Trump Administration Freezes More Than $2 Billion in Federal Funding to Harvard
Updated April 14, 2025, at 8:16 p.m.
The Trump administration paused $2.2 billion in multi-year grants and $60 million in multi-year contracts to Harvard over its decision earlier today to reject the White House’s demands — a dramatic escalation in its crusade against the University.
The move came just hours after Harvard President Alan M. Garber ’76 issued a resounding rebuke of the Trump administration’s demands, calling them coercive and beyond federal authority.
The federal antisemitism task force wrote that Garber’s decision was a clear sign that Harvard was refusing to “commit to meaningful change” to address antisemitism on campus.
“Harvard’s statement today reinforces the troubling entitlement mindset that is endemic in our nation’s most prestigious universities and colleges – that federal investment does not come with the responsibility to uphold civil rights laws,” the task force wrote in a statement.
The cut is only a fraction of the $9 billion the Trump administration put under review just two weeks before.
Unlike the initial review — which targeted federal funding awarded to “Harvard and its affiliates” — the Monday announcement only stated that the cut would affect Harvard, with no mention of its affiliate institutions. The Department of Education, the White House, and the General Services Administration all did not immediately respond to requests for comment on whether the cut would include Harvard’s hospital system.
In his message Monday afternoon, Garber argued that the Trump administration’s revised demands on Thursday exceeded the legal scope of the Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and were in violation of the First Amendment, but stopped short of threatening litigation against the administration.
But top Harvard administrators have told affiliates in private — before the funding review was announced — that they would not be opposed to leading a battle against the White House in certain cases. A Harvard spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether the University was considering filing a lawsuit.
The funding cut to Harvard is the largest among the six cuts to Ivy League institutions that the Trump administration has announced so far.
Harvard received $686 million in federal funding during the 2024 fiscal year.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
—Staff writer Dhruv T. Patel can be reached at dhruv.patel@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @dhruvtkpatel.
—Staff writer Grace E. Yoon can be reached at grace.yoon@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @graceunkyoon.
Harvard’s Defiance Draws Stefanik’s Ire, but Praise from the Left
Rep. Elise M. Stefanik ’06 (R-N.Y.) — one of Harvard’s fiercest critics since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel — blasted Harvard for rebuffing the Trump administration’s demands.
“Harvard University has rightfully earned its place as the epitome of the moral and academic rot in higher education,” she wrote in a scathing post on X.
“It is time to totally cut off U.S. taxpayer funding to this institution that has failed to live up to its founding motto Veritas,” added Stefanik, who was recently tapped by President Donald Trump to serve as chairwoman of House Republican Leadership.
But Garber’s stand drew praise from lawmakers on the left.
“This is how we fight back,” wrote Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) in a post on X.
Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) also welcomed Harvard’s defiance, calling it a model for other institutions.
“Congratulations to Harvard for refusing to relinquish its constitutional rights to Trump’s authoritarianism,” he wrote on X. “Other universities should follow their lead.”
The White House, the Department of Education, and the Department of Health and Human Services did not immediately respond to requests for comment on whether they would consider litigation or funding cuts.
—Staff writer Dhruv T. Patel can be reached at dhruv.patel@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @dhruvtkpatel.
—Staff writer Grace E. Yoon can be reached at grace.yoon@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @graceunkyoon.