After just over a year in office, President of Columbia University Minouche Shafik, He resigned from his post this Wednesday after intense pressure for handling pro-Palestinian protests on campus and accusations of anti-Semitism.
She was the third president of an Ivy League university (the group of oldest and most prestigious universities in the United States) to resign in eight months after being forced to attend congressional hearings on an investigation into anti-Semitism on campuses after October 7. terrorist attack by Hamas and Israeli retaliation in Gaza.
Shafik, an Egyptian-born economist who spent most of her career in London, where she was president of the London School of Economics, among other posts, said Wednesday night in a letter to the Columbia community that, while he felt that while the campus had made progress in some important areas, it had also been a period of turmoil “Where it has been difficult to overcome the divergent viewpoints in our community.”
“This period has taken a significant toll on my family, as it has on others in our community,” he added “Over the summer, I have been able to reflect and have decided that moving forward at this point will allowed Colombia to navigate the challenges ahead.”
He added that his resignation was effective immediately and that he would take a job with Britain's foreign secretary to lead a review of the government's approach to international development.
He will replace him on an interim basis Katrina Armstrong Dean of Columbia's College of Physicians and Surgeons, who said that “as I take on this role, I am fully aware of the trials the University has faced over the past year. We must not underestimate their importance nor we let them define who we are and how we are.” we will convert”, he continued.
The resignation of Shafik, who last July became the first woman at the head of this 270-year-old university, It was unexpected at this point.right after classes start in September. Columbia's board members had said they supported his leadership, and the campus had been largely quiet over the summer.
But the sudden end and brevity of Shafik's presidency underscores it the profound impact of the pro-Palestinian demonstrations that rocked college campuses across the country in recent months.
Shafik was caught in the middle of a controversy regarding anti-Semitism on campus following the Hamas attack and protests related to the conflict, as well as her decision to call in the New York Police Department to clean up tents on campus. a raid that ended with more than 100 arrests as protesters occupied the buildings.
He also faced criticism from students and Jewish organizations for allowing the camps to stand for days before being cleared. Jewish students reported acts of intimidation and anti-Semitic acts by protesters. Several major donors to the University cut off their contributions due to complaints of anti-Semitism.
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Republican Mike Johnson and other lawmakers went to Columbia in April to denounce Shafik and the University for failing to protect Jewish students on campus during the camps.
“THREE DOWN, long to go” republican representative published in Elise Stefanik, who spent much of last year investigating university presidents for their conduct in the wake of pro-Palestinian protests.
“Columbia University President Minouche Shafik's failed presidency was unsustainable and it was only a matter of time before her forced resignation,” said the lawmaker, who has questioned several university presidents in tough hearings at the Capitol.
Stefanik referred in her message to University of Pennsylvania President Liz Magill and Harvard President Claudine Gay, who resigned during this academic year in office.
Both Gay and Magill testified before the House Education and Workforce Committee in December and faced heavy criticism for failing to engage in student discipline.
Shafik's short tenure was a stark example of the challenges facing American college presidents these days as they seek to balance student safety, free speech and academic freedom.