Prominent hedge fund manager and billionaire, Bill Ackman, has announced plans to establish a think tank dedicated to investigating higher education.
This move comes in the wake of his successful campaign that led to the resignation of Harvard University's President, Claudine Gay.
Ackman, the 57-year-old founder of Pershing Square Capital Management, has gained significant attention for his vocal criticism of his alma mater, Harvard University. He has accused the institution of failing to adequately protect its Jewish students from antisemitism, particularly in the aftermath of Hamas' lethal attack on Israel and the subsequent military operations in Gaza.
In addition, Ackman has expressed strong opposition to Harvard's implementation of diversity and inclusion programs, arguing that these initiatives suppress meritocracy.
In a bid to address these concerns, Ackman revealed on CNBC's "Squawk Box" his intention to assemble a team, including a CEO and a board of directors, to aggressively tackle these issues. "It's going to be a think-and-do tank," he stated. "We're going to study these issues and come up with solutions to problems, and we're going to implement them."
However, Ackman believes that to effect genuine change, he can no longer align himself with the Democratic Party, which he perceives as promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts. "I was a Bill Clinton Democrat," he confessed during the interview, "and what the party has morphed into is not something I want to be associated with."
In a comprehensive social media post, Ackman has previously contended that Harvard's policies on diversity, equity, and inclusion are the "root cause of antisemitism" at the university. He wrote, "DEI is racist because reverse racism is racism, even if it is against white people (and it is remarkable that I even need to point this out)."
Ackman also attributed the DEI movement as a significant factor contributing to societal divisiveness, suggesting that it has fostered resentment, a key driver of racism.
In his post, Ackman demanded the resignation of the Harvard Corporation Board members who supported Gay, even following her contentious congressional testimony regarding antisemitic protests on campuses. "The Board Chair, Penny Pritzker, should resign along with the other members of the board who led the campaign to keep Claudine Gay, orchestrated the strategy to threaten the media, bypassed the process for evaluating plagiarism, and otherwise greatly contributed to the damage that has been done," Ackman stated.
Ackman, who has donated approximately $50 million to Harvard, is also endorsing four alumni in their bid to join the university's board of overseers. The candidates, Zoe Bedell, Logan Leslie, Julia Pollak, and Alec Williams, are campaigning on a platform of safeguarding free speech, protecting students from bullying and harassment, and addressing financial mismanagement, including the handling of the school's $50.7 billion endowment.
"Harvard needs to change. Bringing fresh young blood onto the board of overseers can help with that," Ackman told Reuters. He praised the candidates he is supporting as "talented, accomplished and motivated people," whose candidacies will serve as a wakeup call for Harvard.
The four candidates, ranging in age from 26 to 38, have all served in the U.S. military. To qualify for election to the board, they must secure at least 3,300 signatures from Harvard graduates by the end of January, equivalent to 1% of those eligible to vote.
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