A "Whitten Resign" sign at the April 26, 2024, faculty protests. (Devan Ridgway/WTIU News)
In the past month, about half of Bloomington campus schools have voted against university President Pamela Whitten and her administration’s actions against protesters on campus.
Some schools have also held votes for resignations of Whitten, Provost Rahul Shrivastav and Vice Provost for Faculty and Academic Affairs Carrie Docherty.
Many of the school votes include motions to repeal the ad hoc committee that made a last-minute change in Dunn Meadow’s assembly policy that prohibits tents and other materials not pre-approved by the university; and to repeal the campus bans that 57 people received during their arrests.
These votes have been sent to the Board of Trustees. The board announced Friday that it will meet in an executive session Tuesday, May 14. This additional meeting was called, according to the Open Door policy, for “discussion of strategy with respect to…initiation of litigation or litigation that is either pending or has been threatened specifically in writing.”
This meeting will most likely discuss IU’s pending case with three people who were arrested in Dunn Meadow. They are suing under the umbrella of the Indiana division of the American Civil Liberties Union.
Read more: ACLU sues IU on prior restraint allegations
May 15 is the 19th day of the Dunn Meadow encampments. Protesters say they plan to continue through the summer. About 50 people marched through campus and Kirkwood Avenue May 7.
These school votes do not guarantee change in administrative leadership, but they signal broad faculty opinion.
Read more: Protesters host 'alternative commencement' in Dunn Meadow
College of Arts and Sciences
The College of Arts and Sciences passed three resolutions; 911 out of 1209 faculty participated.
Resolution 1: We call for the Board of Trustees to repeal the new policy governing the use of Dunn Meadow, adopted by the ad hoc committee on April 24, 2024.
Yes: 839 (92.1%), No: 38 (4.2%), Abstain: 34 (3.7%)
Resolution 2: We call for the Board of Trustees to immediately repeal the campus bans imposed on students, faculty, staff, and community members who have been arrested for violating this policy.
Yes: 851 (93.4%), No: 35 (3.8%), Abstain: 25 (2.7%)
Resolution 3: We call for the Board of Trustees to terminate the employment of President Whitten and Provost Shrivastav based on the vote of no confidence and their handling of events in Dunn Meadow.
Yes: 783 (86.0%), No: 54 (5.9%), Abstain: 73 (8.0%)
Read more: College of Arts and Sciences faculty call on trustees for Whitten's removal
Forty-one faculty in the History Department held an additional vote. They also contributed to the total college vote.
The History Department faculty is deeply alarmed by recent events. After secretly changing policy overnight about the use of Dunn Meadow, for 55 years an established free-speech zone, President Whitten and Provost Shrivastav brought State Police armed with military-grade weapons onto campus on April 25 and April 27. The State Police needlessly and violently arrested peacefully protesting, unarmed students and faculty. It is impossible for any university to operate under the eyes of snipers. The President and Provost have repeatedly justified their actions on the basis of ensuring “safety” for our community. But students, staff, and faculty are now less safe than ever.
- The History Department faculty demands that the new policy about the use of Dunn Meadow adopted by the “ad hoc committee” on April 24, 2024, be withdrawn immediately.
Yes: 39 (95.1%), No: 1 (2.4%), Abstain 1 (2.4%)
- The History Department faculty demands that all campus bans for students, staff & faculty protesting in Dunn Meadow be rescinded immediately.
Yes: 40 (97.6%), No: 1 (2.4%), Abstain 0 (0%)
- The History Department faculty demands that the President and Provost demilitarize Dunn Meadow and allow it to immediately resume its function as a free-speech zone.
Yes: 40 (97.6%), No: 1 (2.4%), Abstain 0 (0%)
- The History Department faculty demands that President Whitten and Provost Shrivastav resign their positions immediately.
Yes: 35 (85.4%), No: 4 (9.8%), Abstain 2 (4.9%)
Eskenazi School of Art, Architecture, and Design
The Eskenazi School has not made a public statement, but some faculty have been active in protests.
The school previously spoke against the university’s cancellation of Palestinian artist Samia Halaby.
Read more: Eskenazi School reputation is damaged after IU cancels Palestinian artist, letter says
Kelley School of Business
The Kelley Academic Council passed four resolutions May 4.
