Cornell Board of Trustees “Unanimous Vote in Support of President Martha E. Pollack”

We believe the pursuit of knowledge is dependent on robust discourse that acknowledges differences while exploring shared values. Cornell proudly embraced diversity in its inaugural student body over 150 years ago and will continue to do so for the next 150 years.“Free expression is the bedrock of democracy,” President Pollack said in her April 2023 announcement of Cornell’s current academic theme year, “just as academic freedom is the bedrock of higher education.” We remain committed to advancing the critical work of Cornell’s mission: teaching, research, and public engagement; and we look forward to continuing to advance it under President Pollack’s leadership.

This statement amplifies a prior statement by Board Chair Kraig Kayser supporting Pollack.

The statement is silent on the separate criticisms of Pollak’s embrace and expansion of the DEI initiatives on campus, but I doubt there is any dissent there either. I don’t have time right now to expand on that, but read my prior post, It’s Cornell Trustees Time For Choosing Whether To Rescue The Cornell Brand From The DEI Downward Spiral.

The Cornell Review asks the right question:

It remains to be seen whether DEI’s newfound attention at the Board of Trustees level will yield any changes in the Cornell bureaucracy.An important concern expressed by the Lindseth letter is that the manner that Cornell implements DEI conflicts with merit. Given that Cornell is now under investigation by the Department of Education, all of Cornell will be more mindful of its core values, mission and “any person … any study” ethos.

DEI is a religion at Cornell. People don’t give up their religion easily.