A Health and Human Services inquiry has determined that Columbia University acted with "deliberate indifference" about the ongoing harassment of Jewish students, violating federal civil rights law.
"The findings carefully document the hostile environment Jewish students at Columbia University have had to endure for over 19 months, disrupting their education, safety, and well-being," Anthony Archeval, the HHS acting director for civil rights, said, reports Bloomberg on Friday.
"We encourage Columbia University to work with us to come to an agreement that reflects meaningful changes that will truly protect Jewish students," he added.
The findings come while the New York Ivy League university and the Trump administration are locked in a battle with it and other higher education institutions over scrutiny and federal funding.
The Trump administration is pressuring schools to make changes in admissions and hiring practices, campus protests, and oversight of academic programs.
It has canceled $400 million in federal contracts and grants at Columbia, saying the college inadequately responded to Jewish students' complaints of antisemitism after the Oct. 7 Hamas assault on Israel.
Columbia, in a statement late Thursday, said the university is "deeply committed to combating antisemitism and all forms of harassment and discrimination on our campus. We take these issues seriously and will work with the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Education to address them."
University acting President Claire Shipman, however, said that Columbia will not accept any deal that allows the government to dictate who it hires, what it teaches, or its research.
Columbia and the administration have been negotiating on the funding cuts, including on changes sought by the government on complaints of left-leaning bias, student safety, and policing.
The HHS report comes while the Trump administration on Thursday revoked Harvard University's ability to enroll overseas students.
The administration has made its most aggressive moves against Harvard and Columbia, but has also increased its scrutiny against other elite schools, including Princeton and Northwestern universities.
Sandy Fitzgerald ✉
Sandy Fitzgerald has more than three decades in journalism and serves as a general assignment writer for Newsmax covering news, media, and politics.
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