According to a senior department official, the US Department of Education told Harvard University on Monday that it was halting billions of dollars in future research grants and other aid until the oldest and richest university in the country accedes to a number of demands made by the Trump administration.
The action is the most recent volley from a Trump administration prepared to use the government budget to pressure organizations—from universities to law firms—to alter their policies or risk losing billions of dollars in federal contracts and awards.
US Education Department Secretary Linda McMahon wrote to Harvard, stating that the university needs to address issues of antisemitism on campus, school rules that take into account a student’s race, and administration grievances that it has given up on pursuing “academic excellence.”
