The US Department of Education has informed the Middle States Commission on Higher Education that Columbia University is in breach of federal antidiscrimination laws.
As a result, the department said in a statement on Wednesday, the university "fails to meet the standards for accreditation set by the Commission".
US Secretary of Education Linda McMahon accused Columbia’s leadership of acting with "deliberate indifference" towards the alleged harassment of Jewish students on campus in the aftermath of the 7 October 2023 surprise blitz on Israel by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas.
"This is not only immoral, but also unlawful. Accreditors have an enormous public responsibility as gatekeepers of federal student aid," McMahon said.
She emphasised that university accreditors must ensure that institutions under their purview abide by accreditation standards.
"We look forward to the Commission keeping the Department fully informed of actions taken to ensure Columbia’s compliance with accreditation standards, including compliance with federal civil rights laws," she added.
The comments came even after the university yielded to the administration’s pressure and agreed to sweeping policy changes, including on campus protests, in order to restore federal funding.
Campuses protests
Columbia University became a focal point of nationwide student protests last year, as pro-Palestine demonstrations swept across dozens of US college campuses in response to Israel’s carnage in Gaza.
Student encampments, teach-ins and rallies were organised to call for a ceasefire and for university divestment from companies profiting from Israeli attacks. These protests sparked both support and backlash, with critics alleging that the demonstrations fostered antisemitic environments.
At Columbia, tensions escalated in April when students erected an encampment on the university’s main lawn. Police were later called in to dismantle the site, resulting in dozens of arrests. University leadership has since faced criticism from both sides: for failing to protect Jewish students and for authorising a police crackdown on peaceful protesters.
Other elite institutions such as Harvard, MIT, and UCLA have also faced scrutiny over their handling of pro-Palestinian activism.
The Biden administration has come under pressure from political allies and critics alike to take a firmer stance on campus protests.
