University Assembly Meeting

Tuesday, April 7, 2026

• Term:
  2025-2026
• Assembly/Committee: University Assembly
• Date & Time:
  Tue, Apr 7, 2026 - 4:45pm
  to
  6:15pm
• Location:
  401 Physical Sciences Building/Zoom
• Agenda:

  I. Call to Order
       a. Roll Call
       b. Land Acknowledgment of the Gayogo̱ho:nǫ (Cayuga Nation)
       c. Call for Late Additions to the Agenda
  
  II. Approval of the Minutes
       a. March 17, 2026 meeting minutes
  
  III. Business of the Day
       a. Call for a special meeting—April 14th
       b. Center for Racial Justice and Equitable Futures –Jamila Michener
       c. Campus Codes Committee Resolution Voting
            1. Resolution 1: Resolution Regarding Proposed Student Code of Conduct Reform
            2. Resolution 2: Campus Codes Committee's Involvement in the Student Code of Conduct Review and Revision Process
            3. Resolution 3: Institution of Core Values as a Positive Governance Document
            4. Resolution 4: University Assembly Authority to Appoint Members to Governance Committees
       d. Campus Welfare Committee: Resolution 5: Addressing Excessive Littering at Cascadilla Gorge by Recommending Changes to the Student Code of Conduct
  
  IV. Assembly Reports
       a. Student Assembly
       b. Graduate and Professional Student Assembly
       c. Employee Assembly
       d. Faculty Senate
  
  V. Committee Reports
       a. Executive Committee
       b. Campus Codes Committee
       c. Campus Welfare Committee
       d. Campus Committee on Infrastructure, Technology, and the Environment
  
  VI. Liaison Reports
       a. Campus Planning Committee
       b. Coalition for Sexual Violence Prevention
       c. Sustainable Cornell Council’s Carbon Neutral Campus Steering Committee
       d. Sustainable Cornell Council’s Education & Engagement Steering Committee
       e. Sustainable Cornell Council’s Campus Operations Steering Committee
  
  VII. Open Forum
  
  VIII. Adjournment

  UniversityAssemblyMeetingAgendaApril72026.pdf (82.54 KB)
• Meeting Packet:
• Audio Recording:
  UA April 7th Pt.1.mp3 (71.63 MB)

  UA April 7th Pt.2.mp3 (65.29 MB)
• Minutes:

  I. Call to Order
       a. Chair I. Gatimi called the meeting to order at 4:47 PM.
       b. Members Present: A. Aftab, D. Bateman, V. Bell, M. Benda, S. Bruyere, J. Butcher, J. Chobirko, Z. deRham, E. De Rosa, I. Gatimi, A. Haenlin-Mott, C. Tarala, W. Treat
       c. Members Absent: N. Brennan, A. Cardenas, E. Chaudhuri, E. Gainor, A. Garcia-Ortiz, K. Nguyen, S. Resue
       d. Also Present: J. Michener, Q. Stern
  
  II. Land Acknowledgement of the Gayogo̱ho꞉no (Cayuga Nation).
       a. I. Gatimi stated the UA’s land acknowledgment of the Cayuga Nation.
  
  III. Call for Late Additions to the Agenda
       a. None.
  
  IV. Approval of the March 17th meeting minutes
       a. I Gatimi noted that “VP of Communications” should be corrected to “VP of University Relations” in 6(d)(i).
       b. V. Bell motioned to approve the meeting minutes. The meeting minutes had been approved with unanimous consent.
  
