The president of Columbia University has resigned, effective immediately
NEW YORK — President of Columbia University Minouche Shafik resigned Wednesday after a short, tumultuous tenure as president of the prestigious New York university, during which he faced protests over the war between Israel and Hamas and criticism over the school’s handling of divisions over the conflict.
The Upper Manhattan school was plagued by student protests this year, culminating in scenes of police officers with zip ties and riot shields storming a building occupied by pro-Palestinian protesters. Similar protests took place on university campuses across the country.
In her letter announcing her resignation, Shafik noted “progress in a number of important areas” but lamented that her tenure has also been “a period of turmoil during which it has been difficult to overcome divergent views within our community.” In her statement, she acknowledged that the campus protests played a role in her decision to step down.
“This period has taken a significant toll on my family, as well as others in the community,” Shafik wrote. “Over the summer, I have been able to reflect and decide that my departure at this point would best position Columbia to meet the challenges ahead.”
In addition to the protests, there was also truancy in July. three deans removedwho have since dischargeafter officials said they exchanged derogatory messages during a campus discussion about Jewish life and anti-Semitism. Shafik said in a July 8 letter to the school community that the messages were unprofessional and “troublingly invoked old anti-Semitic tropes.”
Shafik was also among the leaders of the university summoned for questioning before Congress earlier this year. She was heavily criticized by Republicans who accused her of not doing enough to combat concerns about anti-Semitism on Columbia’s campus.
She wrote in her letter that she will return to the UK to lead a review by the Foreign Secretary’s Office into the government’s approach to international development and how its capacity can be improved.
“I am very pleased and grateful that this gives me the opportunity to return to work to combat global poverty and promote sustainable development, areas that have interested me throughout my life,” she wrote. “It also allows me to return to the House of Lords to once again engage with the important legislative agenda set out by the new UK Government.”
The Board of Trustees announced that Katrina Armstrong, CEO of Columbia University Irving Medical Center and executive vice president for the university’s Health and Biomedical Sciences, has agreed to serve as interim president. She said she was “deeply honored” to lead the university at a “pivotal time for Columbia.”
“Challenging times offer both the opportunity and the responsibility for serious leadership to emerge from every group and every individual within a community,” Armstrong wrote. “This is such a time at Columbia. As I take on this role, I am acutely aware of the trials the University has faced over the past year.”
Shafik was appointed president of the university last year, the first woman to take on the role. She was one of several women recently appointed to take the reins at Ivy League institutions.
She previously headed the London School of Economics and worked at the World Bank, where she rose to become the bank’s youngest-ever vice-president. Shafik also worked at the UK’s Department for International Development, followed by stints at the International Monetary Fund and the Bank of England.
At the time of Shafik’s appointment, Jonathan Lavine, chairman of Columbia’s board of trustees, described her as a leader who deeply understood “the academy and the world beyond it.”
“What sets Minouche apart as a candidate,” Lavine said in a statement, “is her unwavering belief in the critical role that higher education institutions can and must play in solving the world’s most complex problems.”