Columbia says the claims program is intended not only to provide compensation but also to signal that the university is committed to ensuring Jewish and Israeli members of its community are protected going forward.
Columbia University has opened a new $21 million claims fund for harassed Jewish employees as part of its settlement with the Trump administration to restore millions in frozen federal funding.
In a campus-wide announcement On Thursday, Columbia announced that employees may seek compensation if they faced harassment or discrimination “based on their religion (Jewish), race (Jewish), and national origin (Israeli)” in the period following Hamas’s attack on October 7, 2023.
The fund allows claims related to verbal hostility, exclusion from academic or professional activities, retaliation, or administrative failure to respond to complaints during the height of campus unrest.