The Harvard University community's ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein span decades, ensnaring faculty, donors and student organizations across one of New England's oldest and most influential institutions.

Why it matters: The Epstein connections show stark oversight failures at the world's most prestigious universities.

• The cascade of released Justice Department documents forced Harvard to widen its internal probe beyond faculty to major donors.

State of play: Harvard confirmed this month it is reviewing donor connections after DOJ files named prominent benefactors as well as current and former faculty.

Andrew Farkas, the chair of the Hasty Pudding Institute, exchanged thousands of messages with Epstein, according to DOJ documents.

• Epstein donated at least $375,000 to Hasty Pudding from 2013 until his death, an amount that qualified him as a recurring "Guardian of the Sphinx"-level donor at elite galas.
• Emails show assistants inviting young women to fill Epstein's table.

The big picture: Former Harvard president Lawrence Summers maintained contact with Epstein until the day before Epstein's 2019 arrest on sex-trafficking charges.

• Emails showed Epstein acted as Summers' self-described "wing man."
• Summers took an indefinite teaching leave in November and said his ties to Epstein are a source of "deep shame."

Follow the money: Harvard's 2020 internal review found Epstein donated $9.1 million between 1998 and 2008.

• A $6.5 million gift in 2003 was the largest and established the Program for Evolutionary Dynamics led by professor Martin Nowak.

Nowak gave Epstein a dedicated office and hosted more than 40 post-conviction visits.

• He was sanctioned in 2021.
• DOJ files show photos purportedly of both Nowak and genetics professor George Church on Epstein's private island.
• Church reportedly co-founded an investment company with Epstein in 2014, per CNN's review of DOJ files.

Famed law professor emeritus Alan Dershowitz was publicly accused by Epstein survivor Virginia Giuffre of sexual abuse.

• Dershowitz denies the allegations. Defamation litigation ended in 2022 with a joint dismissal and no payment.
• Giuffre said she "may have made a mistake" by identifying Dershowitz.

Physics professor Lisa Randall was named in the January 30 DOJ drop.

• Randall reportedly flew on Epstein's jet in 2014.

What's next: Hasty Pudding undergraduates have petitioned for Farkas' resignation. Alumni and others are pushing to rename the Farkas Hall theater in Harvard Square.

The bottom line: Harvard's own 2020 review documented oversight failures when it came to donors and Epstein.

• The current expanded probe suggests the connections were even deeper.

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The state official charged by Gov. Maura Healey to get more housing built in Massachusetts is departing her cabinet to lead a Central Massachusetts bank.

Why it matters: Housing has been Healey's top priority.

• The leadership change comes as the administration is gaining some momentum on production and affordability goals in the Legislature — and as Healey runs for reelection.

State of play: Housing and Livable Communities Secretary Ed Augustus departs Feb. 27.

• He'll take over UniBank, the largest bank based in Central Massachusetts with 14 locations that serve more than 22,000 households.
• Juana Matias, a former Lawrence state representative and Biden-era housing official, steps in this April.

Between the lines: Augustus is the eighth Cabinet secretary to leave the Healey administration in roughly three years.

• Only five original members of her cabinet are still in their roles.

Catch up quick: Matias was the Housing and Urban Development New England regional administrator under President Biden and represented Lawrence in the House from 2017 to 2018.

Read on

A group of juveniles assaulted a 27-year-old man Tuesday, according to reports.

• The kids kicked him into a departing Orange Line train at Back Bay Station around 6:45pm.

Why it matters: It's the second recent high-profile MBTA platform assault.

State of play: The victim suffered a head laceration but was conscious when emergency responders got there.

• Roughly a dozen juveniles fled and no arrests have been made.

What's next: The T says detectives are reviewing surveillance footage.

✈️ Massport CEO Rich Davey has begun lobbying Washington lawmakers for federal funding to replace Logan Airport's aging air traffic control tower. (Boston Globe)

• That could cost upward of $400 million.

🍹 Kowloon received city approval to open a new tiki bar on Revere Beach. (CBS Boston)

• The "Tiki On The Beach" venue at 21 Revere Beach Blvd. will seat 115 indoors and 60 outdoors with DJs, dancing, and live performances.

🏠 A historic Newton Center Victorian, built in 1860 for a wealthy chemical manufacturer, is on the market for just under $3 million. (Boston.com)

• The 7,313-square-foot home at 929 Beacon St. has six bedrooms, eight-and-a-half bathrooms and colorful details throughout.

Prepare for one of those wintry mixes of snow, sleet and rain this afternoon in Boston.

Why it matters: A second, potentially more powerful weekend storm is the one to watch.

• Friday should be manageable — sloppy, but not crippling.

State of play: Snow is forecast to arrive from the west by the late morning today, with temperatures hovering in the mid-30s across greater Boston.

• Coastal and South Shore communities will see a quicker flip to rain.
• Inland areas will see more snow and sleet through the evening.

What's next: A more significant storm could develop Sunday night.

• Forecasters put the odds of us getting nailed at roughly 20%, a moderate impact at 60% and a complete miss at 20%.

Stay tuned

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