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We . Pollack-Pelzner whose case has become a cause celebre among American academics did not agree to speak with the NAACP for its investigation, and the report does not substantively address his termination or his allegations, relying instead on the independent investigation that could not substantiate them. gave support to his account of racial bias, releasing a report that praised Dr. Daviss leadership and said he had been subjected to unfair personal attacks because of his race. Linfield University announced Tuesday that the chair of its Board of Trustees, David Baca, has stepped down from the leadership post after four years, including a tumultuous last several months at the private college in McMinnville. "After 13 years on the Board and four years as chair, Dave decided it was in Linfield's best interest that he step down and allow new leaders to come to the forefront," Scott Nelson, university spokesman, told The Oregonian. The State College of Florida Bradenton requested a traveling art exhibition to remove pieces with the words diversity, inclusion, justice, and equality. All Ive been trying to do for the last two years is to get Linfield leadership to follow its own policies. Elan Ganeles, American killed in West Bank attack, remembered for his wit and friendship, As Orthodox Union and other Jewish groups condemn settler rampage, many avoid mentioning Benjamin Netanyahu, Planned Day of Hate against Jews passes by with packed synagogues and no violence, Red Sox exec Chaim Bloom says hes received antisemitism over teams woes, Jewish comedian Modi Rosenfeld says he still has plenty of Orthodox fans after opening up about being gay, ESPNs Jeff Passan opens up on his Hebrew school upbringing, interviewing Sandy Koufax and Jewish baseball history. Throughout a controversy that has resulted in two separate no-confidence votes, Davis and the board that supports him have behaved like petty tyrants, altering the colleges governance structure, suspending mass faculty emails, and insisting that all broad correspondence be vetted by the vice president of finance and administration. An open letter signed by more than 1,800 professors says that Linfield denied Pollack-Pelzner due process. The Rent Zestimate for this home is $3,499/mo, which has decreased by $500/mo in the last 30 days. Editors Note: This story has been updated to include information about investigations of sexual harassment at Linfield, based on summaries provided to OPB after the story originally published. And as for whether this handbook had been approved by Linfields administration? But affording a faculty member some kind of process before imposing any disciplinary action Davis wants? How Oregon researchers are testing 3D printing to reconstruct bone. David Baca, longtime chair of Linfield University's Board of Trustees, said this week that he's stepping down. Sign up to get important news and culture from around the Northwest, delivered to your inbox six days a week. Linfield has fired Pollack-Pelzner both as a punishment for his publicly holding the University responsible and as a warning to every other member of the faculty, the letter says. How Oregon researchers are testing 3D printing to reconstruct bone. Linfield University President Miles K. Davis on Friday rebuffed calls to resign and defended this week's abrupt firing of an English professor who criticized him. Linfield University is affiliated with American Baptist Churches, USA. Instead, he said, it was the result of Pollack-Pelzners having made a number of statements that were blatantly false. The example he cited is the professors stating, in a recent email to Linfield faculty members, that Jubb, the former trustee, faced eight felony counts. By submitting the above I agree to the privacy policy and terms of use of JTA.org. Why didnt his obituaries say so? Pollack-Pelzner and two other professors accused Davis of making antisemitic comments about Jewish noses and the Holocaust, but Davis denied the allegations. In another incident, Dr. Friedman reported that Dr. Davis had come up from behind her after a panel discussion in 2018 and had rubbed his hands up and down her arms while whispering that he was looking forward to meeting her later, she said. In addition, the schools president, Miles K. Davis, told the Chronicle of Higher Education that he had in fact made a comment about the size of Jewish noses to Daniel Pollack-Pelzner, the professor who was fired this week. Linfield has extensive and robust programs to educate and train students, faculty and staff on matters of discrimination, sexual harassment and misconduct, and intolerance, Davis wrote. Tenure is not at-will employment and the university promises procedural protections to its faculty. (Linfield students, on the other hand, are subject to the noblesse oblige and whims of Davis: The student handbook has a get-out-of-policy-free card for Davis, granting him the prerogative of total authority to act without consultation with any other person or conduct board to suspend or expel any student that Davis feels is acting contrary and dangerous to the university. reporting from Linfields student newspaper The Linfield Review. Portland Campus 2900 NE 132nd Ave Portland, Oregon 97230 971-369-4100. eCampus Online and Continuing