Harvard University rejected demands for policy changes by President Donald Trump’s administration on Monday morning, risking $8.7 billion in federal contracts and grants, according to a press release from the U.S. Department of Education.
“We have informed the administration through our legal counsel that we will not accept their proposed agreement,” wrote Harvard President Alan Garber in a statement to the Harvard Community. “The University will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights.”
This statement comes in response to a letter the university received late Friday night issuing an “updated and expanded list of demands,” according to Garber’s statement. The letter calls for a plethora of changes to Harvard’s functions, including, but not limited to, “governance and leadership reforms,” “merit-based hiring [and] admissions reform” and “reforming programs with egregious records of antisemitism or other bias.”
The proposed changes continue the efforts of the Federal Task Force to Combat Antisemitism on college campuses, according to CNN.
“It makes clear that the intention is not to work with us to address antisemitism in a cooperative and constructive manner,” wrote Garber. “Although some of the demands outlined by the government are aimed at combating antisemitism, the majority represent direct governmental regulation of the ‘intellectual conditions’ at Harvard.”
Several colleges across the U.S. have been threatened with funding cuts by the Trump administration if they don’t make policy changes. However, Harvard appears to be the first university to outright reject the government’s orders, according to CNN.
Harvard puts at stake approximately $9 billion in federal funding with its rejection of the administration’s call for changes to DEI programs, admissions and hiring practices and other policy changes, according to NPR.
“The stance and decision that Harvard took earlier today is a lot more than just about funding, it’s about academic freedom, inclusion, and resisting authoritarianism,” said Prat Mallick, current Harvard senior and former president of Harvard’s Institute of Politics. “Harvard is just one piece of a larger bubble, [their stance] is about this broader idea that universities have to come together to defend the autonomy of every institution and defend higher education.”
In addition to Harvard’s outward statement rejecting the government’s demands, the Harvard faculty chapter of the American Association of University Professors and the national arm of the academic organization filed a lawsuit on Friday in an effort to block the Trump administration’s threat of federal funding removal, according to Reuters.
According to the lawsuit filed last week, the Harvard professors deem the Trump administration’s actions “unlawful” as they “[undermine] academic freedom and free speech on a university campus.”
Some students at Harvard similarly oppose the President’s calls for policy change.
“It just felt unreal honestly, that a government was publishing something like this and sending it to a university,” said Amina Salahou, senior history of science student at Harvard. “It was very pleasing to see [Harvard’s statement]... generally students are for it and excited to see Harvard taking a stance with such murky waters right now.”
However, some students are skeptical of the university’s statement.
“I’m also seeing students who are kind of questioning it in the sense that Harvard last spring and throughout this year has scrutinized students in various forms,” Salahou said. “Some students are apprehensive to fully support this because it can be a lot easier to put a statement out there, but it matters what action is actually being done.”
USC has also been a target of federal funding threats from the Trump administration. The university’s most recent response was the removal of DEI from its unifying values, citing “recent evolving federal legal guidance [reinforcing that] language and actions must be both precise and ambiguous” in a March 27 letter by university administration. This comes after a February letter from the Department of Education urged schools to eliminate programs promoting DEI or risk losing federal funding.
USC also enacted a call for a hiring freeze, among other university policy changes in late March, citing “federal funding uncertainty,” according to a March 24 letter by university officials.
Annenberg Media reached out to USC PR for comment and were redirected to the university’s FAQ on executive orders and other federal agency actions page and USC’s executive orders and agency memos page.
“The University has a team of senior leaders and experts that evaluates relevant executive orders and agency actions to ensure we are in compliance with the law while staying true to our mission,” according to the FAQ webpage.
Mallick said he hopes his school’s statement sets a precedent.
“Individual universities can’t afford to fight this battle alone. I anticipate and hope other universities follow in Harvard’s footsteps and continue to resist the administration’s broader attacks on free thinking and higher education,” said Mallick. “Harvard may be rallying a flag around, but others have to follow.”