The Harvard Corporation, the highest governing body at the university, has backed the university’s president, Claudine Gay, to remain in post after calls for her removal following controversial testimony over antisemitism on campus.
Gay and the presidents of University of Pennsylvania and MIT faced backlash for their remarks at a congressional hearing into antisemitism on college campuses. Congresswoman Elise Stefanik demanded a “yes” or “no” response to her question of whether calling for the genocide of Jews would violate their university’s code of conduct. The presidents’ various responses were criticized for not being unequivocal enough in their condemnation of calls for genocide.
More than 70 lawmakers called for the three presidents to be removed following the hearing, with Harvard donors and some faculty echoing calls for Gay’s removal.
The Harvard Corporation: “In this tumultuous and difficult time, we unanimously stand in support of President Gay.” https://t.co/stSvH4t1BP
— Harvard University (@Harvard) December 12, 2023
The House committee on education and the workforce has announced an official congressional investigation into antisemitism at Harvard.
Liz Magill, the president of the University of Pennsylvania, resigned following the backlash, though she had been facing criticism before the hearing.
Gay issued an apology for her response during the congressional testimony in an interview with the Harvard Crimson.
More than 700 faculty members signed a petition backing Gay in response to the calls for her removal. The Harvard Alumni Association’s executive committee also announced its support for her.
On 12 December, the Harvard Corporation issued a statement of support for Gay’s presidency.
“As members of the Harvard Corporation, we today reaffirm our support for President Gay’s continued leadership of Harvard University. Our extensive deliberations affirm our confidence that President Gay is the right leader to help our community heal and to address the very serious societal issues we are facing,” the Harvard Corporation said in a statement.
“In this tumultuous and difficult time, we unanimously stand in support of President Gay. At Harvard, we champion open discourse and academic freedom, and we are united in our strong belief that calls for violence against our students and disruptions of the classroom experience will not be tolerated. Harvard’s mission is advancing knowledge, research, and discovery that will help address deep societal issues and promote constructive discourse, and we are confident that President Gay will lead Harvard forward toward accomplishing this vital work.”
