<p>i know the topic of cornell's contract colleges have come up multiple times here, but here's a question you probably haven't heard before.
background info: as many of you might know, some people claim that cornell is "half private, half public" due to its four colleges that receive funding from the New York State. others argue that cornell is 100% private and has full control over the four contract colleges, which merely receives funding from New York State with no strings attached. these people point to MIT as another example of a fully private, landgrant institution.
my question is, if cornell is truly, completely private, why do cornell's contract colleges give reduced tuition to in-state students, while all MIT students pay the same tuition regardless of where they come from?</p>
<p>because part of the deal they have with new york state is that because they get the funding new york residents get reduced tuition in those colleges. However new york state has no say administratively about how those colleges are run academically.</p>
<p>what he said. ^</p>
<p>The case has been settled in the courts. Cornell is a completely private institution and not subject to the Freedom of Information Act.</p>
<p>In exchange for funding, Cornell provides public service/education entities all over NYS know as the Cornell Cooperative Extension.</p>
<p>cce.cornell.edu/learnAbout/Pages/About.aspx</p>
<p>This is one of the unique attributes of Cornell as an Ivy and as a private school, it is involved in NYS public service/education efforts.</p>
<p>Just another example of the enormously wide range of programs/academics/public service activities in which Cornell is involved.</p>
<p>Are you kidding me? Cornell is practically a STATE school.</p>
<p>^don’t you have some AP tests to study for or some homework to highschooler…</p>
<p>The way the State of New York’s role is characterized with respect to the “contract colleges” seems to have changed over the years. For one thing, when I was attending I don’t recall anyone using the term “contract colleges”. The SUNY involvement was seemingly more prominent, or at least more acknowledged, back then. All those schools were explicitly created by the state legislature, were named “New York State College of [whatever]”, and received substantial funding from the state. </p>
<p>“… new york state has no say administratively about how those colleges are run academically.”</p>
<p>Perhaps, but the administrators who do directly have that say report ultimately to the Board of Trustees. Four voting seats on the Board of Trustees are reserved for public officials of New York State.</p>
<p>Public officials of New York State also have to approve a state budget each year, which hopefully includes wads of money appropriated for Cornell.</p>
<p>Yes Cornell can do what it wants, but if it ran these colleges in a way that did not suit the pleasures of this major funder, the State could take those appropriations elsewhere. Then Cornell could still have its school, and do whatever it wants, but without all that money.</p>
<p>Oh but that would never happen you say?</p>
<p>“ In 1898, the New York State College of Forestry opened at Cornell, which was the first forestry college in North America.[46] The College undertook to establish a 30,000 acre demonstration forest in the Adirondacks, funded by New York State.[47] However, the plans of the school’s director Bernhard Fernow for the land drew criticism from neighbors, and Governor Benjamin B. Odell vetoed the 1903 appropriation for the school. In response, Cornell closed the school.[48] Subsequently, in 1911, the State Legislature established a New York State College of Forestry at Syracuse University, and the remains of Cornell’s program became the Department of Natural Resources in its Agriculture College in 1910.”</p>
<p>[History</a> of Cornell University - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Cornell_University]History”>History of Cornell University - Wikipedia)</p>
<p>I imagine the University is aware of the importance of New York State to its success, and that this does have some influence, directly or indirectly, at some level, on some things that do or don’t go on there. Over and above the state’s direct representation on the Board of Trustees. But that’s just my speculation. I could be wrong.</p>
<p>Any involvement that did exist would presumably be directed to the contract colleges, the endowed colleges were basically never associated with state involvement to my recollection.</p>
<p>just b/c cornell receives public funding, and there is vested public interest from the state, the university is still private. i don’t get why anyone would look down on cornell b/c they negotiate and work out mutually beneficially agreements with the state. it seems like a smart business move and cornell’s academic reputation remains stellar…win-win. </p>
<p>and, making an assumption here, the money they receive from the state means less money they pull from endowment, which means more money can go towards things like financial aid.</p>
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<p>Nope. All of the ‘endowed colleges’ were endowed in part with monies from New York State that were set aside from the Morrill Land Grant Act. </p>
<p>All of Cornell is land-grant.</p>
<p>Sorry, I meant any current involvement, and that I did not recall any association during the time I attended. Since I attended at least five years after the Morrill Land Grant, I was not intending to address that past involvement.</p>
<p>Though, I imagine the Hotel School was not funded by the Morrill Land grant.</p>
<p>this question has been asked at least 49 million times.</p>
<p>the truth is… how much does it matter? NYS residents get a reduced tuition for going to the contracted school. out of staters pay just as much for CALS than they do for CAS or arch. it’s the same at berkley. i think all of us can agree that is a fine institution.</p>
<p>do people want to know if cornell is a state school in order to be comforted if they’re rejected?</p>
<p>This is the first time I’m hearing one of the best schools in the country being called a “state” school by so many people. In a serious tone, that is.</p>
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<p>lol, why they want that? They’ll just be greeted with: “you were rejected by a state school? Wow, you must fail at life! I mean, it’s like, Cornell admits everyone because it’s a state school and totally horrible!” :rolleyes:</p>
<p>it’s more likely to reaffirm their decision if they choose to go somewhere else or apply somewhere else.</p>
<p>“do people want to know if cornell is a state school in order to be comforted if they’re rejected?”
lol no, that’s not my reason for this thread. i’m going into CALS this coming fall, and even if CALS was considered an actual state school i wouldn’t mind at all. i have no problem with state / public institutions; i went to a public school all my life and almost chose to go to University of California, except i did not get much financial aid from there. also, i am not trying to blatantly claim that cornell is a state school. the question being asked (in my original post) was why cornell’s contract colleges give reduced tuition to instate students while mit does not, even though both are landgrant institutions. although i haven’t received any direct response that answers that specific question, i’m surmising (from some of the interesting responses given above) that mit does not receive any further funding from Massachusetts.</p>
<p>“NYS residents get a reduced tuition for going to the contracted school. out of staters pay just as much for CALS than they do for CAS or arch. <em>it’s the same at berkley</em>. i think all of us can agree that is a fine institution.”
you pretty much stated one of the reasons why i had questioned cornell’s status as a completely private university. i thought, if cornell is private like mit, why would cornell follow a practice that is “same at berkeley”? but reading all the comments on here directed me to the truth. thanks all for your responses guys.</p>