On Friday, September 12, the MBA Student Council sent an email to all MBA students suggesting that they not attend special minority recruiting events if they do not fit the targeted audience. This prompted critical coverage in The National Review, Fox News, and the New York Post.
If a recruiter schedules an on-campus interview through the Johnson School’s placement office, the recruiter is subject to detailed policies, including Cornell’s non-discrimination policy. Cornell prohibits all discrimination except for affirmative action for veteran status, individuals with disabilities, or indigenous status. Companies cannot send recruiters to target hiring just minority students, but are instead required to consider all applicants based on merit.
To get around this restriction, a number of outside groups organized recruiting fairs with a nationwide scope that target specific identity groups for recruitment. The National Review article references:
“The Reaching Out MBA conference is just one example of the diversity conferences routinely promoted by Cornell. Held in New Orleans and slated to begin next week, the conference is “the world’s largest gathering of LGBTQ+ business students and alumni,” and includes a career fair for recruitment. Johnson has also recently promoted the National Black MBA Conference, the “premier opportunity for Black professionals to find their next best role,” the AfroTech conference, “the world’s largest Black tech conference and innovation experience,” the Women in Investing conference, which provides chances for networking and recruitment for female MBA students, and the Prospanica National conference, which gives Hispanic students a venue to connect with recruiters, as upcoming opportunities for marginalized students.”
The MBA Student Council is warning students to stay away from these conferences if they are not members of the targeted group. The email states, “Furthermore, we want to stress the negative impact your presence may have on your own recruiting outcomes, as well as Cornell’s relationship with these organizations.”
In other words, by the Johnson School promoting attendance at these conferences, coupled with the MBA Student Council warning students to respect the targeting of these conferences, there is an illegal end-run around Cornell’s non-discrimination policy and federal Civil Rights Laws.
“If you do not belong to the group that the diversity conference is designed for, attending could potentially compromise the purpose of the event as a protected space,” the MBA Student Council says in a resource. “Your presence may inhibit the open dialogue and safe sharing that these spaces are intended to foster.”
A July 29 memorandum from Attorney General Pam Bondi specifically interprets existing Civil Rights Laws as barring race-based programs or limiting access to facilities or programs based upon race. The memo appears to block support of these outside conferences. “Recipients of federal funds should ensure federal funds do not support third-party programs that discriminate.” The Johnson School’s decision to promote the conferences was probably made before the memo was issued.
An unnamed MBA student is quoted in The National Review story as describing the MBA Student Council email as “pressur[ing] certain groups not to attend these recruiting events under the guise of creating ‘safe spaces.’”
“In this tough economy, where MBA job prospects are scarce for many of us, it is abhorrent to see access to intimate networking opportunities restricted based on identity rather than merit.”
Under Cornell’s student organization recognition policies, the 12-member MBA Student Council is subject to Cornell’s non-discrimination policies. Cornell has not announced what action it will take in response to the email.
Cornell claims that its MBA program boasts a strong placement record, with 88% of graduates securing jobs within three months of graduation and an average base salary of approximately $161,967.
The MBA Student Council’s exclusionary view is not shared by the conferences listed in The National Review story. For example, the National Black MBA Conference is sponsored by the National Black MBA Association, Inc., whose membership is 85% African-American, 5% Asian-American, 5% Caucasian/European, and 5% other. The Reaching Out MBA conference is open to “including allies of the LGBTQ community and those who are not fully represented by the letters LGBTQ.” The AfroTech website states, “While rooted in uplifting Black professionals in tech and beyond, AFROTECH™ is a space where people of all backgrounds come together to celebrate Black excellence, share knowledge, spark innovation, and build meaningful connections.” The Prospanica website promises an “inclusive and welcoming comunidad where everyone belongs.”
Regarding AfroTech specifically, during November, Cornell conducted a crowdfunding campaign to raise money to fund attendance for students at that conference. So far, two donors have contributed $45 toward a $5,000 goal. The crowdfunding webpage notes, “As a registered student organization, we are committed to equal access to all of our programs and do not discriminate based on any protected identity status.”
Prof. Randy Wayne, Plant Sciences, said, “Not from a legal perspective, but from a professor’s perspective, I think it says something about what the students who wrote the email learned about the meaning of inclusion at Cornell, and it is nothing for the Johnson School to be proud of. I hope that we return to the classical ideal of a university where words have meaning.”
The bottom line is that the MBA Student Council is trying to impose segregation by identity group regarding conferences that are advertised as open to all.
