The interim President of the University of Virginia has announced he will not sign an agreement with the Trump administration.
The so-called "Compact for Academic Excellence" offered preferential consideration for federal funding if UVA and eight other schools agreed to change their policies to conform with conservative views.
The news came after hundreds of people filled the lawn at the University of Virginia Friday to protest.
The noontime bells at UVA were drowned out by the sounds of protest as students, faculty, staff and alumni gathered on the lawn. Professor Susan Fraiman wondered why interim President Paul Mahoney had set up a task force to consider what the school should do.
“Do we need to weigh the pros and cons of whether to cede our freedom of speech," Fraiman asked the crowd. "Do we need to mull over the effects of having our admissions and hiring monitored, our teaching and research vetted for conformity with conservative views, our budget commandeered as a means of control," Fraiman asked. "No," shouted the crowd. "We have a consensus! Our message to the interim president and BOV must be: Do not hesitate. Do not negotiate. Do not pass go. Do not sign!”
Four schools – MIT, the University of Pennsylvania, Brown and the University of Southern California, had already said they would not agree.
Meanwhile, the Chronicle of Higher Education says the Trump administration has offered the deal to other colleges and universities. The federal government had asked schools to respond by Monday.
