Columbia Becomes First to Lose Funding Under Trump Directive

The Trump administration said Friday that it's pulling $400 million from Columbia University, canceling grants and contracts because of what the government describes as the Ivy League school's failure to squelch antisemitism on campus. The notice came five days after federal agencies announced they were considering orders to stop work on $51 million in contracts with the New York City university and reviewing its eligibility for over $5 billion in federal grants. And it came after Columbia set up a new disciplinary committee and ramped up its own investigations into students critical of Israel, alarming free speech advocates, the AP reports.

But Columbia's efforts evidently didn't go far enough for the federal government. "Universities must comply with all federal antidiscrimination laws if they are going to receive federal funding. For too long, Columbia has abandoned that obligation to Jewish students studying on its campus," Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement Friday. Columbia vowed to work with the government to try to get the money back, saying it's "committed to combatting antisemitism" and ensuring safety on campus. It is not clear which research, projects or activities will be affected at Columbia, which operates a medical center among many other functions.

Columbia has become the first target in President Trump's campaign to cut federal money to colleges accused of tolerating antisemitism during the Israel-Hamas war. Other schools under investigation include the University of California, Berkeley; the University of Minnesota; Northwestern University; and Portland State University. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators set up an encampment at Columbia in April and inspired similar protests. The Columbia protesters went on to seize a campus building, resulting in dozens of arrests. In recent days, a small contingent of demonstrators has staged brief occupations of buildings at Columbia-affiliated Barnard College to protest the expulsion of two students accused of disrupting an Israeli history class. Several students were arrested following an hourslong takeover of a building Wednesday.

(More Columbia University stories.)