Larry Summers steps back from public roles after Jeffrey Epstein emails

Larry Summers, the former president of Harvard University, has announced that he will step back from public engagements, according to the Ivy League university’s student newspaper.

In a statement released Monday to the Harvard Crimson, Summers said it was part of an effort “to rebuild trust and repair relationships with the people closest to me.”

The announcement follows the release of seven years of correspondence between Summers and disgraced financier Jeffrey E. Epstein by the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.

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Former Harvard President Larry Summers is stepping back from public engagements following revelations of ongoing communications with disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

The documents show the two continued to exchange messages until July 5, 2019, just one day before Epstein was arrested on new sex trafficking charges.

In the hundreds of messages posted, Summers also appears to trust Epstein and confides in him about his quest for a romantic relationship with a woman he describes as a mentee.

Among the messages posted was one from November 2018 in which Epstein described himself as Summers’ “wing man” as he continued to advise Summers about the relationship for months.

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Billionaire Jeffrey Epstein in Cambridge, MA on 9/8/04. Epstein is linked to several famous people, including politicians, actors and academics. Epstein was convicted of having sex with an underage woman. (Photo by Rick Friedman/Rick Friedman Photography/Corbis via Getty Images)

“I am deeply ashamed of my actions and recognize the pain they have caused,” Summers wrote in her statement to the Crimson.

“I take full responsibility for my erroneous decision to continue to communicate with Mr. Epstein,” he added.

Summers occupies several roles in his professional life. He is a senior fellow at the think tank Center for American Progress, a paid columnist for Bloomberg News, and a board member of OpenAI.

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Larry Summers, president emeritus and professor at Harvard University, at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. (Stefan Wermuth/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

He also remains a professor at Harvard University and is director of the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government at the Harvard Kennedy School, which he will continue to oversee, his spokesperson said, according to the outlet.

In Monday’s statement, the former Harvard president added: “While continuing to fulfill my teaching obligations, I will step back from my public engagements as part of my broader efforts.”

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Fox News Digital has reached out to Harvard University for comment.