Swarthmore Braces for Federal Funding Losses, Some Already Cut

Large research universities, including Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania, have lost hundreds of millions in federal funding because of the Trump Administration’s executive orders. At Swarthmore College, two federal grants have been cut. The college is planning for how it will react if more is pulled in the months to come. Because of Swarthmore’s status as a small, private institution, its reliance on federal funding is much less than larger research universities. Its total federal allotment is closer to a few million in total, representing a small fraction of the 2024-25 $220 million operating budget. The potential impact of pulled research grants – about $2 million a year – could even be small enough to be made up for with increased alumni donations, as reportedly mentioned in a faculty meeting last week. 

Swarthmore primarily relies on returns from its endowment to fund financial aid, more so than other schools that rely more on Pell Grants and other federal government-assisted financial aid. Out of Swarthmore’s $61.8 million financial aid budget for FY 2025, $5.6 million came from federal sources, which included $2.5 million in Pell Grants. Faculty were assured in a meeting last week that if federal financial aid to Swarthmore was cut, the college would cover the lost funding.

However, Swarthmore faculty who are collaborating with colleagues at other research institutions where funding has been more significantly cut may face larger setbacks Swarthmore cannot cover.

According to Vice President of Communications and Marketing Andy Hirsch, the college is aware of one federally funded research grant and one faculty fellowship from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) that Swarthmore faculty had received and have since been terminated.

“In both cases, the justification for termination was somewhat vague – [they were] basically saying that the initiatives no longer aligned with NEH’s funding priorities and that (according to one of the termination letters) ‘NEH is repurposing its funding allocations in a new direction in furtherance of the President’s [Trump] agenda,’” Hirsch wrote in an email to The Phoenix.

Hirsch pointed to the fact that the NEH has terminated 1,200 grants to institutions around the country since April 1, noting that Swarthmore has not been specifically targeted. In early March, Swarthmore appeared on a list of 60 universities threatened with federal action due to protest activity on campus.

A larger financial concern for Swarthmore, along with other elite universities, would be a higher tax rate on endowment returns. Due to the 2017 tax law that congressional Republicans and Trump signed into law, endowment returns are currently taxed at a rate of 1.4%. This tax rate costs the college about $2 million a year, according to Hirsch in an email to The Phoenix. The 2017 policy applies to institutions with over $500,000 in assets per student. The median college at the time had about $35,000 in assets per student; Swarthmore, in 2021, had $1,716,584 in endowment assets per student. 

Now, with a president in office who would likely sign it into law, a significant endowment tax raise has been proposed by Rep. Troy E. Nehls, R-Texas, to 21%, in line with the federal corporate tax rate. If enacted, the tax raise would cost Swarthmore millions more dollars, and fundamentally change its budget. 

According to Carr Everbach, Isaiah V. Williamson Professor of Civil and Mechanical Engineering and department chair, Swarthmore’s faculty was informed that the school had joined a consortium of other colleges to lobby against the tax raise. The group argues that the endowment provides financial aid that helps to educate the workforce of the future across income brackets. 

“There is a sense among the faculty and staff at Swarthmore and administrators that all of these [federal] actions are punitive actions,” Everbach said in an interview with The Phoenix. “They are not meant to make anything better or be fair. They’re meant to be mean-spirited towards schools that the Trump administration does not like. They do not agree with our politics, or the way our students protest, or the stance we’ve taken, and they’re using all of these financial means – restricting research funds, possibly restricting financial aid for students, and finally, taxing endowments – as punitive measures to suppress or force institutions like Swarthmore to get in line with their goals.”

Hirsch also acknowledged that the college is planning how to continue their mission in the face of potential large-scale federal funding changes: “We wholeheartedly disagree with NEH’s decision to terminate the funding of these two initiatives, and we will appeal the decisions. Faculty and student research is fundamental to Swarthmore’s educational mission and the advancement of new knowledge. We will continue to oppose actions that undermine these core values.”

According to Everbach, and statements from President Val Smith, the college is doing everything in its legal power to resist in the face of Trump-era education cuts and protest suppression. Everbach pointed to Columbia’s submission to Trump’s demands and continued cuts as an ineffective strategy. 

“I don’t think even if you try to be accommodating and cooperative with the Trump administration, that necessarily buys you any more security than if you stand in opposition to them,” Everbach said. “Swarthmore College and Val Smith have recently put out articles and messages saying Swarthmore is not going to cooperate willingly with most of these things, that we will do what’s legally required, but beyond that nothing. I think the faculty here agree with that perspective that we can’t stop certain bad things from happening, but we’re certainly not going to enable them.”

Another source of anxiety and potential pushback among faculty and administrators is the possibility of Immigration Customs and Enforcement (ICE) agents appearing on campus to arrest students, as has happened at other colleges. Swarthmore is a sanctuary campus, meaning it will not volunteer information to ICE agents and will do everything in its power to protect students and staff. However, its open campus with multiple public spaces, such as academic halls and the dining center, presents security challenges if agents are on campus. 

“I think what’s most important at this point is for faculty at Swarthmore, and department chairs in particular, to do what we can to reassure our students and our faculty that we will do everything we can to keep things going,” Everbach said. “We can’t stop what the Trump administration is doing. That’s not in our power, but we can not admit ICE agents into our classrooms.”

They do not agree with our politics, or the way our students protest, or the stance we’ve taken, and they’re using all of these financial means – restricting research funds, possibly restricting financial aid for students, and finally, taxing endowments – as punitive measures to suppress or force institutions like Swarthmore to get in line with their goals.”

Professor Carr Everbach

Everbach reassures students that Swarthmore is on their side and trying to help as much as possible, but faces the reality of limitations of power in the face of a warrant. One way that faculty are supporting international students who have been advised not to travel home is by searching for last-minute summer research positions, which would provide students with on-campus housing during the summer. Everbach, especially as a professor involved in the environmental studies department, has spoken with students anxious about the current economy and job possibilities fighting against climate change. 

“I think in every discussion I’ve had with a student, the student has felt that they still wanted to go and do that good work, even though they would be working against the Trump administration’s stated goals,” Everbach said. “I think there’s something noble about working in opposition to a set of policies you think are wrong policies, and that’s where it stands right now.”  

Everbach is optimistic that discussions around Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, LGBT+ topics, and racial equity will increase, not diminish, despite Trump-era funding cuts of research in these areas and restrictions around what can be discussed in public schools: “I don’t know what would cause Swarthmore College to give up its values. I’m hoping I don’t have to see that happen, or that it never gets so bad that that’s an issue. Right now it’s not an issue. Our values are intact. We’re going to speak out. We’re going to say and do the right things as much as possible.”

However, Everbach acknowledges there is a tradeoff between being vocal in opposition to the Trump administration, and risking being a target for funding cuts and restrictions. He says faculty members have a duty to the students and their colleagues to engage in discussions about current events, but must also acknowledge federal and legal powers.