US Universities Face Student Uproar Over Faculty Links to Jeffrey Epstein

American higher education institutions are grappling with mounting pressure from students and alumni after newly released Department of Justice documents revealed extensive connections between university faculty and the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.The latest tranche of approximately 3 million documents, published by the DOJ last month, has exposed relationships between Epstein and academics across the country, sparking protests, petitions, and calls for accountability at institutions ranging from small art colleges to Ivy League universities.At the School of Visual Arts in New York, MFA Art Practice programme chair David A. Ross resigned on 3 February following the emergence of emails between him and Epstein dating back to October 2009. The correspondence included a message in which Epstein proposed an art exhibition titled Statutory, featuring what he described as girls and boys ages 14 to 25 who look nothing like their true ages. Ross responded that the concept would be a very powerful and freaky book. Flyers appeared on the SVA campus declaring ONE OF YOUR TEACHERS IS IN THE FILES, prompting student demands for greater transparency.In his resignation statement, Ross, who formerly directed the Whitney Museum of American Art, acknowledged meeting Epstein in the 1990s as part of his fundraising responsibilities. He admitted to believing Epstein's claims that his Florida conviction was a political frame-up and described reaching out to Epstein during subsequent investigations as a terrible mistake of judgment.Across the country at the University of California, Los Angeles, associate adjunct professor of neurology Mark Tramo has faced intense scrutiny after his name appeared hundreds of times in the Epstein files. A petition calling for his termination has gathered more than 10,000 signatures, and his classes have moved to remote instruction following safety concerns.The controversy centres on several email exchanges, including a 2010 message in which Tramo forwarded student inquiries to Epstein, who responded by asking whether either student was cute. Tramo replied, we will see! (you are terrible!). Tramo has defended the correspondence, explaining that he was introduced to Epstein whilst teaching at Harvard and maintained contact due to the financier's philanthropic contributions. He was reportedly seeking $500,000 for a clinical study on brain development in critically ill infants, though the funding never materialised.Tramo has characterised the backlash as McCarthyism with more than a dollop of 17th century hysteria. However, critics argue that his actions represent a serious breach of professional ethics. UCLA has removed Tramo from a webpage of university experts available for media appearances, though his faculty profile remains active.At Boston University's College of Communication, dean Mariette DiChristina has faced questions about her interactions with Epstein during her tenure as editor in chief of Scientific American. Emails show she invited Epstein to editorial meetings and wrote in 2014 that he has done so much for science, I think that deserves some fun. DiChristina has stated that engaging with individuals who contacted the publication was routine practice.Bard College in upstate New York has experienced significant unrest regarding its longtime president, Leon Botstein, who corresponded with Epstein for years whilst seeking donations. The Bard Board of Trustees reportedly held an emergency meeting on 16 February to discuss the matter. Botstein has maintained that his engagement with Epstein was solely for fundraising purposes, claiming that Epstein constantly hinted at major contributions that never materialised. However, messages show Botstein writing Miss you to Epstein in 2013 and coordinating the purchase of a rare collectible watch for $50,000 in 2017.Harvard University, which has received $9.1 million in gifts from Epstein between 1998 and 2008, has seen renewed controversy. Former Harvard president Larry Summers resigned from multiple high-profile positions in November after his extensive friendship with Epstein became public. Summers and his wife, Harvard English professor emerita Elisa New, visited Epstein's private island during their 2005 honeymoon. Summers remains a University Professor, Harvard's highest faculty honour, though student activists with the organisation Epstein Off Campus have staged protests demanding his complete removal.Other institutions have taken varied approaches. Yale University relieved computer science professor David Gelernter of teaching duties for the spring term following the emergence of his Epstein emails. The University of Arizona cancelled its 2026 Science of Consciousness Conference after multiple speakers and organisers appeared in Epstein documents. At Barnard College, over 70 faculty members signed an open letter calling for trustee Francine LeFrak to step down from the board.The revelations have prompted broader questions about ethical standards in university fundraising and the influence of wealthy donors in academia. Students and faculty activists argue that the Epstein connections expose systemic issues within higher education's relationship with controversial benefactors.Epstein died by suicide in a Manhattan jail cell in 2019 whilst awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges. His 2008 conviction in Florida for solicitation of prostitution and procurement of minors to engage in prostitution preceded years of continued engagement with prominent academics and institutions.