  V. Business of the Day
       a. Call for a special meeting on April 14th
            i. I. Gatimi noted that a special meeting was held on April 14th via Zoom at usual meeting times to discuss and vote on resolutions.
       b. Center for Racial Justice and Equitable Futures Presentation from Jamila Michener
            i. J. Michener introduced the goal, history, current initiatives, and future events of the Center for Racial Justice and Equitable Future.
            ii. J. Michener addressed questions from the assembly regarding collaborations with the Einhorn Center for Community Engagement, the structure and location of the center, and Cornell’s investments to the center.
       c. Campus Codes Committee Resolution Voting
            i. Resolution 1: Resolution Regarding Proposed Student Code of Conduct Reform
                 1. D. Bateman moved to the previous question. The motion to pass Resolution 1 passed by a vote of 11-0-1. (Yeas: D. Bateman, V. Bell, M. Benda, S. Bruyere, J. Butcher, J. Chobirko, Z. deRham, I. Gatimi, A. Haenlin-Mott, C. Tarala, W. Treat) (Absentions: E. De Rosa)
            ii. Resolution 2: Campus Codes Committee’s Involvement in the Student Code of Conduct Review and Revision Process
                 1. E. De Rosa commented that the Resolution 8 from 2020 was not accepted by President Pollack.
                 2. J. Butcher motioned to move the resolution down the agenda. The motion passed with unanimous consent.
                 3. W. Treat clarified that Resolution 8 from the 2019-2020 UA session was accepted by President Pollack, but Resolution 6 was only acknowledged by the President in the 2020-2021 UA session. Whereas in the 2021-2022 UA session, Resolution 6: Alterations to the Codes and Judicial Committee Name and Function was rejected by the President. In the 2022-2023 UA session, Resolution 6 was about Purple Heart Designations in the spring, and the UA only passed 3 resolutions in the fall of 2023.
                 4. D. Bateman motioned to table this resolution for the special UA meeting on April 14th. The motion passed with unanimous consent.
            iii. Resolution 3: Institution of Core Values as a Positive Governance Document
                 1. W. Treat pointed out that the President’s Awards for Employee Excellence already does embody the core values stated in line 45.
                      a. E. De Rosa said that faculty are also eligible for the awards.
                 2. J. Chobirko motioned to change “celebration” in line 46 to
  “celebrated.”
                      a. D. Bateman took this amendment as friendly. The resolution
  had been amended as such.
                 3. D. Bateman clarified V. Bell’s question regarding line 40.
                 4. J. Chobirko moved to the previous question. The motion to pass Resolution 3 passed by a vote of 12-0-0. (Yeas: D. Bateman, V. Bell, M. Benda, S. Bruyere, J. Butcher, J. Chobirko, Z. deRham, E. De Rosa, I. Gatimi, A. Haenlin-Mott, C. Tarala, W. Treat)
            iv. Resolution 4: University Assembly Authority to Appoint Members to
  Governance Committees
                 1. D. Bateman resolved V. Bell’s comment regarding comma and period usage after “Whereas” and “Be it therefore resolved” clauses.
                 2. V. Bell moved to the previous question. The motion to pass Resolution 4 passed by a vote of 12-0-0. (Yeas: D. Bateman, V. Bell, M. Benda, S. Bruyere, J. Butcher, J. Chobirko, Z. deRham, E. De Rosa, I. Gatimi, A. Haenlin-Mott, C. Tarala, W. Treat)
       d. Campus Welfare Committee: Resolution 5: Addressing Excessive Littering at Cascadilla Gorge by Recommending Changes to the Student Code of Conduct
            i. I. Gatimi noted that this resolution won’t be voted on today.
            ii. J. Chobirko provided an introduction for the resolution.
            iii. The assembly discussed the resolution’s specificity to a certain case or fraternity, the potential of Ithaca Laws aiding in catching violations, the existence of an exhaustive list of things that would violate the code (such as littering).
            iv. J. Chobirko suggested to broaden the audience of line 70 to broadly emphasize the additional component of the resolution, which is amending the Student Code of Conduct to broadly inhibit either previous or future incidences of excessive littering that may occur.
            v. D. Bateman offered the floor to a community member. B. Platt noted concerns regarding calling people out on the resolution and tied this with freedom of expression on campus.
            vi. A. Haenlin-Mott offered the floor to another community member, Quincy Stern, the President of Lambda Chi Alpha. Q. Stern offered the fraternity’s perspective and actions taken to mitigate the cycle of littering and noted that the fraternity should not be the only one at blame. The speaker also brought up the lack of communication between the fraternity’s sustainability chair and the Botanic Garden.
                 1. M. Benda asked about the feasibility of putting up cameras.
                 2. Z. deRham asked if having a section on littering in the Student Code of Conduct would more so aid the organization in reporting nonmembers who live on the property or hurt the organization.
                 3. V. Bell inquired if the assembly should remove Lambda Chi Alpha’s name from the resolution and requested elaboration regarding internal work that’s being done on preventing littering.
                 4. J. Butcher proposed that in addition to removing mentions to certain organizations, the resolution should have a written process for areas of special interest and stakeholders under the Student Code of Conduct.
                      a. Z. deRham noted that there needs to be more specification regarding stakeholders for student organizations.
                 5. A. Haenlin-Mott motioned to extend the meeting. The motion was approved unanimous consent.
                 6. V. Bell emphasized that specialized areas should be stated within the resolution and include all the buildings within the Gorge’s vicinity and that the Code should not just be a blanket statement for student organizations.
  
