Dive Brief:
- Syracuse University students holding an 18-day sit-in have ended their protest over university administration decisions.
- Protest organizers said they decided to call it off because it was no longer an effective way to reach the university’s chancellor, so they needed to change tactics, Inside Higher Ed reported.
- The protesters, calling themselves THE General Body, were protesting administration decisions on minority student issues, and mental health and sexual assault victim services, among others.
Dive Insight:
The chancellor, Kent Syverud, appeared to take a hard line last week when he apologized in a campus-wide email for the way that the administration had handled certain decisions, but said it was his final response to the sit-in protesters. The protesters at the time called his statement counterproductive to negotiations. Even though the sit-in is over, student protesters are still pursuing a written commitment from the chancellor to address six issues. Syverud said in a written statement that he is “fully committed to continuing these conversations” with the students in THE General Body.