After nearly a month of demonstrations, the University of Oregon Palestine Coalition encampment came to an end in late May after an agreement was reached between the Coalition and UO administration.
Six months later, the university has “engaged in a concerted effort to meet the expectations of the decampment agreement,” according to UO spokesperson Eric Howald.
According to Howald, since June, there have been seven meetings with the coalition and seven more with Jewish faculty and students.
“There have been seven meetings since June with the UO Palestine Coalition to discuss the academic elements of [the] agreement and seven meetings with Jewish faculty and students concerned with the agreement,” Howald said.
According to the agreement, an “Ethical, Investment, Purchasing & Contracting” group will be formed with the primary goals to “facilitate open communication,” “engage diverse perspectives” and “education and action.”
Howald also said that the UO Senate Task Force on Ethical, Investment, Purchasing & Contracting has met three times to “understand how the principles of [Environmental, Social, Governance] inform investment and business decisions made by the Oregon Foundation and UO Purchasing & Contracting Services,” Howald said.
Diego Duarte, a member of UO Jewish Voice for Peace and Young Democratic Socialists of America, confirmed that the coalition has met with the task force.
“[We have] been meeting regularly since [the task force] started this term and [the coalition] has had conversations with the head of UO Purchasing and Contracting Service, Greg Schaum, and has a meeting planned with Paul Weinhold, the head of the UO Foundation for early December,” Duarte said.
The agreement also said that the eight-member faculty committee that manages the Global Justice Program would be asked to commit $50,000 each year for the next three years to bring scholars who can “offer courses and enhance programming on Palestine/Israel” to UO.
According to Howald, the Global Justice Program Committee set up a Special Initiative on Constructively Engaging the Conflict and the Pursuit of Peace in Palestine/Israel.
“The committee has approved proposals for visiting scholars who will speak about the current crisis,” Howald said. “There will be a second round of applicants, with another $25,000 in proposals, in January.”
UO is also in communication with Birzeit University in the West Bank “regarding a student exchange program and enrollment in online courses offered there,” according to Howald.
Howald said UO Provost Chris Long has worked with academic units to expand UO’s offerings in Middle East Studies and that the university has been working to ensure that students admitted under the new program for International Students Displaced by Crisis will join UO during the winter term.
According to Dean and Vice Provost of the Division of Global Engagement Dennis Galvan, the university has invited guest speakers over Zoom to speak in classes regarding their specialties and the Israel-Hamas War.
Howald said that the university is “investigating the possibilities for hosting refugee scholars on campus.”
Duarte said that he is “excited by the progress that’s been made on the scholarships [exchange program] for Gazan students.”
“UO in collaboration with Mercy Corps, which is an outside NGO [non-governmental organization], and ourselves have identified several students from Gaza — refugees — some who have escaped to Egypt and some who are still in Gaza who will be coming to the UO and are in the Visa process as we speak,” Duarte said. “We expect them to be here in January.”
