Faculty Vote Approves Honor Code Changes, President Iuliano Addresses Federal Policy Changes at 2/20 Faculty Meeting
Pennsylvania Hall pictured on Aug. 21, 2024. (Vincent DiFonzo/The Gettysburgian)
By Vincent DiFonzo, Editor-in-Chief
The faculty voted to approve two proposed motions to amend the honor code, and the administration spoke on the College’s response to ongoing federal policy changes during Thursday’s faculty meeting.
The meeting began as President Bob Iuliano spoke on the College’s response to ongoing federal law changes regarding higher education under the new Trump administration, which he called “significant and unusual.”
Iuliano shared that he spent much of last week in Washington D.C., in which he was “learning more about the policy changes and taking opportunities to make sure [the College’s] voice is being heard.”
Iuliano also addressed a letter released on Friday night by the Department of Education. This letter, which discusses race-conscious admissions in higher education, was sent to hundreds of schools nationwide.
Craig Trainor, Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights at the Department of Education, penned the letter. He wrote, “In recent years, American educational institutions have discriminated against students on the basis of race, including white and Asian students, many of whom come from disadvantaged backgrounds and low-income families. These institutions’ embrace of pervasive and repugnant race-based preferences and other forms of racial discrimination have emanated throughout every facet of academia.”
The letter attacks diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and denies the existence of “systemic and structural racism” in the United States.
“Proponents of these discriminatory practices have attempted to further justify them — particularly during the last four years — under the banner of ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ (‘DEI’), smuggling racial stereotypes and explicit race-consciousness into everyday training, programming, and discipline,” wrote Trainor. “But under any banner, discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin is, has been, and will continue to be illegal.”
The letter states the Department of Education’s intention to “take appropriate measures to assess compliance,” threatening to withhold federal funding to universities that do not comply.
Addressing the letter, which he characterized as “sweeping in its scope and unusually sharp in its tone,” Iuliano said that it represents the Department of Education’s interpretation of the law and does not represent the law itself.
“Now, as you would expect, the College takes very seriously its obligation to adhere to the many laws that apply to us,” said Iuliano. “But, and this is important and the [letter] acknowledges it directly, the [letter] is not law. It is an agency’s interpretation of the law, or a statement by an agency of what it hopes the law might be.”
Next, Iuliano acknowledged multiple ongoing lawsuits against the federal government’s actions regarding higher education. He shared that the American Council on Education, an organization that Iuliano is a board member of, is suing the government.
Because of the large number of policy changes and challenges to those changes, Iuliano stated that the College must be patient in determining how these laws will affect Gettysburg College.
“We will go slowly before responding to these changes by issuing broad public statements, by adopting new policies or changing existing policies. Too much is unknown; too much is unsettled at this time,” said Iuliano.
He encouraged faculty to keep teaching as normal.
“My strong advice is to stay the course. You are experts in your disciplines. Continue to teach your courses in the ways you believe the material should best be taught and studied,” said Iuliano.
Concluding his remarks, Iuliano stated the College “will be guided by our long standing values and commitments” in responding to changes in Washington.
“During this period of time, I will continue to work closely with our higher education associations, our legal counsel and our board of trustees to make sure we are understanding, assessing and seeking again to have our voice heard and influence federal policy,” said Iuliano.
Provost Jamila Bookwala spoke next, announcing faculty accomplishments. She first shared the appointment of four endowed chairs:
- Professor Timothy Shannon in history will be the new Edwin T. and Cynthia Shearer Johnson Distinguished Teaching Professor in the Humanities.
- Professor Florence Ramond Jurney in French will be the new Kermit O. Paxton and Renee A. Paxton Endowed Teaching Chair.
- Professor Ryan Kerny in biology will be the new Harold G. Evans Chair of Eisenhower Leadership Studies.
- Professor Rud Platt in environmental studies will be the new George E. Thompson Jr. Professor in Environmental Studies
Additionally, Bookwala announced that professor Henning Wrage in German studies will serve as a new faculty director for the Gettysburg in Germany program, located in Bonn. Wrage will lead students to Bonn for the spring 2026 semester, while professor Kevin Wilson in psychology will lead students to Bonn in spring 2027.
The meeting then shifted to the faculty vote on proposed honor code changes, which were presented by the Honor Commission and debated at the last faculty meeting.
The first motion regarded AI, making professors responsible for stating their AI policy in their course syllabi. The motion passed by a vote of 102-3, with one abstention.
The next motion regarded proctoring of exams, allowing professors to determine their own proctoring policy. The motion passed by a vote of 98-8, with three absenations.
In order for the honor code to be changed, the motions must now pass the Student Senate. The proposals are scheduled to be discussed at the Senate’s meeting this Monday at 7 p.m.
Lastly, chemistry professor and chair of the Faculty Personnel Committee Luke Thompson spoke on a proposed change to allow lecturers to be promoted to senior lecturer.
Thompson explained why they are considering the change: “We have a number of lecturers on campus, 13 or 14 of them if my memory serves me correctly, and the issue at hand is that none of them have gone up for promotion to senior lecturer, largely because they process did not exist for them to go through that promotion. So we’re here today — [the committee] wanted to create a process for that.”
After a short discussion, the meeting was adjourned. The Faculty Personnel Committee proposal will be voted on at the next faculty meeting scheduled for March 6.
