- In the wake of calls for President Gay's resignation, faculty members are now turning the spotlight on the other eleven members of the Harvard Corporation
- One professor has proposed an overhaul of the board structure to give lawmakers the ability to appoint board members to represent the public
The board of Harvard University is under pressure to resign over its handling of the anti-Semitic fury.
In the wake of mounting calls for Gay's resignation, faculty members are now turning the spotlight on the other 11 members of the Harvard Corporation — the Ivy League's powerful governing body that continues to support her.
One professor has even proposed an overhaul of the board structure to give lawmakers the ability to appoint board members who represent the public interest, the committee said. Wall Street Journal.
Meanwhile, former Harvard Medical School Dean Jeffrey Flier said he had instructed board members Tracy Palandjian and Paul Finnegan to do more to address the ongoing unrest surrounding the school.
“You have to be more outspoken here,” Flier recalled telling executives as he spoke to management New York Times. 'When people say the university makes mistakes, they are talking about you!'
In the wake of mounting calls for the resignation of President Claudine Gay (pictured), faculty members are now turning the spotlight on the other 11 members of the Harvard Corporation – the Ivy League's powerful governing body that continues to support it.
Former Harvard Medical School Dean Jeffrey Flier said he told board members Tracy Palandjian (left) and Paul Finnegan (right) to do more to address the ongoing unrest
“They're under pressure, that's for sure,” Flier added while speaking to the WSJ.
“They are the trust and no one will deny that Harvard's reputation has taken a very substantial hit in the world… It is on their watch that this is happening.”
Professor Kit Parker said the school is facing a fork in the road and board members must resign to choose the right path.
'The big question now is: how arrogant is Harvard?' the professor of bioengineering and applied physics told the WSJ.
“And when I say Harvard, I mean the Harvard Corporation. Do they think this will go away?'
“I haven't always been right,” Harvard President Dr. Claudine Gay said in her opening statement
Gay sparked outrage at a congressional hearing earlier this month after she said whether calls for the genocide of Jews at Harvard constituted harassment and violated the rules depended on context.
The president, who has recently denied reports that she is also plagiarizing, first sparked outrage after the Oct. 7 massacre of 1,200 people in Israel with lukewarm condemnation of the attack.
She then issued two apologies in which she issued a louder condemnation of Hamas, the Palestinian terror group behind the atrocities.
Gay has been criticized for taking a pro-free speech stance on hatred of Jews on a campus recently labeled the most censorious in the United States.
New students are warned that not using a person's requested pronoun or being “fatphobic” could constitute violence.
The Harvard Corporation admitted that it should have condemned Hamas's attack in Israel sooner, but gave its full support for continuing in its role.
“Our extensive deliberations reaffirm our confidence that President Gay is the right leader to help our community heal and address the very serious societal issues we face,” the board said in a statement.
It added: “So many people have suffered enormous harm and pain as a result of Hamas' brutal terrorist attack, and the university's initial statement should have been an immediate, direct and unequivocal condemnation.
The Harvard Corporation, formally the President and Fellows of Harvard College, has twelve members, including Gay, former Amherst College President Biddy Martin and former American Express CEO Kenneth I. Chenault.
Gay, the school's first Black president, was appointed to the post in July 2023.