Latest news with #UniversitySenate

Straits Times
17 hours ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Columbia punishes dozens of students as it seeks to restore federal funding
WASHINGTON - Columbia University took disciplinary action against dozens of students involved in campus protests as the school negotiates with the Trump administration to restore funding that was cut over accusations of civil-rights violations. Columbia disciplined more than 70 student protesters who occupied a campus library in May, a university spokesperson said on July 22. Of that group, more than 80 per cent were suspended or expelled; others were placed on disciplinary probation and some recent graduates had their degrees revoked. Still more participated in an encampment protest over alumni weekend in 2024, but the spokesperson declined to say how many or what their punishments were. The disciplinary measures are the first to be made by the new University Judicial Board, which was transferred to the provost's office in March. The UJB was previously housed within the University Senate – which is made up of faculty and students – and has been a target of the Trump administration for its perceived leniency on protesters. The Columbia spokesperson said the timing of the measures is related to the new process rather than its talks with the government. The majority of the students disciplined were involved in occupying Butler Library in a pro-Palestinian protest during final exams that led to nearly 80 arrests. The students disciplined for actions from last year had their cases heard through the old disciplinary process with the University Senate, and were the final unresolved cases from the encampment protests, according to the spokesperson. The Ivy League school has for months been working with the Trump administration on a settlement over antisemitic harassment on campus that would restore more than US$400 million of dollars in federal funding. The New York Times reported last week that the deal would likely include a US$200 million payment from Columbia. This month, the school announced it would adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition of antisemitism, and pledged to appoint coordinators to respond to and report allegations of civil rights violations. The school also said it will partner with Jewish organisations for mandatory anti-discrimination training. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. World Trump says US will charge 19% tariff on goods from Philippines, down from 20% Singapore Two found dead after fire in Toa Payoh flat Singapore Singaporeans continue to hold world's most powerful passport in latest ranking Singapore Singaporeans aged 21 to 59 can claim $600 SG60 vouchers from July 22 Singapore Singapore, Vietnam agree to step up defence ties, dialogue between leaders Life Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath's bat-biting frontman turned reality TV star, dies aged 76 Asia Malaysia govt's reform pledge tested as DAP chief bows over unresolved 2009 death of political aide Singapore Ports and planes: The 2 Singapore firms helping to keep the world moving Columbia Acting President Claire Shipman also said the university would not 'recognise or meet with' Columbia University Apartheid Divest, a coalition of pro-Palestinian student groups behind the campus protests, or its affiliates. 'Organisations that promote violence or encourage disruptions of our academic mission are not welcome on our campuses and the University will not engage with them,' she said in a statement July 15. BLOOMBERG


New York Times
06-05-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Could Columbia Change Who Gets to Set the Rules on Protests?
In the spring of 2024, pro-Palestinian demonstrators at Columbia University found a formidable ally in the university senate, a body that was given authority over campus protest policy in the aftermath of violent police interventions decades earlier. Now, the powerful senate finds itself under a microscope. University administrators and trustees, eager to reclaim authority and answer criticism from the Trump administration, have ordered a review of the senate, a move that could fundamentally alter Columbia and redefine control of student protests and disciplinary action. Some trustees and administrators have blamed the senate for delaying and obstructing discipline of pro-Palestinian demonstrators who broke university rules, and some appear to have accused the 111-member elected body of antisemitism. Senators hotly rebut those charges and say that the senate is standing up for Columbia's rules and proud tradition of protest against outside pressure. 'What this looks like is an attempt to concentrate power,' Joseph Howley, a faculty senator and classics professor who supported the pro-Palestinian demonstrations, said of the review. He added that he felt it was part 'of the decades-long process of trying to make American universities operate more like for-profit corporations.'
