The President and Provost have established a task force charged with gathering information on and making recommendations about addressing sexual assault on campus, specifically sexual assaults involving undergraduate students on the Ithaca campus. Sexual assault is defined as non-consensual sexual contact involving force or incapacitation. In 2023, 23% of undergraduate women, and 9% of undergraduate men, reported experiencing a sexual assault at some point during their time at Cornell.
The task force is charged with developing and recommending a holistic framework for addressing and preventing sexual assaults on campus. In doing so, the task force should review available data and collect additional information from the campus community, summarize relevant research, review approaches of peer institutions and gather information on best practices in sexual assault reduction and prevention. The task force will gather broad input through a variety of means, from students, faculty, staff and subject matter experts, and produce a report by summer 2025. The report will identify promising strategies that Cornell can implement to address and prevent sexual assaults on campus. These recommendations should be based on research and best practices and address any unique features of the Cornell context. Recommendations should take a holistic public health approach, spanning individuals and communities, encompassing academic, social and residential life and focused on prevention and the social context in which sexual assaults occur. The report should suggest a timeline for implementation of its recommendations, metrics for measuring success and ways to ensure that the work is institutionalized at Cornell going forward.
Share questions and feedback with the task force at tfsa@cornell.edu.
Task Force Members
- Rachel Dunifon (co-chair), the Rebecca Q. and James C. Morgan Dean of the Cornell Human Ecology
- Marla Love (co-chair), the Robert W. and Elizabeth C. Staley Dean of Students
- Stephanie Baldwin, the Robert G. Engel Director of Sorority and Fraternity Life
- Julie Edwards, assistant vice president for student health and wellbeing
- Durba Ghosh, professor of history, Cornell University College of Arts and Sciences and the Taylor Family Director of the Society for the Humanities
- Logan Gibbs-Porter, student, Cornell University College of Arts and Sciences
- Jason Hecht, institutional survey research associate
- Arnav Kamulkar, student, Cornell SC Johnson College of Business
- ZZ Khalid, student, Cornell University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
- Ray Kim, director of advising, Cornell University College of Arts and Sciences
- Katie King, associate vice president, Office of Institutional Equity and Title IX
- Lauren Korfine, senior lecturer of psychology, Cornell Human Ecology
- Paul Merrill, the Herbert Gussman Associate Professor of the Practice, director of jazz, Cornell University College of Arts and Sciences
- Nicki Moore, the Meakem Smith Director of Athletics and Physical Education
- Trisica Munroe, director of administration, Cornell Engineering’s Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
- Ashleigh Newman, associate clinical professor, Department of Population Medicine and Diagnostic Sciences, Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine
- Kevin Perry, director, Tatkon Center for New Students
- Charles Snajdr-Trinch, student, Cornell Human Ecology
- Miranda Stewart, student, Cornell University College of Arts and Sciences
- Scott Voss, assistant director, Conduct and Care, Cornell Housing and Residential Life
- Laura Weiss, program director, SHARE Office / victim advocate