Parents of the students at the Yeezy designer's unaccredited Christian school also slam the school, which announced last week that it's closed amid the controversy before re-opening just hours later.
- Nov 4, 2022
AceShowbiz - Kanye West isn't only dumped by brands amid backlash over his anti-Semitic comments. It has been reported that staffers from the "Gold Digger" rapper's Donda Academy have chosen to step down and resign amid the controversy.
Malik Yusef, friend of Ye and administrator at Donda, confirmed the news to sources. "Staff members of the Jewish faith were lost," he shared. "I know we had a couple people of the Jewish faith who worked there [who] basically recused or resigned in light of public pressure from, I am sure, friends and family. You got to go with your team when your family is saying it's not possible to stay there. What Kanye said was ridiculous."
Highly-regarded education consultant Tamar Andrews was reportedly among those who left Ye's unaccredited private Christian school. Allegedly a notable figure at two other Jewish schools, Andrews held a prominent position at the school and has been employed there for three months. She, however, reportedly resigned and had her last day with Donda Academy on October 11.
Of Ye's rant, Malik said, "Critical thinking is what Donda is about, and I don't think Kanye applied critical thinking." Despite the drama, Yusef remains optimistic. "I believe [Donda] comes back better and stronger," he told The Post.
"It is the legacy of [Ye's] mother. Dr. West would take a step back. She would not want the school to be shut down," he added, referring to Donda West who was chair of Chicago State University's department of English prior to her passing in 2007. "I would say [Ye] is doing his best to figure out life as he takes it in big gulps."
Prior to this, academy principal Jason Angell emailed parents that "at the discretion of our Founder, Donda Academy will close for the remainder of the 2022-2023 school year effective immediately." However, four hours later, an alert went out saying school was back on and would be in session on Thursday, October 27.
Meanwhile, a parent slammed Donda Academy after one of the world's premiere high school basketball tournaments, Scholastic Play-By-Play Classics, removed Donda from its December 11 event. Donald Dillingham, father of Robert Dillingham, claimed that the 17-year-old, who is one of the top high-school point guards in the U.S., was courted by Ye himself.
"I think it's a bad situation for my son," Donald told the news outlet after the Donda closing announcement. "He's already committed to University of Kentucky. No matter what, though, he needs to finish high school."
Another parent pulled his basketball-playing son out of the school even before Ye landed in hot water due to his recent antics. "[The school] was not aggressive on academics and our son's grades were slipping," Abu Askia, father of Jakhi Howard who is a top-notch guard slated to graduate in 2024, told The Post. "So we got him out … They need to tighten up their curriculum."
