EXCLUSIVE: A Pennsylvania congressman fired off a scathing letter overnight to the University of Pennsylvania’s president demanding the firing of a left-wing professor whose social media posts lauded Luigi Mangione, the suspect accused of murdering UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.

In his letter, GOP Rep. Dan Meuser called for Cinema & Media Studies professor Julia Alekseyeva’s firing and noted the university had just finished weathering another scandal relating to its soft response to antisemitic and pro-Hamas protests.

Alekseyeva made her online accounts private this week after blowback for saying – among other things – that she is proud to be a UPenn Quaker like the accused killer. Thompson's murder sparked a left-wing outcry depicting a simmering anger toward the insurance industry that led to online celebrations in other quarters.

Alekseyeva posted a TikTok video of herself smiling as "Do You Hear The People Sing?" from the French musical "Les Miserables" played. The play tells the story of a peasant imprisoned for stealing food and his ensuing quest for redemption. 

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"I am writing to express my profound concern regarding the recent actions of Assistant Professor Julia Alekseyeva… which appear to celebrate the alleged actions of Luigi Mangione, the suspect in the tragic murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson," Meuser wrote to UPenn interim President J. Larry Jameson.

Meuser noted Alekseyeva proudly connected Mangione to the University City, West Philadelphia school and that she had labeled him "the icon we all need and deserve."

The educator, who was reportedly born in the Ukrainian USSR and moved with her family to Chicago in the 1990s, also refers to herself as a "socialist and ardent anti-fascist" on her website.

Meuser, seen as a potential top contender in the 2026 gubernatorial contest against Democrat Josh Shapiro, called Alekseyeva’s behavior "outrageous" and said it violates the "basic ideals of a civilized society."

In exclusive comments to Fox News Digital, Meuser said it is unacceptable for any educator to glorify acts of violence, especially at a high-level institution like UPenn.

"These actions undermine the core values of higher education and threaten the trust placed in our academic institutions," Meuser said.

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The lawmaker, who represents the Coal Region and part of Pennsylvania Dutch Country, said he is a fan of the Quakers but expects answers from Jameson in order to ensure further federal support for the school.

"Your response will dictate how my colleagues and I support allocating future federal funding for research at the University of Pennsylvania," he wrote in the letter, calculating $936 million in federal research grants in 2023.

"[This] forces Congress to question whether safeguards are in place to ensure that faculty conduct reflects the ethical and professional standards in line with the University’s reputation as a center of excellence and thought leadership."

He also asked Jameson whether Alekseyeva was found to have used university property in making her pronouncements, whether other faculty made similar gestures of support for Mangione and what other steps are being taken to prevent such scandals in the future.

The school has until the end of the year to respond, he said. 

Fox News Digital reached out to UPenn for comment. 

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The school’s deputy dean of its Arts & Sciences school said in a Wednesday statement the university is aware of concerns over Alekseyeva’s posts and that they are "antithetical to the values" of UPenn.

"Upon reflection, Assistant Professor Alekseyeva has concurred that the comments were insensitive and inappropriate and has retracted them. We welcome this correction and regret any dismay or concern this may have caused," Dean Jeffrey Kallberg said, according to the New York Post.

Mangione, a member of a large and well-connected Baltimore family, was captured following a tip from a customer visiting a McDonald's off Interstate 99 in Blair County, Pa.

New research from the Network Contagion Research Institute (NCRI) and Rutgers University reveals that some diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) training methods may cause psychological harm.

The study, released on Monday, shows significant increases in hostility and punitive attitudes among participants exposed to DEI pedagogy covering subjects like race, religion and caste.

This hostile attribution bias may contribute to increased intergroup hostility and authoritarian behavior in the long run, according to study co-author and NCRI Chief Science Officer Joel Finkelstein.

"What we did was we took a lot of these ideas that were found to still be very prominent in a lot of these DEI lectures and interventions and training," said Finkelstein in an interview with Fox News Digital. "And we said, ‘Well, how is this going to affect people?’ What we found is that when people are exposed to this ideology, what happens is they become hostile without any indication that anything racist has happened."

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A Pew Research Center study from 2023 found that 52% of American workers have DEI training events or meetings at work and, according to Professor Iris Bohnet with the Harvard Kennedy School, $8 billion is spent annually on such programs.

As DEI programs have become a major area of investment in recent years, their actual effectiveness remains a topic of debate, with NCRI's study suggesting they may exacerbate tensions rather than alleviate them. The study measured "explicit bias, social distancing, demonization, and authoritarian tendencies" with both the DEI materials and control materials.

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Their study included sharing anti-racist DEI materials from thought leaders like Ibram X. Kendi and "White Fragility" author Robin DiAngelo with participants involved. Specifically, the NCRI focused on materials which emphasized awareness of and opposition to "systemic oppression," popularized by texts such as Kendi’s "How to Be an Antiracist."

Those exposed to anti-racist materials were linked to heightened perceptions of racial bias in the study. Participants were also more likely to support punitive measures against perceived offenders of so-called "microaggressions," even in the absence of evidence.

