Universities could soon face two tough options: bow to the Trump administration or fight back.
The federal government has yet to restore $400 million in frozen funding to Columbia even after the Ivy League school agreed to change its disciplinary policies and put some departments under academic receivership, as the administration demanded. The concessions are only a "first step" to restore the funding, Trump officials have said, though they have yet to lay out any others.
Developments in the saga surrounding Columbia, which is accused by White House of failing to protect its students from antisemitism, will be closely watched by other colleges that could find themselves under President Trump's eye.
The University of Pennsylvania and the University of Maine have both already seen some of their federal funding paused over policies related to transgender athletes, and Trump's Education Department announced Monday it is initiating a review of Harvard University similar to that at Columbia, potentially threatening billions of dollars in federal grants.
“I hope [other universities] will look at it and see a kind of roadmap for their own institutions, and that they will pursue reforms on their own, whether that be led by the university presidents, the faculty senates, and ultimately, as well, members of the Boards of Trustees,” said Steve McGuire, the Paul & Karen Levy Fellow in Campus Freedom at the American Council of Trustees and Alumni.
“I think it's critical that trustees are especially engaged at this moment and paying attention to what's going on and asking about where do their institutions stand relative to the kinds of concerns that the administration has expressed about Columbia,” McGuire added.
But advocates are appalled at what Columbia is giving up without any guarantee of getting the money back, including banning masks, updating its official definition of antisemitism and appointing a new senior vice provost to oversee the departments of Middle East, South Asian and African studies.
A lawsuit has been filed against the Trump administration by the American Federation of Teachers and the American Association of University Professors over the funding pause and demands its made of Columbia. The suit alleges the federal government is using “coercive tactics” and is in violation of statutory requirements.
Others see the moves by the federal government as an abuse of the procedures outlined in investigating civil rights cases against colleges. Antisemitism is a serious problem, they say, but the Trump administration is not operating in good faith.
“This process has been arbitrary, inappropriate and completely overreaching,” said Sara Partridge, associate director of higher education policy at the Center for American Progress.
Partridge outlined the steps typically taken against universities when civil rights violations are alleged, such as investigating, giving a notice ...
