Colleges across the nation are uniting after facing the potential loss of federal funding after refusing to comply with President Donald Trump’s proposed policies aimed at reforming higher education, according to NBC News.
The Trump administration sent a letter to Harvard University last month with a list of demands including the removal of DEI policies, stricter handling of campus protests, limiting antisemitism on campus, mask bans and changes to admissions based on race, ethnicity and gender, according to Harvard University.
Sixty universities, including many Ivy League and Big Ten schools, received similar letters with a focus on protecting Jewish students on campus amid complaints of antisemitism, according to the U.S. Department of Education.
Hundreds of universities, including Sacramento State and UC Davis, have signed a letter opposing Trump’s orders, stating that their schools should be places where students do not face retribution, censorship or deportation, according to PBS.
The government controlling the people’s opinions and what they learn in the classroom is an abuse of power, said history professor Alex Peshkoff.
“That’s completely antithetical to public education,” Peshkoff said.
Harvard is currently suing the Trump administration to recover $2.2 billion in frozen federal funds, arguing that Trump’s actions are unconstitutional and unlawful, according to Harvard University.
“When I see people fighting back, especially students organizing themselves in the face of real risks, then I’m encouraged,” Peshkoff said.
While the lawsuit may take years to resolve, students on campus shared growing concerns about what it will mean for the future of higher education.
Emily Buckner, an 18-year-old environmental studies and sustainability major, said she is afraid of what the freezing of federal funds could mean for students.
“It’s definitely scary knowing these actions taken by Donald Trump could affect my future. They’re actively affecting so many students’ futures,” Buckner said. “I know the lack of federal funding will make going to school unachievable for so many.”
Students expressed concerns that Trump’s orders are unfit and could potentially harm higher education.
“If he cuts funding for them, it’s like he’s controlling them,” said Evelyn Lainetti, an 18-year-old culinary arts management major.
Lainetti said she thinks extreme actions in Trump’s first year as president make her worried for what the rest of this presidency will look like.
Trump signed an executive order stating the demands for universities will protect American students from illegal practices within higher education, according to the White House.
“In two or three years, are we even going to still have universities? Are we still going to have a good education?” Lainetti said. “What he’s doing not only impacts us, but it is going to impact future generations.”