On May 25, 2008 Cornell will hold its 140th commencement ceremony. As thousands of students get ready to don their caps and gowns, it seems fitting for my last column to briefly reflect on the history of a few of the 139 graduation ceremonies that will proceed this May’s.

I admit it. I had not set foot in Statler Hall prior to the first day of this semester’s Intro to Wines class. To me, the Hotel School was a foreign place with familiar names: Nestlé, Marriott, Pillsbury and the like. But — partly because I have a Hotelie roommate and partly because I’m a history nerd — this week’s column charts the history of the nation’s first four-year college degree program devoted to the field of hotel education.

Though the donation to build Paul Milstein Hall came in the early 1990s, Cornell hopes to finally begin construction on the much-debated architecture building later this fall. But before diving into the controversial building plans, here’s a little scoop on the man (and family) behind the name Paul Milstein.

In 2006, Forbes estimated that Paul Milstein and family — self-made real estate developers — had a net-worth of $3.5 billion, clocking in at number 73 in a list of the 400 richest Americans. The Milstein Family is a major benefactor in the New York City area; the list of their major beneficiaries includes the American Museum of Natural History, New York-Presbyterian Hospital (the teaching hospital for Weill Cornell and Columbia) and the New York Public Library.

The century-old tradition of celebrating Cornell’s Department of Architecture continues today with the parade and incineration of a dragon that first-year architects spent hours constructing. The same man who gave Cornell its first student union is also the father of what had developed into Dragon Day. Sometime during his four years on campus, Willard Straight ’01 organized the first “College of Architecture Day” in a successful attempt to build class unity among architects. For reasons unknown to Cornell historians, Straight chose to hold his celebration on St. Patrick’s Day. Today, Dragon Day continues to fall on or near the holiday of shamrocks, leprechauns, and Guinness.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of V-Day, a movement seeking to end violence against women and girls worldwide. This global campaign developed out of Eve Ensler’s celebrated and controversial play, The Vagina Monologues.

Happy (belated) Valentine’s Day!

Recently, Juicy Campus has become a controversial outlet for bored Cornell students to discuss happenings in the lives of those “far above Cayuga’s waters.” In the spirit of Valentine’s Day, perhaps we should concentrate on acting like the Ivy Leaguers that we are and take a break from slandering our peers. To fill the void, I’ll tell you a “juicy” story that promises not to hurt its subjects’ reputation because, well, they’re dead.

The start of second semester greets the Class of 2008 with a bittersweet realization: the end of our time at Cornell is imminent. Having been met with this reality, some seniors are scurrying to shake President Skorton’s hand, climb the 161 stairs to the top of McGraw Tower and figure out a way not to get caught making out in the stacks. Others are just trying to see how many nights they can spend at the bars and still graduate.

As we enter into study week and finals frenzy begins, many Cornellians will spend their last days of this fall semester camped out in the library. The University’s library system has grown from one library housed in two rooms of Morrill Hall at the time of Cornell’s founding, to over 20 libraries located in New York State and Doha, Qatar today.

14 years ago today, a group comprised primarily of Latino students rushed into Day Hall demanding a meeting with then-president Frank H. T. Rhodes. Though most students on campus were busy getting ready to leave for the Thanksgiving holiday, those inside Day Hall remained there until the administration agreed to hear their concerns. The four-day peaceful occupation — from Friday, Nov. 19, 1993 to Monday Nov. 22, 1993 — would be immortalized in Cornell and national archives as the Day Hall Takeover

This weekend the Cornell men’s ice hockey team will take on ECAC rivals Princeton and Quinnipiac, and over 4,000 hockey fans will pour into Lynah Rink to watch the icers play their first regular season home games.

Cornell brought home its first intercollegiate championship after remaining undefeated during the 1910-1911 season. Today, Cornell has won a record 11 ECAC championships, 19 Ivy League titles (15 times outright and four times shared) and two NCAA championships. And former icer Ken Dryden ’69 makes Cornell proud as a Hockey Hall of Fame inductee.