Footage of violent protests at colleges across the U.S. has some Americans recalling the Vietnam War protests of the late 1960s/early 1970s and the anti-apartheid protests of the mid-1980s. But many of today’s students are being personally targeted for the war in Gaza — behavior ignored for months by many university leaders and politicians — and social media is rallying many non-university participants.
UCLA did not restrict pro-Palestinian demonstrators from preventing Jewish students from entering classrooms and the library on April 30 and waited hours to call police to break up violent fighting that later erupted between pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel groups. Nor did the presidents of Harvard, MIT and the University of Pennsylvania acknowledge during Congressional hearings in December that “calling for the genocide of Jews” is bullying, harassment and a violation their schools’ codes of conduct. President Biden broke his silence May 2 on the campus chaos, stating the right for peaceful but not violent protests.
But free speech has been thrown into the firestorm, with double standards on when it does and does not apply. John McWhorter, a Black professor of linguistics at Columbia University, and Alan Dershowitz, a White professor emeritus at Harvard Law School, have challenged this hypocrisy, emphasizing that universities cannot ban hate speech against one group but tolerate it for another.
“What began as intelligent protest has become, in its uncompromising fury and its ceaselessness, a form of abuse,” McWhorter wrote in the New York Times.
Many pro-Palestinian protesters chanting “from the river to the sea, ” a rallying cry for Israel’s destruction, don’t know that 40% to 45% of Israel’s population are Mizrahi Jews whose ancestors hailed from Jewish communities in the Middle East, including what is now Israel. Many of these ancestors were expelled from their homes over the centuries.
Against this backdrop of unrest, incoming college freshman at about 200 schools must commit by May 15 or June 1 to the school they’ll attend this fall. Many schools delayed College Decision Day, traditionally May 1, because of significant errors and delays with the Fafsa, the Free Application for Federal Financial Aid.
“I’m mostly hearing about reactions to the Fafsa Fiasco, as opposed to the protests,” says Mark Kantrowitz, a national expert on student financial aid, student loans and scholarships. “I did have one student who is concerned about Yale because of the protests there. He isn’t Jewish, just concerned about the unrest on campus.”
Kantrowitz has heard that a few students are “double-depositing” to keep their options open at multiple schools as the campus mayhem continues.
Meanwhile, nearly two-thirds (64%) of Jewish families with high school juniors and seniors have eliminated colleges and universities they would have applied to because of the rise in antisemitism on campus, according to a poll conducted in March by Benenson Strategy Group (BSG) on behalf of Hillel International, a Jewish campus organization. And one out of every 15 Jewish students has considered transferring or leaving school due to the campus climate.
In the month following terror group Hamas’ October 7 attacks in Israel, Hillel International tracked a 700% increase in antisemitic incidents, spanning 129 college campuses, compared with the same period a year earlier. Reported antisemitic incidents totaled 1,487 between October 7 and May 3.
Brandeis recently extended its transfer application deadline to May 31. Walsh and Franciscan are two of the Catholic universities opening their doors to Jewish students who are no longer comfortable at their own schools. [Boston College, a Jesuit school, has peacefully addressed the Israel-Hamas war through class discussions, a faculty vigil and a scheduled one-hour rally that banned bullhorns, tents and protestors from outside.]
Changing schools requires planning. “Students who transfer tend to lose credits, regardless of the reason for transferring. Colleges generally don’t do anything to help transfer students,” says Kantrowitz, author of “How to Appeal for More College Financial Aid” and “Who Graduates from College? Who Doesn’t?”
“Plus, transfer students who are trying to avoid the protests may end up jumping from the frying pan into a fire,” he says. Encampments, launched in late April at Columbia University, have since disrupted student life on more than 40 campuses.
All-Around Impact
It’s not just Jewish students or those on the most virulent campuses who are concerned. Beth Walker, a wealth advisor with Carson Wealth Management and founder of Center for College Solutions, based in Colorado Springs, Colo., says the impact of the protests “is deeper and more widespread” than many realize.
“I think the colleges and the media would be shocked by the disdain felt by ‘regular folks,’” she says, referring to “people living in the flyover states” where campus protests have been less prevalent and tamer than in major U.S. cities.
“In general, my clients are disappointed in the lack of leadership coming from the colleges — dismayed by their inability to ‘control’ things on their campuses,” she says.
“Parents are universally concerned about their student’s safety amidst all this turmoil and are ‘checking in’ more frequently to make sure their kiddos feel safe and secure,” she says. “I’m also hearing from grandparents who are concerned because they remember the late 60s/early 70s and recognize the similarities.”
The interruptions also have Walker’s clients rethinking college price tags, which have hit $95,000 a year at some schools for the 2024-25 academic year.
“First COVID, now this; in general, parents (and students!) are questioning the value proposition of college as a result of these two influences,” says Walker. “I’m also seeing an uptick in interest in what are considered ‘more conservative’ campuses and schools ‘closer to home.’”
