Liz Magill Explained

Liz Magill
Office:9th President of the University of Pennsylvania
Term Start:July 1, 2022
Term End:December 12, 2023
Predecessor:Amy Gutmann
Successor:J. Larry Jameson (Interim)
Office1:13th Dean of Stanford Law School
Term Start1:2012
Term End1:2019
Predecessor1:Larry Kramer
Successor1:Jennifer Martínez
Birth Name:Mary Elizabeth Magill
Birth Place:Fargo, North Dakota, U.S.
Father:Frank J. Magill
Education:Yale University (BA)
University of Virginia (JD)

Mary Elizabeth Magill (born 1966) is an American legal scholar and academic administrator. She served as the 9th president of the University of Pennsylvania from 2022 to 2023, executive vice president and provost of the University of Virginia from 2019 to 2022, and dean of Stanford Law School from 2012 to 2019.[1]

Early life and education

A native of Fargo, North Dakota, Magill is the daughter of Frank Magill, a senior United States federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. Her brother, Frank Magill Jr., is a District Judge in Minnesota's Fourth Judicial District.

Magill received a Bachelor of Arts degree in history from Yale University in 1988, where she served as the head of the Yale College Democrats. She received a Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia in 1995.[2]

Career

Legal career (1988–1996)

From 1988 until 1992, Magill worked as a senior legislative assistant for United States Senator Kent Conrad of North Dakota. Following law school, Magill worked as a law clerk for Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit from 1995 until 1996, and then worked as a clerk for United States Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg from 1996 until 1997.[3] She became member of the American Law Institute.[4]

Early academic career (1997–2012)

In 1997, Magill joined the faculty of the University of Virginia School of Law, where she worked for 15 years.[5] A scholar of administrative and constitutional law, she was the Joseph Weintraub–Bank of America Distinguished Professor of Law, the Elizabeth D. and Richard A. Merrill Professor, and from 2009 to 2012, the school’s vice dean.[6]

Senior administrative positions (2012–2022)

From 2012 to 2019, Magill was dean of the law school at Stanford University, where she was also Richard E. Lang Professor of Law.[7] In 2016, she was elected a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.[8]

In 2019 she returned to the University of Virginia, where she served as provost from 2019 to 2022.

University of Pennsylvania (2022–2023)

In July 2022, she became the ninth president of the University of Pennsylvania, joining the university faculty as a Trustees University Professor and Professor of Law at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.

In September 2023, Jewish groups and students expressed concerns about an upcoming on-campus literature festival, Palestine Writes, due to scheduled speakers' past statements regarding Israel and Zionism.[9] Ronald Lauder, president of the World Jewish Congress, urged Magill to cancel the event.[10] Marc Rowan, CEO of Apollo Global Management and chair of UJA-Federation of New York, a Jewish philanthropy, circulated an open letter about the event that garnered over 4,000 signatures. Members of the Penn faculty expressed concern that donors had such a "platform to criticize an event." Magill responded to the controversy, stating:

"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."[11]

Congressional hearing on antisemitism and resignation

Following the October 7 Hamas-led attack on Israel and ensuing war, critics accused Magill of failing adequately to respond to antisemitism on campus.[12] Major donors withdrew financial support for the university and called for Magill to resign.[13] [14] In response, in November she announced a task force and a student advisory group to combat antisemitism.[15]

On December 5, Magill testified in front a Congressional Committee on Education and the Workforce, along with the presidents of MIT, Sally Kornbluth, and Harvard, Claudine Gay, at a hearing about antisemitism on university campuses. The three university presidents were asked whether calls for Jewish genocide would be considered bullying and harassment under campus policies.[16] Magill and the other presidents responded that it would be context-dependent. At one point, she appeared to smirk while testifying.[17] Her reply generated controversy and ridicule on social media.[18] She drew bipartisan criticism for being evasive and seeming to dismiss antisemitism.[19]

The Wharton Board of Advisors called for Magill's resignation.[20] Stone Ridge Asset Management CEO Ross Stevens threatened to rescind shares in his holding group that had been donated to Wharton, at the time worth $100 million, if Magill did not resign.[21]

