To punish the University of Pennsylvania for its response to antisemitism, Pennsylvania House Republicans stopped millions of dollars of state funding for the university’s school of veterinary medicine on Wednesday.
Legislation that would provide the UPenn School of Veterinary Medicine with more than $31 million had already been approved by the state Senate — controlled by Republicans — with bipartisan support.
But the bill failed to reach the necessary two-thirds majority in the House required to proceed. Every Democrat voted in favor, while most — but not all — Republicans voted against funding.
“Until more is done at the university in terms of rooting out, calling out and making an official stance on antisemitism being against the values of the university, I cannot in good conscience support this funding,” said State House Republican Minority Leader Bryan Cutler in Harrisburg.
UPenn is a private institution, and does not rely on state funding. However, the University’s veterinarian school — known as Penn Vet — has received state funds for more than 100 years.
Founded in 1884, Penn Vet says it conducts groundbreaking research, provides sophisticated medical treatments for animals “of every size and kind” and trains the next generation of veterinarians.
While initially some state Republicans threatened to pull this funding unless former UPenn President Liz Magill resigned, since her resignation, House Republicans said that’s not enough.
“I understand [President Magill] stepped down, that was what I had asked for,” said Cutler in a press conference ahead of the vote.
“But the fact that she has returned to tenured faculty actually speaks to the fact that it’s a cultural problem. You can rearrange the deck chairs on the Titanic. It’s still got issues. They need to fix it,” Cutler continued.
A spokesperson for Penn Vet told CNN on Thursday the school is “deeply disappointed in last night’s vote.” Penn Vet “is the sole beneficiary of these funds, and the school has continued to fulfill its educational and service missions to the Commonwealth in good faith throughout this six-month impasse, as it has for over 139 years.,” the spokesperson said. “We hope the state House will reconsider this vote when it reconvenes in 2024.”
A spokesperson for the House GOP said now the various caucuses of the state House and Senate will gather to see if a compromise is possible.
Earlier this week, several House GOP members proposed a package of legislation aimed at addressing antisemitism in public education in the Pennsylvania commonwealth.
Last weekend, Magill and Scott Bok, chairman of the UPenn’s board of trustees, announced their resignations amid immense pressure from politicians, donors and business leaders.
This story has been updated with a statement from Penn Vet.
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