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"And when people are supposed to see anti-racist material in the ideology, it looks like what happens is that they become more likely to punish for any evidence of wrongdoing," said Finkelstein. "That includes protesting people, calling for dismissal, demanding public apologies, receiving people calling for their relocation. These punitive measures are, in some cases, costing people their jobs."

DEI programming psychological harms go beyond race according to NCRI's study, spanning to religious identities as well. According to the study, anti-Islamophobia training led participants to detect bias against Muslims in neutral scenarios.

The NCRI used materials from the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU), which "provides objective research and education about American Muslims to support well-informed dialogue and decision-making," according to its website.

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These results suggest that anti-Islamophobia training inspired by ISPU materials may cause individuals to assume unfair treatment of Muslim people, even when no evidence of bias or unfairness is present. This effect highlights a broader issue: DEI narratives that focus heavily on victimization and systemic oppression can foster unwarranted distrust and suspicions of institutions and alter subjective assessments of events.

One key takeaway from Finkelstein in the NCRI study is that the authoritarianism that comes from hostile attribution bias looks different in the 21st century. 

According to Finkelstein, those who are likely to carry hostilities are "people who are higher in what's called left-wing authoritarianism. This is now a steady phenomenon. We the people have been studying right-wing authoritarianism since World War II. It's really only in the past 10 or 15 years that people have started saying, 'Wait a minute, this is on the left, too."

Across all groupings, instead of DEI materials reducing bias, the study discovered they engendered a hostile attribution bias amplifying perceptions of prejudicial hostility where none was present.

"They're bad ideas, because they're hurting people; and that appears from research and appears to be far more prevalent and is shockingly public, these harms can be extremely widespread," said Finkelstein. "So I think that is grounds to believe that from this research, and it suggests that we need to be focused on this data, and we need more data like it. [But we can] start evaluating what's happening here, and I don't think this is about speech. I certainly think it's about people's civil rights."

Representatives DiAngelo did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.

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When reached for comment, Kendi slammed both Fox News and the study, calling it "pseudoscience." 

"It comes as no surprise that Fox News would broadcast this pseudoscience that isn’t peer-reviewed, misrepresents my work, and is based on anchoring bias," Kendi said. "This so-called study will end up in the historic landfill of pseudoscience alongside other attempts to bring scientific legitimacy to racist propaganda that anti-slavery and civil rights then, and DEI and antiracism now have been harmful."

Fox News' Bradford Betz contributed to this report.

After responding to Hamas' Oct. 7 massacre, former-Israeli Defense Forces soldier Max Long went to the U.S. to attend DePaul University where he was later assaulted while holding a sign that read, "Come talk about Israel with an IDF Soldier." Now, Long is working to sue the school so that something like that never happens again.

Long was a leading advocate for Israel on DePaul's Chicago-area campus, where he held discussions about Jewish civil rights and Israel's work to defend itself from Hamas' terror attack on Oct. 7. That day, Long was deployed by the IDF, as he was serving as a reservist with the Israeli military.

As a result, Long said he became the target of disgruntled protesters who harassed him and launched threats against his physical safety. Eventually, Long was beaten unconscious by an anti-Israel agitator on campus, leading to a concussion and other injuries.   

Now, roughly two weeks later, a top Jewish civil rights law firm, The Lawfare Project, indicated Tuesday that Long had retained them to assist him in defending his civil rights and explore potential legal challenges against the school, including but not limited to Title VI, contract and tort claims. They will hold a press conference Thursday afternoon at DePaul's student center. 

The firm also defended a Jewish student at Columbia University earlier this year in a Title VI suit, and shortly after they took legal action, Columbia amended its policies related to campus protesting. That case is still ongoing.

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"Colleges and universities across the United States are turning into literal battlegrounds where Jewish students are being singled out, discriminated against and beaten for their identity," said Brooke Goldstein, founder and executive director of The Lawfare Project. "No student — let alone one like Max who served in the IDF and went on the frontlines to destroy Hamas terrorists — should be subjected to physical, verbal or mental abuse for expressing their Jewish identity. DePaul failed Max and needs to be held accountable for its abject failure to protect Jewish students." 

Meanwhile, Long added that he "will never apologize" for standing up for his Jewish identity and hopes no one at DePaul falls victim to the same sort of violence he experienced.

"I am in incredible pain with bruises all over my face, but I am grateful for the support I have received from the Jewish community at large and The Lawfare Project, specifically, and will continue to work to enforce my civil rights and against the hatred that has consumed American campuses," Long said Tuesday. 

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Anti-Israel campus protests that began last year at Columbia University and spread to campuses across the country have continued this year, with Long's assault being one of the latest examples.

The assault against Long came when he and fellow Jewish student Michael Kaminsky stood on a sidewalk near DePaul's student union holding a sign that read, "Come talk about Israel with an IDF soldier."

At a certain point, Long began engaging in a conversation with an individual. During the slightly contentious, yet calm back-and-forth, a masked accomplice came from behind and knocked out Long. Kaminsky, who broke his wrist, helped fend off the attack before both suspects fled.

