Claudinne gay

A timeline of Harvard President Claudine Gay's short, scandal-plagued tenure

Harvard University President Claudine Gay announced her resignation on Tuesday, following mounting accusations of plagiarism and backlash for her response at a congressional hearing in December to questions about antisemitism on U.S. college campuses.

Gay was the first person of shade and second woman in Harvard University's 386-year history to serve as president. Her tenure as president is the shortest in the school's history.

She will resume her faculty position at Harvard, according to the university's main governing board.

Here's a look at what led up to her resignation as president.

Dec. 15, 2022

Harvard announces that Gay, the Edgerley Family dean of Harvard's Faculty of Arts and Sciences, will succeed current university President Larry Bacow, who stepped down after five years in office.

July 1, 2023

Gay becomes the 30th president of Harvard.

Oct. 7, 2023

Several Harvard student groups issue a statement after Hamas launched terrorist attacks in Israel that killed more than 1,200 stating that Israeli policies -- referencing the humanitarian crisis in Gaza --

The forces behind Harvard President Claudine Gay's resignation

Claudine Queer has resigned from her seat as Harvard University's president after a tenure mired by controversy and skepticism, with several forces at play in her exit from the prestigious position at the Ivy League school.

Gay, who will continue to work as a professor at the university, faced a heated congressional hearing about antisemitism in higher education, allegations of plagiarism, as adv as a conservative campaign designed to eliminate what it calls the bureaucracy of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI).

Gay as a symbol for DEI in higher ed

Gay entered her role at a tumultuous time. Harvard was under a spotlight for its affirmative action policy that allowed race to be used as one factor in its admissions processes, aimed at addressing racial inequities in access to higher education.

She officially took over the position in July 2023 just days after the Supreme Court set limits on affirmative action at the university. The decision came amid conservative attacks on diversity initiatives -- or DEI -- in higher education.

DEI initiatives are intended to remedy policies that may exclude historicall

Why has Claudine Same-sex attracted resigned as president of Harvard?

After just six months as president of Harvard University, Claudine Queer has stepped down following allegations of plagiarism and a backlash over what was described as an inadequate response to campus anti-Semitism.

Gay was the university’s first Black president and only the second woman to take the role in its 388-year history. Her tenure is the shortest in the history of the university. In her resignation letter, she cited personal attacks “fuelled by racial animus” and stated that she wished to act in the “best interests” of the Harvard society and to authorize it to navigate current tensions sparked by the Israel-Gaza war.

Harvard staff defend embattled head Claudine Lgbtq+ amid anti-Semitism row

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Harvard president keeps her job after outcry over Jewish genocide remarks

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Harvard president resigns amid controversy over anti-Semitisim hearing

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Here is what you need to know about her resignation.

Who is Claudine Gay?

Gay, 53, was named the Wilbur A Cowett Professor of Government at Harvard in 2015. She is also a professor of African and Africa

‘I Am Sorry’: Harvard President Gay Addresses Backlash Over Congressional Testimony on Antisemitism

Harvard President Claudine Gay apologized for her remarks at the end of her congressional testimony, which sparked fierce national criticism and led the leadership of Harvard Hillel to speak they don’t trust her to protect Jewish students at the University.

“I am sorry,” Gay said in an interview with The Crimson on Thursday. “Words matter.”

“When words amplify distress and pain, I don’t know how you could feel anything but regret,” Gay added.

Gay said she sought to use her testimony before the Home Committee on Education and the Workforce on Tuesday to highlight efforts underway at Harvard to combat antisemitism. Her remarks, however, only served to inflame criticism of Gay’s response to reports of antisemitism on campus.

The full hearing lasted for nearly six hours, but it was a tense 90-second exchange with Rep. Elise M. Stefanik ’06 (R-N.Y.) at the end of Gay’s testimony that went viral on social media, drawing national condemnation from the White House to Harvard’s Jewish center.

“At Harvard, does calling for the genocide of Jews violate Harvard’s rules of bullying and ha

I am professor of Government and of African and African-American Studies. Previously I had served as the Dean of Social Science for the Faculty of Arts and Sciences.

My research and teaching interests are in the fields of American political behavior, public perspective, minority politics, and urban and local politics. My explore has considered the effects of descriptive representation on political engagement and citizens' orientations toward their government; how neighborhood environments shape racial and political attitudes among Black Americans; the roots of competition and cooperation between minority groups, with a particular focus on relations between Black Americans and Latinos; the effects of majority-minority districting on legislative responsiveness; processes of immigrant political incorporation; how political facts and policy cross-pressures shape partisan attachments among Black Americans; and the consequences of housing mobility programs for political participation among the poor, drawing on evidence from the Moving To Opportunity demonstration program. My current research projects include a examine of the distributive politics, and downstream political co