Brown University Rejects Trump Administration's Education Compact, Citing Academic Freedom

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Brown University has become the latest Ivy League school to reject the Trump administration's Compact for Academic Excellence, a federal initiative linking university funding to adherence with new government guidelines on speech, diversity policies, and institutional governance.

In a letter released Tuesday, Brown President Christina H. Paxson said the university "cannot, in good conscience, endorse or sign" the compact, arguing that it "poses unacceptable risks to academic freedom and university autonomy."

"We will not accept terms that would compromise the independence of our faculty or the integrity of our research," Paxson wrote in a statement posted on the university's website. "Our commitment to free inquiry and the open exchange of ideas is fundamental to who we are as an institution."

The Trump administration unveiled the compact late last month as part of its broader higher-education policy reform. The initiative aims to tie access to federal research and grant funding to compliance with standards that the White House says are designed to "restore intellectual balance" and "end discrimination in higher education."

Brown joins MIT, Harvard, and Yale in rejecting the agreement, which critics say would give Washington excessive influence over university operations. Supporters, however, argue that it encourages transparency and accountability in academia.

In her letter, Paxson emphasized that Brown "deeply values its partnerships with the federal government" but said that any collaboration "must be consistent with our principles of institutional independence."

The decision marks a growing rift between elite universities and the Trump administration over how federal funding should intersect with campus policy and free-speech rights. Similar statements from other Ivy League presidents are expected in the coming days.