Harvard mulls paying US$500 million for job training scheme to end Trump feud

Harvard University has signalled it is willing to pay US$500 million for workforce training programmes as part of a settlement with the White House to restore more than US$2 billion in frozen federal funds, according to a person familiar with the negotiations.

The administration is open to Harvard and other colleges paying penalties in the form of contributions to workforce training programmes, the person said. Last month, Brown University agreed to pay US$50 million over ten years for such programmes in its home state of Rhode Island. Harvard has repeatedly ruled out paying a direct fine to the government, as Columbia University agreed to do.

Agreement on how to pay a penalty would bring the Ivy League university closer to ending a months-long stand-off with the White House, which began over accusations that Harvard failed to confront campus antisemitism during pro-Palestinian student protests. It quickly expanded to target DEI and admissions practices, international student enrolment, and alleged faculty political bias and collaboration with China.

Harvard has pushed back, filing multiple lawsuits against the administration and publicly condemning a campaign that university president Alan Garber has called “unmoored from the law”.

Under the current terms of negotiation, Harvard’s deal does not include the appointment of a federal monitor, according to the person familiar with the situation – a sticking point for the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based school, whose leaders have insisted on measures to preserve institutional autonomy throughout the negotiations. Columbia accepted an independent monitor who will oversee compliance for the next three years.

But the Trump administration is likely to insist on some kind of strong enforcement mechanism for Harvard as part of a deal, according to the person, who asked not to be named to discuss ongoing talks.