California Governor Gavin Newsom recently sent universities in the state a shot across the bow. He is worried about a controversial compact that was proposed by the Trump administration. As of now, the compact has been officially introduced to nine other leading institutions — including the University of Southern California (USC). This entails huge shifts in campus recruitment and retention policies, and many view this as an attack on academic freedom and diversity.
The compact also requires signatory universities to purge their faculties of departments seen to be intolerant or disrespectful of conservative ideas. It caps the number of international students on campus at 15%. It limits representation from any one country to no more than 5%. The compact goes against the Trump administration’s narrow definition of gender and limits universities’ ability to engage in political speech as an employer.
Back in March, Governor Newsom dropped a bombshell. He announced that any California public university that endorsed this compact would “immediately” lose state funding, such as Cal Grants—including California’s $2.8 billion-dollar student financial aid program. This policy directly targets the compact’s implications, which Newsom’s office characterized as “nothing short of a hostile takeover of America’s universities.”
In fact, there are currently over 120 U.S. universities that would already surpass the proposed 15% limit on international students. This cohort comprises outstanding universities like USC, Columbia University, Emory University and Boston University. The Trump administration has described universities that sign the compact as “good actors” and “reformers” committed to enhancing the quality of education.
Newsom’s remarks are symptomatic of a much larger and nationwide attack on the academic freedom of higher education. He emphasized that California will not support institutions that “sell out their students, professors, researchers, and surrender academic freedom.” The compact aims to prevent academic environments that “purposefully punish, belittle, and even spark violence against conservative ideas,” according to May Mailman from the Trump administration.
As conversations continue about this compact, the possible impact on California’s higher education future is huge. Universities are bracing for the possibility of losing this critical funding. Consequently, the question of whether the provision protects academic freedom or requires political alignment will spark a new battle royale.