Brown University became the second academic institution so far to reject President Donald Trump's new "compact" for colleges, with university president Christina Paxson firing off a firm letter to Trump refusing to be part of it.
Under the terms of the compact, universities have to freeze tuition hikes for five years, limit foreign undergraduate enrollment to 15 percent of the student body, and make changes to how grading works.
Already, MIT came out as the first college on record refusing to take part. Brown, earlier this year, agreed to a much more limited deal with Trump to maintain federal funding — but Paxson made clear in her letter that the new compact goes way too far.
"While a number of provisions in the Compact reflect similar principles as the July agreement — as well as our own commitments to affordability and the free exchange of ideas — I am concerned that the Compact by its nature and by various provisions would restrict academic freedom and undermine the autonomy of Brown’s governance, critically compromising our ability to fulfill our mission," wrote Paxson.
"In return for Brown signing the July agreement, the federal government restored the University’s research funding and permanently closed three pending investigations into shared ancestry discrimination and race discrimination," she continued. "But most important, Brown’s existing agreement with the federal government expressly affirms the government’s lack of authority to dictate our curriculum or the content of academic speech — a principle that is not reflected in the Compact."
Ultimately, she wrote, "My decision to decline participation in the Compact aligns with the views of the vast majority of Brown stakeholders. The Brown community will remain focused on meeting the established commitments under the July 30 agreement, while safeguarding our mission and foundational academic values.
