Excitement and concern at send-off for Singapore's Columbia-bound freshmen

The wide-eyed Ivy League prospects milled about, exchanging pleasantries and exuberant hellos at a Columbia University send-off for Singapore freshmen on Aug 2.

- Angelica Ang

But this year's iteration of the annual tradition, held at the function room of the Horizon Towers condominium in Leonie Hill, differed slightly from past editions.

It took place in the wake of a much-publicised crackdown by the US government on the country's elite universities over accusations of anti-Semitic behaviour on campuses and bias in diversity, equity and inclusivity initiatives.

This followed a wave of pro-Palestinian protests on US campuses in 2024, prompted by the outbreak of the Gaza war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas in October 2023.

For Columbia, negotiations with the Trump administration ended on July 23, with the school agreeing to pay more than US$200 million (S$255 million) to the US government as settlement, in exchange for the reinstatement of federal funding which had been cancelled in March.