President Donald Trump escalated his campaign to overhaul higher education, vowing to restore merit and end what he calls “woke, socialist, and anti-American ideology” that is corrupting U.S. universities.
In a lengthy Truth Social post Sunday, Trump said America’s colleges were once a “great strategic asset” but have become “corrupting our youth and society.” He pledged to remake the system “fast,” through a sweeping reform agenda aimed at eliminating discriminatory practices and restoring “merit and hard work before ‘group identity.'”
Trump’s initiative marks a defining battle in his second term, pitting the White House against some of the nation’s most prestigious universities over admissions, hiring, and campus culture.
His administration has moved to punish institutions it says violate civil rights laws while rewarding those that agree to federal oversight under what he calls “forward-looking agreements.”
“These Institutions will commit to High Quality Standards, an Intellectually Open Campus Environment (including the protection of Free Speech and Debate), Institutional Neutrality, major steps toward Affordability for Students, and an end to the entanglement of Foreign Money,” Trump wrote. “Americans deserve to be treated in accordance with their demonstrated achievements and potential.”
Trump has used the power of federal funding as leverage, freezing or cutting billions of dollars in research grants to universities accused of discrimination, antisemitism, or ideological bias. Harvard University and Columbia University have been major flashpoints, facing federal investigations and the loss of grants until they agreed to policy changes.
A federal judge in September ruled the administration’s funding freeze against Harvard unlawful, calling it a “targeted, ideologically motivated assault.” The ruling temporarily restored access to more than $2 billion in federal funding, but Trump vowed to appeal.
He said universities that continue “illegal discrimination based on race or sex” will face “swift and forceful enforcement of Federal Law.”
The administration has also offered universities new incentives: priority access to federal funding if they abandon diversity, equity, and inclusion programs and reject “race or sex-based preferences” in hiring and admissions. Schools that comply, Trump said, will help bring about a “Golden Age of Academic Excellence in Higher Education.”
The president’s broader reform effort includes dismantling the Education Department, limiting foreign student visas, and redefining Title IX to exclude transgender athletes from women’s sports. Trump has ordered stricter reporting of foreign donations and new accreditation standards designed to ensure what the White House calls “ideological neutrality.”
Supporters argue the plan restores accountability and fairness to higher education, while critics warn it erodes academic freedom and civil rights protections.
Trump insists his agenda will revive “the fundamentally American value” of merit-based opportunity. “Our Nation will be unstoppable,” he wrote.
“We will once again have Universities that develop the talents of our amazing young people to lead lives of Success and Fulfillment, cultivate a Love of Country and a Culture of Achievement.”
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