U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon praised a recent editorial by Harvard University’s student newspaper calling for the university to recognize the excessive politicization on campus, saying she was “delighted” to see students criticizing their own institution.
McMahon made the remarks during Thursday’s House Committee on Education and Workforce hearing, titled “Examining the Policies and Priorities of the Department of Education.”
Rep. Tim Walberg (R-Mich.), chairman of the House Education and Workforce Committee, commended McMahon for the administration’s efforts to combat antisemitism in higher education.
“This committee has been beating the drum on this issue, and we will continue to do so. Our friends on the other side of the aisle seem interested in this issue only when they believe there is a political benefit to be gained. That’s tragic,” Walberg said.
“Thank you for standing up for Jewish students and educators and for holding institutions accountable when they fail to protect students’ safety and access to educational opportunity,” he said.
Harvard settled two federal lawsuits last year alleging that the university failed to adequately address antisemitism on campus following the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, and the subsequent wave of anti-Israel protests at U.S. universities.
In an editorial published in late April, The Harvard Crimson’s editorial board urged the university to conduct a broad review of campus culture and academic life, writing that “the classroom should be a place of intellectual humility, where diverse perspectives can interact without fear of social condemnation.”
Responding to questions from Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), McMahon said the editorial reflected growing concern among students themselves.
“These are the kids at the Crimson who are calling their own university to task,” McMahon said.
Stefanik emerged as a leading congressional voice on campus antisemitism after her high-profile questioning of university presidents in late 2023, including then-Harvard President Claudine Gay.
McMahon declined to comment on the status of ongoing federal investigations involving Harvard, citing pending litigation.
Walberg also highlighted the department’s renewed focus on enforcing Section 117 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, which requires colleges and universities to disclose foreign gifts or contracts worth $250,000 or more annually.
He said the Education Department is “taking the threat of unreported foreign funding seriously” as it has launched new Section 117 investigations into universities suspected of noncompliance and revamped its foreign-funding disclosure portal to improve transparency.
Lawmakers and administration officials have increasingly raised concerns about foreign influence in American higher education, particularly involving funding tied to Qatar and other foreign governments.
Earlier this year, the Education Department announced a partnership with the U.S. State Department to strengthen enforcement of Section 117.
Under the arrangement, the State Department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs assists in monitoring compliance and identifying potential national-security risks, including foreign influence operations, intellectual-property theft and propaganda efforts on college campuses.
McMahon said Thursday that the State Department is “the right place” for that oversight because it can determine “if these are foreign actors that we need to keep an eye on.”
