Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

  • Vice President Lombardi offers condolences on death of Aalaap Narasipura

    May 21, 2017: The campus community is invited to attend a memorial gathering celebrating the life of Aalaap Narasipura on Monday, May 22, at 5 p.m. in Sage Chapel. A reception will follow in Willard Straight Hall. For friends who wish to support Aalaap’s family but have already left Ithaca, correspondence can be sent c/o…

  • Vice President Lombardi offers condolences on death of Antonio Tsialas ’23

    Oct. 28, 2019: The campus community is invited to attend a service of remembrance for Antonio Tsialas on Tuesday, October 29, from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. in the chapel of Anabel Taylor Hall. A reception will follow in the Founders Room located at 114 Anabel Taylor Hall. Oct. 26, 2019 Dear Cornellians, I am deeply…

  • Cornell Investments Managed by Firms with ESG Policy or Framework chart description

    Error reading date. The chart shows the percentage of Cornell investments managed by firms with formal Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) policies or frameworks and ESG neutral investments. ESG neutral includes investments for which United Nations Principles of Responsible Investment (UNPRI) or other ESG Policy / Framework is not meaningful (i.e. Cash, US Treasuries, etc.).…

  • Flu update

    8 p.m., Sept. 7, 2009 Dear Colleague, H1N1 flu is on the rise on college campuses, just as predicted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the health care community. Cornell is no exception. Gannett has seen or spoken with over 291 students with influenza-like illness in the past two weeks,…

  • Error reading headline.

    Error reading date. On May 25, 2016, Psi Upsilon fraternity had its recognition revoked for a period of no less than three years. Following the appeals process, Vice President for Student and Campus Life Ryan Lombardi reduced the revocation to no less than 1.5 years in a decision announced June 24. The following statement has…

  • Kavita Bala named 17th provost of Cornell University

    September 25, 2024 Dear Cornellians, I write with exciting news that Kavita Bala has been selected as Cornell’s 17th provost. She will begin her term of office on January 1, 2025. Kavita’s career at Cornell began in 1999 as a postdoctoral researcher, and she became an assistant professor of computer science in 2002 and chair…

  • Actions in the wake of last week’s career fair disruption

    September 23, 2024 Dear Cornellians, At the beginning of the semester we outlined the principles underlying our approach to expressive activity. That approach included full support for free expression and guidelines for addressing speech and actions that infringe on others’ rights or involve violence or damage to university property. Our approach recognizes the freedom to…

  • Disruption of Career Fair

    September 18, 2024 This afternoon, members of the Coalition for Mutual Liberation disrupted a Career Fair in the Statler Hotel. Cornell Police officers were pushed and shoved. Guests of the university felt threatened. And students were denied their ability to experience the Career Fair. This behavior is unacceptable, a violation of university policy, and illegal.…

  • UAW labor contract ratified

    September 3, 2024 Dear Cornell Community, On Sunday and Monday, the United Auto Workers (UAW) voted to ratify a new labor contract with the University. As shared in the recent message to campus, the contract will substantially improve compensation and benefits for the University’s service and maintenance workers in Dining, Building Care, Grounds, and Transportation,…

  • Tentative agreement reached between Cornell-UAW

    August 28, 2024 Dear Cornell community, We are pleased to share that Cornell and the United Auto Workers (UAW) have reached a tentative agreement on a new labor contract that will substantially improve compensation and benefits for the University’s service and maintenance workers in Dining, Building Care, Grounds, and Transportation, and at the College of…

  • Response to graffiti and vandalism

    Aug. 26, 2024 We are appalled by the graffiti spraypainted, and glass shattered overnight along the front entrance of Day Hall. Acts of violence, extended occupation of buildings, or property damage (including graffiti) will not be tolerated and will prompt an immediate response from public safety. Cornell Police are conducting a thorough investigation, and those…

  • Freedom and responsibility

    August 26, 2024 Dear Cornellians, Our campuses are home to tens of thousands of people with diverse lived experiences, strong convictions, and differing viewpoints. This diversity is a source of our strength but also brings with it a shared responsibility to listen to and learn from one another. As we begin the fall semester, we…

