Harvard, MIT, UPenn presidents face backlash for evading antisemitism questions

The presidents of Harvard, MIT and UPenn are facing calls for resignation, donor threats, and a congressional investigation after their testimony to the House Education and Workforce Committee this week.

Stone Ridge Asset Management founder and CEO Ross Stevens has rescinded the school’s $100 million donation.

Why?
The committee was questioning Harvard University President Claudine Gay, MIT President Sally Kornbluth and University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) President Elizabeth Magill on Tuesday over their responses to on-campus antisemitism and Islamophobia—that have risen since the October 7 Israel-Hamas war.

Criticism
President Magill of UPenn faced criticism when she avoided a question on how she would discipline students calling for the genocide of Jews. Harvard President Gay was accused of doing very little to protect their students from hate crimes on campus.

Several donors have called for these university presidents to step down, while many threaten to stop donations and other philanthropic efforts at the colleges.

Formal investigation
Unhappy with the testimony, the House committee is opening a formal investigation into the learning environments, policies and disciplinary procedures at the three elite universities.

The committee seeks documents and disciplinary records from the three schools.

At least six more schools are facing investigations from the Department of Education over alleged incidents of antisemitism and Islamophobia last month.