Columbia President Talks Out of Both Sides of Her Mouth on Masking and Disciplinary Process
25th March 2025
As they do.
Publicly, Columbia University interim president Katrina Armstrong says she’s committed to implementing the reforms the Trump administration is demanding. Behind closed doors, she is telling colleagues not much is going to change.
In a weekend meeting with roughly 75 disgruntled faculty members, Armstrong told colleagues that, despite national news headlines indicating the school had genuflected before the administration, there would be “no change to masking” and that the university’s disciplinary process “remains independent” and “has not been moved to my office.”
Armstrong said something different days earlier when announcing several changes to the school’s operating procedures. In a memo presented to the Trump administration on Friday, she indicated that “face masks or face coverings are not allowed for the purpose of concealing one’s identity” and that anyone wearing a face covering during a protest is subject to a mandatory ID check.