GW Federal Update (August 13)

Key Takeaways

• On August 3, Secretary of Education Linda McMahon issued a letter to university presidents and board members calling on universities to “describe to the American public your commitments to rigorous teaching, pathbreaking research and national service” by addressing seven questions before the end of 2026 relating to, e.g., how institutions will make admissions criteria transparent, contain costs and improve pricing transparency, address foreign influence and protect the free exchange of ideas on campuses. GW leadership will review the letter and thoughtfully determine the most appropriate approach to address ED’s recommendations while serving the best interests of the university community.
   
• On July 16, the Department of Homeland Security announced a final rule, scheduled to take effect on September 15, under which international students on F, J, and I visas would need to leave the U.S. in four years, irrespective of whether they finished their program of study, unless they receive an extension. The rule also restricts students’ ability to change majors and places of study after arrival in the U.S. The final rule clarifies that “F-1 and J-1 students [may] continue their studies for as long as their [extension of stay] application is pending,” and that students already in the U.S. can “remain through their current program period or up to four additional years.” Additional information about this new rule is available on the International Services Office website; we encourage members of our international student community to isogwu [dot] edu (contact ISO) with any questions about their particular situation.
   
• The National Science Foundation has proposed a comprehensive revision of its Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide. Notable changes include expanded authority to modify or terminate awards, codifying research security and disclosure requirements and the disallowance of certain publication costs. Members of the GW community may review the draft guidance and submit individual comments through August 24.

Recent Federal Actions

Department of Education

• On August 3, Secretary of Education Linda McMahon issued a letter to university presidents and board members calling on universities to “describe to the American public your commitments to rigorous teaching, pathbreaking research and national service” by addressing seven questions before the end of 2026 relating to, e.g., how institutions will make admissions criteria transparent, contain costs and improve pricing transparency, address foreign influence and protect the free exchange of ideas on campuses. GW leadership will review the letter and thoughtfully determine the most appropriate approach to address ED’s recommendations while serving the best interests of the university community.
   
• ED rescinded its longstanding policy that allowed statistical disparities to serve as evidence of discrimination in schools during federal civil rights investigations, eliminating guidance dating back to 1979 under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. Federal investigators can no longer rely on disparate impact data alone to support discrimination findings and must instead prove intentional discrimination in complaints against schools. ED’s action is consistent with DOJ’s determination, as reported in the January 15, 2025, edition of the GW Federal Update, eliminating disparate impact liability from the regulations implementing Title VI. While administration officials argue the change prevents the weaponization of civil rights laws and allows schools to maintain discipline without federal interference, a coalition of 60 civil rights and education organizations strongly condemned the move, warning that eliminating the disparate impact standard removes essential protections against unjustified systemic barriers for minority students.

Research and Grantmaking

• The National Science Foundation (NSF) has proposed a comprehensive revision of its Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide, the primary resource governing how researchers apply for and manage NSF funding. The proposed changes would align NSF policies with pending Office of Management and Budget revisions to federal grant regulations and introduce significant updates to proposal preparation, award oversight, research security requirements, public access policies and allowable costs. Notable changes include expanded authority to modify or terminate awards, codifying research security and disclosure requirements and the disallowance of certain publication costs. Members of the GW community may review the draft guidance and submit individual comments through August 24.
   
• On July 8, NSF issued a proposed policy prohibiting NSF funds from being expended on collaborations with Chinese entities on U.S. restricted parties lists, “based on national security and other foreign policy interests.” The lists include Nanjing University, Beijing Institute of Technology and the University of Science and Technology of China. Under the proposed policy, scheduled to take effect on October 1, universities will be required to certify that they aren’t collaborating with any entities on the restricted list, or their personnel.

International Community

• On July 16, the Department of Homeland Security announced a final rule, scheduled to take effect on September 15, under which international students on F, J, and I visas would need to leave the U.S. in four years, irrespective of whether they finished their program of study, unless they receive an extension. The rule also restricts students’ ability to change majors and places of study after arrival in the U.S. According to DHS, the change is due in part to the “significant increase in the volume” of such international students, which “poses a challenge to DHS’ ability to monitor and oversee these nonimmigrants while they are in the United States.” The final rule clarifies that “F-1 and J-1 students [may] continue their studies for as long as their [extension of stay] application is pending,” and that students already in the U.S. can “remain through their current program period or up to four additional years.” Additional information about this new rule is available on the International Services Office website; we encourage members of our international student community to isogwu [dot] edu (contact ISO) with any questions about their particular situation.

Congress

• The U.S. Senate passed a bipartisan continuing resolution in a 90-6 vote to maintain federal government funding through December 11, working to prevent a government shutdown prior to the midterm elections. The Senate's temporary funding package keeps federal operations running at current levels and includes a provision temporarily blocking political appointees from enforcing a proposed administrative rule on federal grants. The bill now heads to the House of Representatives, where lawmakers previously passed a partisan spending measure and where Speaker Mike Johnson must navigate conference opposition to the Senate's grant restriction language before the September 30 deadline.
  
  This legislation is particularly important to GW because, as a major research institution in Washington, D.C., federal funding continuity is critical to the university's operational stability, sponsored research grants and student financial assistance. A federal shutdown disrupts government grantmaking agencies, halts federal research awards and creates administrative delays that directly impact university faculty, researchers and students, while the bill's specific restriction on federal grant regulations directly affects how university research funding is administered and protected from administrative cancellation.

