NEW YORK: The president of New York’s Columbia University resigned on Wednesday, just weeks before the start of the new school year, citing the toll taken by a “period of turmoil” after she faced scrutiny for her handling of demonstrations over the Israeli aggression in Gaza.

British-American economist Minouche Shafik is the fourth president of an Ivy League university to step down in the wake of the bitter divisions and anti-conflict protests that swept campuses nationwide. The protests that roiled Columbia and other schools culminated in US Congress grilling higher education leaders about accusations of anti-Semitism and whether enough was being done to keep Jewish students safe.

Shafik, who last year became the first woman to lead Columbia, said in a letter to the university’s community that she felt her tenure had “made progress in a number of important areas” but noted it was also “a period of turmoil where it has been difficult to overcome divergent views across our community.”

Published in Dawn, August 16th, 2024