The Forum

The Forum was created in 1970. The idea for a forum began with a protest movement early in the spring semester called “Spring Lehigh.” The protest began out of a belief by students that a sociology professor was being fired for wrongful reasons. Although the students involved had little organizing experience, a mass protest was held and garnered the attention of the university. The university cancelled classes for a week to hold discussions and emerged with the forum, a 50-50 split of power between the university and students. The power the forum held was an authority to set policy for the academic environment, programs, and planning, as well as extra-curricular activities. They also held power of review on long range planning, such as staff requirements and overall budget. Within this, they could make policy recommendations. The Forum ran from 1970-1989.