ACE strongly opposes the Trump administration’s decision
to cancel $400 million in federal grants and contracts to Columbia University,
calling it an arbitrary and harmful action that undermines established legal
processes and threatens academic research.
The administration announced
the funding cuts March 7, citing what it described as
Columbia’s failure to protect Jewish students from antisemitism. The move
follows months of scrutiny from Republican lawmakers over campus protests
related to the war in Gaza, a topic of a number of hearings, most recently last
week before the Senate
Judiciary Committee.
The administration’s announcement came just days after a
new federal antisemitism task force—created by executive
order—said that Columbia’s $5 billion in federal grants were
under review. The decision to pull $400 million without a
formal investigation through the Department of Education’s (ED) Office for
Civil Rights (OCR) represents an unprecedented use of executive power, raising
serious concerns about political interference in federal funding decisions.
In a statement today, ACE President Ted Mitchell
reaffirmed higher education’s commitment to combating antisemitism while
warning that the administration’s actions will cause widespread damage to
students, faculty, and critical research.
“We stand against antisemitism. Period. But the Trump
administration’s decision last week to arbitrarily cancel some $400 million in
federal grants and contracts to Columbia University is not the right way to
fight hatred,” he said. “Complaints against Columbia and any other institutions
should be made, investigated, and if substantiated, addressed by appropriate
sanctions. But at a time when all parties need to work together to stamp out
hate, the administration’s action will only cause greater harm rather than
addressing very real concerns.”
The canceled funds support a wide range of academic and
research initiatives at Columbia, including medical research, scientific
advancements, and federally backed student and faculty programs. Interim
Columbia president Katrina Armstrong said the cuts would have an immediate
impact on students, faculty, and patients who rely on the university’s research
and medical services.
ACE argues that the administration’s decision not only
disrupts critical academic work but also undermines the legal framework for
addressing discrimination on college campuses. ED’s OCR is responsible for
enforcing Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination
based on race and national origin, including antisemitic and Islamophobic
discrimination. Federal law outlines specific procedures for investigating
complaints and imposing sanctions if violations are found. The administration’s
unilateral decision to cut funding bypasses this process entirely.
Jon Fansmith, ACE’s senior vice president of government
relations and national engagement, told Inside
Higher Ed that the administration’s actions disregard
legal requirements and due process.
“You don’t get to punish people just because you don’t
like what they’re doing,” Fansmith said. “The fact that the administration is
choosing to simply ignore not just precedent, not just norms, but the actual
law covering this should be concerning to a lot of people, not just people at
Columbia.”
ACE has worked extensively with Jewish organizations to
combat antisemitism on college campuses, co-hosting the inaugural
Summit on Campus Antisemitism for college and university
presidents with American Jewish Committee and Hillel International in April
2022, followed by a second summit in September
2024.
Rather than taking arbitrary actions that create confusion and disruption, the
administration should focus on enforcing existing civil rights protections
through OCR.
“Undercutting this established process only creates chaos
and confusion on college campuses and ultimately harms rather than advances the
effectiveness of campus work to protect Jewish and other students,” Mitchell
said.
ACE urges the administration to reverse this decision and
work in good faith with higher education institutions to ensure safe, inclusive
learning environments.