You may remember there was a brief moment back in April when Columbia University finally seemed to be getting serious about dealing with student protesters who were breaking the rules.
The situation at the time was that students had set up a tent camp on campus and the school was giving them an ultimatum to clear out, even saying at one point that they could be expelled if they refused to comply. But instead of going along with the demand, a group of students escalated by taking over a building on campus. The police were called in and they were arrested.
Here were are four months later, the students are returning to school after summer break and contrary to all the tough talk in the spring, it turns out almost no one was punished for their behavior. The House Education and Workforce Committee released the information today.
- Of the 22 students arrested inside Hamilton Hall on April 30th, 18 are in good standing, with only three on interim suspensions, and one on probation. Columbia had previously said the students occupying Hamilton Hall would “face expulsion.”
- Twenty-seven Columbia students arrested by the NYPD on May 1 at various off campus locations outside of Hamilton Hall had their cases closed due to “insufficient evidence” despite their arrests.
- On April 29th, 35 students were placed on interim suspensions for failing to leave the encampment. The University then determined it couldn’t substantiate their participation and lifted the suspensions and dismissed the charges for 29 of the students. Thirty-one of the 35 students are currently in good standing. Two others are on interim suspensions from previous incidents, one who was previously on disciplinary probation is now suspended, and one is on disciplinary probation.
- Of the 40 students arrested by NYPD on April 18th for participating in the encampment, 18 were restored to good standing through “alternative resolution” but are on conditional probation, 21 are in good standing pending a hearing, and one is on disciplinary probation from a prior incident.
- Of the 32 students who participated in the alumni reunion weekend encampment on the weekend of May 31st, all remain in good standing. Three of the students are on conditional disciplinary probation from a prior hearing, but nevertheless remain in good standing more than two months after the incident.
I read through this a couple times but only one student is listed as suspended. There were half a dozen interim suspensions but it's not clear how long they lasted. It's a guess, but those interim suspensions might be over at the start of the fall semester.
That just leaves about two dozen cases of disciplinary probation which apparently means something could happen to you if you get in trouble a second time. It boils down to a bunch of warnings. Not a single student was expelled, not even the ones who took over a building and had to be removed by police. One of the student demands was that no members of their group should be punished for their behavior on campus. It looks like they pretty much got their way.
Rep. Virginia Foxx, who chairs the committee, called the school's behavior disgraceful.
"The failure of Columbia’s invertebrate administration to hold accountable students who violate university rules and break the law is disgraceful and unacceptable. More than three months after the criminal takeover of Hamilton Hall, the vast majority of the student perpetrators remain in good standing. By allowing its own disciplinary process to be thwarted by radical students and faculty, Columbia has waved the white flag in surrender while offering up a get-out-of-jail-free card to those who participated in these unlawful actions. Breaking into campus buildings or creating antisemitic hostile environments like the encampment should never be given a single degree of latitude—the university’s willingness to do just that is reprehensible.”
We'll have to wait and see if there is a repeat of the campus takeover this fall. Maybe the handful of people on probation will behave themselves but that still leaves hundreds of students who received no punishment at all. Given the kid gloves treatment they have received thus far, I don't see why they would hesitate to try it again.