In a startling revelation, top administrators at Columbia University have been caught mocking and dismissing concerns raised by Jewish students and alumni about the growing antisemitism on campus. Leaked text messages between high-ranking officials, captured during a panel discussion on Jewish life at the university reveal a chilling attitude of indifference and disdain toward the Jewish community's plight.
As reported by Israel HaYom and The Free Beacon, on Friday, May 31, alumni gathered at Columbia University's Manhattan campus for their class reunions, alongside panel discussions featuring professors and administrators.
One of the panels, titled "The Past, Present, and Future of Jewish Life at Columbia," was particularly noteworthy. The event featured prominent figures such as David Schizer, former dean of Columbia Law School and co-chair of the university's task force on antisemitism, Brian Cohen, executive director of Columbia's Kraft Center for Jewish Life, Ian Rottenberg, dean of religious life, and Rebecca Massel, a rising junior who reported on campus protests for the student newspaper.
In the audience were several top administrators, including Josef Sorett, dean of Columbia College; Susan Chang-Kim, vice dean and chief administrative officer of Columbia College; Cristen Kromm, dean of undergraduate student life; and Matthew Patashnick, associate dean for student and family support. Their presence was especially significant given the context of recent antisemitic incidents on campus, including a lawsuit settlement with a Jewish student who accused the university of fostering an unsafe learning environment.
Throughout the nearly two-hour panel, Chang-Kim was observed texting her colleagues, who responded with mockery and vitriol. As the panelists discussed the harsh realities faced by Jewish students, the administrators dismissed claims of antisemitism.
Chang-Kim texted Sorett, "This is difficult to listen to but I'm trying to keep an open mind to learn about this point of view." Sorett replied, "Yup."
The administrators expressed skepticism about reports of Jewish students facing discrimination. As Massel feeling discussed the experiences of Jewish and Israeli students, Chang-Kim texted Kromm and Patashnick, "Did we really have students being kicked out of clubs for being Jewish?"
At one point, Kromm even used vomit emojis to refer to an op-ed by Columbia's campus rabbi, Yonah Hain, which expressed concern about the "normalization of Hamas" on campus. "Debates about Zionism, one state or two states, occupation, and Israeli military and government policy are all welcome conversations on campus," Hain wrote. "What's not up for debate is that massacring Jews is unequivocally wrong."
As the panelists described the grim reality for Jewish students, one alumna broke down in tears recalling her daughter's experience as a Columbia sophomore. Kromm mocked Hain's column, texting, "And we thought Yonah sounded the alarm…" Patashnick added, "He knows exactly what he's doing and how to take full advantage of this moment. Huge fundraising potential." Chang-Kim responded, "Double Urgh."
Schizer, who had recently testified before Congress alongside Columbia University President Minouche Shafik and board members, highlighted the university's failures to enforce its own rules. He spoke of Jewish students feeling excluded, particularly because of their Zionist identity.
Massel added that Israeli students had "experienced anti-Israel sentiments their entire time at Columbia," which "exponentially grew" after October 7, prompting them to leave campus for weeks. Schizer, who co-chaired the university's antisemitism task force, criticized the university's failure to discipline participants in unauthorized protests. "We had some protests in the lobbies of academic buildings, and to me, that is just utterly unacceptable because this is a teaching university [which] had to enforce its rules, but was incredibly ineffective in enforcing them in the first few weeks. The failure to enforce rules created the problem later."
Chang-Kim remarked to Kromm and Patashnick, "This panel is really making the administration look like jokers." Patashnick replied, "Yep."
Sorett, Chang-Kim, Kromm, and Patashnick did not respond to requests for comment. The other panelists, Massel, Cohen, and Rottenberg, also did not respond to requests for comment. A Columbia spokesman stated, "The school is committed to combatting antisemitism and taking sustained, concrete action to ensure Columbia is a campus where Jewish students and everyone in our community feels safe, valued, and able to thrive."
