The US Education Department has stopped new federal research grants to Harvard University until the institution meets a list of conditions issued by the Trump administration. This follows a prior freeze of $2.2 billion in funding and a separate push to end Harvard’s tax-exempt status.
In a letter sent to Harvard’s president on Monday, the department stated that Harvard will not receive additional research funding until it “demonstrates responsible management of the university” and satisfies a set of federal requirements. Student financial aid programs remain unaffected by this decision.
An official from the Education Department, speaking anonymously during a press briefing, accused Harvard of “serious failures,” including allowing antisemitism and racial discrimination, weakening academic standards, and restricting diverse viewpoints on campus. The university must enter negotiations with the federal government and show compliance in order to regain eligibility for new grants.
The administration’s list of demands includes structural reforms in governance, changes in admissions policy, and an audit of the faculty and student body to ensure broader ideological representation. This move is part of a wider effort targeting elite institutions such as Columbia, the University of Pennsylvania, and Cornell.
In the letter, Education Secretary Linda McMahon wrote, “Harvard University has made a mockery of this country’s higher education system,” and criticized the school for enrolling foreign students who, she claimed, “showed contempt for the US.”
Harvard has responded by suing the federal government, calling the funding freeze “arbitrary and capricious” and alleging violations of First Amendment protections and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.
In a recent conversation with alumni, Harvard President Alan Garber acknowledged limited merit in some of the criticism. “We were faced with a recent demand from the federal government that, in the guise of combating antisemitism, raised new issues of control that frankly we did not anticipate, getting to the heart of governance,” Garber said. “We felt that we had to take a stand.”
Federal grants make up 10.5% of Harvard’s revenue. The university, with a $53 billion endowment—the largest in the country—relies on annual endowment spending for about a third of its budget. Nationally, federal funds accounted for $59.6 billion in university research spending in 2023.
McMahon has suggested that Harvard make up the funding shortfall by tapping into its endowment and increasing fundraising efforts from alumni. However, most endowment funds are restricted by donor instructions, limiting how they can be used.
In a letter sent to Harvard’s president on Monday, the department stated that Harvard will not receive additional research funding until it “demonstrates responsible management of the university” and satisfies a set of federal requirements. Student financial aid programs remain unaffected by this decision.
An official from the Education Department, speaking anonymously during a press briefing, accused Harvard of “serious failures,” including allowing antisemitism and racial discrimination, weakening academic standards, and restricting diverse viewpoints on campus. The university must enter negotiations with the federal government and show compliance in order to regain eligibility for new grants.
The administration’s list of demands includes structural reforms in governance, changes in admissions policy, and an audit of the faculty and student body to ensure broader ideological representation. This move is part of a wider effort targeting elite institutions such as Columbia, the University of Pennsylvania, and Cornell.
In the letter, Education Secretary Linda McMahon wrote, “Harvard University has made a mockery of this country’s higher education system,” and criticized the school for enrolling foreign students who, she claimed, “showed contempt for the US.”
Harvard has responded by suing the federal government, calling the funding freeze “arbitrary and capricious” and alleging violations of First Amendment protections and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.
In a recent conversation with alumni, Harvard President Alan Garber acknowledged limited merit in some of the criticism. “We were faced with a recent demand from the federal government that, in the guise of combating antisemitism, raised new issues of control that frankly we did not anticipate, getting to the heart of governance,” Garber said. “We felt that we had to take a stand.”
Federal grants make up 10.5% of Harvard’s revenue. The university, with a $53 billion endowment—the largest in the country—relies on annual endowment spending for about a third of its budget. Nationally, federal funds accounted for $59.6 billion in university research spending in 2023.
McMahon has suggested that Harvard make up the funding shortfall by tapping into its endowment and increasing fundraising efforts from alumni. However, most endowment funds are restricted by donor instructions, limiting how they can be used.
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