Update on Disciplinary Action on Carnegie Hall Incidents

Dear Pomona College community: 

I write to you with an update regarding student conduct decisions related to the takeover and vandalism of the Carnegie Building, home of three departments and programs, classrooms, and faculty and staff offices, on Oct. 7.

As I noted in my  last message to the community, the events at the Carnegie Hall targeted our academic mission, significantly disrupted the educational process of hundreds of Pomona and Claremont Colleges students, and were painful for faculty and staff, especially those who teach and work at Carnegie. 

Several students charged with violations of The Claremont Colleges demonstration policy were placed on interim suspension. In conformity with the authority delegated to the president by the Board of Trustees, the severity of the circumstances, and the sweeping effect on our community, these cases are not subject to discipline by the Judicial Council. As laid out in the Student Code, these cases are following a procedure reserved for events that meet three conditions:

  • they threaten safety of individuals on campus,
  • involve the destruction of College property, and
  • the disruption of Pomona’s educational process.

These actions and events violated the rights of hundreds of students as well as the faculty and staff forced to leave Carnegie, or blocked from their work, classes, study, and research.  

The damage to Carnegie, including to teaching infrastructure, was egregious and is being separately adjudicated; however, the most far-reaching violation of the individuals thus sanctioned by the College was their involvement in the takeover of a building, the forced end of classes and the disruption of our academic mission. This takeover created an environment that was fundamentally dangerous, restricting entrance and exit for Carnegie, and even leading to students leaving the building by the windows.  

As a result of their actions, several students have been fully suspended for the remainder of the 2024-2025 academic year.

Through this disciplinary suspension, students are not eligible to return to Pomona College or participate in any College or TCCS activities or services until the beginning of the fall 2025 semester. Students may ask for this decision to be reviewed. Each of the students involved has received instructions as articulated in the handbook.

This is a decision that the College does not take lightly. We come to teach, study and work at Pomona as members of a passionate intellectual community. However, we cannot move forward, let alone aim to strengthen our community, when safety is at risk and actions lead us away from the foundational value of respect and threaten our ability to be together. 

For non-Pomona College students who have been identified as part of the Carnegie Hall incidents—most of the participants—the College has issued bans from our campus, and we continue to review those cases. In addition, the College continues to investigate the circumstances around the building takeover, and more students will be issued conduct notifications in the coming weeks.

The last months of the year will undoubtedly bring challenges for our campus and our world. But it will also bring opportunities to do what Pomona does best—foster an environment in which students engage deeply and develop the skills to make significant change in the world. Each person in this community plays an important role in making that happen.

 

Sincerely,

Gabi