Academic and Student Affairs

Email jan.allen@cornell.edu or phone (607) 255-4603. Appointments by phone and by Zoom (video or audio only). To schedule an appointment, please email her or schedule one online.

Big Red Barn Graduate and Professional Student Center

The Big Red Barn dining is closed starting March 23, 2020. As was previously the case, all programming, alcohol sales, and snack service are suspended until further notice. Today, Cornell Dining announced they would suspend meal service, and the Barn is entirely closed. Please watch for further news on Barn reopening plans via the email list. We look forward to hosting Graduate and Professional students again soon and are working on ideas to set up opportunities for staying connected remotely.

Careers Beyond Academia

Careers Beyond Academia is available via Zoom for individual or small group consultations. Please know Denise DiRienzo and Susi Varvayanis are here for consults and skill building sessions to help you explore, prepare for, and test drive careers. All doctoral students and postdocs can contact Careers Beyond Academia.

Fellowships and Funding

Email grad_funding@cornell.edu or call 607-255-5818.

Future Faculty and Academic Careers

Book an appointment with Future Faculty and Academic Careers to discuss CIRTL certificates, the academic job search, Teaching as Research, or for a general consultation about future faculty and academic career preparation.

Inclusion and Student Engagement

Make an appointment with Associate Dean for Inclusion and Student Engagement, Sara Xayarath Hernández, by emailing sh267@cornell.edu with your availability using dates and times (EST), the purpose and urgency of the appointment, and the preferred mode of connection: video conference (Zoom or WhatsApp) or voice call (telephone or WhatsApp).

Alyssa Lopez, program coordinator and OISE administrative assistant, is available at al546@cornell.edu or call (607) 255-5417.

Office of Postdoctoral Studies

Make an appointment to discuss the academic job search and how to apply for a postdoc position with Director of Postdoctoral Studies Program Christine Holmes by emailing ch18@cornell.edu. She will hold all meetings via Zoom or telephone.

Student Services

Email gradstudserv@cornell.edu or call 607-255-5820. Email monitored 5:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m. for urgent matters.

Student Life

Make an appointment with Assistant Dean Janna Lamey by emailing janna.lamey@cornell.edu. She will have expanded hours and hold all individual and group meetings via Zoom, Skype, or telephone.

Dean’s Office

Please send questions or concerns to gradschooldeans@cornell.edu or 607-255-5864. We will respond as soon as we can.

Dear Graduate Students:

I’m writing to share additional information, following President Pollack’s 6/30/20 announcement of plans for the upcoming academic year, including some on-campus instruction beginning in early September. Please take seriously President Pollack’s guidance that “it will be critically important for each of us to adjust our individual behavior. … I am asking all of our returning Cornell community to adopt a culture of shared responsibility for our safety and well-being.”

Returning to Ithaca. If you have not yet returned to the Ithaca area but intend to do so, please be mindful of your own health and the health of others when planning your return to the local community. Be sure to review and abide by the New York State COVID-19 Travel Advisory which imposes local quarantine requirements on travelers from states/regions with high infection rates. Soon Cornell will issue detailed guidance regarding personal travel and other expectations for return to and living in the local campus area. Watch for, and follow, that guidance.

Teaching modalities. As President Pollack noted, Cornell will offer “hybrid teaching, with some classes online and some in-person.” If you will be enrolling in courses, more information will be provided about the modality of each class before you need to finalize your course selections for the fall semester. You’ll receive additional information when it is time to enroll in Fall 2020 courses. At that point, if you have any questions about which courses are appropriate for you academically or in a certain modality, contact your degree program for guidance.

Teaching assistant modalities. If you anticipate being appointed as a teaching assistant for a Fall ’20 course and you are curious about what modality the course will take (online, or a combination of in-person and remote), contact the supervisor for your TA duties to inquire what the anticipated plans are for that course. Many courses will be fully online. As President Pollack noted, behavioral modifications will be made in all in-person courses, including students and faculty wearing masks (or face shields), students sitting in assigned seats that are appropriately distanced, reduced classroom capacity, and in-person enrollment caps. For some in-person courses, student cohorts will take turns participating remotely versus in-person, to de-densify the campus. 

Research activities. If you are a research degree student, keep in mind that if you can continue to work effectively on all or portions of your research activity while remote, you should continue to do so. If you are seeking to be approved to resume on-campus research activity, contact your faculty advisor or research supervisor so they can begin the process of requesting approval from their department and college for your return to on-campus research. If you are approved to conduct on-campus research activity, be sure to first complete the online training EHS 2019: Return to Campus Health and Safety COVID-19 (this can be completed at any time), complete the Daily Check each day before coming onto campus, and wear a cloth face covering/mask when inside campus buildings and maintain physical distancing.

Accommodations for students with personal health concerns. Graduate students concerned about their own health related to potentially returning to on-campus activities and wishing to seek accommodations should register through Student Disability Services (SDS); additional details are in this chart. The process is designed to be straight-forward and respectful of student privacy. I have reminded faculty that they should NOT discuss medical issues with students and should refer students to SDS if they express concerns about their personal health, without probing for any details. Zebadiah Hall, director of SDS, has provided assurance that “SDS takes a student’s social, environmental, emotional, and biological context into account when making determinations about accommodations. In fact, SDS strives to engage with students in a way that is empowering and that discusses the needs for support within the context of the students’ lived experience. SDS acknowledges that for many students, this experience may include painful instances, or daily reminders, of ableism, racism, sexism, homophobia, and other forms of oppression. SDS counselors do not share with faculty members, staff, or others, any information that a student does not wish to share.”

Options for students with general concerns about in-person activities. I understand that you may have concerns about returning to campus for a variety of reasons (e.g., concerns about a household member). Speak with your committee chair, assistantship supervisor, and DGS to explore other options for fulfilling your research, scholarship, and assistantship responsibilities and continuing to make academic progress. Faculty have been instructed that if a graduate student asks for help identifying options because they have concerns, faculty should not probe for personal details about the student or their household members. Rather, faculty should acknowledge the student’s general concern about returning to campus, and work with them to identify options. The chart provides examples of what options might look like, such as conducting assistantship duties at different off-peak shift times, pivoting research activities away from lab-based to computation-based, teaching remotely, or otherwise revising assistantship duties. Faculty have also been reminded that Black, Indigenous, and Latinx communities have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, creating additional stress for many of our students, and should be aware of this context as an additional compounding factor when identifying potential options.

I have encouraged faculty and graduate fields to be creative and accommodating when exploring possible options with students, allowing remote work and learning whenever possible, and avoiding probing for any personal details about a student or their household members. If a graduate student and faculty advisor and DGS are not able to reach agreement regarding possible options to address their concerns and enable the student to continue to make academic progress or fulfill their assistantship responsibilities, the protocol in the chart should be followed to bring in others to assist in finding a solution, such as the department chair, the college dean’s office, or Jan Allen for the Graduate School as outlined. We have emphasized that a key guiding principle is to strive to foster graduate students’ abilities to complete their degrees.

Consult the university and Graduate School COVID-19 update pages for the most current information about Cornell’s status and plans, FAQs, and other useful resources.

We look forward to Cornell’s continued reactivation and to taking the next steps towards a safe and productive fall semester. There will most certainly be challenges in the coming year. I am confident that, striving together, we will rise to meet them.

Warm regards,

Barb

Barbara A. Knuth
Dean of the Graduate School

Additional pandemic information for the Cornell Community:

• Cornell University COVID-19 Updates
• Graduate School COVID-19 Updates
• FAQ (COVID-19)
• Resources (COVID-19)

Dear Research Degree Graduate Students:

For those of you who have remained in the local area, you may be invited to participate in the next phase of reactivating campus-based research and scholarly activities as the Southern Tier and Finger Lakes regions become cleared for Phase 4 reopening by New York state. The information for Cornell faculty and staff shared in the announcement below may be of interest to you.

