The Trump administration is taking steps to withdraw over $500 million in federal contracts and grants previously awarded to Brown University. This move contributes to a series of actions impacting Ivy League institutions, which have been scrutinized over their responses to antisemitism, as revealed by a White House official on Thursday.
The official, who shared the information on the condition of anonymity, stated that approximately $510 million in Brown’s federal funding is currently at risk. In response, Brown’s Provost, Frank Doyle, addressed the university community through an email on Thursday, acknowledging “troubling rumors” regarding federal actions concerning their research funding. However, Doyle noted there is no concrete evidence to support these rumors at this time.
Brown University joins a list of Ivy League schools being targeted by the administration of President Donald Trump. This administration uses federal financial leverage to influence college policies. Federal investigations into antisemitism are ongoing at various universities, including all Ivy League schools except the University of Pennsylvania and Dartmouth College, following a series of pro-Palestinian demonstrations last year.
Columbia University was the first Ivy League institution to lose substantial federal support, amounting to $400 million, along with threats of further financial withdrawal unless the campus environment improved for Jewish students. Columbia has since agreed to several federal demands, including revising student disciplinary rules and reviewing its Middle East studies program.
At the University of Pennsylvania, approximately $175 million in federal funding was suspended due to controversy surrounding a transgender swimmer associated with the university. Meanwhile, a federal antisemitism task force is currently reviewing nearly $9 billion in grants and contracts at Harvard University amid ongoing antisemitism inquiries.
Additionally, Princeton University recently announced that the federal government had paused multiple research grants. These developments present significant challenges for American universities, which heavily depend on federal research funding for revenue.
President Trump’s administration is taking a more assertive stance against antisemitism on campuses, claiming that former President Joe Biden’s policies were insufficiently strict. The administration has launched new investigations and has detained or deported several international students linked to pro-Palestinian activities. Notably, an incoming assistant professor at Brown University was deported to Lebanon last month, with the Department of Homeland Security citing the individual’s admission of supporting a Hezbollah leader.
During last year’s Israel-Hamas conflict, Brown University made headlines by negotiating an agreement with student activists. The university pledged to consider divestment from companies identified by protesters as aiding Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories. Nevertheless, Brown’s governing board ultimately rejected the divestment proposal.