Statement by Chancellor Reyes to UMass Dissenters, SJP, FJP and Prison Abolition Collective

TO: UMass Dissenters, UMass SJP, UMass FJP, Prison Abolition Collective

FROM:  Javier A. Reyes, Chancellor

DATE: April 25, 2024

RE: Response to Public Meeting Objectives

I want to start by acknowledging your response to my office on April 23 clarifying your proposals. 

The University of Massachusetts Amherst has a commitment to social justice and a long tradition of activism — activism that has been front and center on our campus this past year. 

I recognize that each of us is driven by deeply held beliefs, and that at times those beliefs conflict with those of our friends, our colleagues, and even the university itself. It is your right (and our responsibility to protect your right) to question the systems around you, to seek change in the world, and to dissent.

We hoped — and repeatedly offered — to work collaboratively with your organizations to develop the framework and agenda for a meeting with me and my senior leadership team. Our goal in doing so was to lay the groundwork for a constructive exchange of ideas that would lead to greater understanding. Unfortunately, we have been unable to reach consensus on even the format of that meeting.

One of our greatest responsibilities at UMass Amherst is to share and advance knowledge, and in that light, I want to provide a substantive response to your proposals so that you have the full context of how our policies are informed by our values. These are complicated issues, and members of our campus community, including many of your fellow students and colleagues, may disagree with your proposals. I hope this letter forms a foundation for shared understanding.

Student Consultation and Shared Governance

Broadly, you ask that the university provide a platform for sharing input on UMass Amherst’s operations. 

As you may know, the University of Massachusetts is guided by the Trustee Policy on University Governance, commonly known as the Wellman Document. Under this model, campus governing bodies, including the Student Government Association, Faculty Senate, and the Graduate Student Government, are consulted and “shall have the privilege of recommending policies and procedures affecting the campus as the University as a whole.” We take this obligation to consult with governing bodies seriously.

While you have made a series of proposals reflecting the point of view of your organizations, and while we are always open to hearing the diverse viewpoints of our campus community, we remain committed to working with duly elected campus governing bodies who are charged with representing the campus as a whole. We are also mindful of the fact that not all of the student organizations that have signed your most recent letter are recognized as registered student organizations (RSOs) by the Student Government Association. 

University Partnerships

As a public, land-grant university, UMass Amherst is dedicated to advancing knowledge and opportunity in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the world through teaching, research, and service. In accordance with this mission, UMass Amherst maintains numerous partnerships with entities including, but not limited to, educational institutions, non-governmental organizations, and private industry.

These partnerships, whether they are manifested through internships, recruitment events, or collaborative research, provide our students and faculty with the widest possible range of opportunities to engage in research, scholarship, and employment that align with their individual personal and professional values.

As you yourself have noted, a significant number of students have chosen to explore defense-aligned career paths in research, engineering, and management. These companies also have a large portfolio of non-defense work, including decarbonization, civil aviation, and more. 

It is up to each student to make their own choice to engage or not engage with an employer; it is not the role of the university to make that choice on their behalf. Therefore, the university will not take actions that limit opportunities for its students and faculty. To do so would be counter to our core values.

The university, as a public institution constitutionally bound by the First Amendment, is, and will remain, content-neutral on which companies may join career fairs or host informational recruiting sessions so long as they meet our non-discrimination and recruiting guidelines. For these reasons, the university does not support your call for disassociating with industry partners.

Recently, you also wrote that “The UMass Endowment – Our Tuition Money – is hidden from us. We have no clue where our tuition money is invested.” I would like to clarify that none of your tuition money is invested in the endowment; your tuition only funds the annual operations of the university. 

You shared that you wish to increase the number of employers visiting campus dedicated to a “demilitarized and sustainable future.” If there are specific employers you would like to build engagement with at the university, please let us know so that we can connect with them and share information about on-campus recruiting. 

Academic Boycotts

The university’s stance in opposition to academic boycotts and the BDS movement more broadly remains unchanged. UMass fundamentally opposes academic boycotts of any kind. Such actions are antithetical to the concept of academic freedom and inhibit the free flow of ideas that is essential to fostering greater understanding among peoples. 

Rejecting Hatred

You also ask that I, and the university, “reject hatred and discrimination on campus and support Palestinian, Arab, Muslim, and Jewish students.” Members of my administration and I have made our stance clear, publicly and repeatedly — we stand against all forms of hate and will provide support to every student no matter their background or beliefs. Any form of discrimination in our community is unacceptable and against both our values and our policies. 

One way in which we aim to advance dignity and build understanding in our diverse community is the Community, Democracy, and Dialogue (CDD) initiative. The initiative was launched to help our community navigate complex, challenging, and controversial subjects. I hope you will engage in this shared work.

Student Conduct

You ask that UMass “drop the charges” for students who were arrested in October of 2023. I find it important, again, to recognize that the students were not arrested or sanctioned for exercising their right to demonstrate. They were arrested for refusing a lawful order to vacate a closed building. 

The Code of Student Conduct outlines the procedures for sanction appeals. Any appeals, like the initial conduct cases themselves, will be handled in a content-neutral manner aligned with our policies and practice.

I want to reaffirm my commitment to leading and supporting a campus dedicated to advancing justice and equity. I also want to reaffirm our commitment to free expression in all forms; as a public institution guided by our values and bound by the First Amendment, UMass firmly believes that challenging ideas should be explored and debated within a space of civility and inclusion. 

As outlined in our Picketing Code, while every student has the right to free expression, that right does not extend to behavior that, “for any reason of time, place, or type of behavior materially disrupts class work or other university business, or involves substantial disorder or invasion of the rights of others.” This policy, like the Land Use Policy, ensures our community can foster mutual respect and expression of divergent views under the protection of the First Amendment. These policies, by necessity, are blind to politics or beliefs — they protect all equally. 

There may be some among your organizations who may feel these policies have been used to censor you; it is the opposite. These policies have been used, repeatedly, to defend your rights to free expression and deny calls to censor your protected speech. 

In that spirit, I hope we can continue to model civil discourse for a world all too familiar with louder, less nuanced, and less effective means of persuasion. 

Javier Reyes
Chancellor