ANNANDALE-ON-HUDSON, N.Y. — Leon Botstein, who has led Bard College for about 50 years, announced Friday that he will retire at the end of June, months after revelations that his relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was more extensive than previously disclosed.
Botstein, 79, said in an email provided to The Associated Press by Bard that he had delayed a public retirement announcement until an independent review of his contacts with Epstein was completed. He will remain on Bard’s faculty as a teacher and musician.
Botstein was not accused of participating in Epstein’s exploitation. Still, documents released this year by the U.S. Justice Department showed multiple meetings between Botstein and Epstein, including instances when Epstein arrived at Bard by helicopter. The documents show Botstein invited Epstein to the college’s 2013 graduation and suggested meeting him for an opera. In emails, Botstein referred to a “friendship” with Epstein and reached out weeks after The Miami Herald published new details of Epstein’s prosecution in 2018, writing, “I want you to know that I hope you are holding up as well as can be expected.”
Epstein directed $150,000 to Botstein in 2016; Botstein has said he donated those funds to the college. He previously characterized contacts with Epstein as fundraising-related rather than personal.
Bard’s trustees hired the law firm WilmerHale to conduct an independent review of communications between Botstein and Epstein. The review concluded Botstein did not act illegally but “made decisions in the course of that relationship that reflect on his leadership of Bard.” It found that Botstein “minimized and was not fully accurate in describing his relationship with Epstein” in public and internal statements.
According to the review, Botstein clashed with a senior faculty member who argued Bard should not engage with Epstein. Botstein reportedly believed someone convicted of sex crimes with a minor could be presumed rehabilitated like other convicted persons and emphasized the college’s fundraising needs. The review quoted Botstein as saying, “I would take money from Satan if it permitted me to do God’s work.”
The Executive Committee of Bard’s Board of Trustees thanked Botstein for decades of service but acknowledged that recent concerns had been “serious and deeply felt.” The board said funds associated with Epstein will be directed to organizations that support survivors of sexual harm. Bard’s media relations office called Botstein “a transformative leader” whose vision helped shape the college into what it is today.