U.S. academic leaders unite against Trump's higher education policies

Thomson Reuters

· Posted: Apr 22, 2025 6:51 AM EDT | Last Updated: 39 minutes ago

More than 100 university, assemblage and scholarly nine presidents published a associated connection connected Tuesday opposing the Trump administration's attraction of higher acquisition institutions, coming unneurotic to talk retired aft Harvard University said the medication was threatening its independence.

The statement, signed by presidents from specified institutions arsenic Princeton, Brown, the University of Hawaii and Connecticut State Community College, criticized what it described arsenic "the unprecedented authorities overreach and governmental interference present endangering American higher education."

"We are unfastened to constructive betterment and bash not reason morganatic authorities oversight," the connection said. "However, we indispensable reason undue authorities intrusion successful the lives of those who learn, live and enactment connected our campuses."

The White House did not respond to a petition for remark astir the statement.

Tuesday's associated connection is the latest amusement of absorption from U.S. higher acquisition leaders arsenic the Trump medication seeks to leverage its fiscal heft to overhaul academia.

On April 14, Harvard rejected galore demands from the administration, which is seeking oversight of Harvard's pupil body, module and program successful an evident effort to curb what it perceives arsenic the university's wide bias.

WATCH | Billions successful grants, contracts for Harvard frozen implicit field activism: 

Soon after, the medication announced it was freezing $2.3 cardinal US successful national backing to the school.

According to White House spokesperson Harrison Fields's connection astatine that time, President Donald Trump wants to guarantee payer dollars bash not enactment radical favoritism oregon racially motivated violence.

The medication besides threatened to portion Harvard of its tax-exempt presumption and instrumentality distant its quality to enrol foreign students.

On Monday, Harvard sued the Trump medication to effort to unit it to extremity its orders freezing funds and retreat demands it has made, accusing the national authorities of trying to "overhaul Harvard's governance, power Harvard's module hiring and dictate what module whitethorn thatch Harvard students" for ideological reasons.

Harvard said successful its suit that authorities attempts to "coerce and control" the assemblage violated the Constitution's protections for speech. It besides accused the authorities of failing to travel procedures acceptable retired nether national civilian rights laws.

Since his January inauguration, Republican President Trump has cracked down connected apical U.S. universities, saying they mishandled past year's pro-Palestinian protests and allowed antisemitism to fester connected campus.

His medication has besides targeted universities for different issues specified arsenic transgender rights and diversity, equity and inclusion programs, and has threatened to withhold national backing implicit these issues.

Columbia University was an aboriginal target, but successful caller weeks, the medication has focused connected Harvard.

On April 15, much than 60 past and contiguous assemblage and assemblage presidents signed an unfastened missive saying they "strongly support" Harvard president Alan Garber's rejection of the administration's demands.