Columbia University’s acting president Claire Shipman schemed to replace a Jewish board member with an Arab representative while secretly labeling the pro-Israel advocate a “mole” and deliberately excluding her from critical negotiations with anti-Israel protesters.
Key Takeaways
- Columbia University acting president Claire Shipman attempted to replace Jewish board member Shoshana Shendelman with “somebody from the middle east or who is Arab” while explicitly confirming she believed Shendelman was “a mole”
- Shipman instructed vice-chair Wanda Greene to exclude Shendelman from information about negotiations with anti-Israel protesters despite Shendelman’s position on the board
- Rep. Elise Stefanik and Education Committee chair Tim Walberg launched an investigation into potential Title VI violations at Columbia, citing the university’s “deliberate indifference” toward harassment of Jewish students
- The Department of Education has opened three separate investigations into antisemitic discrimination at Columbia University
- Columbia officials declined to provide context for Shipman’s messages, claiming they were being published “out of context” from a “challenging time”
Coordinated Effort to Silence Pro-Israel Voice
A shocking series of communications has revealed that Columbia University’s acting president Claire Shipman actively worked to undermine and replace a Jewish board member who had been vocal about antisemitism on campus. In messages obtained during a congressional investigation, Shipman urgently pushed to add an Arab representative to the board while simultaneously working to keep pro-Israel board member Shoshana Shendelman, whose family fled persecution in Iran, in the dark about negotiations with anti-Israel demonstrators who had been occupying campus spaces.
“We need to get somebody from the middle east [sic] or who is Arab on our board. Quickly, I think. Somehow,” said Claire Shipman, Acting President of Columbia University.
The exchanges between Shipman and vice-chair Wanda Greene show a deliberate strategy to marginalize Shendelman’s voice. When Greene directly asked, “Do you believe that she is a mole? A Fox in the henhouse?” regarding Shendelman, Shipman replied simply: “I do.” This confirmation came after Shipman had already described the Jewish board member as “extraordinarily unhelpful” for her efforts to expose and address growing antisemitism on campus following the October 7th Hamas attacks on Israel.
Congressional Investigation Intensifies
House Republican Leadership Chairwoman Elise Stefanik and Education and Workforce Committee Chairman Tim Walberg have launched a formal investigation into Columbia’s handling of antisemitism and potential violations of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. Their letter to Shipman highlights the alarming pattern of behavior by university leadership that appears to prioritize silencing Jewish concerns rather than addressing them. The lawmakers’ investigation gained momentum after multiple federal agencies found Columbia had failed to protect Jewish students.
“Throughout the Committee’s investigation, Columbia has continued to be plagued by antisemitic harassment. The Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights has launched three separate investigations into antisemitic discrimination on campus. In May, the Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Education found that Columbia had acted with deliberate indifference toward the severe and pervasive harassment faced by Jewish students at the university. Columbia officials have also repeatedly made shameful statements about the plight of Jewish students on campus, raising questions about their willingness or ability to comply with Title VI,” said the lawmakers.
Particularly concerning to investigators was Shipman’s dismissive reference to congressional oversight as “Capitol Hill nonsense,” revealing a troubling attitude toward legitimate federal scrutiny of civil rights violations. The university’s consideration of promoting Rashid Khalidi, who has previously supported terrorist violence against Israel, raised additional questions about Columbia’s commitment to creating a safe environment for all students.
Columbia’s Inadequate Response
When confronted with the damning communications, Columbia University offered a vague statement to the Free Beacon claiming the messages were being published “out of context” and were from a “challenging time” on campus. Notably, the university declined to provide any additional context that might explain or justify Shipman’s apparent efforts to exclude a Jewish board member from discussions relevant to her position while simultaneously seeking to replace her with an Arab representative.
“As antisemitism continues to rise across the United States, it is critical that our institutions of higher education have leaders who firmly understand and carry out their obligation to protect Jewish students. The Committee is therefore seeking clarity regarding several messages you sent that appear to downplay and even mock the pervasive culture of antisemitism on Columbia’s campus. Obtaining clarity on these statements will aid the Committee in considering whether potential legislative changes, including legislation that specifically creates further accountability for campus leaders, are needed,” said the lawmakers.
The revelations come amid a broader pattern of antisemitic incidents at Columbia and other elite universities that have drawn increased scrutiny from federal officials. With three ongoing Department of Education investigations and formal findings of “deliberate indifference” toward harassment of Jewish students, Columbia now faces potential legislative action that could create stronger accountability mechanisms for university leadership that fails to protect students from discrimination based on their Jewish identity.
