Students at expensive New York university occupy campus, demand A-grades for everyone
New School students are also demanding no tuition increase until 2028 and that the university president's house becomes "communal property"
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Students at an elite, private university in New York City are occupying a campus building with the demand that all be given A grades.
The original reason for The New School occupation, which began on December 8, was to support striking faculty members who were lobbying for higher wages and better health care.
Though the faculty strike has since been resolved, a letter of demands now calls for A grades for all students. It says in part: "We demand that every student receives a final course grade of A as well as the removal of I/Z grades for the Fall 2022 semester." The letter insisted, "Attendance shall have no bearing on course grade." (According to the New School’s website, an "I" grade is a "temporary incomplete" and a "z" grade is an "unofficial withdrawal.")
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}DUAL 'INFLATION' CRISIS? PROFESSOR WARNS EMBELLISHED GRADES FAILING AMERICA AND ITS STUDENTS
An image of The New School in New York City. (Screenshot/Youtube/Newschool)
The letter also states that occupying students demand a refund "for the loss of instructional time due to the strike" and that "this tuition refund will be proportional to the duration of the semester during which the strike is in effect."
Students are also calling for the resignations of the school’s president, provost, vice president and the disbandment of the Board of Trustees. Other demands include a tuition freeze from 2023 to 2028. As reported by The Daily Caller, students are also demanding for the university president’s house "be treated as a communal property."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Assistant Vice President of Communications and Public Affairs Amy Malsin commented to Fox News Digital on the unfolding situation: "The university supports peaceful free expression by our students, and we are listening closely to all of our students' concerns."
She indicated that "faculty retain autonomy about how to conduct and grade their courses."
There are approximately 10,000 students at New School. Tuition is $26,854 a semester or $51,900 for a full year.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}MOM WHO WANTED BULLYING STATISTICS CHARGED THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS BY SCHOOL
College students sitting at rows of desks in classroom. (Elina Shirazi)
According to The New School’s "about" page, the university is committed to "developing students who will have an impact on the world and address the most pressing social issues of our time."
It adds that "this effort is bolstered by the university’s Office of Equity, Inclusion, and Social Justice, which is committed to fostering an equitable, inclusive, and socially just environment for our community." Social justice battles have become heated at many universities across the country.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A general view of the Times Square in New York City, United States on September 16, 2022. (Photo by Aytac Unal/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
In 2021, a fed-up father pulled his daughter out of Heschel School, an elite New York City private school and moved her to Florida after becoming frustrated with the focus on race-related curriculum. Harvey Goldman told "Fox and Friends First" that "little children don’t need to feel bad about the color of their skin."