The Presidential Task Force on Institutional Voice released their final recommendations on how and when Cornell should issue official statements on social and political issues, according to a statement released by University administration on Thursday afternoon.
The statement specifically called for “institutional restraint” when making decisions about when to comment on issues. The recommendations propose that Cornell limit official statements to situations that are directly connected to the University’s mission and values.
“By limiting institutional voice to matters germane to the University’s mission and to higher education, Cornell respects and protects the individual voices of faculty, staff, and students as they exercise their freedom to speak,” the statement reads.
After what top administrators described as “extensive review and discussion” with faculty members,staff, students and shared governance bodies across Cornell’s campuses, the task force released a 19 -page document on its final recommendations, which will “guide administrative responses to external events,” according to the statement.
The task force was convened to examine when and how the University should speak “institutionally on issues of social and political significance,” according to the statement. This approach, the administration stated, is intended to prevent the University from taking positions on issues that fall outside of its academic and educational scope, according to the recommendations report.
There are certain members of Cornell leadership who, due to the nature of their position at the university, cannot meaningfully divorce their individual faculty or staff voice from their institutional voice,” the report reads. “In particular, the university’s president and provost can seldom communicate publicly on matters related to the university without speaking on behalf of the university.”
The Presidential Task Force On Institutional Voice was announced in March amid the fallout from Cornell’s Trump settlement and is led by Cornell Law School’s Dean Jens Ohlin and Deputy Provost Prof. Avery August, immunology.
Defining when the University should speak on an issue was one of President Michael Kotlikoff’s first presidential actions, announced in August.
“Administrative actions must be consistent and content neutral,” Kotlikoff wrote in an Aug. 2024 statement. “In furtherance of institutional neutrality and deference to the many and diverse views in the Cornell community, the President and Provost will refrain from opining on national or global events that do not directly impact the university.”
The email emphasized that limiting institutional voice is not meant to silence individuals within the Cornell community. Rather, the recommendations assert that restraint helps protect personal expression.
In addition to defining when the University should speak, the report also clarifies who is authorized to do so. The recommendations outline which administrators are empowered to speak on behalf of Cornell and provide best-practice guidance for deans, department chairs, faculty groups and other campus leaders. The recommendations also specified that “only the board [of trustees], president, and provost speak for the university” though this responsibility can be delegated to other officers at the discretion of the provost and president.
The administration’s goal, according to the statement, is to ensure that members of the community are not mistakenly perceived as representing the University's official position when sharing their “scholarly expertise or personal opinions.”
The administration’s message concluded with an invitation for community members to review the full document, stating that the recommendations are “essential to advancing and protecting the Cornell mission while ensuring a diversity of viewpoints and beliefs across our campuses.”
Kristie To is a member of the Class of 2028 in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Kristie is a senior writer for the News department and can be reached at kto@cornellsun.com.
