UNIVERSITY and MESSENGER LECTURES NOMINATION GUIDELINES

Intent-to nominate email due:

First Monday in October for Fall nominations
First Monday in March for Spring nominations

Full nominations are due:

Third Monday in November for Fall nominations
Third Monday in April for Spring nominations

University and Messenger Lecturers are selected by the University Lectures Committee (ULC) which is composed of faculty and students. The Committee welcomes applications, initiated by faculty and by students, and encourages nominations of minorities and women. It is customary for a member(s) of the University Lectures Committee to represent the Committee at the lecture(s) and a reception or dinner with the lecturer.

The nomination process is two-step.  An email indicating the intention to nominate a lecturer should be sent to the Dean of Faculty at University and Messenger Lectures email including name, title, a brief description of expertise and an explanation regarding broad interest. The full nomination should include a letter of nomination and the following information:

1. the projected date (can be up to 2 years in advance)
2. the title of the prospective lecture accompanied by, if possible, a brief abstract
3. a resume or C.V., as well as a capsule biography of the speaker
4. strong evidence of the lecturer’s interdisciplinary appeal
5. letters from faculty or student colleagues in departments other than those of the principal sponsor that address the appeal, in their own fields, of the prospective speaker and of the proposed topic.

• 3 supporting letters for University Lecture nominations
• 6 supporting letters for Messenger nominations

Nominations as a single PDF should be submitted to the University and Messenger Lectures email. PDFs too large for email can be sent via SFT or Box to Committee Coordinator.

Nomination approvals are valid for events up to two years in the future.

DATE

As soon as the final lecture date(s) is established, the host should communicate that information to the University and Messenger Lectures email to determine if any conflicts exist with other University or Messenger Lectures.  After confirming the date, the host should secure a space for the event; scheduling event space can be done at the Academic and Event Scheduling website.

POSTER AND PUBLICITY

Information needed to create an advertising poster is listed below. Email this to the University and Messenger Lectures email as soon after the approval as possible but no later than six weeks prior to the date of the lecture to ensure sufficient time for the postering process. Posters will be created, reviewed by the host for approval, ordered and posted in academic buildings across campus by the Dean of Faculty Office. The poster will also be used to advertise in the Cornell Sun and emailed to Deans, Directors and Department Chairs at Cornell to advertise within their units.  The host should add the lecture to the Cornell events calendar and consider advertising on the digital displays across campus through CU-View.

• Preferred name of Lecturer for publicity
• Lecturer’s title and institution
• Title of Lecture(s)
• Date(s) and time(s) of Lecture(s)
• Location(s) of Lecture(s); reception information (if any)
• A lecturer approved photo for publicity.
• Names of any co-sponsors for the lecture(s)

The ULC will contribute to conferences and colloquia. Each funding request will be considered on an individual basis. Advertising for these events is the responsibility of the host(s). The Committee will favor events that are likely to provide the Cornell community with ample access to interact with the speaker/participants. Requests must include:

• Event information: title, date, time, place, short description of event/speaker
• An estimate of expenses
• A complete budget (including amounts other sponsors have agreed to commit)
• The amount of funding requested.
• A description of occasions that provide community access to the participants (if such occasions are part of the proposal).

All lectures and co-sponsored events supported by the University Lectures Committee must be open to the public without charge.

IMPORTANT: The host of the event is responsible for the planning and logistics of the University and Messenger Lectures. This includes travel arrangements, hotel reservations, lecture room reservations, receptions and any other events.

The budget for each University Lecture and Messenger Series includes funds to assist the host department in arranging a reception and dinner for the speaker. This affords the speaker and faculty the opportunity to meet informally and to establish personal contacts. Experience has shown that ideas about adequate entertainment vary greatly among departments and that the Lectures Committee should not endeavor to force its views on the hosts. For this reason, departments should charge costs of such speaker entertainment to their own department accounts. The University Lectures Committee, upon presentation of a comprehensive summary of all expenses submitted to the University and Messenger Lectures email after the lecture(s) is/are complete, will transfer expenses from the host department to the University/Messenger Lectures account in the Dean of Faculty Office. In the summary, include the department account(s) to which the expenses were incurred. There is flexibility in the amounts allowed as determined by the ULC.

