New referendum asks Brown University undergrads if they lack confidence in school leadership

Brown University’s Undergraduate Council of Students sent out a referendum on Oct. 16 asking students to vote on whether they have faith in the university’s leadership, and whether they believe students should be able to elect student representatives to Brown’s corporate board.

Isaac Slevin, who sits on the Undergraduate Council of Students, or UCS, says the referendum came in response to several decisions made by either the Corporation or administrators that many students did not feel were reflective of student sentiment.

“Students are constantly pushing for things and constantly advocating for ourselves, and the university does not move,” said Slevin.

Last week the Brown Corporation voted not to divest the university’s endowment from companies student activists say facilitate human rights abuses in the Palestinian territories despite student support. A Brown Daily Herald poll taken before the announcement indicated that about 60% of students supported the divestment proposal.

Another poll found that students also disagreed with the board on another recent hot button issue. Although a board committee last spring chose to keep legacy admissions, at least for the time being, the Brown Daily Herald found that about three out of every five students strongly opposed the policy.

A representative for Brown University did not respond to requests for comment on the new referendum.

Spokespeople with two prominent pro-divestment groups on campus, Jews for Ceasefire Now and Brown Divest Coalition, applauded the referendum.

Mica Maltzman, the spokesperson for Jews for Ceasefire Now, said the Corporation is “very removed from Brown and its community in Providence.”

The referendum will be open for a two-week period. The referendum reads: “The undergraduate student body lacks confidence in the leadership of the university by the Brown University Corporation. We demand elected student representation on the Brown Corporation and democratic reform across our institution.”

Students can either select “I support” or “I do not support.” The results of the new referendum are likely to be released by the end of October.

Currently, seniors at Brown, as well as graduate and medical students and recent graduates, can help elect two out of the board’s 42 trustees, but cannot vote for any of its 13 fellows. All new Corporation members need to be approved by its current members to serve on the board. None of the trustees nor fellows are currently enrolled students.

This story is a production of the New England News Collaborative. It was originally published by The Public's Radio.