An Open Letter to the Cornell Community…
Dear Students, Faculty, Staff, and Alumni of Cornell University:
In light of the recent racially charged incidents occurring at Cornell and around the country, Cornell Mosaic is deeply disturbed that some students and members of the campus community are not living up to the ideals upon which Cornell was founded. Hateful, hurtful and disrespectful speech and violence have no place on our campus or in our community.
Cornell Mosaic is an alumni organization that focuses on celebrating diversity and advancing inclusion within all aspects of the university. Founded in 2006, the primary goals of Cornell Mosaic are to increase the number of active and engaged diverse Cornell University alumni, and increase inclusion at all levels of alumni engagement.
We are proud of Cornell’s founding as a place where any person can pursue any study, which implies that there is a safe, inclusive, respectful and tolerant campus community for students, faculty, staff and alumni. It is important that everyone respects and encourages civil discourse regarding any issue, including difficult conversations about identity and difference. We applaud existing programs such as the Intergroup Dialogue Project and the Breaking Bread series of facilitated discussions as examples of how to productively engage in these conversations.
Cornell Mosaic offers our support to students who have been negatively impacted by recent events, and we are willing to assist students in their ongoing efforts to speak out against racism, bigotry and injustice. We are aware that President Martha Pollack, Vice President Ryan Lombardi and Dean of Students Vijay Pendakur have taken initial steps aimed at improving the climate on campus and in the Ithaca community. It is a positive development to see the spirit of dialogue among the university leadership and student leaders, and we support the initiatives that have been put forth so far to improve programs, services and processes that foster an inclusive and respectful community for everyone. Cornell Mosaic is committed to assisting the university leadership in developing additional programs and initiatives that foster diversity and inclusion at Cornell.
Cornell must continue to be a place where all students, faculty, staff and alumni, regardless of their race, ethnicity, religious and spiritual background, abilities, gender identity and sexual orientation, can coexist and thrive in a safe and respectful environment.
Lift the Chorus,
The Cornell Mosaic Steering Committee:
Chair - Laura Wilkinson, MBA ’85, JD ’86
Vice Chair - Katrina James, ’96
Marvin Chang, MBA ’98
Cliff Cockerham ’78
Matthew Danzer ’12
Tracey Forde Weaver ’90
Linda Gadsby ’88
Valisha Graves ’85
Jerry Jenson ’69
John Kuo ’85
Amy Moore ’93
Tomoko Morinaga, MPS ’89
Scott Pesner ’87
Eric Rosario ’91
Ruby Saake ’84
Apichai Shipper ’91
Ginger So ’79
Karen Stewart ’85
Sheryl Tucker ’78
Jay Vixama ’05
Email communication for Cornell Mosaic can be sent to diversity-aad@cornell.edu. Share your thoughts and relevant news articles on our Facebook page: www.facebook.com/cornellmosaic, and connect with us via our LinkedIn group “Cornell University, Mosaic.”
