❓WHAT HAPPENED: Cornell University warned “non-marginalized” business students, largely white students, not to attend diversity-focused recruiting events intended to bestow advantages on minority students.
👤WHO WAS INVOLVED: The Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management’s student council and Cornell University MBA students.
📍WHEN & WHERE: E-mail circulated on Friday, ahead of next week’s Reaching Out MBA conference in New Orleans, Louisiana.
💬KEY QUOTE: “True equality should not equate to carving out exclusive zones that sideline most MBA students and potentially skirt equal opportunity laws,” said one anonymous student.
🎯IMPACT: The e-mail has sparked criticism for encouraging racial discrimination and raises concerns about equal opportunity compliance.
Cornell University’s Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management has come under scrutiny after a student council e-mail advised so-called “non-marginalized” business students, referring mainly to white, male, and heterosexual students, not to attend diversity-focused recruiting events intended for ethnic minority peers. The message, circulated by the student council’s “Allyship in Action” initiative, warned that attending such events could negatively impact students’ job prospects and Cornell’s relationships with partner organizations.
The e-mail stated that “students who do not identify with the specific marginalized or underrepresented group” should refrain from attending diversity conferences. “Students who do not belong to the group that the diversity conference is designed for should respect that space and should not attend,” it read.
The message was sent ahead of the Reaching Out MBA conference in New Orleans, a prominent event focused on LGBT business students and alumni. Other diversity-centered events promoted by Cornell include the National Black MBA Conference, AfroTech, the Women in Investing Conference, and Prospanica, which targets Hispanic professionals.
One anonymous student criticized the e-mail as exclusionary. “True equality should not equate to carving out exclusive zones that sideline most MBA students and potentially skirt equal opportunity laws,” the student said.
Cornell University insisted that the message represented “student-to-student conversations” and reaffirmed that the events in question remain officially open to all students. However, the Allyship in Action e-mail threatens, “[W]e want to stress the negative impact your presence may have on your own recruiting outcomes, as well as Cornell’s relationship with these organizations.”
The situation comes amid heightened federal scrutiny of university diversity programs under the Trump administration. More than 50 colleges and universities are currently under investigation for discriminatory practices against white, Asian, or Christian students, particularly in cases involving race-specific scholarships, internships, or recruitment programs. Federal officials argue that such programs violate civil rights laws by excluding students on the basis of race, gender, or religion.
Image by Claude-Étienne Armingaud.
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