Interim President Henry Bienen promised the Northwestern community on Tuesday that “essential funding needs” will continue through the end of the year for faculty researchers impacted by the University’s $790 million federal funding freeze in April.
A week after the freeze, the University announced its commitment to continuing funding research affected by around 100 stop-work orders until the future of NU’s federal funding became more clear.
Throughout this, researchers have been forced to adapt to symptoms of the Trump administration’s decision — a hiring freeze struck in June and more than 400 staff positions eliminated at the end of July.
“We continue to urge fiscal responsibility, including the conservative use of funds to help minimize University risk and extend the time that Northwestern can support our research community,” Bienen and Peter Barris, Board of Trustees chair, wrote in a statement.
According to the statement, NU and its Board of Trustees had been committed for months to sustaining “critical research” despite the federal actions, and they reaffirmed this commitment at the most recent Board meeting.
The University will continue its efforts to regain the federal funding that was promised to its investigators, the statement read.
NU is “working diligently” to support faculty, postdocs, staff and students who drive its global impact, according to the statement.
“These efforts are grounded in core principles we share as an intellectual community: the preservation of academic freedom and the independent operation of our University,” Bienen and Barris wrote. “These values are essential to our ability to pursue truth and address the world’s most complex challenges.”
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