The Cornell Daily Sun (https://cornellsun.com/tag/university-assembly/)
“In many cases, many [students] are thousands of miles away from home, even domestically, so for us to quickly turn our backs on them is disheartening,” he said. “We are accepting and that is part of our institution’s principles.”
Ithaca Mayor Svante Myrick ’09 faced pushback from University Assembly members while promoting the Ithaca Plan at Cornell Tuesday. University officials also spoke at the meeting to address the dearth of housing available on campus. Myrick originally presented his Ithaca Plan to combat heroin usage last winter; since then, there have been few public developments. The controversial plan involves a supervised heroin injection facility, a provision which would need to be approved by the New York State legislature. “A couple years ago, we had three heroin overdoses in the course of about a week and a half, and it was all too familiar,” Myrick said, stressing Ithaca’s need for a new drug policy.
The resolution calls for the trial-testing of Earth Source Heating, a $700 million project that requires exploratory drilling to determine its viability as a future primary means of energy on campus. Specific funding details will remain unknown until the energy source is deemed viable, Howarth said.
Howarth outlined a project by SLCAG, which was commissioned by Provost Michael Kolitkoff in March, that outlines the financial analysis, comparative benefits and risks of current and potential energy sources.
“We’re not advocating for one side or another,” explained Ulysses Smith, Employee Assembly chair. “We just wanted to have a conversation” on a potentially tobacco-free campus.
“I have no clue what to expect over the next few months, but I’m excited to see progress happening,” he said.
In a review of resolutions from last year, Kaufman also described the U.A.’s goals for a peer-to-peer textbook marketplace, a resolution the group passed in April.
U.A. resolution 11, sponsored by U.A. Chair Matt Battaglia ’17, is a customary action taken by the chair of the U.A. expressing his or her gratitude for the assembly’s members and their cooperation during the academic year.
Six percent of schools that responded to surveys reported that their admissions process is identical for applicants with and without a criminal record, according to the Center for Community Alternatives.
“I think that it makes sense to get the costs down now for textbooks and then perhaps next year ensure the Cornell Store is as accessible as possible,” Kaufman said.