In response to campus events over the past weeks, your elected faculty representatives on the Bloomington Faculty Council and the Kelley Academic Council held a vote this week. Faculty voted on the following four resolutions. The results are indicated below each:
Resolution 1: We call for the Board of Trustees to repeal the new policy governing the use of Dunn Meadow, adopted by the ad hoc committee on April 24, 2024.
Yes: 238 (81.2%), No: 39 (13.1%), Abstain: 17 (5.7%)
Resolution 2: We call for the Board of Trustees to immediately repeal the campus bans imposed on students, faculty, staff, and community members who have been arrested for violating this policy.
Yes: 240 (81.5%), No: 32 (10.9%), Abstain: 22 (7.6%)
Resolution 3: We call for the Board of Trustees to terminate any administrative appointment of Provost Shrivastav based on the vote of no confidence and his handling of events in Dunn Meadow.
Yes: 215 (72.8%), No: 40 (14.4%), Abstain: 39 (12.9%)
Resolution 4: We call for the Board of Trustees to terminate any administrative appointment of President Whitten based on the vote of no confidence and her handling of events in Dunn Meadow.
Yes: 227 (77.1%), No: 32 (11.1%), Abstain: 35 (11.9%)
School of Education
The School of Education faculty passed two resolutions May 2. The school’s faculty directory lists 123 faculty. These votes include 89% of the faculty.
In the vote to repeal the ad hoc committee policy: Yes: 94 (85.4%), No: 7 (6.4%), Abstain: 9 (8.2%)
In the vote to repeal the campus bans: Yes: 105 (85.4%), No: 3 (2.7%), Abstain: 2 (1.8%)
Additionally, 92 faculty (74.8% of total faculty) passed an additional resolution a few days later.
In light of vote of no confidence and handling of Dunn Meadow protest, call on trustees to terminate employment of President Whitten and Provost Shrivastav.
Yes: 78 (84.8%), No: 7 (7.6%), Abstain: 7 (7.6%)
Luddy School of Informatics, Computing, and Engineering
Faculty in the Luddy School of Informatics, 105 of the 276 listed faculty, passed the following resolutions:
- Repeal the ad hoc committee policy: Yes: 97 (92.3%), No: 6 (5.7%), Abstain: 2 (1.9%)
- Immediate resignation of Whitten and Shrivastav: Yes: 76 (72.4%), No: 11 (10.5%), Abstain: 18 (17.1%)
The Media School
The Media School sent an open letter, signed by most of the Media School faculty, to the university administration.
Read the full letter: Local organizations and officials weigh in on protests on IU campus
Jacobs School of Music
The following are the three resolutions from the Jacob’s School of Music Council session. Votes came from 124 of the 163 eligible faculty, or 76%.
The Jacobs School faculty recommends that the new policy about the use of Dunn Meadow adopted by the new 'ad hoc committee' on Wed 4.24.24 be withdrawn immediately.
Yes: 108 (87%), No: 6 (4.9%), Abstain: 10 (8.1%)
The Jacobs School faculty requests that all students, staff & faculty who were banned from IU property for violating the new policy adopted by the “ad hoc committee” on 4.24.24 be allowed back on campus immediately.
Yes: 112 (90.3%), No: 7 (5.6%), Abstain: 5 (4%)
The Jacobs School faculty further call for the immediate resignations of President Pamela Whiten and Provost Rahul Shrivastav.
Yes: 92 (74.2%), No: 11 (8.9%), Abstain: 21 (16.9%)
O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs
The O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs passed two resolutions.
In the vote to withdraw the ad hoc policy: Yes: 56 (93.3%), No: 1 (1.6%), Abstain, 3 (5%)
In the vote to repeal campus bans: Yes: 45 (83.3%), No: 3 (5.6%), Abstain: 6 (11.1%)
School of Social Work
The IU School of Social Work faculty senate unanimously passed a resolution affirming free speech, denouncing "violent action by police with military gear," and demanding repeal of campus bans and reversal of Dunn Meadow policy changes.
The IUSSW Faculty Senate Statement Regarding the Recent Events at Indiana University
Passed Unanimously by the Indiana University School of Social Work Faculty Senate May 1, 2024
The Indiana University School of Social Work faculty affirm academic freedom and the freedom of speech and protest for students, staff, faculty, and community members. That Indiana University met free speech and peaceful protest with violent action by police wearing military gear is unacceptable. The use of violence traumatized our students and faculty and only taught that disagreement leads to fear, repression, and marginalization. The armed police presence on the roof of the Memorial Union also risked their lives, as the history of our neighbor, Kent State University (May 4, 1970), has taught us.
