A growing wave of protests is sweeping across American university campuses, demanding the removal of prominent donors’ names from buildings due to their documented associations with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
From Ohio State University to Harvard, students, faculty, and alumni are calling for accountability, arguing that these names tarnish institutional reputations and cause distress to survivors.
At the heart of many of these demonstrations is billionaire retail mogul Les Wexner, whose name is emblazoned across numerous facilities at Ohio State University (OSU), including the Wexner Medical Center, the Les Wexner Football Complex, and the Wexner Center for the Arts.
Union nurses, former athletes, and student leaders are united in their goal: to see Wexner’s name removed, citing his well-documented ties to Epstein.
Although Wexner has not been charged with any crime and claims he was “duped” by his one-time financial adviser, a group of former OSU athletes, survivors of a separate sexual abuse scandal at the school, contend that his generosity to his alma mater is now “tainted”.
Their naming removal request stated: “Ohio State University cannot credibly separate itself from these facts, nor can it justify continuing to honor Les Wexner with an athletic facility. To do so is to ignore the voices of survivors, former athletes, and the broader community who expect accountability, transparency, and moral leadership.”
Similar demands are emerging nationwide, targeting buildings named after other individuals with connections to Epstein.
These include Steve Tisch, Casey Wasserman, Glenn Dubin, and Howard Lutnick, whose names adorn facilities at institutions such as Tufts University, UCLA, Stony Brook University and Haverford College.
This backlash reflects a wider scrutiny across higher education, where university donors and even academics whose emails surfaced in Epstein’s files are facing intense pressure.
At Harvard, a coalition of students and faculty at the prestigious Kennedy School is campaigning against the Leslie H. Wexner Building and the Wexner-Sunshine Lobby.
Their March request for renaming highlighted Wexner’s “strong ties to Epstein” and alleged that Epstein profited from Wexner, “which enabled Epstein to use his wealth and power to traffic and abuse children and women.”
Separately, some Harvard students and alumni are seeking the removal of the Farkas name from Farkas Hall, which hosts the Hasty Pudding Theatricals.
Andrew Farkas, a graduate chairman of the Hasty Pudding Institute, had a long-standing personal and business relationship with Epstein, including co-owning a Caribbean marina.
Epstein also made regular donations to Hasty Pudding, totalling over $300,000 between 2013 and 2019. Mr Farkas has responded to the controversy, stating: “As I’ve said repeatedly, I deeply regret ever having met this individual, but at no time have I conducted myself inappropriately.”
Universities are grappling with these complex demands. Ohio State’s new president, Ravi Bellamkonda, affirmed that the university’s five-step review procedure for name removal is “thorough, fair, and open”, promising “full consideration” for each request.
Harvard has confirmed receipt of the Wexner-related request but declined further comment, having previously changed the name of John Winthrop House due to slavery connections.
Haverford College’s student body recently voted to urge President Wendy Raymond to proceed with renaming the Allison & Howard Lutnick Library, a move she had previously hesitated on.
Tufts University, home to the Tisch Library and the Steve Tisch Sports and Fitness Center, is also reviewing the matter, clarifying that the library was named for Preston Tisch, Steve’s father, and removing Steve Tisch’s handprints during a “planned renovation.”
This situation echoes the earlier controversy surrounding the Sackler family and their links to the opioid crisis, where institutions faced similar ethical and financial dilemmas over donor names.
The issue places universities in a moral and financial bind. Anne Bergeron, a museum consultant specializing in naming rights ethics, describes this as “a moment of reckoning” for institutions.
She notes that younger generations, particularly students, have “virtually no tolerance for being associated with anyone who doesn’t represent the best of humanity”, urging universities to guard against the appearance of a quid pro quo. However, some argue against retrospective moral judgments.
Michael Oser, a Columbus resident, articulated this frustration in a letter to The Columbus Dispatch: “OSU took the money. Built the buildings. Cut the ribbons. Smiled for the photos There were no formal ‘morality clauses’ attached back then, just gratitude and applause. Now, years later, some want to play moral referee while the university keeps the cash and the concrete. That’s not accountability. That’s convenience.”
For survivors of sexual abuse, the presence of these names is deeply personal. Lauren Barnes, a Harvard Kennedy School student leading the effort to remove Wexner’s name, described her daily struggle: “Thinking about all the children in this world that deserve safety and also all the survivors on campus that have to walk under the Wexner name, I know what that’s like to have my heart race and my hands get sweaty.
“I hate that anyone else has to have that feeling walking under that name and just dealing with it kind of everywhere on campus.”
At Ohio State, protester Audrey Brill told a local ABC affiliate that it “feels gross” to consider women delivering babies at OSU’s Wexner Medical Center “given everything that we’re learning about where this money went”, believing removal could aid healing.
Protesters there are also seeking the removal of Dr Mark Landon’s name from a hospital lounge, despite his claims that five-figure quarterly payments from Epstein were for biotech consulting, not healthcare.
As pressure mounts, universities face the difficult task of balancing donor relationships with ethical responsibilities and the profound impact on their communities.