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Chicago police ultimately responded and determined what occurred was a hate crime. The suspects remain at-large, however. 

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In addition to threatening the school with legal action, the Lawfare Project said that it will also work to ensure Long's attackers are brought to justice and penalized appropriately to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future.  

DePaul University spokesperson Russell Dorn said in a statement to Fox News Digital that the school's president, Robert L. Manuel, is "outraged this hate crime occurred."

"The university condemns in the strongest possible terms the antisemitic targeting of these two Jewish students, and the lasting fear and anger that the act has inflicted on our Jewish and broader communities," Dorn added. "First and foremost, our concerns are for the two victims in this situation."

Dorn indicated that DePaul had reached out to Long and Kaminsky "to offer care and resources" and are actively working with Chicago police to help identify their perpetrators.

A Connecticut university is roiled in controversy after a report revealed that the school was attempting to find "creative ideas" to offer undocumented students payment for their internships.

"They’re prioritizing citizens over noncitizens, and that’s the problem," Connecticut GOP Chairman Ben Proto told Fox News Digital.

The comments come after a Connecticut Inside Investigator report revealed that Central Connecticut State University (CCSU) officials searched for ways to pay undocumented students "in a way that doesn’t mention ‘employment’ or require a social security number," according to emails obtained by the outlet through a Freedom of Information Act request.

"The President’s Undocumented Student Committee is looking for creative ideas for helping undocumented (or underdocumented) students find paid internships/experiential learning opportunities," CCSU career coach Audra Mika wrote in one email, dated Sept. 13, 2024. "Other universities have set up grants, scholarships, fellowships, and stipends to pay these students in a way that doesn’t mention ‘employment’ or require a social security number."

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"PJ and I want to see what is possible," the email, which was sent to the university’s grants department, continued. "Thank you for any suggestions you might have for helping our undocumented students find paid jobs."

That email was replied to by Kathleen Moore of the CCSU’s Office of Post-Award Grants with a warning that the idea would be "morally wrong" and "illegal" and also noted that grants were awarded via competitive application process and require anyone paid with grant money to be a U.S. citizen.

"If you were told that other universities are using grants ‘to pay these students’ you were misled, or those individuals are doing something illegally and, in my opinion, have no morals," Moore's reply read.

Moore’s email was later forwarded to CCSU Associate Vice President Carmen Veloria by Director of the Career Development Office Paul Rossitto, who wrote, "FYI, we have some people that work at the university that don’t believe we should help all students."

Meanwhile, the initial request garnered responses from officials at Southern Connecticut State University (SCSU), who noted that there is a scholarship fund for "Dream Scholars," though that scholarship only covers "Dreamers" under the controversial Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program and not for all undocumented migrants.

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SCSU officials also noted that they offer the Monarch Scholarship and funds "for undoc [sic] students who work on campus doing an academic internship," while officials from another state school, Eastern Connecticut State University, suggested the institution encourage students to get Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITIN), but warned doing so "does not provide work authorization or legal status" to the migrant.

CCSU officials ran with that idea, encouraging undocumented students to obtain ITINs and then approach local businesses in order to gauge if they would be interested in "hiring/supporting undocumented students as interns" or work with the school’s Student Affairs Department, "to create fellowships, funding opps, stipends for undoc student workers (on and off campus); and to find and teach ‘allies’ what these measures could mean for CCSU."

To Proto, the story is just the latest example of government officials, employees and lawmakers in the state prioritizing the needs of migrants over the legal citizens of Connecticut.

"Where is the state focusing its energy? Should it be focusing its energy on the citizens of the state of Connecticut, or should it be focusing its energy on those people who are here illegally in violation of our laws," Proto said. "When you have the attorney general running around since election day telling everyone that he’s going to protect illegal immigrants… it seems like his priorities are in the wrong place."

In a statement to Connecticut Inside Investigator, CCSU spokeswoman Jodi Latina said that there had been "no intent to mislead or circumvent any laws."

"This email message was misinterpreted by the receiver. The committee member was exploring avenues to support students within the confines of what is permissible under the law," Latina told the outlet. "The requester was inquiring as to whether there are any avenues we aren’t already exploring that exist legally for undocumented students."

In a statement to Fox News Digital, Latina said that the university "has not and will not ever condone any activities that circumvent the law, and this committee was implemented only to coalesce legal means to support these students, as we endeavor to do for our entire Central Family."

Latina also shared a letter sent by university President Zulma Toro, who stressed that the school's efforts were limited to lawful programs.

"Our undocumented students are eligible for various sources of aid from private donors and/or the state of Connecticut. They are not, however, entitled to federal financial assistance, to participate in federal work study grants, become employed, and are prohibited from participating in many programs and experiential learning opportunities that require background checks and social security numbers," read the letter that was sent out to members of the CCSU community. 

"This University has not and will not ever condone any activities that circumvent the law, and this committee was implemented only to coalesce legal means to support these students, as we endeavor to do for our entire Central Family."