How Are Universities Changing Under the Trump Administration?

President Donald Trump has recently frozen funding for two Ivy League schools.

The Details: Columbia University faces an end-of-Friday deadline to meet Trump's demand to address purported antisemitism or lose $400 million in funding. The administration also froze $175 million in funding for the University of Pennsylvania over its transgender athlete policy. Several schools dismantled their Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs following an executive order from Trump, and the University of California system nixed its diversity statement requirement in its hiring process on Wednesday. Dartmouth's new general counsel is a Trump ally and the former chief counsel of the Republican National Committee. 

From the Right: A Washington Examiner (Lean Right bias) piece framed the developments as Ivy League schools struggling “to balance prioritizing inclusive policies and complying with civil rights laws,” implying that Trump is bringing schools into compliance with non-discrimination laws. 

From the Left: A New York Times (Lean Left) piece argued Trump was undertaking a siege on core ideals of education — “Rigorous thinkers who were grounded in the age’s great debates. Researchers whose breakthroughs could transform societies. Universities that extended their missions far beyond their gates.” Trump had a narrower vision for higher education, it said: “Teach what you must, defend 'the American tradition and Western civilization,' prepare people for the work force, and limit protests and research.”

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