L&C Features

Senior Splash: alumni reflect on the origins of beloved graduation tradition 40 years later

By Ally Dheeradhada, Assistant Life & Culture Editor • May 15, 2026

One of Ithaca College’s biggest traditions is Senior Splash, when hundreds of graduating seniors jump into the Dillingham Fountains to celebrate the effort and dedication they put into their time at IC. Many students spend their four years thinking about the day they get to jump in the fountains, but few know of the group of friends that started it all: Scott Kunz ’86, Evan Cutler ’86 and Rob Holley ’86. 

‘Dreamgirls’ performance highlights Black excellence through musical storytelling

By Bella Phelps, Contributing Writer • April 30, 2026

Driven by a shared artistic passion, faculty and students at IC joined forces from 2-3:30 p.m. April 25 to fast-track “Dreamgirls” to the Ford Hall stage. In just one week of rehearsal, Cynthia Henderson, a professor of acting at Ithaca College, and Dr. Baruch Whitehead, a professor of music education, brought to life a staged concert of selected songs.

Local creatives weave together art and action with month-long Orozco Gallery exhibit

By Meital Fried, Life & Culture Editor • April 29, 2026

The art pieces hanging on the walls of Orozco Gallery, a pop-up exhibit open on The Commons from April 3 to May 2, are continuously evolving. The nomadic gallery, curated by Colombian-American artist Yen Ospina, primarily highlights the work of Latine fiber artists, bringing perspectives often marginalized in the art world to the center of Ithaca’s business district. 

Weirdness takes center stage at new fringe festival run by IC students

By Ally Dheeradhada, Staff Writer • April 29, 2026

Few know the legend of Old Greeny, a large, serpent-like monster supposedly living in Ithaca’s very own Cayuga Lake. Eyewitnesses of the cryptid have said it to be up to 35 feet in length, with rows of sharp white teeth and a penchant for using them to eat people in or around the lake. 

Fritter the cat wobbles into campus work and well-being

By Elle Wilcox, Contributing Writer • April 28, 2026

Walking into a classroom of Angela Reynolds ’18 is like a cat lover’s social media feed come to life with her cat, Fritter, roaming, or rather, wobbling around.

South Hill Forest Products makes a sweet stride in sustainability efforts

By Georgie Gassaro, Staff Writer • April 27, 2026

What started in 2010 with just a few Ithaca College students harvesting local maple syrup and making French toast for their friends brought nearly 360 attendees to this year’s South Hill Forest Products (SHFP) open house April 18. Over the years, this co-curricular organization and company has cultivated a space for the campus and local communities to reconnect with nature and even give back to the land along the way.

Student-run short film festival highlights independent films

By Ally Dheeradhada, Staff Writer • April 23, 2026

Ithaca College’s Park Productions team hosted a red carpet style film festival at Cinemapolis on April 15, showcasing the work of 15 filmmakers from around the world. This marks the 10th annual Ithaca Short Film Festival. The festival received 105 submissions from across 13 countries. Cinemapolis showed 15 films, with 10 winning various awards. 

DIY Fest: New festival amplifies Ithaca’s music scene

By Parker Anne Devine, Life & Culture Editor • April 16, 2026

Ithaca DIY Fest: a brand new three-day music festival organized by Unknown Stage, Ithaca Underground, Practice At!, Fanclub Collective and the Electrozone. DIY Fest took place April 10-12 on six different stages around Ithaca: Bernie Milton Pavilion, K-House, Angry Mom Records, the Nocturnal Café, TreeHouse Studio & Lounge and a basement of a student house on Cornell University’s campus.

BOC cultivates belonging through music

By Parker Anne Devine, Life & Culture Editor • April 16, 2026

When senior Gavin Keller took over as president of Ithaca College’s Bureau of Concerts in Fall 2025, he wanted to make the BOC’s on-campus concerts meaningful and impactful to IC students. After two past semesters of hands-off leadership, Keller and the BOC continue to work toward increasing not only the number of events the BOC hosts per semester, but also the impact of each event. 

IC mainstage ‘Spring Awakening’ production says goodbye to ‘all that’s known’

By Meital Fried, Life & Culture Editor • April 16, 2026

Gavin Mayer was sitting in a Chili’s Grill & Bar when he first thought to set “Spring Awakening” in Texas. It was May 2025, soon after Mayer, associate professor and chair in the Department of Theatre and Dance Performance and associate dean of the School of Music, Theatre, and Dance at Ithaca College, learned he would be directing the musical at IC in Spring 2026.

Concept to Creation: The Ithacan’s 2026 Arts Insert

April 1, 2026

How artistic passion brings color to IC's campus

Darkroom photography develops creativity

By Lucia Iandolo, Photographer • April 1, 2026

At Ithaca College, film photography has been a part of the curriculum for decades. All photography classes at IC were taught in the darkroom before the transition to a combination of analog and digital photography courses in the 2010s. Although the college does not have a photography major, students have the opportunity to take photography classes as part of the Television, Photography, and Digital Media photography concentration or with a minor in Still Photography.