Chicago – March 29, 2025
The interim president of Columbia University, Katrina Armstrong, is stepping down just one week after agreeing to several demands from the Trump administration. The administration had criticized the university for what they called “violence, intimidation, and antisemitic harassment” on campus.
In a letter on Friday, Armstrong said she would return to her previous roles at the university, as planned when she took the interim position. Claire Shipman, co-chair of the university’s board and a television journalist, has been appointed acting president while the university searches for a permanent leader.
Armstrong became interim president in August after President Minouche Shafik resigned, partly because of criticism over the university’s response to protests related to Israel’s war in Gaza. Last spring, over 100 people were arrested during a protest at Columbia’s Morningside Heights campus. The university responded by moving classes online and restricting campus access.
The Trump administration accused the university of allowing antisemitism to spread, which they said threatened Jewish students. As a result, federal officials threatened to withhold $400 million in funding unless the school agreed to a list of demands, including banning most masks on campus and giving campus police more authority.
