By Dr. Stephen Jackson
Washington, D.C. – On Sept. 19, 2024, the DC Circuit Court of Appeals will hear arguments in the landmark case of Jenkins v. The Howard University et al. This case addresses serious allegations against The Howard University and its governance practices, with potential implications for institutional governance and stakeholder rights.
In June 2020, The Howard University’s Board of Trustees governance committee, without a board vote, froze stakeholder elections, citing the COVID-19 pandemic as the reason. This decision halted the election of alumni, faculty, and students to the board, despite the university’s by-laws requiring representation from three alumni, two students, and two faculty members. With the board’s actions leading to the removal of elected alumni, faculty, and students by attrition, plaintiffs argue that these actions were illegal, breached the university’s by-laws and nullified historical alumni and student advocacy to achieve a stakeholder role in university governance.
Following a student protest in 2018, sixty years after the seminal 1968 student protest, hundreds of alumni and dozens of student leaders expressed written objections to the board’s decisions. A group of ten alumni, led by octogenarian Attorney Timothy Jenkins, a 1960 graduate, former student leader and board trustee, and Damani Keene, a former University administrator, filed a lawsuit initially in the DC Superior Court. After removal to the federal court, the case was dismissed. Plaintiffs appealed the dismissal to the DC Circuit Court of Appeals.
The plaintiffs, represented by their attorney Donald Temple, an HU alum, argue that the board’s actions were a clear breach of its by-laws and patently illegal. They further contend that despite Howard University’s federal charter, the federal court lacked jurisdiction over the matter.
This case is poised to set significant precedents regarding university governance and stakeholder representation, making Thursday’s proceedings of considerable importance.
A press conference with HU Alumni plaintiffs and their attorney will directly follow the hearing, scheduled for 9:30 a.m.
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