A group of Harvard University students and faculty has officially petition the school to remove billionaire Leslie Wexner’s name from the main Harvard Kennedy School building, citing his ties to Jeffrey Epstein.

“The request — submitted under Harvard’s official denaming framework — calls on the University to strip Wexner’s name from both the Kennedy School’s main building and the Wexner Sunshine Lobby, the school’s main entrance atrium,” the Harvard Crimson student newspaper reported Sunday.

“The proposal, filed by a group that includes two Kennedy School professors and several student leaders, marks the first formal attempt to remove Wexner’s name through Harvard’s denaming process, which typically unfolds over several months as the University reviews requests,” it added.

The Leslie H. Wexner Building houses the Kennedy School of public policy. Some students told the newspaper they feel very uncomfortable with attending class within the building due to its name.

Wexner is a billionaire businessman known for founding well-known retail chains such as The Limited, Abercrombie & Fitch, and Victoria’s Secret, according to an online profile.

“Despite stepping down as CEO in 2020 amid the Epstein scandal, Wexner remains a significant figure in American retail and philanthropy, with an estimated net worth of $6 billion as of 2024,” the biography states.

In February, Wexner gave a deposition to House Democrats about his close, lengthy relationship with Epstein, telling them he was “duped by a world-class con man,” PBS reported, adding he denied knowing about the late sex offender’s crimes or participating in Epstein’s abuse of girls and young women.

“Wexner’s name appears more than 1,000 times in the Epstein files, which does not imply guilt, and Wexner has never been charged with any crimes. His spokesperson said the number of mentions is not unexpected given their long-running ties,” PBS reported.

According to the 23-page complaint filed with Harvard officials, the denaming petition lists dozens of factoids regarding Wexner’s close, decades-long relationship with Epstein that paint a larger and troubling picture for students and faculty.

“One of the victim-survivors of Epstein’s sexual abuse, Virginia Giuffre, alleged in a deposition that she was trafficked to Wexner,” the petition states, adding he also “created what a 2020 investigation by The New York Times described as an ‘entrenched culture of misogyny, bullying and harassment” at Victoria’s Secret and L Brands.'”

The petition argues Wexner had a “uniquely enabling relationship with Epstein,” including as a friendship, business partner, and financier.

“In short, the concerns at issue here are not obscure ‘blemishes’ on an otherwise uncontroversial reputation. They are central to how Mr. Wexner is now perceived by the public, his peers, and the institutions that have accepted his philanthropy,” the petition states.

“A decision by Harvard to continue to place his name over the main HKS building would thus operate, unavoidably, as a powerful statement about how heavily it weighs those concerns relative to his donations.”

Harvard Kennedy School leaders have yet to weigh in on the controversy, the Crimson reported.

In October 2023, the Wexner Foundation ended its financial relationship with the Ivy League institution, “condemning the University’s response to the Hamas attack on Israel as a ‘dismal failure.'” the Crimson reported at the time.

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