As Director of Undergraduate Studies and Senior Lecturer in Columbia’s Department of Sociology, Teresa Sharpe plays an influential role in shaping what students learn, how the department communicates, and how undergraduate concerns are handled. In April 2024, she leveraged that institutional authority to fully align herself with the pro Hamas encampment, endorsing its tactics and message while ignoring the experiences of Jewish students who were harassed, excluded, and targeted during the protests.
Sharpe joined the encampment on April 22–25, participating in faculty walkouts, protest programming, and public messaging designed to legitimize the occupation of campus grounds. On April 25, she held a sign demanding an end to student suspensions, positioning herself firmly on the side of activists who vandalized property, blocked access, and created a climate that many Jewish and Israeli students described as threatening. Her presence and participation sent a clear signal: the department’s leadership was willing to embrace radical activism no matter the impact on safety, inclusion, or academic integrity.
Most concerning was Sharpe’s documented involvement in blocking Jewish students from entering the encampment. Rather than protecting student access or encouraging open dialogue, she helped enforce exclusionary boundaries that kept certain students out based on their identity and perceived political beliefs. This incident starkly contradicts any claim to supporting free speech, academic openness, or equitable access to campus space.
Sharpe’s activism predates the encampment. In October 2023, she signed an open letter defending “robust debate” around Israel and Gaza, which minimized concerns about antisemitism and framed criticism of anti Israel activism as censorship. By April 2024, her stance shifted from rhetorical support to direct action, where she participated in protests, endorsed confrontational activism, and inserted herself into a movement that pushed many students into unsafe and exclusionary conditions.
Her continued presence and behavior raise red flags about ideological bias within the Sociology Department’s leadership and its effect on Jewish students’ ability to learn and participate without fear of faculty retaliation or discrimination.
Record of Advocacy and Ideological Bias
Academic and Organizational Roles
Director of Undergraduate Studies, Department of Sociology at Columbia University
Senior Lecturer responsible for undergraduate instruction and departmental operations
Public Statements and Activism
Signed the Sociology Department letter condemning NYPD intervention at the encampment
Active participant in the April 2024 pro Hamas encampment
Held a sign demanding an end to disciplinary actions against encampment activists
Joined faculty walkouts and programming supporting the encampment
Directly involved in blocking Jewish students from entering protest space
Signed the 2023 open letter defending faculty aligned with pro Palestinian activism
Collaborations and Affiliations
Aligned with faculty activists supporting the encampment
Part of broader networks framing anti Israel protests as protected speech
Associated with efforts to oppose administrative action against student protesters
Impact on Campus Climate and Accountability Concerns
Sharpe’s involvement in physically blocking Jewish students from entering campus space is a serious breach of professional responsibility. Her actions contributed to an environment where certain students were excluded, intimidated, and treated as political outsiders by faculty members entrusted with their academic wellbeing. Her choices represent a clear ideological bias that prioritizes activism over equitable access, safety, and academic neutrality.
