ITHACA, N.Y. — Cornell University has engaged Sally Yates, a former U.S. Deputy Attorney General, to lead an independent review of the school's response to sexual assault allegations raised by a former student.

The former student, identified in the allegations as Jane Doe, says she was drugged and assaulted by members of the Chi Phi fraternity in 2024. Cornell's previous Title IX process — the federal framework that governs sexual misconduct complaints at U.S. educational institutions — resulted in suspensions and expulsions for some of those involved. No criminal charges have been filed in the case.

Yates will assess both the specific allegations and Cornell's broader sexual-misconduct policies. Her findings are to be reported to a special committee of the university's Board of Trustees, Cornell's governing body.

The decision comes amid protests connected to the case and a separate criminal investigation led by New York Attorney General Letitia James. Observers are also watching for statements from the Tompkins County District Attorney, whose jurisdiction includes Cornell's Ithaca campus.

Yates served as Deputy Attorney General from 2015 to 2017 and briefly led the Justice Department as Acting Attorney General in January 2017. She has since overseen prominent independent inquiries, including Major League Baseball's 2020 investigation into the Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal, which ended with a $5 million fine and suspensions for the club's general manager and manager, and the 2022 review that produced the Yates Report on abuse in the National Women's Soccer League, findings that were followed by lifetime bans for multiple coaches and league-wide policy changes. Her selection gives Cornell's review an investigator whose prior outside inquiries yielded significant institutional consequences.