Columbia University said Thursday that students who occupied the campus’ Hamilton Hall during pro-Palestinian protests last spring have been expelled, suspended for several years or had their degrees temporarily revoked.
The sanctions were issued by the Columbia University Judicial Board, the school said.
“The outcomes issued by the UJB are based on its evaluation of the severity of behaviors at these events and prior disciplinary actions,” the university said in a statement. “These outcomes are the result of following the thorough and rigorous processes laid out in the Rules of University Conduct in our statutes, which include investigations, hearings and deliberations.”
The university did not say how many students were impacted by the sanctions.
In late April 2024, pro-Palestinian protesters occupied Hamilton Hall hours after defying the order to disperse. Barricades were set up by protesters outside the occupied building. NYPD officers raided the hall and arrested dozens of protesters.
In this April 29, 2024, file photo, demonstrators from the pro-Palestine encampment on Columbia’s Campus show a banner as they barricade themselves inside Hamilton Hall, they barricade themselves inside Hamilton Hall, an academic building which has been occupied in past student movements,, and name it after a Palestinian child allegedly killed by the Israeli military, in New York.
Alex Kent/Getty Images, FILE
In June 2024, the Manhattan district attorney’s office moved to dismiss the charges against most of the protesters arrested at Columbia University but that prosecutors were moving forward with cases against a handful of protesters who allegedly assaulted police officers.
Charges against 31 people were dropped, though they still were subject to discipline by Columbia University.
The protest movement connected to the Israel-Hamas war began in April at Columbia and swept across college campuses nationwide.
Hundreds of protesters were arrested at campuses across the country, while encampments were torn down and events canceled.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
