Bard College President Leon Botstein has resigned from his position.
The announcement was made Friday in an email to the campus community.
Botstein has been president of the private Annandale liberal arts college for more than 50 years.
In his letter, Botstein said “it has been my intention to retire from the presidency and focus my energy as faculty member, teacher, and musician.”
Botstein said he will “continue with the Bard Music Festival, SummerScape, and the Bard Conservatory and will live at Finberg House.”
The announcement comes in the wake of scrutiny regarding Botstein's relationship with late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Botstein's name appeared more than 2,500 times in the Epstein files released by the Justice Department.
The Bard College Board of Trustees hired law firm WilmerHale to investigate Botstein's relationship with Epstein in February.
A report released by the firm provided details on interactions between the two men, including 25 visits from Botstein to Epstein’s townhouse.
The investigation also found Botstein flew to Epstein’s private island and that Epstein made two visits to the Bard Campus and “various concerts and recitals accompanied by multiple women who have since been identified as victims of Epstein.”
Botstein has defended his relationship with Epstein as being solely for fundraising for the college.
The report says Botstein “is adamant that he did not see the young women who surrounded Epstein or those he was asked to help as possible victims, given how busy he is and how often he is asked to help people in the course of his busy schedule.”
The Bard College Board of Trustees in its email said it was “confident in Bard’s future” and praised Botstein, saying he “has been a transformative leader with the vision and unwavering commitment that has shaped Bard into the world-class educational institution it is today. “