**Cornell University Reaches Agreement with Trump Administration to Restore Federal Funding**
Cornell University announced it has reached an agreement with the Trump administration to restore its federal funding. As part of the deal, the university will pay $30 million directly to the federal government to resolve claims brought by the Justice Department. Additionally, Cornell will invest $30 million in U.S. agriculture research.
The university is among several institutions the Department of Education warned it was investigating for potential Title VI violations related to antisemitic harassment and discrimination amid campus protests over the war in Gaza. Cornell was also under scrutiny concerning how it considers race in the admissions process.
Similarly, the University of Virginia recently reached a separate agreement with the Trump administration, resulting in the administration dropping its probes into that university.
In a letter addressed to the Cornell community, Cornell President Michael I. Kotlikoff detailed the impact of the funding interruptions, stating, “Since April of this year, Cornell has been subject to more than $250 million in federal funding interruptions, which have disrupted the research of faculty and students across all campuses.”
He continued, “Today I write to share that Cornell has reached an agreement with the federal government to immediately restore and continue the university’s research funding.” Kotlikoff emphasized that, “The resolution is explicit that Cornell’s agreement to these terms is not an admission of wrongdoing.”
Under the agreement, payments will be made over three years. In return, the federal government has agreed to close all ongoing investigations and reviews involving Cornell.
The letter confirmed, “Cornell has not been found in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 in any of the investigations or compliance reviews of the university’s programs pending at the Department of Justice, Department of Education, or Department of Health and Human Services, and the government has agreed to close all of these investigations and reviews.”
Furthermore, “The government has agreed to restore terminated federal grants, release all withheld funds for active grants, and consider Cornell fully eligible for new grants and funding awards, without disadvantage or preference.”
Kotlikoff also noted that the agreement “explicitly recognizes Cornell’s right to independently establish our policies and procedures, choose whom to hire and admit, and determine what we teach, without intrusive government monitoring or approvals.”
CBS News has reached out to the White House for comment regarding the agreement.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cornell-university-agreement-trump-administration-doj-30-million/
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