Dean of The University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School begins sanctions process against Amy Wax
Photo: Julio Sosa
Dean Ted Ruger of The University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School has initiated the sanctions process against Amy Wax. This sanctions process is meant to determine whether or not Wax, a tenured professor, violated behavioral standards that threaten the University’s mission.
In a statement to The Daily Pennsylvanian, University spokesperson Stephen MacCarthy said, “The process must include creating a factual predicate for any action and must respect the principles of academic freedom and the need for accountability, as the faculty so determines. These are challenging issues, but we have confidence in the fairness and rigor of the process as it moves forward.”
Wax has made several headlines for taunting students of color. In 2017, she said of Black students, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen a Black student graduate in the top quarter of the class, and rarely, rarely, in the top half.” The school and faculty quickly rejected her claims and Wax was removed from teaching first-year curriculum courses, only being allowed to teach electives.
Most recently, Wax said of Asians, “As long as most Asians support Democrats and help to advance their positions, I think the United States is better off with fewer Asians and less Asian immigration.”
Dean Ruger will serve as the complainant and will play a key role in communicating the charges. The Faculty Senate will assemble a board to hear the charges and the defense before voting on the implementation of any sanctions.
According to Penn’s faculty handbook, sanctions are divided into two tiers: Major sanctions include, but are not limited to, termination; suspension; reduction in academic base salary; zero salary increases stipulated in advance for a period of four or more years. Minor sanctions include, but are not limited to, a private letter of reprimand, a public letter of reprimand, monitoring the manner and conditions of specific future research, teaching, or supervision of students, provided they relate to the infraction.
