The Trump administration is preparing to block $510 million in federal contracts and grants to Brown University , as part of a wider campaign to crack down on what it described as relentless anti-semitism on university campuses, as per two White House officials familiar with the plans.
Brown is now the fifth American university to face the potential loss of a significant stream of federal funding, raising alarm across higher education institutions already bracing for similar measures.
In case the freezing decision goes ahead, even gradually, it would have far-reaching implications for Brown. The university received around $184 million in federal grants and contracts during the 2024 fiscal year alone.
In an email to campus leaders on Thursday, Brown’s provost Frank Doyle acknowledged the “troubling rumours” which had surfaced regarding potential cuts in university’s research funding. However, he said the institution had “no information to substantiate any of these rumours,” the New York Times reported.
The Ivy League school, like many of its peers, saw protests erupt over the war in Gaza. Brown was among a small number of universities that negotiated with students to end encampments set up in the spring deals which some critics said were too lenient.
It also became one of the few institutions to allow a board vote on divesting from Israel. Ultimately, the university’s governing board voted against divestment.
In response to previous threats of funding cuts directed at Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania, Brown issued a statement reaffirming its commitment to academic freedom.
University President Christina H Paxson said that if Brown’s essential academic and operational functions were threatened, the university “would be compelled to vigorously exercise our legal rights to defend these freedoms.”
The university is currently debating a new policy that would limit the institution from issuing public statements on matters “unrelated to its mission”, joining other institutions in adopting “neutrality” over their response to pro-Palestinian activism.
Brown is now the fifth American university to face the potential loss of a significant stream of federal funding, raising alarm across higher education institutions already bracing for similar measures.
In case the freezing decision goes ahead, even gradually, it would have far-reaching implications for Brown. The university received around $184 million in federal grants and contracts during the 2024 fiscal year alone.
In an email to campus leaders on Thursday, Brown’s provost Frank Doyle acknowledged the “troubling rumours” which had surfaced regarding potential cuts in university’s research funding. However, he said the institution had “no information to substantiate any of these rumours,” the New York Times reported.
The Ivy League school, like many of its peers, saw protests erupt over the war in Gaza. Brown was among a small number of universities that negotiated with students to end encampments set up in the spring deals which some critics said were too lenient.
It also became one of the few institutions to allow a board vote on divesting from Israel. Ultimately, the university’s governing board voted against divestment.
In response to previous threats of funding cuts directed at Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania, Brown issued a statement reaffirming its commitment to academic freedom.
University President Christina H Paxson said that if Brown’s essential academic and operational functions were threatened, the university “would be compelled to vigorously exercise our legal rights to defend these freedoms.”
The university is currently debating a new policy that would limit the institution from issuing public statements on matters “unrelated to its mission”, joining other institutions in adopting “neutrality” over their response to pro-Palestinian activism.
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