HONORARIA

University Lecturer – $5000

Messenger Lecturer – 3-lecture series, $10,000; 6-lecture series, $20,000

The Dean of Faculty’s Office will initiate the request for the honorarium payment. The host will need to provide mailing and email addresses for the lecturer for the payment process which will include completing an online W-9, or W-8BEN for lecturers who are not U.S. citizens.  An email from invitations@paymentworks.com to complete registration for Cornell’s accounts payable system (KFS) will be sent to the lecturer approximately 2 weeks after their lecture; they should check their junk or spam folders as it sometimes is routed to those folders instead of the email inbox.

Lecturers who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents are required to complete the Foreign Visitors Honoraria/Expense Reimbursement Attestation Form; it is the responsibility of the host to ensure this form is completed.

TRAVEL ACCOMMODATIONS

Housing options for lecturers include the Statler Hotel, on campus in a residence hall, local hotels, the host’s home or with a friend. A maximum of two nights lodging is allowed for a University Lecturer; lodging for Messenger Lecturers is fully covered. Personal charges are not covered. The accommodation expenses for a spouse/ partner of a Messenger Lecturer will be covered by including an approval email from the Dean of Faculty when submitting expenses to Cornell accounting.  The host/host’s support person may request this from the University and Messenger Lectures email.

University Lecturers – airline reimbursement (for lecturer only) is at the economy rate

Messenger Lecturers – airline reimbursement is at the economy rate for lecturer and his/her spouse or partner unless a special request for other reimbursement is made in advance and approved by the University Lectures Committee (ULC) and the Dean of Faculty.

If the lecturer is driving to Ithaca, mileage will be reimbursed at the current University rate.

Meal reimbursement outside of hosted dinners and receptions will be reimbursed according to the non-employee travel guidelines on page 15 of Policy 3.2 Travel Expenses.

ENTERTAINMENT or ENGAGEMENT COSTS:

University Lecture:

• 1-lecture: Reception up to $1000; Dinner up to $1000

Messenger Lecture: 

• 3-lecture series: Reception up to $2000; Dinners up to $2000
• 6 lecture series: Reception up to $3000; Dinners up to $3000
• If staying at the Statler Hotel, up to $300 allowance for Lecturer to interact with students may be charged to their hotel room. This may be coffee, breakfast or lunch at Taverna Banfi’s.

To encourage interaction between students and lecturers (independent of faculty interaction), an optional $500 may be applied for by an appropriate student group or through the host to the University and Messenger Lectures email for an event associated with either the University or Messenger Lectures.

CALL FOR NOMINATIONS FOR THE UNIVERSITY and MESSENGER
LECTURE SERIES

The University Lectures Committee is calling for nominations for two lecture series: the Messenger Lecture and the University Lecture; the intent-to-nominate email is due the first Monday in October for the Fall semester and the first Monday in March for the Spring semester to the University and Messenger Lectures email. Full nominations are due the third Monday in November and the third Monday in April, respectively. The Messenger series provides funding to bring to Cornell scholars from around the globe to give a series of lectures. A Messenger scholar is expected to present three or six lectures at the University. The University Lectures series is designed to bring to campus a speaker whose single lecture is likely to have wide-ranging appeal. A lecture or lectures may be planned for a future date(s).

As President Martha Pollack notes, “The distinguished scholars and public intellectuals who serve as Messenger and University Lecturers enrich the intellectual life of the campus and foster important conversations across our academic community.”

The Messenger and University Lecturers are selected by the Cornell University Lecturers Committee which is composed of both faculty and students. Both lecture series provide an honorarium and also provide for travel, lodging, receptions and publicity related to the lectures. The Committee also considers requests for support for conferences, colloquia, and workshops related to the lectures. Such events should have wide appeal to the Cornell community.

Details about the nomination guidelines, cost allocation and procedures and other information is available on the University Faculty webpage for Messenger/University Lectures.

For questions, contact Jill Short at the University and Messenger Lectures email.