AUGUST 22 • 2024 | 19
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and their families and help universities see a 
path to making life better for students on cam-
pus. 
“In the report card, we say include 
antisemitism in your code of conduct; talk 
about it in your policies; give a real definition 
of what antisemitism is; tell your students what 
the policies are,” Normandin says. “Both U-M 
and MSU have clear processes for reporting 
antisemitic incidents and clear religious 
accommodations policies. In many cases, they’re 
already doing things. But the deficiencies are 
very clear to see, and there’s a path to improve 
them.”

GRADES UPDATED
Those efforts by MSU have not gone unnoticed. 
Since the report card came out in April, MSU 
and U-M’s scores have been updated — and 
actually flipped. ADL always planned to revise 
the scores after the spring semester ended, and 
they did just that on June 18. MSU’s “F” grade 
was changed to a “D” and U-M’s “D” grade was 
changed to an “F.”
When ADL revised the grades, they once again 
looked at incidents, the way schools handled the 
incidents, the publicly disclosed administrative 
actions and policies. 
Normandin says MSU’s improved grade is due 
in part to their response after the initial report 
card. 
“They still have a way to go, and they have 
a path forward. I’ve had conversations with 
MSU president Kevin Guskiewicz, and we have 
meetings being scheduled with MSU senior 
leaders to talk about how they can improve their 
grade further.” 
On the ADL website, the reasoning given for 
U-M’s revised grade is “serious incident(s) at 
encampment on campus and lack of adequate 
administration response.”
“It was really the anti-Israel encampments, the 
length of the encampments and how they stayed 
up weeks after graduation, and the large Intifada 
banner that stayed up,” Normandin explained. 
“We were very frank with U-M senior leaders 
and the administration, and they understood it.”
MSU president Guskiewicz, U-M’s president 
Santa Ono and even Wayne State University’s 
president Kimberly Andrews Espy spoke at 
the Crain’s Power Breakfast in July, which 
Normandin attended. 
“In the weeks since that breakfast, where 
the presidents talked about helping students 
understand time, place and manner guidelines, 
what things could be tolerated and the fact 

that encampments are not good for campuses, 
there’s been a lot more activity in terms of 
conversations,” Normandin said. “Each university 
has to come up with what they think their time, 
place and manner restrictions need to be, and 
then they have to enforce them. That’s when we 
see a change.” 
Normandin adds that this Report Card will not 
eliminate incidents on campus, but it’s a pathway 
to show university presidents and administrators 
what they can do to make sure the incidents are 
handled in an appropriate manner.
“The university can set the standard by which 
conduct is allowed or not. If students think 
they can go with impunity and do all kinds of 
antisemitic incidents, that will effectuate more 
antisemitic incidents. If the universities take a 
harder line approach, I believe the incidents will 
be deterred, because consequences for actions 
are a great deterrence,” she says. “An incident of 
antisemitism doesn’t make the university bad, 
but it’s how they react to the incident.”

ADL’S PLANS
This is Report Card version 1.0. The ADL’s plan 
is to have a new version come out 
every year and to expand it. 
“This is a starting point,” 
Normandin says.
Rabbi Davey Rosen, CEO of 
Michigan Hillel, has been in regular 
contact with Normandin and the 
ADL. 
Rosen agrees with the portion of 
MSU Hillel/Chabad’s statement essentially saying 
it’s difficult to give a letter grade to something 
so complicated. He does believe, however, that 
the Report Card highlights the fact that there 
are real, serious problems on American college 
campuses. 

“Speaking for myself at Michigan Hillel, 
there are problems of antisemitism that many 
in the administration are trying to figure out 
how to address,” he says. “There needs to be 
more awareness and understanding of what 
antisemitism is, what it means to marginalize 
Jewish students and how this is a serious 
problem that won’t just miraculously go away — 
it’s going to take strategic effort to address and to 
come to a positive, constructive outcome.”
Rosen doesn’t think a Report Card like this 
reflects the work currently being done. 
“Whether that’s by the administration, 
Michigan Hillel, Hillel International or the 
Jewish Federation of Detroit, there’s a real effort 
underway to educate and address the problems,” 
he says. 
The fall semester is starting, and it’s going 
to be an important one at U-M, MSU and 
universities across the country. 
“What I need to not only hear but see from the 
university, is what is actually going to happen 
to make sure Jewish students and all students 
feel safe coming back to a constructive and safe 
learning environment in the fall,” Rosen says. 
“They need to be confident they can come back 
and be ready to learn and be welcomed back. 
There’s a lot of work to be done.” 
Normandin and ADL are hoping to see words 
be put into action. They will be paying attention 
and once again be looking to revise the grades in 
the middle of fall semester. 
“It’s not about pointing out deficiencies. 
It’s about the pragmatic and practical actions 
universities can take to help the situation,” 
Normandin said. “The proof will be in the 
pudding. I’m hopeful.” 
 

Check out the Campus Antisemitism Report Card here: adl.org/

campus-antisemitism-report-card. 

Rabbi 
Davey 
Rosen