News and updates

Contact list and example email / call language

We encourage every one looking to defend higher education to reach out to their representatives, senators, the governor, and other officials with authority over higher education in the United States and New York State.

We encourage you also to reach out to the leadership of Cornell University, including its president and the Board of Trustees. If you are faculty and have not yet signed the letter to the board of trustees, please do so.

For communications with university leadership and state and federal officials, here’s some potential language that might be helpful. This is only a suggestion, and it is always best when expressed in your own words with your own stories and perspectives behind it.

Dear —-:

The Trump administration is following the example of authoritarian regimes such as Russia, Hungary, and Turkey in attacking higher education. The goal is to suppress universities and colleges as sites of free expression and open inquiry, as part of a broader assault on civil society.

I am asking you to do everything in your power to resist this.

For University leadership [THIS LANGUAGE IS FROM HERE; see below for STATE OFFICIALS AND MEMBERS OF CONGRESS]:

  • Refuse to comply with illegal governmental overreach that undermines a university’s academic decision-making and self-governance
  • Defend freedom of inquiry by faculty and researchers from government censorship. 
  • Provide full legal representation for all illegally detained or targeted international students. 
  • Refuse to share student records or immigration information—to the extent that is legally permissible—with federal authorities seeking to suppress legal dissent. 
  • Engage local, regional, national and international media to expose these abuses of power. 
  • Lobby state legislators to enact protective laws safeguarding university autonomy and international members of our communities. 
  • Lobby our federal representatives to assert their constitutional powers to check transgressions by the executive branch. 
  • Engage alumni of the university to defend the institution that supported their life opportunities. 
  • Build alliances across red, blue, and purple states, across local and national unions, employers and other institutions that benefit from what universities contribute to society.
  • Publicly affirm that universities will not tolerate intimidation of students—domestic or international, Jewish, Palestinian or otherwise—exercising their free speech rights. 
  • Begin a campaign of joint op-eds signed by college presidents and chancellors to reaffirm our institutional commitments and defend our peers when they come under attack. 

For STATE OFFICIALS

In many areas, such as the lawless orders on diversity, equity, and inclusion, this is a direct assault on State authority, a demand that universities and colleges comply with illegal federal orders rather than with its own laws and policy. The example from Columbia University and others suggests that the Trump Administration is going to try to force changes to educational policy on these schools, which by New York State law is set by the University Faculty, the New York State Department of Education, and the New York State Board of Regents.

  • Join existing lawsuits, by the AAUP and others, against attacks on higher education. The State is directly impacted by the loss of revenue and by the undermining of State educational institutions
  • Examine any federally mandated changes to education policy for constitutionality and legality, and contest these through litigation
  • Remind educational institutions within the State of their legal obligations under State law, and inform them that if they were comply to federal demands in violation of State law or policy that State investigations would be opened. Our institutions will be less likely to comply if they recognize there are costs to doing so.
  • Help organized and join the proposed Mutual Academic Defense Compacts for public (land grant) universities and for private universities and colleges called on by UMass Amherst, Rutgers University, and others.
  • Explicitly denounce the Trump administration’s assault on higher education, and use whatever agenda setting, investigatory, lawmaking, or media platform influence you have to raise public awareness and opposition.

For MEMBERS OF CONGRESS

Federal assaults on universities and colleges are in clear violation of statutes, and are thus not only illegal or lawless but an attack on Congress’s legislative power and its role as the Article 1 branch established by the Constitution. Whether Republican or Democrat, all members of Congress have an interest in defending the law and Congress’s institutional status. The assaults on universities and colleges are thus not only an attack on a free society, but an unconstitutional disregard for the separation of powers.

I am asking you to do everything in your power to resist this:

  • Explicitly denounce the Trump administration’s assault on higher education, and use whatever agenda setting, investigatory, lawmaking, or media platform influence you have to raise public awareness and opposition.
  • Advance legislation – including by insertion into appropriations bills – prohibiting the Trump administration from canceling funding without following, to the letter, established statutory processes for doing so.
  • Vote against – and for Senators refuse to vote for cloture – any appropriations bill or increase to the debt ceiling that does not include a prohibition on the Trump administration’s lawless assault on higher education.

Opposing the authoritarian suppression of higher education will require all of our elected officials as well as our organizational leadership to draw the line and resist.

