Charge

1. Examine and make adjustments to the relationship between the ROTC and the University. In carrying out these responsibilities the Committee shall, but is not limited to:
   1. Acting for the ROTC program in a manner analogous to an educational policy committee of a college or school.
   2. Make recommendations regarding program, curriculum changes and establishing general University-ROTC relations.
2. It is anticipated that the Committee members may be called upon to participate in ad hoc review committees for instructional appointments, disenrollment hearing boards, scholarship review boards and other ad hoc committees related to the ROTC programs.

The Committee will make an annual report to the Faculty Senate at a meeting in the spring. This report will include evaluations and recommendations for credit for the military-taught courses in ROTC and recommendations on program changes for the following academic year as well as other activities of the Committee.

Composition

Six faculty members, appointed with the concurrence of the Faculty Senate, by the Nominations and Elections Committee, the Commanding Officer of each military service offering instruction at the University, two administrators appointed by the President of the University and seven students.

1. In nominating Faculty members, attention should be given to distributing the membership among colleges of the University and especially to representing colleges and schools with large numbers of ROTC students.
2. Three of the students shall be nominated from, and elected by, students actively enrolled in ROTC programs at the University to represent the three services of the Air Force, Army and Navy. The other four students shall be selected or elected from the various colleges having students enrolled in the program in a manner acceptable to the Faculty Committee on Nominations and Elections. The term of office for student members shall be one year with the provision that they may succeed themselves for a one-year term.
   

Adopted by the Faculty Council of Representatives, December 1, 1971, Records p. 3999C, Appendix L; May 16, 1973, Records, p. 4173C; February 12, 1975, Records p. 4377C; December 9, 1987, Records, pp. 6530-44C, Appendices A and B. Changes in nomenclature from FCR to Faculty Senate,, and to reflect amendments to the Organization and Procedures of the University Faculty, October 1995.

Where not listed as a member or chair, both the Dean of Faculty and the Associate Dean and Secretary of the Faculty, shall be a ex officio members of each committee of the University Faculty and each committee of the Senate. (Faculty Handbook, Article V Section D Part 7) (Faculty Handbook, Article VI Section A Part 3)

To: Dean De Rosa

From: Charles “Chip” Aquadro, Chair

Date: June 30, 2025

Subject: URRC Annual Report

URRC Committee Mission and Makeup

The URRC provides University oversight for hiring active military personnel that will serve as military instructors in the Cornell ROTC programs. The committee is composed of tenured Cornell faculty members from multiple colleges and the head (and executive officer) of each service branch as a courtesy.

As a committee, we interview potential candidates (typically via videoconference) for open positions within the ROTC programs. We discuss each candidate as a committee and vote to approve or disapprove of the appointment. The service branches extensively vet candidates before being interviewed by the URRC.

As a committee, together with agreement from the ROTC Commanding officers, we agreed this fall to a new 45 minute time allotment and process for candidate interviews. The procedure in brief is as follows.  As a committee, we interview potential candidates (typically via videoconference) for open positions within the ROTC programs. The service branches are responsible for extensively vetting candidates before being proposed for appointment at Cornell and interviewed by the URRC. We then discuss each candidate as a committee and faculty members (not students) then vote to approve or disapprove the appointment.

We will have previously provided the Cornell ROTC office brief bios of all faculty and student members of Cornell’s URRC to share with the candidate.

The URRC asked that all candidate review requests be accompanied by a position description as well as a full CV/Resume, Transcripts and appropriate other materials (performance evaluations etc). We also require that all candidates prepare and present at the URRC interview a 5-10 min (max) power point or similar presentation relevant to their teaching assignments in ROTC here at Cornell.

The relevant ROTC officer will run the zoom meeting logistics. Towards the end of the 45 minute interview (at say 35 minutes), the URRC Chair asks if any URRC member has any remaining questions, then has the ROTC officer put the candidate in a breakout room on zoom. The committee members present the each weigh in on their thoughts on the suitability of the candidate, particularly any concerns, etc. All URRC members participate in this discussion. The committee Chair then calls for a vote among the 6 faculty URRC members (undergraduate committee members do not vote but their opinions are considered). The chair then states the vote and asks for the ROTC officer to bring the candidate back into the active zoom meeting. The candidate is then informed of the decision, congratulated as appropriate, then the meeting zoom ended. For each case, appointment documentation is then signed by Charles/Chip Aquadro as committee chair and filed with the Dean of the University Faculty.

