Michael Schill, the President of Northwestern University, announced his resignation yesterday in a notice on his university’s website. Campus Reform had been critical of Schill. It says:
In the statement, Schill claims he’s left Northwestern “on stronger footing” and by reinforcing its “commitment to academic integrity and free expression.” Schill believes that it’s time for Northwestern to acquire new leadership that will be able to better lead it into its “next chapter.”
Zachary Marschall, Editor-in-Chief at Campus Reform, submitted a Title VI complaint against Northwestern in 2023. The Biden administration opened an investigation against the University in January 2024 over failures to protect Jewish students from discrimination based on national origin.
Schill has twice testified before Congress on anti-Semitism, including during a closed-door session in August…Schill also said it would have been too “impractical” to involve Jewish students during talks with pro-Hamas demonstrators.
In spring 2024, Schill’s administration struck a deal with pro-Palestinian demonstrators to end an on-campus encampment.
Northwestern administrators pledged to “support visiting Palestinian faculty and students at risk.” The deal includes funding two Palestinian faculty positions each year for two years and covering the full cost of attendance for five Palestinian undergraduates.
Law professors have argued that the special set-aside for Palestinians is illegal discrimination under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which bans discrimination based on ethnicity, or illegal discrimination based on race in violation of 42 U.S.C. 1981, which bans discrimination in contracts based on race (42 U.S.C. 1981 was enacted at a time when Jews and Arabs were thought of as different races, unlike today, when they are viewed as mostly members of the Caucasian race, see Shaare Tefila Congregation v. Cobb (1987)). Discrimination in favor of a minority group can violate laws like Title VI, as the Supreme Court made clear in Gratz v. Bollinger (2003) and Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard (2023).
Campus Reform adds:
At the time [of the deal with pro-Palestinian demonstrators], the Coalition Against Antisemitism at Northwestern (CAAN) told Campus Reform that “President Schill didn’t consult with parties who would be impacted by his negotiations.”
The university also promised additional facilities, granting “temporary space” for Muslim students and students in the Middle East and North African Studies Program. Administrators further committed to constructing a permanent house to serve those student groups.
In an official statement published by CAAN Thursday evening, the group…blasted Northwestern for downplaying the federal Title VI probe and congressional oversight while pouring money into lobbying instead of fixing the problems. CAAN also insisted Northwestern sever ties with its Qatar campus and void the Deering Meadow Agreement, which it argues enshrined antisemitic concessions into policy.
