Cornell faculty vote ‘no confidence’ in university leadership after alleged fraternity gang rape

The board of trustees said Friday that the vote reflected deep anger on campus and sent a “clear signal that what happened to Jane Doe is unacceptable,” but added that Kotlikoff and his administration were the right leaders to “thoughtfully and comprehensively” address the issue.

“The Board fully supports President Kotlikoff and his administration as they continue to listen and act decisively in support of students,” board chair Anne Smalling said in a statement. She cited expanded sexual assault prevention education, additional victim advocates and more staff at the university’s Office of Civil Rights as evidence of the administration’s response.

Thomas Giuffra, Jane Doe’s attorney, said in a statement Friday that “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.”

The Cornell community has been distressed since mid-September, when a former student filed a lawsuit against the university and seven former members of the Chi Phi fraternity, saying she was given ketamine and raped at a fraternity house in October 2024.

All of those men have denied her allegations, saying either the sex was consensual or they weren’t involved. The local district attorney initially decided the woman had consented to the encounter, and that no crime had been committed, but the investigation has since been reopened and handed to New York’s attorney general.

Cornell disciplined several of the accused students following a monthslong Title IX investigation. Two were expelled, two received suspensions and probation, and two were required to write “reflection” papers and complete bystander training. A seventh man had already graduated and was barred from campus, according to records obtained by The New York Times.

Kotlikoff also convened a task force to study the problem of sexual misconduct on campus, which released certain recommendations.

Some faculty members have criticized Kotlikoff for not acting more forcefully to strengthen the school’s disciplinary process, push for criminal investigations and change campus party culture.

Paul Ortiz, a labor history professor who co-sponsored the no-confidence resolution, said last week that hundreds of students, staff, alumni and faculty approached the resolution’s sponsors to emphasize that “the Jane Doe case is but a tip of the iceberg” and that “a veritable fortress of silence has been breached” around sexual violence since the resolution’s introduction.

Speaking to Faculty Senate members on the first day that they debated the no-confidence resolution, Kotlikoff pledged to make the university a leader in addressing sexual assault and asked for more time to make changes.

Kotlikoff defended his leadership, arguing that replacing him would do little to solve complex problems and could damage Cornell’s reputation. He acknowledged he had not read the campus police report, explaining that university policy barred top administrators from interfering in criminal investigations. He also rejected suggestions that he had been indifferent to the woman’s case, though he acknowledged only recently learning she had left Cornell.

Kotlikoff said the university needed to determine whether fraternities could operate safely and left open the possibility of sweeping restrictions on Greek life. He argued that decisions should be based on research and evidence rather than emotion.

Some professors said faculty should wait until the release of an independent investigation by former U.S. Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates, whom the university hired to examine both how Cornell responded to the woman’s initial rape report in 2024 and its overall procedures for handling similar reports from other students.

The no-confidence resolution did not call for Kotlikoff’s resignation.

Leah Willingham, The Associated Press

by The Canadian Press