Harvard President Claudine Gay will remain in her position as leader of the prestigious Ivy League school, the university’s highest governing body announced Tuesday. The decision follows her comments last week at a congressional hearing on antisemitism, which sparked intense scrutiny and criticism from Republican opponents, alumni, and donors.
The Harvard Corporation, the university’s highest governing body, released a statement following its meeting Monday night, affirming their confidence in Gay and her ability to help the community heal and address the serious societal issues they are facing.
“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 statement read.
The decision to keep Gay in office comes only months after she became Harvard’s first Black president in July. It also follows the resignation of Liz Magill as president of the University of Pennsylvania on Saturday.
The Harvard Crimson student newspaper first reported Tuesday that Gay will remain in office with the support of the Harvard Corporation following the conclusion of the board’s meeting. It cited an unnamed source familiar with the decision.
The decision was met with support from faculty members, who signed a petition asking the school’s governing body to keep Gay in charge.
“So many people have suffered tremendous damage and pain because of Hamas’s brutal terrorist attack, and the university’s initial statement should have been an immediate, direct, and unequivocal condemnation,” the corporation’s statement said. “Calls for genocide are despicable and contrary to fundamental human values. President Gay has apologized for how she handled her congressional testimony and has committed to redoubling the university’s fight against antisemitism.”
In an interview with The Crimson last week, Gay said she got caught up in a heated exchange at the House committee hearing and failed to properly denounce threats of violence against Jewish students.
“What I should have had the presence of mind to do in that moment was return to my guiding truth, which is that calls for violence against our Jewish community — threats to our Jewish students — have no place at Harvard, and will never go unchallenged,” Gay said.
The corporation also addressed allegations of plagiarism against Gay, saying that Harvard became aware of them in late October regarding three articles she had written. It initiated an independent review at Gay’s request, which revealed a few instances of inadequate citation, but found no violation of Harvard’s standards for research misconduct.
The decision to keep Gay in office is a testament to her commitment to the university and her dedication to helping the community heal and address the serious societal issues they are facing. Gay has proven her ability to lead Harvard with integrity and compassion, and her commitment to fighting antisemitism and other forms of discrimination is unwavering.
The Harvard Corporation’s decision to keep Gay in office is a strong message of support for her leadership and a sign of the university’s commitment to creating a safe and inclusive environment for all students.