IUSSW faculty fully embrace our Palestinian, Israeli, and interfaith students and colleagues and mourn the losses of all of those affected by war and senseless death and destruction. We acknowledge the pains of the current conflict and the turmoil it has caused. We aim for a campus free of Islamophobia, antisemitism, and all forms of hate speech. And we further respect the diversity of views such a situation engenders. Divergent views and healthy, nonviolent debate are core aspects of democracy and how we demonstrate respect for the humanity of all affected persons.
We are a global village and value justice, inclusion, and peace. We implore IU leadership to value peaceful resolution and de-escalation of conflictual concerns rather than taking violent action. Arresting students, faculty, and staff who were not violent or preventing or blocking university business is unconscionable. We are even further alarmed by the clear disparities in police actions toward minoritized students. The individual and collective trauma endured by our students, faculty, and staff over the past week will have long-lasting repercussions.
Educators seek to teach social justice, social responsibility, respect for human and civil rights, and the necessity of protecting the dignity of all persons through compassion, love, and service. Yet, teaching requires leading by example. We cannot teach core social values when our university administration’s actions directly contradict such lessons.
We call on the IU administration to allow all sanctioned students, faculty, and staff to return to campus without the necessity of appeal. They should not be punished because of an overreaction by the university and the police. The IUSSW faculty recommend that the new policy about the use of Dunn Meadow adopted by the new “ad hoc committee” on Wed April 24, 2024, be withdrawn immediately. We demand that the IU administration treat students, staff, and faculty who protest on campus with respect and dignity. Let us de-escalate our current climate of violence with a plan to come together for justice, inclusion, peace, and the right to education. Let us be leaders for good, not for oppression.
In addition to these schools, the IUB Faculty Council also called for Whitten’s administration to end.
The IU Library faculty passed a vote calling for the immediate resignations of Whitten and Shrivastav: Yes: 73 (89%), No: 2 (2.4%), Abstain: 7 (8.5%)
Vice Provost for Faculty and Academic Affairs Carrie Docherty emailed a statement May 2. Docherty has been criticized for her role in the suspension of professor Abdulkader Sinno.
(Story continues below)
Whitten and Shrivastav issued a statement April 26.
Dear Faculty Colleagues,
Since October 7th, we have successfully hosted dozens of rallies, protests and educational dialogues concerning highly controversial and deeply personal opinions regarding the events in the Middle East. Today there was a protest in Dunn Meadow that required us to balance our commitment to free speech activities with the need to ensure safety and security for our campus community.
As an institution that vigorously upholds free speech, we actively protect the free and civil exchange of ideas, including peaceful protest, as many participated in today.
Yesterday we became aware that a student group had announced a planned rally in Dunn Meadow with internal and external groups seeking to occupy the university space indefinitely through erection of tents and stockpiling of provisions for multiple days. In reviewing guidance from a 1969 Board of Trustees policy, there was a provision that stated that tents would need to be removed at 11 pm in compliance with university policy that prohibits overnight campus ground occupation. This same policy includes a clear provision that the provost can pull together an ad hoc committee at any time to address specific changes that may be needed to the policy. Last night, the provost charged this committee to make recommendations that would best enable us to balance free speech and safety in the context of similar protests occurring nationally. The committee affirmed the right of peaceful protest, with the additional recommendation that temporary or permanent installation of structures in Dunn Meadow (including, but not limited to posters, tents, etc.) at any time must be approved in advance by the university and, if approved, adhere to the guidelines provided by the university.
The change was posted online and at Dunn Meadow this morning, and participants were told repeatedly that they were free to stay and protest, but that any tent would need to be dismantled. Given the expectation of a high number of external participants, Indiana State Police was brought in as a law enforcement partner. Once prohibited structures were removed, the protests continued peacefully and, in fact, are continuing at the time of this writing.
As we watched similar events unfold on numerous campuses around the country and prepared for today’s rally, we thoughtfully considered the best course of action for IU with the safety of our community being foundational to our decision. We know that not all will agree with the course of action, but this was made through careful deliberation. Our university must create space for meaningful dialogue, while ensuring that our campus is safe and welcoming to all, and that peaceful protest, as many experienced today, symbolizes our steadfastness to the free expression of ideas.
