Press Releases

WASHINGTON – Today, Education and the Workforce Committee Chairwoman Virginia Foxx (R-NC) sent a final warning to Harvard Corporation Senior Fellow Penny Pritzker and Interim President Dr. Alan Garber since the university has continually failed to produce documents related to the Committee’s antisemitism investigation. Chairwoman Foxx reaffirmed her intent to issue a subpoena if Harvard does not provide priority documents by Wednesday, February 14, 2024, at 5:00PM.

In the letter, Foxx writes: “The Committee has sought to obtain information regarding Harvard’s response to the numerous incidents of antisemitism on its campus and steps taken to protect Jewish students, faculty, and staff. Harvard’s responses have been grossly insufficient, and the limited and dilatory nature of its productions is obstructing the Committee’s efforts. … If Harvard continues to fail to comply with the Committee’s requests in a timely manner, the Committee will proceed with compulsory process.”

The letter continues: “Harvard also failed to produce any of the meeting minutes and/or summaries from the Harvard Board of Overseers and Harvard Management Company, claiming that 'after a reasonable search and review to date, Harvard has not identified meeting minutes in connection with Request 10 or 11 in your letter that relate or refer to antisemitism or the war in Israel or Gaza, for either the Board of Overseers or the Management Company since October 7, 2023.' … Given the publicly documented antisemitism on Harvard’s campus, especially since the October 7 attacks, it would be shocking if the Board of Overseers and Harvard Management Company thought protecting Harvard’s Jewish students was so insignificant that the topic was not worthy of discussion at a single meeting.”

Foxx concludes by giving Harvard a deadline of 5:00PM on Wednesday, February 14, 2024, to produce the following priority documents or be subpoenaed:

• All Harvard Corporation, Board of Overseers, and Harvard Management Company meeting minutes and/or summaries;
• All documents and communications since January 1, 2021, referring and/or relating to antisemitism, involving the Harvard Corporation and Harvard Board of Overseers;
• Documents sufficient to show the findings and results of any disciplinary processes, changes in academic status, or personnel actions by Harvard towards Harvard students, employees, and other Harvard affiliates related to conduct involving the targeting of Jews, Israelis, Israel, Zionists, or Zionism since January 1, 2021; and 
• Documents and communications referring and/or relating to the establishment of the newly formed President's Task Force on Antisemitism and to the previous Antisemitism Advisory Group formed by then-President Gay.

To read the full letter, click here.

Background:

December 20, 2024: The Committee informed Harvard of its intent to move forward with an investigation of antisemitism at the school. For Harvard’s benefit, this communication included an extensive list of documents that the Committee intended to request.

January 9, 2024: Chairwoman Foxx sent a letter to Harvard Corporation Senior Fellow Penny Pritzker and Interim President Dr. Alan Garber requesting documents and information regarding Harvard University’s response to antisemitism on its campus and its failure to protect Jewish students, faculty, and staff.

January 23, 2024: Chairwoman Foxx issued a statement calling Harvard’s initial production of documents related to the Committee’s antisemitism investigation “woefully inadequate.” Harvard produced 24 documents to the Committee totaling 1032 pages—including letters from nonprofits and copies of student handbooks—all of which were already publicly available. Some of the documents sent to the Committee included inexplicable redactions of information that were not included in the public versions.