Please remember:

• If you are not already residing in the local area (e.g., Southern Tier or Finger Lakes region), your possible return to campus-based activities will be announced at a later date.
• If you are already residing in the local area and have not been approved to return to campus by the department and college in which your research activity occurs and informed of this approval by your faculty advisor or supervisor, you should not come to campus. You may wish to reach out to your faculty advisor/supervisor to inquire whether your advisor/supervisor plans to prepare a research/scholarship reactivation proposal that includes your possible return to campus in the coming weeks.
• If you are currently engaged remotely in your research and scholarly activities, you should continue to work remotely until an approved return plan is in place. Your faculty advisor/supervisor will inform you when a return plan has been approved.
• Once approved for return to campus for research and scholarly activities, you will need to complete the EHS 2019 – Return to Campus Health and Safety Training for COVID-19 before you return to campus for the first time. In addition, you will be required to complete the Daily Check on each day that you will be on campus, even if just for part of a day. Review the FAQ about the Daily Check.
• Specific accommodation processes for addressing graduate students’ concerns related to returning to on-campus activities are available. Students with personal health concerns should contact Student Disability Services to identify appropriate accommodations and should not discuss medical issues with faculty.
• You are encouraged to follow the recommended preventative measures to avoid exposure to the virus causing COVID-19.

If you have questions, please contact gradschooldeans@cornell.edu.

Warm regards,

Barbara A. Knuth
Dean of the Graduate School

Additional pandemic information for the Cornell Community:

• Cornell University COVID-19 Updates
• Graduate School COVID-19 Updates
  • FAQ (COVID-19)
  • Resources (COVID-19)

Dear Colleagues,

The Southern Tier and Finger Lakes regions, which include our campuses in Ithaca and Geneva, are expected to be cleared by the state for Phase 4 reopening later today. This is welcome news as we continue to implement the university’s phased approach to campus reactivation and finalize plans for the fall semester.

In line with guidance provided earlier this month, faculty and staff must continue to work remotely, unless cleared to return to work on campus by your dean, department chair or supervisor. Even when cleared to return, individuals who can work effectively while remote should continue to do so until further notice. This is extremely important if we are to maintain 50% building capacity. However, faculty and staff whose work requires, or is markedly enhanced by, use of university facilities, may now begin to do so under guidance provided by our reactivation plan. As with research reactivation, plans should be submitted to departments or appropriate supervisory units, reviewed by the dean or appropriate administrative lead, and submitted for approval to Deputy Provost John Siliciano and Vice President Mary Opperman. As with earlier reopening benchmarks, our campuses in New York City remain on a different timetable for reactivation and are excluded from this latest guidance.

On Monday, we introduced Daily Check, an online screening system that will send daily reminders to employees who have been approved to work or conduct research on campus to complete a brief health assessment each day prior to arriving on campus or at a Cornell facility. We very much appreciate our community’s compliance with this new measure, which is required by New York state. We will continue to refine and improve the system based on your feedback. For additional information on Daily Check, or other workplace guidelines, please review the Working During COVID-19 guide issued by Human Resources last week.

As President Pollack announced on Monday, the Teaching Reactivation Options Committee and Preparation for Online Teaching Committee have released their recommendations for reactivating campus. These are being carefully reviewed and will guide Cornell’s plan for the fall semester, which is expected to be announced soon. 

Sincerely,

Michael Kotlikoff
Provost

Mary Opperman
Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer

Dear Incoming Students,

As Cornell University prepares to finalize and release plans for fall instruction in the coming days I am writing to share several important updates. On Monday, President Martha Pollack posted an open letter to the Cornell community and offered links to two comprehensive reports on teaching reactivation and preparations for online teaching. These reports describe the considerations that will go into final decisions about the form of instruction in the fall, potentially a combination of on-campus and remote options. The university will announce final decisions about fall instruction in early July.

I know that many incoming graduate and professional students are eager to have greater certainty on what to expect this fall as you finalize housing arrangements, book travel or possibly develop plans for remote study. As soon as the final plans are released the Graduate School will contact you again with more information.  Below are FAQs that we just posted for admitted students. Urgent questions can be directed to your graduate field, but they will not have any additional information about fall instruction until a final decision is released by the university. We appreciate your patience and understanding.               

Warm regards,

Barbara A. Knuth
Dean of the Graduate School

Frequently Asked Questions

Will instruction be in-person, online, or a hybrid?

A decision about fall semester instruction is anticipated in early July. Committees made up of Cornell faculty, students, and staff recently submitted to President Pollack two reports on teaching reactivation and preparations for online teaching. These comprehensive documents outline how instruction could be offered using a combination of in-person and remote formats, with possible options for students who cannot travel to campus. Cornell’s president and Board of Trustees will consider these reports and make a final decision by early July, with guidance from New York State.

What is the semester start date?

The start date for fall classes will be finalized at the same time a decision about the format of instruction is made, in early July. Current proposals focus on late August or early September for the start of the semester, but final decisions have not been made.

How late can I arrive for in-person instruction? What if I can’t get a visa/travel restrictions aren’t lifted in time, can I attend online, or will I need to defer?

Students should generally plan to arrive prior to the first day of fall classes. This year, it may be necessary to allow extra time for any mandatory isolation period following your arrival to the Cornell region or for coronavirus testing. More information from the university about travel planning and arrival procedures will be forthcoming.

Will there be a tuition discount for online instruction? Will I still receive funding?

Cornell tuition rates are set by degree programs and do not vary based on whether students are participating remotely or in-person. Scholarship and fellowship aid is generally available to students without regard to their location, as long as they are making full-time academic progress. Students who were offered funding as a Teaching Assistant (TA) or Research Assistant (GRA or RA) should consult with their graduate field to explore whether those duties could be performed remotely. In addition, Cornell policy limits the location of graduate assistants to being within the U.S. except under very specific circumstances.    

Do I have to self-quarantine upon arrival? Can my I-20 start date be adjusted to accommodate a mandatory self-quarantine?

Cornell is committed to following all applicable state and federal guidelines to protect the safety of the campus community. Requirements may include asking arriving students to self-quarantine and, or, undergo testing. If you can attend online orientation and start classes remotely, there will be no need to amend your I-20 program start date. Detailed arrival information will be released by early July.

See the complete list of admitted student FAQs

Dear Research Degree Graduate Students,

For those of you who have remained in the local area, you may be invited to participate in the next phase of reactivating campus-based research and scholarly activities as the Southern Tier and Finger Lakes regions are cleared by New York State for Phase 3 reopening as described below. The information for Cornell faculty and staff shared in the announcement below may be of interest to you.

Key points to keep in mind:

• If you are not already located in the local area (e.g., Finger Lakes or Southern Tier regions), your possible return to campus-based activities will be announced at a later date.
• If you are currently engaged remotely in your research and scholarly activities, you should continue to work remotely until an approved plan is in place. Your faculty advisor or supervisor will inform you when a return plan has been approved. Details are below.
• Many of the guidelines in the Division of Human Resources document linked below on Working During COVID-19, Guide for Employees, also pertain to behaviors and precautions related to health and safety standards and practices for graduate students, once you are approved to return to on-campus research and scholarly activity. The section on Special Considerations (p. 8-9) does not pertain to graduate students. Instead, specific accommodation processes for addressing graduate students’ concerns related to returning to on-campus activities are detailed in the Accommodations Options document.  
• You are encouraged to follow recommended preventative measures to avoid exposure to the virus causing COVID-19.
• Monitor Cornell Coronavirus Updates and the Graduate School COVID-19 Updates for additional information.

If you have questions, please contact gradschooldeans@cornell.edu.

Best wishes,

Barbara A. Knuth
Dean of the Graduate School

On May 22, Cornell’s Research and Operations Reactivation Committee released its report and recommendations to guide the safe, phased restart of the university’s on-campus research and discovery functions.

