INDEPENDENT SINCE 1880
The Corne¬ Daily Sun 16 Pages – Free
Vol. 142, No. 21
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 5, 2025 n ITHACA, NEW YORK
News
Lifestyle
Science
Weather
Changed messaging
Bad blood
Keen Kava
Rain
Cornell Health deleted several lines on its gender-affirming care page following executive orders from Trump. | Page 4
Kaityln Bell ’27 discusses arch nemeses and finding humor in rivalry.
A recent New York State regulation puts kava bars under scrutiny.
| Page 9
HIGH: 53º LOW: 42º
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SIPS Advocacy Protests, Urge Unionized TCAT Public To ‘Stand Up For Science’ Workers Rally Over By EMMA COHEN Sun Staff Writer
March 1 — About 150 School of Integrative Plant Science students, faculty and supporters assembled outside of Mann Library at 3 p.m. on Thursday. Protestors carried signs demanding access to science for all in the face of recent executive orders and echoed chants for “human need, not corporate greed.” Speakers called for members of the Ithaca community to “stand up for science,” emphasizing the loss of research funding through National Institutes of Health grants and the backpedaling of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at universities under the Trump administration. In response to President Trump’s Jan. 20 executive order on Unleashing American Energy, the U.S. Department of Agriculture recently froze funding to the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities, along with funding to environmental conservation programs funded by former President Joe Biden’s 2022 Inflation Reduction Act. While the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has begun to unfreeze certain funding of climate programs, farmers and scientific researchers remain at risk due to cuts to federal agencies including the USDA, NIH and the National Science Foundation. “Executive orders from the current administration have created chaos [and] uncertainty and have disrupted the scientific community across the country,” said Prof. Cynthia Leifer,
immunology, to the crowd. She highlighted the potential loss of research trainees due to uncertainty about the funding of research programs, which would prevent faculty from accepting graduate students. “We don’t want to lose a generation of talented and highly motivated researchers,” Liefer said. The crowd carried a variety of signs, with some reading, “Science is not propaganda,” “Science saves lives,” “Stand up for science” and “Will an apple a day keep Trump away?”
See SIPS page 10
VAUGHN FRIEDMAN / SUN CONTRIBUTOR
Shouting science | Demonstrators protest recent executive orders, demanding access to science for all.
Contract, Wages By XAVIER ROLSTON Sun Staff Writer
union and member of the bargaining team, addressed fellow workers and bus riders outside the downtown office where the monthly board of directors meetings take place. The rally occurred directly before a monthly meeting. For Wright, one part of a fair contract means an increase in wages, which he said are not keeping up with the cost of living, and are worth less after adjusting for inflation than the wages drivers earned in 2019. He also wants to see an increase in overall staffing and more consideration in the contracts for work-life balance. “The drivers of the membership have been sacrificing and sacrificing and sacrificing to make sure that public transit in this area is still functional to whatever degree we can,” Wright said.
March 1 — Employees represented by the United Auto Workers Local 2300 union rallied outside the Tompkins Consolidated Area Transit office on Thursday to generate support and awareness about their ongoing negotiations for a new contract. The TCAT oversees all bus lines that service Ithaca and Cornell. In December, the workers’s contracts expired, launching a series of negotiations between the union and TCAT management. According to a statement released on its website, the UAW Local 2300 “continues to focus on our priorities of fair wages for all members, equal pay for equal work, and ensuring staffing levels meet the needs of our community To continue reading this article, please without forcing our members to work 6 days a week, enduring visitwww.cornellsun.com. exhaustion and facing burnout.” Will Wright, a bus operator for TCAT, vice chair for the TCAT Xavier Rolson can be reached at unit of the UAW Local 2300 xrolston@cornellsun.com.
University-Wide Hiring Freeze Amid Financial Uncertainty
Cornell announced the decision following “potential deep cuts” to its federal research funding and endowment.
By AVERY WANG Sun Senior Writer
Feb. 28 — The University announced a hiring pause, effective immediately, across all colleges, schools, divisions and administrative units in a statement on Thursday afternoon, citing a “time of significant financial uncertainty” along with “all of American higher education.” The decision comes amid Cornell and 11 other universities filing a lawsuit against the National Institutes of Health for funding restrictions that would cost the University $80 million. Several other universities, including Stanford University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Northwestern University, have also announced hiring freezes in the past two weeks. “The potential for deep cuts in federal research funding, as well as tax legislation affecting our endowment income, has now been added to existing concerns related to rapid growth and cost escalations,” the statement reads. Earlier this month, Republican members of Congress introduced proposals to increase the excise tax rate from 1.4 percent to 10 percent of endowment income and to lower the per-student endowment threshold from $500,000 to $200,000 to include more eligible universities. As of October, Cornell’s endowment was approximate-
ly $10.7 billion, according to the Office of University Investments. Cornell’s endowment per student was $395,108 in 2022. Only positions deemed “essential” for departmental functions will continue their hiring process under an increased level of review. Positions determined by deans, vice provosts and vice presidents as “mission-critical” will continue their review process, while staff positions will be evaluated by a new central position control committee that reports to the provost. Colleges will work with their deans to consult with the provost for faculty hiring. It is unclear how the hiring pause will affect graduate students. The University highlighted the importance of hiring managers working with local college and unit human resources representatives so that all decisions are made in alignment with individual college needs. To determine whether a position is “mission-critical,” the University will consider whether it contributes to the delivery of core services or supports critical operations that enable core services. Core services include teaching, research, information technology support and maintenance. Units may not extend term appointments or temporary terms without consulting their college or unit human resources representatives. Additionally, no new temporary hires may be made. The statement also encourages colleges and units to
consider alternative solutions, such as using technology or an existing role to fulfill the position, before using independent contractors or those employed under a fixed-term contract.
“The potential for deep cuts in the federal research funding, as well as tax legislation affecting our endowment income, has now been added to existing concerns related to reapid growth and cost escaliations.” Feb. 27 University statement
“If you have employees in your organization who have available time, you should consider asking them to take on this work if possible,” the statement said. “You may want to look first at asking other staff to take on the work if their workload permits before deciding to request and [sic] exception to the hiring pause.” Avery Wang can be reached at ahwang@cornellsun.com.