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Newly minted Secretary of Education Linda McMahon and President Donald Trump have moved to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education.Since January, the Trump administration has taken a series of actions that touch virtually every aspect of higher education in Southern California.
To help you keep track of all the changes, LAist will maintain a running list.The changes could have huge consequences for students, educators and researchers. For instance, allowing Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency to access students’ personal data might discourage U.S. citizens in mixed-status families from applying for financial aid. Plus, the stripping of $400 million in federal grants and contracts from Columbia University for alleged acts of antisemitism could be a precursor to what's coming for Southern California campuses, several of which are under federal investigation.William Tierney, professor emeritus and founding director of the Pullias Center for Higher Education at USC, characterized the Trump’s administration’s actions against Columbia as “extremely troubling.” All students need to feel safe in order to learn, he added, but the Trump administration leaves no room for discussion. “And the exact same thing’s going to happen at UCLA, at Stanford, at SC, at Berkeley — at any research university in California,” he said.Since January, the Trump administration has taken a series of actions that touch virtually every aspect of higher education in Southern California, including campus protests and financial aid.For instance, allowing Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency to access students’ personal data might discourage U.S. citizens in mixed-status families from. The stripping of $400 million in federal grants and contracts from Columbia University for alleged acts of antisemitism could be a precursor to what's coming for Southern California campuses, several of which are under federal investigation. This list doesn't cover every federal action on higher ed, but LAist tried to include the items that reverberate most clearly for the state and locally.to its civil rights office, which already faced a backlog of complaints. Seven of 12 regional Office for Civil Rights branches were shuttered, including, which handled complaints filed in California. These cases involve families trying to get services for students with disabilities, allegations of bias related to race and religion, and sexual violence complaints.The Department of Government Efficiency gained access to student loan data — including Social Security numbers, income and migratory status. This heightenedtemporary restraining order in response to a similar lawsuit from the American Federation of Teachers, barring DOGE from accessing the information until March 10. The federation has filed for a preliminary injunction, and the government has opposed. A court is considering the case.in student admissions or for any other consideration, including scholarships, housing and"all other aspects of student, academic and campus life." The department said it would enforce compliance at the end of February and punish institutions by withholding federal funding.to “assess whether UC has engaged in a pattern or practice of discrimination ... by allowing an antisemitic hostile work environment to exist on its campuses.” The next week, UCLA committed toof a previously established Task Force to Combat Antisemitism and Anti-Israeli Bias. Those proposals include increased employee training and streamlining of the complaint process for antisemitic incidents. people who work at places that “advance illegal immigration, terrorism, discrimination and violent protests.” Currently, borrowers are eligible for the program if they’re employed by a nonprofit engaged in: military service, public health, public education, public interest legal service, public service for individuals with disabilities and the elderly and other areas. This executive order has not gone into effect, because updating eligibility rules typically requires the Department of Education to undergo a lengthy federal rulemaking process., a legal permanent resident, at his university-owned apartment building. Khalil is a Palestinian refugee born in Syria who recently completed his studies at Columbia's School of International and Public Affairs. He was also a lead negotiator for Columbia University Apartheid Divest last spring, when encampments protesting Israel's war in Gaza sprang up at campuses across the country — including at The Department of Homeland Security said Khalil had been arrested “in support of President Trump’s executive orders prohibiting .” The administration’s specific charges against Khalilof other higher education institutions that, like Columbia University, it says have fallen short in combating antisemitism, including several Southern California campuses that held protests related to Israel’s war effort in Gaza. The local colleges under investigation include:Placing the Middle East, South Asian and African Studies department under an outside chair for at least five years.“Students who are Jewish need to be made to feel safe and secure on a campus — that's a given,” said William Tierney, professor emeritus and founding director of the Pullias Center for Higher Education at USC. “That's true of any student on a campus, whether the student is Jewish, Palestinian, Muslim, transgender, gay, straight, whatever. You cannot learn if you don't feel safe and secure.” Still, Tierney described the Trump administration’s letter to Columbia as “extremely troubling,” in part because it leaves no room for discussion. In his view, the letter basically says: “The king has determined that you need to do these things immediately. And we don't really want a response. We want you to tell us that you have done those things, period. And if you don't, we will cripple the university.” “And the exact same thing’s going to happen at UCLA, at Stanford, at SC, at Berkeley — at any research university in California,” he said.The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights said that 45 schools violated the 1964 Civil Rights Act by partnering with, a nonprofit that helps students from underrepresented groups earn doctoral degrees in business. The program focuses on supporting Black, Latino and Native American students.
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