Columbia University canceled its main commencement event slated for May 15 after weeks of tumult on campus, as protests spurred by the Israel-Hamas war upend the college graduation season.
The school is instead focusing on smaller-scale celebrations, saying that for many students they are more “meaningful to them and their families,” according to a statement Monday. “We will focus our resources on those school ceremonies and on keeping them safe, respectful, and running smoothly.”
Columbia is following the University of Southern California in abandoning one of the year’s marquee events while other schools review security plans amid a deepening crisis. Protests at Columbia culminated last week in a police raid and more than 100 arrests after dozens of people barricaded themselves inside a campus building. The school asked requested police to stay on its Morningside Heights campus until May 17, and access to the area has been restricted.
Colleges across the US have been thrown into turmoil since Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack on Israel, toppling university presidents, bitterly dividing students, and angering powerful alumni. Schools’ responses to behavior on campus have prompted investigations by Congress and stoked accusations of antisemitism, as well as concern about suppression of free speech for pro-Palestinian voices.
Columbia holds its commencement ceremony every year for thousands of graduates and their families, where each school gathers on the main quad to listen to the university president give an address. Individual schools will still hold their own separate ceremonies, in some cases at relocated venues including the Baker Athletics Complex in northern Manhattan.
“These past few weeks have been incredibly difficult for our community,” Columbia said. “Just as we are focused on making our graduation experience truly special, we continue to solicit student feedback and are looking at the possibility of a festive event on May 15 to take the place of the large, formal ceremony.”
USC also canceled its main commencement, citing security concerns. Instead, the private university in Los Angeles is opting for smaller ceremonies and holding a “Trojan Family Graduate Celebration” at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum with drone shows, fireworks and the school’s marching band.
Katia Porzecanski, Bloomberg , 2024-05-06 17:47:45
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