From early March continuing into April, the Trump administration has launched a series
of federal funding attacks against elite colleges like Harvard, Northwestern, NYU, Columbia.
The White House defends the funding freeze as action taken to root out antisemitism and address
civil rights violations. Responses from colleges have varied. Some have spoken out against the
administration’s agenda and refused their demands while others have chosen to cooperate with
the federal government.
Elite colleges like the Ivy Leagues schools, UCLA, NYU are cornerstones of research,
innovation, and many own hospitals that have real impacts beyond their student bodies,
providing resources to surrounding communities through hospitals. President of Princeton
University, Christopher L. Eisgruber, recently told the New York Times in an interview, “the
government [is] using its tremendous power over research dollars to try to control […] academic
freedom. There’s a very fundamental threat here right now … to America’s research universities
that anybody who cares about the strength of this country, our economy, our prosperity, our
security, our health should be worried about.”
The administration justified pulling funding from schools such as George Washington
University, Johns Hopkins University, New York University, University of California Los
Angeles, University of Southern California, and University of Minnesota as a crackdown on
antisemitism. Critics are skeptical of the administration’s commitment to stop antisemitism as
Northwestern was targeted shortly after they released a list of steps it had taken to combat
discrimination. Currently the school is in danger of being defunded by 790 million dollars. The
administration suspended 175 million dollars from the University of Pennsylvania reprimanding
them for alleged violation of Title IX of the department of education code when they allowed
transgender swimmer Lia Thomas to compete on the women’s team and use team facilities in
2022.
Other Ivy League schools under scrutiny include Princeton, which has had over a dozen
grants suspended and is at risk of losing another 210 million dollars, Cornell University that is at
risk of losing 1 billion dollars, Brown University with 510 million dollars at stake, Columbia
University that was the first of the Ivy Leagues to be investigated, and Harvard University with 9
billion dollars and their tax-exempt status at stake on top of the 2.2 billion dollars that they lost
after their public response to the Trump administration’s demands.
The government asked for ‘audits’ of academic programs and departments; change in the
University’s policies around hiring practices and admission; the cancellation of Diversity Equity
Inclusion programs; stricter disciplinary actions in regards to student protests; and more
aggressive reporting of green card or visa violations amongst international students. Harvard
clarified that the funding under review includes research support, grants, and financial
commitments to hospitals like Mass General, the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and Boston
Children’s. In response to antisemitism accusations, University President, Alan M. Garber
of federal funding attacks against elite colleges like Harvard, Northwestern, NYU, Columbia.
The White House defends the funding freeze as action taken to root out antisemitism and address
civil rights violations. Responses from colleges have varied. Some have spoken out against the
administration’s agenda and refused their demands while others have chosen to cooperate with
the federal government.
Elite colleges like the Ivy Leagues schools, UCLA, NYU are cornerstones of research,
innovation, and many own hospitals that have real impacts beyond their student bodies,
providing resources to surrounding communities through hospitals. President of Princeton
University, Christopher L. Eisgruber, recently told the New York Times in an interview, “the
government [is] using its tremendous power over research dollars to try to control […] academic
freedom. There’s a very fundamental threat here right now … to America’s research universities
that anybody who cares about the strength of this country, our economy, our prosperity, our
security, our health should be worried about.”
The administration justified pulling funding from schools such as George Washington
University, Johns Hopkins University, New York University, University of California Los
Angeles, University of Southern California, and University of Minnesota as a crackdown on
antisemitism. Critics are skeptical of the administration’s commitment to stop antisemitism as
Northwestern was targeted shortly after they released a list of steps it had taken to combat
discrimination. Currently the school is in danger of being defunded by 790 million dollars. The
administration suspended 175 million dollars from the University of Pennsylvania reprimanding
them for alleged violation of Title IX of the department of education code when they allowed
transgender swimmer Lia Thomas to compete on the women’s team and use team facilities in
2022.
Other Ivy League schools under scrutiny include Princeton, which has had over a dozen
grants suspended and is at risk of losing another 210 million dollars, Cornell University that is at
risk of losing 1 billion dollars, Brown University with 510 million dollars at stake, Columbia
University that was the first of the Ivy Leagues to be investigated, and Harvard University with 9
billion dollars and their tax-exempt status at stake on top of the 2.2 billion dollars that they lost
after their public response to the Trump administration’s demands.