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Provost: Purdue will not provide numbers on students affected by visa revocations
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Purdue officials declined to tell faculty members many details about international students whose visas have been affected by a recent wave of Trump administration visa revocations in a meeting Monday afternoon. When a member of the university's University Senate asked how many students have been affected by the revocations, Provost Patrick Wolfe said officials have no plans to provide the numbers of the students affected, saying he neither wanted to under- or overstate the number. Purdue President Mung Chiang addressed the visa revocation at the meeting, making a statement that was nearly word for word the same as a press release the university published Monday morning. 'We all recognize this is an anxious time for our international community, and we are providing both overarching and tailored support to those impacted, consistent with our responsibilities as a public, land-grant host institution in an evolving context of current federal actions and court cases,' Chiang said. 'Purdue has been in contact with anyone who has become aware of a change in their visa status according to government databases. Impacted individuals are encouraged to contact the embassy of their home country and to seek outside legal assistance to address their individual situations,' the press release said. Wolfe encouraged senators to continue following the news for updates. A Purdue spokesperson also did not answer how many students have been affected, instead deferring to the press release. The federal government has been revoking hundreds of student visas around the country, but the reasons for their revocations seem to vary. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in March that 300 students studying in the United States have had their visas revoked. The New York Times listed Harvard, Stanford, the University of Texas at Austin, Minnesota State University and the University of California as some universities affected. Those connections, the Times pointed out, may be related to student involvement with pro-Palestinian movements or from legal infractions, such as speeding or driving while intoxicated. Last week, the American Civil Liberties Union of Indiana filed a lawsuit against federal officials on behalf of seven international students in Indiana whose visas were revoked. Five of those are Purdue students from China, four of whom have been charged with a crime in the United States. Three of those charges have or are scheduled to be dismissed. Emails to the students affected said they are to 'make immediate plans to depart the United States' and must immediately cease any employment they have in the country, leaving them with no income. The ACLU lawsuit pointed out that the students were not guaranteed they would be deported to their home country or offered due process. On Thursday, a federal judge denied the ACLU of Indiana's request for a temporary restraining order that would have protected those Indiana international students from involuntary removal. "While the Court understands the turmoil that Plaintiffs are experiencing because of the sudden and unexpected termination of their F-1 student status in SEVIS, Plaintiffs have not demonstrated irreparable harm to warrant the extraordinary exercise of judicial power required for the Court to issue a temporary restraining order," U.S. District Judge James Patrick Hanlon wrote in Thursday's ruling. This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Provost: Purdue will not say how many students hit by visa revocations
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ohio State's University Senate rejects state-mandated ‘intellectual diversity' center
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Typically, establishing a new Ohio State University center would require approval from the University Senate, but the Salmon P. Chase Center for Civics, Culture and Society will open to students next fall despite the Senate voting against it. The Chase Center drew criticism from University Senate members, who voiced concerns about its long-term costs and unorthodox establishment. Senate voted on a measure to establish the Chase Center as a permanent university center with tenure-track professors. The measure failed 64-57 at a Jan. 23 meeting, with four abstaining. University Senate is the governing body for Ohio State, and is composed of students, faculty and staff. Jared Gardner, Ohio State professor and secretary for University Senate, said the center posed an unprecedented challenge from the start. How Ohio State's Ryan Day earned every penny of his annual $12.6 million 'As a rule (and always in my 25 years at the university), new programs are developed by faculty and academic leaders within the university,' Gardner said. 'The Chase Center, on the other hand, had been established by a legislative requirement imposed on the university.' The center was established in 2023 under Senate Bill 117, which was folded into the biennial budget bill. This legally required the university to establish the Salmon P. Chase Center to teach about historical ideas, traditions and texts that have shaped the U.S. in order to further campus 'intellectual diversity.' The bill established similar centers at Miami University, Cleveland State University, the University of Cincinnati and the University of Toledo, and legislators said the goal was to combat 'groupthink' on college campuses. See previous coverage of the bill in the video player above. 'University Senate is an important part of Ohio State's shared governance model, and while we respect the voice of the senate, we are disappointed in the vote,' OSU chief spokesperson Benjamin Johnson said. 'The Chase Center was established in 2023 by the state of Ohio via statute, and Ohio State must develop and operate the center in line with those legal requirements. Ohio State will move forward and structure the center in accordance with the enabling legislation to serve its statutory mission of educating for citizenship.' Bill would restrict minors' use of tanning beds Gardner said the law that established the center did not require any of the traditional senate processes to approve it and said he was grateful the appointed director of the center, Lee Strang, was willing to work with the Senate despite not being obligated to. Now that it was voted down, he said, he could not imagine Strang will be interested in subjecting the center to further Senate approval. The center received $5 million per year from the state for this year and last and will also be supported by student tuition and donor support. According to a recording of the Jan. 23 Senate meeting, senate body members said they must act to make sure the center doesn't divert resources from other campus priorities, especially as it only has two years of confirmed funding from the state. A primary concern is the center's statute-mandated hiring of at least 15 tenure track professors, who will be faculty from varying departments and seniority levels and will be hired over the course of two years. Tenure professors essentially have guaranteed employment through retirement, and senators said they worried these salaries would have to be supplemented by increasing tuition costs or diverting funds from other programs. Some senators worried about a lack of oversight and accountability within the center proposal. Strang, along with future directors, hold full control over the curriculum, courses, degrees and employment within the center, according to the proposal. People protest President Donald Trump, Project 2025 at Ohio Statehouse According to university bylaws, academic center directors should report to the dean, vice president(s) or deans of their relevant colleges. However, the Chase Center director reports directly to the university president and provost. Although the center's proposal includes an oversight committee, the proposal establishes the committee as an advisory board, not an entity to hold the center accountable. 'I believe the state legislature's mandate will harm our campus, and set a dangerous precedent of government overreach in higher education by circumventing the governing structures already in place,' alternate senator Christopher K. said at the Jan. 23 meeting, to applause. 'Here I am taking off my 'Secretary of the Senate' hat and putting on my Professor of early American literature hat,' Gardner said. 'Much will be determined of course by the faculty hired in the next couple of years and the kinds of courses and programs the Chase Center offers.' On Jan. 9, OSU's Association of University Professors also voted against establishing the center. Still, Gardner said, the Board of Trustees' Academic Affairs and Student Life Committee met on Jan. 29 and moved the center forward, and Strang has begun hiring faculty. The center is set to open in fall 2025. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.