The faculties of several Big Ten universities have reportedly called for the administrations at their respective schools to unite in a ”NATO-like” defense pact against the Trump administration.
Founded in 1896 and now made up of 16 public universities and two private universities, the Big Ten is the oldest NCAA Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States.
According to The Washington Post, the proposed agreement would allow Big Ten schools to pool their financial resources and share attorneys if a member institution is targeted by President Donald Trump’s administration.
Faculty and university senates at Indiana University, University of Nebraska at Lincoln, University of Michigan, Michigan State University, Rutgers University, and the University of Washington have signed resolutions urging their leaders to enter such a pact.
In the coming weeks, faculty senates at the University of Minnesota, Ohio State University, the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign are also expected to consider adopting similar resolutions.
University administrators will ultimately decide whether to commit to such a compact.
Earlier this month, the Trump administration froze $790 million in federal funding to Northwestern amid an ongoing civil rights investigation reportedly stemming from the representation of a pro-Palestinian activist by one of its legal clinics.
According to a March letter from the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, several other Big Ten schools, including the University of Southern California, Rutgers, the University of Michigan and Indiana University are under investigation for alleged Title VI violations ”relating to antisemitic harassment and discrimination.”
Thus far, federal officials have focused primarily on Ivy League institutions, but that doesn’t mean their scrutiny isn’t subject to change.
”Big Ten institutions haven’t been in the crosshairs, but they can read the writing on the wall,” Jon Fansmith, senior vice president of the American Council on Education, told the Post.
The Trump administration has maintained that its decision to halt federal funding for several higher education institutions was made due to antisemitism on campus and diversity, equity, and inclusion policies.
“Let me be clear: We’re not talking about First Amendment rights at all,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon told Newsmax last week. “What I’m talking about are civil rights violations and safety for these students who are on campus. And the president just said he’s not going to allow it in terms of those universities that are receiving federal dollars.”
On Monday, Harvard University announced a lawsuit against the administration to halt the government’s freeze on more than $2.2 billion in federal grants.
Following Harvard’s refusal to back down, Columbia University’s acting president, Claire Shipman, pledged last week not to allow the government to “require us to relinquish our independence and autonomy,” after initially agreeing to meet the Trump administration’s demands.
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