Contact List

Cornell President: (607) 255-5201 president@cornell.edu

Board of Trustees: (607) 255-5127 trustees@cornell.edu

Donica T. Varner – VP and General Counsel: (607) 255-5124 dtv26@cornell.edu

Governor Hochul: 518-474-8390 https://www.governor.ny.gov/content/governor-contact-form 

Betty A. Rosa, Commissioner of Education commissioner@nysed.gov

Board of Regents: Chancellor L.W. Young Regent.Young@nysed.gov,

Vice Chancellor J. Finn Regent.Finn@nysed.gov

Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie: 518-455-3791 speaker@assembly.state.ny.us

Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins: 518-455-2585 MajorityLeaderCommunications@nysenate.gov

Assembly Standing Committee on Education Chair, Michael Benedetto 518-455-5296 benedettom@nyassembly.gov

Senate Committee on Education, Shelley B. Mayer 518-455-2031 smayer@nysenate.gov

Chuck Schumer (202) 224-6542 https://www.schumer.senate.gov/contact/message-chuck

Kirsten Gillibrand (202) 224-4451 https://www.gillibrand.senate.gov/contact/email-me/

Josh Riley (D-19) (202) 225-5441 https://riley.house.gov/contact/email-me

John Mannion (D-22) (202) 225-3701 https://mannion.house.gov/contact/email-me

Nick Langworthy (R-23) (202) 225-3161 https://langworthy.house.gov/contact

Claudia Tenney (R-24) (202) 225-3665 https://tenney.house.gov/contact

Pat Ryan (D-18) (202) 225-5614 https://patryan.house.gov/contact/email-me

Paul Tonko (D-20) (202) 225-5076 https://tonko.house.gov/contact/

Joseph Morelle (D-25) (202) 225-3615 https://morelleforms.house.gov/contact/?form=/contact/email-me

UMass Amherst resolution

Faculty at UMass Amherst have passed a fantastic resolution calling for the formation of

  1. A Public and Land-Grant University Mutual Academic Defense Compact—a nationwide alliance among public institutions 
  2. A Massachusetts Higher Education Mutual Academic Defense Compact—a statewide coalition across public and private institutions

Be it resolved that, the University of Massachusetts Amherst Faculty Senate urges the President of the University of Massachusetts system, the Chancellor of the University, and the Rules Committee of the Faculty Senate to formally propose and help establish a Public and Land-Grant University Mutual Academic Defense Compact (PLUMADC) among all public and land grant universities that would like to participate;

Be it further resolved that, the Faculty Senate of the University of Massachusetts Amherst urges the President of the University of Massachusetts system, the Chancellor of the University, and the Rules Committee of the Faculty Senate to formally propose and help establish a Massachusetts Higher Education Mutual Academic Defense Compact (MHEMADC) among public and private colleges and universities across the Commonwealth that would like to participate;

Be it further resolved that, under these compacts, participating institutions shall commit meaningful support—financial, legal, organizational, and/or strategic—to a shared or distributed defense infrastructure designed to respond immediately and collectively to attacks by the governmental actors on any member institution;

Be it further resolved that, these compacts shall facilitate the mobilization of institutional resources—including legal counsel, governance experts, public affairs professionals, faculty governance leaders, research capacity, and media relations—to coordinate a unified and robust response, including but not limited to:

● Legal representation and, where appropriate, countersuit actions;
● Public communication strategies to counter misinformation and defend academic principles;
● Filing of amicus briefs, publication of expert testimony, and other legal interventions;
● Legislative advocacy and coordinated policy engagement at the state and federal levels;
● The development of collaborative strategies and frameworks to diversify funding streams beyond the federal government; and
● Rapid-response research and public-education initiatives;

Be it further resolved that, this resolution be transmitted to the leadership of all Public and Land-Grant Universities across the nation and all institutions of higher education in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts as well as their shared governance bodies;

Be it finally resolved that, the President of the University of Massachusetts system, the Chancellor of the University, and the Rules Committee of the Faculty Senate of the University of Massachusetts Amherst take leading roles in convening summits of faculty and administration leaders to initiate the implementation of these Compacts and affirm the collective commitment to defend academic freedom, free expression, institutional autonomy, and the public mission of higher education in the Commonwealth.

Please share the resolution

This was inspired by another resolution passed by the Rutgers Senate.

Be it resolved that, the Rutgers University Senate urges the President of Rutgers University to formally propose and help establish a Mutual Academic Defense Compact (MADC) among all members of the Big Ten Academic Alliance;

Be it further resolved that, under this compact, all participating institutions shall commit meaningful funding to a shared or distributed defense fund. This fund shall be used to provide immediate and strategic support to any member institution under direct political or legal infringement;

Be it further resolved that, participating institutions shall make available, at the request of the institution under direct political infringement, the services of their legal counsel, governance experts, and public affairs offices to coordinate a unified and vigorous response, including but not limited to: Legal representation and countersuit actions; strategic public communication; amicus briefs and expert testimony; legislative advocacy and coalition-building; related topical research as needed.

