Following Cornell University's recent decision to prohibit the processing of wild game animals in community kitchens, the Finger Lakes Chapter of Safari Club International (SCI) is reaffirming its commitment to helping student hunters access safe, sanitary, and appropriate facilities for processing legally harvested game.
Student hunters interested in taking advantage of these opportunities should contact Kuneytown Sportsmen's Club at 315-568-9710. Referrals to other local sportsmen's clubs with full kitchens are also planned.
The Cornell policy change stems from a 2025 incident in which students processed a legally harvested black bear in a residence hall kitchen after alternative options became unavailable. University officials later clarified that the students had not violated existing hunting rules or university rules at the time, but subsequently updated housing policies to prohibit the processing of wild game in communal kitchens.
The SCI Finger Lakes Chapter believes the incident highlights an important need within the hunting community: ensuring that students who hunt legally and ethically have access to suitable locations where harvested game can be handled safely and responsibly.
"Hunting is about conservation, responsibility, and respect for wildlife," said SCI Finger Lakes President and Outdoors Tomorrow Foundation Executive Director Keith Tidball. "When students participate in hunting traditions, they deserve to have access to proper facilities and knowledgeable mentors who can help them process their harvest safely and correctly. The Finger Lakes Chapter is committed to being part of that solution."
Tidball did take issue with some of the reports he felt villainized the hunters despite their operating entirely within the law, saying he was saddened that the tone of the piece seemed to implicitly, if not explicitly, shame the students for doing something perfectly legal and natural.
"The sort of sleuthing regarding the legality of their actions, and the permissibility of processing fish or game on Cornell campus in particular contributes to the 'othering' of hunters and anglers and those that prefer to live close to nature and their ancient humanness, suspiciously regarding them instead of celebrating their efforts to escape the increasing disconnect from nature impacting society," Tidball wrote in a Facebook post he said was also sent to local newspaper editors.
Tidball, a retired Emeritus faculty member of Cornell's Department of Natural Resources and the Environment, expressed disappointment that the policy contributes to the "extinction of experience" and "ecological amnesia" he and others have written about, pointing out the irony of an academic institution teaching the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation and then denying students participation in the model.
The Finger Lakes region has a long and proud hunting heritage, and many students attending colleges and universities throughout the area actively participate in New York's hunting seasons. The SCI Finger Lakes Chapter recognizes that access to go afield and subsequent harvested wild game, as well as access to free, trusted educational resources to teach new hunters how to safely process and prepare wild fish and game such as Cornell Cooperative Extension's Wild Harvest Table, represents not only a valued outdoor tradition but also a sustainable source of locally sourced protein.
The SCI Finger Lakes Chapter remains committed to supporting hunter education, conservation initiatives, wildlife management, and the next generation of ethical hunters throughout the region.