Free Speech on Campus

Columbia University’s Board of Trustees has named Jennifer L. Mnookin, currently chancellor of the University of Wisconsin–Madison, as its next president, with her term to begin July 1, 2026, after what the school calls an extensive national search. Mnookin is a prominent evidence and legal‑scholarship expert who previously served as dean of UCLA School of Law and taught at the University of Virginia and Harvard, and she has recently drawn attention for scaling back a stand‑alone DEI division at UW–Madison while arguing universities had over‑emphasized "identity diversity" at the expense of "viewpoint diversity." The Fox report highlights that she has donated modestly to Democratic candidates and publicly supported Black Lives Matter in 2020, positions that will be parsed in Washington as Columbia faces federal scrutiny over campus antisemitism, DEI programs and funding. Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, a Republican who had criticized Mnookin in the past, issued a statement thanking her and praising her moves on free speech and closing the DEI division, a rare cross‑party note that may signal how her record will be framed in national fights over campus culture. Her selection positions Columbia to be led by someone who has tried to reposition DEI bureaucracies while defending academic freedom—choices that will be closely watched by lawmakers, donors and students amid an aggressive Trump‑era campaign against university governance, speech codes and diversity structures.