UPenn donor redirects money to Israeli universities instead of Ivy League over antisemitism

A major University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) alumnus who previously donated millions to his school has redirected his donations to Israeli universities instead because of the school's failure to address rampant antisemitism.

Ivy League and other prestigious schools have come under heat this year after pro-Hamas protests broke out on their campuses last spring. Columbia University was one of the focus points of the protests, but the University of Southern California, Stanford, and other schools across the country also saw antisemitic protests close down the campuses and disrupt graduation ceremonies.

Philanthropist David Magerman, who previously donated $5 million to UPenn, said on Friday that he does not believe American schools are "reformable" and is reallocating his funds to five Israeli schools in $1 million increments instead. 

"My plan is to redirect my philanthropic efforts going forward largely to Israel," Magerman told Fox News. "I don't see much value generated by giving to American universities. I think that liberal colleges in America are flawed institutions that are doing a poor job of preparing students for the real world."

The money will go to help support programs for native English speakers to learn Hebrew and integrate into STEM degree programs in Israel. Among the schools receiving the venture capitalist's donations are Tel Aviv University, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Bar-Ilan University and Jerusalem College of Technology. 

Magerman also urged other major donors to American universities to stop funding the schools, because the universities are after their own agendas.

"They're fulfilling the mission they want to fulfill," Magerman said. "Their goal, it seems, is to indoctrinate their students to question the validity of Western civilization, to question the value of the Founding Fathers and to criticize Western society. I don't think that's what these philanthropists believe and I don't think that they should be donating money to support propagating that ideology."

The businessman said he also plans to donate money to other Israeli causes in the future. 

Other millionaires have also pulled their funding from elite universities over their responses to antisemitism and the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas. Ross Stevens, founder and CEO of Stone Ridge Asset Management, canceled his $100 million donation to UPenn last December.

Misty Severi is an evening news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.