New York State has cleared Cornell to restart, no sooner than May 29, some on-campus research activities focused on health/disease, food/agriculture, national defense, and support for essential businesses.  Actual on-campus research activity in these spheres will likely not begin until sometime after that date.  Prior to beginning these activities, buildings must be prepared for restart, and faculty leads must develop and submit restart requests/plans for review and approval by department, college, and university leadership.

After plans are approved by university leadership, the faculty, staff, and graduate students who are approved to participate in this phased restart of research activity will need to first complete appropriate training and be provided with appropriate protective equipment.  Many additional measures will need to be completed by each research group before restarting.  Even as on-campus research restarts, all activities that can be productively completed remotely should continue to be done remotely.  General access to on-campus resources will occur at a later phase.

Graduate students will be notified by faculty when, and under what conditions, their on-campus research is approved to restart.  The prioritization criteria to be used in determining which research activities in the above categories will be approved to restart includes assessing the extent to which the research activities proposed for restart address dissertation needs of graduate students. 

The report includes guidelines regarding various parameters that faculty, staff, and graduate students will need to follow, as well as checklists that will guide preparations for return, including for personal protective equipment, research practices, cleaning practices, and building practices.

Future stages of additional research reactivation will be announced when appropriate.

Town Hall Meeting: Wednesday, May 27 from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. via Zoom

All faculty, researchers and graduate students are encouraged to attend a town hall meeting on Wednesday, May 27, from 2:30 to 3:30 p.m. to discuss research reactivation planning and next steps.

Panelists: 

• Provost Kotlikoff
• Vice Provost for Research Giannelis
• Vice President for Facilities and Campus Services Burgess

Moderator

• Paula Cohen, Associate Vice Provost for Life Sciences

All graduate students are welcome to attend.

In the hectic days of mid-March when the campus was closing, some students chose to leave the U.S. and return to their home countries. Now, with borders closed and travel restrictions in place, it’s unclear when those students might be able to return to the U.S. Although students who are outside the U.S. are not normally permitted to hold assistantships, the university will be able to offer assistantships to students who are outside the U.S. during the summer or fall semesters if students left the U.S. prior to May 1st, 2020 and travel restrictions prevent a return. There are several important eligibility criteria described on our website.

Students who choose to leave the U.S. after May 1st will not be eligible to hold assistantships if they don’t reenter the country prior to the start of the appointment. 

Dear Graduate Student,

I hope this message finds you and your loved ones safe and well.  Over the past 7 weeks, as students have shifted to online coursework and scrambled to revise research plans, the faculty and staff of Cornell have been working to solve a myriad of complex problems facing our community. 

President Pollack’s April 22 message describes some of the financial and academic issues we face in the months ahead. I’m writing to provide updates on a number of positive steps that we have been able to take to help and support graduate and professional students.

• Summer Emergency Grants – The Graduate School has established a fund to provide $3000 emergency fellowships for students who are facing financial hardships as a result of cancelled summer internships, TA opportunities, or other disruptions to planned summer funding. These special fellowships are available to students who are in good academic standing, are within the period of guaranteed funding, and whose planned summer funding was disrupted by COVID-19. Requests for consideration should be made directly to your graduate field through the DGS. 
• For International Students – I’m very happy to share that Cornell will be able to offer assistantships to students who are outside the US during the summer or fall semesters if travel restrictions prevent a return to Ithaca. There are several important eligibility criteria described on our website, but this is very good news for students who left the US and cannot easily return.
• Stipend increase for 2020-2021 – Cornell’s Board of Trustees approved a 3% increase to the graduate stipend rate, effective August 21 of this year. This increase comes even as staff and faculty salaries have been frozen.  The base academic year assistantship stipend will be $28,036, up from the 2019-20 rate of $27,218.  The 12-month assistantship rate, for students who have standard summer RA or GRA appointments, will be $37,384.  The 2021 Summer Sage fellowship stipend for fellows in the humanities and certain social sciences has also been increased by 3% to $5,907.
• Professional Development and Career Support – The Graduate School is hosting dozens of online workshops, panel discussions, and discussion groups in the month of May. These programs are useful any time, but can be especially valuable for students who are nearing the completion of their degrees or who are temporarily unable to engage in their planned research activities.
• Extensions of Degree and Milestone Deadlines – If you are approaching a milestone such as your A exam, defense (Master’s exam or B exam), or the deadline to form your special committee, and you need more time due to COVID-19 disruptions, please know that you can use the fully online petition tool to easily submit your request. Just include a short explanation of the barriers you have encountered and the academic plan and the modified timeline you have developed with your committee. 

I have received inquiries asking why the Graduate School has not offered a blanket extension for all deadlines.  Because my goal is to see every student complete their Cornell degree, we use the petition process to ensure that each student has the benefit of a written, actionable academic plan, endorsed by their special committee chair, at the time an extension is approved.  The Graduate School seldom denies petitions outright so if we receive a petition that does not articulate a clear path forward, we follow up to ask the student and their special committee to provide more detail or clarify the proposed timeline.  These academic plans, when developed together by the student, committee and field, can be a tremendously helpful tool during uncertain times.  

Although  there are many reasons to be optimistic that the coming months will include the resumption of some on-campus research and academic activities, the timeline for returning to on-campus scholarly activity or research travel remains very hard to predict.   For those of you who are facing setbacks due to these disruptions I strongly encourage you to work with your committee now on contingency plans that will allow you to continue making progress, even if that requires changes in the research direction you originally envisioned.  The ongoing travel restrictions, public health crisis, and the global economic slowdown may make certain lines of scholarly inquiry very difficult for the foreseeable future. Identifying an intellectual pivot for your scholarship may be necessary. Your creativity and ability to modify your research directions in new and compelling ways will allow you to sustain your momentum even in challenging times. 

I am inspired by the energy and determination that I see in Cornell’s graduate and professional community.  Please remember to take care of yourself, take care of each other, and reach out when you need help.  I wish you all the best as we enter the final weeks of the spring semester and look forward to sunnier days ahead.

With warm regards,

Barbara A. Knuth
Dean of the Graduate School

Cornell’s Board of Trustees approved a 3% increase to the graduate stipend rate, effective August 21st of this year. The base academic year assistantship stipend will be $28,036, up from the 2019-20 rate of $27,218.

The 12-month assistantship rate, for students who have standard summer RA or GRA appointments, will be $37,384. The 2021 Summer Sage fellowship stipend for fellows in the humanities and certain social sciences has also been increased by 3% to $5,907.

Students supported on assistantships receive their stipend for an appointment averaging no more than 15 hours per week of service in addition to the academic responsibilities of their degree program.  They also receive health insurance coverage and full tuition credit.

For the 11th consecutive year there has been no change to the tuition rates for doctoral or most research master’s programs.  They remain at $20,800 and $29,500 for contract and endowed programs, respectively.  Student Health Plan (SHP) rates are expected to be published in May.

The Graduate School has established a fund to provide $3000 emergency fellowships for students who are facing financial hardships as a result of cancelled summer internships, TA opportunities, or other disruptions to planned summer funding.  

These special fellowships are available only to students who are in good academic standing, are within the period of guaranteed funding, and whose planned summer funding was disrupted by COVID-19. Requests for consideration should be made directly to your graduate field through the DGS.  

Funds are limited.  Notifications will be made by mid-May.

Dear DGS and GFAs

The Graduate School is announcing several funding accommodations to support students who have had their funding plans disrupted by COVID-19.

Emergency summer fellowships – The Graduate School  has created a fund to provide emergency $3000 summer fellowships to students who lost planned summer funding due to the public health emergency.  These special fellowships are available only to students who have no other form of funding, are good academic standing, and are within the period of guaranteed funding.  Students must be nominated by their DGS using the attached form, indicating how the summer was planned to be funded prior to the COVID-19 disruption.  Funding is limited, so fields should actively explore additional funding options.  Nominations are due by May 1^st.

Fellowship extensions – Graduate School fellowships, including Sage, SUNY, and Dean’s Excellence, may be delayed into the 13^th and 14^th semesters, via request to the Graduate School by the DGS, specifying how the student’s academic progress was delayed by the COVID-19 disruption.  Normally fellowships must be used by the 12^th semester of study.