University-ROTC Relationships Committee (URRC) AY 2024-25 as of 3/27/2025

The Committee was ably assisted by Carrie “C.A.” Shugarts, Dean’s Assistant, Office of the Dean of Faculty, Cornell University

URRC Committee Activities AY 2024-25

Interviews for Incoming Military for Teaching ROTC Courses

The URRC committee carried out three interviews during AY 2024-2025. A quorum of the committee was present, along with a representative from each service branch. All interviews were held by Zoom.

10/1/2024 URRC Interview for US Air Force ROTC candidate Maj. John Novotny as Courtesy Assistant Professor. URRC Committee members present: Chip Aquadro, Bill Philpot, Juan Hinestroza, Lee Humphreys, George Hutchinson, Keith Tidball, David Diao, Ethan Qasemi, and Olivia Niewiadomski. Decision: Unanimous approval of appointment by all present.

12/3/2024 URRC Interview for Gunnery Sergeant Jonathan Cerecedes (ROTC Naval) as Visiting Lecturer. URRC members attending via zoom: Charles Aquadro. William Philpot, Lee Humphreys, Hutchinson, David Diao, and Rose Jou. Decision: Unanimous approval of appointment by all present.

2/3/2025 URRC Interview for ROTC Air Force candidate, SSgt Jalen Gayle as Senior Visiting Lecturer. URRC members attending via zoom: Charles Aquadro. William Philpot, George Hutchinson, Juan Hinestroza, Rose Jou, and Olivia Niewiadomski.

Decision: Unanimous approval of appointment by all present.

Additional Business

Chip met with all ROTC commanding officers on 9-4-2024 to discuss our interview process and how it could be improved. This resulted in a sense of open communication on both sides that I think was beneficial as well as an improvement in the interview process (detailed above).

Chip Aquadro steps down 6/30/2025 from the URRC committee (after 13 years, first appointed in 2012) and 3rd year as chair on June 31, 2025. The new chair is William Philpot (Professor Emeritus, Engineering) for 2025-2026 and then Juan Hinestroza (Professor, Human Ecology) starting 7/1/2026.

Thanks to the effort of Vice Provost Katherine McCommas and the ROTC Commanding officers, the faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences considered and approved in May 2025 the repeal the 1968 and 1971 A&S faculty legislation that prohibited A&S from awarding degree-counting credit for ROTC courses (previously, students who matriculated in 1968 or prior could earn up to 12 hours of degree credit, which would be counted as part of the twenty hours allowed outside the College). This repeal allows ROTC course proposals to be put forward from ROTC for consideration by the A&S Educational Policy Committee to review on a case-by-case basis to determine whether some of them should count toward graduation credit. Allowing such credit will reduce the additional course load incurred by undergraduate ROTC students enrolled in A&S.

To: Dean De Rosa

From: Charles “Chip” Aquadro, Chair

Date: June 10, 2024

Subject: URRC Annual Report

Report prepared by:

Charles “Chip” Aquadro as Chair, URRC

Charles A. Alexander Professor of Biological Sciences

Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics

Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853

URRC Committee Mission and Makeup

The URRC provides University oversight for hiring active military personnel that will serve as military instructors in the Cornell ROTC programs. The committee is composed of tenured Cornell faculty members from multiple colleges and the head (and executive officer) of each service branch as a courtesy.

As a committee, we interview potential candidates (typically via videoconference) for open positions within the ROTC programs. We discuss each candidate as a committee and vote to approve or disapprove of the appointment. The service branches extensively vet candidates before being interviewed by the URRC.

