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Boston Globe
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Trump administration freezes more than $2 billion in funding tied to Harvard
'The harassment of Jewish students is intolerable. It is time for elite universities to take the problem seriously and commit to meaningful change if they wish to continue receiving taxpayer support,' the statement said. The funding freeze includes $2.2 billion in grants and $60 million in contracts, according to the task force, which is a joint enterprise of several federal agencies. Advertisement In an open letter to the campus community Monday afternoon, Harvard president Alan Garber said, 'No government — regardless of which party is in power — should dictate what private universities can teach, whom they can admit and hire, and which areas of study and inquiry they can pursue.' That message followed a Friday letter from the task force telling Harvard's leaders to agree to a lengthy list of conditions in order to 'maintain Harvard's financial relationship with the federal government.' The letter directed Harvard to weaken the influence of students and faculty involved in activism on university affairs. It ordered external audits of specific academic programs accused of antisemitism or other forms of bias. It told the school to reorient its admissions and hiring practices to prioritize 'viewpoint diversity' and deemphasize race, religion, and sex. It said the university must 'reform' the way it admits international students to screen out anyone 'hostile' to 'American values' or 'supportive of terrorism or antisemitism.' Advertisement And it demanded that Harvard regularly report various kinds of information to the federal government, including all admissions data and any rule violations by foreign students. In their response Monday, lawyers representing Harvard said the university 'has undertaken substantial policy and programmatic measures' during the last 15 months to fight antisemitism, promote ideological diversity, and maintain order on campus. 'Harvard remains open to dialogue about what the university has done, and is planning to do, to improve the experience of every member of its community. But Harvard is not prepared to agree to demands that go beyond the lawful authority of this or any administration,' the lawyers wrote. It was not immediately clear which grants and contracts were to be frozen. On March 31, the task force announced a review of $9 billion in federal funding destined for Harvard and affiliated institutions, including Mass General Brigham, Boston Children's Hospital, and the Broad Institute. Mike Damiano can be reached at
Boston Globe
04-04-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
These are the demands the Trump administration sent Harvard
'Oversight and accountability for biased programs that fuel antisemitism. Programs and departments that fuel antisemitic harassment must be reviewed and necessary changes made to address bias, improve viewpoint diversity, and end ideological capture. 'Disciplinary reform and consistent accountability. Harvard has an obligation to consistently and proactively enforce its existing disciplinary policies, ensuring that senior administrative leaders are responsible for final decisions. Reforms must include a comprehensive mask ban (with medical and religious exemptions, given identification is always displayed) and a clarified time, place, and manner policy. Harvard must review and report on disciplinary actions for antisemitic rule violations since October 7, 2023. 'Student group accountability. Recognized and unrecognized student groups, and their leadership, must be held accountable for violations of Harvard policy. Advertisement 'Governance and leadership reforms. Harvard must make meaningful governance reforms to improve its organizational structure to foster clear lines of authority and accountability, and to empower faculty and administrative leaders who are committed to implementing the changes indicated in this letter. 'Merit-based admissions reform. Harvard must adopt and implement merit-based admissions policies; cease all preferences based on race, color, or national origin in admissions throughout its undergraduate, graduate, and other programs; and demonstrate through structural and personnel action that these changes are durable. Advertisement 'Merit-based hiring reform. Harvard must adopt and implement merit-based hiring policies; cease all preferences based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin in hiring throughout its teaching and research faculty, staff, and leadership; and demonstrate through structural and personnel action that these changes are durable. 'Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs. DEI programs teach students, faculty, staff, and leadership to make snap judgments about each other based on crude race and identity stereotypes, which fuels division and hatred based on race, color, national origin, and other protected identity characteristics. All efforts should be made to shutter such programs. 'Cooperation with law enforcement. Harvard must cooperate with law enforcement to ensure student safety. 'Transparency and reporting to ED, DHS, and other federal regulators. Harvard must comply fully with existing statutory reporting requirements under Section 117 of the Higher Education Act, commit to full cooperation with DHS and other federal regulators, and make organizational changes as necessary to enable full compliance.' Mike Damiano can be reached at
Boston Globe
17-03-2025
- Business
- Boston Globe
Harvard expanding financial aid for middle class families
In a press release, Harvard said the new policy was part of its 'commitment to provide every admitted undergraduate student the resources they need to enroll and graduate.' In the next academic year, Harvard says it will spend $275 million on financial aid, a significant outlay at a time of austerity for universities, as the Trump administration cuts research funding and Republicans discuss hiking taxes on university endowments. Last week, Harvard, along with many other universities, announced Related : Advertisement The financial aid expansion addresses what many higher education watchers have identified as an affordability gap for middle-income families. While private college tuition is broadly affordable for the rich, who have the wherewithal to pay the bills, and many poor students qualify for significant Typically, only the wealthiest families pay the full sticker price for tuition, but for those earning $150,000 to $200,000, which is at the the expected yearly contribution is often north of $30,000 a year, and can be much higher depending on the school. Related : The new Harvard policy will make tuition free for all admitted students from household with income up to $200,000. They will also be eligible to apply for additional financial aid to cover food and housing. For students from household making up to $100,000, the university will cover 'all billed expenses,' including tuition. It will also provide a $2,000 'start-up' grant freshman year, a $2,000 grant junior year, health insurance and travel expenses. Advertisement For families making more than $200,000 per year, financial aid will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Harvard's endowment is worth more than $50 billion. Mike Damiano can be reached at
Boston Globe
10-03-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Amid Trump's funding threats, Harvard freezes hiring
Advertisement The Trump administration said the Columbia funding cuts were punishment for what officials described as the school's failure to protect Jewish students from antisemitism and harassment, specifically related to the pro-Palestinian student protest movement. Over the weekend, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement The Trump administration has also criticized Harvard's handling of the protest movement and campus antisemitism, and Trump himself has questioned why the federal government provides funding to the university. 'Why are we giving money to Harvard when they have a $50 billion endowment?' Trump recently said when asked by a reporter about cuts to federal research funding. This is a breaking news story and will be updated. Mike Damiano can be reached at
