public university system

City University of New York

A large public urban university system with broad access, strong social-mobility value, public governance, funding constraints, and campus operational footprint. City University of New York lands in the middle because the institution is less hostile to people with weak bargaining power and the model leaves more value with stakeholders, but person-dependent governance and ecological harm prevent a stronger rating.

Why this matters: CUNY calibrates broad-access public higher education, where public value and affordability are unusually central but governance remains indirect.

Letter grade D Extractive Medium confidence (AI) Rubric gcd-rubric-v1 Last reviewed May 6, 2026

Final Score 34* D - Extractive

DEXTRACTIVE34 pts

* Tentative scaffolding score. Not human-checked or final.

Base Material48

Bonus+0

Cap66No structure cap

After Cap48

Penalties-14

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Evaluation Overview

D - Extractive

The score turns mainly on Extraction, with the largest penalty coming from Reversibility.

Strengths

Extraction7/10
Solidarity with the Unemployed7/7
Ownership6/10

Penalties

Reversibility-5
Animal Testing-5
Ecological Harm-2
Ideological Disavowal-2

Evidence state

ConfidenceMedium confidence (AI)
ThoroughnessPartial (AI)
Linked claims7
Direct axis claims7
Coverage7/13

Scoring Axes

Axis	Score	Why this score
Ownership ? Control rights: shareholder-dominated at 0, worker cooperative control at 10.	6 / 10	CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. That places City University of New York in the middle of Ownership: there is some mission, member, producer, or public-interest constraint, but decisive control is not fully democratic. The value stays below the top tier because the linked record does not show full democratic control, non-extractive lock-in, or complete stakeholder protection on this axis. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 125 scored entries below, 20 tied, 81 above on Ownership. Linked evidence CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. [1]
Governance ? Binding decision authority: centralized control at 0, democratic stakeholder control at 10.	5 / 10	CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. That places City University of New York in the middle of Governance: there are accountability mechanisms, but they stop short of broad democratic control. The value stays below the top tier because the linked record does not show full democratic control, non-extractive lock-in, or complete stakeholder protection on this axis. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 127 scored entries below, 20 tied, 79 above on Governance. Linked evidence context CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. [1] context CUNY provides broad-access public higher education across New York City and presents access, affordability, and social mobility as central institutional purposes. [2] context CUNY tuition and financial-aid materials is relevant to strong market-conduct credit because the system provides relatively affordable public higher education access. [3]
Extraction ? Surplus allocation, wage share, CEO pay ratio, margins, and structured extraction judgment.	7 / 10	CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. That places City University of New York in the middle of Extraction: the institution creates real value but still leaves room for rent extraction, unequal bargaining, or surplus capture. The value stays below the top tier because the linked record does not show full democratic control, non-extractive lock-in, or complete stakeholder protection on this axis. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 140 scored entries below, 32 tied, 54 above on Extraction. Linked evidence context CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. [1] context CUNY provides broad-access public higher education across New York City and presents access, affordability, and social mobility as central institutional purposes. [2] context CUNY tuition and financial-aid materials is relevant to strong market-conduct credit because the system provides relatively affordable public higher education access. [3]
Labor Sovereignty ? Worker power: coercive conditions at 0, co-determination or ownership at 7. Employee dissatisfaction matters only when source-backed evidence shows concrete limits on worker agency, such as coercive scheduling, retaliation, wage theft, harassment, unsafe conditions, suppression of worker voice, or extreme turnover.	5 / 7	CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. That places City University of New York in the middle of Labor Sovereignty: workers or participants have some protection or agency, but not enough binding power to control the relationship. The value stays below the top tier because the linked record does not show full democratic control, non-extractive lock-in, or complete stakeholder protection on this axis. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 152 scored entries below, 40 tied, 34 above on Labor Sovereignty. Linked evidence context CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. [1] context CUNY provides broad-access public higher education across New York City and presents access, affordability, and social mobility as central institutional purposes. [2] context CUNY tuition and financial-aid materials is relevant to strong market-conduct credit because the system provides relatively affordable public higher education access. [3]
