Member News

The House Education and the Workforce Committee will investigate Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Pennsylvania after their institutions’ leaders failed to sufficiently condemn student protests calling for “Jewish genocide” during a congressional hearing on Tuesday.
 
Committee Chair Virginia Foxx (R-NC) criticized the schools for failing to tackle the “rampant antisemitism” on their campuses after the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7 and the subsequent Israeli invasion of Gaza.  She indicated the inquiry would examine “the learning environments” at Harvard, M.I.T. and Penn, as well as disciplinary procedures. She warned that the panel would “not hesitate” to issue subpoenas.  
 
“After this week’s pathetic and morally bankrupt testimony by university presidents when answering my questions, the Education and Workforce Committee is launching an official Congressional investigation with the full force of subpoena power into Penn, MIT, & Harvard and others,” Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY),  the fourth-ranking House Republican, said in a statement.
 
Presidents of all three institutions have come under significant criticism for the answers they provided to committee members.  Both Harvard and Penn have issues clarifying statements regarding how they view antisemitic speech on campus.
 
Below is a sample of media coverage of the lastest developments:
 
House Education Panel to Investigate Harvard, Penn, MIT
Inside Higher Ed (December 8, 2023)
 
Penn’s Magill Faces Fallout From Antisemitism Hearing
Inside Higher Ed (December 8, 2023)
 
The Review: The Campus Antisemitism Hearing Was Pure Theater. It Was Also a Disaster for Colleges
The Chronicle of Higher Education (December 7, 2023)
 
House Education Committee to Launch Probe into Harvard, MIT and Penn Over Antisemitism
Politico.com (December 7, 2023)
 
Congressional Panel to Investigate Harassment of Jewish Students at Harvard, MIT and Penn
The Wall Street Journal (December 7, 2023)
 
House Committee Launches Investigation of Harvard, MIT and UPenn Over Antisemitism Fight
CNBC.com (December 7, 2023)
 
Universities Face Congressional Inquiry and Angry Donors Over Handling of Antisemitism
The New York Post (December 7, 2023)
 
Congressional Committee Opens Investigation into Penn Following President’s Testimony on Antisemitism
The Philadelphia Inquirer (December 7, 2023)
 
Democrats Slam Harvard, MIT, UPenn Presidents After Stefanik Grilling
Politico.com (December 7, 2023)
 
How Accusations of College Antisemitism Went From Bad to Worse With One House Hearing
The Hill.com (December 7, 2023)

Ivy League Presidents Reckon with Swift Backlash to Remarks on Campus Antisemitism
Associated Press (December 7, 2023)
 
Facing Calls to Resign, Liz McGill Is Still Penn President After Board Discusses Backlash to Her Congressional Testimony
The Philadelphia Inquirer (December 7, 2023)
 
Penn President Responds to Backlash Over Testimony on Antisemitism
The Washington Post (December 7, 2023)
 
Penn Board of Trustees Convenes After School President’s House Comments
The Hill.com (December 7, 2023)
 
Penn President Walks Back Congressional Remarks on Antisemitism After Backlash
The Wall Street Journal (December 7, 2023)

Penn Donor Threatens to Rescind $100 Million Gift Unless President Is Ousted
The Wall Street Journal (December 7, 2023) 

Harvard University Alums Say President Claudine Gay Should Resign After ‘Shocking’ Testimony About Antisemitism on Campus
Boston Herald (December 6, 2023)
 

Harvard Bans ‘Cisheterosexism’ but Shrugs at Antisemitism - Commentary
The Wall Street Journal (December 8, 2023)

Campus Antisemitism, Free Speech and Double Standards - Commentary
The New York Times (December 8, 2023)

Harvard Poison Ivy - Column
Boston Herald (December 8, 2023) 

At a Hearing on Israel, University Presidents Walked Into a Trap - Commentary
The New York Times (December 7, 2023)
 

Iowa has seen state support erode for public universities. Officials with Iowa’s private colleges fear, based on conversations with some Republican lawmakers, that their liberal-arts students could be the next target for cuts.
The Iowa Tuition Grant program is the primary way that state dollars help support Iowa’s independent colleges and universities. Now, however, discussions with key legislators surrounding the program and changes that could be made in the future have caused concerns for leaders in the state’s private university sector.
 

