Rape scandal at Cornell University: President Michael Kotlikoff announced that he will not resign

Michael Kotlikoff, President of Cornell University, who came to the fore with the allegation of mass sexual assault in a student residence in the USA, announced that he was saddened by the situation but would not resign.

Kotlikoff, who gave an interview to The New York Times (NYT), talked about the lawsuit filed in September regarding the sexual assault that reportedly occurred at Cornell University in 2024.

Kotlikoff stated that he learned about the experiences of the student who filed the lawsuit and used the code name "Jane Doe" for confidentiality reasons in November 2024, but he did not continue communicating with this student and did not take action afterwards.

Explaining that he saw a loss of trust, Kotlikoff stated that he would not resign and said, "I personally feel sad that Jane Doe experienced such things at Cornell University. I think the entire campus is also sorry that this incident happened." he said.

Kotlikoff stated that a "task force to combat sexual assaults" was created by the Rectorate in February 2025, and newly registered students were given orientation training regarding their responsibilities.

In the case filed in September, it was claimed that the 20-year-old female student, who used the code name "Jane Doe" because she did not want her identity to be disclosed for security purposes, was forcibly given ketamine while drunk at the student residence of Cornell University in 2024, and was raped by 7 male students after she lost consciousness.

The Cornell University administration reported the investigation into the incident at that time to the District Attorney's Office, but the Prosecutor's Office did not file a lawsuit due to lack of evidence.

In her statement on October 2, New York Governor Kathy Hochul stated that Tompkins County District Attorney Matthew Van Houten, who was in charge of the area where the incident took place, "lost faith in his ability to conduct a fair audit" and appointed New York Attorney General Letitia James as a special prosecutor to deal with the issue.

It was reported that parties and social events held in student houses at the university were canceled until the end of the year.