  VI. Assembly Reports
       a. Student Assembly
            i. Z. deRham reported that the student activity’s fee had been approved by President Kotlikoff. The Student Assembly had entered a 3-week election period.
       b. Graduate and Professional Student Assembly
            i. J. Chobirko noted that the GPSA had a meeting with representatives from Cornell Graduate Students United during the March 23rdmeeting. In addition, the Vice President of Finance talked about updating appendices that are important for funding and managing student organizations. Finally, the executive Vice President also discussed the current election timeline, where the GPSA will also enter their election period soon.
       c. Employee Assembly
            i. W. Treat mentioned that Linda Croll Howell gave a presentation regarding data on internal staff transfers during the April 1st meeting. The EA election voting had ended on April 6th at noon. A co-worker coffee will be held on April 29th from 11:00 PM to 12:00 PM in the HR Suite in Day Hall.
       d. Faculty Senate
            i. E. De Rosa updated that the next Faculty Senate meeting introduced a resolution to revise the academic integrity code to make it less punitive. The Faculty Senate had also introduced the middle states accreditation process that the university will go through for the next two years. The 3 Dean of Faculty candidates had also introduced themselves to the senate. The Faculty Senate’s election period is from April 15th to April 24th.
  
  VII. Committee Reports
       a. Executive Committee
            i. A. Haenlin-Mott reported that the committee had been meeting to figure out logistics. May 5th is the organizational meeting for next year.
       b. Campus Codes Committee
            i. D. Bateman noted that the discrepancy from earlier was Resolution 4 from 2023 instead of Resolution 6, the committee had amended this accordingly.
       c. Campus Welfare Committee
            i. J. Chobirko said that there will be a farewell meeting at the end of April.
       d. Campus Committee on Infrastructure, Technology, and the Environment
            i. No report.
  
  VIII. Liaison Reports
       a. Campus Planning Committee
            i. W. Treat noted that the committee met on March 27th. There were updates on the Duffield Hall construction, McGraw Hall renovations, and the almost completion of the Mining Fieldhouse. There was also discussion on both the City and Town of Ithaca rezoning, so the committee had been working on zoning maps. There is a special meeting on April 22nd that’s a briefing on the Mining Fieldhouse and a tour.
       b. Coalition for Sexual Violence Prevention
            i. No report.
       c. Sustainable Cornell Council’s Carbon Neutral Campus Steering Committee
            i. V. Bell noted that the committee last met on March 20th and is currently discussing the next decade of carbon neutral sustainability for Cornell and what direction they should be heading in.
            ii. S. Bruyere added on that a guest speaker from the Cornell Sustainability Office will be visiting the UA during the April 21st meeting.
       d. Sustainable Cornell Council’s Education & Engagement Steering Committee
            i. V. Bell said that there is a meeting after the term on June 11th.
       e. Sustainable Cornell Council’s Campus Operations Steering Committee
            i. No report.
  
  IX. Open Forum
       a. I. Gatimi reminded the assembly of the change in resolution numbering.
       b. I. Gatimi clarified S. Bruyere’s question regarding the time of the special meeting.
  
  X. Adjournment
       a. J. Chobirko motioned to adjourn the meeting. The meeting had been adjourned with unanimous consent.
   

  Apr 7 UA Meeting Minutes.pdf (145.67 KB)