Sage summer fellowships – Students who have not yet passed their A exam will be awarded their 2020 Sage summer fellowship as long as they complete their academic activity report and have plans to make degree progress over the summer.  Students and special committees are expected to make necessary adjustments to research plans and summer goals.

Advanced use of Sage dissertation writing fellowships – Students are normally ineligible to draw on their Sage dissertation writing fellowship prior to the successful completion of their A exam.  However, students who must delay their A exam due to COVID-19 may request use of their fall 2020 Sage dissertation writing fellowship as long as the A exam scheduling form is submitted to the Graduate School prior to August 15, and is scheduled to occur before December 18, 2020.

Graduate student funding at Cornell is a shared commitment between fields, departments, faculty advisors, and the Graduate School.  Finding solutions for students in need during this exceptional time will also require collaboration.   The Graduate School offers as much flexibility as we can within our finite budgeted resources.  I urge fields and departments to continue exploring all funding options for students who are encountering hardships this spring and summer.  Please don’t hesitate to contact me directly with any questions.

Sincerely,

Jason

Jason Kahabka
Associate Dean for Administration

April 9, 2020

Dear Student,

The events of this spring semester have disrupted the normal rhythms of our lives and of Cornell’s academic calendar. While many undergraduate students made hasty plans to travel home in mid-March and prepared to resume classes remotely on April 6^th, many graduate students spent that time reworking their research and academic plans. 

We know that current TAs have been helping move course content online and preparing to make this semester a success for their students. Due to the break in instruction, classes now extend further into May. As a result, the Provost has approved an extension to the spring appointment period of all graduate assistants with a corresponding increase in spring stipend. 

The Spring 2020 assistantship period has been extended from May 15^th to May 20^th. The additional stipend awarded for this spring appointment period will be $456.33 for students receiving the base of $13,609/semester. 

In response to student and faculty feedback, the University had previously planned to shift the assistantship periods beginning in Fall ‘20 to bring them into closer alignment with the academic calendar. This is described in University Policy 1.3 (pp. 10-11). This adjustment of 5 days represents an acceleration of that planned change. 

Appointment Dates:

Spring 2020
Old: 1/1 – 5/15
New for Spring 2020: 1/1 – 5/20

Summer 2020
Old: 5/16 – 8/15
New: 5/21 – 8/20

Fall 2020
Old: 8/16 – 12/31
New: 8/21 – 1/5

Spring 2021 and beyond
N/A
New: 1/6 – 5/20

Although this consideration is most acute for TAs, the shift will apply to all assistantships (TA, GRA, RA, GA) in order to keep the appointments consistent and to recognize that students frequently move between appointment types.

We recognize that this spring has been immensely challenging. The outpouring of creativity, resilience and positivity we’ve seen from Cornell graduate students has been inspiring.  

This adjustment that extends funding further into May recognizes the efforts of all graduate assistants but especially those TAs whose efforts have been so meaningful to the students who are now engaged in classes from every corner of the world.

Warm regards,

Jason

Jason A. Kahabka
Associate Dean for Administration

Changes in Course Grading Policy for Spring 2020

The April 5 message from Cornell’s Provost and Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education addressed changes in the course grading policy for Spring 2020. For graduate/professional degree programs and courses:

Instructors for courses taken by graduate/professional students may offer an S/U grading option unless not permitted by internal degree program requirements or external restrictions imposed by relevant accreditation or oversight bodies. Graduate/professional students interested in S/U options for courses for Spring ’20 should inquire with (1) their graduate program to make sure there are no prohibitions from the degree program level to taking S/U, and then (2) ask their instructor(s) if it is okay to choose the S/U grade option.

(The following dates apply to all Ithaca-campus programs except for the few, like D.V.M., operating on separate calendars. Cornell Tech students and faculty should follow the Cornell Tech calendar and deadlines.) If the degree program allows S/U grading towards its requirements, students have until May 12, the last day of instruction, to drop a course without a W or change the grading basis of a course to S/U. This applies to any full Spring 2020 semester course, including courses that did not previously offer an S/U grading option, as well as 7-week courses offered in the second half of the semester. Between May 12 and May 23, the last day of the semester, students can still drop any of their courses with a W and petition to change the grading basis to S/U.

March 30, 2020

Dear Graduate School Community:

I hope you and those important to you continue to be healthy through this pandemic, and that those who require medical care have appropriate access.  Aside from the significant disruptions to daily life and academic studies that all of us are experiencing, undoubtedly many of us will personally know someone whose health is directly affected by COVID-19.  That’s true in my case, with my younger daughter in New York City.  I empathize with those of you who also are trying to stay in touch with distant loved ones.

Graduate students may not have received the March 30 communication to faculty and staff from the Provost and the Executive Vice President on managing the financial impact of COVID-19.  I am writing to address some of the issues raised in that communication, and other topics that may be useful to graduate students, graduate faculty, and staff supporting graduate programs.

The March 30 communication acknowledges that there are, and will continue to be for many semesters, significant financial impacts associated with COVID-19 disruptions.  University leadership is implementing several steps to manage risks associated with economic uncertainty, including a hiring freeze on staff and temporary workers, a salary freeze, a travel ban, changes to summer programs, curtailment of discretionary spending, and reevaluation of capital projects.  Details are in the March 30 communication.

For the Graduate School, we anticipate consequences of the actions detailed in this communication (March 30) will include the following:

• Travel Funding: Related to the travel ban, we will strive to continue to make Graduate School funding available for our research travel grant program for graduate students after general pandemic-related travel restrictions are lifted. It is quite likely that conference travel grants will not be available until Cornell’s travel ban is lessened or lifted.
• Summer Teaching Opportunities: Due to changes in summer programs, summer teaching opportunities for graduate students will be limited. Students who were planning to engage in summer teaching should check with the summer supervisor to learn whether online teaching opportunities will continue to be available. 
• Professional Development: Professional development programming (Pathways to Success) will continue, with modifications that include online opportunities. Future in-person opportunities once restrictions are lifted will not include food or refreshments until the curtailment of discretionary spending is loosened.  We also anticipate that engagement of external speakers will be curtailed except where sponsored funds are available to cover the costs.

In addition, we ask that graduate students and graduate faculty consider, together, the following points in your ongoing discussions as appropriate to your situation:

• Continuing Research and Scholarship: Cornell continues to operate, with all teaching online and research scholarship continuing remotely as appropriate to individual circumstances.  We encourage faculty and students to discuss effective ways to remain productive remotely, including writing proposals or thesis/dissertation chapters, entering and analyzing data, conducting literature reviews, doing computational analysis or theoretical work, etc. We also encourage you to discuss any necessary pivots you might need to make in the focus of your scholarship, such as modifications in your  research project direction or topic(s), so that you can continue to progress toward degree completion.
• Student Progress Review: For research degree students and faculty advisors (special committee chairs), please use the annual Student Progress Review as an opportunity to plan activities for the coming year, and to reflect, together, on how disruptions associated with the pandemic have caused changes to planned activities this year, modifications to academic activities and anticipated progress, and strategies to continue being productive academically.
• Funding: As noted in earlier communications (see COVID-19 statements from Graduate School March 13 and University March 15 Provost message to faculty), assistantship and fellowship funding continues, and graduate students on assistantship appointments are expected to continue to fulfill their assistantship duties. Students should work on academic, research, scholarship, and teaching responsibilities remotely, and stay in touch with faculty advisors/supervisors for guidance on how to plan activities over the coming weeks to be most productive.
• Exams: Remote exams (Thesis-exam, A-exam, B-exam) are allowed and supported.  The Graduate School will be flexible if students need some extra time to meet their academic milestones (e.g., committee formation, A-exam, etc.) due to COVID-19 disruptions.  The thesis/dissertation submission deadline has been extended to Friday, May 15 for Spring ’20.

