Season One of The Harvard Plan anticipated what could happen to Harvard and academia once the new Trump administration came to power. Season Two picks up where the story left off. Host Ilya Marritz investigates the pressure Harvard's been under since January 2025, through the stories of some of the key players. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In part three of this collaboration with WNYC’s On The Media, the deep history of Harvard and the distinctly American idea of “diversity” is the hidden subtext for much of the recent strife. For most of the past half-century, the academy (and the business world) has embraced a concept of diversity as a social good.That concept, was developed at Harvard and endorsed by the Supreme Court, until the high court ended race-based affirmative action in 2023. This episode also looks at what’s in store for universities as the incoming Trump-Vance administration promises to pressure them to change curricula.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In part two of this collaboration with WNYC’s On The Media, Claudine Gay is accused of academic plagiarism, just days after giving testimony to Congress. The drip-drip of new allegations keeps the story in the headlines. It also reinforces critics’ allegation that Gay is a “diversity hire,” unworthy of the job. We hear from two of the writers who broke that news, and from a defender of Harvard’s diversity efforts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In part one of this collaboration with WNYC’s On The Media, Claudine Gay’s history-making inauguration as Harvard’s first Black president in September 2023 is seen by many as an inspirational moment for the university.  But by December 2023, that hope sours as her presidency becomes a proxy battleground for American culture wars  After war breaks out in the Middle East, Gay struggles to navigate  bitter campus  protests over war, anti-semitism, free speech, and the proper role of the university. The tensions are on full display when Gay testifies under oath, providing legalistic answers to outraged members of Congress.  Claudine Gay’s short tenure as Harvard’s 30th president, a job she started two days  after the Supreme Court struck down Harvard’s program of race-based affirmative action, is seen by some as a symbol of what’s wrong with diversity efforts.  It’s also a warning to all colleges and universities, who face a hostile incoming administration which has pledged to use its power to bring them into line. This series slows down the whipsaw chain of events to bring listeners direct eyewitness accounts of what happened, from professors, wealthy donors, and spiritual leaders. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Universities have become a battlefield in the American culture wars in a way that’s dramatic and new. In the past year, Congress subpoenaed and investigated the inner workings of private colleges for the first time; four ivy league presidents quit their jobs amid mounting pressure and many institutions rolled back their commitments to be welcoming places for all. Meanwhile, President-elect Trump campaigned to “reclaim” universities from the “Marxist maniacs and lunatics.” This series brings all of that into focus by examining the short, troubled tenure of Harvard’s 30th president, Claudine Gay. She started the job two days after the Supreme Court struck down Harvard’s program of race-based affirmative action. By the time Gay resigned, she had been tarred as a symbol of what’s wrong with diversity efforts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices