College President Forced to Resign for Ties to Epstein
GoLocalProv News Team
College President Forced to Resign for Ties to Epstein
The president of Bard College, Leon Botstein, is being forced out due to his longstanding ties to convicted child sex abuser Jeffrey Epstein.
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He is one of the few powerful Americans to lose their position in power despite their close ties to Epstein.
In Europe and other parts of the world, a number of powerful figures have fallen, including Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor (formerly Prince Andrew).
The Wall Street Journal reports:
Botstein “minimized and was not fully accurate in describing his relationship with Epstein,” according to a memo prepared by law firm WilmerHale, which was hired by Bard’s board.
The investigation found that Botstein pursued his relationship with Epstein over the concerns of a senior faculty member, didn’t consult the Bard board on accepting Epstein’s donations, hosted Epstein on campus and made many invitations for Epstein to visit the school that could have further exposed Bard students.
In its memo, WilmerHale stated that Botstein had argued that Bard’s needs for funds were paramount and quoted him saying, “I would take money from Satan if it permitted me to do God’s work.”
Bard writes about Botstein, "Leon Botstein became Bard’s 14th president in 1975. Under Botstein, Bard has continued to innovate, take risks, and broaden its global outlook. He has overseen curricular innovation—including the nation’s first human rights major; the Language and Thinking Program, a presemester workshop for first-year students; and Citizen Science, a hands-on program that introduces all first-year students to natural science and the ideas of the scientific method—and the development of a new model for the liberal arts college as a central body surrounded by affiliated institutes and programs that strengthen core academic offerings.
Bard College is a private liberal arts college in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York. The enrollment is about 2,300 undergrads.