Please continue to look toward a brighter future while making the best that your circumstances allow in the current situation.  Be understanding that everyone, graduate students, faculty, and staff, are under enormous pressures and are having to be quickly adaptive to frequently changing scenarios. 

The Graduate School continues to be available to you as questions arise.  Please send your questions to gradschooldeans@cornell.edu .

Thanks for all you do, and be well,

Barb

Barbara A. Knuth
Dean of the Graduate School 

Dear Graduate School Community,

I am writing with updates and additional information. This is a difficult time for everyone. Many of us are worried and uncertain about what might come next. We are all trying to adjust our lives and set up remote workstations while we safeguard our health and the well-being of those around us. We appreciate the patience, flexibility, and resilience that graduate students, faculty, staff, and graduate fields are exhibiting.

We know that working remotely is complicated and involves navigating daily with those sharing our work-from-home situation, whether that includes roommates, partners, children, parents, other relatives, or friends. Everyone is under a great deal of stress and operating under conditions of uncertainty and rapid change.  Please take care of yourself and stay (virtually) connected with those from whom you draw support.

The situation continues to be dynamic. Changes in the last several days include postponement of Cornell’s Commencement, extension of the academic year, and additional campus access restrictions based on NY Governor Cuomo’s recent order that non-essential New York state businesses must move to all-remote work. Below is a recap of recent updates and frequent questions.

Academic Calendar

Due to the pause in classes as the university moves to remote instruction, the academic calendar (for the Ithaca campus, including undergraduate and graduate programs; some professional degree programs and Cornell Tech have program-specific calendars) has changed to the following:  

• First day of online instruction: Monday, April 6
• Last day of drop/grade change: Tuesday, April 21
• Last day of online instruction: Tuesday, May 12
• Exam period: May 16-May 23

Assistantships and Stipends

Graduate assistantship and fellowship stipends will be maintained, as communicated by the Provost on March 15, and by the Graduate School on March 13. The salaries and stipends of staff, students and postdocs will continue on grants or other sources as usual. (See COVID-19 Update: Conduct of Research from 3/15/20 and the FAQs from the Research Division for more information.) Work on your academic, research, scholarship, and teaching responsibilities remotely, and stay in touch with your faculty advisor/supervisor to gain their guidance on how to plan your activities over the coming weeks to be most productive.

Faculty supervisors and graduate students should remember that University Policy 1.3 is still in effect, with the hours/week limits on assistantship duties as required in that policy. (See Additional Guidance for Faculty from 3/13/20.)  Cornell’s Research Division emphasizes: “It is important to remember that under no circumstances should graduate students or postdocs be required to go into the laboratory or perform any essential research tasks against their will. Students with concerns should contact their Director of Graduate Studies, Department Chair, or the Dean of the Graduate School.”

To take care of your physical health, follow Cornell Health advice. Please let your supervisor know if you become ill and need to have time to get well, including if you are directed by a primary care physician, health department, or other health professional to self-quarantine or isolate, and you are temporarily not able to conduct activities associated with your academic progress, or to conduct duties associated with your assistantship. Graduate students are not required to use vacation time available to them under University Policy 1.3 to cover time away because of illness. Graduate students on fellowships and assistantships who experience illness and need time to get well, including if you are directed by a health professional to self-quarantine or isolate because of pandemic-related issues, will continue to receive their assistantships. This includes assistantships funded by sponsored awards. The approval process normally required by University Policy 1.3 (p.14) is not required when a graduate student has been directed to quarantine or isolate by an authorized health professional. Take the time you need to recover and be well, and to continue to practice social distancing (or isolation/quarantine) from others.

Recent Communications and FAQs

With national, state, and local restrictions changing frequently, the university is working hard to keep students updated. Policies have evolved considerably over the past week. I encourage you to review Cornell statements and news, especially the messages for faculty, graduate students, and for teaching and learning. All COVID-19 University statements are posted.

• University COVID-19 Updates, Statements, Resources, and FAQs – explore the tabs across the top for various details
• Messages for the University, for Students, and for Faculty – scroll down to see messages sent to these various populations
• Resources on Teaching & Learning FAQs for Faculty and for Students – see the links for information specific to faculty and for students.
• Graduate School updates, resources, and FAQs
• Cornell Research Division updates and guidance
• Center for Teaching Innovation resources on remote teaching

The Graduate School resource page includes links to virtual wellness opportunities, public health information, Cornell COVID-19 websites, tips on working remotely, and much more. These are updated frequently.

Getting Support

Graduate School staff are available with extended hours to help students in different time zones and on varying schedules navigate rapidly changing requirements. All offices, including our administrative and deans offices, are available by phone or email. Several offices have extended their hours, including Student Services, Student Life, and Inclusion and Student Engagement to meet varying graduate student needs and living locations. See Updated Graduate School Hours for more complete information.

Cornell Health remains open, but is deferring non-urgent visits and expanding their telehealth capabilities. Please visit their website for up-to-date information about making appointments, picking up prescriptions, and talking with or seeing healthcare professionals.

Moving Forward

As we acclimate to remote workspaces, staying connected (virtually) to your faculty, colleagues, and peers, as well as friends, neighbors, and family will become increasingly important. We are all in this together.

Reach out and share a virtual lunch, schedule meetings, and check-in with the people in your life. Video call and conferencing over Facetime, Zoom, and with other technologies can help you feel more connected and help you keep motived and on task with your academic progress. Already, some students have set up virtual writing groups, virtual lab meetings, and virtual journal clubs. See these suggested virtual engagement tools.

The Graduate School is collecting your ideas for staying connected and being productive. I invite you to share ideas for establishing community and being productive while working remotely. We’ll collect these and post to our website and in our weekly Announcements. Submit your ideas here.

I thank our graduate community – staff, faculty, and students – for working together and rising to meet these difficult challenges.  If you have questions, please contact us at gradschooldeans@cornell.edu.

Best wishes, and stay well!

Barb

Barbara  A. Knuth
Dean of the Graduate School

Dear Graduate School Students, DGSs, and GFAs (fields, please send this to your graduate faculty):

Cornell faculty received the message below from Cornell’s Provost and Vice Provost for Research on Sunday evening. The message has serious and important implications for graduate student research.

Please read the message, then see the notes below pertinent to Graduate School students and operations. Please discuss with your faculty advisor/special committee chair as soon as possible.

The implications for Graduate School students are as follows:

