The Department of Education (ED) on Wednesday announced it has notified Harvard University’s accreditor of its alleged failure to address antisemitism on campus.
ED and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said the New England Commission of Higher Education that Harvard’s failure to reach a resolution agreement with the administration puts it in violation of federal civil rights law and is therefore noncompliant with the accreditor’s standards, according to a press release. The agencies are calling on the commission to notify Harvard of its risk of losing its accreditation status.
“Accrediting bodies play a significant role in preserving academic integrity and a campus culture conducive to truth-seeking and learning. Part of that is ensuring students are safe on campus and abiding by federal laws that guarantee educational opportunities to all students,” Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said in the press release announcing the decision. “By allowing anti-Semitic harassment and discrimination to persist unchecked on its campus, Harvard University has failed in its obligation to students, educators, and American taxpayers.”
“When an institution—no matter how prestigious—abandons its mission and fails to protect its students, it forfeits the legitimacy that accreditation is designed to uphold,” HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr said in the release. “HHS and the Department of Education will actively hold Harvard accountable through sustained oversight until it restores public trust and ensures a campus free of discrimination.”
A Harvard spokesman told the Daily Caller News Foundation that the university remains committed to combating antisemitism on campus and has been complying with federal investigations.
“Antisemitism is a serious problem and no matter the context, it is unacceptable,” a university spokesman said. “Harvard has taken substantive, proactive steps to address the root causes of antisemitism in its community.”
“Harvard is far from indifferent on this issue and strongly disagrees with the government’s findings,” the spokesman continued. “Harvard continues to comply with the New England Commission of Higher Education’s Standards for Accreditation, maintaining its accreditation uninterrupted since its initial review in 1929.”
The university previously vowed not to comply with the Trump administration’s demands to reform its disciplinary process and foreign student admissions to help combat campus antisemitism, resulting in the federal government revoking more than $2 billion from the school. The Ivy League university has since attempted to negotiate with the administration to no avail.
Anti-Israel demonstrations at Harvard consisted of disrupting classes, occupying a campus building and setting up a multi-day encampment. A September congressional investigation found “Harvard failed” to punish a majority of those involved in the protests, and a more recent investigation conducted by the university itself revealed that more than a quarter of Jewish students felt “physically unsafe” on campus and “Almost 60% of Jewish students reported experiencing ‘discrimination, stereotyping, or negative bias.’”
“The Department of Education expects the New England Commission of Higher Education to enforce its policies and practices, and to keep the Department fully informed of its efforts to ensure that Harvard is in compliance with federal law and accreditor standards,” McMahon stated.
Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to add comment from a Harvard University spokesperson.
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