It looks like now that the Harvard verdict is out, President Donald Trump is trying what looks like bribery to sway U.S. universities.
The White House is asking nine major colleges and universities to sign onto a series of demands in return for expanded access to federal funding.
According to a copy of the document obtained by CNN, in what is described as a “compact for academic excellence in higher education,” top Trump officials are calling for these schools to implement policies to remove factors like sex and ethnicity from admissions consideration, to foster “a vibrant marketplace of ideas on campus” with “no single ideology dominant, both along political and other relevant lines,” and to assess faculty and staff viewpoints.
The compact, first reported by The Wall Street Journal, also calls for a commitment to “grade integrity” and a mandatory five-year freeze on tuition costs.
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Signing onto the compact will provide these universities “a competitive advantage,” a White House official said. The schools that choose to enter into the agreement “would be given priority for grants when possible as well as invitations for White House events and discussions with officials.”
According to the official, the letters were sent to a mix of public and private schools including Vanderbilt University, University of Pennsylvania, Dartmouth College, University of Southern California, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Texas at Austin, University of Arizona, Brown University and University of Virginia.
Not everyone is pleased with this new move by Trump. Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a stern warning on Thursday to California universities that comply with President Donald Trump’s list of demands to receive federal funding amid a government shutdown, calling them sell-outs.
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“IF ANY CALIFORNIA UNIVERSITY SIGNS THIS RADICAL AGREEMENT, THEY’LL LOSE BILLIONS IN STATE FUNDING — INCLUDING CAL GRANTS — INSTANTLY,” Newsom said in a statement.
It looks like Newsom is not planning on bowing down to Trump’s demands and is going out of his way to make his opposition to Trump known.
“CALIFORNIA WILL NOT BANKROLL SCHOOLS THAT SELL OUT THEIR STUDENTS, PROFESSORS, RESEARCHERS, AND SURRENDER ACADEMIC FREEDOM,” the statement said.
Trump’s push for universities to sign a “compact for academic excellence” reflects his administration’s efforts to influence higher education by promoting ideological diversity and controlling admissions criteria. This move aims to consolidate federal power over academia but has sparked fierce resistance, particularly from progressive leaders like Newsom. Newsom’s firm stance against the compact, threatening to withhold state funding from compliant California universities, underscores his commitment to protecting academic freedom and resisting federal overreach.