Brown University Secures $50M Agreement with Trump Administration to Reinstating Federal Funding

The Trump administration just struck a major deal with Brown University that will restore its federal funding. This agreement, worth tens of millions of dollars, follows a significant $220 million settlement with Columbia University earlier this month.

In exchange for reinstating frozen federal grants, Brown will agree to several terms purposed by the administration aimed at altering its diversity and inclusion programs. A White House official confirmed that these changes will allow Brown to regain eligibility for future federal funds and close existing investigations.

Brown University has committed to directing $50 million in grants over the next ten years to support workforce development in Rhode Island, as stated by President Christina Paxson. Notably, she clarified that this isn’t a payment to the government but rather a move to support the state’s workforce.

The deal is quite different from Columbia’s, which involves $200 million payments to the Treasury and an additional $21 million to settle investigations. Paxson emphasized that the agreement won’t allow the government to influence Brown’s academic programs or speech.

Education Secretary Linda McMahon hailed this agreement as a victory against what she called the “woke capture” in higher education, indicating that efforts are aimed at reshaping how universities operate.

The agreement mandates that Brown must avoid unlawful racial discrimination in admissions and other areas. It requires the school to produce annual reports on racial admissions data and to follow specific definitions of gender in relation to sports, programming, and housing.

Moreover, Brown’s health centers will not perform gender reassignment surgeries on minors nor provide puberty blockers or hormones, in line with recent executive orders. The university has also pledged to improve conditions for Jewish students, including conducting surveys to gauge their safety and comfort on campus.

While many policies are already in place at Brown, some changes reflect the administration’s priorities. Paxson admitted that some modifications resulted from pressure from the Trump administration.

This agreement unfreezes over $500 million earmarked for grants previously held back because of scrutiny over Brown’s DEI programs and how it addresses antisemitism on campus. The administration appears to be using agreements like Brown’s as templates for other schools, with investigations underway at institutions like Duke University and ongoing legal challenges with Harvard.

In a landscape where diversity, equity, and inclusion are hot topics in academia, these developments underscore the tension between government influence and university autonomy.



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