The Trump administration has ramped up its war with Harvard University in an order demanding that the Ivy League school hand over its foreign financial disclosures as well as information on all foreign-born faculty.
In a Friday press release, the Department of Education (ED) accused the university of not fully disclosing its foreign funding sources—on the heels of freezing $2.26 billion in federal funding for the university and threatening to remove its tax-exempt status for refusing to overhaul its curriculum.
“As a recipient of federal funding, Harvard University must be transparent about its relations with foreign sources and governments,” said Education Secretary Linda McMahon. “Unfortunately, our review indicated that Harvard has not been fully transparent or complete in its disclosures, which is both unacceptable and unlawful.”
Universities are required to disclose financial gifts that are valued at more than $250,000 annually, which Harvard said it has done.
In a statement, a Harvard spokesperson told The Hill that its reports are sound, adding that they contain “information on gifts and contracts from foreign sources,” including “contracts to provide executive education, other training, and academic publications.”
They added that Harvard has filed reports for decades as part of “its ongoing compliance with the law.”
However, the Trump administration has continued to press the university, claiming it skimped on divulging its assets. In its order, the ED also cites concerns around foreign actors attempting to spy on researchers or spread propaganda within the institution.
“Today’s records request is the Trump administration’s first step to ensure Harvard is not being manipulated by, or doing the bidding of, foreign entities,” added McMahon. The order, which was sent in a letter to Harvard President Alan Garber, gave no evidence that this was occurring.
The allegation is the latest in the Trump administration’s blitzes against prestigious universities—which also include Columbia and the University of Pennsylvania—to force compliance on implementing “viewpoint diversity,” which President Trump has minimally defined.
In an executive order, Trump alleged that the aforementioned Ivy Leagues allowed antisemitism to grow across their campuses as the order moved to slash diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs and punish students who participated in pro-Palestine protests.
Under threats of financial crisis, several universities yielded to Trump’s demands—but not Harvard. It was the first university that stood firm in its resistance and refused to bend the knee to Trump’s orders.
In retaliation, Trump made more attempts to micromanage the school, including by freezing critical research funds that largely go toward lifesaving research and threatening to limit its ability to enroll foreign students. His intimidation efforts culminated Friday when the barebones Department of Education (ED)—which Trump has largely dismantled—alleged that Harvard’s foreign reports show “incomplete and inaccurate disclosures.”
The ED wants Harvard to provide a list of all gifts and grants from foreign sources. It also demanded information about all expelled foreign students since 2016, communications between Harvard and foreign governments, and details about all those involved in the expulsion of foreign students.
The ED is also asking for the names, contact information, and backgrounds of all Harvard affiliates who are from—or connected to—foreign governments and foreign individuals.
Harvard received $151 million from foreign government sources between January 2020 and October 2024, reported its student newspaper The Harvard Crimson.
“Throughout Harvard’s history, support from alumni and donors at all levels has been essential to our continued excellence in our research and teaching mission, which in turn enables Harvard’s critical impact in the world by helping to address society’s most pressing issues,” the Harvard spokesperson told The Hill.
It’s not the first time that Trump has tried to intimidate Harvard. During his first term in 2020, the Trump administration also opened an investigation into Harvard’s foreign funding. The Biden administration told Harvard in 2024 that the investigation was closed.
Harvard has less than a month to provide the requested documents, which are due on May 17.
The Daily Beast contacted the Trump administration for comment but did not receive any reply.
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