IBL News | New York
The Trump administration announced on Friday that it had canceled $400 million in federal grants and contracts to Columbia University.
The White House justified its decision by blaming the university’s failure to protect Jewish students from harassment during protests last year over the war in Gaza.
The announcement escalated the administration’s targeting of Columbia, where pro-Palestinian protests last year over the war in Gaza set off a nationwide debate over free speech, campus policing, and antisemitism and led to similar demonstrations at schools nationwide.
The move also represents the latest response by the Trump Administration to elite higher educational institutions. It follows last year’s congressional hearings that resulted in the departure of Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania presidents. It comes after recent executive orders barring diversity, equity, inclusion, and woke programs at educational institutions that receive federal funds.
On Monday, Linda McMahon, the newly confirmed secretary of education, issued a warning that the administration had its sights set on Columbia. Ms. McMahon warned that Columbia would face the loss of federal funding, the lifeblood of major research universities, if it did not take additional action to combat antisemitism on campus.
Student Loans
On the other hand, yesterday, speaking from the Oval Office, President Trump said he would soon sign an executive order directing the Education Department to modify the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program, which forgives a portion of federal student loan debt for people who work in public sector jobs, including at nonprofit organizations.
Trump alleges that some qualifying nonprofit organizations may “engage in illegal, or what we would consider to be improper activities.”
