On Wednesday, two days after faculty leaders confirmed the narrow approval of a no-confidence vote in his leadership, Brandeis president Ronald D. Liebowitz announced his resignation, effective November 1.
The surprising development followed months of unrest at the private liberal-arts university, where the administration’s decision to crack down on pro-Palestinian protesters last November exposed deep divisions over how the university could remain both a safe haven for Jews and a protector of free speech.
Liebowitz, who led Brandeis for eight years, will become president emeritus, and Arthur E. Levine, a 1970 Brandeis graduate, will assume the role of interim president, the Board of Trustees announced. Liebowitz joins a growing list of college presidents whose presidencies have ended at least in part due to their handling of protests over the Israel-Hamas war.
The university, founded in 1948 as a nonsectarian Jewish university, had promoted itself in recent months as a place where Jewish students could avoid the “virulent antisemitism” they might find on other campuses. But Liebowitz had been sharply criticized by those who disagreed with the administration’s decision on November 10 to call in police as protesters chanted slogans like “intifada, intifada” that the university had warned them against. Protesters were angry over the administration’s decision to ban the campus chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine for allegedly supporting Hamas and violence against Jews.
The no-confidence motion went beyond the protests, citing “a consistent pattern of damaging errors of judgment and poor leadership” that it said resulted in “badly handled budget shortfalls, failures of fundraising, excessive responses to student protests, indifference to faculty motions, and the recent damaging staff layoffs.” The faculty motion urged trustees “to act.”
On Monday, Jeffrey Lenowitz, chair of the Faculty Senate, informed faculty that the no-confidence motion had passed by a vote of 159 to 149, with 26 abstentions. More than three-quarters of eligible voters participated.
Wednesday morning, Lisa R. Kranc, chair of the Brandeis Board of Trustees, issued a statement to the university community announcing Liebowitz’s resignation and thanking him for his commitment and service.
When we passed the vote, we thought he might be out within a year, but we had no idea it would happen this fast.
“Ron has faithfully championed Brandeis’ core and founding principles,” she wrote. “While many have chosen to stay silent, Ron has had the moral courage to be a leading voice in recognizing that we cannot cower from any form of hatred, especially antisemitism. The Board of Trustees, in partnership with all at this great university, remains unwavering and unequivocally committed to our core values.”
About 15 minutes later, Liebowitz sent his own email, saying he was resigning “with mixed emotions, because this is an exceptional institution, which carries great meaning, especially at this time, due to the reason for its founding.” He added that it’s a valuable time for him and his wife, Jessica, “to build on our experiences to create new pathways for innovation and reform in higher education, and I resign knowing that the university will be in good hands.”
In a news release announcing the decision, the university said Liebowitz had “reaffirmed the university’s dual commitment to excellence in its undergraduate liberal-arts program and to world-class research and scholarship as an R1 university, coupled with a renewed focus on the university’s Jewish roots. He has served as a steadfast national leader against antisemitism, and for the open-minded engagement necessary for a better understanding of Israel, and Israeli society. During his tenure, he also re-energized the university’s fundraising efforts, setting Brandeis up for future success.”
In the press release, Liebowitz said that he and his wife were honored “to be part of the Brandeis community, and to help reassert the university’s special role and obligations as the singular secular university established by the American Jewish community. As president emeritus, and in my new ventures beyond Brandeis, I will continue to advocate on behalf of Brandeis’s unique mission and ever-relevant founding values.”
The faculty vote is among a flurry of no-confidence votes taking place on college campuses following the spring pro-Palestinian protests. A 2022 analysis by The Chronicle found that 51 percent of the 235 no-confidence votes it examined between 1989 and 2022 ended with the presidents leaving within a year, although the departures were seldom publicly linked to the votes.
Those who opposed the Brandeis motion had argued that it could shake the confidence of current students, faculty, and staff, and dissuade students from considering Brandeis. They said it could also prompt alumni and donors to withhold badly needed financial contributions.
Asked what role the faculty no-confidence vote might have had on the president’s resignation, a campus spokeswoman said “the faculty vote did not have an impact.”
Faculty members believe otherwise. “When we passed the vote, we thought he might be out within a year, but we had no idea it would happen this fast,” said a faculty member, who asked not to be identified because of the deep divisions on campus over the war in Gaza.
Levine, the newly appointed interim president, is a scholar of higher education and president emeritus of both Columbia University’s Teachers College and the former Woodrow Wilson National Fellowship Foundation.
Levine co-wrote an essay in The Chronicle in 2021 that argued that colleges were losing power to consumers who insisted on lower prices and “anywhere, anytime” access, and were increasingly seeking job credentials rather than four-year degrees.
