Posts by Persis Drell

February 23, 2018

Stanford's commitments to undocumented students

This continues to be a time of anxiety and uncertainty for many people in our country, as the federal government works to define a future for those who have been covered under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Stanford continues to stand in firm support of our community, including undocumented students.

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February 15, 2018

A letter on Cardinal Conversations

In a letter published in The Stanford Daily, we address student concerns regarding the Cardinal Conversations series and an appearance by Charles Murray.

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February 13, 2018

Expression and inclusion, part 2

Multiple recent incidents on campus have underscored the depth of challenge we face in simultaneously ensuring inclusion and free expression. They call on us to embrace a higher level of awareness and engagement with others.

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February 1, 2018

The long-range planning white papers

We're excited to have reached today a new milestone in Stanford's long-range planning process: the release to the campus community of 37 white papers that summarize more than 2,800 ideas we received for guiding Stanford's future.

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January 29, 2018

Hoop Dreams: thoughts on diversifying our faculty

Recently I met with Jennifer Widom, dean of the School of Engineering; Stacey Bent, the senior associate dean of engineering; and legendary Stanford women’s basketball coach Tara VanDerveer at the Faculty Club. The topic was the challenge of improving faculty diversity at Stanford.

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December 20, 2017

The tax bill and Stanford

The U.S. Senate and House of Representatives have passed tax reform legislation that now awaits the president's signature. For higher education, the final bill contains mixed news. At Stanford, our attention now turns to addressing the effects of this legislation on our community.

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November 28, 2017

Spotlight on sexual misconduct

In recent weeks, there has been a spotlight on sexual assault and sexual misconduct perpetrated by individuals abusing their positions of authority and influence in every industry and organization, including higher education. Women are coming forward and their voices are being heard, including women who have been part of the Stanford community. It is a spotlight that I welcome.

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November 7, 2017

Advancing free speech and inclusion

Like many of you, we have been following what has been going on at other campuses and in our own Stanford community around issues of speech and expression. We have been reflecting on how we at Stanford can advance both our unwavering commitment to the free expression of ideas and our equally steadfast goal of an inclusive community.

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October 17, 2017

Four stories of alumni contribution

I was honored last Friday to participate in one of the highlights of Reunion Homecoming weekend – the induction ceremony for the Multicultural Alumni Hall of Fame.

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October 11, 2017

Supporting the DREAMers

In recent days, there has been more news from Washington about the effort to protect the students and others who have been covered under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA, program. I want to share a few things Stanford is doing both externally and internally at this very difficult time for many in our community.

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