MIT President Sally Kornbluth is telling President Trump's administration that the prestigious college in Cambridge, Massachusetts will not be signing on to the White House's "Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education."

MIT was one of nine universities asked by the Department of Education to sign the agreement to ensure access to federal funding and grants. Among the stipulations in the agreement: a five-year tuition rate freeze, limits on international student populations and prohibiting the use of race or sex as admissions factors.

Kornbluth said in a letter to Education Sec. Linda McMahon that MIT's practices "meet or exceed many standards outlined in the document you sent."

MIT letter to Trump administration

"The document also includes principles with which we disagree, including those that would restrict freedom of expression and our independence as an institution," Kornbluth wrote. "And fundamentally, the premise of the document is inconsistent with our core belief that scientific funding should be based on scientific merit alone."

The agreement says schools must commit to "transforming or abolishing institutional units that purposefully punish, belittle and even spark violence against conservative ideas." It also calls for "institutional neutrality" that requires university representatives not to take sides on political or social issues. 

"In our view, America's leadership in science and innovation depends on independent thinking and open competition for excellence," Kornbluth said. "Therefore, with respect, we cannot support the proposed approach to addressing the issues facing higher education."

Colleges asked to sign higher education compact

The other eight schools asked to sign the agreement are University of Arizona, Brown University, Dartmouth College, University of Pennsylvania, University of Southern California, University of Texas, University of Virginia and Vanderbilt University. Dartmouth College President Sian Leah Beilock said in a short message last week that she "will always defend our fierce independence" at the Ivy League institution located in Hanover, New Hampshire.

"You have often heard me say that higher education is not perfect and that we can do better," Beilock said. "At the same time, we will never compromise our academic freedom and our ability to govern ourselves."

MIT was one of dozens of universities facing federal investigation earlier this year as part of the Trump administration's anti-DEI campaign. The school closed its DEI office in May after an 18-month assessment of the department's work.