Brown Receives $250M in Federal Funds - Those Monies Are Now at Risk

Brown Receives $250M in Federal Funds - Those Monies Are Now at Risk

Brown University is facing the potential of losing hundreds of millions in federal funds.

The Trump administration announced last week that it was canceling $400,000,000 in federal grants to Columbia University.

Columbia and other schools are being targeted for allowing anti-semitism on campus.

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Monday, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) sent letters to 60 institutions of higher education warning them of potential enforcement actions if they do not fulfill their obligations under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act to protect Jewish students on campus, including uninterrupted access to campus facilities and educational opportunities. The letters are addressed to all U.S. universities that are presently under investigation for Title VI violations relating to antisemitic harassment and discrimination. 

“The Department is deeply disappointed that Jewish students studying on elite U.S. campuses continue to fear for their safety amid the relentless antisemitic eruptions that have severely disrupted campus life for more than a year. University leaders must do better,” said Secretary of Education Linda McMahon. “U.S. colleges and universities benefit from enormous public investments funded by U.S. taxpayers. That support is a privilege, and it is contingent on scrupulous adherence to federal anti-discrimination laws.”  

Further complicating the decision by the Trump administration is the Department of Education's announcement on Tuesday afternoon that it is laying off thousands of the agency's workers.

 

$250 Million at Risk

Brown, in February, in a letter to the “Brown Community,” wrote, “Brown received more than $250 million in federal funding in Fiscal Year 2024 from these agencies [NIH, but also the Department of Defense, Department of Veterans Affairs, NASA and other federal agencies].”

Brown has faced criticism for its management of anti-Israeli protests by donors and members of the Brown Corporation.

 

Timeline of Issues Linked to the Controversy at Brown:

 

November, 2023

A GoLocal exclusive unveiled that Brown University received over $11 million in funding from Palestine.

 

November, 2023

Brown University blocks the media from covering a vigil on campus. Students reportedly jeered Brown President Christina Paxson.

 

April, 2024

Brown University’s Rabbi called the encampment on campus "anti-Israel."

The on-campus Brown Rabbi, Josh Bolton, forewarned, “As similar encampments at Columbia and Yale devolved to include incidents of antisemitic harassment, we are approaching this situation with meaningful concern and preparedness."

He said the efforts taken by the University should "greatly lower risk factors for students."

The encampment at Brown was established on the main green, officially called College Green.

At Brown in 2023 and 2024, there have been numerous protests on campus and off, starting almost immediately after the Hamas attack on Israel in October.

A number of the protests have featured chanting anti-Semitic refrains.

"My colleagues and I are closely monitoring events on the Main Green, where anti-Israel protesters have set up an 'encampment' -- the latest in a string of anti-Israel actions that have disrupted and divided the University community since October," Bolton wrote.

 

April, 2024

Brown Gets a “D” From Anti-Defamation League for Anti-Semitism on Campus

 

May, 2024

A billionaire donor to Brown University said he is pausing his giving — due to the Ivy League institution’s deal with pro-Palestinian protesters. 

“The real estate mogul Barry Sternlicht’s scathing criticism of his alma mater is the most immediate blowback against the school’s deal to end protests on campus,” reported The New York Times. 

“One of Brown University’s major donors, the billionaire real estate mogul Barry Sternlicht, sharply criticized the school’s agreement to hold a board vote on cutting investments tied to Israel, calling it 'unconscionable' and saying he had 'paused' donations to the school,” wrote the Times. 

 

September, 2024

A member of Brown University’s board of trustees resigned over the decision by the school to vote to divest from investments in Israel. He has served as a trustee since 2019.

Joseph Edelman, the founder of New York City-based hedge fund Perceptive Advisors, took to the editorial pages of the Wall Street Journal to announce his resignation. Paxson, in late May, announced a deal with student protestors that ended the campus sit-in — in exchange for a vote by the Board Corporation to take up a vote on divestiture. 

“As a member of the Brown University board of trustees, I disagree with the upcoming divestment vote on Israel. I am concerned about what Brown’s willingness to hold such a vote suggests about the university’s attitude toward rising antisemitism on campus and a growing political movement that seeks the destruction of the state of Israel,” Edelman wrote in the WSJ.