University President Michael Schill told freshmen and transfer students to “embrace unconventional views and respect difference” in his New Student Convocation address Wednesday, September 18.
Students donned their class T-shirts and coalesced in the bleachers of Martin Stadium for the sunny afternoon during Wildcat Welcome, a weeklong orientation intended to prepare them for their first classes at NU.
Schill said students are responsible for connecting with people of different perspectives and backgrounds to build an environment that values “robust discussion and debate.”
“Just because you have the right to say something doesn’t mean you should,” he said. “We all have a responsibility to think about the effect of our speech on others.”
Schill directed students to review NU’s updated policies on demonstration and discrimination, saying previous rules were “insufficient to meet the moment.”
Most notably, the University’s revised demonstration policy bars overnight demonstrations. Another new policy outlines restrictions for public displays, formalizing several rule changes announced in April.
While Schill reemphasized the importance of free expression and condemned “speech that impedes or is intended to prevent others’ participation,” he did not directly reference last spring’s pro-Palestinian encampment at Deering Meadow.
Schill also encouraged students to seek both academic and emotional support from peers, faculty and staff. He called on students to join extracurricular activities and challenge themselves intellectually by taking classes in unfamiliar subjects.
“The point is to develop breadth and depth, qualities that enable you to lead fulfilling lives in an ever-changing world,” Schill said.
Weinberg freshman Lana Alnajm said she hopes to see Schill fostering more direct dialogue with students of different backgrounds.
She said these dialogues are necessary for the University to recognize the perspectives of historically marginalized groups.
“I feel like the administration, especially nowadays — they put certain priorities or their donors over their students,” she said.
After Schill’s speech, Provost Kathleen Hagerty addressed the students, as did Associated Student Government co-Presidents Caleb Snead and Ty’Shea Woods.
Woods spoke about her journey ascending to campus leadership roles as a Black, first-generation and lower-income student, while Snead reiterated the abundance of support students could find from their classmates, ASG and University staff.
Earlier in the morning, students had walked through Weber Arch before arriving at Deering Meadow. There, Lesley-Ann Brown-Henderson, assistant vice president and chief of staff for student affairs, and Susan Davis, vice president of student affairs, offered them advice for their time at NU.
Brown-Henderson asked students to recite four messages aloud: “We will ask and receive,” “we will embrace our dwelling places,” “we will go far together” and “we will grow.”
Weinberg freshman Elina Zhang said she appreciated the affirmations, especially the one about asking for help.
“Listening to these speeches, they echoed what I’m feeling right now,” she said. “Some of the worries I have coming into college as a new student, but it made me feel really supported.”
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Related Stories:
— What to know about Northwestern’s new demonstration policies
— Northwestern rolls out new demonstration, discrimination policies
— Schill announces efforts to fight antisemitism, Islamophobia at NU
