APR 30, 2024
BAR HARBOR—The tents went up Sunday evening and the newest college campus encampment appeared and as of Tuesday, April 30, approximately 26 tents occupy the front lawn of the College of the Atlantic (COA) campus. An unidentified student protestor Tuesday afternoon said that participating students are standing in solidarity with other pro-Palestinian student demonstrators around the world. Many of those demonstrations aim to promote an end to the war in Gaza and divestiture from Israel or businesses that profit from the invasion.
When asked about occupation leadership, the student said the protest is being led by a coalition of the protestors rather than any one individual. When asked if COA has any financial interests or ties to Israel that the demonstrators would like the college to divest from, the student replied that the group does not yet know that. The group will be meeting this evening to come up with a list of demands and requests for information that they will be giving to COA President Darron Collins and the COA Cabinet. They will also be talking about a media strategy tonight.
A statement released by the college from Collins on Tuesday afternoon reads,
“Since the founding days of College of the Atlantic, peaceful protest has been a cornerstone of human ecology; thus, it is no surprise that students are leading the charge here to engage in an encampment. The COA administration wholeheartedly supports our students’ rights to engage in this act of protest and free speech.
“There are a few things I have asked students to take into consideration during the encampment.
- “The COA administration is bound to prioritize, as always, public health and safety for COA and surrounding communities, and I am hopeful that participants will consider that their responsibility as well. We will be keeping a close, friendly, and collaborative eye on how things unfold.
- “It’s important that participants are thoughtful about trash, use of the bathroom, water, and etc. I ask everyone involved to take great care to minimize negative impacts on campus property and infrastructure.
- “Faculty will not be asked or required to accommodate absence from classes. With graduation five weeks away, it is imperative that students are able to complete their coursework. With this in mind, peaceful protests may not interfere with classes.
- “Most importantly, as an academic institution, we pride ourselves on challenging our own assumptions and thoughts, as well as those around us. However, any form of hate speech–displayed on a sign, clothing, or otherwise, or voiced verbally, will not be tolerated. We all have to be vigilant and cognizant about that sometimes translucent line between challenging someone’s beliefs and threatening their identity, and avoid the latter at all costs.
“Our COA community must always remain a welcoming, inclusive one, with room for all civil perspectives on complicated issues like the ones we face today. As a college, our position is one in support of freedom of speech, civil disobedience, and political expression. We would provide similar support for any students who were looking to express their perspectives on important issues. Here at COA, I fully expect that a broad and diverse set of viewpoints and civil expressions of such could, and would, exist peacefully side-by-side.”
COA is a private college, founded in 1969, and has a typical undergraduate enrollment of approximately 350 students on its 37-acre campus in Bar Harbor. It has a history of divesting from fossil fuels, tobacco, and temporarily from South African-based companies.
“The fossil fuel divestment campaign began in January 2013, with students and faculty members collecting signatures, researching our investment portfolio, and working with the administration to formulate a proposal. One week after the initial call to action, students met with members of the Board of Trustees. While a provisional agreement to divest was accepted, the resolution needed a vote by the board. This was slated to take place in April, but the administration decided to expedite the process. At a special meeting of COA’s Board of Trustees on March 11, 2013, the student proposal was accepted. On March 12, less than 24 hours after the divestiture resolution was passed, the college fully divested its approximately $1 million in fossil fuel-related investments,” its web page reads. “In 2015 a group of students and staff launched a sustainable investment group, charged with developing guidance for sustainable investment and overseeing a small portion of the college’s endowment.”
LINKS TO LEARN MORE
COA’s sustainable investment fund
COA’s web page about its investment.
COA’s philanthropy report
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