Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine

In 2020, Dr. Scott Coonrod, Director of the school's Baker Institute for Animal Health, released a statement on the topic of racism and inclusivity stating, "Just as the college and university have done, we are committed to ensuring that the Baker community works to uphold these same values of inclusivity, that we stand up against racism, that we support our fellow colleagues, students and friends to feel safe and heard, and that we take part in the long road ahead to ensure that we are making changes happen to create a more just and equitable community."

The school's 2020 "'Scopes" publication, issue two, entitled "Donating for Diversity" discusses the role of philanthropy in veterinary medicine. According to the article, Justine Lee, a 1997 alumni, founded the "VETgirl Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Scholarship, which specifically supports BIPOC veterinary students, who are historically underrepresented in the field."

All students at the College are provided with a free copy of "How to be an Antiracist" by Ibram X. Kendi and "participate in a faculty-facilitated discussion of the book."

The school's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion page includes a "Bias Reporting" link.

The school's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion homepage includes a "Report A Bias Incident" link and states, "If you have seen, heard, or experienced bias, you can make a report."

On September 14, 2018, the school published an article entitled "Diversity Rx: CVM pushes new efforts to create an inclusive community" which discusses ideas around diversity and inclusion in the veterinary profession. The article stated, "College supervisors are now actively encouraged to promote professional cultural and diversity training within their teams. Gen Meredith, MPH associate director, cites one such training — a week-long cultural competency course — as a turning point for her own awareness. 'I needed to learn what I didn’t know and find ways to manage my guilt.'"

The school's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion page lists its faculty applicant requirements, including "Statements of contribution and diversity required from all faculty applicants."

The school's Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Faculty and Staff page describes its program entitled, PACE (Program for Achieving Career Excellence), which promotes "DEI, specifically for early career faculty and underrepresented minorities whose research relates to the NIH/NIAID mission, through networking, professional development and mentoring programs. PACE participants are provided the opportunity to become Visiting Scholars whereby they can partner with and travel to labs outside of Cornell University and learn techniques that will enhance their research."

On February 16, 2022, the school hosted a debate entitled "Migration in the Age of Pandemics" featuring Deputy Director-General of the WHO (World Health Organization) and U.S Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ). The debate "illuminated key issues surrounding public health, migration, and racial and social justice at stake globally and nationally."

The school's 2020 "'Scopes" publication discusses the development of Cornell's anti-racist action plan for its community in response to the "unjust killings of Black people in America and in solidarity with the national movement to end racial injustice." In order to develop this program further, "a group of 35 members comprising students, staff and faculty, college leadership held virtual town halls and sent surveys to the entire community to gather ideas on fostering anti-racism at the college."

The school's "resources" page published a comprehensive list of anti-racist resources including: "How to Be an Antiracist Library Guide (Cornell University Library)," "Pushing Back Against Racism and Xenophobia on Campuses," and a link to the Black Lives Matter website. 

The school's publication of 'Scopes 2020, Issue one, features a statement by Dean Warnick where he discusses the Covid Pandemic and it's broader effects on society as a whole. He stated, "Alongside these tragedies, the outbreak has revealed flaws in our public health system, inequality in health care access, and other difficult truths in our society. One of the most painful is racial inequities in America. As COVID-19 disproportionately affected communities of color across the country, it also brought systemic racism into sharp relief. In the midst of the pandemic, the killing of Black people refocused millions of people throughout the world on the need for racial justice and police reform."

In October 2022, the school hosted its "3rd Annual Cornell Center for Health Equity Symposium," and featured a lecture by Duke University professor Tyson H. Brown, Ph.D. The lecture was titled, "Health Equity Research on Structural Racism: Challenges, Innovations and Opportunities."

In 2022, the school's Shelter Medicine Program published a list of various resources on implicit bias, racism and related topics in veterinary medicine. The list includes a podcast with professor Ibram X. Kendi (New York Times bestselling author of "How to Be an Antiracist“), Harvard's "Implicit Bias Project", and "Diversity and Inclusion in Animal Welfare" in which they discuss police brutality and institutionalized racism.

On November 23, 2020, the school published an article entitled, "Discovery needs diversity: Black in Immunology Week drives awareness on inclusion within the field," which discusses issues around race and the lack of diversity within the veterinary profession. The article stated, "With the events of 2020 igniting more mainstream awareness and urgency around systemic racism and inequalities, the scientific community has begun to address this systemic bias.”

This link contains a complete archive of the school's publication titled "'Scopes." Several issues of the publication focus on areas of race, discrimination and diversity within the field of veterinary medicine.

The school's "DEI (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion) Affairs Committee" page lists its many charges, programs and goals. One such charge is to, "Provide advice and training for college faculty and staff members serving on search committees in order to highlight Cornell's diversity goals and ensure inclusive, fair and thorough searches." Past topics of the committee's programs have included, "cultural appropriation, racial injustice, and calling in vs calling out."

The school's Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion page includes a link to the Black Lives Matter website.

On October 1, 2020, the veterinary news publication "dvm360" published an article entitled, "Fetch dvm360 hosts its first student diversity panel." The panel was hosted by Christopher Hollingsworth, a third-year student at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine and also included two other Cornell Veterinary students. The panel spoke about the "importance of mandatory diversity training for students and faculty, and why there should be zero tolerance for racist and culturally insensitive comments and behaviors in veterinary schools and practices."

The Vet school is hosting an event discussing "Cornell's relationship to Indigenous Peoples: The Ithaca Campus and Beyond" on April 17, 2023.

In February 2023, the Vet school hosted the "Advancing Health Equity Through Research and Engagement" seminar as part of the Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research's Talks at Twelve Series. The event discussed research on health policy and housing policy with Dr. Jamila Michener. She also "reflect[ed] on the perils, possibilities, and prospects of advancing health equity through community-engaged, policy-oriented scholarship."

The college's Department of Molecular Medicine released its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Statement with numerous resources and initiatives of theirs.

The college hosted a Health Equity Seminar in February 2022, discussing "Geospatial profiles of a residential urban food environment and diet outcomes among adults in Brooklyn, NY" with Roger Figueroa, PhD, MPH, MSc, Assistant Professor of Social and Behavioral Science in Nutrition in the Division of Nutritional Sciences at Cornell University.

In April 2022, the school held the Health Equity Seminar Series on "Medicaid as a Policy Lever for Improving Health Equity in the United States" with Dr. William Schpero.

On June 1, 2020, the school's Dean released a statement to the college community where he expressed his "deep sadness over the recent killing of George Floyd and those before him," and echoed President's Pollack's statement that "decent people and institutions cannot stand silent while such violence against our fellow citizens continues."

Bruce Kornreich, Director of the school's Feline Health Center, expressed his support of statements made by the Dean and President, as they relate to "the need to actively and sincerely discuss, learn about, and act on issues of social justice and racial inequity in our society."

The school's 2020 "'Scopes" publication, issue two, entitled "Donating for Diversity" discusses the role of philanthropy in veterinary medicine. Matt Braun, Assistant Dean of Alumni Affairs and Development stated, "Cornell as a whole, and the College of Veterinary Medicine specifically, has a responsibility to do all we can to counter the deep-seated effects of systemic racism. One way to drive immediate and meaningful change is through philanthropy."

The veterinary school published a URL with the title, "blackout" and an image of a black screen.