On the Bright Side: Edmeston grad set to climb Mount Kilimanjaro

Local News

Related Photos

STEFANIE CORNNELL SITS AT the top of Bald Peak in the Adirondacks in October.

Discussion

COMMENTING ON STORIES:

Welcome to our story comments feature. We welcome your thoughts and your opinions, including the unpopular ones. We only ask that you keep your conversations clean, civil and on the topic of the story you are commenting on.

Coinciding with our websites redesign, we launched our new story comments feature through Disqus.

Disqus gives users the ability to log into our story comments feature so that they may be able to track their conversations, receive emails when their comments get a reply or to even have your comments update onto your Facebook or Twitter accounts.

For the time being, our story comments feature will continue to have the ability to post comments anonymously. We reserve the right to require registration in the future using your name and verified email address.

Not all comments are deemed printable. Some are disqualified at the newspaper’s discretion for a number of different reasons. Please follow our Online Rules of Conduct at all times.

RULES OF CONDUCT:

We reserve the right to remove comments that are unacceptable, to wit:

1. False and inacurate statements.
2. Personal attacks. Explicit name-calling.
3. Harassing, harmful, vulgar, obscene and defamatory language.
4. Threatening statements or statements that suggest violence.
5. Hate speech of any kind.
6. Intolerant comments on religion, race, age, gender, sexual preference or disabilities.
7. Accusations of criminal activity.
8. Content that is harmful to children and minors in any way.
9. References to any type of sexual activity and other private matters.
10. Random and inflammatory statements that are off topic.
11. Advertising of any kind.
12. Typing in all caps.

WE ENCOURAGE REASONABLE AND COURTEOUS COMMENTS THAT:

1. Create conversation on issues of interest and concern to fellow readers and local community members.
2. Express opinions and contrarian views.
3. Stimulate debate with respectful language.
4. Stay within the boundaries of these rules.

WE RESERVE THE RIGHT TO SUSPEND OR TERMINATE ACCESS FOR:

1. Violating any of these Online Rules of Conduct.
2. Deliberately disrupting discussions with repetitive messages, meaningless messages or spam.
3. Misrepresentation of identity or impersonating another user.

WE WELCOME:

1. Flagging violations of these rules that you observe to our attention.

MONITORING:

We monitor comments regularly Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Approval of comments outside of this time (including weekends) will be sporadic.

comments powered by Disqus

January 4, 2012

On the Bright Side: Edmeston grad set to climb Mount Kilimanjaro

By Mark Boshnack Staff Writer The Daily Star Mon Jan 16, 2012, 10:55 AM EST

A 2009 Edmeston Central School graduate will soon be scaling new heights in a foreign land as part of her undergraduate studies.

When 20-year-old Stefanie Cornnell, a junior at SUNY Oswego, signed up for the Together We Go: Climbing Kilimanjaro course, she knew what she was getting into, she said Friday.

The zoology major has been interested in studying primates since she was in elementary school and always wanted to go to Africa.

She will be traveling with a group of 23 students and faculty Monday from JFK Airport in Queens to Tanzania, where the mountain is located.

The group will begin its eight-day climb of Mount Kilimanjaro on Thursday. After the strenuous hike that will take them to the top of Africa’s tallest peak, the climbers will visit a Masai village and go on a wildlife safari before leaving for home Jan. 15, according to an itinerary.

Cooperstown Central School graduate and State University College at Oswego junior Ariel Powers is also in the class and scheduled to go on the trip. She did not return a call for comment Friday. On the website, oswegogoingglobal.org, a group that supports this and similar travels, the meteorology major said that she hopes to have boosted her confidence and have a better appreciation of her accomplishments, and the culture she is visiting, when she returns.

“I have always wanted to go to Africa, and I saw the opportunity,” Cornnell said. “I’ve always loved traveling, and I thought this would be a good experience.”

As a junior in high school she was a student ambassador in the People to People program, traveling to several European countries, including Ireland, England, France and Belgium. As a freshman in college, she traveled to Spain as a member of the soccer team. Last May, she took a global studies class that traveled to Beijing.

Besides class work, the students climbed in the Adirondack and Catskill mountains to get ready, Cornnell’s first experience with that activity. Now that she is getting ready to go, “I’m very excited and a little nervous,” she said.

Oswego administrator and co-leader of Team Kilimanjaro, Mehran Nojan, said she has climbed similar mountains, but this is the first time she is taking students on such a trip. It is also the first time she has been to Africa. Co-leader Gary Morris made the climb six years ago.

“It’s not an easy trip,” requiring months of training, she said. “It’s a team-building exercise that will teach them when to lead and when to follow,” as well as expose them to a different culture.

The coursework involved learning about hiking as well as the people and geography they will encounter. “Students will come out with a lot of experience,” she said.

Cornnell said that she plans to attend graduate school and do field work with primates. The experience will help her decide whether she wants to return to Africa.

“Whatever happens,” she said, “it will be lifechanging.”