Emory University’s Faculty Senate passed a resolution on Oct. 22 requesting that the University release a report by the law firm Jones Day to the University Senate by Nov. 15. The resolution was introduced by University Senate President-elect and Philosophy Department Chair Noëlle McAfee, and the Senate passed it with a voice vote. The report is an investigation into Emory’s response to the April protests on campus, according to University President Gregory Fenves.
“Shortly after the termination of protests this past spring, the president and the administration alerted the University that they would have an independent and external review of all events and decisions on and after April 25, 2024,” the resolution states.
Fenves first announced plans of a review in a message sent on April 29.
At a Sept. 24 Senate meeting, Fenves said the Office of General Counsel, which provides legal representation to Emory, directed the review of the University’s actions. He added that the University contracted Richard Deane Jr., a lawyer at Jones Day, to write the report.
Attendees at the September meeting questioned Fenves about why the administration would not make the Jones Day report public. Fenves did not specify a reason but said that the administration was following the process of the investigation.
The Jones Day report informed the administration’s time, place and manner restrictions on open expression, according to Fenves. In August, Emory codified the Respect for Open Expression Policy with restrictions on student demonstrations.
“The actions that I’ve taken and others are informed by many factors we’ve learned through the review, such as the limitations on time, place and manner,” Fenves said.
The Senate’s passing of the resolution comes a month after McAfee initially introduced the resolution during the September Senate meeting. She withdrew it after some members raised concern about the fact that McAfee introduced the resolution the same day the Senate was made aware of the Jones Day report, not giving the Senate sufficient time to review it.
After passing the resolution, the Senate amended the resolution to request that the report be redacted to omit any personal information of those interviewed in the report.
Assistant Vice President of University Communications Laura Diamond said in an email to the Wheel that the University will review the Senate’s request once it is received.
Correction (10/23/2024 at 12:20 p.m.): A previous version of this article incorrectly stated that the first time University President Gregory Fenves first announced plans of the review on May 6. In fact, Fenves announced the review in a message on April 29.
