Questions | Employee-Elected Trustee Candidate Debate

• There are many issues facing society at large that Cornell must address and for which Trustees must offer guidance.  These include climate change, fossil fuels, and racial justice.  What does each candidate believe is the top-most issue and how would he encourage the Trustees to deal with it?
• Please talk about how you would improve more visible and meaningful inclusion of people of color, especially First Nations , African American, and Latina/Latino/Latinx/Hispanic individuals and communities?   Additional question: in relation to COVID, child and elder care, and job continuity, discuss these issues related to how those needs may be different for communities listed above as well as LGBTQ folks.
• Can the candidates describe how they’ve contributed to “Belonging at Cornell” and community-based inclusion initiatives?
• How would you, if elected, support Asian and/or Pacific Islander staff especially given the growing anti-Asian sentiment across the country which can also specifically impact our Asian and/or Pacific Islander communities here.
• How will you support and advocate for staff with disabilities, especially those with chronic illnesses that make them more susceptible to COVID.
• What about the management of the endowment and identification of alternate revenue sources for the university outside of student tuition? this is an important issue to address with the trustees, especially during this time of uncertainty with the pandemic.
• What have you done to promote diversity & inclusion (D&I) at Cornell?
• How diverse is the makeup of the board of trustees?
• Can the candidates share their thoughts on ways Cornell might build a stronger culture among management of valuing and taking advantage of institutional knowledge and experience brought by long-term employees, especially given the recent voluntary retirement incentive that will bring the departure of large numbers of long-term employees?
• Not one candidate is woman-identified.  How will these candidates address issues specific to women staff on campus?
• What are the three most important qualities the Employee-Elected Trustee must have?
• What do you believe are the top three issues for the staff today?
• How would you rate Cornell as an employer?
• "Commitment is crucial to sitting on the Board of Trustees because it is almost like taking on a second job." How do you plan to fulfill responsibilities as a Trustee and still be able to perform your own job?
• If you are elected Trustee, how will you plan to interact with the Employee Assembly?
• What is your presonal style of leadership, and how do you deal with others who don't agree with you?
• Trustees operate at the highest level of university governance. What previous experiences have you had that give you the confidence that you are well prepared to operate at that high level?
• How have you leveraged your privilege to make Cornell a more equitable and inclusive institution? And, how would you use your position to strengthen equity and inclusion at Cornell - with particular attention to communities of color, immigrant and DACA communities, women, disability communities, and LGBTQ communities (not in any kind of ranked order)?
• For Cornell to be excellent (and even relevant) in the current sociopolitical climate and the changing demographics of the nation, there needs to be an emphasis on an antiracist trajectory in the institution. What vision or experience do you bring to an antiracist agenda?
• Using the current 2020-2021 Operating and Capital Budget Plan as a base, what changes (if any) would you like to see in Cornell's spending priorities?
• Retention of diverse staff populations remains an issues at-large throughout the university. What are some of your intial ideas/concerns on how to address this issue and how will you advocate for the recruitment and retention of a diverse population in this role?
• Employees are working harder than ever in the midst of this pandemic. How will you as trustee ensure that employees are adequately compensated and acknowledged for this sacrifice?
• Do you think it is the role of the Trustee to help resolve employee issues such as work-life balance?