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The longtime president of Bard College announced his retirement Friday, months after it was revealed that he had a\u00a0much deeper relationship\u00a0with Jeffrey Epstein than was previously known.<\/p>\n
Leon Botstein, who has been president of the small, liberal arts college inn New York for a half century, will retire at the end of June, he wrote in an email provided to The Associated Press by Bard.<\/p>\n
In the note, Botstein, 79, didn\u2019t mention the scrutiny of his ties to Epstein, except to say that he had waited to announce his retirement publicly until the completion of an independent review of his relationship with the notorious sex offender.<\/p>\n
He said he would remain on Bard\u2019s faculty as a teacher and musician.<\/p>\n
Botstein was not accused of any involvement in Epstein\u2019s exploitation and abuse of girls and women. But he was among a long list of prominent and notable men and women who maintained friendly relationships with him for years, despite his status as a convicted sex offender.<\/p>\n
A trove of\u00a0documents\u00a0released by the U.S. Justice Department this year showed that Botstein and Epstein had met on multiple occasions, with Epstein sometimes arriving at Bard by helicopter. The president had also asked Epstein to be a guest at the 2013 graduation ceremonies and suggested they meet for an opera performance.<\/p>\n
In addition, Botstein reached out to Epstein weeks after the The Miami Herald reported new details on Epstein\u2019s criminal prosecution in 2018, saying \u201cI want you to know that I hope you are holding up as well as can be expected,\u201d and had separately referred to his \u201cfriendship\u201d with Epstein in at least two emails.<\/p>\n
Epstein steered $150,000 to Botstein in 2016, which the president has previously said he donated to the college. Botstein has previously denied having a personal connection with Epstein, instead saying his contacts with Epstein were centered on fundraising for the college.<\/p>\n
Bard\u2019s trustees enlisted the outside law firm WilmerHale to conduct an\u00a0independent review\u00a0of the communications between Epstein and Botstein. The review found that the president did not do anything illegal but \u201cmade decisions in the course of that relationship that reflect on his leadership of Bard,\u201d according to a summary provided by the college.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn his public statements and his statements to the Bard community, President Botstein minimized and was not fully accurate in describing his relationship with Epstein,\u201d the review said.<\/p>\n
At one point, according to the review, Botstein disagreed with a senior faculty member who felt Bard should not engage with Epstein, concluding that the president \u201crelied on his view that a person convicted of crimes involving sex with a minor\u2014\u2018an ordinary sex offender\u2019, in his words\u2014could be presumed to be rehabilitated in the same way that any other convicted person should, in his view, be given that presumption.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPresident Botstein forcefully argues that Bard\u2019s need for funds was paramount. His view was, \u2018I would take money from Satan if it permitted me to do God\u2019s work,\u2019 \u201d the review said.<\/p>\n
The Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees at Bard, in a separate message, wrote that it is grateful for Botstein\u2019s decades of service to the college, but added that the \u201cconcerns raised in recent months have been serious and deeply felt.\u201d<\/p>\n
It said funds associated with Epstein will be directed to organizations that support survivors of sexual harm.<\/p>\n
Bard\u2019s media relations office released a statement calling Botstein \u201ca transformative leader with the vision and unwavering commitment that has shaped Bard into the world-class educational institution it is today.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
#Bard #College #president #steps #months #deep #ties #Jeffrey #Epstein #revealed<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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