Lehigh University and Wagner College have announced that they would revoke the honorary degrees conferred on the United States President, Donald Trump.
This comes amidst rising tension in the United States following the Capitol siege by Trump’s supporters on Wednesday.
Trump received the honorary degree from Lehigh in 1988 after speaking at the institution’s commencement ceremony while he received a degree from Wagner in 2004.
Both Lehigh and Wagner cited the violence that rose out of the attempted coup at the US Capitol on Wednesday as reasons for revocation.
A statement from the Lehigh University account on Twitter read, “Board of trustees voted to rescind and revoke the honorary degree granted to Donald J. Trump in 1988.”
It was gathered that Lehigh faculty members have for years urged the university to rescind Trump’s degree.
In 2018, nearly 300 Lehigh faculty members urged the board of trustees to rescind the degree.
According to a report in Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the faculty members argued that Trump’s statements and actions as president did not fall in line with the school’s values. However, the trustees did not budge.
Wagner College did not immediately respond to a request for comment for more information.
