4/9/25: First Columbia, Now Harvard: Middle East Studies Under Pressure (Inside Higher Ed) The Trump administration specifically targeted a department at Columbia, prompting a sweeping review. Harvard is shaking up and pausing programs. It’s unclear what—and where—the next target will be. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/faculty-issues/academic-freedom/2025/04/09/columbia-then-harvard-middle-east-studies-under
4/9/25: A closer look at the nationwide impact of NIH cuts (Axios) Much of the discourse around the cuts has focused on the impact to states or individual universities . But this data compiled from a consortium of universities shows just how widespread the effects of the cuts would be at the local level, researchers tell Axios. https://www.axios.com/2025/04/09/nih-cuts-nationwide-impact-county-map
4/9/25: Why aren’t universities using their billion-dollar endowments to fight Trump? (Vox) If universities start eating into their endowments, long-term earnings and payouts decline, and nobody wants that. Research universities in particular require a lot of money to run, and they’re already reeling from a whole separate batch of illegal Trump efforts to gut university-based science and slash funding for research facilities, supplies, equipment, and support. It’s easy to see the next four years as a blip when you’re about to celebrate your 400th birthday. https://www.vox.com/education/407529/why-arent-universities-using-their-billion-dollar-endowments-to-fight-trump
4/8/25: NSF slashes graduate fellowship program (Science) The National Science Foundation (NSF) has cut in half the number of graduate students receiving its prestigious research fellowship program for the upcoming academic year. NSF is not saying why, but the agency is facing a constrained budget. https://www.science.org/content/article/nsf-slashes-graduate-fellowship-program
4/8/25: Trump Administration Freezes $1 Billion for Cornell and $790 Million for Northwestern, Officials Say (New York Times) The funding pause amid civil rights investigations into both universities sharply escalates the Trump administration’s campaign against elite colleges. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/08/us/politics/cornell-northwestern-university-funds-trump.html
4/8/25: Tracking Trump’s Higher-Ed Agenda (The Chronicle) President Trump’s administration has swiftly sought to advance major changes across higher education, such as eliminating diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts on campuses; punishing individuals and institutions over allegations of antisemitism; and laying off thousands of employees in the Education Department. https://www.chronicle.com/article/tracking-trumps-higher-ed-agenda
4/8/25: Universities must become active launchpads for innovation (The Hill, Opinion) This university-government alignment is not simply a driver of prosperity; it is fundamental to American security. Undermining this critical bond jeopardizes our national security and interests. This reliance is clearly seen in the Department of Defense, which depends heavily on university research for advancements shaping the future battlefield, spanning fields like quantum sensors, self-healing materials and transformative aerospace engineering. https://thehill.com/opinion/education/5236700-universities-must-become-active-launchpads-for-innovation/
4/8/25: Trump has blown a massive hole in global health funding—and no one can fill it (Science) Who can replace the United States? The global health community has been asking that question since President Donald Trump’s administration took a sledgehammer to its foreign aid budget, dismantling the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and ending thousands of grants. Health ministries across the developing world, nongovernmental organizations, and major multilateral funding organizations such as Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance are looking for alternative sources for the billions of dollars the U.S. has suddenly withdrawn. https://www.science.org/content/article/trump-has-blown-massive-hole-global-health-funding-and-no-one-can-fill-it
4/8/25: House Democrats Press RFK Jr., GOP on Health Agency Cuts (1) (Bloomberg Law) Kennedy revealed a blueprint on March 27 to overhaul the department and axe 10,000 employees, saying the moves would save taxpayers $1.8 billion each year. Total expected layoffs and buyouts are expected to hit 20,000 employees so far, HHS said, although Kennedy has also suggested he would bring back some employees. https://news.bloomberglaw.com/pharma-and-life-sciences/house-democrats-press-rfk-jr-gop-chair-on-health-agency-cuts?context=search&index=19
4/7/25: Judge permanently blocks NIH’s plan to cap funding, setting up appeals battle (Higher Ed Dive) Research universities won an extended reprieve Friday when a federal judge permanently barred the National Institutes of Health from capping funding for indirect research costs at a 15% rate, a move that would cost institutions billions a year. https://www.highereddive.com/news/judge-permanently-blocks-nihs-plan-to-cap-funding-setting-up-appeals-batt/744647/
4/7/25: Grant Terminated (Inside Higher Ed) Researchers whose federal grants have been terminated since the start of the Trump administration describe some of the myriad impacts. https://www.insidehighered.com/opinion/views/2025/04/07/federal-grant-cuts-researchers-own-words-opinion
April 2025: International Student Visas Revoked: See Where: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/global/international-students-us/2025/04/07/where-students-have-had-their-visas-revoked
See also: Nearly 300 Students Have Had Visas Revoked and Could Face Deportation (New York Times) https://www.nytimes.com/2025/04/07/us/student-visas-revoked-trump-administration.html
4/4/25: Supreme Court sides with administration over Education Department grants (NPR) The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday sided with the Trump administration, at least for now, in a dispute over the Department of Education’s freeze of DEI-related grants . The administration has taken several grievances to the high court recently, but this was the first of its legal theories to stick. https://www.npr.org/2025/04/04/nx-s1-5345607/supreme-court-education-department
