The US Department of Education said on Friday that Harvard is not complying with its civil rights investigation into whether the university considers race as a factor in admissions.
Just as the Department of Education made the announcement about its admissions probe, it said in a separate statement on Friday that its Office of Federal Student Aid is placing the university under extraordinary financial monitoring measures.
As of Friday, the department said, Harvard must “use its own funds to disperse federal student aid before drawing down funds from the department,” officials said. Typically, federal funds are a key part of the financial aid mix.
Additionally, Harvard must show its own credit is good for $36 million “or provide other financial protection that is acceptable to the department,” officials said.
Advertisement
The federal government’s financial stipulations placed on Harvard are a direct result of concern that Harvard is trying to make its budget stretch after the loss of billions in grants, officials said on Friday.
Get Trendlines
A business newsletter from Globe Columnist Larry Edelman covering the trends shaping business and the economy in Boston and beyond.
“Moreover, the department is concerned that Harvard has taken steps to issue over $1 billion in bonds to fund its operations,” the department said in a news release.
The announcement came after Harvard’s “refusal to provide documents and information” related to admissions practices, the department said in a separate news release.
Trump’s education department opened its civil rights investigation into Harvard’s admission process in May, arguing the university violated the Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964’s prohibition on race-based discrimination, the press release said.
After the US Supreme Court ruled in 2023 that race-based affirmative action in college admissions is unconstitutional, using race as a factor is admissions decisions illegal. Harvard was a a defendant in the case.
Advertisement
Now, Harvard has 20 days to provide the education department with the required admissions documents “or face further enforcement action,” the press release said.
“The Department has both the right and responsibility to verify Harvard’s compliance with federal civil rights laws. For all their claims, they refuse to provide evidence necessary for the Department to make that determination. What are they hiding?,” U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said in a statement on Friday.
Harvard officials did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Tal Kopan of the Globe staff contributed to this article.
Claire Thornton can be reached at claire.thornton@globe.com. Follow Claire on X @claire_thornto.
