November Council Meeting Coverage
The November 2023 University Council Open Forum meeting took place on Wednesday, November 29 in the Hall of Flags at Houston Hall. At the beginning of the meeting, Penn President Liz Magill acknowledged the shooting of three Palestinian college students in Vermont and reiterating the need for all students on Penn’s campus to feel safe from discrimination and violence. She highlighted the launch of two programs, Conversations for Community and Dinners Across Differences, that will foster dialogue across differences and affirm shared values.
Lizann Boyle Rode, associate vice president in the Office of the University Secretary, addressed topics raised during the new business portion of the October 18 council meeting. She reiterated Penn’s commitment to the safety of all students, staff, and faculty, regardless of background; discussed security measures that have been enacted at Penn’s affinity spaces; and revealed that Penn leadership is in talks with graduate student groups to provide financial support to students whose finances are endangered by current events. She also discussed a meeting that occurred between Penn’s Disabled Coalition and the Office of the University Architect about the accessibility of campus buildings.
Vijay Kumar, the Nemirovsky Family Dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Science, gave the second focus issue presentation of the year, on AI and machine learning. He noted that half of humanities fields and all STEM fields are driven by data, which calls on higher learning institutions like Penn to create a data-driven, AI-enabled, discovery pipeline that unites diverse disciplines. Dean Kumar described PennIDEAS (Innovation in Data Engineering and Science), a Penn Engineering initiative that combines innovations in fields ranging from neurology to biology, physics, and chemistry to solve societal challenges. He emphasized that Penn teaches AI with a focus on fairness, accountability, transparency, and ethics (FATE), and that Penn faculty are working to expand access to AI technology for marginalized groups.
In the open forum portion of the meeting, speakers discussed topics that included:
- Need for University-wide access to menstrual products, which has already been implemented by two Penn schools and several peer institutions
- Concern regarding censorship of pro-Palestine events and rallies on campus and the need for clear guidelines for such events, particularly for students
- Concern regarding having Penn’s positions on issues based on the opinions of donors
- Impact of increasing antisemitic behavior, threats, and violence on Penn’s Jewish community
- Concern about the definition of antisemitism used in President Magill’s messages to the Penn community
- Lack of support for Muslim, Arab, and Palestinian students
- Imbalance in the condemnation of antisemitism and Islamophobia in University communications.
During the new business, speakers called for improved accessibility of buildings on campus, urged Penn to open a more fair and balanced dialogue regarding the Israel/Palestine war and stronger condemnation of Islamophobia, and promoted the upcoming Take Back the Night march.
The next University Council meeting is scheduled for January 31, 2024.