The protests may also influence college planning longer term. “I’m not seeing current events impact this year’s [high school] graduates but I am seeing it begin to take root in the college lists being considered by current high school juniors and their younger siblings,” says Walker, author of “Never Pay Retail for College” and “Buying Better College,” due out this month.
Tips for Early Decision and Financial Aid
Some students who applied for early-decision admission may think they’re stuck, even if their one-time dream school has become a nightmare. The College Board says early-decision applications are binding. Some high-school counselors, eager to keep elite institutions interested in recruiting from their pipeline, make students pull other applications after the early-decision school admits them.
However, applicants “are never obligated to attend an early-decision college, no matter what the reason,” says Kantrowitz. “If the college were to try to enforce the binding commitment, they’d likely violate antitrust laws.”
“Students almost always lose the deposit” paid to a college, says Kantrowitz. “But I suppose that if a student decided to not enroll because they fear for their safety, the college might refund the deposit because it might not want the bad publicity.” The school may allow the student to defer their enrollment for a year, he adds.
Students concerned about heading to campus this fall can consider taking a gap year. For those wishing to apply elsewhere, he notes that many colleges have later admissions deadlines and some offer rolling admissions.
Financial aid doesn’t transfer
Students planning to transfer need to know that financial-aid funds do not transfer to a new school, says Kantrowitz. The new school calculates financial aid eligibility based on the college’s cost of attendance and the student’s Student Aid Index (SAI).
“If the student transfers mid-year, their eligibility for federal student aid will be reduced by the amounts they have already received,” he says. The good news is student loans continue to be deferred while a student is enrolled on at least a half-time basis in a college that’s eligible for federal student aid.
If needed, students “should be able to get some student loans for a fifth year,” says Kantrowitz. Although the sum of the annual loan limits for four years of federal student loans for a dependent student is $27,000, the aggregate limit is $31,000. The Parent PLUS loan is also available for more than four years, he says.
‘Safety is a Factor’
Like most of the country, Larry Pon, a CPA and CFP professional who heads tax and financial-planning firm Pon & Associates in Redwood City, Calif., has been following the campus unrest.
“It is sad to hear this,” says Pon. “I am looking to learn more about the profiles of the people who were arrested in these protests. They were damaging property and spewing hate. How many of them are actually students?”
Pon’s clients, who hail from “all faiths and political persuasions,” he says, “do express concern about current events, but it is not something we dwell on. They are paying me hourly to get their tax and financial planning done. They are not going to waste that time talking politics.”
“I think they are more concerned about the schools that were involved in the admissions scandals and other scandals,” he says. And “the children of my clients do not appear to be the protesting type. Most are goal-oriented and focused. Just like me when I was [a student] at Berkeley. I did not have time to protest, I had to keep up with my classes.”
Still, “safety is a factor to consider when visiting any college campus,” he says. And as parents, “we hope [or need] to teach our children about common sense to keep out of trouble.”
Pon is no stranger to hate. “I have heard my share of racist taunts, but I just ignore them. During the pandemic, some clients expressed sympathy for opposing Asian hate, since I am Asian.” Someone gave him a very good book about world religions, he says, adding, “I wish I took that course in college.”
Strong Support for Community College
Pon, who teaches income tax at his local community college, also encourages families to consider community college, then transferring to a four-year school.
From a financial and educational standpoint, “I’m very impressed with what the community colleges provide to students,” he says. Costs are lower, and classes are smaller and taught by professors instead of graduate students, he notes.
“Also, no protests at community colleges. I have walked through many community college campuses, and they have positive events to showcase their diversity,” he says. He just attended a food-related event on campus where “one table highlighted an ethnic group I never heard of and showcased their cuisine.”
Extra Tuition Increases Unlikely
What financial fallout might the protests inflicted on colleges? Not that much, figures Kantrowitz, the financial aid expert.
“The extra operating costs are unlikely to be significant enough to cause a big increase in college tuition,” he says. “So far, the protests have mostly diverted existing staff and not required hiring new staff.”
“If protestors destroy campus buildings, the cost of repairs will likely be covered by insurance. If students are expelled, they don’t get a refund of tuition. Plus, with the expulsions occurring so late in the term, the college might be able to replace them by accepting students off of the waitlist,” Kantrowitz says.
And if a foreign student is suspended or expelled? “Their visa status changes and they generally have to return home within a short period of time,” says Kantrowitz — but the disciplinary process may move very slowly, like at MIT.
As for the impact on school endowments, “so far, the alienation of alumni donors has mostly involved donors who are concerned about antisemitism, he says. “If the colleges address these concerns, the donors will likely return.”
Meanwhile, some irate parents are demanding refunds from schools where safety and learning have been compromised, the Wall Street Journal reports. These parents who are critical of administrators’ responses to the protests sit on both sides of the divide.
Colleges have their work cut out for them, even if the encampments empty out during summer break. Teaching and requiring civil discourse should be a priority for them.
Jerilyn Klein is the editorial director of Rethinking65.
