In a shocking turn of events, University of Pennsylvania President Liz Magill has tendered her resignation following a tumultuous congressional hearing earlier this week.
The hearing, which revolved around the issue of anti-Semitism on Ivy League campuses, saw Magill and two other university presidents refusing to condemn students advocating for the genocide of Jews.
The announcement of Magill's resignation was made by Scott Bok, the Chairman of the UPenn Board of Trustees, in a statement addressed to the "Members of the Penn community." Bok himself resigned shortly after making the announcement, as reported by The Daily Pennsylvanian.
The statement read, "President Liz Magill has voluntarily tendered her resignation as President of the University of Pennsylvania. She will remain a tenured faculty member at Penn Carey Law." It further added, "On behalf of the entire Penn community, I want to thank President Magill for her service to the University as President and wish her well."
The statement also included a personal note from Magill, "It has been my privilege to serve as President of this remarkable institution. It has been an honor to work with our faculty, students, staff, alumni, and community members to advance Penn's vital missions."
Magill's resignation comes in the wake of a grueling interrogation by Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik (NY) during the congressional hearing. The hearing focused on the tolerance of anti-Semitic sentiments by Ivy League Universities following Israel's conflict with Hamas.
Magill, along with MIT President Sally Kornbluth and Harvard President Claudine Gay, refused to categorize calls for the genocide of Jews by students as misconduct. When asked by Rep. Stefanik, "Does calling for the genocide of Jews violate the code of conduct or rules regarding bullying or harassment?" all three presidents responded with, "It depends on the context."
Despite Rep. Stefanik's insistence on a straightforward "yes" or "no" answer, the Ivy League presidents maintained their stance, leading to speculation that their responses were premeditated.
The fallout from their comments was immediate, with major donors withdrawing their support from the universities. This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
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