Solidarity with the Unemployed ? Treatment of exits and nonworkers, including severance, redeployment, and non-competes.	7 / 7	CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. That places City University of New York high on Solidarity with the Unemployed: the institution materially supports people outside ordinary employment rather than treating exit as abandonment. A still-higher or maximum value requires stronger proof that this structure is durable, broad, and not merely discretionary. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 220 scored entries below, 6 tied, 0 above on Solidarity with the Unemployed. Linked evidence context CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. [1] context CUNY provides broad-access public higher education across New York City and presents access, affordability, and social mobility as central institutional purposes. [2] context CUNY tuition and financial-aid materials is relevant to strong market-conduct credit because the system provides relatively affordable public higher education access. [3]
Loss-Bearing Fidelity ? Willingness to absorb costs to preserve values, workers, users, and public obligations.	5 / 7	CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. That places City University of New York in the middle of Loss-Bearing Fidelity: there is some willingness to preserve obligations, but the record still leaves meaningful risk-shifting concerns. The value stays below the top tier because the linked record does not show full democratic control, non-extractive lock-in, or complete stakeholder protection on this axis. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 119 scored entries below, 43 tied, 64 above on Loss-Bearing Fidelity. Linked evidence context CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. [1] context CUNY provides broad-access public higher education across New York City and presents access, affordability, and social mobility as central institutional purposes. [2] context CUNY tuition and financial-aid materials is relevant to strong market-conduct credit because the system provides relatively affordable public higher education access. [3]
Market Conduct ? Pricing fairness, switching costs, lock-in, and rent extraction.	5 / 5	CUNY tuition and financial-aid materials is relevant to strong market-conduct credit because the system provides relatively affordable public higher education access. CUNY tuition and financial-aid materials is relevant to strong market-conduct credit because the system provides relatively affordable public higher education access. That places City University of New York high on Market Conduct: pricing, access, switching, and bargaining practices show restraint compared with ordinary rent-seeking competitors. A still-higher or maximum value requires stronger proof that this structure is durable, broad, and not merely discretionary. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 180 scored entries below, 46 tied, 0 above on Market Conduct. Linked evidence CUNY tuition and financial-aid materials is relevant to strong market-conduct credit because the system provides relatively affordable public higher education access. [3]
Product Integrity ? Preservation of quality rather than degradation for monetization.	4 / 5	CUNY provides broad-access public higher education across New York City and presents access, affordability, and social mobility as central institutional purposes. CUNY provides broad-access public higher education across New York City and presents access, affordability, and social mobility as central institutional purposes. That places City University of New York high on Product Integrity: the core offering is genuinely useful and comparatively less dependent on traps, degradation, or harmful dependencies. A still-higher or maximum value requires stronger proof that this structure is durable, broad, and not merely discretionary. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 61 scored entries below, 72 tied, 93 above on Product Integrity. Linked evidence CUNY provides broad-access public higher education across New York City and presents access, affordability, and social mobility as central institutional purposes. [2]
Scale Integrity ? Whether growth improves or degrades fairness and accountability.	4 / 5	CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 109 scored entries below, 81 tied, 36 above on Scale Integrity. Linked evidence context CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders. [1] context CUNY provides broad-access public higher education across New York City and presents access, affordability, and social mobility as central institutional purposes. [2] context CUNY tuition and financial-aid materials is relevant to strong market-conduct credit because the system provides relatively affordable public higher education access. [3]

