Shieh appears in front of a House subcommittee on June 4, 2025. (Via House).PNG
Alex Shieh, the Brown University student who sent a DOGE-like email to thousands of non-faculty employees, testified before Congress on Wednesday. Shieh told us in an exclusive interview following the hearing that the entire journey from sending that email back in March, to fighting disciplinary charges by the university, and now testifying before Congress has been a wild three months.
But he's glad this topic is generating national attention. "An Ivy League degree has enormous potential to increase a student's earning potential, and it's unfair that these aren't being allocated fairly," said Shieh. Shieh was called to testify before lawmakers during a hearing on alleged antitrust violations and tuition price-fixing among Ivy League schools. Titled, The Elite Universities Cartel: A History of Anticompetitive Collusion Inflating the Cost of Higher Education. "This committee has a responsibility, not just to investigate Ivy League antitrust violations but to reclaim the American dream," Shieh said during his opening statement. Shieh has been in the national spotlight since sending that email, which questioned the roles of around 3,800 non-faculty employees. Congressional Republicans, like Texas. Rep. Troy Nehls , who showed up at the hearing, came to his defense. He wrote a letter to Brown after the university filed disciplinary charges. "I'm grateful for his support and for raising awareness of this issue more broadly, that administrative bloat is pricing students out of the American dream," Shieh said. While GOP members applauded Shieh's efforts, Democratic members of the subcommittee criticized the other side of the aisle for supporting President Trump's major domestic policy bill, which they say would make federal financial aid less available. "The working people do not have a shot at higher education. I think that is why we have been so vocal about the cuts to the Pell grant program," said Rep. Rebecca Balint . Shieh, however, urged the committee to investigate further. Even calling on lawmakers to subpoena Brown President Christina Paxson. "To really get to the bottom of why Brown is charging students $93,000/year for 1 year of college," said Shieh.The Brown Daily Herald that it is “regrettable that a witness in today’s hearing offered so many misrepresentations about Brown’s students, employees, and efforts to provide an exceptional educational experience and conduct high-impact research.” Shieh was cleared of all the disciplinary charges by Brown last month and told us he does plan to attend the university in the fall for his junior year.
Administrative Bloat Congress Antitrust Violations Tuition Price-Fixing Brown University Student Testimony American Dream
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Ivy League student exposing 'administrative bloat' testifies before CongressAlex Shieh, the Brown University student who sent a DOGE-like email, to thousands of non-faculty employees testified before Congress Wednesday.
Read more »
Ivy League student exposing 'administrative bloat' testifies before CongressAlex Shieh, the Brown University student who sent a DOGE-like email, to thousands of non-faculty employees testified before Congress Wednesday.
Read more »
Ivy League student exposing 'administrative bloat' testifies before CongressAlex Shieh, the Brown University student who sent a DOGE-like email, to thousands of non-faculty employees testified before Congress Wednesday.
Read more »
Ivy League student exposing 'administrative bloat' testifies before CongressAlex Shieh, the Brown University student who sent a DOGE-like email, to thousands of non-faculty employees testified before Congress Wednesday.
Read more »
Ivy League student exposing 'administrative bloat' testifies before CongressAlex Shieh, the Brown University student who sent a DOGE-like email, to thousands of non-faculty employees testified before Congress Wednesday.
Read more »