A Wall Street tycoon on Thursday vowed to withdraw a $100 million donation to the University of Pennsylvania if the Ivy League school does not censure UPenn President Liz Magill following her poor congressional testimony that failed to denounce rampant antisemitism on campus.
Ross Stevens, the boss of Stone Ridge Asset Management, joined a growing group of high-powered donors and angry elected officials — which now includes Keystone State Gov. Josh Shapiro — calling out Magill’s leadership.
The hedge fund titan said he had “clear reasons” to revoke his donation and that law firm Davis Polk had sent a letter to the school stating that.
“Absent a change in leadership and values at Penn in the near future, I plan to cancel Penn’s Stone Ridge stock to avoid any reputational and other damage to Stone Ridge as a result of our relationship with Penn and Liz Magill,” the letter read. letter, obtained by The Post.
“I love Penn and it’s important to me, but our firm’s principles are more important.”
“We cannot comment on the personal decisions of our donors,” a UPenn spokesperson said.
Magill made a poignant apology Wednesday for his refusal to denounce calls for the genocide of Jews on campus in his speech to Congress.
Ross Stevens, the boss of Stone Ridge Asset Management, has joined a growing group of high-powered donors and angry elected officials who are calling out Liz Magill for leadership. UPenn
However, his mea culpa may not be enough.
Earlier Thursday, the school’s Board of Trustees held an informal meeting on Zoom that sources told The Post was monitored by Shapiro’s representative, who has condemned Magill’s testimony as “disgraceful.”
“The Congressional testimony changed everything,” said a source with knowledge of the Board’s thinking.
Shapiro’s proxy said the governor was looking for “action on the part of the board.”
“The Congressional testimony changed everything,” said a source with knowledge of the Board’s thinking. Paola Morrongiello
At the meeting, some trustees said they wanted Magill to step down while others voiced their support for him, sources said.
Scott Bok, chairman of the Board of Trustees, also appears to be under scrutiny with some members encouraging him to resign.
While the board did not make any major decisions during the hours-long deliberations, a decision was made to call another meeting “immediately,” the source added.
“They seem to be moving quickly,” another source said of Board members’ plans to schedule four- to five-hour meetings in the next few days.
Magill apologized Wednesday for his refusal to denounce calls for the genocide of Jews on campus in his address to Congress. Penn/X
There are no board plans for an imminent leadership change,” the UPenn spokesperson said.
A spokesman for Governor Shapiro did not respond to a request for comment.
Pressure on Magill to be pushed out was also fueled by Wharton’s Board of trustees — a group chaired by Apollo CEO Marc Rowan that includes a true business leader.
The group — which includes financier Ronald Perelman, banker Ken Moelis, and billionaire sports team owner Josh Harris — has called for a change in leadership.
Rowan has asked UPenn alumni to “close their checkbooks” following the rise of antisemitism on the school’s campus.
“As confirmed in your congressional testimony (Tuesday), University leadership does not share the values of our Board,” a letter sent to Magill read.
Apollo CEO Marc Rowan has called on UPenn alumni to “close their checkbooks” following the rise of antisemitism on the school’s campus. AFP via Getty Images
“Furthermore, as a result of the faith expressed by the University’s leadership and the collective failure to act, our Board respectfully recommends to you and the Board of Trustees that the University requires new leadership effective immediately.”
The group called for several amendments to the recommended Wharton Code of Conduct to be adopted by Wharton and the University of Pennsylvania that include standards of behavior including demanding that no one use language to incite violence or threaten the safety of other members on campus.
Magill posted a video on the Ivy League website on Wednesday in which he tried to explain his head-scratching testimony by saying he was not “focused” on the issue, and said he wanted to “make it clear” that calls for genocide are “evil . , clear and concise.”
But he also seemed to blame university policy and even the US Constitution for allowing calls to be made on campus.
“There was a moment during yesterday’s Congressional hearing on antisemitism when I was asked whether calling for the genocide of Jews on our campus would violate our policy,” Magill began the two-minute video.
“At that point, I was focused on a long-standing university policy — in line with the US Constitution — that says that speech alone should not be punished.
Shapiro had previously been prompted to consider getting involved, as The Post reported.
Stay On The Money
Essential weekly reading for generating business lunches.
According to esoteric law, if the governor attends a UPenn Board of Trustees meeting, he can conduct the meeting.
David Krone, an Apollo executive who previously served as Chief of Staff to then-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, is a close friend of the Pennsylvania governor, sources said. At the time, Shapiro was considering showing up at the meeting as a card up his sleeve.
Shapiro called Magill after his testimony.
“That was an unacceptable statement from Penn’s president,” Shapiro said. “Frankly, I think his comments are very embarrassing. It should not be difficult to condemn genocide.”
Talk of ousting Magill comes just a month after a failed effort by several trustees on UPenn’s board of directors to hold a no-confidence vote to oust UPenn Chairman Scott Bok.
But the university said in a statement following the event that Magill received a “standing ovation” from trustees after announcing that there was “overwhelming support for the current chair continuing in his role.”
A source close to the situation called the trustees who decided to back Bok “spinless foxes” and “sad”.
The university’s leadership has come under fire for its failure to condemn Hamas attacks and its subsequent inability to protect Jewish students on campus.
Categories: Trending
Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
