FIRST ON FOX: The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) released its 2026 , revealing a discrepancy between universities’ improved policies and students’ experiences with anti-Jewish hate.
The report card assessed 150 colleges and universities using 32 criteria that fell into three categories: administrative policies, Jewish life on campus, campus conduct and climate concerns. The number of colleges and universities receiving As and Bs on their report cards more than doubled since 2024, going from 23.5% to 58%. Additionally, the ADL noted that grades of 47% of the 135 schools assessed in 2025 improved in 2026. The grade distribution among the colleges and universities included 23 As, 64 Bs, 53 Cs, 6 Ds and 4 Fs.
ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt credited three things for the improved grades among colleges and universities: improved policies on campus, oversight from the Trump administration and Republican lawmakers and pressure from outside organizations.
“The truth is that campuses are now enforcing their policies and driving better practices. It’s improved. There’s just no doubt that we’ve seen a range of different institutions realize that extremism on their campuses needs to be confronted,” Greenblatt told Fox News Digital.
The report details a series of policy changes that appear to align with Greenblatts assessment of improved policy enforcement and implementation.
The ADL noted that as of the publication of its 2026 report card, “94% of the 150 schools assessed prohibit both unauthorized encampments and event disruptions on campus, and the remaining 6% prohibit at least one of those.” Additionally, 46% of the 150 schools explicitly reference antisemitism in their non-discrimination or related policies. The organization also found that 54% of the schools it assessed have formal entities dedicated to addressing antisemitism and supporting Jewish life on campus.
The Trump administration and Republican political leadership have also played a role in combating antisemitism on campus, according to Greenblatt.
“The Trump administration, irrespective of where you stand on the political spectrum, absolutely focused on this issue. And ensure that administrators understood they would face consequences for not doing better. By the way, not just the Trump administration, I should say also the House and Senate. So, there’s been a degree of oversight on campuses that simply wasn’t the case before,” he added.
In March 2025, the ‘s (DOE) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) sent letters to 60 universities under investigation for antisemitic discrimination and harassment. The DOE said the letters warned of possible consequences for institutions that violated Title VI. The universities that received letters were located across the country and included Ivy League institutions.
Beyond the work of the school administrations and the government, the ADL’s work also played a role in improving the grades by providing “empirical fact-based, transparent” ways to hold schools accountable and creating an incentive for them to improve, Greenblatt said.
Officials from American University, CUNY Brooklyn College and the University of Pennsylvania were quoted in the ADL report praising the anti-hate organization’s educational materials. CUNY Brooklyn College Vice President of Student Affairs Ron Jackson called the ADL Campus Webinar Series “invaluable,” saying it “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.”
Despite the institutions’ improved grades, students are still reporting experiencing or seeing anti-Jewish incidents on campus.
The ADL found that nearly half of all non-Jewish students, 48.3%, reported witnessing or experiencing anti-Jewish behavior in the past year. Add
