Whistleblowers Say Harvard, Brown and Columbia Antisemitism Probes Had Predetermined Outcomes

NOTUS reported on August 18, 2026 on a whistleblower complaint in which former attorney Haley Van Erem and other career civil rights attorneys describe an “outcome-driven approach” by a multiagency task force that was “subordinate to political priorities,” alleging that people who raised disagreements were sidelined or faced reprimands. The complaint says they believe, based on HHS officials’ actions, that the outcomes of the antisemitism investigations at Harvard, Brown and Columbia were predetermined, without regard to the evidence. The investigators were pushed to complete their investigations in 45 days, despite their objections to that timeline. At Brown University, investigators did not find any violations of Title VI, but an HHS official said higher-ups would never accept that result, the complaint says. Columbia agreed to pay more than $220 million to restore its research funding; Brown agreed to give $50 million to workforce development organizations in Rhode Island.

See also 2026-03-20–doj-sues-harvard-antisemitism-billions.