Afternoon Update: Harvard to refrain from statements on public-policy issues

Illinois bill targets legacy admission; San Jose State professor suspended; Trump says he'd deport protesters; layoffs at two more colleges; and more. ADVERTISEMENT [Afternoon Update Logo]( You can also [read this newsletter on the web](. Or, if you no longer want to receive this newsletter, [unsubscribe](. SAYING NOTHING [Harvard Will Refrain From Controversial Statements About Public-Policy Issues]( Amid controversy over the Gaza war that [partly cost]( the university’s president [her job]( Harvard adopted a faculty-led panel’s recommendation to not “issue official statements about public matters that do not directly affect the university’s core function.” The [policy]( [controversial]( but [common]( on campus, covers trustees, administrators, deans, chairs, and faculty councils. (The Harvard Crimson, The Chronicle) ADVERTISEMENT THE REVIEW [The Antisemitism Hearings Are Getting Boring]( By Len Gutkin [STORY IMAGE]( Plus: On “speaking as an X.” RACE ON CAMPUS [HBCUs Protest Middle East War]( By Fernanda Zamudio-Suarez [STORY IMAGE]( Texas college leaders testify about work to ban DEI; tracking diversity on U.S. college campuses; and more. NEWLY UPDATED [Tracking Higher Ed’s Dismantling of DEI]( By Erin Gretzinger and Maggie Hicks [STORY IMAGE]( We have updated our database of ways colleges are dropping their diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts to include Jacksonville State University, in Alabama, and the University of North Carolina system. ADMISSIONS [Illinois Bill Targets ‘Legacy’ Admissions at Public Colleges and Universities]( The measure, which has passed the legislature and tracks [similar bills]( in [other states]( would prohibit the institutions from admitting students based on their family relationship with graduates or donors. The bill, which now heads to the governor’s desk, follows a [series of scandals]( over the last 15 years involving [preferential treatment]( of [well-connected applicants](. (Capitol News, The Chronicle) CAMPUS UNREST I [San Jose State U. Suspends Professor Over Conduct During Pro-Palestinian Protests]( Sang Hea Kil, a justice-studies professor and faculty adviser to Students for Justice in Palestine, was suspended on Friday for violating SJSU policies and the collective-bargaining agreement. Kil, who spoke out on an [earlier controversy]( was cited for disrupting programs and “unprofessional and exploitative conduct” toward students, among other things. (San Francisco Chronicle, The Chronicle) CAMPUS UNREST II [College Suspends Security Officer Who Told Protester, ‘I Support Killing All You Guys’]( The unnamed campus-safety officer at the College of Staten Island, part of the City University of New York, was caught on video cursing at pro-Palestinian protesters during a graduation ceremony last Thursday. (Associated Press) CAMPUS UNREST III [Trump Told Donors He Would Crush Pro-Palestinian Protests and Deport Demonstrators]( The former president said this month that he would deport campus protesters from the United States, according to participants at the fund-raising event. “Any student that protests, I throw them out of the country. You know, there are a lot of foreign students. As soon as they hear that, they’re going to behave,” he said. He also praised police crackdowns on protests. (The Washington Post) CAMPUS CUTS I [Cambridge College Lays Off 50 Employees Amid Merger With Bay Path U.]( The layoffs, of both faculty and staff full-time employees, follow the [merger of the two Massachusetts-based institutions]( which offer career-focused education for nontraditional-age students. Some full-timers and all part-time faculty members are transitioning to Bay Path. (The Republican) CAMPUS CUTS II [St. Catherine U. Eliminates 11 Staff Jobs as It Grapples With Deficits]( The Roman Catholic university for women in Minnesota also said several faculty members had retired or left for other jobs, implying they were not replaced. The institution has faced annual deficits in recent years because of declining enrollment and tuition revenue. (Higher Ed Dive) UPCOMING PROGRAM [The Chronicle's Strategic-Leadership Program for Department Chairs | June 2024] [Join us in June]( for a professional development program tailored to the needs of department chairs. 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