The Trump Administration has imposed a drastic ultimatum on Columbia University: change disciplinary and admissions policies before it can discuss reversing a $400 million cut in federal funds. The White House accuses the university of failing to adequately protect Jewish students from incidents of anti-Semitism. Among the conditions imposed, Columbia would have to officially define anti-Semitism, ban the use of masks on campuses, and subject the Department of Middle Eastern, South Asian and African Studies to some sort of external academic oversight. The Trump administration has also warned 60 other universities that they could face similar cuts if they do not demonstrate that they are adequately countering anti-Semitism on campuses. In this regard, some Jewish students and university staff who have participated in pro-Palestinian demonstrations have told the media that their criticism of Israel is mistakenly confused with anti-Semitism, making a distinction between that and anti-Zionism, separating religion from government policies.
The demonstrations organized by the pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel student protest movement since the start of the Israeli war against Hamas in October 2023– and its subsequent war on Palestinians in Gaza– placed it in a vulnerable position. “I want to assure the entire Columbia community that we are committed to working with the federal government to address their legitimate concerns,” said Katrina Armstrong, the university’s interim president, in a late-night message to alumni Friday. “To that end, Columbia can, and will, continue to take serious action to combat anti-Semitism on our campus.”
As Reuters reports, according to a Columbia report, federal funding accounted for about $1.3 billion of the university’s $6.6 billion in operating revenue in fiscal year 2024. “There is no doubt that the cancellation of these funds will immediately impact research and other critical functions of the University, impacting students, faculty, staff, research and patient care,” Armstrong said.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration’s drastic cuts to international aid programs are also hitting Johns Hopkins University hard, forcing it to lay off more than 2,000 workers in the United States and 44 other countries. The USAID United States Agency for International Development cuts, which will reduce the university’s funding by $800 million, particularly affect the Bloomberg School of Public Health, the School of Medicine and its affiliate Jhpiego, which work in crucial areas such as combating HIV, tuberculosis and cervical cancer. As Dr. Sunil Solomon, the university’s epidemiologist, pointed out, “Stopping funding today doesn’t kill immediately, but in six months the world will see the consequences.”
The layoffs come as President Donald Trump works to reshape the federal government. This effectively includes gutting USAID, an independent U.S. government agency established in 1961 to manage and coordinate U.S. international aid, focusing on economic development programs, humanitarian assistance and global health support. The job cuts are “the largest layoffs in the university’s history,” according to a spokesman for Johns Hopkins, which focuses on medicine and public health.
