The board of trustees is reviewing whether to change the name of the Black Family Visual Arts Center after adopting a policy that says names on College buildings and institutions should be weighed for “consistency with Dartmouth’s core values and mission; preservation of Dartmouth’s reputation and integrity”; and other considerations.
The arts center, named for the family of investor Leon Black, who donated $48 million for its construction, has been a flashpoint of controversy since revelations that he was closely tied to notorious sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. A New York Times investigation found that Black paid Epstein $170 million during a six-year period for tax and estate planning, but congressional investigators have questioned the money’s purpose.
In 2023, Black was sued for alleging raping a 16-year-old girl with autism and Down syndrome on Epstein’s property. Black denied the allegations, and the case was later dismissed.
The trustees’ naming policy—unanimously adopted at their October 15-17 meeting in Hanover—establishes a process for changing the names on Dartmouth facilities, including a channel that allows students, faculty, staff, and alumni to submit name review requests for a building, academic center, institute, or professorship.
Trustee chairman Greg Lemkau ’91 says the new policy applies College-wide, but he acknowledged the outcry over the arts center’s namesake. The group Women at Dartmouth, the editorial board of The Dartmouth, and others have called for Black’s name to be removed.
“The board has been keenly focused on this issue for some time, and we know this topic understandably evokes strong emotions for many at Dartmouth,” Lemkau said in a statement issued by the College October 20. Trustees invited students, faculty, alumni, and staff to share feedback via email to 2026.name.review@dartmouth.edu. They also will evaluate the name of the Leon D. Black 1973 professorship of Shakespearean studies.
