Columbia's president resigns

Ava Cai

August 16, 2024

At Columbia University, Nemat Shafik was considered the most qualified and simply “perfect candidate” to run the prestigious school. Arriving in New York only a year before, Dr. Shafik made a remarkable footprint in the Ivy League community, commonly acknowledged as a “peerless pick” and praised for her entrance as the first woman to lead Columbia. This is why when the public heard about her sudden leave for a temporary, unpaid role in London, they were all shocked. 

The start of the Israel-Hamas war marked the beginning of an uphill battle for Columbia and its president. Seeing Columbia as a place where the most outstanding minds work together to make an impact, Dr. Shafik never expected to feel challenged by those very minds. However, as the culture of Columbia University balanced unevenly and slowly disintegrated due to the chaos in the Israel-Hamas conflict, Dr. Shafik took a responsive path, which was marked as disapproving by many. All through the school year, the president was increasingly reproached as an antisemite, a freedom oppressor, and a supporter of pro-Palestinian protests. She was accused of calling in the police excessively––in a way that resembled Columbia as a fortress rather than a university. Even when the school year ended and summer break rolled around, the university officials were in constant fear of future issues regarding the consistent flow of police presence. 

Dr. Shafik’s decision to resign caught many people off guard, as she dropped no hints of her departure in the weeks leading up to the news. However, a select few resonate with James H. Applegate, a professor of astronomy, when he commented, “At some point, you have to say, from Shafik’s point of view, how much longer do you want to put up with this stuff? It’s a toxic hellhole, and it’s directed at her.” Feeling defeated and believing that the school no longer trusted her administration, Dr. Shafik made a tough decision to resign from her role as president of Columbia, leaving the university’s board to accept this regretfully. It was later informed that she had accepted the British Foreign Office’s offer to return to her title in the House of Lords instead.

Shafik has exited the stage and Dr. Katrina A. Armstrong, the university’s executive vice president for health and biomedical sciences, has been selected as the temporary replacement. The president of Columbia’s leave sparked a congressional investigation, and faculty members are prepared for a possible repeated encampment when the school year resumes.