The shortest presidency in Harvard University’s history has come to an end with the resignation of President Claudine Gay on Tuesday afternoon, according to a source cited by The Harvard Crimson.
Harvard affiliates are slated to receive an email from The Corporation, the University’s top governing body, announcing Gay’s resignation. Jonathan L. Swain, a spokesman for the Ivy League university, declined to comment and who will be named as the acting president remains unknown at the present time.
Gay’s resignation comes barely six months and two days into her presidency, after mounting allegations of plagiarism against her and long-standing doubts about her ability to deal with antisemitism on campus following her controversial congressional hearing on December 5.
At that hearing Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) questioned Gay about whether calls for the “genocide of Jews” violated Harvard’s policies on bullying and harassment. In response, Gay said, “It can be, depending on the context.” When pushed for clarification, Gay responded, “Antisemitic rhetoric, when it crosses into conduct that amounts to bullying, harassment, intimidation — that is actionable conduct and we do take action.”
Simultaneously, there have been accusations of possible plagiarism in her published political science works, including her Harvard dissertation. The claims are reportedly related to the time period prior to Gay taking on her role as president of Harvard.
