We're not "Columbia University." No, for better or for worse, we are "Columbia University in the City of New York." But beyond the pomp and circumstance, there's a legitimate connection to be made. Columbia's reputation is intertwined with the city we so proudly call home. So to better understand Columbia's recent rejuvenation, falling acceptance rates, and a long-awaited return to academic greatness, one needs to look beyond campus-wide policies. Columbia lives and dies by New York. Once we accept this, then we can give credit where credit is due-one larger-than-life man and his mouse.

Native New Yorkers tend to arrange contemporary history according to two neatly divided epochs: Before Rudy and After Rudy. As young adults, few can recall life under Dinkins and Koch, but all can attest to the dignity and safety of present-day New York. Our outlook is myopic. It's easy to cite facts and make resounding claims, but can we comprehend them? In 1990, there were 2,245 murders, but there were only 530 in 2005. What does this mean? It means that the neighborhood where you spent your Friday night, or where you intern, or where you went to shop was likely a crime-ridden dive 15 years ago. Assuming, of course, that those stores and businesses even existed. New York City was suffering. Crime, unemployment, and poverty ran rampant as a malaise descended over a once thriving city. Columbia was not immune. The Students for a Democratic Society riots of the late '60s had produced a backlash, and this, coupled with the deterioration of New York City, did great, long-term harm to Columbia's reputation. In less than two decades, Columbia had fallen from intellectual powerhouse-home to Barzun, Trilling, Hofstadter, Van Doren, Mills, Rabi, Fermi, and countless others-to hobbled giant.

Giuliani and his administration resuscitated New York and in doing so, gave new life to Columbia. Mayor Giuliani recognized that for New York to boom both socially and economically, the quality of life had to improve. First, Rudy's administration revolutionized urban crime fighting with the implementation of Compstat, the hiring of new police officers, welfare reduction, and other no-nonsense policies. According to the government of New York City, "Under [Giuliani's] leadership, overall crime is down 57%, murder has been reduced 65%, and New York City has been recognized by the F.B.I. as the safest large city in America for the past five years." Secondly, with far less-publicized success, Rudy reached out to corporate America to help turn New York into a family-friendly destination.

Hoping to remedy the growing discontent, Mayor Giuliani turned to the private sector to encourage economic development. Giuliani approached The Walt Disney Company in what is often recognized as one of the most influential and foresighted business deals of the era. If Disney agreed to restore the New Amsterdam Theatre, move into Times Square, and combat the area's sordid and illicit reputation, New Yorkers would stand behind the effort. This was just 10 years ago. Today, you will find Times Square filled with tourists and families at all hours of the day.

So, how much does this have to do with our reputation today? A whole lot. Admit it, there's a reason why you're all here-or better yet, why you first applied. If you wanted a small liberal arts college buried in the woods, well, you're in the wrong place. You knew this. The city is what most attracted you to Columbia: the location, the uniqueness, the freedom, the lure of a great education not found in books. But trust me, the admissions office understands this well. You see it masterfully articulated in the Columbia literature, the student guides, the freshman orientation, the speakers, the classes... or, as it all boils down, the sales pitch. New York is the place to be. While Columbia has rediscovered academic greatness with a new generation of scholars and students, it also understands what sells. It's no fluke that the Columbia College class of 2010 had over 17,000 applications and an acceptance rate of 9.6 percent, the third lowest in the nation (behind only Harvard and Yale). It's no fluke that talented professors with young families are willing to move to Morningside Heights. Would they have done so two decades ago? You know the answer as well as I do.

Columbians cannot continue to deny the influence of our environs. We must keep Mayor Giuliani in mind when discussing Columbia's recent success. Under his leadership as pragmatic mayor and, come Sept. 11, national hero, both Columbia and New York City experienced a long-awaited return to greatness. The administration must reach out to Mayor Giuliani and bestow upon him the University's highest honors. For his immeasurable contributions to Columbia and the nation, it's the least we can do.