The Trump administration is shifting its approach to higher education policy after investigating dozens of colleges last year. Instead of targeting individual campuses, officials are now proposing sweeping changes to federal rules governing all U.S. universities. Nicholas Kent, undersecretary for the Education Department, said the administration is 'course correcting' the higher education system.
Federal judges previously blocked the administration from cutting funding at Harvard and UCLA, but the new regulations would still address many of the same issues raised in those investigations. The proposed rules target diversity, equity, and inclusion policies, transgender athletes, antisemitism, and practices perceived as anti-white discrimination. One key change would overhaul the accreditation process to require 'intellectual diversity'—a move critics say is a veiled call for more conservative voices in academia.
The administration's efforts follow a mass exodus of civil rights lawyers who traditionally guide investigations against universities. Despite legal setbacks, President Trump has not backed down from his campaign against what he calls 'wokeness' in academia. The new rules could affect all 6,000 U.S. institutions that receive federal funding.