Former Harvard University president and prominent economist Larry Summers has announced he will resign from his faculty post and other academic roles at the university at the end of the current academic year, following renewed scrutiny over his links to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Harvard confirmed that Summers, who had already taken a leave of absence last November, will also relinquish his role as co‑director of the Mossavar‑Rahmani Center for Business and Government at the Harvard Kennedy School. A university spokesperson said the decision comes “in connection with the ongoing review by the university of documents related to Jeffrey Epstein that were recently released by the government.”
Summers, 71, served as Harvard’s president from 2001 to 2006 and later held one of its most senior professorships. In a statement, he described his choice to retire as “difficult” and expressed gratitude for the thousands of students and colleagues he has taught and worked with over five decades. He said that, as an emeritus professor, he looks forward to continuing research and commentary on global economic issues.
The renewed focus on Summers’s relationship with Epstein stems from a trove of communications disclosed by the U.S. House Oversight Committee last year. The messages, exchanged over many years, revealed a personal connection that continued into 2019, shortly before Epstein’s arrest on federal sex‑trafficking charges. The correspondence included discussions on personal topics, prompting criticism and institutional responses, although no criminal charges have been brought against Summers.
Summers’s resignation is the latest in a series of high‑profile departures tied to the broader fallout from the Epstein files, which have spurred investigations and accountability efforts at leading universities and other institutions.
