Northwestern President Resigns Amid Pressure From Trump Admin
Northwestern President Resigns Amid Pressure From Trump Administration
Throughout its first year, the Trump administration has made reshaping higher education one of its core missions. Countless universities have withdrawn their support for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in response to an executive order banning DEI in schools receiving public funds. Officials at several universities have resigned or been fired due to their support of DEI, with Northwestern President Michael Schill becoming the latest university president to resign from his position as a result of Republican pressure.
According to The New York Times, Schill released a statement announcing his resignation on Thursday. “As I reflect on the progress we have made and what lies ahead, I believe now is the right time for new leadership to guide Northwestern into its next chapter,” Schill said in his message. “Therefore, I have decided, in consultation with the leadership of the Board of Trustees, that I will step down as President.”
Schill will remain in the role until an interim president is selected and will assist with getting his replacement acclimated to the position. Schill doesn’t plan to entirely leave Northwestern, as he intends to teach and conduct research at Northwestern Pritzker School of Law after a sabbatical.
Northwestern has been one of several schools that the Trump administration has targeted in particular. Much of the Republican Party’s attacks on Northwestern stem from protests that erupted on campus in response to the ongoing war in Gaza. Michael Schill received criticism from the Anti-Defamation League and the Republican Party for negotiating with the protesters.
According to the Trump administration, any criticism of a regime that’s starving children and conducting what even experts have labeled a genocide is inherently antisemitic. In fact, it’s so antisemitic that the Trump administration froze $790 million in federal research funding intended for Northwestern over the protests. As a result of the funding loss, Northwestern had to cut 425 jobs.
Michael Schill is only the latest university president to either resign or be denied a job as a result of political pressure. Former University of Virginia President James Ryan resigned earlier this summer to comply with the Trump administration’s anti-DEI mandate. The governing board for the University of Florida rejected Former University of Michigan President Santa Ono for a role as school president over his past support for DEI initiatives.
In addition to university presidents resigning, several university officials have been fired as a result of conservative watchdog groups using hidden cameras to catch them making pro-DEI statements. Countless universities have shuttered their DEI departments and even canceled the long-held tradition of affinity graduations.
The ongoing attacks on universities and their leadership have raised concerns about their ability to attract qualified candidates for leadership roles in the future. “Who’s going to want these jobs?” James Finkelstein, professor emeritus at George Mason University’s public policy school, posited to Higher Ed Dive. “That’s part of the plan of critics of higher education. They want to drive people out so they can replicate what they’re doing in Florida and appoint political loyalists who have no experience in higher education.”
These resignations set a chilling precedent where the federal government can basically undermine a university’s leadership just because they feel like it. Michael Schill was complying with the Trump administration’s DEI-ban, as the school closed its DEI offices to comply with the new federal regulations. Despite that, he still faced pressure from the Trump administration to resign from his position. It remains to be seen whether or not Schill’s resignation will result in the school’s research funding finally being unfrozen.
SEE ALSO:
University Of Memphis Latest School To Shutter DEI Office
UVA President Resigns Over Trump’s Anti-DEI Investigation
UNC Asheville Dean Of Students Fired For Pro-DEI Comments
Northwestern President Resigns Amid Pressure From Trump Administration was originally published on newsone.com
