Ithaca College President La Jerne Cornish met with the college’s Student Governance Council at its March 31 meeting to hear and address student concerns, including about the college’s budget deficit and pushback on the college and higher education by the federal government.

SGC also heard from members of Ithacans for Israel, including club president sophomore Ben Epstein, who said there was a targeted act of vandalism under the club’s name on the Office of Student Engagement’s poster of student organizations in the Campus Center. The graffiti changed the word Israel to “Is not rael.” Epstein said his club filed a bias impact report.

SGC executive board members shared reminders about their upcoming open house from 7-9 p.m. April 14, where students and community members can learn about SGC’s role at the college.

Threats to the college and higher education

Several SGC members shared concerns with the president about how recent actions by President Donald Trump’s administration might impact marginalized communities at the college. 

Junior Marshall Long, club athlete senator, asked Cornish if the college would uphold the NCAA’s ban on transgender women competing in women’s NCAA sports teams, which the association implemented after Trump signed an executive order in February barring the practice. 

The college recognizes 27 NCAA Division III teams. Cornish said the college will follow the guidelines set by the Trump administration and the NCAA.

“We are going to follow the law,” Cornish said. “[Transgender women] cannot compete right now, but we will not prevent our trans athletes from practicing.” 

Junior Noeline Luyindula, first-generation senator, asked Cornish how the Trump administration’s pushback on diversity, equity and inclusion practices — including its investigation into the college for alleged impermissible race-based scholarships — has impacted her job. 

Cornish reiterated the college’s statement that the scholarships in question do not use race as a criterion for the application or awarding process and that they are open to all undergraduate students. She said anti-DEI efforts have only emphasized the importance of the college’s values, which include equity. 

“We’re going to lean into [our] Center for Equity, Inclusion and Belonging, because we believe that when we are equitable and inclusive and make people feel like they belong, diversity is a given,” Cornish said. “We will comply with the law when it’s law. It’s not law yet.”

Junior Ty Anderson, vice president of residential affairs and an international student from the U.K., asked Cornish what the college is doing to protect international students’ freedom of speech in light of the recent arrests of international students and revocation of student visas for protesting university responses to the Israel-Hamas war. 

Cornish said she recommends that international students be mindful of their potential audiences when exercising their freedom of speech.

“You have to be careful,” Cornish said. “I hate to give you this advice, but I’m watching what’s going on, and I can’t ignore that.”

Cornish also said that at this year’s Giving Day on April 24 and 25, she will personally appeal to donors to create an emergency relief fund to house students on campus over the summer if they fear potential travel restrictions being implemented in the future.

Budget deficit

At SGC’s March 17 meeting, Tim Downs, chief financial officer and vice president of finance and administration, told SGC the college is preparing to reduce some staff positions to address the college’s deficit. Junior Nikki Sutera, senate chair, asked Cornish for more details about the layoffs. Cornish said she will give a community update about the college’s current plans to combat the deficit April 4, but she said she does not know how many layoffs will occur.

“I can’t tell you that people won’t be impacted, because they will be,” Cornish said. “I just don’t know how many today.”

She said a major reason for the budget deficit has been a decline in enrollment in the last several years. Despite this, she said she is optimistic about enrollment numbers for the 2025-26 academic year because deposits are up by 50% compared to this time last year. Deposits last year could have been partially influenced by FAFSA delays in 2024, which caused hundreds of colleges and universities, including IC, to push back their decision deadlines.

“I’m hoping that trend [of increased deposits] continues,” Cornish said. “The bottom line is, if our enrollment stabilizes, we won’t have to do as many cuts.”

First-year student Giulia Gennari, School of Health Sciences and Human Performance senator, asked Cornish whether she intends to make more public appearances outside the campus. Cornish said she will travel more to raise funds and get donations.

“Going forward, I’ll be around — you’ll see me from time to time — but the nature of my job is that I really need to be more externally focused,” Cornish said. “The goal is to be away one week a month.”