When pushback comes from the top: How Columbia University is handling Pushback from the government
- Ivory Williams
- Aug 26
- 3 min read
Every president makes big promises to fix problems in our country during their campaign. For example, former President Biden focused his campaign on addressing concerns around the COVID-19 pandemic, Climate change, and racial injustice. It hasn’t been out of the ordinary for presidents to pick big issues to talk about during elections, even though they don’t always follow through. But now something different is happening. With current President Donald Trump's re-election, one of the biggest problems became wanting to fix how colleges and universities are run.
What's the problem?
One thing made abundantly clear during Donald Trump's campaign run was that colleges would be forced to make changes. He talked about taking on things like “woke” ideologies, diversity and inclusion programs, changing how schools get accredited, dismantling the Department of Education, and dealing with the cost of college and student loans. But unlike many other campaign promises from politicians, he surprisingly followed through. The real question is: how are these colleges and institutions handling this?
Columbia University, an Ivy League Institution in New York City, is currently in the news not for its achievements, but for how it’s dealing with pressure from the federal government. Earlier this year, the government canceled more than $400 million in grants. The school was also threatened with the potential loss of billions of dollars in government support.
Columbia has since made many agreements and deals with the Trump administration to fix the problem. One deal was made with the administration to pay more than $220 million to the federal government to restore federal research money. Another deal was to pay $21 million to resolve another alleged civil rights violation suit.
The University president later stated, “This agreement marks an important step forward after a period of sustained federal scrutiny and institutional uncertainty.” This shows how frustrating and drawn out this situation has been.
Why does it matter?
Columbia is only one of many universities, Ivy League or not, that have been faced with similar problems. If you're a student now or want to go to college one day, hearing news like this can be scary and make you feel hopeless. College is important to many people. Education is a privilege that many of us strive for and wish to continue to be able to have. But beyond learning, it’s also about having the freedom to speak up, share ideas, and be a part of a diverse community. Right now some of those freedoms are being challenged, and that’s why it matters.
What can you do?
Even though all of this may seem daunting, remember that there's always something you can do. You, as a student, can do many things to fight against things that you think are unjust. Something often seen as small can be powerful. Use your voice. Speak up about the things that matter, whether it’s in your classroom, social media, or in your community. Your voice is your most powerful tool, even when it feels like there's others trying to silence you.
Most importantly, the best way to fight back is to educate yourself. Keep reading, stay informed, and continue learning.
To read more, consider following us at Knowherrights and tuning into our blog posts, where we share information just like this!
Here's where you can find out more about Colombia and other universities:
References:
Comments