A woman watches from Carnegie Mellon University as people march along Forbes Avenue in Oakland during a protest in support of Palestine on Friday, October 13, 2023. (Photo by Quinn Glabicki/PublicSource)
A timeline of federal higher ed changes and responses by Pittsburgh-area colleges and universities.
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Here’s how President Donald Trump’s administration has roiled higher ed, and how the University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon University and other local colleges and universities have responded.
This timeline will be updated as developments occur.
April 7
Visas held by five recent graduates and two current CMU students are revoked, following a trend seen at universities across the country. The university reports that no immigration authorities have been on campus, and the students were connected with legal resources.
March 19
A congressional committee sends letters to six universities, including CMU, requesting information regarding Chinese students to assess national security risks. The letter states that U.S. higher ed institutions “are increasingly used as conduits for foreign adversaries to illegally gain access to critical research and advanced technology” and sets an April 1 deadline to turn over the details.
March 14
The U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights opens investigations into CMU and 44 other universities nationwide for alleged Civil Rights Act violations following the guidance set out in the department’s “Dear Colleague” letter. The department said these institutions engaged in “race-exclusionary” practices within their grad programs by partnering with The Ph.D. Project, which “limits eligibility based on the race of participants.”
March 13
After Pitt paused faculty and staff hiring, administrators say that federal actions are not the only reason for the freeze. At a university faculty assembly meeting, Pitt’s Chief Financial Officer Dwayne Pinkney says enrollment trends, inflation and flat state funding were also behind the decision. The freeze would’ve happened “a little later” if not for recent events, he says — federal funding uncertainty was simply the catalyst.
Some faculty members at the meeting voice concerns about needing to fill critical teaching positions and mention they were interviewing candidates when the halt was announced. University Provost Joseph McCarthy says exceptions to the freeze are being developed and hiring decisions going forward will be evaluated based on whether they support and advance Pitt’s mission.
Faculty raise questions about Pitt leadership’s transparency regarding the financial challenges that Pinkney says have persisted over the last three to five years. He acknowledges that they haven’t served faculty well in this area, and vows better communication going forward.
March 10
The Pitt administration sends email announcing a hiring freeze until the end of the fiscal year in June, or beyond, and instructing departments to reduce non-compensation expenses, avoid nonessential travel and limit the purchase of discretionary supplies.
March 6
The National Association of Science Writers announces that Pitt and CMU pulled out of hosting the group’s annual conference, citing financial constraints related to federal funding uncertainty. Pitt’s spokesperson attributed it to “fiscal prudence while we evaluate the evolving landscape.” CMU’s spokesperson similarly cited “the current climate and uncertainties ahead.”
March 3
Christina Clark, La Roche University’s president, sends email to faculty, students and staff updating them on the actions senior leaders have taken to address federal changes, including creation of a task force focused on monitoring federal actions and making recommendations. “There is a lot happening, but I will only communicate on federal actions that have become law and have been implemented. As always, La Roche will comply with local, state and federal laws,” Clark writes.
Feb. 27
Pitt is reported to be in the “early stages” of resuming Ph.D. admissions offers.
Feb. 26
The Community College of Allegheny County sends email to faculty, staff and students stating that work is occurring with stakeholders and national organizations to understand the guidance from the “Dear Colleague” letter. “In the meantime, please know that we continue to prioritize our core values in addressing any necessary modifications which may be required by this new federal guidance. And we remain committed to providing a safe, welcoming and supportive environment,” the email reads.
Feb. 21
Pitt pauses Ph.D. admissions in response to the proposed (but paused) cap on indirect costs associated with National Institutes of Health grants. Parts of Trump’s executive orders targeting diversity, equity and inclusion [DEI] programs are blocked by a federal judge. Pitt Chancellor Joan Gabel releases a message saying that university administrators are reviewing federal guidance, and noting that Pitt is “open to everyone.”
Feb. 20
PublicSource reports that several Pitt and CMU web pages and websites with references to DEI have been removed entirely or altered. A spokesperson for Pitt says the university’s 150,000 web pages are mostly “maintained by individual units or people. It is not uncommon for pages to be published, unpublished or moved for any number of reasons.”
Feb. 14
The U.S. Department of Education sends a “Dear Colleague” letter to schools, colleges and universities stating that consideration of race in admissions, programs, scholarships, graduation ceremonies and “all other aspects of student, academic and campus life” is illegal. This letter didn’t have the force of law but set a 14-day deadline for institutions to comply or risk their federal funding.
Feb. 11
After a temporary restraining order blocks the indirect costs cap, Gabel releases a message stating that although the university isn’t an individual plaintiff in lawsuits challenging Trump administration grant funding decisions, it’s “well represented at the leadership level” of the associations involved and is “providing supporting documentation.”
Feb. 10
Three separate lawsuits in response to the cap are filed by several state attorneys, a nonprofit, and a group of universities and higher education organizations. CMU is a co-plaintiff in one.
Feb. 9
Pitt administration sends email acknowledging the announcement and stating that a financial impact analysis is underway. The university is the country’s sixth-largest recipient of NIH funding among educational institutions. “There is no doubt that our collective scholarly impact could be harmed irreparably, as could our broader mission,” the email notes.
Feb. 7
A 15% cap on indirect costs for research funded by the NIH is announced. Many universities negotiate rates for these costs well above the proposed rate — for example, Pitt’s rate is 59%.
Feb. 3
Ken Gormley, Duquesne University’s president, sends email to students, faculty and staff addressing community concerns around immigration, saying that the university doesn’t have any known undocumented students, but administrators understand worries about “being targeted or detained despite having legal status.” He also announces that working groups are being created to “research and recommend actions” related to Trump administration orders on topics including research funding, immigration and academic freedom.
Jan. 29
The federal Office of Management and Budget [OMB] memo is withdrawn, but plans to scrutinize programs and research not aligned with the new administration’s orders remained.
Jan. 27
OMB directs federal agencies to implement a funding freeze. Agencies are told to evaluate and identify places where spending conflicts with new executive orders, leaving institutions scrambling to evaluate the implications.
Jan. 24
Farnam Jahanian, CMU’s president, releases message that the university is evaluating recent executive orders and expects it will take several weeks to understand their impact. He urges “meaningful, civil discourse that makes space for many perspectives.”
Jan. 20
Trump returns to office and begins signing a barrage of executive orders. More than 20 currently have implications for higher ed. Orders call for stricter vetting for those receiving visas; no funding for DEI programs; investigations into universities with endowments above $1 billion; reversal of protections for transgender students; and heightened deportation of undocumented students.
Maddy Franklin reports on higher ed for PublicSource, in partnership with Open Campus, and can be reached at madison@publicsource.org.
This story was fact-checked by Rich Lord.
This article first appeared on PublicSource and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
