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In the seven months since President Donald Trump returned to office, Syracuse University professors say his policy shifts are reshaping the educational landscape in the United States, affecting both private and public universities.

These shifts have impacts across higher education, including federal student funding, academic freedoms and student enrollments. Professors at SU’s Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs expressed concern over these policies, citing students’ growing fear over losing scholarships and their personal safety under Trump’s educational agenda.

During President Trump’s re-election campaign, he notably promised to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education, stating in a speech that his administration will “drain the government education swamp and stop the abuse of your taxpayer dollars to indoctrinate America’s youth with all sorts of things that you don’t want to have our youth hearing.”

In February, Trump’s newly formed Department of Government Efficiency announced plans to cut more than $880 million from the DOEd. The cuts included reducing employees, contracts and funds allocated for diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility grants.

A month later, in March, Trump signed an executive order, directing Secretary of Education Linda McMahon to close the department to “the maximum extent appropriate to the law.” The administration planned to move several of its functions to different departments or eliminate them entirely.

Steven White, an SU political science professor, said the uncertainty surrounding the department’s future, particularly in terms of structural changes and funding cuts, is a key factor in the disruption of education policies.

“The Department of Education is one of those institutions we sort of take for granted, and now it seems like that’s not the case anymore,” White said. “Whether it will affect financial aid, certain initiatives, things like that, I think it remains to be seen.”

Thomas Keck, another SU political science professor, echoed White’s concerns. The DOEd shapes the educational system in the United States, and without it, there are several unknowns, he said.

He said if DOEd funding is cut and its units are restructured, programs will be gutted, even if the departments aren’t “technically” closed.

“If these sharp budgetary reductions from the Department of Education and the aggressive policy enforcement actions targeted at universities are sustained over time,” Keck said. “They together have the potential to dramatically undermine the United States’ higher education sector.”

The Trump administration argues the gutting of the DOEd is the best way to return power to the states, allowing them to control their education policies without federal oversight, according to a press release from McMahon.

However, shifting power from the federal government to the states creates a lack of unity in the educational system, according to the National Education Association. States would be able to control factors such as curriculum and resource allocation, extending beyond K-12.

White said higher education students will be disproportionately impacted based on their college’s location if these policies are implemented. He noted that SU’s status as a private university, in a Democrat-led state, will hopefully provide some protection from federal policy changes.

“Private schools like Syracuse have a little bit more autonomy — not full autonomy — but more than certain schools,” White said. “But if you’re in a red state, these are going to be very serious constraints.”

Margaret Susan Thompson, an SU history and political science professor, agreed. She added that although SU is located in New York, many students are from other states and are at risk for different political conditions upon returning home or post-graduation.

“In some conservative-led states like Florida, Texas, Indiana … public universities are restricted in who they can hire, what courses they can offer,” Thompson said. “That’s not something Syracuse will face directly, but it will affect our grads when they apply for jobs or grad school.”

Beyond policy restrictions, professors say a growing culture of fear is permeating SU’s campus. Concerns over losing federal funding and retaliation from the administration have shaped decisions at the university, including public silence from university leadership, professors said.

In April, SU Chancellor Kent Syverud notably didn’t sign a public letter from the American Association of Colleges and Universities, which condemned the Trump administration for “undue government intrusions,” stating the administration had overreached in its threats to higher educational institutions.

Thompson said many SU professors encouraged Syverud to sign the letter, but there’s been no direct explanation from the chancellor or university leadership following his decision.

“We are carefully reviewing the substance of the letter and actively consulting with key stakeholders to thoughtfully determine our course of action,” Sarah Scalese, SU’s senior associate vice president for communications, wrote in an April 23 statement to The Daily Orange.

Thompson said that Syverud may be afraid of the backlash from the Trump administration if he were to sign, but hopes for more clarity from SU’s leadership in the future.

White said Syverud’s silence is “fitting” for the nature of the administration and fear of retaliation through cutting funding. University leaders and faculty rely on federal support for campus engagement, including research, assignments and student resources. Syverud said in a campus-wide email on May 20 that there are risks to its standing in higher education if funding cuts are made to university resources.

