DePaul University in Chicago has terminated a part-time biology professor over an assignment about the Israel-Hamas conflict, Fox News reported Monday.
Anne d’Aquino was allegedly fired after assigning students students to discuss the impact of the “genocide in Gaza on human health and biology” in early May, according to Fox News. This task was part of a course titled Health 194, Human Pathogens and Defense, which typically covers the biological aspects of infectious diseases, including the mechanisms of viral and bacterial infections and the methods to combat them, Fox noted.
The university initiated an investigation following complaints from students about the political nature of the assignment, the outlet reported.
DePaul University said it dismissed a part-time biology instructor after she gave an optional assignment related to the Israel-Hamas war. https://t.co/9Nj868MZOl
— FOX 32 News (@fox32news) June 10, 2024
“We investigated the matter, spoke with the faculty member, and found it had negatively affected the learning environment by introducing extraneous political material that was outside the scope of the academic subject as outlined in the curriculum,” DePaul said Friday in a statement, Fox 32 reported.
Following the investigation, the university dismissed d’Aquino and assigned a new instructor to the class.
The situation has stirred a broader debate on campus, as it coincided with an anti-Israel encampment at the university. D’Aquino has defended her assignment, and argued at a student rally that it was relevant to the course’s objectives, citing concerns about the spread of infectious diseases in Gaza due to inhospitable conditions, Fox News reported.
“My termination was a breach of my academic freedom and another example of this administration’s efforts to twist any discussions of Palestine and Palestinian liberation language into false claims of antisemitism,” D’Aquino said during a demonstration Thursday, Fox News stated. (RELATED: Students Sue UCLA For Allowing ‘Jew Exclusion Zone’ During Violent Pro-Palestinian Encampment)
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – MAY 16: Activist protest across the street from campus while workers and police remove a pro-Palestinian encampment at DePaul University on May 16, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. The encampment was one of many that popped up on campuses around the country to protest Israel’s actions in Gaza. At least two demonstrators were reported detained by police as the camp was being dismantled. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
D’Aquino is currently appealing the decision, according to Fox.
