Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has announced the cancellation of two grants totaling over $2.7 million awarded to Harvard University. Secretary Noem stated that Harvard is "unfit to be entrusted with taxpayer dollars" and demanded records on Harvard's foreign students involved in illegal and violent activities by April 30, 2025, with the potential loss of Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certification as a consequence.
"Harvard bending the knee to antisemitism — driven by its spineless leadership — fuels a cesspool of extremist riots and threatens our national security," Noem said. She criticized Harvard's current standing as an institution of higher learning and questioned its ability to responsibly use taxpayer funds. Noem further stated that "with anti-American, pro-Hamas ideology poisoning its campus and classrooms, Harvard’s position as a top institution of higher learning is a distant memory."
The affected grants include an $800,303 grant for Implementation Science for Targeted Violence Prevention, which Noem claimed cast conservatives as "far-right dissidents" in a biased study. Another grant, totaling $1,934,902 for the Blue Campaign Program Evaluation and Violence Advisement, was termed as a source of "public health propaganda." Noem described both grants as undermining American values and security.
In addition to this action, former President Donald J. Trump had frozen $2.2 billion in federal funding to Harvard, considering the revocation of its tax-exempt status over concerns about its ideological stance.
The department's measures come amid ongoing scrutiny of the university for its response following Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. Secretary Noem noted that "since Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, Harvard’s foreign visa-holding rioters and faculty have spewed antisemitic hate, targeting Jewish students."
Despite its substantial $53.2 billion endowment, Noem made clear that the DHS will no longer fund what she termed as "chaos" at the university. If Harvard fails to prove compliance with its reporting requirements, its privilege to enroll foreign students may be withdrawn.
