500 signatures reached
To: University of Pennsylvania President J. Larry Jameson and the Board of Trustees
Penn: Reject the federal government’s political control
UPDATE: On April 13, 2026, the University of Pennsylvania appealed a federal court ruling ordering the university to comply with an EEOC subpoena seeking identifying information about Jewish employees and Jewish-affiliated campus communities. Penn argued that forced compliance would cause “irreparable harm” because of the privacy and First Amendment rights at stake.
Good news! Public pressure works! In a court filing on July 23, 2026, the EEOC dropped their subpoena demands and Penn dropped its appeal. This agreement came after deep backlash from the Penn community and elsewhere.
While Penn stood strongly to protect private information from the EEOC, Penn has been trying to push through a troubling new "open expression" policy under the radar.
This past spring, the office of Penn’s Provost proposed new open expression guidelines. A brief comment period generated widespread criticism. In June, the Faculty Senate Executive Committee voted to reject these draft guidelines because they unduly constrain speech and other acts of open expression, including spontaneous assemblies and social media posts. These draft guidelines also radically shift authority toward the Provost’s Office—enabling Penn administrators to greatly restrict students, faculty, and staff speech it dislikes. It is not clear when Penn plans to finalize new open expression rules, but it could be as early as September. We need to keep raising our voices to protect rights on campus.
You can stand up for academic freedom and true open expression at Penn. Please sign and share this petition now with Penn alumni, faculty, staff, students, and allies who believe the university must stand firm against federal overreach and protect the people, values, and freedoms that make Penn exceptional.
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To: University of Pennsylvania President J. Larry Jameson and the Board of Trustees
To: University of Pennsylvania President J. Larry Jameson and the Board of Trustees
We are Penn Quaker Courage, a coalition of Penn alumni, faculty, students, and supporters from different generations, disciplines, and viewpoints standing up for academic freedom and institutional independence. This community is united by our beliefs in intellectual honesty, respect for differences, and the freedom to express all viewpoints through robust discussion.
These values face an unprecedented assault from the federal government. Among its many attacks, the Trump administration has demanded that Penn:
- Turn over lists of Jewish faculty, staff, and students with their personal information
- Institute admissions practices that discriminate against international students
- Report on students’ and faculty’s ideological affiliations and statements
- Quash student protests and police professors’ personal political statements
- Expose academic departments to federal interference
- Publicly undermine legal protections for marginalized Penn communities, including transgender students
These attacks are not going away. Penn’s actions now are critical.
We applaud Penn’s leadership for taking a brave and defiant stance in defense of the Penn Jewish community in court, and for rejecting Trump’s Compact for Higher Education. Now it’s time to strengthen that resolve.
Academic freedom is central to the identity of Penn, an institution built on the vision of Benjamin Franklin. We call on the University of Pennsylvania administration to do the following:
- Re-commit to academic freedom in admissions and employment, curricular and departmental independence, research, and intellectual debate
- Defend students’ and faculty's speech, protest, and privacy rights
- Protect safety of immigrant and international students, faculty, and staff
- Reinstate eliminated DEI programs
- Reject any future demands, agreements, or “offers” from the Administration or other political actors that would violate the above commitments
We recognize defiance risks retaliation, including canceled grants and research contracts. We believe this coercion itself threatens our constitutional principles. We know capitulation compromises Penn’s founding principles and the quality of its education.
Penn can turn these challenges into an opportunity—to assert its leadership in the national conversations about scientific independence, academic diversity, and freedom of thought.
Why is this important?
The Trump Administration is trying to place the University of Pennsylvania and colleges across the country under its political control. Join with Penn Quaker Courage to tell President J Larry Jameson and Penn’s Board of Trustees to protect Penn’s academic freedom and independence from the federal government.
Please sign and share this petition link with University of Pennsylvania alumni, faculty, staff, students, allies, and anyone else you think will add their name now to stand up for campus freedom.