By LEAH WILLINGHAM Associated Press
Cornell University suspended parties at fraternity houses until next year and is giving state police a role in investigating reports of sexual assault on campus in the school’s latest response to outrage over its handling of a gang rape allegation.
The measures announced Tuesday by Cornell President Michael Kotlikoff include a suspension of all parties and social events at Interfraternity Council houses through the end of the 2026-27 academic year and a new “zero tolerance” policy for violations that would result in the immediate emergency suspension of a chapter.
“These measures will provide time for a thorough review of fraternity life at Cornell to determine whether and how it can safely continue,” Kotlikoff wrote in a letter to the campus community.
Cornell has more than 20 active fraternities affiliated with its Interfraternity Council. The council did not immediately respond to an email request for comment. It’s not immediately clear if Cornell’s actions would extend to parties and events held off campus.
Cornell plans alternatives to fraternity parties
The university president said the school would begin conversations with students and faculty experts about “the development of safe social alternatives” to Greek life party culture and invest money to get those initiatives off the ground.
Kotlikoff also committed to adding a case manager to the school’s Office of Civil Rights to help those who report sexual misconduct on the Cornell campus navigate the process, and to working with New York State Police to allow its criminal investigators — who are independent of Cornell — to investigate allegations.
Crimes reported on Cornell’s campus are generally investigated by campus police, a department that has full law enforcement powers but is controlled by the university.
The campus police force operates independently from municipal police in Ithaca, New York, where the university is located. Its officers investigated the 2024 gang rape allegations and presented their initial findings to the Tompkins County district attorney, who declined to prosecute within weeks of the woman making her first report to police.
A spokesperson for the state police declined to comment.
A gang rape allegation sparks scrutiny of Cornell’s response
In a lawsuit filed in September, the woman alleged that she was drugged and sexually assaulted by multiple fraternity members after attending a party at the Chi Phi house in October 2024.
She said she was pressured to use drugs and that other men entered the room while she was incapacitated. She also alleges that messages describing her as sexually available to anyone at the house circulated among fraternity members on Snapchat without her knowledge.
Cornell closed the fraternity chapter and disciplined several students following an internal investigation, but no criminal charges have been filed. The seven men accused in the woman’s lawsuit have all denied her allegations, either saying that the sexual activity was consensual or that they weren’t involved.
Andrew Miltenberg, a lawyer for one of the men accused in the woman’s lawsuit, criticized the restrictions as a sweeping response to problems that extend beyond fraternities, arguing that universities promote Greek social life but distance themselves from it when controversies arise.
“Greek life has become the convenient target,” he said in an emailed statement. He warned that parties could simply move off campus, where there would be less oversight. “Changing the address doesn’t change the behavior.”
New York’s governor removed the district attorney from the case this month after a public outcry over the lack of charges.
The investigation is now being led by New York Attorney General Letitia James, while Cornell has hired former Deputy U.S. Attorney General Sally Yates to conduct an independent review of the university’s response. New York State Police sometimes handle major crime investigations for small municipal police agencies, bringing in expertise that isn’t available locally.
Cornell faces broader pressure for reform
Kotlikoff’s announcement came a day before Cornell’s faculty senate was to take up a proposed resolution expressing no confidence in the administration’s ability to effectively address sexual assault on campus.
In his Tuesday letter, Kotlikoff acknowledged that sexual violence extends beyond fraternities, saying Cornell must also confront a campus culture of excessive drinking and drug use and expand education about students’ responsibility to intervene when others are at risk.
Cornell also plans to add victim advocates and expand sexual violence prevention programs, including education aimed at encouraging bystanders to intervene, he said, calling the various actions announced Tuesday “first steps toward systemic change on our campus.”
“We will take all necessary steps to address the conditions that led to Jane Doe’s experiences, and those of other survivors,” he said.