There’s some tragic news out of Ithaca, N.Y. today. Cornell’s president of less than a year, Elizabeth Garrett, died last night at the age of 52 after a battle with colon cancer. Her passing comes mere weeks after she announced her diagnosis.
Garrett was the first female president of the Ivy League school. Since taking office this past September, she had made several important decisions, including reversing the 2035 carbon neutrality goal, creating a College of Business and approving the opening of a new student-run grocery store, according to The Cornell Daily Sun.
While some of these changes weren’t well received, she always held the school’s students and faculty in the highest regard.
“Our students are simply amazing,” Garrett said in an address shortly after her September inauguration, the Sun reported.
Before arriving at Cornell last year, Garrett was the provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at University of Southern California. She attended University of Virginia School of Law, where she recently received a distinguished alumnae award.
In an email to the Cornell community, the Chair of the Board of Trustees Robert Harrison called Garrett a “remarkable human being” and a “vibrant and passionate leader. There are few words to express the enormity of this loss.”
Governor of New York Andrew Cuomo, released a statement offering his sympathies and called Garrett a “visionary leader.”