Other Higher Education Institutions

• Various medical schools: In the June 5 edition of the GW Federal Update, we reported that the Department of Justice found that the admissions practices at Yale School of Medicine unlawfully considered race in the selection of applicants. Since then, Yale has been negotiating with DOJ about a resolution of the findings, while DOJ continues its investigation into Yale’s admissions practices for undergraduate programs and its law school. In a message to the Yale community, its president acknowledged it has been engaged in discussions with DOJ, and he outlined certain refinements the university has made to its admissions processes based on recommendations from two university committees. 
  
  In related news, on July 14, the House Committee on Education and Workforce held a hearing titled “Training Activists, Not Physicians: The Impact of DEI on Medical Schools,” during which officials from UCLA, UC San Francisco and the University of Illinois testified about whether their schools of medicine use DEI-focused policies to inform admissions, hiring, curricula and patient care. And on July 20, DOJ announced its findings that the UC San Diego School of Medicine “unlawfully judged applicants based on their race” by using “purportedly ‘race-neutral’ subjective criteria to deliberately increase admission of so-called ‘underrepresented minorities in medicine (URM),’ ” including, e.g., by allowing applicants to address how they ‘overcame’ certain disadvantages to help determine which students were URM applicants.” UC San Diego stated in response to the DOJ findings: “UC San Diego School of Medicine is proud to produce some of the highest-performing physicians and researchers in the nation, with residency placement rates that consistently meet or exceed national averages. All applicants to the school’s Doctor of Medicine program must meet strict academic thresholds, a requirement that is and was applied uniformly to all applicants.” The university also stated that it “remains committed to full compliance with federal law” and “welcomes the opportunity to work collaboratively and constructively with the federal government to affirm that commitment.”

  Finally, on July 22, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced that it was initiating investigations, in collaboration with DOJ, into the admissions practices of medical schools at Dartmouth, East Carolina University, St. Louis University, Western University and William Carey University. 
   

• Duke University School of Law: On August 6, DOJ announced that it found Duke University School of Law to have violated Title VI in its admissions practices after the Supreme Court’s SFFA decision by “engag[ing] in a deliberate effort to preserve race-based outcomes for its incoming classes,” including by allowing applicants to answer essay questions about how they would further Duke’s goal of obtaining a “diversity of perspective and experience.” Duke in response stated that it was reviewing the DOJ findings and that it is “committed to complying with the law and will continue to do so in a manner that is consistent with our academic mission.”
   
• Harvard University: On July 20, DOJ announced that it has opened another investigation into Harvard, this one relating to Harvard’s ”China-based financial aid programs,” specifically whether Harvard is allowing Chinese donors to create scholarships that exclude American students. In response, Harvard stated: “Harvard follows the law for required reporting of donations and, consistent with our legal obligations under Title VI, does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, ethnicity or national origin in allocating financial aid.” As previously reported in prior editions of the GW Federal Update, the Trump Administration and Harvard are engaged in a number of other disputes over, e.g., Harvard’s admissions policies and its compliance with Title VI with respect to its conduct toward Jewish and Israeli students.
   
• University of Pennsylvania: As reported in previous editions of the GW Federal Update, in July 2025, the EEOC issued a subpoena to the University of Pennsylvania seeking personal contact information and lists of the university’s Jewish employees to assist the EEOC in its investigation of whether Penn violated Title VI. On March 31, the U.S. District Court in Pennsylvania sided with the EEOC and directed Penn to comply with the subpoena, with certain modifications; and on April 13 Penn appealed the district court decision. On July 23, however, the EEOC and Penn entered into an agreement under which EEOC agreed to withdraw the subpoena and Penn agreed to dismiss its appeal.
   
• Reed College: On July 16, OCR and Reed College entered into a settlement agreement resolving a September 2024 complaint filed with OCR on behalf of two Jewish students alleging that Reed violated Title VI when Reed allegedly did not take steps to promptly and effectively address antisemitic attacks against the students. Under the terms of the settlement, Reed agreed, among other things, to conduct mandatory antisemitism training, adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance working definition of antisemitism to assess discriminatory intent, clarify what constitutes prohibited discrimination or harassment and hire an independent consultant to evaluate Reed’s response to antisemitism complaints over the next three years.
   
• Haverford College: On August 8, Haverford College settled a lawsuit filed in 2024 alleging that the college violated Title VI in its handling of antisemitic incidents on campus. In announcing the settlement, Haverford’s president emphasized that “acts of discrimination, harassment and bias against students who identify as Jewish, and/or Israeli, and those who support Zionism, the right of the Jewish people to self-determination and statehood in the land of Israel, violate College policy and are antithetical to Haverford’s mission, values, and standards.”

Resources

GW is committed to supporting our students, faculty and staff through federal changes. Curated resources are available for staying informed and safe, in addition to FAQs addressing the most common topics on students' minds, including interactions with external law enforcement and supporting international community members.

About this Newsletter

GW publishes this Federal Update to inform students, faculty and staff about how developments in the federal government affect higher education generally and the university. This newsletter includes timely information, answers to questions from GW community members, and resources for support.