Impact of the ADL Campus Antisemitism Report Card

Background

ADL’s Campus Antisemitism Report Card is a tool for students, parents, alumni, college faculty, guidance counselors, admissions consultants and other stakeholders. Our goal is to serve students and their families looking for information about the current state of antisemitism on campus and how particular universities and colleges are responding.

ADL’s Report Card 2.0 assesses 135 schools based on 30 criteria, separated into three categories: ‘Administrative Policies,’ ‘Jewish Life on Campus’ and ‘Campus Conduct and Climate Concerns.’

Testimonials

Campus Policy Changes Over Time

Although the expansion of criteria and the increase in schools assessed complicate direct comparisons, improvement in grades from 2024 to 2025 can in large part be attributed to new administrative initiatives, implemented in response to the campus antisemitism crisis, aimed at enhancing the campus climate for Jewish students and the student body as a whole.

While only 23.5% of the assessed colleges and universities received As and Bs in 2024, that percentage rose to 40.7% in 2025. Additionally, while the 2024 and 2025 Report Cards do not enable an apples-to-apples comparison, the grades of 49% of the original 85 schools assessed in the 2024 Report Card have improved over the past year – with 34% receiving a one-letter grade increase in 2025, while a further 15% saw their grades improve by two letter grades. Only 5% experienced decreases in their grades.

Despite 46% of institutions seeing no change in their report card grades, this should not be interpreted as an absence of progress. Grades reflect a complex interplay of multiple factors, including the frequency and severity of antisemitic incidents and the effectiveness of institutional responses. Policies may be in place that support improvement, yet emerging incidents can temporarily offset advancements.

Critically, 114 (84%) of the 135 colleges and universities assessed in the 2025 Report Card engaged with us this year, with the administrators of these schools actively collaborating to provide key information for the assessment. 107 responses from representatives of Jewish organizations on these campuses were also received, covering 86 of the colleges and universities assessed.

Although the majority of the original 85 schools assessed in 2024 have revised their demonstration and time, place and manner policies – and over 50% have enacted even more significant changes, such as mandating antisemitism education – some schools, in particular, have gone above and beyond to combat antisemitism on campus by strengthening policies.

While there is still significant work to be done in the hope that all schools will eventually achieve top grades, this trend clearly highlights the progress many schools are making to ensure that their Jewish campus community members do not endure the challenges faced during the height of the campus antisemitism crisis in the 2023/24 academic year.

Efforts Accompanying the Report Card

To accompany the report card, an ADL webinar series was organized, sharing best practices and guidance for colleges and universities to learn best practices. During this series, attended by 70% of the 85 institutions assessed in the first iteration of the report card, university leaders explored guidance for working with Jewish partners on campus, best practices for incident response, the implications of divestment, and insights from our latest campus research, among other topics.

“The ADL Campus Webinar Series was invaluable. It provided critical insights and practical strategies for supporting Jewish students on campus. The series also helped us assess where we stand and where we need to improve to address antisemitism effectively and advocate for a safer, more supportive campus climate.” - CUNY Brooklyn College Vice President of Student Affairs Ron Jackson.

“Hearing from the experts and student panelists on the ADL Campus webinars helps deepen our understanding of the impact of antisemitism. As educators and life-long learners, we appreciate the practical guidance on how best to address it and educate our community.” – University of Pennsylvania

The report card also facilitated new engagements and partnerships between ADL regional offices and the assessed universities, prompting 68% of the 85 schools originally assessed to engage in consultations to strengthen their response to campus antisemitism following the release of the 2024 report card. Specific cases of engagement include both University of Michigan and Michigan State University reporting incidents that occurred at the beginning of the 2024-25 academic year to the ADL Michigan office to receive support on their response. Similarly, the Indiana University System engaged ADL to conduct three programs focused on antisemitism, Jewish culture, incident response and hate speech for several hundred top-level administrators on its nine campuses across the state. These collaborations have helped institutions implement more effective strategies to address antisemitism and foster safer environments for Jewish students.

This level of engagement has continued into 2025, following the release of the second report card on March 3 2025. Between then and the end of the reassessment grace period on March 31, our regional offices and campus team held consultations with 40% of the 135 colleges and universities assessed. These discussions prompted a number of immediate policy changes and the sharing of additional information on behind-the-scenes efforts, resulting in several institutions receiving revised grades within the grace period.

Some institutions truly went above and beyond during our grace period to address antisemitism and improve campus climate. Purdue University made remarkable strides, improving from a B to an A by establishing a standing committee on Jewish life, integrating antisemitism into its nondiscrimination policies, expanding educational initiatives, reaffirming its opposition to the BDS movement, and prohibiting masked harassment. Tulane University also demonstrated meaningful progress, raising its grade from a C to a B by updating its nondiscrimination policies to include antisemitism, implementing a ban on masked harassment, and launching a Jewish alumni group. Similarly, American University improved from a C to a B by incorporating antisemitism into its nondiscrimination policies.

The University of Minnesota jumped two grades – from an F to a C – after taking steps including integrating antisemitism and anti-Israeli bias into the University’s policies and mandating antisemitism training for all students, staff, and faculty. These are just a few examples among the 19 schools that either adopted new policies or shared critical information on internal efforts to address campus antisemitism.

We also launched a ‘Take Action’ initiative that allowed campus stakeholders – including students, parents, alumni, faculty, and staff – to actively engage by writing to their institutions, urging improvements in addressing campus antisemitism. Almost 8,300 actions by approximately 3,000 action takers were completed to urge the institutions they are affiliated with to make meaningful changes. Action takers represented 46 of the states, as well as Washington D.C.

National Impact

The report card's influence has also reached Congress, shaping policymaking and key discussions in hearings with university presidents focused on the campus antisemitism crisis. During one such hearing, Congresswoman Elise Stefanik cited the report card while questioning a university president, highlighting its role in driving critical conversations on accountability. Immediately after the release of the 2024 Report Card, Congressman Jared Moskowitz applauded the grading effort, stating “The number one obligation of colleges and universities is to keep students safe. Yet, the comments of some presidents and administrators show severe neglect for the safety of Jewish students at a time of rising antisemitism. This ADL report will say the quiet part out loud and help hold universities accountable and protect students.” The report card was also cited by ADL’s Philadelphia Regional Director during the July 2024 Pennsylvania Senate Education Committee hearing on combatting antisemitism on college campuses to underscore the severity of the antisemitism crisis on Pennsylvania’s campuses, as well as administrative failures in addressing the crisis.

Beyond the classroom and legislative action, ADL’s Campus Antisemitism Report Card has made a significant impact online, from broad press coverage to a surge in website visits and social media engagement, reaching audiences both in the US and internationally. Dubbed by USA Today as a "first-of-its-kind" report, the 2024 iteration of the Report Card garnered attention from major media outlets including CNN and NBC, highlighting its wide-reaching influence. In 2025, the Report Card once again captured widespread media attention, with ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt making a notable appearance on Morning Joe, and the press coverage extending from the New York Post to MSNBC.