Cornell University’s faculty senate voted down a proposal Wednesday seeking to create a dual-degree program between the Ivy League institution’s school of hotel administration and China’s Peking University.
The advisory vote, which took place a month after a professor in the Cornell School of Hotel Administration introduced the proposal to the faculty body, reflects the concerns of numerous faculty members about associating with a Chinese university amid the country’s human rights abuses and assaults on academic freedom.
“[If we have] partnerships with organizations and universities under the sway of authoritarian regimes, we risk degrading and compromising the University’s mission, function [and] reputation,” Joanie Mackowski, a professor who represents the Department of Literatures in English, said at the Wednesday senate meeting, according to the Cornell Daily Sun.
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Neil Saccamano, another literature professor, asked in the February meeting during which the proposal was introduced whether the program could protect its students and faculty while “the people teaching next door can get hauled away by the Chinese government.”
Alex Susskind, the associate dean for academic affairs in the School of Hotel Administration, presented the program proposal at the February meeting, making his case for establishing the relationship between Cornell and Peking.
“Yes, there are issues and problems in that part of the world, but tourism and hospitality is one of the largest sectors in those economies because we dominate the hospitality industry education, we want to be a part of that,” he said.
Under the proposal, which the School of Hotel Administration graduate faculty overwhelmingly approved, the program with Peking University would be part-time, taken over 24 months, and jointly taught by faculty at both universities.
The Washington Examiner reached out to Susskind for comment on the Wednesday vote but did not immediately receive a response.
William Jacobson, the Cornell law professor who founded the conservative blog LegalInsurrection.com, told the Washington Examiner of the Wednesday decision: “The vote by the Faculty Senate reflected the deep concern not only over human rights violations in China, but also with the totalitarian nature of the Chinese Communist Party rule that destroys academic freedom and free speech. While the Faculty Senate vote is merely advisory, it will be interesting to see if the Cornell administration follows this advice.”
The Trump administration frequently criticized China for various diplomatic and human rights transgressions, especially the government’s inhumane treatment of its Uyghur Muslim minority. Former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo compared the country’s genocide against Uyghurs to the Nazi Holocaust in January.
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The Biden White House acknowledged March 10 that China’s genocide against the Uyghur Muslims is underway, and the administration subsequently committed to raising the issue directly with its Chinese counterparts.
