Key points
- Pause extends to medical research funding
- Does not impact federal student aid
- Harvard spokesperson criticises Trump admin’s move
ISLAMABAD: The US Department of Education has announced an immediate pause on Harvard’s grant funding, escalating an ongoing clash between the Trump administration and the elite university.
“Harvard is not eligible for any new grants from the federal government until they demonstrate responsible management of the university,” a senior official from the Department of Education said on a call with reporters on Monday.
The pause extends to medical research funding, according to the senior official, but does not impact federal student aid, ABC News reported.
In a letter to Harvard on Monday, US Education Department Secretary Linda McMahon said the elite university had made a “mockery” of higher education and should no longer seek federal grants, “since no will be provided”.
No more public funding
“Harvard will cease to be a publicly funded institution, and can instead operate as a privately-funded institution, drawing on its colossal endowment, and raising money from its large base of wealthy alumni,” McMahon wrote in the letter.
According to Al Jazeera, McMahon, the former CEO of World Wrestling Entertainment, outlined a series of grievances often made by conservatives against the university, including that it had fostered lax academic standards and admitted foreign students who “engage in violent behaviour and show contempt toward the United States of America”.
“Where do many of these ‘students’ come from, who are they, and how do they get into Harvard, or even into our country – and why is there so much HATE?” she wrote.
He emulated Trump’s use of all-capital letters to emphasise certain words.
“Illegally” withheld
“Today’s letter makes new threats to illegally withhold funding for lifesaving research and innovation in retaliation against Harvard for filing its lawsuit on April 21,” a university spokesperson said.
“Harvard will continue to comply with the law, promote and encourage respect for viewpoint diversity, and combat antisemitism in our community. Harvard will also continue to defend against illegal government overreach aimed at stifling research and innovation that make Americans safer and more secure.”
