The federal government on Monday announced it is to freeze more than $2.2 billion (€1.94 billion) in grants and $60 million in contracts to Harvard as the university has said it won’t stymie activism on campus, a key demand from the Trump administration.
On Monday Harvard rejected numerous demands from the Trump administration with the administration subsequently making the decision to halt the funding.
The move came hours after university president, Alan Garber, said in a letter to the Harvard community, “The University will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights.”
“No government — regardless of which party is in power — should dictate what private universities can teach, whom they can admit and hire, and which areas of study and inquiry they can pursue.”
In a letter on Friday, the US Department of Education said that Harvard had “failed to live up to both the intellectual and civil rights conditions that justify federal investment.”
The department called on Harvard to reduce the influence of faculty, staff and students who are “more committed to activism than scholarship.”
More to follow…
Edited by: Alex Berry
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