TRUSTEE EXPOSED: JONATHAN LAVINE
THE PROFILE
ROLE: CHAIR EMERITUS, COLUMBIA TRUSTEE
STATUS: FMR CHAIR, BAIN CAPITAL
KNOWN FOR: VULTURE CAPITALISM & FUNDING APARTHEID
THE PRESIDENTIAL KINGMAKER
Lavine is the Co-Chair of the current Presidential Search Committee, positioning himself to handpick Columbia's next leader. This is despite his disastrous track record: he led the search that selected Minouche Shafik, whose tenure ended in disgrace and police brutality on campus. Why are we letting the same man make the same mistake twice?
RIGGING THE RULES
Lavine is actively maneuvering to rewrite protest rules and strip control for the University Senate. His goal is to remove the only democratic check on administrative power, ensuring that future crackdowns on student speech face no internal opposition.
PROFITING FROM "DISTRESSED DEBT"
Lavine made his fortune by founding Sankaty Advisors (now Bain Capital Credit), a firm specializing in "distressed debt" and "special situations." In plain English: Vulture Capitalism. As noted by The Nation, Bain's vulture capitalism involves stripping assets from struggling companies to extract value, often leaving workers and communities with nothing. This is the "business acumen" he brings to Columbia's governance.
FUNDING THE OCCUPATION
Lavine uses his millions to normalize apartheid. Through his Crimson Lion Foundation, he is a major donor to Combined Jewish Philanthropies (CJP), explicitly funding programs like "Onward Israel" and "Alternative Spring Break" to send students to occupied land. He even received the ADL's Distinguished Community Service Award, celebrating his financial support for Zionist lobbying efforts.