The Trump administration has unveiled a significant federal civil-rights settlement with Northwestern University, mandating the institution to disburse $75 million. This agreement compels the university to safeguard students and staff from “race-based admissions practices” and any “hostile educational environment” particularly aimed at Jewish students.
Announced jointly by the Department of Justice, Department of Education, and Department of Health and Human Services, this settlement is designed to shield Northwestern from “unlawful discrimination.” The university is tasked with maintaining transparent policies regarding demonstrations, protests, displays, and other forms of expression. Additionally, the agreement requires the implementation of compulsory antisemitism training.
Attorney General Pamela Bondi emphasized the significance of this settlement, stating, “Today’s settlement marks another victory in the Trump Administration’s fight to ensure that American educational institutions protect Jewish students and put merit first.” She added, “Institutions that accept federal funds are obligated to follow civil rights law — we are grateful to Northwestern for negotiating this historic deal.”
Northwestern University is set to fulfill its financial obligation by paying the $75 million to the United States over the course of five years, concluding in 2028.
The backdrop of this agreement is the picturesque Northwestern University campus in Evanston, captured in imagery by Chris Walker for the Chicago Tribune.
This landmark agreement follows a prior $221 million settlement with Columbia University, which resolved multiple federal civil rights investigations. That settlement includes a $200 million payment over three years for alleged discriminatory practices and a $21 million settlement addressing claims of antisemitic discrimination against Jewish faculty, subsequent to the Hamas attacks in Israel on October 7, 2023.
DOE Secretary Linda McMahon called the Northwestern agreement “a huge win for current and future Northwestern students, alumni, faculty, and for the future of American higher education.”
“The deal cements policy changes that will protect students and other members of the campus from harassment and discrimination, and it recommits the school to merit-based hiring and admissions,” she said in a statement. “The reforms reflect bold leadership at Northwestern and they are a roadmap for institutional leaders around the country that will help rebuild public trust in our colleges and universities.”
Northwestern directed Fox News Digital to a statement made by university president Henry Bienen reacting to the agreement, saying it would restore hundreds of millions of dollars in critical research funding.
Attorney General Pam Bondi celebrated a “historic deal” with Northwestern University on Nov. 28. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
“This is not an agreement the University enters into lightly, but one that was made based on institutional values,” Bienen stated. “As an imperative to the negotiation of this agreement, we had several hard red lines we refused to cross: We would not relinquish any control over whom we hire, whom we admit as students, what our faculty teach or how our faculty teach. I would not have signed this agreement without provisions ensuring that is the case.”
Bienen added, “Northwestern runs Northwestern. Period.”
The university president also said the $75 million payment “is not an admission of guilt, but simply a condition of the agreement.” He noted that Northwestern “has not been found in violation of any laws and expressly denies liability regarding all allegations in the now-closed investigations.”
Linda McMahon, U.S. education secretary, called Trump administration’s civil rights agreement with Northwestern “a huge win for current and future Northwestern students, alumni, faculty, and for the future of American higher education.” (Eric Lee/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
In its statement announcing the agreement, DOJ said federal agencies would close their pending investigations and treat Northwestern as eligible for future grants, contracts and awards.
The Trump administration previously put a freeze on approximately $790 million from Northwestern University and over $1 billion in federal funding from Cornell University over potential civil rights investigations at both prestigious schools.