• Professional degree students who have already been given instructions to depart from campus and the local area should continue, or expedite, those plans. You should aim to have all of your campus-based needs completed by March 18. Be aware that if you remain in the local area over the coming weeks you will not have access to most campus services, except for Cornell Health, which at this time plans to remain open. (If you have been approved to remain in campus housing, you’ll have access to limited dining services as well.)
• All research degree students and professional degree students who have been working with project materials should gather materials, data, and resources that you expect to need in the coming weeks (potentially months) as soon as possible, over the next few days, so you have with you as much of the materials and information as you may wish to have with you (at your home) to be able to continue to make academic progress over the next couple of months. Note that after March 18, the majority of research staff, postdocs, and research degree graduate students are expected to remain at home, working remotely, and isolating as much as possible. Graduate research degree students who are involved in critical research activities as described below and who continue to come to campus after March 18 should practice social distancing, good hygiene, and sanitizing work environments as described below.
• Research degree students should communicate with your faculty advisors/special committee chairs about options available to you to work on elements of your research and academic activities remotely. Seek guidance regarding working from your home on writing, data entry, data analysis, computational analysis, literature reviews, etc. Most research degree students and their faculty should be able to identify some weeks of activity devoted productively to writing and other remote work.
• Library: Keep in mind that it is unknown at this time whether Cornell’s library resources will continue to be available to you. The Library has announced it is closed on Monday, 3/16, to assess the situation, and will post updates to its operating status as that information becomes available.*
• Delays: The Graduate School recognizes that this situation may result in delays for some requirements and milestones, such as M.S. thesis exams, Ph.D. A-exams and B-exams. Please communicate over the coming weeks with your faculty advisors/special committee chairs and DGSs regarding  concerns you have about scheduling these activities if they apply to you. Then you and your chair/DGS should contact the Graduate School at gradstudserv@cornell.edu and we will work with you to help you make arrangements as necessary. We have in place provisions for all exam participants to participate remotely, and we will be as flexible as possible to work with you, your special committee, and your field regarding appropriate exam timing.
• Travel and social interaction restrictions are quite fluid, and are being announced daily at various national, state/provincial, and local government levels. You should consider your own personal situation in determining if you will remain in the Ithaca area or travel soon to another location and stay put there. Be aware that it is possible that domestic travel restrictions may be imposed at any time, in addition to existing (and expanding) international travel restrictions. Be aware that if you leave the local area, you should plan on not returning to campus until further notice.
• Research: Cornell’s Research Division has information related to making continuity plans for research groups. Your faculty advisors may be relying on this information for guidance as they work with you and research staff in the coming days to identify how to ramp down in-person, on-campus research activities as needed by March 18, per the Provost’s message below.
• Access Fund: With funding provided by the Graduate and Professional Student Assembly, the Access Fund has financial support available for those in need to help cover travel, remote learning, and other transition costs. Complete the COVID-19 Access Fund form to apply.
• Monitor the Graduate School’s information page and the university COVID-19 information for updates.
• Health: For your own health, and the health of others, I implore you to practice appropriate social distancing (6’ between individuals), sanitize work surfaces frequently, and practice good hygiene (frequent hand washing with soap and water, coughing or sneezing into your sleeve not your hand, avoiding touching your face–especially eyes, nose, mouth), avoiding shaking hands and other person-to-person contact, etc. 
• Transmission: Please consider that while you, as a graduate student, may believe you are in a lower-risk category if you have no underlying health issues, you can contract and transmit COVID-19 to others who are more vulnerable, such as peers or co-workers with underlying health conditions, those who are older and thus more at risk for this particular disease, or to family and friends. All of us share the responsibility to take actions to combat this pandemic and reduce its possible effects.
• Questions: Please send your questions to gradschooldeans@cornell.edu and we will strive to answer them as soon as possible.

Please take care of yourself and those around you,

Barb

Barbara A. Knuth, Dean of the Graduate School

From: Provost Kotlikoff and Vice Provost Giannelis <epg2@cornell.edu>
Sent: Sunday, March 15, 2020 6:10 PM
To: ALL CORNELL FACULTY
Subject: COVID-19 Update: Conduct of Research
Dear Colleagues,

Given the heightened risk of COVID-19 transmission, we feel that we must reduce laboratory research and other nonessential research activities as soon as possible, including graduate independent research and project-based research that require access to Cornell facilities. We ask you to initiate plans to restrict research on campus to critical activities performed by a limited number of designated personnel. Research that is essential for the understanding and reduction of COVID-19 risk should continue. Beyond this, we ask that only those research activities that are absolutely necessary to retain critical research assets for long-term progress are conducted on campus. We ask that this reduction be implemented by the end of Wednesday, March 18.

Questions about specific research activities should be directed to the deans or associate deans, as appropriate. Faculty, staff, postdocs, and graduate students are encouraged to work remotely if at all possible, and if present in laboratories they must abide by social distancing and personal protection protocols listed here. We ask that in-person meetings be eliminated if at all possible and, if conducted, include a minimum number of people in appropriate spaces.

Critical activities are those necessary to maintain laboratory viability such as:

• Care for animals, plants, and unique or expensive cell cultures or biological specimens,
• Preservation of unique reagents and other unique or expensive materials, and
• Maintaining equipment (e.g., liquid nitrogen and liquid helium systems and shared computational clusters) that cannot be maintained remotely or shut down without significant cost or consequences to the research effort.

Principal investigators, center directors, and research support staff should immediately begin taking steps necessary to meet this deadline. Additionally, all visits to laboratories by outside scientists should be canceled for the foreseeable future, and in-person human subject research on campus should be eliminated.

 We recognize the many difficulties and disruptions this restriction will impose, and we will work with you to ensure that you, your students, and your research team are able to continue working productively from home or other remote locations. We encourage you to focus on research activities that can be completed remotely (e.g. writing papers and proposals, analyzing data, running computations, and developing computational or analytic methods) after Wednesday, March 18. 

The salaries and stipends of your staff, students, and postdocs will continue on grants or other sources as usual. Guidance for researchers on federal grants charges and considerations for planning activity restrictions are collected on the 
Research Services website. The document “Continuity Planning Guidance for Researchers” on this page provides many points to be considered as you plan your actions.

Among the tasks needed to meet the restriction deadline, the following are critical. Please review them carefully.

• If you have not done so already, provide a list of your essential personnel to the dean of your college. Include backup personnel so that essential activities can continue in the event an essential person becomes ill.
• If you have not already done so, collect and share within your group the contact information for you, your students, postdocs, and staff.
• If you are performing animal research and have not shared your list of essential personnel or animal care plans with the Center for Animal Resources and Education (CARE), do so now by email to care@cornell.edu.
• Plan essential activities to be staggered so that minimal laboratory personnel are present at any one time.
• Restrict all external personnel or visitors from your lab.
• In-person human subject research on campus should be eliminated.
• For other research involving human subjects with limited or direct benefit to the participant consider postponing or using remote interaction means such as Zoom meetings or videophone apps.

If you have any questions, please contact your dean or associate dean for research. Center directors within the research division should contact Mark Hurwitz.

We thank you in advance for your efforts to keep our community safe in this extraordinary situation. Please update your staff and your students about these changes and work with them on this important transition.

Sincerely,

Michael Kotlikoff
Provost

Emmanuel Giannelis
Vice Provost for Research and Vice President for Technology Transfer, Intellectual Property and Research Policy

*Library Update 3/24/20: Virtual research help and online resources continue to be available and are quickly evolving to reflect the situation; however, library buildings are closed and physical books are currently unavailable. Check the library’s website for status updates.

Dear Graduate Students, Directors of Graduate Studies, Graduate Field Assistants, and Graduate Faculty:

I am writing to provide more details specific to graduate education as a follow up to President Pollack’s March 13, 2020 communication regarding additional measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus/COVID-19. The following is additional guidance on matters related to the Graduate School. If you have questions about these measures and their implications for your own situation contact gradschooldeans@cornell.edu and we will do our best to address them. We are posting COVID-19 communications related to the Graduate School here. Cornell’s COVID-19 information and resources are here.