The government asked for ‘audits’ of academic programs and departments; change in the
University’s policies around hiring practices and admission; the cancellation of Diversity Equity
Inclusion programs; stricter disciplinary actions in regards to student protests; and more
aggressive reporting of green card or visa violations amongst international students. Harvard
clarified that the funding under review includes research support, grants, and financial
commitments to hospitals like Mass General, the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, and Boston
Children’s. In response to antisemitism accusations, University President, Alan M. Garber
emphasized Harvard’s newly implemented measures to fight discrimination over the past 15
months. J. Larry Jameson, President of the University of Pennsylvania, clarified that funding
affected was tied to “contracts [including] research on preventing hospital-acquired infections,
drug screening against deadly viruses, quantum computing, protections against chemical warfare,
and student loan programs.”
In reaction to Harvard’s defiance, Columbia University has taken a stronger stance
defying the government’s demands. President of the school, Claire Shipman, wrote in a public
statement, “Some of the government’s requests have aligned with policies and practices that we
believe are important to advancing our mission. Other ideas, including overly prescriptive
requests about our governance, how we conduct our presidential search process and how
specifically to address viewpoint diversity issues are not subject to negotiation.” Earlier this
month, Columbia faced public backlash for making plans to place its Middle Eastern studies
department under new oversight and creating a security force to make arrests, concessions made
to open negotiations over retaining 400 million dollars in federal funding.
Amidst the political frenzy, the class of 2025 makes their decisions about where to call
home for the next four years and the class of 2026 gears up for the upcoming college admission
season. For them the implications of the federal crackdown extend beyond politics– directly
affecting their education and safety on campus. Funding cuts jeopardize students’ access to
research projects, internships, fellowships, and resources. Changes in hiring and admission
policies can shift the educational environment. For international students, increased immigration
scrutiny could mean limitations around activities like protesting out of a fear of false
incrimination. Schools’ reactions to the federal government’s actions shows their commitment to
protecting their students’ right to education, activism, and campus culture. These are more than
disagreements on policy— this is a modern battle between federal authority and academic
freedom—part of a centuries-old struggle between free thought and censorship. These
universities are not only in a fight to keep their funding but to prove to current and incoming
students that they will act on their values and not deviate in times of tribulation, even under
political pressure.
months. J. Larry Jameson, President of the University of Pennsylvania, clarified that funding
affected was tied to “contracts [including] research on preventing hospital-acquired infections,
drug screening against deadly viruses, quantum computing, protections against chemical warfare,
and student loan programs.”
In reaction to Harvard’s defiance, Columbia University has taken a stronger stance
defying the government’s demands. President of the school, Claire Shipman, wrote in a public
statement, “Some of the government’s requests have aligned with policies and practices that we
believe are important to advancing our mission. Other ideas, including overly prescriptive
requests about our governance, how we conduct our presidential search process and how
specifically to address viewpoint diversity issues are not subject to negotiation.” Earlier this
month, Columbia faced public backlash for making plans to place its Middle Eastern studies
department under new oversight and creating a security force to make arrests, concessions made
to open negotiations over retaining 400 million dollars in federal funding.
Amidst the political frenzy, the class of 2025 makes their decisions about where to call
home for the next four years and the class of 2026 gears up for the upcoming college admission
season. For them the implications of the federal crackdown extend beyond politics– directly
affecting their education and safety on campus. Funding cuts jeopardize students’ access to
research projects, internships, fellowships, and resources. Changes in hiring and admission
policies can shift the educational environment. For international students, increased immigration
scrutiny could mean limitations around activities like protesting out of a fear of false
incrimination. Schools’ reactions to the federal government’s actions shows their commitment to
protecting their students’ right to education, activism, and campus culture. These are more than
disagreements on policy— this is a modern battle between federal authority and academic
freedom—part of a centuries-old struggle between free thought and censorship. These
universities are not only in a fight to keep their funding but to prove to current and incoming
students that they will act on their values and not deviate in times of tribulation, even under
political pressure.
