Trump Freezes $175 Million to Penn Over Transgender Athletes

(Bloomberg) — The Trump administration has frozen $175 million in federal funding to the University of Pennsylvania, citing policies allowing transgender athletes to compete in women’s sports, according to the White House.

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The move follows a pattern of escalating federal scrutiny of elite universities as political pressure mounts over their handling of campus unrest and allegations of discrimination. Earlier this month, the federal government suspended $400 million in funding at Columbia University following months of campus protests and accusations by Jewish students of antisemitism at the New York City school.

A representative for Penn said the school hasn’t received any official notification or details about the fund freeze, and that it followed regulatory requirements regarding students’ athletic participation.

“Penn has always followed NCAA and Ivy League policies regarding student participation on athletic teams,” the school said in a statement. “We have been in the past, and remain today, in full compliance with the regulations that apply to not only Penn, but all of our NCAA and Ivy League peer institutions.”

The Trump administration acted due to the school’s policies “forcing women to compete with men in sports. Promises made, promises kept,” the White House’s Rapid Response account wrote on X. Fox Business first reported that Trump froze the funds.

A senior White House official said the move was related to a review of discretionary funding streams to Penn rather than the result of a Title IX investigation that was started earlier this year. The funding was paused by the Department of Defense and the Department of Health and Human Services, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Penn was sued earlier this year by three female swimmers who alleged they were discriminated against when a transgender teammate beat them in the Ivy League championship in 2022. The suit claimed that Penn and other institutions violated federal law by allowing Lia Thomas, a “trans-identifying male swimmer,” to compete for Penn’s women’s team.

The issue has galvanized conservatives in US politics for years, with President Donald Trump signing an executive action last month that aims to keep transgender women from participating in female sports.

At Columbia, administrators are nearing an agreement that may help restore their lost funding, the Wall Street Journal reported. It includes banning masks, empowering campus officers and putting Columbia’s Middle East, South Asian and African Studies department under “academic receivership,” the paper reported Wednesday, citing people close to the discussions.

Government officials said in a letter last week the school had until March 20 to ensure compliance with several demands ahead of a “conversation” about long-term reforms.

“Many bristle at the very idea that an institution like ours — an institution whose very value is premised on free inquiry and free expression — should ever be subject to such a list,” Katrina Armstrong, Columbia’s interim president, said in a statement. She added the school is “working around the clock” to secure its future while being “guided by our principles of free expression, academic freedom and the pursuit of excellence.”

She added the school is engaging with federal regulators and will create a web page to provide updates on its progress.

(Updates with details about paused funding in sixth paragraph.)

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