University Task Force on Antisemitism

Chair

Mark S. Wolff, Morton Amsterdam Dean of the School of Dental Medicine

Faculty Representatives

Eric A. Feldman, Heimbold Chair in International Law and Professor of Law; Professor of Health Policy and Medical Ethics; Tri-Chair, University Faculty Senate
Karen Glanz, George A. Weiss University Professor, School of Nursing and Perelman School of Medicine
Joshua Teplitsky, Joseph Meyerhoff Associate Professor of Modern Jewish History; Director of the Jewish Studies Program 
Steven Weitzman, Abraham M. Ellis Professor of Hebrew and Semitic Languages and Literatures; Ella Darivoff Director of the Katz Center of Advanced Judaic Studies 
Beth S. Wenger, Moritz and Josephine Berg Professor of History; Associate Dean of Graduate Studies, School of Arts and Sciences 
Beth A. Winkelstein, Deputy Provost; Eduardo D. Glandt President’s Distinguished Professor, School of Engineering and Applied Science 
Abraham J. Wyner, Professor of Statistics and Data Science, The Wharton School

Student Representatives

Maya Harpaz, C’25 
Michael Krone, C’19, L’24, WG’24

Staff, Alumni, and Trustee Representatives

Brett H. Barth, W’93, Alumni Trustee
Rabbi Gabe Greenberg, Executive Director of Penn Hillel
Rev. Charles (Chaz) Lattimore Howard, University Chaplain and University Vice President for Social Equity and Community
Susanna Lachs, C’74, ASC’76, Former Trustee
Rev. Marshall H. Mitchell, Commonwealth Trustee
Joann Mitchell, Senior Vice President for Institutional Affairs and Chief Diversity Officer

Ex-Officio

Robert Fox, C'82
Vijay Kumar, Professor and Nemirovsky Family Dean, School of Engineering and Applied Science 
Katharine O. Strunk, Dean of the Graduate School of Education and the George and Diane Weiss Professor of Education 
Wendy S. White, Senior Vice President and General Counsel

Staff to the Committee

Seth Zweifler, Office of the President

Progress as of February 22, 2024:

  • The University Task Force on Antisemitism was convened and charged on November 16, 2023. Its membership was announced publicly on November 17.
  • The Task Force has been actively reaching out to, and hearing from, the University community through formal and informal channels. Dean Wolff, on behalf of the Task Force, reached out to the campus community—undergraduate students, graduate and professional students, post-docs, faculty, and staff—on November 17, inviting constituents to share feedback to a dedicated antisemitism-taskforce@upenn.edu account. Through the end of December 2023, the Task Force had received approximately 170 individual inputs in the account, representing a broad array of ideas and perspectives.
  • The Task Force has conducted informational interviews with a wide variety of Penn experts. 
  • The Task Force submitted a preliminary draft status report to Interim President Jameson on December 19, 2023, and met with Interim President Jameson on January 11, 2024.
  • The Task Force will soon launch a series of campus listening sessions, in line with the first component of its charge: “The Task Force will be expected to engage broadly and deeply to better understand how members of the Penn community—especially including, but not limited to, students—experience antisemitism on campus.”

  • Progress on each area for action (Safety and Security, Engagement, and Education) can be found on the Areas for Action page. 

  • This brief overview of antisemitism was compiled by Task Force members Joshua Teplitsky, Steven Weitzman, and Beth Wenger. Teplitsky, Weitzman, and Wenger all teach in Penn’s Jewish Studies Program. The guide covers antisemitism from ancient and medieval times to contemporary manifestations. 

  • Penn Today ran this article on resources for reporting incidents of bias, misconduct, and harassment. The article includes resource for reporting harassment and bias at Penn.

Input and suggestions for the Task Force can be sent to:

antisemitism-taskforce@upenn.edu