The controversial chancellor of CUNY will continue to run the largest public urban university in the US — despite criticism over anti-Israel protests that have plagued its campuses, including Brooklyn College, The Post has learned.
CUNY’s Board of Trustees recently conducted a job performance review of Felix Matos Rodriguez, who nabbed the gig in 2019, and gave him a thumbs-up to continue overseeing 25 campuses and institutions, including 11 senior colleges, seven community colleges, and seven graduate, honors, and professional schools, sources said.
“He’s staying,” CUNY board chairman Bill Thompson told The Post.
Another CUNY official, using Matos Rodriguez’s nickname, said, “Felo has considerable support on the board. He’s not going anywhere.”
Sources said Matos Rodriguez received high marks for steering CUNY through the COVID-19 pandemic that preceded the heated Gaza-related campus demonstrations.
The latest protest at Brooklyn College last Thursday saw anti-Israel student agitators brawl with cops after they set up a tent encampment — with one officer being forced to fire a Taser to subdue a violent protester.
At least 14 people were taken into custody during the melee, the NYPD said.
A bipartisan group of nine New York City and state lawmakers condemned the chancellor in a scathing letter following the violence, demanding that Brooklyn College take swift action.
“It is unacceptable but not surprising that almost two years after October 7th — after an investigation into CUNY and several public hearings — we are still grappling with disruptive and criminal behavior against Jewish students, encampments and masked agitators on campus,” read the letter, obtained exclusively by The Post.
One of the signers, Councilmember Inna Vernikov, went so far as to call on the chancellor to resign if he didn’t sort out the chaos.
“There are only two ways to end the pro-terror anarchy that has infested our campuses: for the CUNY Chancellor to either step up or step down,” she told The Post on Sunday.
In another frightening incident, anti-Israel criminals caused at least $3 million in damage and the need for costly extra security at taxpayer-funded City College’s campus in Upper Manhattan during a violent protest there last year.
Matos Rodriguez — the first CUNY chancellor of Hispanic descent, who pulls in $670,000 a year — serves at the pleasure of the board, the members of which are appointed by the governor and mayor.
The confirmation of his job status comes after rumors swirled that he was stepping down.
Matos Rodriguez, for his part, said he loves the job and wants to continue heading CUNY “as long as I can.”
“I’m deeply committed to CUNY. Leading our students, faculty and staff is the honor of a
lifetime, and I will continue to serve our incredible community for as long as I can,” Matos Rodriguez said in a statement to The Post.
On Sunday, he also attended a Mother’s Day celebration at Queens College to celebrate families of children with autism, and stayed for two hours, sources said — bucking any signs he was packing it in.
Meanwhile, in a reply to the letter from the lawmakers, Matos Rodriguez defended his response to the Brooklyn College protests.
“That is why on May 8, when protestors violated CUNY policies, Brooklyn College President Michelle Anderson followed our protocol and requested NYPD assistance on campus,” he said.
He also addressed what he called “inaccuracies” in the lawmakers’ letter.
Brooklyn College closed the campus library only as a precautionary measure because the protest was nearby, he insisted — and final exams were not in session during the melee.
He also vowed that the college is investigating the actions and conduct of all CUNY faculty, staff or students who may have violated CUNY policies or the law.
Brooklyn College and CUNY have also provided additional security for the Jewish student group Hillel, the chancellor added.
“We will continue to fight antisemitism anywhere we find it and to ensure that campuses across CUNY are safe, welcoming, and secure for all students,” he said.
Still, reports of campus antisemitism are of such concern that Gov. Kathy Hochul ordered a review of Jew-hatred at CUNY campuses in 2023.
The analysis — released last September and overseen by former state chief judge Jonathan Lippman –concluded that CUNY needed a top-to-bottom overhaul to combat “alarming’’ antisemitism fanned by its own faculty and do-nothing higher-ups.
A native of Puerto Rico, Matos Rodriguez previously headed CUNY’s Queens College and Hostos Community College, and had served as cabinet secretary for Puerto Rico’s Department of Family Services.
Matos Rodriguez is set to testify before the City Council on Thursday regarding the municipal budget for higher education.