Vanderbilt University opened a “formal inquiry” last Saturday after reports alleged a faculty member “shared offensive content during course instruction.”
The school said on X that the “content in question has been removed.”
Vanderbilt University did not provide any further information regarding the faculty member or the alleged “offensive content.”
The university has received reports alleging a member of the faculty shared offensive content during course instruction. The content in question has been removed, and a formal inquiry has been initiated consistent with relevant university policy.
— Vanderbilt University (@VanderbiltU) February 21, 2026
The Tennessee Star reached out to Vanderbilt University to inquire about the investigation, but John O’Brien, the school’s senior media relations specialist, sent The Star on Monday an email repeating the same statement it had posted online.
On X, an account called StopAntisemitism posted a day before the school opened its inquiry about a math problem allegedly from a course taught by Tekin Karadağ.
The math problem said, “Assume Palestine as a state with a rectangular land shape. There is Mediterranean Sea on the west and Jordan River on the east. The height (from south to north) is 2.6 times width (from east to west). From river to the sea, Palestine was approximately 100 km in 1946.The land decreases by 250 km2/year due to the occupation by Israel. How fast is the width of the land decreasing now? (Assume that the height is always 2.6 times width over years).”
Vanderbilt University – why is mathematics lecturer Tekin Karadǎg bringing his anti-Israel, antisemitic bias into his classroom?
This is unacceptable @VanderbiltU @VU_Chancellor pic.twitter.com/pGqC6fDveu
— StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) February 21, 2026
Karadağ is a senior lecturer in the school’s math department. He received his doctoral and master’s degrees in mathematics from Texas A&M University.
Karadağ has been at Vanderbilt University since August 2025. Before coming to Nashville, the lecturer was a “limited-term assistant professor” in the University of Georgia’s mathematics department. He served in this position from 2022 to August 2025.
On top of this, the Department of Education (DOE) announced last week that 31 of 45 schools under investigation for allegedly violating Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 due to their partnership with The Ph.D. Project signed a resolution agreement.
Fourteen other schools, including Vanderbilt University, are still in ongoing negotiations with the federal government.
The Ph.D. Project is an organization that helps “doctoral students with insights into obtaining a Ph.D., but unlawfully limits eligibility based on the race of participants,” the DOE said.
These colleges that signed a resolution agreement have stopped or agreed to discontinue their relationship with the organization, the DOE noted.
“This is the Trump effect in action: institutions of higher education are agreeing to cut ties with discriminatory organizations, recommitting themselves to abiding by federal law, and restoring equality of opportunity on campuses across the nation,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon.
“We are hopeful that other institutions with similarly discriminatory practices will follow suit, paving the way for a future where we reject judging individuals by the color of their skin and once again embrace the principles of merit, excellence, and opportunity,” she added.
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Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network. Email tips to Zachery at zschmidt1717@gmail.com.
Photo “Vanderbilt University” by Vanderbilt University.
