Trump Administration Asks Nine Elite Universities to Sign Conservative Academic Compact

The Trump administration has introduced a "Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education," asking nine prestigious universities to commit to a set of conservative policies in exchange for priority access to federal funding and benefits. The compact includes controversial provisions such as capping international undergraduate enrollment at 15%, banning race and sex considerations in hiring and admissions, legally defining gender based on biological sex, and requiring standardized tests like the SAT or ACT for admissions. Universities are also urged to dismantle departments accused of suppressing conservative viewpoints and to limit speech and actions related to societal and political events, with compliance enforced through independent audits reviewed by the Justice Department. Institutions unwilling to comply are free to forego federal benefits, but critics argue the compact undermines academic freedom and resembles a loyalty oath. This initiative marks a strategic shift from earlier threats to cut funding toward offering financial incentives laced with punitive undertones, continuing the administration’s broader efforts to impose its ideological priorities on higher education. The universities targeted include Brown, MIT, Dartmouth, University of Pennsylvania, Vanderbilt, University of Virginia, University of Southern California, University of Texas, and University of Arizona, with some already having existing agreements with the administration.