DHS cancels Harvard grants, threatens foreign student program

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) canceled more than $2.7 million in grants to Harvard University and warned the institution that it could lose the ability to enroll international students unless it hands over detailed records on visa holders’ alleged involvement in illegal or violent activity.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem accused Harvard on Wednesday of fostering an extremist campus environment and promoting “anti-American, pro-Hamas ideology,” which she said endangers national security and disqualifies the university from receiving federal funds.

The two DHS grants canceled include: $800,303 for the Implementation Science for Targeted Violence Prevention, which DHS said “branded conservatives as far-right dissidents in a shockingly skewed study,” and $1,934,902 under the Blue Campaign Program, which DHS labeled as funding for “public health propaganda.”

“These grants undermine America’s values and security,” the department said in the press release.

The DHS also issued a formal letter to Harvard demanding records on any alleged illegal or violent activities by its foreign student visa holders. The university must comply by April 30 or risk losing its certification under the Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP), which allows it to enroll international students.

“Harvard bending the knee to antisemitism — driven by its spineless leadership — fuels a cesspool of extremist riots and threatens our national security,” Noem said. “America demands more from universities entrusted with taxpayer dollars.”

Noem’s announcement adds to the Trump administration’s escalating campaign against Harvard. Earlier today, it was reported that the Department of Justice formally requested that the IRS revoke the university’s tax-exempt status, citing what it called “persistent violations of public trust” and failure to address antisemitism on campus. That request came just after the White House froze $2.2 billion in federal grants and $60 million in contract value to the school.

Harvard has rejected the administration’s demands. In a statement on Monday, University President Alan M. Garber said the school would not compromise its constitutional rights or academic independence, calling the government’s demands “unprecedented.”

“No government—regardless of which party is in power—should dictate what private universities can teach, whom they can admit and hire, and which areas of study and inquiry they can pursue,” Garber said.

President Donald Trump called Harvard “a joke” in a social media post on Wednesday and accused the institution of promoting “hate and stupidity.” Trump specifically criticized the university’s hiring of former mayors Bill de Blasio and Lori Lightfoot, and reiterated his call for the school to lose all federal funding.