Student's Lawsuit Against Cornell and Its University Ombuds Lives On

A former Cornell veterinary student, Patricia Curto, sued the school alleging she was wrongfully dismissed in 1998. Several administrators, including assistant university ombudsperson Danilee Popensiek, are named as individual defendants. On Curto's appeal of dismissal, the Federal Appellate Court in New York returned the case to the trial court for further hearing. The student is a tenacious litigant: her suit has been appealed several times, and she is pursuing a related action in NY state court. Popensiek is still a member of the Cornell Office of the University Ombudsman, and is being represented in the action by Cornell's General Counsel. [Ed. note: None of the Cornell ombuds are members of IOA.]