The first Harvard, now Berkeley: Trump administration investigates foreign funding
The Trump administration accused UC Berkeley of failing to disclose millions of dollars in foreign funding on Friday, a campaign to declare an obscure federal rule in efforts to lead the efforts of top U.S. research institutions.
The University of California flagship store is the second top school to be investigated this month for an alleged violation of Section 117 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, which requires disclosure of “foreign source gifts and contracts” worth more than $250,000.
A similar investigation into Harvard University was announced last week. On Wednesday, President Trump signed an executive order directing the Education Department to strengthen enforcement of the rules.
U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said in a statement that the department “will first thoroughly examine the obvious failure of Berkeley to disclose the large amount of funds obtained from foreign sources.”
Dan Mogulof, assistant vice president of the UC Berkeley Office of Communications and Public Affairs, issued a statement saying the school has contacted federal authorities about the issue.
“UC Berkeley has been in federal connection for the past two years [Section] 117 Report the problem and will continue to do so. ” Mogulof said.
Audit is the latest audit in administrative actions targeting elite universities across the country.
The blueprint for the campaign season, known as the 2025 project, lays out Trump’s potential agenda and highlights Article 117, which could be a possible mechanism for regaining federal funds from top schools, including through Pell grants and comprehensive scholarships – a move expert says a move could destroy important research.
“All of this really has a threat to the research industry,” said Kevin Kinser, professor of educational policy at Penn State. “World-class universities have to fight around the world, and that’s what defines world-class.”
The University of California system has sparked allegations of anti-Semitism from massive federal funding cuts, cancellation of student visas and Justice Department investigations. Harvard University is the richest school in the world and became an unlikely folk hero after rejecting the government's demand for widespread control of schools.
The 117th wave of challenge could further isolate institutions already under attack.
From engineering partnerships with IIT to Georgetown, Texas A&M and NYU’s Persian Gulf campuses, elite universities in the United States have been deeply integrated into top schools abroad.
Supporters say this partnership is crucial to innovation and academic achievement. Critics believe that the impact of foreign cash on American students and wedges opens the back door to U.S. intellectual property rights.
“Protecting American education, culture and national security interests requires transparency about foreign funding flowing to U.S. higher education and research institutions,” the executive order read Wednesday.
The new UC Berkeley inquiry resumed a 2023 House Subcommittee investigation into the Tsinghua-Berkeley Shenzhen Institute, a partnership between the UC Berkeley School of Engineering and the Tsinghua University in China.
The two schools have collaborated extensively over the decades in research, including clean energy and climate change. Tsinghua has similar formal partnerships with the University of Washington, Indiana University and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, among others.
Tsinghua donated $2.5 million to UC Regents to fund the program in 2019 and 2018, according to its U.S. nonprofit tax form. In 2017, it donated $4.5 million to the Regent.
Time worker Jaweed Kaleem contributed to the report.