• Cornell Tech graduate students should follow the guidance provided by the Cornell Tech campus.
• All students in professional degree programs in Ithaca and Geneva should plan to follow the directions outlined in President Pollack’s March 13 communication and return as soon as feasible to your permanent home residence. You must not come to campus after March 29 until further notice, unless you have received an exception to stay in on-campus housing. This pertains even if your current permanent home residence is in the Ithaca area, or if you choose not to leave the Ithaca area and remain in your current off-campus housing.
• All classes are suspended from 5 p.m. March 13 until Monday, April 6, when all teaching will move entirely to virtual, remote learning. This applies to all courses in professional degree programs, as well as courses for research degree students.
• Professional degree students living in on-campus housing will receive detailed instructions from the Cornell housing office regarding move-out procedures as well as a process for submitting a petition to remain in on-campus housing for those who are unable to return to their permanent home residence. Our understanding is that Hasbrouck on-campus housing continues to be available.
• Professional and graduate students may apply to the Access Fund for limited financial assistance provided by the GPSA (Graduate and Professional Student Assembly) and GPSAFC (Finance Commission) to support travel, storage, and laptops associated with these pandemic-related circumstances.  Complete the COVID-19 travel form.
• Research degree (Ph.D., M.F.A., M.A., most M.S.) students conducting research that requires access to campus facilities may remain on campus and stay active in your research endeavors. (The M.S.-A.A.D. (Advanced Architectural Design), 3-semester degree programs is an exception; all M.S.-A.A.D., 3-semester program students are subject to the provisions for professional degree students as above, and must not come to campus after March 29.)
  • If you are a research degree student and intend to remain engaged with your research on campus for spring semester, you are strongly discouraged from any non-essential personal travel domestically in the U.S. or internationally, and are prohibited from any Cornell-related or research-related travel outside of the local area, domestically or internationally. This applies until further notice.
  • You should not leave the local area and then return to campus. Local is defined as the area in which you are living in or near Ithaca (or Geneva) while enrolled at Cornell, and reasonable distance to obtain the living necessities that you need (e.g., groceries, health care, etc.). We are trying to minimize the risk that travelers introduce coronavirus to the campus and surrounding communities.
• Research degree graduate students remaining on campus to conduct research/scholarship should expect severely limited on-campus student activities and services. Anticipated impacts to campus research facilities may be found here.
• Graduate student fellowship and assistantship stipends will continue to be paid. Assistantship duties will continue, either on campus or remotely. Check with your supervisor if you have questions about how your duties may change, especially for TAs, with the move to remote instruction only as of April 6.  RAs, GRAs, and GAs may be able to engage in their assistantship duties remotely (e.g., shift to writing duties); check with your supervisor about options.
• Graduate students on fellowships and assistantships who self-isolate, quarantine, or otherwise need to be away from campus because of pandemic-related issues will continue to receive their assistantships. Assistantships funded by sponsored awards continue, including under these circumstances.  The Cornell Research Division anticipates that these costs will be allowable on sponsored awards. Guidance from the Research Division is here. If you become ill and need to self-isolate or quarantine, please let your supervisor know. To take care of your physical health, follow Cornell Health advice.
• Faculty supervisors and graduate students should remember that University Policy 1.3 is still in effect, with the hours/week limits on assistantship duties as required in that policy.
• If you have hourly wage on-campus employment and you are a professional degree student required to remain away from campus, check with your supervisor to determine if your hourly wage duties can be completed remotely from where you will be living.
• If you have hourly wage on-campus employment and you are a research degree student remaining on campus because of your research/scholarship activities, check with your supervisor to determine if there will be any changes in your employment duties.
• If you are an international student and are concerned about how restrictions for being away from campus and having remote-only classes will affect your I-20 and visa status: The U.S. government recognizes there are extenuating circumstances because these classes were not intended to be online and is providing some flexibility in requirements. If an enrolled graduate student continues to make normal progress in a full course of study as required by federal regulations, including in classes offered online, legal immigration status is not in jeopardy. If you are planning to graduate in May and intending to engage in post-completion OPT (Optional Practical Training) you should consult with Cornell’s International Services office before making plans to leave the country, which may jeopardize OPT options. Cornell’s International Services office does not recommend that you depart the U.S. for the remainder of the semester.  To be eligible for OPT, you must be in the U.S. in F-1 status, with a valid I-94 document. International students with questions should contact International Services: international@cornell.edu, +1 (607) 255-5243, 300 Caldwell Hall.
• International students who have decided to travel home outside the U.S. or to another country should consult with Cornell’s International Services for information about the proper documents you will need for your return to the United States. Before you leave, make sure you have a valid travel signature. Any students who need to remain in the Ithaca area for extenuating circumstances will receive their instruction online, as all Cornell courses will be offered remotely only. Students remaining in the Ithaca area should prepare for severely limited on-campus activities and interactions. 
• For research degree students with upcoming A-exams or B-exams that may be compromised because of travel restrictions, the Graduate School is making available special provisions for participation from remote locations for students and faculty involved in the exams. Contact Graduate School student services for more information: gradstudserv@cornell.edu .
• Please try to find ways, especially remotely, to remain connected to your local Cornell graduate community, colleagues in your graduate field and in disciplines across campus, and your friends and family outside of the local area. That is an important part of self-care.

Thank you for your cooperation in these rapidly evolving conditions. Please take care of yourself and those you know. 

Sincerely,

Barb, Sara, Janna, Jan, and Jason

Barbara Knuth, Dean of the Graduate School
Sara Xayarath Hernández, Associate Dean for Inclusion and Student Engagement
Janna Lamey, Senior Assistant Dean for Student Life
Jan Allen, Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs
Jason Kahabka, Associate Dean for Administration

Dear Graduate Students:

I am writing to provide more details specific to graduate education as a follow up to President Pollack’s March 10, 2020 communication regarding proactive measures to prevent the spread of coronavirus. First and foremost, please take care of yourself. Follow good hygiene practices detailed here. If you would benefit from help in managing stress or anxiety, contact Counseling & Psychological Services (CAPS), the 24/7 Phone Consultation mental health resource, or Let’s Talk drop-in consultation.

Keep in mind that the proactive measures Cornell is implementing have the goal of minimizing the likelihood that coronavirus/COVID-19 will reach the local campus community and the Tompkins County region. The following measures are intended to help protect both you and our larger community.

The details below address some questions that you may have. As you have questions about these measures and their implications for graduate students contact gradschooldeans@cornell.edu and we will do our best to address them.

Professional Degree Students

• Cornell Tech graduate students should follow the guidance provided by the Cornell Tech campus.
• All students in professional degree programs in Ithaca and Geneva should plan to follow the directions outlined in President Pollack’s March 10 communication and stay off campus from the beginning of spring break (March 28) through the end of the semester. Beginning on Monday, April 6, Cornell’s Ithaca/Geneva campus teaching will move entirely to virtual, remote learning. This applies to all courses in professional degree programs, with very few exceptions as determined by deans (e.g., degree-required clinical rotation work of D.V.M. students).
• Professional degree students living in on-campus housing will receive detailed instructions from the Cornell housing office regarding move-out procedures as well as a process for submitting a petition to remain in on-campus housing for those who are unable to return to their permanent home residence at the beginning of spring break.
• Professional degree students living in off-campus housing are encouraged to return home if that is a viable option. If staying in your off-campus housing is the safest option for you, do not plan to come onto campus during or after spring break until further notice. All of your coursework will occur remotely.

Research Degree Students

• Research degree students may remain on campus and stay active in your research endeavors if you do not leave the Ithaca area at any point in spring semester. 
  • If you intend to remain engaged with your research on campus for spring semester, you are strongly discouraged from any non-essential personal travel domestically in the U.S. or internationally, and are prohibited from any Cornell-related or research-related travel outside of the local area, domestically or internationally. This applies to spring break as well as any other time during the semester, until further notice.
  • You should not leave the local community and then return to campus. We are trying to minimize the risk that travelers introduce coronavirus to the local community.
• Research degree students enrolled in courses should plan that their courses will be virtual/remote starting April 6, even though your research/scholarship activities are still occurring on campus.
• There may be limited exceptions for research master degree students in some specialty areas that do not require campus presence, that will require such students to leave campus at the start of spring break and not return. In some limited cases, if the academic requirements for that degree do not require campus presence and can be conducted remotely students may not be allowed to return to campus after spring break, similar to professional degree students. Any exceptions of this nature will be based on recommendations from deans and approved by university leadership and communicated as soon as possible to affected students.
• The Ithaca/Geneva campus will remain open. Research/scholarship activities of research degree students may continue. However, research degree graduate students remaining on campus to conduct research/scholarship should expect severely limited on-campus student activities and services.
• For research degree students with upcoming A-exams or B-exams that may be compromised because of travel restrictions, the Graduate School is making available special provisions for participation from remote locations for students and faculty involved in the exams. Contact Graduate School student services for more information: Gradstudserv_assoc_dean@cornell.edu.

Funding and Employment

• Graduate assistantship stipends will continue to be paid. Assistantship duties will continue. Check with your supervisor if you have questions about how your duties may change, especially for TAs, with the move to remote instruction only.
• If you have hourly wage on-campus employment and you are a professional degree student required to remain away from campus, check with your supervisor to determine if your hourly wage duties can be completed remotely from where you will be living. Hourly wage student employment unrelated to academic degree requirements is not a reason to remain on campus.
• If you have hourly wage on-campus employment and you are a research degree student remaining on campus because of your research/scholarship activities, check with your supervisor to determine if there will be any changes in your employment duties. 

