N.Y. Education Law § 5703 sets up the Cornell board of trustees, and includes — as one member out of 64 — “The eldest lineal descendant of Ezra Cornell[, who] shall be a trustee for his or her life.”
Hardly outrageous, given Ezra Cornell’s role in founding the university that bears its name, but still pretty odd.
UPDATE: UC Hastings Prof. Calvin Massey reports on a similar item in California:
California Education Code section 92204 stipulates that an “heir or representative” of Serranus Clinton Hastings, the founder of Hastings College of the Law, must always be a member of the Board of Directors.
My question: Heirs are easy enough, but how can you tell who counts as a “representative” of someone who is over 100 years dead?