Penalties

Penalty	Applied	Why this penalty
Reversibility ? Applied when positive conduct depends on current living leaders, founders, family owners, or other person-contingent governance rather than durable structure. Range: -5 to 0.	-5	CUNY positive conduct depends on public-board governance, city and state politics, budgets, administrative policy, admissions policy, labor relations, and academic culture rather than durable democratic control by students, workers, or affected communities. CUNY positive conduct depends on public-board governance, city and state politics, budgets, administrative policy, admissions policy, labor relations, and academic culture rather than durable democratic control by students, workers, or affected communities. That warrants a severe Reversibility penalty because favorable conduct depends on current people or discretionary leadership rather than locked stakeholder structure. The value is near the floor because the conduct appears central, large-scale, repeated, or institutionally powerful rather than incidental. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 0 scored entries below, 95 tied, 131 above on Reversibility. Linked evidence CUNY positive conduct depends on public-board governance, city and state politics, budgets, administrative policy, admissions policy, labor relations, and academic culture rather than durable democratic control by students, workers, or affected communities. [4]
Ecological Harm ? Footprint, trajectory, irreversibility, culpability, and scale, including whether ecological harm is central to the model and continued after credible notice. Range: -30 to 0.	-2	CUNY sustainability materials identify energy, emissions, and campus operations as material institutional responsibilities. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Column-spectrum position: 53 scored entries below, 3 tied, 170 above on Ecological Harm. Linked evidence CUNY sustainability materials identify energy, emissions, and campus operations as material institutional responsibilities. [5]
Animal Testing ? Direct animal testing, contract animal testing, animal-testing-dependent product development, or business lines where current safety/regulatory approval normally relies on animal experiments. Stronger penalties apply where animal testing is core, repeated, non-optional, or avoidable; documented cruelty-free or non-animal methods reduce or eliminate the penalty. Range: -8 to 0.	-5	Large research universities and biomedical institutions commonly operate under animal-research oversight systems; this warrants a material penalty where the profile has not yet separated non-animal work from animal-testing-dependent research. Large research universities and biomedical institutions commonly operate under animal-research oversight systems; this warrants a material penalty where the profile has not yet separated non-animal work from animal-testing-dependent research. The value stays below the floor because the current record shows material exposure without the strongest evidence of sector-defining or worst-actor conduct. Linked evidence City University of New York has biomedical research institution animal-testing exposure based on its listed business model and current profile description: A large public urban university system with broad access, strong social-mobility value, public governance, funding constraints, and campus operational footprint. City University of New York lands in the middle because t… [7]
Ideological Disavowal ? Concealed ideology presented as neutrality, expertise, professional necessity, public-service administration, market inevitability, or non-ideological common sense while exercising power. Range: -3 to 0.	-2	City University of New York's public framing is assessed as ideological-disavowal evidence because City University of New York exercises meaningful institutional or cultural power while… City University of New York's public framing is assessed as ideological-disavowal evidence because City University of New York exercises meaningful institutional or cultural power while strongly presenting contested choices as neutral expertise, safety, objectivity, professionalism, administrative necessity, or public service. That warrants a substantial Ideological Disavowal penalty because the institution presents situated, contested choices as neutrality, expertise, inevitability, safety, or common sense. The value is substantial but not at the floor because the linked record shows serious conduct without the strongest aggravating factors on this axis. Calibration notes Comparative anchor: Ideological Disavowal 0 to -3 recalibration: 0 for explicit standpoint or no penalty-level neutrality theater; -1 for bounded softening of contested choices; -2 for strong neutrality theater by a powerful institution; -3 for major gatekeeping or coercive power presented as neutral, necessary, objective, or non-ideological. Uncertainty This recalibration uses public self-presentation and profile evidence; later review should add direct language-analysis evidence for high-impact institutions. Linked evidence City University of New York's public framing is assessed as ideological-disavowal evidence because City University of New York exercises meaningful institutional or cultural power while strongly presenting contested choices as neutral expertise, safety, objectivity, professionalism, administrative necessity, or public service. [6]

Bonus Credits

No bonus credits applied in this version.

Confidence Basis

Confidence is computed from the evidence trail and review state, not typed into the profile by hand.

