WORCESTER — The University of Massachusetts board of trustees voted Wednesday to endorse a decision made by the UMass Foundation in May to divest from the university’s direct holdings in fossil fuel companies.
The vote was a symbolic gesture because the UMass Foundation manages the university’s $770 million endowment, not the trustees.
The endorsement of UMass becoming one of the first public universities in the country to divest from fossil fuels appeased environmentally minded student protesters, though they say their work is far from finished.
“We look forward to moving forward with a clear plan for divestment,” said Kristie Herman, a spokeswoman for the student-led group Divest UMass. “Our work is in no way done.”
With 19 trustees present at the meeting, the board voted 17-1 in favor of endorsement, with Edward W. Collins, Jr. opposing and Robert Epstein abstaining, according to UMass spokesman Robert Connolly.
The endorsement comes after a student-led protest at UMass Amherst focused attention on divestment in April. Divest UMass led a sit-in that drew 250 participants at its height and resulted in the arrests of 34 students.
The group initially called on the university to drop all investments in the top 200 publicly traded fossil fuel companies as determined by Carbon Tracker, an independent think-tank focused on climate change.
The university compromised with protesters, agreeing to end only direct investments in fossil fuels.
The financial impact will be small, as less than 1 percent, or $5 million, is directly invested in fossil fuels. But student protesters and university officials hope the decision to divest will send a message about climate change.
According to a statement released by Connolly, UMass President Marty Meehan “applauded” the board’s action.
“We have made a significant statement without jeopardizing the endowment, which, after all, is a significant source of funding for scholarships and research grants. We are the largest public university to go as far as we have gone, and we’re proud to be able to make that claim,” Meehan said in the statement.
About 10 Divest UMass protesters attended the board of trustees meeting Wednesday morning, Herman and Connolly confirmed. The protesters wore black clothing and pinned orange felt to their shirts as they did during the protest in the spring. Some carried signs bearing messages from students and organizations that could not be present at the meeting but offered support.
UMass Amherst sophomore Muhammad Munir addressed the board and spoke on behalf of Divest UMass, according to Herman. Munir has been with the divestment campaign since he enrolled at the university in the fall of 2015.
Herman said Divest UMass will continue to push for full divestment throughout the summer and into the fall semester. The group also wants Meehan to continue communicating with students and release a more specific plan about how the university will divest direct investments in fossil fuels over the next five years.
Ideally, Divest UMass wants the university to pull 20 percent of its direct holdings annually.
“We would like to see a time-bound plan by September,” Herman said. “There’s no plan, the only clear thing is that they have prohibited any further direct investments in fossil fuels.”