Northwestern’s Faculty Senate voted to sign an amended version of the Mutual Defense Compact signed by faculty senates at several Big Ten Academic Alliance universities at its meeting Wednesday evening.
First adopted at Rutgers University March 28, the compact calls for Big Ten universities to form a legal defense fund to support any university in the alliance that faces threats from the federal government.
The compact is a statement acknowledging the Trump administration’s efforts to leverage financial and political power to control and weaken academic institutions nationwide. These efforts have included dismantling the Department of Education and freezing funding for at least seven universities nationwide, including NU.
The faculty governing body discussed the value of endorsing the compact, ultimately voting to amend the Rutgers document to call on the university president to formally establish a Mutual Academic Defense Compact among all Big Ten Academic Alliance institutions with the goal of protecting “academic freedom, institutional autonomy and the integrity of the research enterprise against unlawful legal, financial and governmental interference.”
SESP Prof. Danny M. Cohen said his opinion on the matter shifted from not seeing the point in statements like the Rutgers compact to feeling strongly that faculty need to make it clear that they stand in support of pushing back on federal demands.
“If we’re silent, we give up our power,” Cohen said.
Molecular biosciences Prof. Greg Beitel said he also changed his position on the issue since the last Senate meeting. After observing how Columbia University capitulated to federal demands, Beitel said he no longer believes academic institutions should negotiate.
Though NU has not been officially notified about the funding freeze, the Department of Defense has issued about 100 stop work orders in addition to at least 51 grant terminations.
“If we don’t do any kind of offense, we’re just going to get crushed silently,” Beitel said. “Either we burn the endowment, or we lay people off, and neither of those are good alternatives.”
Beitel also urged the Senate to formally endorse a letter to the Board of Trustees calling on university administrators to pursue legal action against federal overreach.
Several faculty members echoed Beitel’s message and argued that symbols, even when lacking immediate enforcement mechanisms, matter in shaping public perception.
However, not all faculty members were aligned on this strategy. While support for the message of unity for academic freedom in the compact was strong, some had concerns about the logistics of the compact.
“The clauses seem to me to be problematic, to the point where it’s making empty promises to people in dire situations,” political science Prof. and Faculty Senate President-elect Ian Hurd said.
Art and art history Prof. Rebecca Zorach said it was important for the Faculty Senate to sign the compact because it symbolizes a united front against federal pressure.
She said the point of both the compact and the letter is to ensure faculty support for institutional resistance to government interference.
“I think that making statements of content, even if, to some degree, they end up being purely symbolic, I think it does actually matter,” Zorach said. “Symbols matter.”
The next Faculty Senate meeting will take place at Scott Hall on June 4.
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