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Council Agenda: 03-24-2026
Item No.: 2.13
DRAFT--Contact the Office of the City Clerk at (408)535-1260 or [email protected] for final document.
RESOLUTION NO. ______________
A RESOLUTION OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN
JOSE DECLARING THE CITY’S COMMITMENT TO
OPPOSING THE COERCION OF COLLEGES AND
UNIVERSITIES TO FORCE ANY POLITICAL AGENDA
UPON AN INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION
WHEREAS, the Federal Administration has sought to coerce the management of institutions of higher education through vigorous and well-organized assaults on long- standing American values; and
WHEREAS, the economic and cultural vibrancy of the City of San José and the wider Santa Clara County are closely linked to regional higher education institutions, including San José State University, Santa Clara University, Stanford University, and other private and public university and college campuses and systems across the Bay Area; and
WHEREAS, the work and discoveries of universities within this network have given rise to globally significant advancements that have launched and contributed greatly to entire industries and fields of study; and
WHEREAS, the federal attack on universities and colleges undermines job creation, innovation, the economy, and lifesaving discoveries by causing political considerations, rather than scientific or academic merit, to drive decisions on whether to fund research projects; and
WHEREAS, the ideals and protections of Academic Freedom draw from long-standing philosophies around communities of scholarship and have been recognized in the Supreme court of the United States; and
WHEREAS, ideologically-motivated political pre ssure has no legitimate role in SAW:KWF:JMD
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Council Agenda: 03-24-2026
Item No.: 2.13
DRAFT--Contact the Office of the City Clerk at (408)535-1260 or [email protected] for final document.
university admissions, hiring, or employment nor in the development or the content of university and college curriculum; and
WHEREAS, research grants must be awarded on the basis of scientific and professional merit and funding withdrawn only for just cause under law and consistent with due process; and
WHEREAS, diverse backgrounds and experiences enrich and strengthen academic environments by revealing new horizons and cultivating new discoveries and peaceful relations among individuals with different viewpoints; and WHEREAS, the City of San José has, over decades, been home to global leaders across private, public, academic, and artistic fields; and WHEREAS, these leaders were often immigrants drawn by universities and colleges, who found, in City of San José and the wider Santa Clara County, an environment where human genius and diversity of perspective are celebrated and nurtured; and WHEREAS, free speech, peaceful protest, and privacy are to be respected, and diverse viewpoints must be permitted to be peacefully shared in the public spaces of colleges and universities; and
WHEREAS, accusations made against universities and colleges, followed abruptly by discontinued grants, requirements for curriculum changes or demands for settlement funds to enable the continued conduct of routine and lawful activities, when made without due process or basis in fact or law, are incompatible with the principle of equal justice under the law; and
WHEREAS, universities targeted with these demands include, among others, San José State University, the University of California, Brown University, Columbia University, SAW:KWF:JMD
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Council Agenda: 03-24-2026
Item No.: 2.13
DRAFT--Contact the Office of the City Clerk at (408)535-1260 or [email protected] for final document.
Cornell University, Dartmouth College, Duke University, Emory University, George Washington University, Harvard University, Johns Hopkins University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, New York University, Northwestern University, Princeton University, University of Arizona, University of Michigan, University of Minnesota, and the University of Pennsylvania, and the demands made of these universities are incompatible with the principles of equal justice under the law, notwithstanding any agreement to settle the allegations against them;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SAN JOSE THAT:
1. The City of San José rec ognizes the contributions to cultural diversity, economic vibrancy, and public welfare by those who study within, teach, administer, and otherwise support the colleges and universities of the United States of America; and
2. The City of San José declares its commitment to opposing the coercion of colleges and universities to force any political agenda upon an institution of higher education.
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Council Agenda: 03-24-2026
Item No.: 2.13
DRAFT--Contact the Office of the City Clerk at (408)535-1260 or [email protected] for final document.
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ADOPTED this _____ day of ___________, 2026, by the following vote:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSENT:
DISQUALIFIED:
MATT MAHAN
Mayor
ATTEST:
TONI J. TABER, MMC
Cit
y Clerk