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A student strolls through the Allston campus of Harvard University in Allston, Massachusetts, US, on May 23, 2025. (Reuters)
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WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump announced on Monday that he is contemplating reallocating $3 billion in federal research grants from Harvard University to trade schools.
His remarks on Truth Social came just days after his administration attempted to prevent the prestigious Ivy League institution from enrolling international students, part of a remarkable initiative to exert greater government influence over U.S. academic institutions.
The Republican president has recently frozen approximately $3 billion in federal funding intended for Harvard, criticizing the university for hiring Democrats and what he calls "Radical Left thinkers" as faculty. Harvard, a private institution, has filed a lawsuit to reinstate the funding, claiming the cuts infringe on its rights to free speech and are therefore unconstitutional.
Much of the grant funding was designated by Congress for the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which allocates the money for biomedical research after a rigorous application process conducted by researchers—work that isn’t typically performed at trade schools.
It remains uncertain whether Trump was referencing the funds that have already been frozen by his administration. Harvard has indicated that it received notifications in May stating that nearly all of its federal grants were revoked via letters from various agencies, including the NIH, the U.S. Forest Service, the Department of Energy, and the Department of Defense.
These letters cited that the grants were being suspended because they "no longer align with agency priorities."
Harvard did not provide comments on Monday regarding the situation. The White House also declined to specify which funds Trump intends to redirect or how they could be legally transferred to trade schools.
On Friday, a federal judge temporarily prevented the Trump administration from stripping Harvard of its ability to enroll international students. Harvard argued that this move was part of Trump’s larger strategy to punish the university for resisting his attempts to undermine its academic autonomy.
This judicial order offers temporary relief to thousands of international students, who would have faced the possibility of needing to shift institutions under a policy that Harvard described as a "clear violation" of the U.S. Constitution and other federal regulations.
The administration’s decision would have had an immediate and damaging effect on Harvard and more than 7,000 visa holders, as nearly 6,800 international students are currently enrolled, making up 27% of the university’s total student population and contributing significantly to its tuition revenue.
This latest action is part of an escalating conflict between Harvard and the White House, where Trump is pushing for compliance among universities, legal firms, media outlets, and other institutions with his political agenda. Both Trump and his Republican allies have accused elite universities of exhibiting a left-leaning bias for years.
In recent weeks, the administration has suggested revoking Harvard’s tax-exempt status, raising taxes on its endowment, and launching an investigation to determine whether the institution has violated civil rights laws by allegedly discriminating against "white, Asian, male, or straight applicants" for jobs or training programs.
In response, Harvard has maintained that its hiring and admissions processes are in full compliance with the law.
