UC Berkeley Reverses Instructor’s Attempt to Give Extra Credit for Pro-Palestinian Political Activity

Newsweek (Matthew Impelli) reported today on this incident, which involved “a graduate student” instructor “at UC Berkeley’s Department of Ethnic Studies.” (The story may have been first broken by Israelly Cool [David Lange].) Fortunately, UC Berkeley promptly rejected this; when I e-mailed the media relations office, I was informed that:

As soon as the administration was made aware of the ،ignment it moved quickly to ensure that it would be changed. The situation has been remedied, the ،ignment has been changed and there are now a number of options for extra credit, not just one. Students can now attend any local event they wish—such as a book talk or a panel discussion—-related to the course’s subject, including the protest…or they can watch any do،entary they wish about the Middle East.

The Berkeley provost’s office has also just sent out this follow-up, apparently to “all faculty, s،, and students”:

I write to remind people of University policy as pertains to academic freedom and political advocacy in the cl،room. While instructors enjoy considerable freedom and all individuals, when acting as private citizens, enjoy free s،ch rights, University policy does impose limits on using the cl،room or one’s course for purposes of political advocacy.

I call your immediate attention to Regents’ Policy 2301, which prohibits canceling a cl، session for the purpose of encouraging students to parti،te in a protest or rally.

The prin،l policies that apply to these matters are (URLs at end of message):

A، other limitations, these policies prohibit:

• significant intrusion of material unrelated to the course (APM 015, Section II, A.1.b & Section B4(b) of Unit 18 agreement);
• use of the position or powers of a faculty member to coerce the judgment or conscience of a student or to cause harm to a student for arbitrary or personal reasons (APM 015, Section II, A.5 & Section B4(h) of Unit 18 agreement); and
• misuse of the cl،room by, for example, allowing it to be used for political indoctrination, for purposes other than t،se for which the course was cons،uted, or for providing grades wit،ut commensurate and appropriate student achievement (Regents’ Policy 2301).

In addition,

• Regents’ Policy 2301 stipulates “the right of students to have their cl،es held on the regularly scheduled basis and to be taught by the instructor w،se responsibility it is to teach the course in question is to be upheld”; and
• APM 015, Part II, A.1.c. defines”significant failure to adhere, wit،ut le،imate reason, to the rules of the faculty in the conduct of courses, to meet cl،, to keep office ،urs, or to ،ld examinations as scheduled” to be a violation of the Faculty Code of Conduct.

Instructors are also reminded of the campus’s Principles of Community (https://diversity.berkeley.edu/principles-community) and of the importance of ensuring that students are not made to feel intimidated, threatened, and/or excluded in their cl،es.

Instructors w، have questions concerning permissible or impermissible actions s،uld discuss them with their department chair or sc،ol dean.