University of Arizona Rejects Trump’s Academic Pact

The University of Arizona has become the seventh U.S. university to reject former President Trump’s proposal to align higher education with his conservative agenda. The initiative sought to condition the allocation of federal funding to universities that agreed to promote changes in academic culture, admissions criteria, and hiring practices in accordance with Trump’s ideological platform.

In a letter to the Department of Education, University of Arizona President Suresh Garimella defended academic freedom and emphasized that research funding must be provided “strictly on merit.” In addition to rejecting the pact, the university reaffirmed its commitment to federal anti-discrimination laws and reiterated its institutional independence.

Other prestigious universities, including Brown, MIT, and the University of Pennsylvania, have also turned down the agreement, while others are still evaluating their positions regarding the proposal. The Trump administration has asserted that universities signing the pact would receive significant financial benefits; however, the initiative has sparked widespread opposition among students and faculty members.

Meanwhile, U.S. universities have recently become the scene of numerous protests against Israel, where students have demanded justice and respect for Palestinian rights. During the previous academic year, American colleges and universities emerged as focal points of student mobilization in support of Palestine, in response to the “bloody massacres committed by Israel in Gaza.” These protests later spread to other higher education institutions around the world, calling on universities to divest from companies linked to the Israeli regime.