Northwestern University's deal with Trump admin over funding divides campus
Northwestern University's deal with Trump admin over funding divides campus
Some Northwestern students and groups are praising a $75 million deal with the Trump administration to free up $800 million in federal grants. But new rules on DEI and antisemitism that are part of the deal are garnering criticism.
EVANSTON, Ill. - Some Northwestern students and groups are praising a $75 million deal with the Trump administration to restore up to $800 million in federal grants if the school meets new rules against DEI and antisemitism.
Northwestern is the latest high-profile educational institution to strike an agreement with the Trump administration.
What we know:
A group called the Coalition Against Anti-Semitism at Northwestern says the $75 million penalty the school has to pay is fair. They said the group will oversee changes the school must make if it wants to get all $800 million in federal grant money restored.
The deal was announced late last week.
Beyond the money, Northwestern must disband what’s called the Deering Meadow Agreement, which gave new protections to Muslim students, scholarships and was truck after a pro-Palestinian encampment that demanded the university divest from Israel.
The coalition said the Trump administration had the legal right to demand a payout because they believe Northwestern wasn’t following federal law.
"Northwestern has an obligation, if it takes federal funding, to follow federal laws," said Michael Teplitzky. "It's a private institution, but if it's taking federal funding, it has to follow federal laws. Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 protects students, this is not new, from discrimination and harassment based on protective characteristics. Northwestern, per the federal investigation, failed in doing that. So the federal government, it would be illegal for the government to continue to do business with Northwestern if it continues to violate federal laws."
Part of continuing to do business means Northwestern must end its diversity, equity and inclusion programs, especially as they relate to admissions and hiring.
The other side:
But the decision has split the campus. Fox 32 spoke with Jacqueline Stevens, a political science professor, who likens this money to a hostage ransom or a payoff and said the university hasn't actually shared the agreement. She said there's no guarantee that the school is going to receive that $800 million in grant money that it's already owed.
"I think the real question is why Northwestern didn't exercise our legal rights, our institutional rights, and sue the Trump administration much earlier instead of waiting and drawing this out and ending up with a deal that turns over Northwestern's policies to federal law enforcement and that doesn't give us any direct information about what exactly is going to be obtained," Stevens said.
Different universities have taken different routes to deal with this Trump administration crackdown on higher education. Harvard University sued the administration successfully, but other schools took the route that Northwestern did and decided to cut a deal.