With Columbia as a model, White House seeks fines in potential deals
with Harvard and others
[July 26, 2025]
By COLLIN BINKLEY
WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House is pursuing heavy fines from Harvard
and other universities as part of potential settlements to end
investigations into campus antisemitism, using the deal it struck with
Columbia University as a template, according to an administration
official familiar with the matter.
Fines have become a staple of proposed deals in talks with Harvard and
other schools, according to the official, who spoke on the condition of
anonymity to discuss internal deliberations.
The new strategy was first reported by The Wall Street Journal.
Federal civil rights investigations into schools and universities almost
always have been resolved through voluntary settlements, yet they rarely
include financial penalties. The Biden administration reached dozens of
such deals with universities and none included fines.
Columbia's settlement with the Trump administration included a $200
million fine in exchange for regaining access to federal funding and
closing investigations accusing Columbia of tolerating harassment of
Jewish students and employees.
The agreement announced Wednesday also orders Columbia to ensure its
admissions and hiring decisions are “merit-based” with no consideration
of race, to hire more Jewish studies faculty, and to reduce the
university’s reliance on international students, among other changes. It
places Columbia under the watch of an independent monitor and requires
regular disclosures to the government.
The agreement deal includes a clause forbidding the government from
directly dictating decisions on hiring, admissions or academics.
Columbia leaders said it preserves the university's autonomy while
restoring the flow of federal money.
[to top of second column]
|
Students, faculty and members of the Harvard University community
rally, April 17, 2025, in Cambridge, Mass. (AP Photo, File)
The Trump administration is investigating dozens of universities
over allegations that they failed to address campus antisemitism
amid the Israel-Hamas war, and several institutions have faced
federal funding freezes, like those at Columbia and Harvard.
The federal government has frozen more than $1 billion at Cornell
University, along with $790 million at Northwestern University.
In announcing the Columbia settlement, administration officials
described it as a template for other universities. Education
Secretary Linda McMahon called it a “roadmap” for colleges looking
to regain public trust, saying it would “ripple across the higher
education sector and change the course of campus culture for years
to come.”
As Trump departed the White House on Friday, he told reporters that
Harvard “wants to settle” but that Columbia “handled it better.” The
president said he's optimistic his administration will prevail in
Harvard's legal challenge — at least on appeal — and he suggested
Harvard may never regain the level of federal funding it received in
the past.
“The bottom line is we’re not going to give any more money to
Harvard,” he said. “We want to spread the wealth.”
All contents © copyright 2025 Associated Press. All rights reserved |
