APPROVED AS TO FORM AND LEGALITY
_________________________
CITY ATTORNEY’S OFFICE
OAKLAND CITY COUNCIL
RESOLUTION NO. _______________ C.M.S.
INTRODUCED BY VICE MAYOR KAPLAN & COUNCIL PRO TEMPORE SHENG THAO
RESOLUTION CELEBRATING THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF MILLS
COLLEGE TO THE CITY OF OAKLAND AND BEYOND, AND
CALLING ON THE CALIFORNIA JOINT LEGISLATIVE AUDIT
COMMITTEE AND THE STATE AUDITOR’S OFFICE TO CONDUCT
AN INDEPENDENT INVESTIGATION INTO THE CIRCUMSTANCES
OF THE SALE OF MILLS COLLEGE TO NORTHEASTERN
UNIVERSITY
WHEREAS, since its opening in 1872, Mills College - the oldest undergraduate college for women in the West – has empowered women and removed barriers to women’s advancement and opportunity; and
WHEREAS, Mills College, located in East Oakland, is an integral part of the city’s culture and its student body is reflective of the region’s diversity. Within the 2021-2022 Mills student population, about 44% are first-generation undergraduate students and about 66% of undergraduate students are students of color; and
WHEREAS, a provenance of women’s rights, Mills College was the first women’s college to offer a computer science major in 1974, and in 2014, Mills was the first women’s to openly welcome transgender students; and
WHEREAS, after 170 years of operation, Mills College abruptly notified students and staff on March 17, 2021, of its impending closure, citing financial hardship as the motivating factor for closing the college; and
WHEREAS, subsequently, in June 2021, Mills College announced a forthcoming sale of the college to Northeastern University – a Boston-based coed university; and WHEREAS, in response to these actions taken by the college, current students, faculty, and alumni organized to form groups such as Save Mills College Coalition and All in for Mills, DRAFT
dedicatingthemselvesoverthepastyearto stopNortheastern’s acquisitionofMills,andtorestore Mills as an independent women’s college under new leadership; and WHEREAS,atatimewhenstudentsofcolor, theLGBTQ+community, andwomen’srightsareunderattack,fromperpetratorsrangingfromthe“ProudBoys,”totheSupremeCourt,we mustlistento impactedcommunities,alumni,andstudentswhentheyadvocatefortransparency at such an important community institution; and WHEREAS,communitymembers,students,faculty,andalumnihavesharedsignificantconcernsaboutalackoftransparencyandallegationsofdisseminatingfalseinformationbythecollege– specificallyinregardstotheschool’s financialhealththatMillscollegeleadershipprovidedas justificationfor the saleof the schoolto Northeastern,andthe college’scommitmenttoallowcurrentstudentstocompletetheirintendedprogramsafterthesaleoftheschool; and WHEREAS,giventheseallegationsofmisconductandmisinformation,theseissuesmustbefullyreviewedtoensurethatcommunityneedsarerespected,truthispursued,andthatthe important work of Mills in serving vital needs can be continued, now, therefore, be it RESOLVED:TheOaklandCityCouncilherebycallsuponthe CaliforniaJointLegislativeAuditCommitteeandthe StateAuditor’s Officeto conductan independentinvestigation into the circumstances of the sale of Mills College to Northeastern University
IN COUNCIL, OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA,
PASSED BY THE FOLLOWING VOTE:
AYES – FIFE, GALLO, KALB, KAPLAN, REID, TAYLOR, THAO,PRESIDENT FORTUNATO BASNOES –ABSENT –ABSTENTION – ATTEST: ASHA REEDCity Clerk and Clerk of the Council of theCity of Oakland, California