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Yuri Bezmenov's avatar

No one is above the law. What did Kiltikoff know and when did he know it? Time to defund all the ivies, tax the endowments, and limit foreign students that all subsidize the DEI commissars.

RISD is even worse than Cornell and is demoralizing a generation of artists: https://yuribezmenov.substack.com/p/risd-risdie-crystal-williams-dei

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James A's avatar

Chris, thank you for being a watchdog for truth.

One of the traits of narcissism is that the rules don't apply to you.

You can count on one hand the number of humble elite university administrators.

Even worse is the threadbare way they try to hide their DEI programs. A single sweep of the files

gives away their intentions.

If they weren't so stupid and arrogant they would do a proper job of hiding their DEI programs.

However the whole ruse is not surprising. As HL Mencken reminds us " A moron decorated with a PHd is still a moron".

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Roger Beal's avatar

Those of you who believe university STEM programs are merit-based and secure from DEI pollution, please read this article carefully.

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Rare Earth's avatar

Cornell will not do this:"The university will promptly review any complaints about past hiring practices and take appropriate action if our anti-discriminatory hiring policies were not followed." Universities never do anything promptly, especially when they are prompted by an outside entity. Further, they will be the ones to determine what the "appropriate" action will be when (if) they find that their policies have been violated. They will never let go of the "minoritized" faculty member who was hired by this clearly inconsistent process, never. They will fight this until such time as the Trump administration makes this about money - big money - in the form of federal support for students and research. Until then, they won't do a thing. Lastly, the new president is very expendable. If they need a scapegoat, he will be it. Board leaders are quite Machiavellian. They thought about all this when they (suddenly) appointed him. Watch and see.

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Randy Wayne's avatar

I would like to stick up for Mike Kotlikoff here. I believe that he is the "real deal" who knows what merit is (a trait that is very hard to find in a postmodern university).

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Pacificus's avatar

As someone who spent their professional life in academia, I'm guessing that Mike Kotlikoff has for years been all-in with the DEI madness, notwithstanding any public statements he may have made to the contrary. It was a pre-condition for his rise within the institution, particularly as a white male. Sorry, that's just the way it is in today's university. The problem is, to use a popular term, "systemic."

Defund, dismantle, and re-invent higher ed--Now.

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Running Burning Man's avatar

Bada bing! See, e.g., the MESA throughout the Ivies and other "top" universities.

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Randy Wayne's avatar

The old house has some good bones. It can be salvaged.

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Pacificus's avatar

No, "the old house" (i.e., the American university) is rotten to the core and needs to be torn down to the studs and rebuilt on a brand new plan.

And it's not just DEI that is the problem.

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Clever Pseudonym's avatar

i don't know, the termites have been feasting pretty well for so long here, it's hard to see what can be salvaged, esp as the termites will also fight to the death to prevent anything more than a cosmetic fumigation.

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Rare Earth's avatar

Time will tell.

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Randy Wayne's avatar

agreed.

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Doug's avatar

I’m a highly experienced person with the clear credentials to at least have been considered for an open executive level position at one of the Ivies. I was recommended for the role by a current employee in another part of the college. The search was being conducted by an international executive search firm. The problem is, the search was assigned to the Diversity practice of the search firm. I didn’t even get a call to be initially screened. Seems prima facie evidence of illegal collusion to discriminate between the search firm and the college.

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Steven W Ham's avatar

We may need a new federal agency to investigate all these ivory towers

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Al Juarez's avatar

Another example of true investigative journalism. Go get them, Chris!

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Florida Man's avatar

High above Cayuga’s waters there’s a great big smell

Some say it’s Cayuga’s waters… others say CORNELL

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kittynana's avatar

@Florida- It's the entire town of Ithaca

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steve scholl's avatar

One cannot help but notice the titles of the administrators mentioned in Mr Rufo’s expose of discriminatory hiring practices. This is really just a tip of an iceberg. Ov the past decades, which the number of faculty has remained rather flat, administrators have proliferated by a factor of 4 or more. Much of that increase has been the result of extensive diversity and inclusion administrators to staff the ubiquitous accompanying structure.

Naturally, those administrators are paid much more than faculty and tuition of $75-$100k/year is needed to sustain that structure.

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Florida Man's avatar

More consequentially… American education K-PhD is failing. It’s time to tear it down to the foundation and rebuild before it’s too late although

It probably already is

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Brian Villanueva's avatar

Fortunately, K-12 education is still mostly local, and that means states can affect outcomes quite significantly. Example: Mississippi.

Top tier universities are probably unsalvageable though.

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Randy Wayne's avatar

Dear Chris and Ryan,

As a Cornell professor, I want to say, "thank you for writing this." Cornell needs to return to being a merit-based institution if it wants to be trusted with funing from the taxapayers.

thanks,

randy

p.s. Would the whistleblower please get in touch with me?

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steve scholl's avatar

I was lucky. I loved the academic environment, but mine began about 50 years ago as a doctoral student. Professors mentored you. You were put into situations where you instructed undergraduates, you assisted in research, and participated in professional organizations. Teaching, research and service, the foundation of higher education, and the criteria for hiring and promotion. There was no time for protesting.

My first interview for a faculty position required submission of the CV, transcripts and test scores. Supporting documents included published research, teaching evaluations and professional participation. References and testimonials from recognized leaders, faculty and those knowing your character.

The personal interview with the faculty was rigorous. Your position on professional issues and research was sought and challenged. The faculty wanted someone who would increase the quality of their group as well as someone who would function in a collegial manner. Fortunately, the issues and questions described by Mr Rufo were never mentioned.

As a ‘boomer’ my cohort was extensive, competition was always keen. It is difficult for me to understand how things veered so far off the track. Luckily, I eventually left academia to begin a private practice and was not as seriously affected by colleagues who remained and suffered.

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Alexander Simonelis's avatar

Getting rid of DEI - which is toxic - is like pulling teeth. But it must be done.

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Herodotus II's avatar

"“The defining question is whether the discrimination is creating equity or inequity. If discrimination is creating equity, then it is antiracist. If discrimination is creating inequity, then it is racist.” - Ibram X. Kendi "How to Be An Anti-Racist"

So basically: Anti-black discrimination: BAD. Anti-white discrimination: GOOD.

Thank you, Chris. Keep at it, one university at a time...

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Brian Villanueva's avatar

Ironically, Ibram Kendi and David Duke actually agree that the most important quality about any person is their race. They only disagree about which race ought to be on top.

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Brian Olson's avatar

Consider this while also considering the outrageous overrepresentation of leftists at universities and colleges. They got that way through leftists discriminating during the hiring process. That didn’t just happen naturally. Leftists hired leftists, and this is where we find ourselves, with academia wrecked by political bigots.

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Nan Zhong's avatar

My son and I sued Cornell in March for racial discrimination against Asians. ( https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/69788141/zhong-v-cornell-university/ ) In our upcoming amended complaint, we are suing Cornell's immediate past President, current President (former provost), and the director of admissions in their personal capacity.

Would the whistleblower please get in touch with me? We can file a protective order with an "Attorneys' Eyes Only" (AEO) designation with the court to protect the whistleblower's identity. nanzhong1@gmail.com

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