Who is Liz Magill? UPenn President resigns following backlash over alleged antisemitism testimony

Liz Magill, the president of the University of Pennsylvania, resigned on Saturday, December 9, amid backlash for her comments that were tagged as "antisemitic." Her resignation comes days after Magill was at a congressional hearing on antisemitism on campus. She was reportedly unable to answer whether the call for the murder of Jews on campus would be against the school's conduct rules.

During the House of Representatives Committee on Education and the Workforce hearing, Rep. Elise Stefanik asked Magill,

“Specifically calling for the genocide of Jews, does that constitute bullying or harassment?”

She replied,

"It is a context-dependent decision."

She faced pressure from donors and criticism over her testimony. As a result, she resigned. Her resignation was announced by Scott Bok, the chair of the university's board of trustees, following which he said that he'd be stepping down as well.

American law scholar and academic administrator Mary Elizabeth Magill, or Liz Magill, was appointed as the university's ninth president and 27th head in July 2022. She started her academic career at the University of Virginia and rose to the rank of Professor of Law. She is also an expert in administrative and constitutional law. She also held the positions of head of the University of Virginia and dean of Stanford Law School.

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Liz Magill is the ninth president of University of Pennsylvania

Liz Magill was also in the UPenn Trustee board (Image via Instagram / pennpresident)

Liz Magill is the first president of the university to resign as a result of the protests that have taken over the campus.

Magill announced her resignation late on Saturday afternoon, December 9. According to the statement, Magill will, however, continue to teach at the university's Carey Law School with tenure. She has agreed to continue leading Penn until an interim president is appointed by the university.

Liz Magill took office as the ninth president of UPenn on July 1, 2022. Magill, a distinguished academic, came to Penn after holding the positions of Richard E. Lang Professor and Dean of the Stanford Law School.

After that, she joined the University of Virginia as Executive Vice President and Head. She successfully led the academic administration of the University of Virginia's 12 schools, institutes and centers, art museums, libraries, public service initiatives, and international study programs while serving as the head. She also oversaw the university's research and teaching activities.

Magill further served as US Senator Kent Conrad of North Dakota's senior legislative assistant from 1988 to 1992.

After graduating from law school, Magill served as a law clerk for the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson III from 1995 to 1996. From 1996 to 1997, she was the clerk for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg of the US Supreme Court. She also joined the American Law Institute as a member.

Magill spent fifteen years as a faculty member at the University of Virginia School of Law after joining the team in 1997. She was the Elizabeth D. and Richard A. Merrill Professor, the Joseph Weintraub-Bank of America Distinguished Professor of Law, and the vice dean of the school from 2009 to 2012.

She was appointed Richard E. Lang Professor of Law and dean of Stanford University's law school in 2012. Liz Magill was also chosen as an American Academy of Arts and Sciences fellow in 2016. Moreover, she came back to the University of Virginia in 2019 to take up the position of head.

Liz Magill also holds professorships at Penn Carey Law and Trustees University.

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Penn's Board of Trustees is yet to respond to Magill's resignantion.