June 10, 2024
Dear Members of Our Campus Community,
This has been a difficult year for our campus. Everyone in our community has been deeply distressed by the violence in Israel and Gaza and the devastating loss of Israeli and Palestinian lives. Our principles of community have been strained. Throughout these months we have tried to maintain a balance between the rights of the community to pursue our educational mission and the rights of protesters to engage in free speech.
This morning, a small group of unidentified individuals entered Girvetz Hall, intimidated custodial staff and ordered them to leave, restricted access to classrooms, and prevented final exams scheduled for that building from taking place. We cannot tolerate activity that interferes with access to buildings, and students’ ability to complete their courses, fulfill their requirements, and graduate. Students, faculty, and staff must have full access to the campus and all facilities.
We are working with instructors to relocate or reschedule finals that were supposed to take place in Girvetz, and we will share updates with the campus. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Henry T. Yang
Chancellor
David Marshall
Executive Vice Chancellor
Margaret Klawunn
Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs
Jeffrey Stewart
Interim Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion