Ask a Dean Category: Political and Global Concerns
Can I travel this winter for health-related purposes?
Category: Health and Wellness, Policies and Requirements, Political and Global Concerns Date: October 2020
Hi deans, I am a second year graduate student and I am currently working as a TA. I have a question about traveling this winter. I want to visit Korea for a month because of my health problems. Korea now has a strict quarantine system for two weeks, so if I want to get a…
I am on the verge of panic about the proposed immigration rule change. What is Cornell doing?
Category: Other/Miscellaneous, Political and Global Concerns Date: October 2020
Dear Deans, Hope you and yours have been able to stay safe in these difficult times. There were a couple of issues I wanted to raise on the proposed changes in the visa rules: Beyond the brief mention in the Graduate School newsletter and the email several days ago from International Services assuring us that…
Can international students travel abroad over winter break and are there specific disadvantages to doing so?
Category: Health and Wellness, Political and Global Concerns, Student Life Date: September 2020
Hello Deans, I’m writing an email to ask some questions about international students’ travel after Thanksgiving. Can international students with F1 visas travel abroad from the end of November (when school goes online) until the end of the winter break? I understand that it’s strongly discouraged, but I want to clearly ask if it’s legally…
Is there anything in the works to get students to fill out the census?
Category: Political and Global Concerns Date: June 2020
Dear Deans: I haven’t (yet) seen Cornell do anything to encourage census responses from its students, which is particularly alarming for the reasons outlined in this article. Do you know if there is anything in the works to get students to fill out the census? Is there someone else I should write to about this,…
Has Cornell been advocating for international students relying on OPT work authorization?
Category: Political and Global Concerns Date: April 2020
Dear Deans: In light of the recent Executive Order, many international students fear for our uncertain and mercurial future. Even though the current proclamation does not affect nonimmigrant programs, section six of the order does shed light on the possibility that the Trump administration will curb nonimmigrant work visas after 30 days. It reads: “Within…
Can the country-specific language be removed from the original COVID-19 Ask a Dean message?
Category: Health and Wellness, Political and Global Concerns, Student Life Date: March 2020
Dear Dean, I recently came across this post when searching for information about COVID-19 on the Cornell website. I find the wording of the original Ask a Dean message may infer an unnecessary and incorrect correlation between COVID-19 and the Chinese students who study at Cornell University. This may consequently result in misinformation to other…
In response to the recent anti-Asian and anti-Chinese views, what specific steps is Cornell taking to ensure the integrity of anti-discrimination policies?
Category: Health and Wellness, Political and Global Concerns, Student Life Date: March 2020
Dear Deans, I had a question for the Ask a Dean column. I am submitting because it concerns an event that really every graduate student had an opportunity to experience, since it was in the newsletter—although so far I am not sure how many of my colleagues will have seen it by the time I…
When will Cornell stand up for free speech and free inquiry?
Category: Other/Miscellaneous, Political and Global Concerns Date: April 2017
Dear Dean, It is becoming well-known among conservative and libertarian leaning graduate students that the bias reporting implemented by the administration is being used to suppress conservative thought on campus, as some conservative views are deemed offensive by some more liberal peers. Many conservative and moderate students do not feel comfortable expressing their opinion on…