Cornell University agreed on Friday to a $60 million deal with the Trump administration that restores more than $250 million in federal funding to the Ivy League school and ends its diversity, equity, and inclusion policies.
Under the deal, Cornell will invest $30 million over three years to bolster the nation’s agricultural research and pay another $30 million to the federal government over the same period. The latter payment serves as a condition for the Trump administration to end its pending civil rights claims against the university.
In return, Cornell will receive its previously terminated federal grants and no longer be subject to Title VI investigations related to accusations of discrimination against Jewish campus community members. By accepting the terms of the agreement, Cornell is not admitting to wrongdoing.
Cornell has also agreed to provide anonymized undergraduate admissions data to the federal government as part of a comprehensive audit, per the text of the agreement. The university will also conduct annual surveys to assess the campus climate, including its effect on Jewish students.
“The months of stop-work orders, grant terminations, and funding freezes have stalled cutting-edge research, upended lives and careers, and threatened the future of academic programs at Cornell,” Cornell President Michael Kotlikoff said in a statement to the campus community. “I am grateful for the dedication and resilience of the faculty, staff, and students who have found ways to continue moving critical work forward throughout these unprecedented events.”
The Trump administration also praised the deal, with Education Secretary Linda McMahon stating that Cornell’s “divisive” DEI policies are no longer in effect.
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Cornell is the latest higher education institution to capitulate to the Trump administration’s demands, following similar financial settlements with Columbia University and Brown University. Cornell’s deal differs from Columbia’s in that an independent monitor is not required for the Ithaca-based school.
Meanwhile, the University of California system is among the institutions resisting Trump’s demands for change on campus. Additionally, the University of Pennsylvania and several other universities rejected the Trump-proposed Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education, which ties federal funding to certain policy concessions, such as refraining from considering race or sex in admissions and hiring practices.
