Former Treasury Secretary and Harvard University President Larry Summers will retire from his teaching position at the end of the school year, a Harvard University spokesperson told USA TODAY.
Larry Summers withdraws from pledge amid Epstein scandal
Former Treasury Secretary and former Harvard University President Larry Summers has stepped back from public commitments amid the Jeffrey Epstein scandal.
Former Treasury Secretary and former Harvard University President Larry Summers will retire from his teaching position at the end of the school year, a Harvard University spokesperson told USA TODAY.
The Feb. 25 announcement comes more than three months after the Justice Department revealed the longtime economist’s relationship with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
“In connection with the university’s ongoing investigation of documents related to Jeffrey Epstein recently released by the government, Harvard Kennedy School Dean Jeremy Weinstein has accepted Professor Lawrence H. Summers’ resignation from his leadership position as co-director of the Mosavar Rahmani Center for Business and Government,” Harvard University spokesperson Jason Newton said in an emailed statement to USA TODAY.
Summers has also resigned from his academic and teaching appointments and will remain on leave through the end of the school year, Newton added.
The university said he will not be teaching or taking on any new advisory positions.
In a Feb. 25 statement to the Harvard Crimson student newspaper, Summers wrote that the decision to withdraw was “difficult.”
“I remain grateful to the thousands of students and colleagues I have had the privilege of teaching and working with since I came to Harvard as a graduate student 50 years ago,” Summers said.
Summers added, “I look forward to being relieved of my formal responsibilities and eventually engaging in research, analysis, and commentary on a wide range of global economic issues as president emeritus and former professor.”
In November, Summers told the Harvard Crimson, the campus newspaper, that he was stepping back from public life to repair personal ties after the House Oversight Committee released documents showing Summers’ relationships with disgraced investors.
The documents included emails showing that Summers, who was president of Harvard University from 2001 to 2006, asked Epstein for relationship advice in 2019.
Epstein, who died in prison in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges, was ruled a suicide, but is believed to have sexually abused hundreds of women and girls and trafficked them to other wealthy men.
In a statement dated Nov. 18, 2025, Summers told The Crimson that he was “deeply ashamed of my actions and recognize the pain they caused,” and that he “takes full responsibility for my poor decision to continue to communicate with Mr. Epstein.”
Contributor: Mark Ramirez
