Rutgers President Resigns After Tumultuous Tenure

Rutgers University President Jonathan Holloway publicly announced Tuesday that he will step down at the end of this academic year after five years at the helm of the three-institution system. In a message to the campus, Holloway, Rutgers’ first black president in its more than 250-year history, wrote that he will take a sabbatical next year to pursue research before returning to the Rutgers faculty.

“There is much to do before my term ends, and I remain focused on that work, particularly that which addresses the connections between Rutgers and civic preparation and civil discourse,” Holloway wrote. “But whatever the topic, I remain steadfast in my belief that Rutgers is thriving and earning the respect it has long deserved.”

But at least one Republican member of Congress is calling on Holloway to step down early, criticizing his record on combating anti-Semitism. And Todd Wolfson, co-chair of the American Association of University Professors and the AAUP-American Federation of Teachers chapter at Rutgers, said he was disappointed in Holloway’s relationship with unions after Rutgers experienced its first faculty strike in its history last year.

The strike ended after the New Jersey governor intervened. Rebecca Givan, an associate professor at Rutgers and executive vice president of Rutgers AAUP-AFT, said: At the heart of higher education“We should never have gone on strike. A different approach to negotiations could have resulted in a fair contract without a strike.” And the Rutgers University Senate passed a resolution a year ago declaring it had “lost confidence” in Holloway, with senators raising concerns about his handling of the strike, his ouster of the chancellor of Rutgers University in Newark and his merger of the Newark and New Brunswick medical schools, among other complaints.

Although the criticism he has faced is widespread, it is unclear why Holloway, 57, is leaving now.

In his farewell address, the president listed several accomplishments. “Our freshman class this fall is the largest in our history. Better yet, it is also one of the most diverse and accomplished,” he wrote.

Holloway added that Rutgers researchers received a record $970 million in grants last year. He also touted a three-year-old initiative that has “provided hundreds of rewarding internship opportunities at nonprofit and government organizations in the New Jersey region and in our nation’s capital.” Holloway reportedly ran for president of Yale this year but did not get the job.

He informed Rutgers Board of Trustees Chair Amy Towers of his decision to leave last month, according to his message to campus. University spokeswoman Dory Devlin wrote in an email to At the heart of higher education Holloway informed the president around August 10. In a statement, Towers said: “Dr. Holloway’s decision was his and his alone; we respect it and thank Dr. Holloway for his passion and service.”

Wherein The Star Register Holloway said his departure was related to safety concerns for his family since the strike. “I don’t want to be in an environment where I need, where my family needs, protection,” Holloway told the newspaper. “That’s the part I didn’t bargain for.” He added that “now, if I’m in public, I have security guards with me.”

Another controversy erupted last month over the resignation of Rutgers athletic director Pat Hobbs. New Jersey Advanced Media reported that Hobbs was being investigated for a possible “inappropriate and consensual relationship” and The Star Register reported allegations of bullying by former athletes against a team coach. But Holloway said The Star Register Hobbs’ situation “has absolutely nothing to do with this decision.”

Like other major university presidents, Holloway has been criticized nationally for his handling of pro-Palestinian protests. In May, his university negotiated an end to an encampment after a few days, making few concessions to the protesters. But the U.S. House Committee on Education and the Workforce later called Holloway to testify before it as part of a series of interrogations of university leaders over their handling of reports of anti-Semitism on campus.

Republican representatives have accused Holloway of capitulating to pro-Palestine protesters, but Holloway’s responses to questions have drawn less public criticism than those of previous presidents. When asked whether he would close the Rutgers Center for Security, Race and Rights, which Virginia Republican Rep. Bob Good had opposed, Holloway said he had no plans to do so.

New York Republican Congresswoman Elise Stefanik issued a statement Tuesday saying Holloway should step down as president before the end of the academic year. “Holloway must resign immediately and in disgrace for allowing anti-Semitic mobs to repeatedly target and threaten the safety of Jewish students, for visiting the pro-Hamas encampment on campus, and for continuing to employ anti-Semitic and terrorist-supporting faculty and staff,” Stefanik said.

Virginia Foxx, a Republican congresswoman from North Carolina and chairwoman of the House Education Committee, said in a statement that “if he were to resign today, Speaker Holloway’s legacy would be one of empowering anti-Semites and terrorist sympathizers. He must use his final year at Rutgers to do everything in his power to change that.”

Devlin said Holloway’s current salary is about $1.1 million. She said: “His contract has no end date, but he has committed to at least five years, which he will serve when he leaves office on June 30, 2025.”