An Update on our Approach to Protests and Demonstrations

Dear fellow members of the Columbia community:

Two weeks ago, I wrote to all of you to affirm our mission and our values and lay out my priorities for the coming academic year. I said I would continue to share new developments on those priorities as often as I could. We have already announced a new Office of Institutional Equity and launched the Campus Climate Collaborative, both of which will add to our ongoing efforts to build and sustain a community at Columbia where everyone can thrive. Today, I would like to focus on our approach to protests and demonstrations, which is an essential part of how we advance our educational and research mission, safeguard free expression and open debate, and ensure a safe, respectful campus environment for our community.

I would like to make it clear, up front, that I support the right to free expression at Columbia. I believe deeply in the values of free speech, open inquiry, and rigorous debate. But those rights cannot come at the expense of the rights of others to live, work, and learn here, free from discrimination and harassment. Our rules have been devised with this balance in mind, and we are committed to applying them fairly and to responding to issues in the moment with thought and care. We are also committed to evolving our approach over time as we learn and develop as a community.

As many of you know, under our system of shared governance, Columbia relies on the University Rules of Conduct to “guarantee a wide latitude in the free expression of opinion in protests and demonstrations, as long as these do not substantially disrupt the University’s academic activities.” I am grateful to the University Senate and its Rules of University Conduct Committee for their efforts. I encourage everyone to visit their website for updated information and answers to frequently asked questions, including how to report alleged Rules violations, policies on encampments, and the obligation to unmask and identify oneself when appropriately asked.

It is the responsibility of our administration to make sure these rules are implemented thoughtfully, fairly, and efficiently. The implementation process includes multiple components including disseminating information about the Guidelines and the Rules, ensuring delegate and public safety resources are available as needed, and supporting the Senate and the University Judiciary Board in effective, equitable, and timely disciplinary processes. Today, I want to share updates on three key components of that process:

• I am delighted to announce that Gregory Wawro, Professor of Political Science, has accepted the position of Rules Administrator. The Rules Administrator has overall responsibility for administering the Rules. Professor Wawro will be overseeing an expanded and redesigned Rules Administrator team to ensure that adequate resources are provided to this important function. Greg is a highly respected faculty member and former chair of the Political Science Department in the Arts and Sciences with over two decades of experience at Columbia and a deep commitment to our mission and our future. I could not be more grateful to him for stepping up to serve the University and its community at this time.
• Melanie Bernitz, our new Interim Executive Vice President for University Life, and her team, are expanding and training the delegate pool that plays such an important role in implementing the Rules at the time of protests or other events. University delegates support the University’s commitment to freedom of expression while identifying potential violations to the Rules of University Conduct.
• Based upon feedback from the listening sessions conducted by the Inclusive Public Safety Advisory Committee, I have asked the Public Safety leadership to advance our efforts to create a multi-disciplinary team of professionals who can support our campus. These next steps will enable us to expand the capabilities of our public safety team as suggested by many members of our community. Perhaps most importantly, the sessions emphasized the critical importance of ongoing feedback and evaluation of our public safety efforts. Please continue to share your thoughts with us at the Inclusive Public Safety Advisory Committee website.

Consistent and effective implementation of our rules requires a rigorous framework for how we respond to any situation where concerns arise about the impact of an event on our academic mission or the safety of our community. We have looked to the best practices from decision sciences and social sciences to guide us in a framework for assessment, decision-making, and response that enables an integrated approach to applying our values, rules, and policies to our operations and communications.

Using this framework, we have brought together cross-functional working groups to assist with assessment and implementation. These groups are critical for grounding our response in the lived experience on our campuses and will be adapted and expanded as needed. Working groups inform our dynamic assessment effort that examines the potential impact of any event on our academic—teaching, learning, and research—mission, the physical safety of our community members, and our surrounding neighborhoods. Our processes are committed to a thoughtful consideration of a range of judicious and careful approaches for managing response according to our values and mission. We will continue to refine this framework and processes as we move forward by learning from each experience, engagement with our faculty, students and staff, and approaches used by peer institutions.

Over the last few days, I have seen the University come alive with new and returning students and faculty, alongside the staff who make it all possible. The energy and engagement as I walk around campus is such a great reminder of how we all come together to build the campus community that every Columbian deserves. This includes supporting the Rules of University Conduct that serve our mission to teach, create, and advance knowledge and the values that underpin it. I look forward to working with all of you on these next steps.

All my best,

Katrina A. Armstrong
Interim President
Columbia University in the City of New York