Columbia taps University of Wisconsin chancellor to lead school after 2 years of turmoil

Columbia University has named Jennifer Mnookin, the current chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, as its next president amid efforts to recover from two years of institutional turbulence. The appointment, announced Sunday, will see Mnookin take office on July 1, becoming the university’s fifth leader in just four years.

Mnookin steps into a role that has been marked by significant political pressure and campus unrest. Columbia became the first target in the Trump administration’s broader campaign to reshape elite higher education institutions across the United States, particularly regarding how universities handled protests, student admissions, and curriculum content.

The past two years have been especially tumultuous for the Ivy League institution. In 2024, Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents detained Columbia students who had participated in pro-Palestinian demonstrations. The administration then canceled $400 million in research grants allocated to the university and its affiliated hospital system, citing concerns about antisemitism on campus, and threatened to withhold billions more in government funding.

This standoff ultimately led to a settlement agreement in which Columbia agreed to pay more than $220 million to have its research funding restored. The university also committed to overhauling its student disciplinary process and implementing a controversial, federally endorsed definition of antisemitism. This definition would be applied not only to teaching but also to a disciplinary committee investigating students critical of Israel.

The leadership crisis at Columbia deepened when Mnookin’s predecessor, Nemat Shafik, resigned in August 2024 following intense criticism of her handling of campus protests and growing divisions within the university community. Katrina Armstrong, chief executive of Columbia’s medical school, briefly took the helm but stepped down in March, just days after the university reached its settlement with the federal government. Following Armstrong’s departure, board of trustees co-chair Claire Shipman has been serving as acting president during the search for permanent leadership.

Mnookin, 58, brings substantial academic and administrative experience to the role. Before her current position at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, which she has held since August 2022, she served as dean of the University of California, Los Angeles School of Law. Her academic credentials include a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University, a law degree from Yale Law School, and a doctorate in history and social study of science and technology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

The appointment comes at a critical juncture for Columbia, which has been at the center of national debates over free speech, academic freedom, and the limits of protest on college campuses. The Israel-Hamas war sparked demonstrations across American universities, but Columbia’s protests drew particular attention and became a flashpoint in broader political debates about higher education.

Educational policy experts note that Mnookin will face the challenging task of healing campus divisions while navigating ongoing political pressures. Columbia’s settlement with the Trump administration has raised concerns among some faculty about potential restrictions on academic freedom and campus discourse, particularly regarding Middle East politics.

The university’s handling of pro-Palestinian protests also drew criticism from various quarters. Some argued that the administration had not done enough to address antisemitism, while others contended that legitimate political speech was being suppressed under the guise of fighting discrimination.

As Mnookin prepares to take office, she inherits an institution still grappling with questions about its identity and values in a polarized political climate. Her leadership will be closely watched not only by Columbia’s students, faculty, and alumni but also by those concerned about the future direction of American higher education amid increasing political scrutiny and intervention.