Three New York colleges — including Columbia, Cornell and Cooper Union — are among seven schools being investigated by the Department of Education over complaints of antisemitism and Islamophobia on campus.
The federal probes – the first of their kind since the Oct. 7 Hamas terror attack on Israel — involved five reported cases of antisemitism and two of Islamophobia at six colleges and a school district in the US, an administration official told CNN.
The three higher education institutions in New York under the spotlight are Columbia University, Cornell University and The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art.
The other schools are Wellesley College in Massachusetts, the University of Pennsylvania and Lafayette College in Pennsylvania, and the Maize school district, which has K-12 students, in Kansas, according to a list on the federal department’s website.
Following the investigations, the DOE will offer recommendations to the schools, which could lose federal funding if they don’t comply, the administration official told CNN.
“Hate has no place in our schools, period. When students are targeted because they are — or are perceived to be — Jewish, Muslim, Arab, Sikh, or any other ethnicity or shared ancestry, schools must act to ensure safe and inclusive educational environments where everyone is free to learn,” Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said in a statement.
The schools under probe have faced heat over the last month as hateful acts have exploded on college campuses since Hamas killed 1,200 Israelis and the Jewish state retaliated against the terror group in Gaza.
A 21-year-old Cornell student was arrested for allegedly making violent threats against his Jewish peers in a series of online messages. The threats came just days after graffiti was scrawled on campus sidewalks, including “F—k Israel” and “Zionism = Racism.”
Two far-left student groups were suspended by Columbia this month after the organizations “repeatedly violated University policies” related to holding campus events that involved “threatening rhetoric and intimidation,” the Ivy League school said.
Before that, more than 200 faculty members signed a letter stating they were “appalled by the spate of antisemitic incidents” on the Manhattan campus.
And Jewish students at Cooper Union said they feared for their safety when they were locked inside the library last month as pro-Palestinian protesters ponded on doors and windows.
The DOE issued guidance to K-12 schools and colleges earlier this month that stressed the institutions have a legal obligation to address incidents of discrimination.