Medium 76/100

7 verified linked claims 7 direct axis claims 0 disputed claims 7/13 components covered

This confidence label measures the source-backed evidence trail. AI-scaffolded scores remain tentative until human review.

Claim confidence 17/20

7 verified linked claims

Source quality 16/18

Best source per verified claim, weighted by institutional reliability

Direct axis-specific claims 9/18

7 direct claims across 13 active components

Dispute load 12/12

0 disputed claims on this entity

Recency 10/10

Newest accepted timestamp: May 13, 2026

Reviewer status 7/12

Human-reviewed components score higher than AI scaffolding

Component coverage 5/10

7/13 evidence-bearing components have direct support

Evidence State

Profile stateAI draft / human-pending

VerificationUnverified

ConfidenceMedium confidence (AI)

ThoroughnessPartial (AI)

Correction routeUse “Challenge this rating” for factual errors, missing counterevidence, source problems, or calculation mistakes.

Company responseCompany representatives can submit source-backed corrections; payment never changes scores or reviewer authority.

Claims and Sources

Claims are the evidence record. Each claim needs a source link, axis category, status, confidence level, and timestamp before it can support a score.

* Tentative scaffolding score. Not human-checked or final.

1CUNY is a public university system governed through public boards and institutions rather than private shareholders.

Ownership Verified High confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 6, 2026

AI scaffold

CUNY board of trusteesPrimary institutional record · 90%

2CUNY provides broad-access public higher education across New York City and presents access, affordability, and social mobility as central institutional purposes.

Product Integrity Verified High confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 6, 2026

AI scaffold

CUNY aboutOfficial self-description · 68%

3CUNY tuition and financial-aid materials is relevant to strong market-conduct credit because the system provides relatively affordable public higher education access.

Market Conduct Verified High confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 6, 2026

AI scaffold

CUNY tuition and college costsPrimary institutional record · 90%

4CUNY positive conduct depends on public-board governance, city and state politics, budgets, administrative policy, admissions policy, labor relations, and academic culture rather than durable democratic control by students, workers, or affected communities.

Reversibility Verified Medium confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 6, 2026

AI scaffold

CUNY board of trusteesPrimary institutional record · 90%

5CUNY sustainability materials identify energy, emissions, and campus operations as material institutional responsibilities.

Ecological Harm Verified Medium confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 6, 2026

AI scaffold

CUNY sustainabilityPrimary institutional record · 90%

6City University of New York's public framing is assessed as ideological-disavowal evidence because City University of New York exercises meaningful institutional or cultural power while strongly presenting contested choices as neutral expertise, safety, objectivity, professionalism, administrative necessity, or public service.

Ideological Disavowal Verified Medium confidence AI-generated / human-pending May 9, 2026

AI scaffold

City University of New York official sitePrimary institutional record · 90%
CUNY board of trusteesPrimary institutional record · 90%
CUNY aboutOfficial self-description · 68%

7City University of New York has biomedical research institution animal-testing exposure based on its listed business model and current profile description: A large public urban university system with broad access, strong social-mobility value, public governance, funding constraints, and campus operational footprint. City University of New York lands in the middle because t…

Animal Testing Verified High confidence Human-reviewed May 11, 2026

City University of New York public sitePrimary institutional record · 90%
FDA: Animal Welfare, Testing and Research of FDA-Regulated ProductsPrimary public record · 100%

Alternatives

Competitors

AGOOD54 Berea College private nonprofit work college · same market AGOOD52 Maricopa Community Colleges public community-college system · same market AGOOD51 Miami Dade College public college · same market AGOOD51 Seattle Colleges public community-college district · same market AGOOD50 Bellevue College public college · same market BQUALIFIED49 Dallas College public community-college system · same market BQUALIFIED46 Western Governors University nonprofit online university · same market CPERFORMATIVE36 State University of New York public university system · same market

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May 6, 2026 at 12:00 AM UTC ai-scaffolding

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