Almost one century ago, countless families were forced to flee the country that then housed the best universities in the world. One of those families was mine. My paternal grandparents left Germany in the 1930s with my father, who was 6 years old, and my aunt, who was 4. They were driven out of their home by an intolerable climate of antisemitism. Members of my family who did not make that decision perished.

Against today’s backdrop of rising antisemitism across the nation, and as university leaders like me decide how to keep our Jewish students safe, I am reminded of my family’s experience.

A longstanding aspiration of universities has been to serve as exemplary institutions. This means that, through the values they profess and the behaviors they exhibit, universities can be models for the larger society of which they are part. When it comes to the fight against antisemitism, however, many universities are failing to fulfill this social obligation.

Violence and hate crimes toward Jewish people have surged in recent years. According to the Anti-Defamation League, Jewish Americans — already the most likely targets of religiously motivated hate crimes — have experienced an 84% increase in antisemitic incidents on campuses since 2023.

This moment calls for decisive action grounded in moral clarity. We have a duty to lead the charge........

© The Jewish Week