Cornell accused of race-based hiring and scholarships in federal civil rights complaint
The America First Policy Institute filed a civil rights complaint accusing Cornell University of discriminating based on race, sex, and ideology in hiring and scholarships in pursuit of DEI goals.
The complaint alleges that Cornell’s leadership knowingly oversaw practices that prioritized identity over merit, potentially violating federal law while receiving over $1 billion in funding.
The America First Policy Institute (AFPI) has filed a major civil rights complaint against Cornell University, alleging widespread discrimination tied to its DEI policies.
The complaint, dated June 26, accuses Cornell of rejecting job candidates based on race, sex, and ideology. It also claims scholarships were limited by race and that faculty hiring was manipulated by illegal diversity mandates.
The group alleged that despite public comments to the contrary, Cornell President Michael Kotlikoff knowingly permitted discriminatory practices.
“According to reports made to AFPI, internal hiring memos, and our independent analysis of Cornell’s scholarship offerings and public-facing policies, the Office of the Provost, which Mr. Kotlikoff led at the time in question, oversaw a scheme that prioritized race and sex over qualifications in faculty hiring,” the complaint asserts.
Internal records allegedly show his office excluded over 98 percent of qualified applicants in one department based on “their disfavored identity characteristics.”
AFPI is calling for an investigation under multiple federal laws, arguing Cornell may have falsely claimed compliance while receiving over $1 billion in federal funds.
“This is about civil rights,” said Jessica Hart Steinmann, AFPI’s Executive General Counsel. “Cornell’s practices violate federal law and fundamental principles of equality. It’s time for the government to act.”
The DOJ’s civil rights division’s assistant attorney general, Harmeet Dhillon, said that the department will investigate all “serious allegations of identity-based admissions, hiring, and student benefits,” according to The Wall Street Journal.
“Discrimination by American colleges and universities must come to an end,” Dhillon added. “Cornell is no exception to this rule.”
Dhillon’s affirmation closely follows the Department of Education’s pledge to prevent discrimination, including by cracking down on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) policies and programs.
“All students are entitled to a school environment free from discrimination,” the Department of Education stated this year in a letter to schools that receive federal funding. “The Department is committed to ensuring those principles are a reality.”
Cornell University is far from the first school to receive a discrimination complaint following the Supreme Court’s seminal decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard, which struck down Harvard’s system of race-based affirmative action.
Campus Reform has reported about other complaints brought against schools such as Fordham University, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and the University of Virginia.
One group, the Equal Protection Project, has filed dozens of complaints, with its founder, William Jacobson, observing last year that “[a]t least half” of the schools they exposed “changed their discriminatory practices in response.”
Campus Reform has contacted Cornell University for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
