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The Trump administration has said it will block Harvard from admissibility for new federal government research grants, escalating its attack on Elite University.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon wrote to the President of the University on Monday, informing him of the decision and bursting the university to make a “mockery of the country’s higher education system”.
“This letter will inform you that Harvard should no longer seek grants from the federal government, as no one will be provided,” wrote to McMahon Alan Garber.
“Harvard will cease to be an institution funded by the public and, on the contrary, it can function as a private -funded institution, relying on its colossal wealth and raising money from its large base of rich alumnis.”
A senior Education Department official said the bloc was specially linked to research financing grants.
Harvard did not respond immediately to a comment request.
The decision is the latest width by US President Donald Trump against Harvard and other elite universities he has accused of promoting progressive politics and promoting a “shaking” culture on campus.
Last week Trump said he would remove Harvard tax exempt status. He had previously announced plans to remove more than $ 2.2 billion in federal funds from the university, encouraging him to launch legal action against his administration.
Monday’s announcement comes after the billionaire of Defense Fund Bill Ackman – who led a successful campaign to uncover Harvard’s former president Claudine Gay – renovated his attack at university and suggested he should not have sued the government.
“What Harvard should have done is to say: President Trump – you make some good points. The taxpayers’ money coming to Harvard is a privilege, not a right,” Ackman said.
In her letter, McMahon accused the university of failing to address anti -Semitism on campus, tolerating discrimination, abandoning academic severity and lacking a variety of views.
Some experts asked if the government was able to unilaterally cancel grant funds.
“To say categorically that an entity will not be entitled to grants, before there is a judgment of the economic unit failure to meet the requirements, can be problematic,” said Jonathan Adler, a professor of justice at Case Western Reserve University.
However, he added: “I think part of this is the message he sends to other universities.”
The Block of Funds will last until the Federal Government’s investigation of the University, according to the High Department official. They added that this could be accelerated if the university would “open a wider negotiation” with the administration.
