Sharing a passion for nature and science

Dr. Linda S. Rayor, Emerita faculty, Dept. Entomology

Thursday, March 19th from 10:30-11:30am- In Person & Zoom

Description: Dr. Rayor’s career is a Ven diagram linking explorations in the behavior of spiders, sharing a passion for biology with the public, and watching wildlife around the world. She will discuss the value of reaching the public by making science accessible, using spiders as a gateway into science, and her discoveries of social behavior in large, fast spiders.

Bio: Dr. Linda S. Rayor recently retired from the Department of Entomology at Cornell University after 31-years. Her behavioral ecological research has focused on social evolution, life-history, and physiology in Australian and SE Asian huntsman spiders.  Dr. Rayor is the current Past President/ Director of the American Arachnological Society. She has taught Spider Biology, Social Animal Behavior, and a course on how to do effective science outreach, the Naturalist Outreach Practicum. Engagement in science communication and outreach characterize Dr. Rayor’s career, including a 26-yr STEM outreach program for Cornell students to go into CNY schools, started Insectapalooza, has given 75+ popular lectures on spiders, and developing the exhibit ‘Arachnophilia: A passion for spiders’ at Mann Library.  Her larger scale international highlights include starring in two seasons of Science Discovery Channel’s ‘Monster Bug Wars’ about predatory arthropods, and, since 2017, she has worked on the Australian Museum’s blockbuster traveling exhibit, ‘Spiders: From Fear to Fascination’, which is currently touring North America.  She and her husband, Cole Gilbert, have led 12 wildlife-oriented tours for CAU (Cornell’s Adult University with upcoming trips to Madagascar and Tanzania.

“College Athletics at a Crossroads: What NIL and the Transfer Portal Mean for the Ivy League Model”

Dr. Ryan Lombardi

Thursday, April 16th from 10:30-11:30am- In Person & Zoom

Description: This discussion will explore how recent changes in college athletics—particularly Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) policies and the NCAA transfer portal—are reshaping dynamics across higher education. Specifically, we will focus on potential implications for the Ivy League’s long-standing model of scholar-athletes, academic prioritization, and institutional integrity, and consider what these shifts may mean for the future of athletics at academically intensive institutions.

Bio: Dr. Ryan Lombardi has served as Cornell’s Vice President of Student and Campus Life since 2015, overseeing the student experience outside of the classroom, including the university’s housing, dining, athletics and recreation, mental health and medical services, student organizations and clubs, community-engaged learning, resource centers, career services, and more.

In his tenure as vice president, Ryan’s priorities have focused on enhancing resources to support the Cornell student community. This has included the transformation of Cornell’s residential campus with the addition of new residence halls and world-class dining facilities on North Campus, the expansion of resources and services to support emerging student needs including those of first-generation and low-income students, and has been a champion for student wellbeing by enabling the growth of clinical mental health services and non-clinical programs to promote student flourishing.

Ryan is a hands-on leader who can most often be seen engaging with students and staff in campus community centers, dining halls, and at athletic events. In all spaces he is advocating for the mission that guides the work of Student and Campus Life: creating a campus environment that enables student transformation.