A CBS News review reveals that major U.S. research universities accepted millions from foreign organizations on U.S. watch lists, prompting national security concerns and federal warnings to institutions.
Major U.S. universities have received millions of dollars in funding from foreign entities that appear on U.S. government watch lists, according to a CBS News review of university funding records submitted to the Department of Education.
State Department and Education Department officials indicate that these disclosure forms, previously unreported, reveal a combined $27.6 million received in the latter half of last year by dozens of top American research institutions from entities listed on at least one federal watch list. There are ten cautionary and restricted watch lists managed by the Departments of Treasury, Commerce, Homeland Security, Defense, and State, which flag companies and organizations that warrant extra scrutiny due to their ties to foreign government interests.
The two agencies are collaborating to crack down on academic partnerships with foreign entities that the Trump administration claims could threaten national security. One example from the disclosure forms shows a Chinese company that develops advanced aeronautics for the People's Liberation Army providing over $7 million to three top-tier U.S. research universities. The largest single amount disclosed was a $22.6 million, 50-year contract from the Beijing Institute of Technology to Bryant University in Rhode Island, reported in 2020.
On Wednesday, Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy Sarah B. Rogers sent a letter to the governing boards of major research universities, warning that future grant-making agencies will check whether institutions accept money from foreign entities on U.S. watch lists and could withdraw federal funding from those that do.
"In light of the above, I urge you, as board members, to ensure heightened diligence on this matter which has important national security implications for our country," Rogers wrote in the letter obtained by CBS News. The letter was sent to 187 schools classified as Research-1, or R-1, universities-those that award the most doctorates and have the most significant research programs.
The total amount of foreign funding flowing into American universities has been increasing, reaching $1.5 billion in 2022, the most recent year with available data, according to the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics. However, that represents less than 2% of the total $117 billion in research and development funding awarded to U.S. universities, more than half of which comes from the U.S. government, per NCSES data.
Most higher education institutions value global collaborations and believe research partnerships can accelerate scientific progress. Universities have often welcomed foreign funds that facilitate new programs. Since 1986, under Section 117 of the Higher Education Act, universities have been required to disclose foreign gifts of $250,000 or more to the Department of Education.
Yet disclosures sometimes lapsed, and no government system existed for accountability, according to current and former State and Education Department officials, the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, and independent analysts tracking Section 117 compliance. They note that donors were not cross-referenced with U.S. watch lists, allowing institutions directly linked to foreign militaries to fund programs and professorships at R-1 universities.
National security and intelligence analysts stress that the stakes are high, and increased scrutiny of Chinese funding to top American universities is better late than never.
"This has been a conversation going on for years now in research security circles," said LJ Eads, founder of Data Abyss and director of research intelligence at Parallax Advanced Research. "It's been a huge policy fail in terms of implementing restrictions without follow-through over the years. I relate it to having kids and not parenting well. Or giving your teenager a cellphone and having no restrictions on cellphone use.
" Among the watch-listed entities investing in U.S. universities-the majority from China-is the Aviation Engine Corporation of China (AECC), which develops engines for Chinese military aircraft like the J-11 fighter jet and the Z-10 attack helicopter. AECC's research institutes paid Northwestern University, the University of California, Irvine, and the University of Connecticut a combined $7.8 million, according to the universities' Education Department records.
The funds were sent in multiple increments over several years, with Northwestern receiving over $3 million between 2017 and 2025
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