Education (OCE) Online degrees and certificates 503-883-2200 Link to home page . She was 87. I dont know how anybody could feel safe in this environment., Linfield University Fires Professor Who Spoke Out About Misconduct Cases, https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/01/us/Linfield-university-professor-fired.html. Pollack-Pelzner, an English literature professor who had tenure, was fired Tuesday after he and others publicly accused Linfield President Miles K. Davis of making multiple antisemitic comments, including about Jewish noses as well as the Holocaust. Please enter your email address. Colleen Flaherty April 19, 2021 (Daniel Pollack-Pelzner/Twitter) ( JTA) In the latest developments in an ongoing controversy at Linfield University over the firing of a tenured Jewish professor who accused the school of antisemitism, a report from the. Baca has been on the board for13 years. But Davis should resign for firing Pollack-Pelzner, allegedly for cause. Linfields administration does not get to pick and choose between the policies it has and the policies it wishes it had. It is a small institution with an enrollment of 340 undergraduate students. This is purportedly an example as Linfield said in response to media inquiries of the conduct that is harmful to the university that necessitated Pollack-Pelzners immediate termination, but its not clear what the universitys interest is at all. The FIRE Legal Network is a nationwide group of attorneys to whom we refer cases when counsel is necessary and the matter at issue falls outside the scope of FIREs mission or ability to assist. We've also seen the firings of two faculty members at Collin College for criticizing their administration about their COVID-19 reopening plans, . It is exciting to be part of Linfield during this time of evolution and progress, and I look forward to working with faculty, staff, administration and the Linfield community as we design and begin our new strategic planning process, Carmody said in a statement. Linfield President Miles Davis said in a responding letter that the professors tweets were part of a smear campaign against university administration. In doing so, it said, he was insubordinate and interfered with the universitys administration of its responsibilities.. Dismissal for cause must not be used to restrain faculty members in their exercise of academic freedom or other rights of [an] American citizen. Dismissal for cause must be preceded by, among other things, a statement of charges and a hearing. During the hearing process, the faculty member may not be suspended, much less fired, unless immediate harm to the faculty member or others is threatened by continuance.. While I did not witness any untoward behavior as alleged, I regret that Mr. Jubb was allowed to be in the same setting with a student, Baca wrote. His termination, the letter says, threatens to set a precedent that will eviscerate the foundational principles of both free speech and of faculty governance on university campuses., Miles K. Davis, Linfield University's president, denies saying anything antisemitic. ( JTA) Linfield University, a small school in Oregon, has fired a Jewish professor who accused the university president of making antisemitic remarks. And theres been a total lack of accountability on the part of the school to take responsibility for whats happened and to engage in an honest conversation.. The Pacific Northwest chapter of the Anti-Defamation League wrote a letter to Linfield Universitys Board of Trustees on Thursday expressing disappointment and concern over claims of antisemitism chronicled in a professors social media posts. But then theres also, maybe, a reaction to who is bringing the change., Dr. Davis said he was particularly stung by the claims of anti-Semitism, calling it the thing that bothers me the most. Last year, he denied making the remark about Jewish noses, and an investigator hired by the university called it a he said, he said situation that could not be substantiated. Recently, two psychology professors, Tanya Tompkins and Jennifer Linder, said that Dr. Davis had made a comment about the Holocaust during a department meeting in 2018. 13 among all public universities in the United States by Niche, a research company that produces an annual Liked by Kendra (Preugschat) Hill Davis, meanwhile, appears astounded at the very notion of due process: As for whether there should have been a period during which Pollack-Pelzner would have had a chance to respond to the charges against him, Davis replied with an analogy. He said racial bias might be a factor in the accusations. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Advance Local. Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression. (JTA) In the latest developments in an ongoing controversy at Linfield University over the firing of a tenured Jewish professor who accused the school of antisemitism, a report from the local branch of the NAACP found that the Oregon schools president was subjected to racism at the school. With Linfield . In an effort to squelch criticism, the colleges administrators caught the attention of major defenders of academic freedom, as well as the Anti-Defamation League. A lawyer hired by the university substantiated Dr. Friedmans claim that Dr. Davis had put his hands on her arms but found that the conduct had not violated Linfields anti-harassment and sexual harassment policy. WiMSE Partners to Help Invisible Homeless - January 26, 2023. In interviews this week, Dr. Davis and the board chairman, David Baca, denied any wrongdoing. Pioneer Hall on the Linfield University campus in McMinnville, Ore. Further, the Oregon Board of Rabbis also called for the resignation of President Davis without talking with him or conducting an investigation of any kind.. In a statement, the university said Dr. Pollack-Pelzner had been fired for cause., He has engaged in conduct that is harmful to the university; deliberately violated instructions to preserve the attorney-client privilege, and deliberately circulated false statements about the university, its employees and its board and refused to comply with university policies, the statement said. In an interview on Thursday, Dr. Davis said that while he doesnt recall the comments he made that day, he doesnt use the phrase anymore and added, Im sorry if I said something that offended them at that time.. Some professors may be uncomfortable with the changes he has made as the universitys first Black president, he said. Reportedly, campus security had entered faculty offices and removed posters in support of Pollack-Pelzner.. About a month after his widely shared Twitter thread, Pollack-Pelzner was let go so abruptly that he learned of it only when he was locked out of Linfields email system. Sign up to get important news and culture from around the Northwest, delivered to your inbox six days a week. Some have called for the universitys president to resign. (JTA) In the latest developments in an ongoing controversy at Linfield University over the firing of a tenured Jewish professor who accused the school of anti-Semitism, a report from the. Several professors have of late used mass emails or publicly criticized the university for what they describe as Linfields poor handling of several sexual misconduct complaints involving members of the Board of Trustees. Dr. Bull served in numerous capacities and was a leader in opening new career paths for women in the corporate and educational fields. The boards executive committee has repeatedly expressed its confidence in Davis and Baca, and the board is poised to vote at its next meeting to eliminate the voting faculty trustee seat and add nonvoting faculty members. Mr. Bacas open letter also took aim at Dr. Pollack-Pelzner, saying it is shameful that a faculty trustee has spread misinformation about the sexual misconduct cases. According to the summary of the independent investigation of that report, which was provided to OPB, Davis had approached the faculty member from behind, and rubbed his hands up and down the professors arms while saying he looked forward to a scheduled meeting. It becomes an echo chamber that I have to spend my time defending, as opposed to looking at the scope of my lifes work, he said. When asked whether the faculty-handbook procedures had been followed in Pollack-Pelzners firing, Davis said that the handbook had not been updated and that there are a number of things in that handbook that are not valid. The handbook says Fall 2020" on its title page, and the most recent update was in January of this year. Richard Belzer was a Jewish comedian. Davis told the Chronicle of Higher Education that the schools faculty handbook had not been updated and said a number of things in that handbook that are not valid. He added that Our legal representation feels very comfortable with the basis for his termination.. Its just devastating, Dr. Pollack-Pelzner said, adding that he had spoken publicly in his capacity as a faculty trustee who had received complaints from students and colleagues. The Oregonian/OregonLive generally doesnt identify alleged victims of sexual abuse but Motis said she wanted to be named after filing a lawsuit against the school. ", executive assistant to Susan Agre-Kippenhan, Linfield University: Tenured Professor Terminated Without Due Process for Criticizing University, Stanford professors stand up for free speech culture with petition to end bias reporting system, FIRE reminds Supreme Court the First Amendment is top dog, REPORT: Faculty members more likely to self-censor today than during McCarthy era, FIRE, NCAC object after State College of Florida censors art exhibit, Nobody said defending free speech was easy, Penn Law dean asks for major sanction against professor Amy Wax, creating tenure threat for all Penn faculty, AAUP censures Linfield University for blatant academic freedom violations, Fired for criticizing his administration and discussing racism, Indiana professor sues, FIRE, PEN America, condemn new rule forcing some Mississippi universities to consider collegiality in tenure review. The firing of a tenured professor at Linfield University in Oregon without a hearing has sparked a controversy involving allegations of anti-Semitism, racism, and claims that sexual. In February 2019 after a faculty-trustee dinner, Jubb is accused of sexually abusing student-trustee AnnaMarie Motis as the two waited for a ride in the lobby of Michelbook Country Club and then at a McMinnville bar where trustees had gone for after-dinner drinks. Community Rules apply to all content you upload or otherwise submit to this site. [11] Davis