New Text Messages Show Columbia Deans Mock Jewish Students’ ‘Privilege’

Deans at the center of Columbia University’s texting scandal have mocked the fact that Jewish students concerned about the outbreak of anti-Semitism on campus “come from a place of privilege” and suggested that these students enjoy greater institutional support than their peers because of their perceived wealth, according to new messages reviewed by the Washington Free Lighthouse.

The messages, obtained by the House Committee on Education and the Workforce and released Tuesday, show that three of the deans — Susan Chang-Kim, Matthew Patashnick and Cristen Kromm — engaged in a broader pattern of smearing than previously reported and shed new light on how Columbia officials responded in real time to a panel on anti-Semitism held during the university’s alumni weekend.

“I’m going to throw up,” Chang-Kim, Columbia’s vice dean and chief administrative officer, wrote to her colleagues about an hour into the lecture. The timing of the text coincides with remarks by Orly Mishan, an audience member and daughter of a Holocaust survivor, who described how her own daughter, a sophomore at Columbia, “hid in plain sight” on campus after the Oct. 7 attacks.

“It’s amazing what money can do,” said Kromm, the dean of undergraduate student life.

The new messages suggest that the administrators, who have been placed on leave pending a university investigation after a Free tag The report revealed excerpts from their text exchanges and considers concerns about anti-Semitism to be manifestations of rights.

“They’ll soon have their own dorm,” Patashnick, the associate dean for student and family support, said of Jewish students, after Columbia Hillel director Brian Cohen said many Jews felt more comfortable spending time at the Kraft Center he directs than in their own dorms after the Oct. 7 attacks.

“This comes from a place of privilege,” Chang-Kim wrote two minutes later. “I try to be open-minded to understand, but the doors are closing.”

The deans also ridiculed Cohen’s efforts to provide support services, including psychological counseling, to Jewish and Israeli students after October 7, implying that they were receiving special treatment denied to other groups.

“Not all heroes wear capes,” Patashnick wrote sarcastically. “If only every identity community had these resources and support,” Kromm responded.

In 2024, Columbia held separate graduation ceremonies for Black, Asian, Native American, LGBT, and Latino students. Jews were one of the only minority groups not to hold their own ceremony.

The release of the texts comes as Columbia faces renewed pressure to take action on the ordeal. A petition launched Tuesday by Columbia alumni, students and community members calls on the Ivy League institution to remove Sorett, Chang-Kim, Patashnick and Kromm “immediately from their positions.”

“The four deans involved must be held accountable and fired. This incident highlights a deep problem at Columbia that cannot be ignored,” the petition reads. “The failure to address this issue promptly can only be interpreted as a lack of seriousness and urgency in combating anti-Semitism on campus within the Columbia administration. Columbia University must send an immediate and unambiguous message that anti-Semitism will not be tolerated.”

Sorett, Chang-Kim, Kromm and Patashnick did not respond to requests for comment. A Columbia spokeswoman noted that Free tag in a June 12 statement saying the school is “committed to combating anti-Semitism and taking concrete, sustained steps to ensure that Columbia is a campus where Jewish students and all members of our community feel safe, valued, and able to thrive.”

Other text messages obtained by the Free tag From the same panel, we see the four deans rejecting accusations of anti-Semitism.

At one point during the panel, Chang-Kim texted Sorett that the panel “is hard to listen to, but I’m trying to keep an open mind to learn more about that perspective.” Sorett responded, “Yeah.”

Kromm, meanwhile, used vomit emojis — “🤢🤮” — to reference an op-ed by Columbia campus rabbi Yonah Hain that raised concerns about the “normalization of Hamas” on campus.

After the posts were published, Sorett issued a private apology to Columbia’s board of directors, saying the posts did not reflect “the views of any individual or the team.” He later informed his colleagues that Chang-Kim, Patashnick and Kromm had been placed on leave. Sorett was not subject to the disciplinary action, and a Columbia spokesperson declined to comment.

Shortly after, on June 21, the Free tag obtained a photo of another message sent during the panel that showed Sorett mocking Cohen. After Chang-Kim sent Sorett a sarcastic message calling Cohen “our hero,” Sorett responded, “LOL.”

That same day, Sorett broke his silence about his involvement in the scandal in an email to the Board of Visitors. “I deeply regret my role in these text messages and the impact they have had on our community,” he wrote. “I am cooperating fully with the university’s investigation into these matters. I am committed to learning from this situation and to combating anti-Semitism, discrimination and hate at Columbia.”

Sorett sent the message after calling the police on a Free tag journalist who knocked on his apartment door to ask about his involvement in the texts. While Sorett never came to the door or asked the Free tag leave, when the Free tag After leaving the building, several New York City police officers and campus security officers were outside. A Columbia security official said Sorett “raised a problem of great magnitude.”

New texts obtained by the committee show that Kromm and Chang echoed Patashnick’s assessment that Cohen had “taken full advantage of this moment” for its “enormous fundraising potential.”

The texts were sent around the time Cohen discussed a visit to the Columbia campus by prominent Israeli politician and human rights activist Natan Sharansky.

“Who is the speaker he mentioned?” Kromm asked. “Natan Sharansky,” Patshnick replied before sending a link to Sharansky’s Wikipedia page.