On December 9, 2023, she announced that she would resign from the presidency. She was succeeded by J. Larry Jameson, who was named interim president on December 12.[22] She remains a tenured professor at Penn Law School.[23] [24]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: MARY ELIZABETH (LIZ) MAGILL . https://web.archive.org/web/20231221023144if_/https://president.upenn.edu/sites/default/files/2022-07/CV-July-2022.pdf . 2023-12-21 . 2023-12-20 . University of Pennsylvania.
  2. Web site: M. Elizabeth Magill . Stanford Law School . February 6, 2013 . January 26, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130126000728/http://www.law.stanford.edu/profile/m-elizabeth-magill . dead .
  3. News: Gilbert. Samantha. Meeting Magill: getting to know the new dean of Stanford Law. March 3, 2017. Stanford Daily. August 16, 2012. March 4, 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170304113644/http://www.stanforddaily.com/2012/08/16/meeting-magill-getting-to-know-the-new-dean-of-stanford-law/. live.
  4. Web site: Institute . The American Law . Members . 2023-12-10 . American Law Institute . en . December 10, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231210020012/https://www.ali.org/members/member/347214/ . live .
  5. Web site: About President Liz Magill Office of the President . 2023-12-10 . president.upenn.edu . January 10, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180110052449/https://president.upenn.edu/meet-president . live .
  6. Web site: July 1, 2022 . M. Elizabeth Magill . July 10, 2022 . . en . July 10, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220710232757/https://www.law.upenn.edu/live/profiles/3655-m-elizabeth-magill . live .
  7. Web site: 13 January 2022 . M. Elizabeth Magill nominated to become president of the University of Pennsylvania . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220113171402/https://penntoday.upenn.edu/news/elizabeth-magill-nominated-president-university-of-pennsylvania . January 13, 2022 . 2022-01-13 . Penn Today . en.
  8. Web site: Dec 2023 . M. Elizabeth Magill . 2023-12-10 . American Academy of Arts & Sciences . en . December 10, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231210015756/https://www.amacad.org/person/m-elizabeth-magill . live .
  9. Web site: Siddiqui . Dedeepya Guthikonda, Elea Castiglione, Imran . Penn president addresses controversy surrounding on-campus Palestinian literature festival . 2023-12-11 . The Daily Pennsylvanian . en-us.
  10. Web site: Belkin . Melissa Korn, Rachel Louise Ensign and Douglas . 2023-12-11 . How Rich Alumni Ousted Penn's President Liz Magill . 2023-12-12 . WSJ . en-US.
  11. Web site: Statement on Palestine Writes Literature Festival Office of the President . 2023-12-12 . president.upenn.edu.
  12. Web site: Schwartz . Brian . 2023-11-02 . Wall Street titans help to fuel Ivy League donor revolt . 2023-11-04 . CNBC . en . November 4, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231104013601/https://www.cnbc.com/2023/11/02/wall-street-titans-help-to-fuel-ivy-league-donor-revolt-.html . live .
  13. Web site: Egan . Matt . 2023-10-12 . Billionaire CEO demands UPenn leaders quit and donations halt over alleged failure to address antisemitism on campus . 2023-11-04 . CNN Business . en . November 4, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231104013601/https://www.cnn.com/2023/10/12/business/upenn-antisemitism-israel-hamas/index.html . live .
  14. Web site: Lonas . Lexi . 2023-10-16 . UPenn loses big donor, board member resigns citing 'antisemitism' . 2023-11-04 . The Hill . en-US . November 4, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231104015103/https://thehill.com/homenews/education/4258709-upenn-loses-big-donor-board-member-resigns-citing-antisemitism/ . live .
  15. Web site: Bunch . Susan Snyder . 2023-12-07 . Penn President Liz Magill faces mounting pressure to resign from Capitol Hill as university backs her . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20231208061139/https://www.inquirer.com/education/university-pennsylvania-elizabeth-magill-testimony-20231207.html . December 8, 2023 . 2023-12-08 . inquirer.com . en.
  16. News: Karni . Annie . December 7, 2023 . Questioning University Presidents on Antisemitism, Stefanik Goes Viral . The New York Times . subscription . December 8, 2023 . December 7, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231207233747/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/07/us/politics/elise-stefanik-antisemitism-congress.html . live .
  17. Web site: Sanders . Josh . 2023-12-09 . Penn student says his "heart dropped" after Magill's comments on antisemitism to Congress - CBS Philadelphia . 2024-06-12 . www.cbsnews.com . en-US.
  18. News: 2023-12-08 . Penn president responds to backlash over testimony on antisemitism . en-US . Washington Post . subscription . 2023-12-08 . 0190-8286 . December 8, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231208053110/https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2023/12/07/liz-magill-university-of-pennsylvania-antisemitism/ . live .
  19. News: Saul . Stephanie . Hartocollis . Anemona . 2023-12-06 . College Presidents Under Fire After Dodging Questions About Antisemitism . 2024-06-12 . The New York Times . en-US . 0362-4331.
  20. Web site: Egan . Matt . 2023-12-07 . Major donor calls on UPenn president to resign, threatens to rescind $100 million in stock . 2023-12-08 . CNN Business . en . December 8, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231208184248/https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/07/business/penn-emergency-meeting-liz-magill/index.html . live .
  21. Web site: Hart . Madeline Berg, Jordan . Wall Street CEO tells Penn president: Resign or I'll pull $100 million . 2023-12-10 . Business Insider . en-US . December 10, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231210062600/https://www.businessinsider.com/ross-stevens-letter-pull-penn-donation-president-2023-12 . live .
  22. Web site: Egan . Matt . 2023-12-12 . UPenn names J. Larry Jameson as its interim president, replacing Liz Magill CNN Business . 2023-12-16 . CNN . en.
  23. News: Mitovich . Jared . Cohen . Molly . Siddiqui . Imran . Desai . Saya . December 9, 2023 . PENN PRESIDENT LIZ MAGILL TO RESIGN . The Daily Pennsylvanian . December 9, 2023 . December 9, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231209214918/https://www.thedp.com/article/2023/12/penn-president-liz-magill-resigns . live .
  24. News: Saul . Stephanie . Blinder . Alan . 2023-12-09 . Penn's President Resigns, After Her Responses About Antisemitism . en-US . The New York Times . 2023-12-09 . 0362-4331 . December 9, 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20231209215313/https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/09/us/university-of-pennsylvania-president-resigns.html . live .

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