As the land grant university for New York State, Cornell University was responsible for providing military training and education. Cornell formally established a Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) unit in 1917, and ROTC training was a requirement for all male students in Cornell's land grant colleges. In 1947, Robert Fogel (Class of '48), the Ithaca chapter of the American Veterans Committee, and the Cornell Sun newspaper all suggested that ROTC training be made voluntary. The Student Council endorsed this change in December 1947, but the University's faculty and administration rejected it. ROTC training for Cornell students was eventually made voluntary in 1960.