  • Friday Update: Cornell-UAW Negotiations

    August 23, 2024 Dear Ithaca campus community, With the approaching weekend and Monday’s start of the new academic year, we write to provide you with an update on the United Auto Workers (UAW) strike, some important operational adjustments we are making for the coming week, and to make clear our continued desire to negotiate in…

  • A Cornell Welcome

    August 22, 2024 Dear Cornellians, I’m delighted to welcome all of you to the beginning of the 2024-2025 academic year at Cornell. Whether you are a student, faculty, or staff; new to our community, or a veteran Cornellian—I’m glad to have you with us as we embark together on a new year of teaching and…

  • Faculty and staff Monday update: Cornell-UAW negotiations

    Aug. 19, 2024 Dear Faculty and Staff, The University has continued to negotiate in good faith with the UAW over a new labor contract for our service and maintenance workers — negotiations that continued throughout this weekend and into last night. After the University’s Thursday offer, representing a historic increase in wages for this bargaining…

  • Student Monday update: Cornell-UAW negotiations

    Aug. 19, 2024 Dear Students, The University has continued to negotiate in good faith with the UAW over a new labor contract for our service and maintenance workers — negotiations that continued throughout this weekend and into last night. Despite the University’s best efforts to negotiate a fair agreement and avoid a strike, negotiations with…

  • Update on Cornell-UAW negotiations

    Aug. 16, 2024 Dear Ithaca campus community, As you may know, the university and the United Automobile Workers (UAW) have been working on a new collective bargaining agreement since April 2024. The UAW represents about 1,300 of our employees across campus, including in Dining, Building Care, Facilities, CALS, CVM and the Statler Hotel. The university…

  • Microsoft Windows outage

    July 19, 2024 Dear Cornell Community, Cornell University is currently experiencing a large-scale technology incident, primarily affecting Microsoft Windows machines. This issue is part of a global outage caused by a problematic update from one of the nation’s largest anti-virus software providers, CrowdStrike. Overnight, the vendor stopped deployment of the update, corrected the problematic code,…

  • Moving Cornell forward together

    July 1, 2024 Dear colleagues, It is an honor to begin my term as Cornell’s interim president, and to have the opportunity to advance, in this new role, the work of the extraordinary university and community I am proud to call home. I have been at Cornell for 24 years: teaching students, running a laboratory,…

  • External advisory committee recommendations

    May 31, 2024 Last November, I laid out a series of actions that we would take to build on our commitment to combatting antisemitism and all forms of hatred at Cornell. Our comprehensive approach included rapid and forceful response to harassment or incitement to violence; a thorough review of university policies; new academic offerings and…

  • Response to student referendum

    May 30, 2024 Dear Patrick, Thank you for conveying to me the results of the student referendum of April 22, 2024. The ongoing situation in the Middle East is extremely distressing. The loss of so many innocent lives, starting with the horrific terrorist attacks on October 7 and continuing to today with the war in…

  • Encampment Update

    May 14, 2024 Dear Cornellians, Last evening, the Coalition for Mutual Liberation (CML) voluntarily took down their encampment on the Arts Quad. While I do not condone the encampment, which was in clear violation of university policies, I want to acknowledge and express gratitude that in contrast to what has taken place at some other…

  • Interim provost appointment

    May 13, 2024 Dear Cornell Community, In preparation for our upcoming presidential transition, I am delighted to share that John Siliciano ’75, professor of law, will serve as interim provost, effective July 1, 2024. John is deeply familiar with Cornell and brings a wealth of experience and expertise as a long-serving faculty member and administrator…

  • A transformational leader

    May 9, 2024 Dear Cornellians, As you read in President Pollack’s recent message, she has informed the Board of Trustees of her desire to retire after the conclusion of this academic year, and the Board has approved her request. President Pollack has been a transformational leader of Cornell, and her positive impact on our university…

  • Some news

    May 9, 2024 Dear Cornellians, April 17 marked the seventh anniversary of my joining Cornell as its president. I am writing today to announce that this will be my last year in that role, and that I will retire on June 30. It is only after extensive reflection that I have determined that this is…

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