Minouche Shafik resigned as president of Columbia University just months after militants set up an encampment and eventually barricaded themselves inside the building to protest continuing fighting in the Gaza Strip and the university’s ties to Israel.
On Wednesday, Shafiq letter She announced her resignation and made it clear that her departure was prompted by disruptive protests on campus last spring.
“Tension, division and politicization have roiled our campus over the past year,” she wrote, creating “chaos” that discourages open dialogue.
While condemning discrimination of all kinds, Shafik also stressed the importance of “freedom of speech” and “openness to new ideas,” claiming that nurturing future leaders while adhering to core academic principles is Columbia’s “North Star.”
“I have striven to uphold academic principles and to follow a path that treats all people fairly and with compassion,” she maintained.
Johnson on Thursday welcomed the news of Shafik’s resignation, calling it “long overdue.”
Shafik said that despite his efforts to promote these traditional values, he and other like-minded students, faculty and staff had been “subject to threats and abuse” and that the campus protests had taken a “great toll” on his family.
Tensions on college campuses across the country had been simmering for months since the October 7 attacks on Israelis, but escalated significantly in April, when pro-Hamas protesters set up an encampment in the center of Columbia University’s campus, harassing Jewish students and faculty, and demanding that Columbia leaders divest from Israel.
The situation in Colombia became untenable. Speaker Mike Johnson (Republican Rep.) met with Shafik in late April and subsequently called for his resignation.
A few days later, Governor Shafik authorized the NYPD to arrest protesters who had ignored orders to disperse and holed up in Hamilton Hall, breaking windows and defacing the building with anti-Semitic graffiti.
Thursday, Chairman Johnson He welcomed the news of Shafik’s resignation, calling it “long overdue.”
Shafik’s resignation took effect immediately, just before students were due to return to campus for the fall semester, and she was just one year into her term as president.
Katrina ArmstrongThe CEO of Columbia University Irving Medical Center will serve as interim president until a successor can be found.
Shafik, who was born in Egypt and earned a doctorate in economics from Oxford University, claimed the post of British foreign secretary.
“I am delighted and grateful for this opportunity to refocus my lifelong interests on combating global poverty and promoting sustainable development. It will also enable me to return to the House of Lords and to work again on the important legislative agenda put forward by the new UK Government,” she said.
Shafik’s resignation Third resignation In the last nine months, a female Ivy League school has had a president. Liz McGill He resigned as president of the University of Pennsylvania in December, and Claudine Gay resigned from Harvard University in early January.
McGill and Gay also struggled with pro-Hamas protests on campus, came under fire from members of parliament for allowing anti-Semitism to flourish on campus during their terms, and were dogged in the final weeks of Gay’s term by accusations of plagiarism and academic misconduct.
Like Blaze News? Bypass the censorship and sign up for our newsletter to get stories like this directly to your inbox. Register here!
