Garber Promises To ‘Engage’ With Federal Antisemitism Task Force After Funding Threats

Harvard President Alan M. Garber ’76 wrote that he would welcome the opportunity to work with the White House in an email to Harvard affiliates just hours after the Trump administration initiated a review of more than $8 billion in federal funding.

Garber did not specify what exactly Harvard would discuss with the Trump administration or any demands that the University was asked to satisfy.

The Trump administration’s Monday decision to review Harvard’s federal funding marked a dramatic escalation in its threats against Harvard and brought Republicans’ long-standing promises to a head. The review was launched in connection with a federal task force probing antisemitism complaints at Harvard.

Garber wrote in his email that Harvard would work with the Trump administration to answer questions regarding antisemitism on campus.

“We will engage with members of the federal government’s task force to combat antisemitism to ensure that they have a full account of the work we have done and the actions we will take going forward to combat antisemitism,” he wrote.

Garber’s email condemned the cuts to research funding, writing that cutting off the flow of money would “halt life-saving research and imperil important scientific research and innovation” — consistent with Harvard’s past messaging.

But he struck a conciliatory tone, writing that Harvard was “not perfect” and that antisemitism was “present on our campus.”

“Antisemitism is a critical problem that we must and will continue to address,” Garber wrote. “As an institution and as a community, we acknowledge our shortcomings, pursue needed change, and build stronger bonds that enable all to thrive.”

Garber wrote that he had experienced antisemitism during his tenure as Harvard’s president and that campus antisemitism was “damaging” to students’ learning experiences. The unusual appeal to his personal experience served as a reminder — to University affiliates and to Washington — that Harvard has for more than a year been led by a Jewish president.

Garber’s email was similar in both wording and tone to the message that former interim Columbia President Katrina Armstrong issued shortly after the Trump administration cut $400 million in federal funding from the Ivy League institution, demanding the university introduce new protest restrictions and place several regional studies programs in academic receivership.

Armstrong’s March 7 message, in which she vowed Columbia would “do better” in the fight against antisemitism, presented the federal demands as aligned with Columbia’s values — and preceded her decision two weeks later to accept many of the White House’s conditions.

Even so, Garber seemed to acknowledge widespread criticism among faculty of Columbia’s concessions, writing that his administration will “take the measures that will move Harvard and its vital mission forward while protecting our community and its academic freedom.”

If the Trump administration does not back down from its threats, Garber could find himself caught in a legitimacy crisis — attempting to stave off devastating cuts to the University and its affiliated hospitals, but risking outcry from faculty and students who see concessions as compromising Harvard’s institutional independence.

But Monday’s email also seemed like an effort to prevent the worst-case scenario. Garber reiterated the policy changes Harvard had introduced since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel — which include tightened policies on the use of campus spaces; stricter time, place, and manner limits on protests; and revised nondiscrimination guidance that now includes a definition of antisemitism that condemns certain criticisms of Israel.

“We have strengthened our rules and our approach to disciplining those who violate them,” he wrote.

Harvard has spent the last few months preparing aggressively for significant losses to its funding — especially in the wake of Trump’s repeated threats against research funding. Earlier this month, Garber announced a Harvard-wide hiring freeze to safeguard against “further adjustments” in federal funding policy.

While the review puts nearly $9 billion in federal funding at risk of being cut, the Trump administration has not yet canceled any federal grants or contracts to Harvard as part of the task force investigation.

—Staff writer Dhruv T. Patel can be reached at dhruv.patel@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @dhruvtkpatel.

—Staff writer Grace E. Yoon can be reached at grace.yoon@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @graceunkyoon.