The Employee Assembly voiced approval at its Wednesday meeting for the recent appointment of Anne Meinig Smalling ’87 as chair of the Cornell Board of Trustees — marking the first time a woman will hold the role.
Hei Hei Depew, an employee-elected trustee on the board, noted Smalling’s longstanding ties to the University including being a third-generation Cornellian and the second in her family to chair the board. Smalling’s father, Peter Meinig ’61 BME ’62, chaired the Board of Trustees from 2002 to 2011.
Smalling earned her bachelor’s degree in human development from the College of Human Ecology and has served on the board since 2017. Marking the first time that two members of the same family have led the Board of Trustees, Smalling’s appointment as the new chair of the board was met with positive comments from Assembly members.
“It's fantastic that we've got our first female chair,” said Jeramy Kruser, who served on the Board of Trustees from 2018 to 2020 and now works as a systems administrator for Cornell Information Technologies. “[Smalling’s appointment] provides [the Employee Assembly with] a fantastic opportunity, particularly for [Depew] who has direct contact, to represent and build the image of employee representation at Cornell within the board, with the new chair.”
Depew, the only Cornell employee sitting on the Board of Trustees, described Smalling as “even-keeled, very straightforward and very generous with her time.” She explained that as chair of the board, Smalling will talk about important community issues like child care, elder care and financial headwinds and stressed the importance of establishing communication with her.
“I think it is — to [Kruser's] point — really important with the coming years, to be in close relationship with whoever the chair is and whoever the executive team is, to really try to bring that staff voice,” Depew said.
College of Veterinary Medicine Representative Marcy Benda, who previously served as the Employee Assembly women’s representative, said she was excited to see Smalling assume the role.
“I can't believe she's the first [woman] after so many years,” Benda said. “But gosh, what took so long.”
The Assembly also unanimously approved the proposed shortened election calendar for the Spring 2025 semester. The calendar focuses on improving efficiency and preventing conflicts with holidays.
The Assembly then raised concerns about general parking issues and the criteria for booting vehicles on Cornell's campus. They voted in favor of sending an information request letter to Parking and Transportation Services to seek clarification and address these concerns.
Michael Ferreira is a Sun contributor and can be reached at mm3447@cornell.edu.
Jason Choi is a Sun contributor and can be reached at jc3697@cornell.edu.
