Northwestern University agreed to pay $75 million to the federal government as part of a deal with the Trump administration to restore millions in frozen federal research dollars.
The university said Friday the agreement would end probes by the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Education on the school’s compliance with anti-discrimination laws. The deal would also permanently close all pending probes by the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division on the university’s compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act’s prohibition against discrimination based on race in admissions.
In April, the administration froze $790 million in federal research grants and contracts, making Northwestern the first institution outside of the Ivy League to be targeted by the White House in response to alleged civil rights violations, including their responses to antisemitism on campus.
Northwestern expects federal funds will start flowing within days and be fully restored within 30 days.
“This is not an agreement the University enters into lightly, but one that was made based on institutional values,” Henry Bienen, the university’s interim president, said in a statement.
The university had “several hard red lines we refused to cross,” including control over who it hires and what students it would admit, he said.
“Northwestern runs Northwestern,” he said. “Period.”
The university did agree to establish a special committee of the Board of Trustees to ensure compliance with the agreement, continue compliance with federal anti-discrimination laws and provide “safe and fair opportunities for women, including single-sex housing for any woman, defined on the basis of sex, who requests such accommodations and all-female sports, locker rooms and showering facilities.”
The university also committed to taking steps to protect Jewish members of its community.
White House and agency spokespeople could not be immediately reached for comment.
Former Northwestern President Michael Schill, who resigned in September, testified before the House education panel last year on his institution’s response to the campus protests. House Republicans slammed Schill’s efforts to deal with student protesters to disband their pro-Palestinian encampments.
Schill defended his decision to negotiate with student protesters and emphasized that he refused to allow the encampments to stay and rejected student demands to divest from companies supporting Israel.



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