Charter-school magnate Vahan H. Gureghian resigns as Penn trustee, accusing leadership of embracing ‘antisemitism’

Charter-school magnate Vahan H. Gureghian announced Saturday that he has resigned as a trustee at the University of Pennsylvania, citing what he called the school leadership’s “broken moral compass.”

The founder and chief executive officer of CSMI Consulting Group, which manages the Chester and Atlantic Community Charter Schools, Gureghian said he could no longer serve as trustee because Penn leaders have refused to disavow their hosting of the controversial Palestine Writes Literature Festival in September.

“Just as at so many other elite academic institutions, the Penn community has been failed by an embrace of antisemitism, a failure to stand for justice, and complete negligence in the defense of our students’ well-being,” Gureghian, a lawyer and entrepreneur, said in a statement. He added: “I was shocked to read of the hate-filled rhetoric being espoused on our campus at an event fully supported by the University.”

Scott Bok, chair of Penn’s Board of Trustees, responded to Gureghian’s departure with a statement of his own. “The University vehemently condemns the atrocious terrorist attacks by Hamas on Israel and unequivocally rejects antisemitism in all forms, everywhere it exists,” he said. “We stand with our Jewish students, faculty, staff, and alumni and with Jewish people all over the world.

“I regret that Mr. Gureghian has made the decision to step down from the Board of Trustees. I look forward to working with a future Trustee appointed by the Commonwealth when they are named.”

The Palestine Writes Literature Festival was held without disruption at Penn on Sept. 22-24, just before the Jewish holy days of Yom Kippur. It was billed as the only North American gathering of “writers, artists, publishers, performers, and scholars to explore the richness and diversity of Palestinian culture.”

But critics said the festival featured speakers with a history of antisemitic remarks, and thousands of alumni and supporters complained before the event in an open online letter to Penn president Liz Magill. “The fact that University of Pennsylvania academic departments are co-sponsoring the festival and its platforming of outright antisemitism without denunciation from the university is unacceptable,“ they said.

Students, others at Penn, and officials at the American Jewish Committee also complained before the festival. Last week, after the attack on Israel by Hamas, Marc Rowan, chair of Wharton’s board of advisers, and others called on Penn supporters to cease donations until Magill and Bok resign.

» READ MORE: Penn donor calls for university leaders to resign over ‘embrace of antisemitism’

Gureghian said in his statement that he had planned on resigning as a trustee earlier last week but hoped that Penn leadership would change his mind at Friday’s trustees meeting. “But I felt no such reassurance,” he said.

In response to the earlier complaints, Magill and other top administrators said in a statement: “We unequivocally — and emphatically — condemn antisemitism as antithetical to our institutional values. As a university, we also fiercely support the free exchange of ideas as central to our educational mission. This includes the expression of views that are controversial and even those that are incompatible with our institutional values.”

Festival organizers and Palestinian and Arab student groups on the Penn campus had defended the event, calling it “an unprecedented cultural festival” and saying: “We hope the university will continue to support all students, including the Palestinian and Arab community, by fostering an environment of understanding and respect that contributes to the vibrant and thriving academic and cultural life at Penn.”

» READ MORE: Penn plans to review policies and training following controversy over Palestine Writes festival

Gureghian, a longtime political player and major contributor in the Philadelphia region, was appointed a Penn trustee by the Pennsylvania General Assembly in 2009. He said on Saturday: “It is time for universities across our nation to reassess the values they demonstrate to the young minds they are shaping. I hold great hope for the future of the University of Pennsylvania, but for that hope to be realized, I believe you must commit to stop harboring haters.”