Kristina Roberts
The Trump administration is planning to review federal funding given to Harvard University, which could lead to a loss of around $100 million for the prestigious school. This move is part of an ongoing disagreement between the White House and Harvard, one of America’s oldest and most famous universities.
A senior White House official said that the Government Services Administration (GSA) will send a letter to different federal agencies, asking them to check if Harvard’s contracts can be canceled or if the money can be given to other institutions instead. The administration believes about 30 contracts, worth a total of $100 million, might be affected. Earlier, the government had already frozen $2.65 billion in grants for Harvard and even tried to stop the university from admitting international students, though a court later blocked that decision.
Harvard University has not yet responded to this latest development. On its website, the university explains that much of its important research—like studies on cancer, heart disease, and other major health issues—relies on government funding. Without this money, many of these projects could come to a sudden stop, hurting not just Harvard but also the country’s progress in science and medicine.
The White House is not cutting the funds right away but is starting a review to decide whether Harvard deserves to keep receiving federal money. The GSA will suggest that agencies end contracts if they believe Harvard has not met certain standards. A draft of the letter claims that Harvard has allowed discrimination and antisemitism, which the administration says justifies the funding cuts.
Students and teachers at Harvard have criticized the Trump administration’s actions. A small group of protesters gathered on campus recently to voice their concerns. Jacob Miller, a student and former leader of Harvard Hillel, a Jewish student group, called the administration’s reasons for cutting funds “absurd.”
A White House official told the BBC that any funding cuts would not affect hospitals connected to Harvard. They also said that if an agency believes a grant is extremely important, they can argue to keep it.
The conflict between Harvard and the Trump administration has been growing for months. Earlier this year, the White House threatened to take away Harvard’s tax-exempt status and froze billions in funding, leading to a lawsuit from the university. Later, another $450 million in grants was cut. Recently, the administration also tried to stop Harvard from enrolling international students, causing confusion and worry among thousands of students. Harvard sued again, and a judge temporarily stopped the government’s decision.
Harvard’s president, Alan Garber, spoke about the issue before the latest funding cuts were announced. He asked why the government would want to stop research funding. “Sure, it hurts Harvard, but it hurts the country because after all, the research funding is not a gift,” he said. “The research funding is given to universities and other research institutions to carry out work—research work—that the federal government designates as high-priority work. It is work that they want done. They are paying to have that work conducted.”
One of the research labs affected by earlier funding cuts is the Sinclair Lab at Harvard Medical School, which studies aging and diseases like Alzheimer’s and cancer. The lab’s founder, David Sinclair, said that losing government grants has already hurt their work. A researcher named Kelly Rich lost a grant to study age reversal, which could have helped treat diseases affecting movement. The White House’s attempt to block international researchers also impacted half of the lab’s team.
“The loss of funding not only halts ongoing experiments that cannot simply be restarted, but also jeopardizes the contributions of international scholars who are integral to the lab’s operations and the wealth of the US,” Sinclair said.
Adam Nguyen, a Harvard graduate and founder of an admissions consulting company, said that graduate students and researchers would suffer the most from these cuts. Many of them depend on federal money to continue their studies and work. “If you have the cuts, they’re out of a job,” he said. “It’s as simple as that. There’s no money to fund their research. You’re talking about cuts, lay-offs, and immediate stop-work orders for many graduate students.”
The situation remains uncertain as Harvard and the government continue their legal battles. For now, students, researchers, and professors are waiting to see how these funding changes will affect their work and futures.
