Photo from National Association of Scholars Video
On Oct. 10, Momoduo Taal, a graduate student who was suspended for his role in the disruption of the ILR Job Fair on Sept. 18, posted on X that he had been reinstated as a student. Yet, he cannot return to the campus. Taal wrote “We also know that there are several outside forces who are applying pressure to ensure my removal but we have prevailed thanks to all those who wrote in, signed the petition and applied pressure.”
Taal was suspended on Sept. 23, following his leadership and participation in the disruption of a career fair held in the Statler Ballroom. At first, Taal appealed his suspension to VP Ryan Lombardi, who upheld it. Because his suspension affected his academic work, he was entitled to a second appeal to Interim Provost John Siliciano ’75. Siliciano emailed his decision to Taal today. Taal will be allowed to remain in Ithaca to complete his doctoral dissertation remotely, but will be banned from campus. Siliciano decided that Taal would no longer be able to teach his First-Year Writing Seminar because it is not a requirement for his degree.It is unclear whether losing Taal’s FWS teaching job affects his overall financial aid package.Meanwhile, Cornell has issued a statement updating the community on the accountability measures taken in response to the ILR Career Fair.“To date, Cornell has identified 19 individuals who disrupted university operations as part of a protest that shut down the September 18 career fair sponsored by the School of Industrial and Labor Relations at the Statler Hotel.“Identified students referred to the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards (OSCCS) were informed of interim measures of both an academic and non-academic nature designed to protect the community from repeated actions. The actions of identified faculty or staff have been referred to human resources and their colleges according to Cornell’s conduct policies. Three identified students also have been arrested for criminal offenses by the Cornell University Police Department and referred to the Ithaca City Court.”
