Universities Can Do Research as Long as It’s ‘In Sync’ With Trump Administration, Education Secretary Says

As the Trump administration continues its attack on higher education, Education Secretary Linda McMahon has laid out some guidance for how universities can keep the attack dogs at bay: just share the values of the administration and do exactly as it asks. “Universities should continue to be able to do research as long as they’re abiding by the laws and in sync, I think, with the administration and what the administration is trying to accomplish,” McMahon said in an interview with CNBC on Wednesday morning. The statement came as the Trump administration is locked in a standoff with Harvard University over, in part, the school’s diversity, equity, and inclusion practices. Yesterday, Trump ordered all federal agencies to cancel their contracts with Harvard, cutting off the university’s access to about $100 million in funding. That follows an earlier attempt to freeze $2.2 billion in federal funds designated to go to Harvard and a pause on all new federal grant funding to the school. Tru ... Read full article.