In a room brightly lit by tall windows in the basement of Willard Straight Hall sits one of Cornell's best-kept secrets: a fully functional pottery studio, complete with three kilns, 32 wheels and regular visits from world-renowned potters. Open to all members of the Ithaca community, the studio offers instruction in the techniques of throwing and hand-building both useful and decorative objects.

The studio, under the direction of potter Andy Palmer, offers 11 noncredit classes a semester and teaches more than 400 students a year. "As far as being dirt cheap and open to the public, we're the only program I know of like this," says Palmer.

Cornell's legacy with ceramics goes as far back as Elijah Cornell (Ezra's father), who was trained as a potter and operated several different potteries in his lifetime. In fact, Ezra made his first visit to Ithaca while on a trip to sell his father's wares.

Established in 1957, the studio was originally known as "the craft shop" and offered instruction in ceramics, jewelry, textiles and various other crafts. Over the years, the studio grew to focus more on ceramics and attracted a regular group of potters who volunteered and supported the studio. By the 1970s the facility had become affectionately known as "the pot shop" and was offering weekly classes, working with over 200 students a year.

The space, however, had never been designed specifically for ceramics usage, instead serving a variety of organizations and departments. At various times it was a radio station, a makeup room for theatrical productions and a food-and-drink service area. In 2003, the space underwent renovation, with new ventilation and exhaust systems, new lighting and a demolition of the interior to create an attractive and highly functional studio space.

The studio's operation as a nonprofit entity allows it to charge less that $100 per semester for membership, in keeping with Ezra's vision of Cornell as "an institution where any person can find instruction in any study."