“(Money) doesn’t just fund projects, it funds positions,” White said. “They’re afraid of being targeted. Therefore, (SU leadership) not making statements they might have made in a different context.”

Keck said the administration is leveraging these cuts as a bargaining chip, using funding as a way to pressure universities into compliance.

He said this strategy allows the administration to control colleges and universities by making “success” contingent on compliance with their policies. This gives the administration power to crack down on speech or actions from the university that aren’t aligned with the administration’s agenda.

“There’s a real concerted effort on the part of the administration to unlawfully coerce private institutions to do the administration’s bidding,” Keck said.

President Trump has also signed a series of executive orders aimed at eliminating DEIA initiatives from universities, calling these programs “discriminatory” and threatening to take away funding if programs are continued. This push has prompted higher education institutions to discern which policies could be seen as controversial by the Trump administration, the Chronicle of Higher Education reported.

Many universities have scrubbed DEIA-related language from their websites or canceled DEIA events, according to the New York Times. On July 31, SU announced the closure of its Office of Diversity and Inclusion, replacing it with the Office of People and Culture within the Office of Human Resources.

“You will see that Trump will issue an executive order that sort of unilaterally declares that they’re not going to fund any research that has anything to do with DEI,” Keck said. “They’re just cutting off existing grants which have no relation just because of a title.”

On July 30, the U.S. Department of Justice released a “non-binding” list of DEIA practices deemed illegal or discriminatory. The “best-practices” guideline is intended to help institutions receiving federal funds avoid “the risk of violations and the revocation of federal grant funding.”

The DOJ list includes specific practices that can “constitute unlawful preferential treatment,” including race-based scholarships, preferential hiring from “underrepresented groups,” access to resources based on race and targeted institutional or geographic outreach.

“The attention that is being paid in this administration to diversity, equity and inclusivity is really a problem because it’s being misinterpreted as somehow providing favorable treatment to people who are unqualified, which it’s not,” Thompson said. “It’s simply opening up opportunities.

Since being reinstated in January, Trump has also pushed for U.S. colleges to reduce their international student enrollment and implement further security measures. According to ABC News, the administration has begun deportation efforts targeting international students who participate in pro-Palestinian protests and activism.

Thompson said many international students at SU are fearful of returning to campus in the fall, or alternatively, couldn’t go to their home country for the summer, fearing they won’t be allowed back into the U.S.

“If international students face more restrictions, or decide not to come, that affects all of us,” Thompson said. “Not just in diversity, but in academic support, research output and classroom experiences.”

In April, three SU students joined 1,800 international students across the country who had their visas revoked by the U.S. State Department. After several lawsuits were filed, the government reversed the visa cancellations.

Many students who were targeted had either little or no infractions on their records and were questioning why they had been targeted, the Associated Press reported. Out of fear, many either left the country, went into hiding or stopped attending class and campus events.

“Both international students and faculty are going to be more reluctant to come to the United States to work and study if they’re going to have draconian immigration enforcement hanging over their heads,” Keck said.

Professors say international students are now afraid to “step out of line,” causing concern for re-arrival into the U.S. or deportation.

According to the National Immigration Law Center, every single person in the U.S., including immigrants, undocumented people and U.S. citizens, has First Amendment rights.
However, in practice, the right to speak on what people believe in has been curtailed through the administration’s actions, Keck said. He said from what he’s heard in “hallway conversations,” that both international students and faculty are “self-censoring” to protect themselves.

Professors warn that the cumulative effect of Trump-era education policy changes will extend far beyond campus, creating lasting ripple effects that continue to shape students’ lives long after graduation. Keck said the looming future of Trump’s agenda is uncertain, so in order for institutions to thrive, they must work together to protect academic freedoms.

“Universities play a very important function in terms of educating young people and also in terms of the production and dissemination of knowledge,” Keck said. “It would be better if more of them found a way to stand up collectively, instead of getting picked off one at a time.”

Published on August 21, 2025 at 12:13 am
Contact Shivika: sgupta38@syr.edu