Students press ISU trustees for divestment and greater campus accountability

Several students used the public‑comment period at the Feb. 21 Board of Trustees meeting to press trustees on political and financial issues, urging divestment from companies they said are tied to violence in the Middle East and criticizing university leadership for prioritizing revenue over student welfare.

Aya Hussain, a junior who said she was speaking partly on behalf of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), asked the board to extend public‑comment time and to take seriously student accounts of family separation and loss. “If they cannot be heard, then I will come to present to you my own story,” Hussain said, describing personal and community grief and asking the board to remember past protest work such as opposition to South African apartheid.

Another speaker, who identified themselves as a SJP member and at one point referred to the board as “genocide profiteers,” criticized the university for accepting donations and investing in companies the speaker named — including HP and Siemens — that, the student said, “are actively doing harm.” The speaker called for collective action and said that student organizers would use “our collective will for true justice and liberation.”

Caleb Wiesing and other students asked the board to divest from Siemens, HP (and a listed subsidiary), and Caterpillar. “We ask that you divest your money from companies tied to the nation of Israel… We have our list of demands with us,” Caleb said.

Benjamin Rodriguez criticized campus priorities and described students’ financial precarity: “ISU sells itself as a gateway to opportunity. But what does that actually mean? For most of us, it means drowning in debt…” He urged trustees to redirect foundation funds toward housing, legal aid, and scholarships and to produce a divestment audit.

Speakers repeatedly criticized an email from President Andave Tarhuli (as referenced by students) and said federal directives and institutional responses risk cutting programs and scholarships for marginalized students. Several students called for transparency about investments and for trustees to engage directly with student demands.

The board did not take action on divestment or the specific student demands during the meeting. Trustees and administration acknowledged the comments and noted ongoing work such as the RISE budget redesign (see related coverage), but no formal response or motion addressing divestment was introduced.

Speakers

- Aya Hussain — Junior student; Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) - Bridal Marcekiewicz (speaker name as stated) — Student; Students for Justice in Palestine - Caleb Wiesing — Student; Students for Justice in Palestine - Benjamin Rodriguez — Student

Authorities

- No statutory or policy actions were taken on divestment during the meeting.

Clarifying_details

- divestment_demands: "Divest from Siemens, HP, Indigo America, and Caterpillar" (as stated by speakers) - public_comment_time: Students asked the board to extend the 30‑minute public comment period for more time to speak publicly.

Proper_names

- Illinois State University (organization) - Students for Justice in Palestine (student organization) - HP (business) - Siemens (business) - Caterpillar (business)

Searchable_tags

["divestment","StudentsForJusticeInPalestine","SJP","student_protest","trustees"]