International Students

• If you are an international student and are concerned about how restrictions for being away from campus and having remote-only classes will affect your I-20 and visa status: The U.S. government recognizes there are extenuating circumstances because these classes were not intended to be online and is providing some flexibility in requirements. If an enrolled graduate student continues to make normal progress in a full course of study as required by federal regulations, including in classes offered online, legal immigration status is not in jeopardy. If you are planning to graduate in May and intending to engage in post-completion OPT (Optional Practical Training) you should consult with Cornell’s International Services office before making plans to leave the country, which may jeopardize OPT options. Cornell’s International Services office does not recommend that you depart the U.S. for the remainder of the semester. To be eligible for OPT, you must be in the U.S. in F-1 status, with a valid I-94 document. International students with questions should contact International Services: international@cornell.edu, +1 (607) 255-5243, 300 Caldwell Hall.
• International students who have decided to travel home outside the U.S. or to another country should consult with Cornell’s International Services for information about the proper documents you will need for your return to the United States. Before you leave, make sure you have a valid travel signature. Any students who need to remain in the Ithaca area for extenuating circumstances will receive their instruction online, as all Cornell courses will be offered remotely only. Students remaining in the Ithaca area should prepare for severely limited on-campus activities and interactions. 

All Students 

• At this point, on-campus activities that are scheduled to occur after the end of spring semester remain unaffected and you should maintain your plans for summer and beyond.
• Please try to find ways, especially remotely, to remain connected to your local Cornell graduate community, colleagues in your graduate field and in disciplines across campus, and your friends and family outside of the local area. That is an important part of self-care.

Thank you for your patience as we work through numerous logistical details and more questions that graduate students will surely raise in these highly unusual times. We plan to send additional communications in the following days. We strive to support you in meeting your academic goals even as we act to prevent a major health crisis. 

Sincerely,

Barb, Sara, Janna, Jan, and Jason

Barbara Knuth, Dean of the Graduate School
Sara Xayarath Hernández, Associate Dean for Inclusion and Student Engagement
Janna Lamey, Senior Assistant Dean for Student Life
Jan Allen, Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs
Jason Kahabka, Associate Dean for Administration

We encourage all Graduate School community members to monitor Cornell’s official Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Resources and Updates page which contains the University’s most recent information and directions, based on guidance from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in over 80 countries, and growing, in virtually every region of the globe, including the WHO regions of Americas, Africa, Eastern Mediterranean, Europe, South East Asia, and Western Pacific.

COVID-19/Novel Coronavirus, like any virus, does not discriminate based on race, ethnicity, or country of origin. The CDC cautions against associating disease-related stigma with individuals from any country, emphasizing that fear and anxiety about a disease can lead to social stigma toward certain ethnic groups and indicating “Stigma hurts everyone by creating more fear or anger towards ordinary people instead of the disease that is causing the problem. We can fight stigma and help not hurt others by providing social support.” The CDC encourages that we communicate the facts that being of a certain ethnicity or citizenship “does not increase the chance of getting or spreading COVID-19.”

It is critical for all members of our community to be vigilant about hygiene as a prevention measure for the spread of viruses and other germs, and to be vigilant about adhering to our institutional core values, especially our core value to create a community of belonging. If we as institution and community are to live up to our stated value of diversity and inclusion, we must each resolve to proactively contribute to creating an environment of respect that is welcoming, caring, equitable, and supportive, and that recognizes and values the many different backgrounds, perspectives, abilities, and experiences represented within our community. 

Graduate community members may feel anxious about this evolving public health situation or have concerns about friends and family living in areas currently experiencing the outbreak. Support resources are available:

• Students on the Ithaca campus may contact Counseling & Psychological Services (CAPS). Other helpful resources include “Let’s Talk” consultation and EARS peer counseling.
• Students at Cornell Tech may contact Student Services for support.
• Faculty and staff in Ithaca and New York City may contact the Faculty and Staff Assistance Program (FSAP).
• Reporting Bias, Harassment and Discrimination – To report bias incidents or related concerns, please complete this form or send an email to report_bias@cornell.edu. Know that confidential care and support for individuals affected by bias is available. More information about Cornell’s bias reporting system is also available on the HR website. Cornell is committed to maintaining a bias-free climate based on civility, decency, and respect. If you would like to speak with someone within the Graduate School about the various options that are available for reporting, please contact the Graduate School Office of Inclusion and Student Engagement at (607) 255-5417 or grad_assoc_dean@cornell.edu, or the Graduate School Office of Graduate Student Life, at 607-255-5184 or janna.lamey@cornell.edu.

The Big Red Barn dining is closed starting today, 3/24/20. As was previously the case, all programming, alcohol sales, and snack service are suspended until further notice. Yesterday, Cornell Dining announced they would suspend meal service, and the Barn is entirely closed. Please watch for further news on Barn reopening plans via the email list. We look forward to hosting Graduate and Professional students again soon and are working on ideas to set up opportunities for staying connected remotely. For open dining locations, please visit this link. Stay well!

From the Big Red Barn Graduate and Professional Student Center

As was announced Wednesday, the Big Red Barn Graduate and Professional Student Center has suspended the TGIF (Tell Grads It’s Friday) Happy Hour at the Barn through April 10, 2020. After continuous monitoring of the evolving coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak and with further guidance on social distancing, we are proceeding in the following way until April 15:

• The Big Red Barn is cancelling all programming until further notice.   
• The Barn is cancelling snack service, which includes alcohol purchases, Monday – Thursday from 2:00-10:00PM and Friday from 2:00-4:00PM, until further notice. This begins today, Friday, March 13.
• Dining will continue to operate Monday-Friday from 8:00AM-3:00PM until further notice. If you visit the Barn during this time, please practice social distancing (~6 feet between individuals) and appropriate hygiene (wash hands frequently with soap & water or use hand sanitizer, don’t touch your face, etc.).
• Monday-Friday, when the dining unit closes at 3:00 PM the whole Barn will close.
• The Barn will be closed entirely, including no dining, for Spring Break from March 30-April 3.

We will reassess these decisions around April 1 and send further communication at that time. We are sorry to have to make this decision, but student health and well-being is our top priority.  We are sure that some will be disappointed to learn this and recognize the importance that the Barn serves as a support for so many students’ mental health and social well-being.

Please refer to Cornell’s coronavirus/COVID-19 webpage for up to date information and the Graduate School’s page for graduate community specific information.

Finally, the Barn Staff is considering other strategies to support student well-being through establishing virtual communities and can use your help. We want to learn about your creative ideas of how we can continue to support your needs during this time that the Barn is closed. Please complete this survey by Wednesday, March 1.

From the Big Red Barn Graduate and Professional Student Center:

One of our most known and loved events is TGIF (Tell Grads It’s Friday) Happy Hour at the Barn every Friday night. On a typical night, we have at least 200 attendees and the energy is always high as students socialize, have fun, relax, and enjoy the space together. 

And, it is challenging times as Cornell closely monitors the ongoing coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak and provides leadership to support the health and well-being of our campus communities. At this time, it has been announced that all in-person non-essential events with 100 or more attendees on Cornell’s campus must be cancelled, postponed, or offered virtually. 

We regret to inform you that our TGIF events are suspended at least through Friday, April 10, 2020. This will start immediately; our TGIF is cancelled this Friday (March 12).  We will continue to monitor the situation and will reassess a date to resume TGIF in conjunction with the university’s management plans for coronavirus/COVID-19 concerns. 

We are sorry to have to make this decision, but student health and well-being has to be our top priority.  We are sure that some will be disappointed to learn this and recognize the importance that TGIF serves as a support for so many students’ mental health and social well-being.

More details will follow in a separate message on other Barn programming, snack service, and dining hours. 

 Please refer to Cornell’s coronavirus/COVID-19 webpage for up to date information.