We, the concerned alumni, undergraduate and graduate students of Rutgers University-Newark, in solidarity with Rutgers-Newark Faculty, Newark community partners and Higher Education colleagues, express our deep disappointment with President Jonathan Holloway’s decision not to renew the contract of Dr. Nancy Cantor, Chancellor of Rutgers University-Newark. We firmly believe that this decision undermines the progress made under her exceptional leadership and jeopardizes the future success of our institution.

Since assuming her role in 2014, Chancellor Cantor has been instrumental in driving positive change at Rutgers University-Newark. Under her guidance, enrollment rates have significantly increased, allowing more students to access quality education and pursue their academic and professional dreams. Under Cantor's leadership, enrollment rate of students specifically from the City of Newark increased 70% at the Newark Campus from 2014 to present.

Chancellor Cantor's visionary approach has resulted in the creation of key programs that have greatly enhanced student experiences at our university. In the words of President Holloway himself conveyed in his letter to the Rutgers community on August 16:

"Chancellor Cantor has championed many transformative initiatives at Rutgers–Newark to advance social mobility, publicly engaged scholarship, and collaboration among anchor institutions, including:

• A new Honors Living-Learning Community (HLLC) that expands the metrics used in identifying talented candidates by going far beyond GPAs and SAT scores. The HLLC, which emphasizes “local citizenship in a global world,” has been featured in The New York Times and celebrated as a national model.
• RU-N to the Top, a financial aid program that has made an exceptional Rutgers education available to a much larger pool of individuals and families, resulting in even greater diversity in the Rutgers–Newark student body.
• Express Newark, the remarkable arts collaboratory located downtown in the historic Hahne & Co. building, bringing university and community together around civic dialogue, artistic discovery and expression, and new talent development, as well as in celebration of the rich diversity of the city and university.
• Newark City of Learning Collaborative, of which Rutgers is a vital partner with numerous local organizations in a mission to ensure that all residents of the city have access and opportunities to attend, afford, and complete college and find good jobs.
• Newark Public Safety Collaborative, a citywide effort based at Rutgers¬–Newark that is using data- and evidence-based approaches to increase the safety and security of Newark neighborhoods.
• The Fiserv-Rutgers Program for Inclusive Innovation, a joint project with one of the world’s leading financial services companies to increase both diversity and innovation in the field of financial technology.
• Newark Anchor Collaborative, the public-private partnership among the city’s anchor institutions that she co-founded and co-chairs, which is setting a national standard for cross-sector action to advance equitable economic growth.

In addition, she has secured legislative support for centers of publicly engaged scholarship, including the Center for Local Supply Chain Resiliency, the Center for Politics and Race in America, and the Center on Law, Inequality and Metropolitan Equity.

In these and other ways, Chancellor Cantor has made Rutgers–Newark an ever-increasing force for positive change within the city and the region, as well as a strong partner with the city government and community organizations in their own efforts to create educational, economic, and cultural opportunities for their residents. She has shown again and again the power of publicly engaged scholarship to advance academic excellence and higher education’s public mission."

So if, by President Holloway's own words, Chancellor Cantor is doing an amazing job, why remove her as the Chancellor of the Newark Campus??

It is crucial for President Holloway to not only recognize the accomplishments achieved during Chancellor Cantor’s tenure in writing, but to take stock of the specific impacts Chancellor Cantor's leadership has had directly on us as students. Her dedication to student success, commitment to diversity, and innovative programs and community partnerships have transformed Rutgers University-Newark into a thriving institution.

We urge President Jonathan Holloway to reconsider his decision to renew Dr. Nancy Cantor's contract as Chancellor of Rutgers University-Newark. By doing so, we can ensure the continuation of her transformative leadership and sustain the positive trajectory that our university has experienced under her guidance.

We further advocate for the future success of Rutgers University- Newark by demanding President Holloway be held accountable to all undergraduate and graduate students regarding programs and leadership of Rutgers University-Newark.