To the Editor
I hope this letter finds you and your families healthy.
I write to oppose the recently announced reactivation plan of the Cornell University campus here in Ithaca. I believe re-opening the campus to thousands of students who would travel to Ithaca for class in an effort to better address the spread of the COVID-19 virus is counterfactual.
I offer the concept of density as proof for my claim that your plan is not primarily about public health, as stated, but is infact a plan focused on collecting tuition during a pandemic. I request that President Pollack and the Board of Trustees appropriately re-title their proposal to fairly state: “A Plan to Enrich the University.”
I request that President Pollack and the Board of Trustees begin working on a new plan to ensure students, staff, faculty and every other member of the Cornell community can participate in Cornell’s educational services from the safety of their homes or in safe homes that Cornell will provide for them locally or abroad.
I request that the second plan include an investment strategy by Cornell in new and existing local medical infrastructure to ensure that the broader, local community have direct access to the highest quality care in order to immediately address the pandemic, chronic health vulnerabilities to the pandemic and public health needs following the conclusion of the virus.
Ri Bornstein, Ithaca Resident