A former acting U.S. attorney general will lead an independent review of how Cornell University responds to allegations of sexual misconduct and tries to prevent it, a newly formed committee of the university’s board of trustees announced Tuesday.
Sally Q. Yates, now a partner at the law firm King & Spalding, and her team will review areas including Cornell’s campus police response and processes, coordination with external law enforcement and prosecutors, disciplinary decisions and oversight of Greek life.
Yates and her team also will inquire in detail about the university’s response to a student’s allegations of sexual assault by members of the Chi Phi fraternity in 2024 — including whether Cornell followed its own policies in its response to the incident.
“Sally Yates brings extraordinary experience, independence and judgment to this work,” Anne Meinig Smalling, chair of the special committee, said in a news release. “The questions raised by the Jane Doe matter warrant a rigorous examination of Cornell’s response to that case, but our responsibility is broader. We have asked Ms. Yates and her team to examine Cornell’s overall approach to preventing and responding to sexual misconduct, identify where we are doing things well and where we can do better, and recommend changes that will help make our community safer.”
Since news broke last month of a lawsuit the former student had filed in connection with her allegations, Cornell’s leaders are facing mounting pressure and outrage from critics who question whether enough was done to investigate and address the alleged assault.
Cornell undertook an extensive Title IX investigation, disciplined students and barred the fraternity from campus, but the local district attorney declined to seek criminal charges. That decision is now under separate review by the office of New York state Attorney General Letitia James.
On Tuesday, several professors said that Cornell faculty members have drafted a resolution that they have no confidence in the school’s central administration to address the ongoing crisis at the university, a rare move reflecting the depth of concern on campus.
The draft resolution could be put on the Faculty Senate’s agenda for discussion as soon as its meeting next week, the professors said. If eventually scheduled for a vote and approved, it would send a symbolic but still powerful message to the university’s leaders.
“People are very upset,” said David Bateman, an associate professor in the government department and president of the university’s chapter of the American Association of University Professors. “People are upset about what happened, and they are upset about the university’s actions and behavior and posture towards the entire attack.”
The allegations have touched off emotional discussions nationally about sexual assault, drug use, consent and Greek life. On Monday, hundreds of students protested on campus, demanding that the university expel the alleged perpetrators or revoke one’s degree. Before dawn that day, activists vandalized an administration building.
Dozens of members of Cornell’s board of trustees did not immediately respond to questions Tuesday.
A spokeswoman for the university declined to comment on the Faculty Senate’s draft resolution.
On Saturday, the Cornell President Michael Kotlikoff released a video acknowledging the anger and sadness and saying he supports New York Gov. Kathy Hochul’s decision to appoint James as a special prosecutor to lead a reopened criminal investigation.
“We must lead the way,” he said. “We owe it to Jane Doe and to survivors of assault to get this right, and we must keep each other safe.”
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