University announces mass layoffs after grants pulled over anti-Semitism on campus

Columbia University said it will cut around 180 staff members Tuesday following the Trump administration’s announcement in March that it canceled $400 million in federal grants over the Ivy League school’s “failure to protect Jewish students from antisemitic harassment.”

“Across the research portfolio we have had to make difficult choices and unfortunately, today, nearly 180 of our colleagues who have been working, in whole or in part, on impacted federal grants, will receive notices of non-renewal or termination,” acting Columbia University President Claire Shipman said in a statement. “This represents about 20% of the individuals who are funded in some manner by the terminated grants.

“In the coming weeks and months, we will need to continue to take actions that preserve our financial flexibility and allow us to invest in areas that drive us forward,” she added. “This is a deeply challenging time across all higher education, and we are attempting to navigate through tremendous ambiguity with precision, which will be imperfect at times.”