The Trump administration has issued an ultimatum to Columbia University, threatening to cut off federal funding unless the Ivy League institution hands over control of its international studies department and implements significant changes to other campus policies.
In a letter sent Thursday evening, federal officials demanded that the university immediately place its Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies Department under "academic receivership for at least five years."
Additionally, the university must prohibit masks on campus designed to conceal identities "or intimidate others," adopt a revised definition of antisemitism, abolish its current student disciplinary process, and present a plan to overhaul undergraduate admissions, international recruiting, and graduate admissions practices.
The letter outlined these changes, among others, as "preconditions" for initiating "formal negotiations regarding Columbia University's continued financial relationship with the United States government." It did not provide further details on why the Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies Department was specifically targeted or what the "receivership" process would involve.
"We expect your immediate compliance with these critical next steps," officials from the Department of Education, General Services Administration, and Department of Health and Human Services stated.
This letter comes as the Trump administration intensifies its efforts to exert greater control over academic institutions. On Friday, the Department of Education announced an investigation into more than 50 universities, including several major public institutions, over allegations of racial discrimination.
At the same time, federal immigration officials have continued targeting students for deportation, following the weekend arrest of Mahmoud Khalil, a prominent Palestinian activist currently detained in Louisiana over his involvement in protests at Columbia University against the war in Gaza.
In a notice to the student body on Thursday, Columbia officials reported that agents from the Department of Homeland Security had searched two additional university residences with a warrant that evening. No arrests or detentions were made, according to the university’s interim president, Katrina Armstrong, who expressed being "heartbroken" by the developments.
The university did not immediately respond to requests for comment regarding the Trump administration’s letter, which has drawn significant backlash from faculty members and free speech organizations.
"Half of this stuff you can't just do, and the other half is insane," said Joseph Howley, a professor of classics at Columbia. "If the federal government can show up and demand a university department be shut down or restructured, then we don't have universities in this country."
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