Cornell University to pay $60M in deal with Trump administration to restore federal funding

Cornell University has agreed to pay $60 million to restore federal research funding and end investigations into the Ivy League school.

Cornell President Michael Kotlikoff announced the agreement Friday. The New York-based university will pay $30 million directly to the U.S. government and another $30 million toward agriculture and farming research programs.

The agreement upholds the university’s academic freedom while restoring more than $250 million in research funding that the government withheld amid investigations into alleged civil rights violations, Kotlikoff said.

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“The decades-long research partnership between Cornell and the federal government is critical to advancing the university’s core mission and to our continuing contributions to the nation’s health, welfare, and economic and military strength,” he said.

“This agreement revives that partnership while affirming the university’s commitment to the principles of academic freedom, independence and institutional autonomy that, from our founding, have been integral to our excellence,” he added.

Kotlikoff said the agreement recognizes Cornell’s right to independently establish its own policies and procedures, choose whom to hire and admit, and determine what is taught without government monitoring or approval.

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The six-page agreement requires the university to comply with federal civil rights laws, including those involving antisemitism and racial discrimination. In addition, the university agreed to provide the Department of Justice’s “Guidance for Recipients of Federal Funding Regarding Unlawful Discrimination” as a training resource to faculty and staff, and will continue to conduct annual surveys to evaluate the campus climate for Cornell students.

“Recipients of federal funding must fully adhere to federal civil rights laws and ensure that harmful DEI policies do not discriminate against students,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “Today’s deal is a positive outcome that illustrates the value of universities working with this administration — we are grateful to Cornell for working towards this agreement.”

In April, the Trump administration froze more than $1 billion in federal funding for Cornell over potential civil rights violations.

President Donald Trump suspended federal funding to every Ivy League school except the University of Pennsylvania and Dartmouth College amid investigations into anti-Israel protests that have taken place on their campuses since October 2023.

The administration said it was taking a more aggressive role in addressing campus antisemitism, accusing President Joe Biden of failing to hold universities accountable for violent protests.

“The months of stop-work orders, grant terminations, and funding freezes have stalled cutting-edge research, upended lives and careers, and threatened the future of academic programs at Cornell,” Kotlikoff said.