WASHINGTON: After rejecting what it termed as unlawful demands from the Trump administration, Harvard University has had its federal funding suspended.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, a total of $2.3 billion in federal aid to Harvard has been frozen, including $2.2 billion in grants and $60 million in contracts.
The move came after Harvard refused to comply with a letter from the Trump administration, which demanded, among other things, stricter oversight of international students, reduced authority for faculty and students, and the appointment of external entities to monitor academic departments.
Harvard President Alan Garber denounced the demands as a violation of constitutional freedoms, stating: “No government—regardless of political affiliation—has the authority to dictate what private universities teach, research, or who they admit or hire.”
Harvard’s legal team also maintained that complying with such demands would infringe upon the university’s autonomy and exceed the legal authority of any administration.
It is worth noting that in March, the Trump administration announced it was reviewing $256 million in current federal contracts with Harvard and another $8.7 billion in potential grants, citing the university’s alleged failure to effectively curb antisemitic behavior on campus.
This confrontation has become a significant clash between one of America’s most prominent private universities and the former Republican administration, centering on issues of academic freedom, constitutional limits, and federal authority.
