Donald Trump orders crackdown on foreign funding of Universities amid Harvard, Columbia row - All you need to know

US President Donald Trump signed executive orders on Wednesday that sought disclosures on foreign funding of Universities and tightened the accreditation process for higher education, which is needed to access federal financial aid. The new executive order also aims to “avoid unlawful discrimination and ideological overreach.”

What does Trump's executive order on foreign funding say?

The order seeks complete and timely disclosure of foreign funding by higher education institutions. Trump has directed the Secretary of Education to reverse any actions by the previous administration that permit universities to obscure details regarding their foreign funding.

The order further directs universities to disclose the true source and purpose of foreign funds and warns that certain Federal grant funds could be revoked for failure to comply with foreign funding disclosure requirements.

The new order comes after Harvard University filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, arguing that freezing federal grants is unlawful. The University had previously rejected a list of demands of the Trump administration that aimed to curb diversity initiatives and fight anti-semitism, according to a report by the BBC. Reportedly, the administration also cancelled $400 million of funding for Columbia University over not following its demand to curb anti-semitism on the campus.

What does Trump's executive order on accreditation say?

Trump has asked the Secretary of Education to hold higher education accreditors accountable for poor performance or violations of federal civil rights law.

The Attorney General and the Secretary of Education have been directed to investigate and take action to terminate unlawful discrimination by American higher education institutions, including law schools and medical schools.

The Order mandates the Secretary of Education to recognise new accreditors to boost competition. Use program-level student outcome data to improve results, without reference to race, ethnicity, or sex.

Why was this executive order required?

White House staff secretary Will Scharf said, "University accreditation is currently a process controlled by a number of third-party organisations that are, by statute, by law. Many of those third-party accreditors have relied on a sort of woke ideology to accredit universities instead of accrediting based on merit and performance."

Issues with the previous accreditation system

Trump highlighted the issues with the previous accreditation system. He claimed that accreditors usually approve low-quality institutions, impacting students, families, and American taxpayers. He accused accreditors of their inability to maintain quality, stating a national six-year undergraduate graduation rate of just 64% in 2020.

The executive order mentioned that nearly 25% of bachelor’s degrees and over 40% of master’s degrees offer a negative return on investment, which is a burden on students with debt and limited earning potential.

It is also alleged that the accreditors have abused their authority by imposing discriminatory diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)-based standards, which is a violation of Federal law.