Trump administration reportedly freezes $790 million in federal funding at Northwestern University
Hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funds are on hold at several universities, including Northwestern University.
The Trump administration has reportedly frozen $790 million in federal funding at Northwestern. The freeze affects grants from agencies like defense, agriculture, and health and human services.
Northwestern University is the first non-Ivy League school to be named in this federal review. Harvard, Columbia, and Cornell universities are also feeling the impact.
The investigation is into of what the Department of Education calls "explosions of antisemitism" on college campuses in the wake of the Israel-Hamas war. The initial report cited Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which protects individuals from discrimination based on national origin and applies to schools and institutions of higher learning that receive federal funding.
A total of 60 institutions of higher education were warned early last month that they were under investigation by the U.S. Department of Education for possibly violating Title VI for allowing alleged antisemitic harassment and discrimination on their campuses.
Northwestern said federal dollars support life-saving research, which is now in jeopardy. In a statement, a Northwestern University spokesperson said they have not received official notification of a funding freeze.
"Federal funds that Northwestern receives drive innovative and life-saving research, like the recent development by Northwestern researchers of the world's smallest pacemaker, and research fueling the fight against Alzheimer's disease," a university spokesperson said in a written statement.
Dr. Igor Efimov helped develop the technology for the world's smallest pacemaker — which is smaller than a grain of rice and can be used in babies. Now, Efimov needs to develop a contingency plan without the funds his team would need to continue their progress.
"It's not just the research," he said. "Don't forget that we pay stipends of graduate students. We pay salaries of people that work in the lab — scientists."
Attorney Benjamin Barr, of Barr & Klein PLLC, said a legal challenge is likely.
"I think it's well within Northwestern University's interest to ultimately mount that challenge, because ultimately, we don't know what the intent was from the administration," Barr said. "That's something only judges and juries can delve into."
Barr said if there is legal action and it goes to court, it is possible the Trump administration would argue that this is an issue of conduct on campus rather than a First Amendment rights issue.
"Is this money, is this funding stream going in and protecting this sort of harassing and discriminatory conduct that's prohibited under the Civil Rights Act, or does it fall more on the innocuous side — just people who are taking a stance for Palestine protesting Israel's role in their conflict?" he said.
The Trump administration would be seeking to prove the former of those two questions.
"The strongest claim that the Trump administration has is to target exactly conduct-related to instances that weren't cured or taken care of at Northwestern University that made Jewish students feel scared, or where they were actually harmed," he said.
The university said it cooperated with federal investigators and recently released a progress report outlining support for Jewish students. This includes mandatory antisemitism training for students, faculty, and staff.
This has not stopped the investigation by the federal government.
Northwestern leaders said they are still looking for clarity and are concerned about what's next.
Meanwhile, CBS News Chicago has also learned that a congressional committee sent letters to several Northwestern law professors, asking them about the free legal advice they are providing to organizers of an anti-Israel protest at O'Hare International Airport last year — where 40 protesters were arrested.
The Center for Constitutional Rights is now asking a judge to intervene in that case.
