Northwestern provost steps down after anti-Israel messages and controversy at university
The resignation follows months of scrutiny over the university’s handling of anti-Israel activism and federal investigations into discrimination against Jewish students
Northwestern University’s top academic officer, Provost Kathleen Hagerty, is stepping down after messages surfaced showing she was open to boycotting Israeli products during last year’s illegal anti-Israel encampment.
The university announced on Oct. 23 that Hagerty, who has served as provost since 2020, will leave at the end of the academic year.
She said in a statement that she is moving on to the “next phase” of her career and expressed confidence in Northwestern’s future.
Her resignation follows months of controversy surrounding Northwestern’s handling of anti-Semitism and anti-Israel protests. It also marks the second major leadership departure within a year, as former President Michael Schill resigned in September.
The U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce released transcripts from Schill’s closed-door interview, revealing that Hagerty privately texted a faculty liaison working with the encampment.
In one exchange, she wrote that it would be “pretty easy” to remove Sabra hummus, an Israeli brand, from campus dining halls and that she was “all for making a deal.”
Further controversy surrounds Northwestern’s Qatar campus, which operates under a government contract prohibiting faculty and students from criticizing the Qatari regime — a close supporter of Hamas.