Alumni, students, donors, advocates and politicians are offering harsh criticism over this week’s testimony of three college presidents before the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, according to numerous media reports. The presidents of Harvard University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Pennsylvania were called to Capitol Hill for a hearing on the rise of antisemitism on campus. 
 
At issue is the apparent failure of the presidents to clearly state that calling for the genocide of Jewish people violated their campus policies.
 
Even White House Deputy Press Secretary Andrew commented: “It’s unbelievable that this needs to be said: calls for genocide are monstrous and antithetical to everything we represent as a country. Any statements that advocate for the systematic murder of Jews are dangerous and revolting—and we should all stand firmly against them, on the side of human dignity and the most basic values that unite us as Americans.”
 
Since the hearing, the presidents of both Harvard and Penn have issued clarifying statements:
 
University of Pennsylvania President Liz Magill issued a statement: “There was a moment during yesterday’s congressional hearing on antisemitism when I was asked if a call for the genocide of Jewish people on our campus would violate our policies,” Magill said. “In that moment, I was focused on our University’s longstanding policies aligned with the U.S. Constitution, which say that speech alone is not punishable. I was not focused on, but I should have been, the irrefutable fact that a call for genocide of Jewish people is a call for some of the most terrible violence human beings can perpetrate. It’s evil—plain and simple.”
 
Harvard University President Claudine Gay issued a statement through the university’s X account:  “There are some who have confused a right to free expression with the idea that Harvard will condone calls for violence against Jewish students. Let me be clear: Calls for violence or genocide against the Jewish community, or any religious or ethnic group are vile, they have no place at Harvard, and those who threaten our Jewish students will be held to account.”
 
Below is a sampling of the media coverage:
 
President Magill Reiterates Commitment to Combat Antisemitism During Congressional Hearing
Penn Today.com (December 7, 2023)
 
The Fallout: What the Antisemitism Hearing Could Mean for Higher Education
Inside Higher Ed (December 7, 2023)
 
After President’s Remarks on Antisemitism, Penn Should Consider Her Future, the State’s Governor Says
The Chronicle of Higher Education (December 7, 2023)
 
College Presidents Under Fire After Dodging Questions About Antisemitism
The New York Times (December 7, 2023)
 
Harvard, Penn and MIT Presidents Ignite Furor With 'Unacceptable' Response to Antisemitism
USA Today (December 7, 2023)
 
Harvard's President Answers Backlash Over Response to Calls for 'Genocide of Jews'
ABC News.com (December 7, 2023)
 
Penn President Liz Magill Is Facing Criticism From Gov. Shapiro, White House and Others for Comments at a Congressional Hearing on Antisemitism
The Philadelphia Inquirer (December 7, 2023)
 
University Presidents’ Responses to Genocide Question at Congressional Hearing Draw Furor
The Boston Globe (December 7, 2023)
 
Harvard, Penn and MIT Presidents Under Fire Over ‘Despicable’ Testimony on Antisemitism and Genocide
CNN.com (December 7, 2023)
 
Harvard, Penn Heads Walk Back Genocide Answers After Backlash
Bloomberg.com (December 7, 2023)
 
Documentary Fuels Academic Freedom Debates
Inside Higher Ed (December 7, 2023)
 
Harvard Alumni Rebuke Its Israel Response With Mere $1 Donations
Bloomberg.com (December 4, 2023)
 
 
Stop Scolding Student Protestors - Commentary
The Chronicle of Higher Education (December 7, 2023)
 

Paul LeBlanc, president and CEO of Southern New Hampshire University, said Wednesday he plans to step down in June after more than two decades in the role. LeBlanc is credited with transforming Southern New Hampshire from a small regional college with just a few thousand students to an online behemoth with over 160,000 students last fall. Lisa Marsh Ryerson, who has been Southern New Hampshire’s provost since last year, will step into the presidency for a two-year term beginning in July. 

Saint Augustine’s University fired President Christine McPhail this week and also suffered a setback on its shaky accreditation status, according to statements issued by the SAU Board of Trustees.  McPhail was hired as president of the private historically Black university in North Carolina in February 2021, stepping into the role after the death of her husband, Irving Pressley McPhail, who briefly served as SAU’s president in 2020 before becoming an early casualty of the COVID-19 pandemic.