Molding Young Minds

Acclaimed Yale Professor Resigns Over ‘Inappropriate’ Donor Influence

Professor Beverly Gage reportedly resigned after donors, including billionaire Charles Johnson, tried to stack an oversight board with conservative figures.

Beverly Gage, a historian who oversaw Yale’s esteemed Grand Strategy program, resigned over “inappropriate” pressure from two conservative donors, according to a report from The New York Times. Gage, who remains a tenured history professor, said former Treasury secretary Nicholas Brady and billionaire Charles Johnson tried to stack a new advisory board with conservative figures like Henry Kissinger. The pressure campaign at the program—which aims to develop new world leaders—reportedly started after one of Gage’s colleagues published an opinion piece in the Times last year calling Donald Trump a demagogue. Gage said the donors were angling for “some form of surveillance and control.” Yale, in reply, acknowledged her concerns, but said it was just upholding a long-standing agreement with Brady and Johnson.