US House panel demands Columbia provide disciplinary records for anti-Israel activists
Republican-led oversight committee denounces university’s handling of protesters; Columbia says it’s taking new measures to address antisemitism and will cooperate
Luke Tress is The Times of Israel's New York correspondent.
NEW YORK — A US House oversight committee on Thursday denounced New York’s Columbia University for its handling of anti-Israel protesters and demanded the university turn over disciplinary records for the activists.
The Committee on Education and the Workforce sent a six-page letter to university leadership that said Columbia had promised students, faculty and Congress that it would address campus antisemitism, but has failed to do so.
“Columbia’s continued failure to address the pervasive antisemitism that persists on campus is untenable, particularly given that the university receives billions in federal funding,” the letter said.
The letter cited campus disturbances last year, such as protesters’ forcible takeover of a campus building in the spring, and incidents this semester including the disruption of an Israeli professor’s class.
The committee accused Columbia of failing to properly discipline those responsible, creating a “hostile environment for members of Columbia’s Jewish communities.” The letter demanded Columbia turn over disciplinary records by the end of February for 11 different protest incidents that took place between April 2023 and January 2024.
The letter was addressed to the interim university president, Katrina Armstrong, and two leaders of Columbia’s trustees, the university’s governing board. It was signed by the committee chairman, Rep. Tim Walberg, a Republican from Michigan.
The Republican-led House committee has grilled Columbia and other top universities over anti-Israel activism since soon after Hamas’ October 7, 2023, invasion of Israel. The Trump administration has put further pressure on universities since taking office.
Columbia has repeatedly condemned protest activities that violate campus rules in recent weeks, and disciplined some students, including for the disruption of the Israeli professor’s class.
In response to the committee’s demand, a Columbia spokesperson said the university “has cooperated extensively with the previous congressional inquiries and will continue to do so.”
“Since assuming her role in August, Interim President Armstrong and her leadership team have taken decisive actions to address issues of antisemitism,” the spokesperson told The Times of Israel.
Some of those new measures include establishing an Office of Institutional Equity to address reports of discrimination and harassment, appointing a new rules administrator and bolstering the Public Safety Office.