Be it finally resolved that, this resolution be transmitted to the leadership of all Big Ten universities and their respective governing boards and shared governance bodies, and that the President of Rutgers University take a leading role in convening a summit of Big Ten academic and legal leadership to initiate the implementation of this Compact.

Closer to home, Cornell University’s University Assembly has passed a resolution proudly defending the University’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion and calling for its robust defense at all levels of the University. This will be posted once the final version is made available on the Office of the Assemblies site.

AAUP v. Rubio

https://www.aaup.org/news/aaup-briefs-defend-independent-legal-system-reject-ideological-deportations

The national as well as several chapters are suing Rubio.

This week, the AAUP and allies filed two separate friend-of-the-court briefs.

With the Fred T. Korematsu Center for Law and Equality, the AAUP submitted a brief supporting the law firm Perkins Coie in its battle against the Trump administration. Perkins Coie was the subject of an executive order which limited the law firm’s ability to represent government contractors and access federal buildings. Unlike some of the biggest US law firms, who have struck deals with the Trump administration, Perkins Coie sued the Trump administration. The court temporarily blocked the order and is now considering a motion for summary judgment that would permanently enjoin the enforcement of the order. More than 500 law firms have submitted another friend-of-the-court brief, as has the American Civil LIberties Union and a number of other parties, arguing in favor of blocking the order. The AAUP’s brief focuses on the harms that will be caused if lawyers are afraid to take on cases or make certain arguments for fear of retaliation by the government, and discusses the dangerous position taken by the administration through its casual invocation of national security to justify all manner of actions and to push back against robust judicial review. Read the brief here.

To fortify our lawsuit AAUP v. Rubio, thirty faculty groups, including seventeen AAUP chapters, organized to join an amicus brief urging a preliminary injunction against ideological deportations of students and scholars. AAUP members from public and private institutions, from community colleges and research universities, from Texas to Minnesota, California to New Hampshire, and points in between are exercising solidarity to protect students and co-workers. Read the amicus brief here.

Here’s a statement from the MIT AAUP, one of the chapters that joined the amicus brief.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vRr5lcMp9axltMvx1tyh-9rUkafFum4j5zu2yRauAlRCDsmgi_Uprc-tbllG4az6XenkCDXjM8tGJvr/pub

Cornell faculty in support of democracy and academic freedom

The brazen assault on academic freedom sweeping across the country has again got Cornell in its sights.

There is a letter to the Cornell board of trustees circulating right now, and we urge all Cornell faculty to sign it.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScCQXl77TWPhipU1-BDIl4RjXJfnjtbBRsRQZS1aYEHg_m2Sg/viewform?fbclid=IwY2xjawJmArJleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHlyrWHA6jW86CBJJcBHosEa3xZLZYUgP0KHVV3YGyN0JbHkfvIgDgigZB-xe_aem_38-jfNWB7O_LR-2rqcZB_A

For some of the legal context, you should check out some of Michael Dorf’s posts, on Columbia and on the AAUP filling the void left by Columbia’s capitulation.

See also the longer statement co-authored with other constitutional law scholars.

Under Title VI, the government may not cut off funds until it has

  • conducted a program-by-program evaluation of the alleged violations;
  • provided recipients with notice and “an opportunity for hearing”; 
  • limited any funding cutoff “to the particular program, or part thereof, in which…noncompliance has been…found”; and 
  • submitted a report explaining its actions to the relevant committees in Congress at least thirty days before any funds can be stopped.

These requirements aim to ensure that any withdrawal of funds is based on genuine misbehavior on the university’s part—on illegal toleration of discriminatory conduct, not just on allowance of First Amendment–protected expression. The requirements aim to make clear to recipients of federal funds just what behavior can form the basis for sanctions. And each of the requirements aims to make sure that the sanction fits the offense.

Yet here the sanction was imposed without any agency or court finding that Columbia violated Title VI in its response to antisemitic harassment or discrimination. Even to the extent that some protesters’ behavior amounted to illegal harassment of Jewish students, no agency and no court has concluded that Columbia illegally failed to reasonably respond to such discriminatory behavior—much less failed to act at a level justifying withdrawal of nearly half a billion dollars in funds. The government’s action therefore risks deterring and suppressing constitutionally protected speech—not just illegal discriminatory conduct.