Dean Resigns Over Rider's Chick-fil-A Views

LAWRENCE TOWNSHIP, NJ - A dean has resigned from her post at Rider University after the college decided it didn’t want a Chick-fil-A on its campus.

Cynthia Newman, dean of the College of Business Administration, said she is resigning because Rider’s decision is contradictory to her beliefs as a Christian. The university said its decision about Chick-fil-A is not an attack on Christian values, and a student responded by saying Rider's stance is very much in line with Christian values.

In the fall, Rider sent out a survey to students asking them what new restaurant franchise they would like to see on campus.

While Chick-fil-A was initially included as an option for students, officials later decided to remove it based on the perception that the restaurant is opposed to the rights of the LGBTQ+ community.

In a follow-up letter, officials said they removed Chick-fil-A from its list of options because the college “decided to lean in the direction of creating a welcoming environment where differences can be appreciated and where each individual can expect to experience dignity and respect."

“I felt like I had been punched in the stomach when I read that statement,” Newman told Campusreform.org in a YouTube video that can be found below. “I’m a very committed Christian, and Chick-fil-A’s corporate purpose statement is to glorify God and to be faithful stewards to all that’s entrusted to them and have a positive influence on anyone who comes into contact with them. I would say that mirrors my personal beliefs perfectly.”

She described herself as someone who doesn’t make a fuss or rant and rave. Instead, after receiving the email, she said she spent the next month speaking with university leaders about the issue. She asked them to apologize for their statement.

The university sent a follow-up email, but didn’t apologize, she said. She also said the leadership sent out a list of talking points for department heads to use in response to criticism over the Chick-fil-A issue, which included a reaffirmation of the university’s commitment to inclusion.

“What struck me the wrong way and why I couldn’t adhere to those is because in the absence of an apology for an offense that was made to Christian values and other face values, those talking points were something I couldn’t say in good conscience,” Newman said. “ … To respond by saying the university seeks to produce individuals that are responsible citizens, the implication is that people who adhere to values similar to Chick-fil-A’s are not responsible citizens.”

Shortly thereafter, she resigned. She will remain as a member of the faculty, serving as special assistant to the provost, according to the university.

“No one group’s opinions, values, beliefs should be elevated over anyone else’s,” Newman said. “We should be able to respectfully disagree.”

"While we respect Dr. Newman's personal decision, we maintain that the decision about choosing an on-campus restaurant franchise was in no way a judgment on religious values," Rider spokesperson Kristine Brown said. "Rather, our intention was to foster a sense of respect and belonging of all members of the campus community, including those who identify as LGBTQ+.

"The University thanks Dr. Newman for her many contributions to Rider since assuming the role of dean in 2017."

Student Charley Furey responded to Newman with an open letter on social media stating that the university’s decision was not a judgemental one.

“Rider stated that the company’s corporate values were widely perceived to be in opposition to the LGBTQ+ community,” he wrote. “As is well-known and documented, the company donated millions to anti-LGBTQ+ groups in the recent past. I would further argue that Rider’s decision to not move forward with the restaurant is not an attack against your faith as you like to frame it, but rather a move to show the LGBTQ+ community on its campus that they are loved and welcomed and embraced, a move which I would argue very much aligns with the Christian values I was raised with.” Read his full letter here.

“We have no policy of discrimination against any group, and we do not have a political or social agenda," the restaurant said in a statement to nj.com. "More than 120,000 people from different backgrounds and beliefs represent the Chick-fil-A brand."

In 2012, Chick-fil-A came under fire following revelations that Chick-fil-A's charitable organization, the WinShape Foundation, donates to the Family Research Council, which reportedly lobbied against a resolution that would denounce Uganda's so-called "Kill the Gays" bill. The bill calls for the death penalty for anyone who commits an act of homosexuality, which has been deemed a crime in Uganda.

Read more here: NJ College Against On-Campus Chick-fil-A Due To Its LGBTQ Views

Rider isn't the first university to make this type of decision about Chick-fil-A. In 2012, the student senate at Galloway-based Stockton University actually voted in favor of telling the university to ask Chick-fil-A to leave campus.

However, then-president Herman Saatkamp later issued a statement saying it was in that university's best interests to let the restaurant remain on campus.

Read more here: Chick-fil-A To Remain On Stockton's Campus

Additionally, after Chick-fil-A initially came under fire, the Jim Henson Company discontinued a partnership in which it supplied toys for the chain's kids meals.