Harvard Covers Hillel’s Security Expenses for Year

The University will cover the costs of Harvard Hillel’s security measures this year amid a national surge in antisemitism and under pressure from the White House, which repeatedly accuses Harvard of failing to protect Jewish students.

Leaders of Hillel, Harvard’s center for Jewish life, had long advocated for financial assistance for security measures – calls that got louder after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel. A University spokesperson wrote that “recent tragic events in communities across the country” have furthered “Harvard’s resolve in our efforts to combat antisemitism on our campus.”

Antisemitic attacks have been on the rise across the country since 2023. In May, two Israeli embassy employees in Washington, D.C., were shot outside an event hosted by the American Jewish Committee. The Anti-Defamation League tracked 9,354 cases of antisemitic assault, harassment, and vandalism in 2024 — a 344 percent surge over the past five years.

The security funding change was first reported by Jewish Insider in July, and confirmed to The Crimson by Hillel leadership. Both Hillel and a spokesperson for the University declined to comment on the cost of security measures.

Hillel’s security has also long been integrated with Harvard’s main system. The organization’s central building is monitored on University video surveillance, and door access is granted through University ID cards. There is also a Securitas guard stationed inside.

“Harvard’s financial support for the ongoing security measures taken by Harvard Hillel is an important step in ensuring the safety of our Jewish community and it builds on the substantive actions we have taken and continue to take to combat antisemitism,” the University spokesperson added.

Harvard’s change also follows recommendations by its internal antisemitism task force, which released a report in April describing that many Jewish affiliates perceived the campus environment to be hostile. Several students interviewed by the task force said they feared for their safety after facing antisemitic harassment and threats of physical violence, according to the report.

Hillel Executive Director Jason B. Rubenstein ’04 praised Harvard’s decision to cover the security expenditures in an Aug. 1 statement.

“Harvard is enacting deliberate and principled action that defends and advances both Jewish life and academic inquiry,” Rubenstein wrote. “We should take this moment to appreciate the efficacy of Hillel’s advocacy and President Garber’s principled leadership.”

Rubenstein also celebrated Harvard’s two new partnerships with Israeli universities that administrators announced in July, including a new undergraduate study abroad program with Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and a postdoctoral fellowship for Israeli scientists at Harvard Medical School.

Jordan H. Mittler ’27, a Jewish student who frequently attends Hillel events, said he welcomed Harvard’s decision to cover Hillel’s security costs, but said he wished it had come sooner.

“Hillel is under Harvard’s umbrella,” he said. “Harvard probably should have been paying for Hillel security all along.”

But Mittler also said the University’s focus on renewing its commitment to protecting Jewish students had “lightened up the mood a bit more on campus.”

“It’s definitely comforting knowing that Harvard’s getting involved,” he said. “We, of course, always need to have strong security here, even if we’re not in the middle of a crisis.”

—Staff writer Samuel A. Church can be reached at samuel.church@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @samuelachurch.

—Staff writer Cam N. Srivastava can be reached at cam.srivastava@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @camsrivastava.