URRC Faculty Members AY 2023-24, as of 7/1/2023:

URRC Student Members AY 2023-24, as of 7/1/2023 (no voting privileges):

The Committee was ably assisted by Carrie “C.A.” Shugarts, Dean’s Assistant, Office of the Dean of Faculty, Cornell University.

URRC Committee Activities AY 2023 – 2024

Interviews for Incoming Military for Teaching ROTC Courses

The URRC committee carried out five interviews during AY 2023-2024. A quorum of the committee was present, along with a representative from each service branch. All interviews were held by Zoom. The candidate was asked to give a short 10-15 min presentation on a topic of their choice followed by questions from the URRC committee members. The Committee then held private session, discussed the candidate and voted before bringing the candidate back from their zoom breakout room to tell them the committee’s decision. For each case, appointment documentation was then signed by Charles Aquadro as committee chair and filed with the Dean of the Faculty.

8/30/2023 (in person and zoom, 10:00 – 10:30am): Interviewed MSG Corey Tierney for Senior

Military Science Instructor, ARMY ROTC. URRC members attending: Charles Aquadro (zoom), Lee Humphreys (in person), Michael Duncan (zoom). Bill Philpot (zoom) attended as did LTC Derek Fitzpatrick, Professor of Military Science, Cornell Army ROTC.  George Hutchinson and Keith Tidball were unavailable.

Decision: Unanimous approval of appointment by all present.

9/15/2023 (zoom, 10:30 – 11:00am): Interviewed Roman Lopez for Visiting Senior Lecturer,

Air Force ROTC. URRC members participating: Charles Aquadro, Lee Humphreys, Keith Tidball, Bill Philpot, and Daniil Pavlenko attended as did Lt Col Joshua Kirkum, Professor of Aerospace Studies, and USAF ROTC Detachment Commander, and Lt Col Derek Hall, Asst Prof Aerospace Studies,  George Hutchinson and Michael Duncan were unavailable. Decision: Unanimous approval of appointment by all present.

12/12/2023 (zoom): Interviewed 1^st Lt Robert Rauff for Courtesy Associate Professor, USAF ROTC at Cornell. Unanimous approval by all present.

1/29/2024 (zoom): Interviewed Lt Col Nicholas Broughham for Courtesy Professor, USAF ROTC at Cornell.

Unanimous among URRC faculty members participating. One student member was concerned the candidate went overtime, but we concluded that was due to the URRC committee spending too much time on introductions (which led to the subsequent change in protocol to eliminate in person introductions (replaced by bios sent ahead of time and a change to 45 min interview time-slot.

3/8/2024 (zoom): Interviewed Michael Charles Mosbruger for Commanding officer and Professor of Naval Sciences, NROTC at Cornell (to replace Captain Scott Hardy).

Present: Chip Aquadro, Bill Philpott, Lee Humphreys, George Hutchinson, Mike Duncan, Rose Jou, Olivia Niewiadomski, Decision: Unanimous approval of appointment by all faculty committee members present.

Additional Business

In addition to interviewing candidates for open positions, Charles Aquadro, as chair of the URRC met with Dean De Rosa by zoom on to finalize the request from the URRC that all appropriate positions (Courtesy Assistant Professor was missing) be added to the ROTC appointment forms. Communications with De Rosa and her office and Wendy Huff (HR) has the request now being considered by Cornell HR (as of 8/30/2023). Academic HR approved this change and it was implemented Aug 31 2023 with a new form.

2/13/2024: Revised URRC interview protocol to provide bios of all URRC committee members ahead of time to candidates (rather than spending time introducing ourselves individually at the start of the 30 min scheduled zoom interview. Decision was also made ultimately to make all interviews going forward be scheduled for 45 minutes. Finally, discussion between ROTC officers and VP Katherine McCommas lead to revision of roles of URRC members so that only faculty URRC members would formally vote on appointments, though undergraduate URRC members would participate fully in zoom interviews and their input requested prior to the faculty URRC member vote (final decision from McComas May 13 2023 email to CFA copied to Dean of Faculty Eve DeRosa).

2022-23, 2021-22, 2019-20, 2016-17, 2011-12, 2010-11, 2009-10