Abandoned her duty to ‘represent all students,’ university stated
The University of St Andrews has removed from a top leadership position its rector who repeatedly condemned Israel over the Gaza conflict and, after an investigation, was found to have breached her duties and made many students feel unsafe, according to the university.
While Stella Maris will continue to serve as rector of the Scottish university, she will no longer sit on its court, the school’s governing body, the school announced in an Aug. 1 statement. Scottish law requires the university have a student-elected rector, which is likely why Maris still retains her title.
Maris’s comments accusing Israel of war crimes and genocide are part of a global wave of antisemitism on college campuses. In the U.S., multiple higher education institutions have come under Congressional review for failing to take effective action against antisemitic rhetoric and physical violence.
The decision earlier this month at St Andrews was 10 months in the making, coming after Maris in November first emailed the university’s 10,000 students accusing Israel of “genocidal attacks,” although it did include a disclaimer the views did not represent the university.
The controversial email also stated: “We must continue to recognise and condemn acts that are internationally regarded as humanitarian and war crimes.”
“These include practices such as apartheid, siege, illegal occupation and collective punishment, which have been observed in the treatment of Palestinians,” according to Maris’s email, a copy of which was obtained by The College Fix.
The university stated that after that email, Maris “then published a series of posts on social media, some of which the subsequent independent investigation found were ‘discourteous and disrespectful’ in the way in which they dismissed fears raised by students who had contacted her seeking reassurance.”
In response, an open letter to Maris signed by more than 1,400 students and alumni stated in part: “Sadly, your words were not unifying, but divisive; not clarifying, but misleading; not hopeful, but damaging—and unfortunately will only bring division and hatred, whilst reinforcing a certain narrative that drives violent antisemitism across the world.”
The dismissal of Maris did not violate her freedom of speech, but rather she abandoned her duty to “represent all students,” campus leaders stated.
It came after she “repeatedly declined to accept the conclusion of an independent investigation which found that she had made some St. Andrews students ‘fear for their safety,’” the university stated.
Maris, in response to being kicked off the court, wrote on Instagram on Aug. 1: “It is clear that I have been removed from University Court because I called for an end to Israel’s war crimes against Palestinians, and I will not apologize for doing so.”
Her rector account notably features in the bio section the watermelon emoji, a prevalent symbol of the pro-Palestinian movement.
Maris declined to comment to The College Fix. Instead, Natalia Mesa Koch, a lawyer representing Maris pro bono, shared the text of Maris’s Instagram post in response to questions.
In it, Maris pointed out she is a “young, neurodiverse Black woman with limited financial resources” who faced the full force of the historic university’s might.
Maris said she will not retract her November statements, calling the email “the right thing to do,” nor resign from her position as rector — and plans to appeal.
The students’ union at St. Andrews released a statement on Instagram voicing concern over the “loss of student representative voices on the Court.”
One student at the university who asked not to be named told The College Fix that reaction on campus has been mixed, with some upset while others not really knowing about the situation.
The Jewish Society at St. Andrews did not immediately respond to requests for comment from The College Fix.
MORE: ‘Take Back The Campus’: Pro-Israel college students converge for camaraderie ahead of school year
IMAGE: University of St Andrews YouTube
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