invited the NAACP to investigate whether he was subject to racist treatment after he was accused both of antisemitism as well as sexual assault. The Zestimate for this Townhouse is $559,300, which has decreased by $54,929 in the last 30 days.The Rent Zestimate for this Townhouse is $3,499/mo, which has decreased by $247/mo in the last 30 days. But the committee disclosed that a faculty member in February accused one trustee of inappropriate touching of the shoulder and another trustee of inappropriate touching of the leg. The committee didnt name the trustees and said an outside investigator is looking into the complaint. Until then, the self-inflicted damage to Linfields reputation will continue to flow. 2023 jewish telegraphic agency all rights reserved. Use of and/or registration on any portion of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement, Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your Privacy Choices and Rights (each updated 1/26/2023). Do these folks really think theyre going to win a social media war against Generation Z?, Trey PetersonWood, a recent Linfield graduate, said Monday that the more Linfield attempts to censor and silence advocates for accountability, the more damage they are causing to this great institution that has the potential to be a leader in the age of what oppressors call cancel culture, but in reality, its the age of accountability.. Most important, you should know that Professor Pollack-Pelzner has been engaged in a smear campaign toward me and the administration at Linfield University, Davis wrote. Linfield has pushed back on this criticism, saying it investigated the most recent complaints in question and no university policies were found to have been violated. Welcome to Linfield University Discover a community where acceptance is an unbreakable promise and being uncommon is the norm. One of those reports included former board member David Jubb, who was indicted last year on eight counts seven counts of third-degree sexual abuse and one count of first-degree sexual abuse. Oscar Isaac and Rachel Brosnahan are reviving it. 21,741 followers. Faculty members within Linfield's College of Arts and Sciences Monday passed a resolution signifying no confidence in the university president and board chair, calling for their resignations. In a June 17, 2019, email to board members, Baca wrote that Jubb, 71, had advised him he was resigning due to health concerns. Baca cited Jubbs valuable service to the board and the College and urged gratitude for his positive contributions.. Lost your password? Condemnation from parents, alumni and a national educational organization followed almost immediately after Linfield University fired tenured English professor Daniel Pollack-Pelzner in a rare. Police, security agencies advise Jews to be on alert ahead of planned National Day of Hate on Shabbat, American citizen killed in latest West Bank shooting amid escalating violence, This Orthodox Jewish model made history at New York Fashion Week. Linfield University locations: McMinnville Campus 900 SE Baker Street McMinnville, Oregon 97128 503-883-2200. That is our challenge and our charge.. You are now subscribed to FIRE Updates. The refusal to take this action, and the defiant tone within these messages about the possibility of even considering such a step, perpetuates an image of Linfield as an organization that is not adequately addressing sexual misconduct allegations, Miller wrote. This shouldnt be hard to understand. The Chronicle conducted interviews with Linfields dissembling leadership as they frantically grasp for any credible explanation for why they terminated a tenured faculty member with no process a severance so quick that the professor learned of his termination because he got an auto-response from his own email address explaining that Daniel Pollack-Pelzner is no longer an employee of Linfield University.. He said that as an African-American man, he understands the need for education, training and community engagement on matters of discrimination and intolerance.. He told the Chronicle that his comment had been informed by his time in the Middle East. 2022 Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression Pioneer Hall is seen through the signature oak trees at Linfield College in McMinnville, Ore., Tuesday, May 21, 2019. One faculty trustee also accused board members of anti-Semitism, and the arts and sciences faculty voted overwhelmingly that it has no confidence in President Miles Davis or David Baca, board chair. There is a jury trial scheduled for that case in November. It . But its logic more closely resembles spammy Internet advertising than a coherent application of law or policy: Tenured Faculty Members Hate This One Weird Trick! Linfields trustees failed see that deeply held resistance to Black leadership and culture fueled the ferocity of resistance to organization change, the report said. FIREs award-winning Newsdesk covers the free speech news you need to stay informed. Last week Linfield professor and faculty trustee Daniel Pollack-Pelzner tweeted that he faced antisemitic comments after he reported that multiple members of the universitys Board of Trustees had been accused of sexual misconduct by students and faculty over the past year. 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