Northwestern University has agreed to pay $75 million to the U.S. government under a settlement with the Trump administration that will restore access to hundreds of millions of dollars in frozen federal funding. The agreement resolves federal investigations, including probes into the university’s handling of antisemitism on campus, and requires new policy and training measures while the school admits no wrongdoing.
The Trump administration has reached a settlement with Northwestern University under which the Illinois private university will pay $75 million over several years to resolve federal civil-rights investigations and regain access to previously frozen research funding.
According to the Justice Department and Education Department, Northwestern will pay out the $75 million through 2028. In exchange, federal agencies will close investigations into the university’s compliance with anti-discrimination laws, including probes related to antisemitism on campus and alleged civil-rights violations.
The agreement follows a freeze on roughly $790 million in federal research grants and contracts tied to concerns from the Trump administration over Northwestern’s handling of campus protests and its broader civil-rights obligations, including protections for Jewish students. Multiple outlets, including Reuters and the Associated Press, report that the deal will lead to the restoration of nearly $800 million in federal funding once the terms are implemented.
Under the settlement, Northwestern must maintain clear policies and procedures governing demonstrations, protests, displays and other expressive activity on campus. The university is also required to implement mandatory antisemitism training for all students, faculty and staff, federal officials said. The deal further recommits the university to merit-based hiring and admissions practices and to compliance with federal anti-discrimination statutes.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon praised the agreement, calling it "a huge win" for higher education. She said the settlement cements policy changes that will protect campus communities from harassment and discrimination and described the reforms as a roadmap for other institutional leaders seeking to rebuild public trust in colleges and universities.
Interim President Henry Bienen emphasized that Northwestern is not admitting liability as part of the deal. In a message to university personnel, Bienen said "the payment is not an admission of guilt," according to The Daily Northwestern, the campus newspaper, and reiterated in a video statement that the school would retain control over its academic decisions.
"There were several red lines that I, the Board of Trustees and university leadership refused to cross. I would not have signed anything that would have given the federal government any say in who we hire, what they teach, who we admit or what they study," Bienen said in the video, according to reporting by NPR. "Put simply, Northwestern runs Northwestern."
An explainer posted on the university’s website said Northwestern chose to negotiate rather than fight the case in court, describing the potential cost of litigation as "too high" and the risks "too grave" for the institution’s research enterprise and broader mission.
The settlement comes amid a broader push by the Trump administration to tie federal funding at elite universities to changes in campus policies, particularly around antisemitism, free expression and civil-rights enforcement. Other universities, including Cornell, Columbia and Brown, have entered into their own agreements, with varying financial penalties and policy conditions.
Earlier in November, Cornell University reached a separate settlement requiring it to pay $60 million to unfreeze $250 million that had been withheld by the Trump administration over alleged civil-rights violations. Cornell said its deal did not come at the expense of the institution’s "values or independence."
With the Northwestern agreement now in place, federal officials say the university’s eligibility for new grants and contracts will be restored as long as it complies with the terms of the settlement, allowing research projects interrupted by the funding freeze to resume.
