Harvard has decided not to suspend five anti-Israel student protesters after members of the Faculty Council complained. Giving these students a pass is only going to encourage more of this behavior. That seems obvious to everyone but the administration at Harvard.
From the Harvard Crimson:
Harvard Reverses Decision to Suspend 5 Pro-Palestine Protesters Following Faculty Council AppealThe Harvard College Administrative Board reversed its decision to suspend five students for participating in the pro-Palestine encampment earlier this year after the Faculty Council criticized its handling of the cases.The College informed students on Tuesday of their updated disciplinary charges, which saw the suspensions downgraded to probations of varying lengths, according to a person familiar with the decisions who was granted anonymity to discuss disciplinary matters.The most severe probation charge will last for just one semester, a remarkable change from the initial punishments which required at least one student to withdraw from the College for three semesters. Some students who were initially placed on probation in late May also had the length of their probations reduced.The students faced disciplinary action days before Harvard’s graduation ceremony in late May after College administrators deemed they were active participants in the 20-day pro-Palestine encampment staged in Harvard Yard during the end of the spring semester…Harvard administrators faced intense backlash from students and faculty members for pursuing disciplinary action against the undergraduates, with several prominent professors slamming the charges as overly harsh and unprecedented. More than 1,000 people also staged a walkout during Harvard’s graduation ceremony over the decision to deny diplomas to the 13 seniors.
Meanwhile, in Florida:
From the Washington Free Beacon:
A Tale of Two UniversitiesIt was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness. Take the cases of Cambridge, Mass., and Gainesville, Fla., where university leaders this week charted two different courses in their handling of disciplinary cases stemming from students’ engagement in vicious anti-Israel protests this spring.At the University of Florida, where former GOP senator Ben Sasse assumed the presidency last year, dean of students Chris Summerlin rejected the recommendations of a faculty panel and opted instead to impose harsher sentences on several students arrested in April, one of whom was captured on video spitting on a police officer.Those students are suspended for three or four years, depending on the severity of their infractions. They are banned from campus during that time and will be required to reapply for admission.At Harvard, meanwhile, the school’s administrative board reversed its decision to suspend five students for participating in an unlawful encampment.
The Harvard students who avoided consequences see this as a victory.
The Ivy League schools have allowed this minority of students to almost completely tarnish their reputations. It’s sad.
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