Harvard University has announced it will allocate $250 million from its own funds to support researchers after President Donald Trump’s administration froze nearly $3 billion in federal grants and contracts in recent weeks.

The prestigious Ivy League institution, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, has become one of the Trump administration’s most prominent targets. President Trump has launched a sweeping campaign to reshape private colleges across the US, accusing them of promoting anti-American, Marxist, and “radical left” ideologies. He has repeatedly criticised Harvard for appointing high-profile Democrats to leadership and teaching positions.

Harvard is suing the Trump administration over the funding freeze, arguing that the move is an unconstitutional attempt to suppress academic freedom and free speech. Most of the frozen grants were designated for research in the medical sciences.

The cuts were announced last month, just hours after Harvard President Dr Alan Garber rejected a detailed set of demands from the Trump administration that called for sweeping changes to the university’s leadership, curriculum, admissions process, and monitoring of ideological views on campus.

In a joint statement on Wednesday, Garber and Provost John Manning accused the Trump administration of halting critical, potentially lifesaving research and described the situation as “an extraordinarily challenging time” for the nation’s oldest and wealthiest university.

As part of its response, Harvard said Garber would take a voluntary 25% pay cut starting in July. The university had earlier imposed a hiring freeze. The $250 million fund, while significant, would not fully offset the losses, the statement added, noting that Harvard was assisting affected researchers in seeking alternative funding.

“The impact of such steps on the nation’s scientific research enterprise could be severe and lasting,” the statement warned.

The Trump administration has also accused Harvard of continuing to use race in admissions decisions and of enabling antisemitism amid last year’s pro-Palestinian protests on US campuses. Harvard maintains that its admissions policies comply with federal law and court rulings, and said it remains committed to combating antisemitism and all forms of discrimination.

A federal judge in Boston has ordered the government to respond to Harvard’s lawsuit by June 9 and scheduled a hearing for July 21.

Faridah Abdulkadiri

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