Claudine Gay

Claudine Gay
Gay in 2023
30th President of Harvard University
In office
July 1, 2023 – January 2, 2024
Preceded byLawrence Bacow
Succeeded byAlan Garber
Dean of the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences
In office
August 15, 2018 – June 30, 2023
Preceded byMichael Smith
Succeeded byEmma Dench (interim)
Personal details
Born (1970-08-04) August 4, 1970 (age 54)
New York City, U.S.
SpouseChristopher Afendulis
Children1
RelativesRoxane Gay (cousin)
EducationPrinceton University
Stanford University (BA)
Harvard University (PhD)
Academic background
ThesisTaking Charge: Black Electoral Success and the Redefinition of American Policies (1997)
Doctoral advisorGary King[1]
Academic work
DisciplinePolitical science
InstitutionsStanford University (2000–2006)
Harvard University (2006–present)

Claudine Gay (born August 4, 1970)[2] is an American political scientist and academic administrator who is the Wilbur A. Cowett Professor of Government and of African and African-American Studies at Harvard University. Gay's research addresses American political behavior, including voter turnout and politics of race and identity.[3]

From July 1, 2023, until January 2, 2024, Gay was the 30th president of Harvard University. She became the first Black president of Harvard[4] after having served as the dean of Social Sciences and the dean of the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences.

In December 2023, Gay and two other university presidents faced pressure from the public[5][6] and from a Congressional committee to resign, over responses to documented instances of antisemitic violence on the campus.[7][8][9][10] Gay was also found to have plagiarized some of her past works (including her dissertation),[11][12] partly by the same committee.[13] The following month she resigned from the presidency.[14]

  1. ^ "Excerpts From Dr. Claudine Gay's Work – The New York Times". The New York Times. January 3, 2024. Archived from the original on January 3, 2024. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference :11 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Claudine Gay". aaas.fas.harvard.edu. Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved December 10, 2023.
  4. ^ Herszenhorn, Miles J.; Yuan, Claire (July 2, 2023). "Claudine Gay Takes Office, Officially Becoming Harvard's First Black President". The Harvard Crimson. Archived from the original on December 28, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  5. ^ Belkin, Douglas; Ellis, Lindsay (October 11, 2023). "Blaming Israel for Hamas Attacks Sparks Backlash Across U.S., Exposing Deep Rifts". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on October 13, 2023. Retrieved October 13, 2023.
  6. ^ Hartocollis, Anemona; Saul, Stephanie; Patel, Vimal (October 10, 2023). "At Harvard, a Battle Over What Should Be Said About the Hamas Attacks". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on October 13, 2023. Retrieved October 13, 2023.
  7. ^ Hensley, Sarah Beth (December 6, 2023). "Harvard's president answers backlash over response to calls for 'genocide of Jews'". ABC News. Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  8. ^ "How are Harvard, Penn presidents responding to campus anti-Semitism row?". Al Jazeera. December 6, 2023. Archived from the original on December 7, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  9. ^ Saul, Stephanie; Hartocollis, Anemona (December 6, 2023). "College Presidents Under Fire After Dodging Questions About Antisemitism". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 8, 2023. Retrieved December 7, 2023.
  10. ^ Korn, Melissa (December 10, 2023). "Penn President, Board Chair Resign After Furor Over Comments on Campus Antisemitism". WSJ. Archived from the original on December 10, 2023. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
  11. ^ Diver, Tony (December 11, 2023). "Harvard University president Claudine Gay accused of plagiarism amid anti-Semitism row". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on December 11, 2023. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  12. ^ Schuessler, Jennifer (December 21, 2023). "Harvard Finds More Instances of 'Duplicative Language' in President's Work". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on December 26, 2023. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference :12 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ Walker, Adria R. (January 2, 2024). "Harvard president resigns amid claims of plagiarism and antisemitism backlash". The Guardian. Archived from the original on January 2, 2024. Retrieved January 2, 2024.