[Update, Jul 30] "DOJ to review staff texts, emails after faculty praise of GMU president" The Washington Post (Jul 29) "...the Justice Department sent a letter to George Mason University saying it planned to review a Faculty Senate resolution that praised the school’s president. ... On Tuesday, Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio), chair of the House Committee on the Judiciary, and committee member Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) sent a letter to Washington saying they were requesting five years of records and staff communications related to GMU’s DEI policies."

"Alumni, students, faculty, business leaders, and community members who care deeply about Mason" have created a website, "I Stand With Mason," that includes a form to sign a resolution in support of GMU and its president.

"Fairfax court says some Youngkin appointees can’t serve on university boards — for now" WAMU (Jul 29)

[Update, Jul 17] "George Mason Is the Latest University Under Fire From Trump. Its President Fears an 'Orchestrated' Campaign." ProPublica (Jul 10) "When university president Gregory Washington received notice that the Trump administration had opened an investigation into complaints of antisemitism, he was 'perplexed.' But there are signs it may be part of a coordinated campaign to oust him." [Announcement from US Dept. of Education is here.]
"George Mason professors say governing board failed to defend president, university" Virginia Mercury (Jul 23) GMU Board of Visitors meeting notice, August 1.

[Update, Apr. 11] A group of faculty members at universities on the March 10 list have issued a call to action, "We Must Leverage the Strength of Our Institutions and Stand Together." (New URL) It states in part, "These measures are not principally about protecting students and combating discrimination; they are about political control. ... the federal government is using the language of civil rights enforcement as a cover for authoritarian overreach and encroachment, dictating what can be said, studied, and debated in our institutions. These measures represent a direct assault on the mission of the university as a space for independent thought, free speech, and democratic engagement. ... We ask all sixty institutions under government threat to unite in a coordinated, proactive defense." More than 4,500 faculty members at these 60 institutions and others have signed the call to action, which remains open for signature as of this date.

[Original, Mar. 15] The US Department of Education announced March 10 that it "sent letters to 60 institutions of higher education warning them of potential enforcement actions if they do not fulfill their obligations under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act to protect Jewish students on campus...." (See also the report from Inside Higher Ed on March 11.)

The list includes American University, George Mason University, Johns Hopkins University, and the University of Virginia.

At the same time, the Antiracist Research and Policy Center at American University released an action-resource guide: Student Speech, Education Policy, and College Campuses Today. (PDF) "This guide provides an accessible introduction to historical and ongoing policy debates on students’ freedom of expression around Palestine, Gaza, Israel, and anti-Zionism. It is intended to inform and empower students, faculty, administrators, and free speech advocates working in this area."

Johns Hopkins University also "is planning for staff layoffs after the Trump administration canceled $800 million in U.S. Agency for International Development grants...."

See additional news and resources related to the actions of the Trump Administration on our "Resources" page.