Will Lisa Simpson pitch a tent at NYU to protest the Gaza war? How would Principal Skinner react if she did this?
It’s hard to say, but some NYU students facing disciplinary action for their actions during this spring’s pro-Palestinian protests were assigned a 49-page workbook that included an ethical decision-making lesson based on The Simpsons Mods. Some were asked to write an apology “reflection document” and submit it “in 12-point Times New Roman or similar font.”
Like universities across the United States, NYU spent the final weeks of the spring semester marred by protests over Israel’s response to the Oct. 7 Hamas attack.
On April 22, police cleared an encampment on NYU’s Manhattan campus, resulting in the arrest of more than 100 NYU students, and on May 3, about a dozen students were arrested at a smaller encampment.
The academic year at NYU is over, but the university is requiring some student protesters to face disciplinary action, which involves answering questions like “What are your values? Do the decisions you make align with your personal values?” on double-spaced reflective paper.
Others must complete the 49-page “Ethical Integrity Series,” which asks students to rank their values from 1 to 42 and complete tasks such as “Write down how your values affect your daily life and the decisions you make.” homework.
One section is based on an episode of The Simpsons in which Lisa uncharacteristically cheats on a test and is wracked by guilt. Meanwhile, Principal Skinner wants to keep the cheating secret so the school can receive funding. Questions in the ethics workbook include “What could Lisa have done or considered to make a better decision?” and “What are the potential and actual consequences of Principal Skinner’s decision?”
An NYU group called Palestinian Justice Faculty criticized the assignments in a press release.
Sara Pursley, associate professor of Middle Eastern and Islamic studies, noted that students completing reflective essays were told not to attempt to defend their actions or “challenge conduct regulations.”
“Since they cannot write anything to justify their actions, students appear to be prohibited from writing about personal values that might be relevant, such as belief in free speech, duty to oppose genocide, or nonviolent civil disobedience. obligations in certain circumstances,” Pursley said. “That’s quite ironic in an article about integrity.”
NYU spokesman John Beckman said the disciplinary process is intended to be educational.
“The purpose of these articles is to reflect on how the way students express their values impacts other members of the NYU community,” Beckman said. “We think this is a worthy goal.”
He added, “That’s not to say that specific tasks can’t be improved.”
Beckman said faculty in NYU’s Office of Student Conduct will meet in the fall to consider “what can be done to improve the quality of prompts for reflective essays and other education assignments.”
