Members of the Cornell University faculty senate on Friday issued a vote of no confidence in the administration’s ability to manage the response to an alleged sexual assault at a fraternity house in 2024, according to the university.
The governing body took up the issue after a former student, known as Jane Doe, alleged she was sexually assaulted and forced to take drugs at the Chi Phi fraternity house from Oct. 19 to 20, 2024. The allegations, detailed in a lawsuit the woman filed in September, led to widespread criticism of the university and calls for reform from students and alumni.
The senate’s resolution states that the body “has no confidence in the ability of the central administration to effectively address the ongoing crisis of sexual assault at Cornell University.”
It does not recommend removals or suggest how to manage the controversy’s fallout. It passed by a vote of 75-50, with five abstentions and five members not voting, according to a copy of the results obtained by NBC News.
The vote will not directly affect leadership decisions at the institution, including whether President Michael Kotlikoff remains in his role. The board of trustees, which has the authority to replace him, can consider the finding in its decisions but suggested in a statement Friday that no immediate changes were expected.
“The Board of Trustees remains confident that President Kotlikoff and his administration are the right leaders to thoughtfully and comprehensively address the serious problem of sexual assault on our campus,” chair Anne Meinig Smalling said.
Smalling highlighted recent changes implemented by leadership.
“They have already taken several important steps to this end, including adding staff to the Cornell Office of Civil Rights, expanding in-person sexual assault prevention education, and hiring more victim advocates,” Smalling said. “The administration will continue to build on that progress with more initiatives to be launched in the weeks and months ahead.”
Faculty senators who sponsored the resolution called the decision “a reckoning” for the university.
“It is a call for real, systemic change; not a slow-moving taskforce, weakly enforced ban on fraternity parties, or expensive [public relations] damage control, but meaningful, evidence-based steps to reduce the incidence of sexual assault on campus and provide significant support to and justice for survivors,” the sponsors wrote in a statement.
Jane Doe and her attorney have alleged that Cornell failed to support her through the reporting process and subsequent investigation.
“We are hopeful that this will be yet another step forward to educate and support the Cornell community by addressing the longstanding scourge of sexual assault on campus,” said Jane Doe’s attorney Thomas Giuffra.
Jane Doe accused seven members of the fraternity of participating in a sexual assault, which she told police began with a consensual threesome but resulted in unwanted sex and ketamine consumption.
All seven men accused in the incident deny the allegations. Two were expelled from the university after an internal civil rights proceeding, and others faced less severe punishments from the school.
Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten said he declined to pursue a criminal case in November 2024 based on a six-page statement from Jane Doe.
New York Attorney General Letitia James was appointed by Gov. Kathy Hochul last month to investigate the matter and consider whether criminal charges are supported. Two of the defendants initiated court proceedings aimed at disqualifying James based on what they argue are biased statements of support for Jane Doe that James posted on social media.
On Thursday, several defendants joined an Article 78 proceeding in Sullivan County that was recently filed by lawyers for one of the fraternity brothers, Gillio Lopes. Diego Sarabia, Scott Kretzschmar, Scott Norris and Winston Lee, who are co-defendants in Jane Doe’s lawsuit, were added to the petition in support of Lopes’ request.
Two remaining defendants, Matthew Ingalls and Jonathan Newell, do not have representation in the civil case and did not respond to Lopes’ attorneys.
On Wednesday, James announced her appointment of a former federal prosecutor to direct the investigation. That attorney, Jacqueline Kelly, will lead a team under James to conduct an independent inquiry into the sexual assault allegations.
Lopes’ lawyers argued in court papers that unless James recuses herself, the appointment does not change their position on the existence of a conflict. James has said her office is fully capable of conducting a fact-based, unbiased review.
James has also said her comments were merely an expression of empathy for Jane Doe.
Lee’s attorney previously filed a separate motion in Tompkins County Supreme Court seeking to block James from any grand jury proceeding, arguing that she had exhibited bias. A decision is expected Nov. 13.
At a virtual news conference after the faculty senate vote Friday, the proposal’s lead sponsor, Paul Ortiz, said the idea came “after hearing from scores of current students, alumni, staff and faculty that the Jane Doe case was the tip of the iceberg.”
“The bravery of the survivors of sexual assault at Cornell past and present who told us their stories proved that no administration or administrator at this university could have been unaware of the chronic crisis of sexual assault at Cornell,” said Ortiz, a labor history professor. “Not in the 1970s, not in the 2010s; most certainly not now.”
Ortiz said he and other faculty members are planning an oral history project to highlight stories of sexual assault survivors at Cornell.
The Cornell president last month fielded questions from professors and other university employees at a senate meeting. At that Oct. 14 session, Kotlikoff vowed to reassess Greek life at the university and examine preventive measures to reduce the number of reported sexual assaults on campus.
The president said additional resources were being added to support victims when they come forward. That includes assistance dealing with Cornell’s bureaucracy for students who make sexual assault complaints, Kotlikoff said.
Kotlikoff told the faculty members that he didn’t know until recently that Jane Doe dropped out of school after the incident.
Faculty senate members recently debated whether to postpone the vote until after the university’s outside review by former acting Attorney General Sally Yates, who was commissioned by the board of trustees to examine how the matter was handled.
A proposal to postpone the no-confidence decision failed to pass at the Senate’s Oct. 28 meeting.
