Overview

• President Trump announced on May 28 he is considering reallocating roughly $3 billion in grant funding away from Harvard University toward trade schools nationwide
• The administration has also instructed federal agencies to cancel $100 million in Harvard contracts and previously froze $2.2 billion in grants and $60 million in contracts over alleged antisemitism
• Education specialists say most federal research awards—especially for scientific work—are tied to competitive projects at universities and cannot be simply reassigned to vocational institutions
• Trade school representatives support increased funding for career training but caution their programs lack the faculty and facilities required for university-level research grants
• Harvard has filed lawsuits challenging the funding freezes and contract cancellations, arguing the measures exceed presidential authority and threaten vital research initiatives