The governing body of Harvard University is voicing unanimous support for its embattled President Claudine Gay, defending her from accusations of antisemitism and downplaying allegations that she plagiarized her doctoral dissertation. In a statement published on Tuesday morning, the Harvard Corporation expressed complete confidence in Gay’s “continued leadership” and her ability to address “serious societal issues.”
The public outcry against Claudine Gay, as well as the leadership at the University of Pennsylvania and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, was sparked by a disastrous Congressional hearing to address antisemitism on college campuses. When called on to explain apparent double standards in hate speech policies at their respective universities, Gay, UPenn President Liz Magill, and MIT President Sally Kornbluth all said that calls for genocide against Jews were only wrong under certain contexts.
Related: Ivy League Presidents OK Calls for Jewish Genocide in Certain Contexts
Following last week’s testimony, all three schools have seen a surge of negative publicity and calls for changes in leadership. Magill resigned from her position at the University of Pennsylvania on Saturday but will retain a tenured faculty position.
At the same time, a similar pressure campaign (led in part by billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman) was directed against Harvard, pushing for Gay’s removal. However, according to the members of the Harvard Corporation, which oversees the school’s academic and financial resources, Gay’s statements have not shaken their confidence in her.
“As members of the Harvard Corporation, we today reaffirm our support for President Gay’s continued leadership of Harvard University,” said a statement signed by 11 of Gay’s fellow board members. “Our extensive deliberations affirm our confidence that President Gay is the right leader to help our community heal and to address the very serious societal issues we are facing.”
“Calls for genocide are despicable and contrary to fundamental human values. President Gay has apologized for how she handled her congressional testimony and has committed to redoubling the University’s fight against antisemitism,” the statement continued.
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The board members then addressed recent accusations about Gay’s academic integrity.
As Valuetainment previously reported, journalist Christopher Rufo of the Manhattan Institute released documentation alleging that Gay’s 1997 doctoral dissertation, Taking Charge: Black Electoral Success and the Redefinition of American Policies, contained entire paragraphs lifted from the works of other scholars without citation.
EXCLUSIVE: @RealChrisBrunet and I have obtained documentation demonstrating that Harvard President Claudine Gay plagiarized multiple sections of her Ph.D. thesis, violating Harvard's policies on academic integrity.
This is a bombshell. 🧵
— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) December 10, 2023
Reports of additional instances of plagiarism have emerged since Rufo’s report broke on Sunday, with many pointing out the hypocrisy of Gay expelling dozens of students for violating Harvard’s academic integrity policies.
“With regard to President Gay’s academic writings, the University became aware in late October of allegations regarding three articles. At President Gay’s request, the Fellows promptly initiated an independent review by distinguished political scientists and conducted a review of her published work,” the Harvard Corporation said. “On December 9, the Fellows reviewed the results, which revealed a few instances of inadequate citation. While the analysis found no violation of Harvard’s standards for research misconduct, President Gay is proactively requesting four corrections in two articles to insert citations and quotation marks that were omitted from the original publications.”
While the Harvard Corporation made it clear that Gay will retain her position, The Harvard Crimson emphasizes that the academic dishonesty allegations, not the antisemitism charges, “might prove more perilous to the future of Gay’s presidency.”
The board members concluded their statement by reaffirming the university’s commitment to “advancing knowledge, research, and discovery that will help address deep societal issues and promote constructive discourse.”
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