Columbia agrees to few Trump demands after $400 mn funding freeze, says ‘will adopt a new definition of antisemitism’

Columbia University has agreed to some of Trump administration's demand after it froze $400 million in federal funding to the school.

The University has banned masks and expand campus police powers. It has also agreed to appoint a senior vice provost to oversee the Middle East, South Asian and African Studies department, statement released by the University stated on Friday.

Last week, the federal government urged the school to place the department under “academic receivership.” It also called for an overhaul of international recruiting and admissions for both undergraduate and graduate programmes.

“Freedom of expression is what enables the rigorous debate and free inquiry on which our academic mission depends,” Columbia said. “But demonstrations and other protest activities that occur inside academic buildings and places where academic activities take place present a direct impediment to maintaining our core academic mission.”

As part of the sweeping reforms, the university will also adopt a new definition of antisemitism and expand “intellectual diversity” by staffing up its Institute for Israel and Jewish Studies, according to a letter published Friday by the interim president, Katrina Armstrong.

In her letter, Armstrong said the university had worked hard to “address the legitimate concerns raised both from within and without our Columbia community, including by our regulators, with respect to the discrimination, harassment, and antisemitic acts our Jewish community has faced.”

“The way Columbia and Columbians have been portrayed is hard to reckon with,” she added. “We have challenges, yes, but they do not define us.”

Why was the government funding stopped?

Columbia aims to get funding reinstated after the White House ordered the cuts earlier this month, citing antisemitism complaints by Jewish students. President Donald Trump’s demands followed a series of pro-Palestinian protests that have roiled Columbia’s New York City campus since the 7 October, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel.

The Trump administration has repeatedly accused Columbia University of letting antisemitism go unchecked at protests against Israel that began at the university last spring and quickly spread to other campuses — a characterization disputed by those involved in the demonstrations.

The new internal security force of 36 members will be empowered to remove people from campus or arrest them. The mask ban will include exceptions for religious and health reasons, while anyone protesting with a mask who is asked to present their university identification must do so.

(With inputs from Bloomberg and AP)