Headlines in Higher Ed: Week of August 4th, 2025
Harvard mulls as Brown settles, senators reject Trump cuts, and UC reveals record acceptance
Harvard Considers Half-Billion Payout as Columbia, Brown Already Reap Rewards
Harvard University is reportedly considering a massive $500 million settlement to end its standoff with the Trump administration to unlock more than $2 billion in frozen federal research funds, according to the New York Times. The potential deal follows months of legal disputes, during which the administration accused Harvard of failing to curb antisemitism and demanded reforms related to civil liberties, DEI programs, and free expression. Despite initial resistance, the Ivy League institution has been quietly negotiating to avoid deeper financial damage and preserve its ability to host international students. President Trump has made it clear he expects Harvard to pay more than Columbia, which settled last week.
Office of the President, Columbia University
After paying $221 million and agreeing to make structural changes to restore about $400 million in federal funding, Columbia University reported that over half of its suspended grants have been reinstated. Brown University followed with its own deal shortly after, but was not required to make a payment, instead pledging $50 million to workforce development in Rhode Island while agreeing to share admissions data and adopt certain definitions of gender and discrimination. Researchers have seen terminated NIH grants restored, and Brown officials expect full resumption of funds from other government agencies within 30 days. Among other Ivy League members, the University of Pennsylvania reached a deal last month, leaving Princeton, Cornell, and Harvard as the remaining schools with federal funding freezes.
Rapid Recap
🤕 Medicaid Cuts Could Mean Loss of Health Insurance for College Students New rules will require college students to prove they're working or enrolled in school at least half-time, but confusing rules, strict paperwork, and tight deadlines could cause many to lose coverage.
💸⚖ UCLA Loses $339 Million in Grants Amid DOJ Accusations Agencies like the NSF and NIH have halted nearly 300 grants, citing the university’s disconnect with agency goals, while the Department of Justice has given UCLA an August 5th deadline to resolve “evidence of systemic antisemitism.”
💵🙋♀️ Nearly 600 Duke Staff Take Buyouts In order to help meet the university’s $350 million cost reduction goal, employees accepted voluntary separation, with another 250 considering the offer, and plans by the institution to begin involuntary layoffs later this month.
🏛️🤝 Senators Unite to Block Trump’s Education Cuts In a rare show of bipartisanship, 26 U.S. senators (14 R, 12 D) of the Appropriations Committee voted to reject nearly all of President Trump’s proposed cuts to K-12 and higher education. Go on…
Senators Unite to Block Trump’s Education Cuts
Instead the committee advanced a Senate budget that slightly increases funding for key programs like Title I, special education, and Head Start. Only three committee members voted against the Senate proposal, which is headed to a full floor vote in September. The bill also protects the Department of Education from being downsized or having its core duties shifted to other agencies, and it imposes new rules to ensure funds are delivered to schools on time. Trump had aimed to slash overall education funding by 15%, collapse 18 grant programs into one, and give states more control over special education dollars, but none of that made it into the Senate plan. Still, even if the bill passes Congress, the Trump administration has found ways to withhold billions in approved funding and may try again to delay or block funds.
UC Releases Class of 2025 Record-Level Acceptance Results
The University of California (UC) has admitted a record number of new students for fall 2025, including over 100,000 first-year students from California - a 7% increase from last year. Compared to 2024, UC also admitted 17% more international and 9% more out-of-state students, many of whom pay higher tuition. These increases happened despite the Trump administration’s efforts to tighten visa rules and restrictions on what colleges can consider in admissions. Still, UC reported rising numbers of admitted students from all racial groups, as well as more low-income and first-generation students. In fact, Latinos made up the largest group of admitted students, especially at Merced and Riverside, while Asian Americans led at other campuses like UCLA and Berkeley. Both UCLA and Berkeley had the most selective rates at around 10% of freshmen applicants, while others exceeded 25%. About 77% of all applicants were accepted into at least one UC. Details for individual schools can be found on the official UC website or by checking the news release page of your favorite campuses, like UC Berkeley.
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