Much as Vice President Harris is trying to subtly distance herself from President Biden, Kotlikoff subtly signaled that the next two years would be unlike Pollack’s years. Kotlikoff pointed out that he has been on the Cornell faculty for 25 years and has been infused with the Cornell way of approaching issues. This drew a contrast to Pollack, who was hired while serving as Provost of the University of Michigan from 2013 to 2017.
Kotlikoff sought to wrap his vision for Cornell in its history, invoking A.D. White and Ezra Cornell’s work following the end of the Civil War. He also invoked “Freedom and Responsibility”, an essay written by Cornell Historian Carl Becker on the 75th anniversary of Cornell’s founding during the challenges of 1940 when the freedom-loving world was lining up for a battle to the death against fascism.
Kotlikoff claims that society is just as divided today, as the campus debates the Gaza crisis and the alternatives offered in the national election.
“What we need to do today is to apply that perspective to our own moment: listening to criticism where it has merit, evaluating ourselves honestly, and always being open to improvement—even as we forcefully defend the value of our institutions to individuals and society, and our bedrock principles of academic freedom and free expression.
“Now, as then—there is no better way to rebuild a fractured nation, than to educate citizens to think for themselves, and live together; and to value truth, openness, and equality as cornerstones of our democracy.”
So, Kotlikoff is aligning himself with President Pollack’s initiatives to promote free expression on campus, including the 2023-24 theme year. Yet, he is silent on a second topic where Pollack spent a great deal of her political capital — diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). Perhaps this reflects a difference in backgrounds. Prior to Pollack coming to Cornell, the Cornell that Kotlikoff came to know prioritized merit over diversity in hiring and promotions. However, Pollack came from the University of Michigan, where during her years as Provost, that university ramped up vast resources in promoting DEI. This weekend’s New York Times Magazine has dramatically reported on Michigan’s DEI efforts with a long-form investigative report. It is not clear whether Pollack was hired to extend DEI as much at Cornell, but DEI efforts certainly took up a large portion of her attention and initiatives. Just as the Magazine article documents the unintended consequences of DEI at Michigan, Kotlikoff’s silence on DEI at Cornell is both understandable and not surprising. Pollack’s decision to retire happened after Trustee Emeritus Jon Lindseth ‘56 wrote a public letter calling for both Pollack and Kotlikoff to resign over this issue.
Kotlikoff’s use of Carl Becker’s essay is instructive. Although “freedom and responsibility” is a theme that has been pitched to the campus in the context of conduct regulation, Becker’s essay was really about faculty authority and power. From 1868 to 1969, the faculty had plenary power over all aspects of the university, including student conduct. Becker’s essay assumes and justifies the supreme role of the faculty in running a decentralized university. According to Becker’s essay, the chief duty of the university President was “to obviate the difficulties created by his office.”
However, from 1969 onward, campus conduct and non-academic policies and budgets were transferred to shared governance bodies. Since then, Day Hall has accumulated powers at the expense of shared governance (including the faculty.) This culminated on December 10, 2020, with the Trustees transferring responsibility for the campus code of conduct and judicial system from the University Assembly to VP Ryan Lombardi. So, all of the interim suspensions and other disciplinary decisions handed down this week were made in Day Hall rather than by an independent judicial system.
While the address did not discuss the shift in powers from the faculty to Day Hall, Kotlikoff certainly has the perspective of someone who has been the chief operating officer of Cornell for the past nine years. He asks, “Is Cornell still a place where students are safe, and one that honors its duty of care to every student, even when they act in ways that make us shake our heads?” Kotlikoff asserts the answer is yes. He claims:
“It is a tradition grounded in our history, and our shared values. We are and must continue to be a community that respects the right to think otherwise, and speak freely, even when that speech offends. And at the same time, a community that cherishes our shared humanity despite our differences, and appreciates how essential it is to respect the rights of others as we assert our own.”
Implicitly, Kotlikoff is asking the community, including the Council and Trustees, to trust his motives and not buy into the claims of the Black Student Union that the recent disciplinary actions were motivated by racism.
The address was delivered in Call Auditorium under tight security, with admission by Council name tag only. The meeting was not picketed or disrupted. The day before, an extra session was added to the Council program featuring Kotlikoff being interviewed by VP Joel Malina with Kotlikoff also responding to questions from the audience.
Kotlikoff delivered his State of the University address with sufficient charm and humility, with the Trustees and Council members appearing to buy into his leadership and to his renewed emphasis on freedom and responsibility.
