Northwestern University will pay $75 million as part of a settlement to resolve multiple investigations into campus antisemitism, though the school denies any wrongdoing.
The Illinois-based university reached an agreement Friday with the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Department of Education, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
It comes after the Trump administration froze about $790 million in research funds to the school in April over alleged civil rights violations and reports of antisemitism.
As part of the agreement, Northwestern University will pay $75 million to the U.S. Treasury over the course of three years and continue its mandatory antisemitism training for all students, faculty and staff.
Northwestern will also terminate the 2024 Deering Meadow Agreement it made with anti-Israel protestors after demonstrators erected an encampment in opposition to the Jewish State and its military actions against the terrorist group Hamas in Gaza.
By reaching a settlement, the federal government will close its investigations into the university, restore its eligibility for future grants and fairly consider its applications for federal funding.
Federal funding to the school is expected to be fully restored within 30 days of the settlement.
In a press release last Friday, Attorney General Pamela Bondi declared that the settlement “marks another victory in the Trump Administration’s fight to ensure that American educational institutions protect Jewish students and put merit first.”
“Institutions that accept federal funds are obligated to follow civil rights law — we are grateful to Northwestern for negotiating this historic deal,” Bondi stated.
“Universities that receive federal funding have a responsibility to comply with the law, including protecting against racial discrimination and antisemitism,” said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division in the press release.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon was also quoted in the press release, calling the settlement “a huge win for current and future Northwestern students, alumni, faculty and for the future of American higher education.”
Northwestern University did not immediately respond to The Christian Post’s request for comment. This article will be updated if a response is received.
According to Henry S. Bienen, interim president of Northwestern, the agreement doesn’t mean that the university has given the government control over who it hires or admits as students, nor does the agreement mean that the school has relinquished control over what its faculty teaches.
“Northwestern runs Northwestern. Period,” Bienen said in a statement.
Under the agreement, the university has also agreed to provide anonymized admissions statistics to the government as proof that it adheres to antidiscrimination laws prohibiting race-based admissions decisions. Northwestern will also provide all-female housing spaces, as well as women-only locker rooms and athletic teams to demonstrate its commitment to upholding Title IX.
Northwestern will also establish a special committee of the Board of Trustees to ensure its compliance with the agreement.
On its website, the university addresses questions about the agreement, including why it agreed to pay $75 million to the U.S. Treasury through 2028.
“The agreement explicitly states the University admits no wrongdoing,” Northwestern stated. “The Board of Trustees and University leadership weighed Northwestern’s set of very difficult options and determined this agreement was the best way not only to restore federal funding but also to safeguard our institution and preserve our values and principles.”
In a lawsuit filed against Northwestern last year, three anonymous Jewish students alleged that the university ignored its rules of conduct, “opting instead to facilitate, encourage, and coddle a dystopic cesspool of hate in the school’s lush green center, Deering Meadow.”
According to the 2024 complaint, many anti-Israel demonstrators at the encampment glorified Hamas, the terror group that massacred thousands of Jews and Israelis on Oct. 7, 2023. One protestor also reportedly hounded passersby, demanding to know if they spoke Hebrew.
“Rather than enforce its express and implied promises to Plaintiffs that Northwestern is a place of civility where free expression is governed by transparent, content-neutral codes of conduct, Northwestern twisted itself into a pretzel to accommodate the hostile and discriminatory encampment, legislate around it, and ultimately reward it,” the complaint alleged.
Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: samantha.kamman@christianpost.com. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman
