Last updated Nov. 26 at 8:10 p.m.
The White House is nearing a deal with Northwestern that would restore “hundreds of millions” of the University’s frozen funds, close a federal antisemitism investigation and require NU to pay the federal government $75 million, The New York Times reported Wednesday.
A White House official confirmed in an email to The Daily that negotiations are ongoing, but did not confirm any proposed terms of an agreement.
“The parties are negotiating in good faith and making progress,” a U.S. Department of Education official wrote in a statement to The Daily. “We look forward to announcing a final agreement soon that will ensure all students have equal learning opportunities, hiring and admissions decisions are merit-based, and the university once again prioritizes truth seeking and academic excellence.”
The $75 million figure would be the second highest fine a university has paid to the Trump administration, after Columbia University’s settlement of more than $200 million. Some other universities facing scrutiny have agreed to various demands without having to pay a fine.
In April, the Trump administration froze $790 million in federal funding for NU, prompting more than 100 stop-work orders affecting federally funded research. Since then, more than $1.06 billion in awards from the National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation have gone unpaid. The exact amount of frozen funding that would be restored under the deal is unclear.
After the funding freeze, the University faced a “significant budget gap” that couldn’t be bridged without cutting personnel costs, culminating in its July announcement that it would eliminate more than 400 staff positions.
Former University President Michael Schill said in his September resignation that “difficult problems remain, particularly at the federal level.”
Interim President Henry Bienen told NU’s Faculty Assembly on Oct. 15 that he wanted to make a deal with the Trump administration but would not sign an agreement that “hinders the autonomy of the University.”
In contrast, the Faculty Assembly passed a resolution during the same meeting opposing any NU “capitulation” to the Trump administration.
If NU follows through with the negotiations, it would join the ranks of other elite institutions that have brokered deals with the Trump administration, including Columbia, Cornell University, Brown University, the University of Virginia and the University of Pennsylvania.
The University did not respond to a request for comment by the time of publication.
Email: [email protected]
X: @IsaiahStei27
Bluesky: @isaiahsteinberg
Email: [email protected]
Email: [email protected]
X: @ninethkk
Related Stories:
— Federal government freezes $790 million in funding for Northwestern
— Northwestern Faculty Assembly passes resolution opposing Trump compact, amends bylaws
