The president, Leon Botstein, who had run Bard for 50 years, faced scrutiny over his connections to Jeffrey Epstein.

Leon Botstein saved Bard from near ruin. Now, as an outside firm conducts a review, the campus is home to arguments about his legacy and future.

Philosophers have long wrestled with what to do about the onlookers and profiteers surrounding those who have done terrible things.

The move comes after a trove of documents released by the Justice Department showed Leon Botstein had a relationship that was closer than previously known with the convicted sex offender.

Leon Botstein, Bard’s president, also invited Jeffrey Epstein to visit a high school linked to Bard College and sent him well wishes after stories were published about his sexual abuse of minors.