new york
CNN
—
Twenty months ago, when Liz McGill was hired as the 27th leader of the nearly 300-year-old University of Pennsylvania, she was academic royalty. On Saturday, she resigned in disgrace.
Born into a family of lawyers and judges, McGill spent decades rising to the top ranks of academia. Penn had high hopes for McGill. She’s the president of the University of Virginia, where she previously attended law school. She joined the school’s law school faculty shortly after clerking for former Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Before she served as dean of UVa, she served as dean of the Stanford University School of Law.
Her gold-plated resume got her the job. But that didn’t help her develop the skills she needed to navigate one of the most serious crises on campus in recent memory.
Here are the key moments that led to McGill’s resignation:
McGill’s term ended in September.
The Palestine Writers’ Literary Festival was held on campus from September 22nd to September 24th, but it was controversial even before it began. The festival, which celebrates Palestinian culture, was not a student-led event, but students from UPenn and the Philadelphia area participated in planning and volunteering.
Mr. McGill and Mr. Penn’s leadership faced significant backlash over the guest list from prominent donors and the Anti-Defamation League. Critics said the invited speakers had a history of anti-Semitic comments, a trait acknowledged by university officials but rejected by organizers and attendees.
This festival is not sponsored by the university. The university released a statement before the festival condemning anti-Semitism, but maintained it had a responsibility to maintain the free exchange of ideas on campus.
Donors remained furious. After a few weeks, their smoldering hostility toward McGill and the administration boiled over.
In the wake of Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7, donors slammed McGill and Penn’s leadership. One by one, big donors turned against McGill and demanded he resign.
Mark Rowan, CEO of private equity giant Apollo Global Management, was among the first to call on McGill to resign. Rowan, one of the university’s wealthiest donors, called on other financial backers to refuse to donate to the university.
Rowan claimed at the time that she opposed McGill not because Penn hosted the festival, but because she did not forcefully condemn it.
Penn leaders said on October 12 that they were “devastated by Hamas’ horrific attack on Israel.”
“These heinous attacks have resulted in a tragic loss of life and increased violence and unrest in our region,” McGill and Gov. John Jackson Jr. said in a statement.
McGill, in damage control mode, further distanced Penn from the festival, saying she and the university should have condemned the speaker’s views sooner.
In a separate statement on Oct. 15, McGill said she knew how distressing the “speaker’s presence” on campus was for the Jewish community.
“The university does not and does not endorse these speakers or their views,” McGill said.
But donors deemed McGill’s comments too little, too late.
Former U.S. Ambassador Jon Huntsman and other prominent UPenn donors soon after vowed to close their checkbooks in protest. The school’s other powerful financial backer, billionaire Ronald Lauder, has threatened to do the same if more is not done to combat anti-Semitism.
Amid heightened tensions over Hamas attacks and Israel’s threat of war in Gaza, anti-Semitic incidents have spiked on college campuses in Pennsylvania and across the country.
In late October, McGill issued another statement to calm tensions on campus.
“I categorically condemn hate speech that denigrates others as contrary to our values,” McGill said. “At this tragic moment, we must honor the pain of our classmates and colleagues and recognize that our words and actions harm our communities, and that they have the power to heal. We must choose healing and resist those who seek to divide us, and instead respect and care for one another.”
McGill on Nov. 1 announced an action plan aimed at combating anti-Semitism at UPenn.
But later that week, University of Pennsylvania police and the FBI jointly investigated a series of threatening anti-Semitic emails sent to university employees. Anti-Semitic messages were also written on the building.
McGill said in an email to the university community that some Penn staff members have been “promoting vile and disturbing protests that threaten violence against members of the Jewish community, specifically naming Penn Hillel and Lauder College House.” He said he received “Semitic emails.” McGill said the messages targeted recipients’ personal information.
On November 10, the Brandeis Center, a Jewish civil rights law organization, accused Penn of creating a hostile environment for Jewish students and failing to respond appropriately to harassment of Jews in the United States. filed a civil rights lawsuit with the Department of Education.
“The University of Pennsylvania has allowed its campus to be both a hostile environment for Jewish students and a magnet for anti-Semites,” Brandeis’ complaint said, referring to the larger community surrounding the university. ” he said.
In late November, the House Education and Labor Committee invited McGill and the presidents of MIT and Harvard to testify about the rise in anti-Semitism on their campuses.
Mr. McGill and other school presidents will testify on Dec. 5 to discuss whether calling for the genocide of Jews violates their respective schools’ codes of conduct regarding bullying and harassment, including New York Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik. He faced severe criticism for his answers to the questions.
None of the school leaders explicitly stated that calling for the genocide of Jews necessarily violates the code of conduct. Instead, they explained that it depends on the situation and behavior.
The protests were swift and widespread.
Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro called McGill’s comments “unacceptable” and “shameful” and called a meeting with Penn State’s Board of Trustees to discuss McGill’s testimony as a way to uphold the values of the university and its board. I asked them to discuss whether it represented the
McGill tried Wednesday. clarify her comment. Although she did not apologize, she should have focused on the “irrefutable fact that calls for Jewish genocide are calls for some of the most horrific violence humankind can commit.” she said.
Critics were unmoved. Ross Stevens, CEO of Stoneridge Holdings, a major donor to Mr. Penn, sent a letter to Mr. Penn on Thursday, saying that if Mr. McGill remains president, he will be at the Ivy League school. He threatened to take action that would result in losses of about $100 million. The Wharton Advisory Board, a group of powerful business leaders, called for McGill’s immediate removal.
Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, said the attempt to suppress McGill’s testimony was “like a hostage video, as if she was speaking under duress.” ” and called for his resignation.
On Friday, a bipartisan group of more than 70 members of Congress sent a letter to the trustees of Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and the University of Pennsylvania, calling for the removal of McGill and his colleagues at the two other universities.
McGill remained chairman after the board held an emergency meeting on Thursday.
But she didn’t last long. McGill and board chairman Scott Bok resigned Saturday night.