Cornell calls her account of the president’s reaction “incorrect”
Jane Doe, a former Cornell University student suing the school over an alleged gang rape at its Chi Phi fraternity house in October 2024, has accused President Michael Kotlikoff of asking why she waited several weeks to report the incident — an account Cornell has called “incorrect,” according to BBC News.
The university, which initially defended its disciplinary measures in the case, has since acknowledged it fell short in its handling of Doe’s case.
On Friday, Cornell’s Faculty Senate, which represents academic staff, passed a vote of no confidence in the university’s central administration by 75 votes to 50 over its handling of what staff call a “crisis of sexual assault.” The vote is largely symbolic, because the faculty senate does not have the power to remove university leaders. It is a rebuke of university leaders including Kotlikoff.
The resolution states that the faculty senate “has no confidence in the ability of the central administration to effectively address the ongoing crisis of sexual assault at Cornell University.” It did not make any specific recommendations, nor did it suggest what administrators did wrong in response to the accusation.
Doe, who is known anonymously, is suing both the university and the fraternity over an alleged incident involving several men at the Chi Phi fraternity house. All seven of the accused have denied wrongdoing when contacted by the BBC’s US partner, CBS. None has been charged with a crime.
In a statement responding to the vote’s outcome, Doe’s lawyer, Thomas Giuffra, said: “We recently learned that Cornell’s Faculty Senate made a finding of no confidence in the Central Administration’s ability to address the longstanding crisis of sexual assault at Cornell. We believe that the Faculty Senate did not reach this decision lightly and considered all available information.”
“We are hopeful that this will be yet another step forward to educate and support the Cornell community by addressing the longstanding scourge of sexual assault on campus,” Giuffra added.
Doe reported the alleged assault to campus police after it happened, but the local prosecutor declined to bring charges at the time, according to BBC News. Backlash against Cornell has been intense since she filed the lawsuit in September.
As part of its response, Cornell has hired a former attorney general to conduct an independent review of the case, and it recently announced a series of new measures, including cancelling fraternity parties.
Separately, New York state prosecutors led by Attorney General Letitia James are carrying out their own investigation to decide whether criminal charges are warranted. Earlier this week, Governor Kathy Hochul announced that state police would investigate any future sexual offense complaints at the university.