NEW YORK โ About three in four Jewish professors at U.S. colleges and universities reported witnessing antisemitic behavior from colleagues, administrators, or staff, according to a nationwide survey released this month by the Anti-Defamation League in partnership with the Academic Engagement Network.
The study, based on responses from roughly 200 current and former Jewish faculty members, found that 73 percent had observed anti-Jewish statements or actions by faculty, staff, or administrators.
Many respondents described being excluded from departmental life, targeted by boycott or smear campaigns, or subjected to hostile workplace conduct that affected their ability to teach, research, and participate in campus governance.
Nearly half of survey participants said their campuses hosted chapters of Faculty for Justice in Palestine or similar faculty networks, and large majorities of those respondents reported that such chapters engaged in anti-Israel programming, protests, and divestment campaigns.
The study documented specific harms, including doxxing, coordinated public denunciations, and calls to remove Jewish faculty from leadership positions.
Many faculty reported personal consequences. A significant share said they felt compelled to conceal their Jewish identity or their views on Israel to avoid professional reprisals. Others described canceled courses, lost speaking invitations, and social isolation within departments. More than half judged their institutions’ responses to reports of antisemitism as inadequate or ineffective.
The ADL and AEN urged colleges and universities to adopt clear anti-discrimination policies specific to antisemitism, strengthen reporting mechanisms that protect complainants, and enforce professional standards for faculty conduct.
The groups also recommended that academic associations adopt transparent ethics codes and that institutions provide training to prevent politicized department-level orthodoxies from becoming hostile environments.
Jewish campus leaders and advocates welcomed the survey as confirmation of what many have long reported anecdotally: that antisemitism on campus is not limited to student protest activity but is increasingly driven by faculty and staff conduct. They said the findings underscore the need for rapid policy changes to protect academic freedom for all scholars and to ensure that Jewish faculty can work without fear of intimidation.
Critics of the federal and institutional responses to campus tensions have warned that enforcement efforts must preserve academic freedom. The ADL-AEN report attempts to strike that balance, calling both for robust protections against discrimination and for safeguards that prevent politicized enforcement from chilling legitimate scholarly debate.
The survey adds to a broader body of evidence showing a sharp rise in antisemitic incidents since October 2023, including reports from student surveys and federal civil rights inquiries. Lawmakers, university boards, and campus administrators have faced increasing pressure to address the problem while navigating free-speech concerns and the complexities of university governance.
For Jewish and pro-Israel audiences, the study offers concrete data to support calls for institutional reforms. Community leaders said universities must adopt victim-sensitive reporting options, make discipline for hate speech consistent and public, and partner with Jewish campus organizations on education and safety plans.
Advocates urged that academic associations also adopt stronger ethical standards to prevent coordinated campaigns that target Jewish faculty.
This article is based on verified information from The Times of Israel, Jewish Insider, Ynet, The Algemeiner, and publications of the Academic Engagement Network and the Anti-Defamation League.