INDEPENDENT SINCE 1880
The Corne¬ Daily Sun Vol. 142, No. 9
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 22 2025 n ITHACA, NEW YORK
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Kotlikoff Reportedly Disapproves of Over One Thousand Protesters Trump’s Higher Education Compact Gather at ‘No Kings’ Rally By JOSHUA COHEN Sun Contributor
in Higher Education,” which was first offered to nine universities on Oct. 1, would require schools to freeze tuition for five years, cap international student enrollment at 15 percent and commit to strict definitions of gender in order to receive priority access to federal funding and looser restraints on overhead costs. This initial compact was later extended to all universities that want to “return to the pursuit of Truth and Achievement,” according to an Oct. 12 Truth Social post from President Trump. None of the leaders present at the Oct. 14 meeting publicly confirmed that they had been sent invitations to sign the compact, according to Inside Higher Ed. Last spring, the Trump administration froze hundreds of millions of dollars in research funding for Cornell, amid several ongoing federal civil rights investigations on campus.
Oct. 19 — Cornell has not yet taken an official position on whether or not it would comply with demands from the Trump administration presented in its higher education compact in exchange for preferential funding treatment. But at a press dinner with the leaders of 10 universities in New York City on Tuesday, Oct. 14, all — including President Michael Kotlikoff — did not raise their hands when asked if they would sign an agreement to these demands if asked by the administration, according to The New York Times. “The compact itself requires institutions to make merit-based decisions on admissions and hiring, et cetera, which is perfectly reasonable, but it also creates a situation in which universities that sign the contract escape merit-based consideration for grants, et cetera,” Kotlikoff To continue reading this article, please said, according to Inside Higher Ed. visit www.cornellsun.com. “They get special deals, and that is fundamentally inappropriate.” The Trump administration’s Joshua Cohen can be reached at “Compact for Academic Excellence jmc746@cornell.edu.
By SHUBHA GAUTUM Sun Senior Writer
Oct. 18 — Over one thousand people gathered at Washington Park in downtown Ithaca this Saturday as part of over 2,700 “No Kings” protests happening across the country. Singing “if one of us is chained, none of us are free” and chanting “stand up, fight back,” protesters voiced dissent against President Donald Trump’s policies and presidency. Over 100 volunteers from Indivisible Tompkins, a local organization formed in January that aims to support community members as they promote democracy through various events, hosted the rally alongside No Más Lágrimas and Citizen Action. Protesters, however, were not allowed to march as part of the event. Indivisible steering committee chair Ken McKinney said in a speech that, “The city asked us that if we were going to march, that we get a permit, and that requires insurance.” While the city can require event organizers to provide liability insurance for non-expressive events, the requirement cannot act as a bar to First Amendment activity. Attendees circled around the central stage holding signs, such as “Resist Fascism” and “I Like my ICE Crushed,” with others dressed up
in costumes mocking Trump. Children painted “No Kings” signs at the “Kids Corner,” which table volunteer Lisa Coniglio said was important to have for adults without a childcare option wishing to attend the rally. The rally featured a speech from Rep. Anna Kelles (NY-125), in which she voiced support for New York State Assembly Bill 3506, which would regulate the disclosure of immigration status, increase renewable energy efforts, universal healthcare and other issues. Kelles said she wants to see “every single [person]” in the crowd writing to their legislators to express support for issues important to them. “Yes, I have a voice, and, yes, I have a podium, but if you really want me to have lasting change, then stand with me to fight for the legislation that I’ve written in conversations that I’ve had with you,” Kelles said. “That is my tool. That is my strength, so stand with me.” To continue reading this article, please visit www.cornellsun.com.
Shubha Gautum can be reached at sgautum@ cornellsun.com. Max Troiano contributed reporting.
No. 5 Women’s Hockey Opens to Weekend Sweep By ELI FASTIFF Sun Senior Editor
Oct. 18 — For 50 minutes on Saturday afternoon, No. 5 women’s ice hockey seemed poised to repeat the Red’s dominant 3-0 season opening win. However, with a weekend sweep in hand thanks to a 4-0 lead, a small Cornell roster began to show its tired legs and gave up two Boston College goals in a span of six minutes to end the hopes of a weekend shutout. “I thought it was a good game,” said senior defender Sarah MacEachern, who scored her first collegiate goal in the contest. “It’s our first weekend as a team, but I think we played together and we started off [the season] on the right foot.” For the second day in a row, the first major scoring chance of the game came when junior goaltender Annelies Bergmann denied an Ava Thomas oneon-none opportunity in the opening minutes of the game. Thomas — who entered the weekend as the Eagles leading scorer — was denied multiple times by Bergmann throughout the afternoon. “We gave up some grade-A chances early on and needed some big saves from Annelies [Bergmann]. “That was huge in both games because I didn’t think we had great starts in either one of them.” Cornell (2-0-0, 0-0-0 ECAC) picked up an early power play opportunity when junior forward Karel
Prefontaine was tripped in front of the Eagles’ net three minutes into the game. Like the Red’s two power plays from Friday, Cornell moved the puck well but could not find its way by netminder Grace Campbell and the Eagles defense. Instead, the Red would strike seven minutes later when senior forward A v i Adam wrapped a pass around an E a g l e defender and f o u n d Prefontaine alone in front of the left faceoff c i r c l e . The Québec native fired a quick one-timer to give Cornell the lead. Prefontaine, Adam and sophomore forward Lindzi Avar combined for 70 points last season, but w e r e held scoreless in the season opener. On Saturday however, the newly formed line dominated during their time on the ice and near-
ly scored again multiple times in the opening period. “All three of those players are going to be crucial,” said head coach Doug Derraugh ’91. “They are three of our top offensive players and they haven’t played together on a line like we’ve had. So, it was something we wanted to see.” Cornell picked up its first penalty of the season when Adam was whistled for body-checking in the waning moments of the first frame, but a pair of Bergmann saves kept Cornell in front at the first intermission. After looking rusty at times in Friday’s first period and tying Boston College (3-4-0, 2-00) in shots on goal, t h e Red’s openi n g frame on Saturday was better with Cornell dominating the Eagles 14-6. Cornell began the second period by killing the remaining 45 seconds of the Boston College power play, before a trio of unlikely skaters doubled the LEILANI BURKE / SUN SENIOR EDITOR
Red’s lead. 7:49 into the period, a junior defender Abby Thibodeau shot from the left point deflected off a crowd of players and into the Eagle net. MacEachern was credited with the goal — her first as a Cornellian — and freshman Riley Scorgie also earned an assist for her first collegiate point. “I was honestly thinking: ‘Why am I down in front of the net?’” MacEachern said with a laugh. “I honestly didn’t know if I scored or not.” With the Eagles in the midst of their fifth scoreless period of the weekend, frustration began to boil over. Avar and a Boston College player became entangled after a whistle, and the Red earned its second power play when the Cornell forward was punched. “The second period again seemed to be our best period,” Derraugh said. “I thought we put the pressure on them again and had a lot of chances, played a lot down in their zone.” The final period was the most eventful of the weekend. Freshman forward Nora Curtis scored Cornell’s third goal of the game when she drove hard to the net, received a rebounding puck, and wristed it by Campbell for her first career goal. To continue reading this article, please visit www.cornellsun.com. Eli Fastiff can be reached at efastiff@cornellsun.com.