Kristi Noem Demands Harvard Foreign Students’ Disciplinary Data: ‘Cesspool’

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has demanded that Harvard University provide records on what she called the “illegal and violent” activities of its foreign student visa holders.

A news release from the Department of Homeland Security said Noem wrote a “scathing letter” demanding the information and warned the university would lose its ability to enroll foreign students if it does not provide it.

A Harvard spokesperson told Newsweek that the university was aware of Noem’s letter “regarding grant cancellations and scrutiny of foreign student visas.”

Why It Matters

President Donald Trump’s administration has targeted schools accused of tolerating antisemitism amid a wave of pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses against Israel’s assault on Gaza.

On Monday, Harvard became the first university to openly defy the administration’s demands, which included imposing tougher discipline on protesters and screening international students for those who are “hostile to the American values.”

The White House hit back by announcing it is freezing more than $2.2 billion in funding for Harvard. President Donald Trump has also threatened the university’s tax-exempt status and CNN reported on Wednesday that the Internal Revenue Service is making plans to rescind it.

The administration has also frozen or canceled some funding for other universities, including Columbia, Cornell, Northwestern, Brown and Princeton.

What To Know

Noem also announced the cancellation of two DHS grants totaling more than $2.7 million to Harvard.

The release said the department has canceled the $800,303 Implementation Science for Targeted Violence Prevention grant and the $1,934,902 Blue Campaign Program Evaluation and Violence Advisement grant.

“Both undermine America’s values and security,” the release said.

It said that foreign visa-holders at Harvard “have spewed antisemitic hate, targeting Jewish students” since the attack on southern Israel by Hamas in October 2023.

Protesters, which includes Jewish activists, say the Trump administration is conflating criticism of Israel’s actions in Gaza with antisemitism.

“With a $53.2-billion endowment, Harvard can fund its own chaos—DHS won’t,” the DHS release said. “And if Harvard cannot verify it is in full compliance with its reporting requirements, the university will lose the privilege of enrolling foreign students.”

As the nation’s wealthiest university, Harvard is better positioned than others to fight the Trump administration than others.

But experts told Newsweek that it’s not easy for universities to pull from endowments to offset federal funding cuts.

“Nonprofit endowments are not savings accounts or rainy day funds,” Liz Clark, vice president of policy and research for the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO), told Newsweek.

“They are very different, and they are unique strategic finance tools. Endowments are managed in a way that those organizations can rely on them for support in the here-and-now, but also far into the foreseeable future.”

What People Are Saying

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement: “Harvard bending the knee to antisemitism—driven by its spineless leadership—fuels a cesspool of extremist riots and threatens our national security.

“With anti-American, pro-Hamas ideology poisoning its campus and classrooms, Harvard’s position as a top institution of higher learning is a distant memory. America demands more from universities entrusted with taxpayer dollars.”

A Harvard University spokesperson said in an email to Newsweek on Wednesday: “Harvard is aware of the Department of Homeland Security’s letter regarding grant cancellations and scrutiny of foreign student visas, which—like the administration’s announcement of the freeze of $2.2 billion in grants and $60 million in contracts, and reports of the revocation of Harvard’s 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status—follows on the heels of our statement that Harvard will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights. We continue to stand by that statement. We will continue to comply with the law and expect the administration to do the same.

“Harvard values the rule of law and expects all members of our community to comply with university policies and applicable legal standards. If federal action is taken against a member of our community, we expect it will be based on clear evidence, follow established legal procedures, and respect the constitutional rights afforded to all individuals.

In a post on Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump attacked Harvard’s decision to hire former New York mayor Bill de Blasio and former Chicago mayor Lori Lightfoot.

He wrote: “Harvard has been hiring almost all woke, Radical Left, idiots and ‘birdbrains’ who are only capable of teaching FAILURE to students and so-called ‘future leaders.'”

He added: “Many others, like these Leftist dopes, are teaching at Harvard, and because of that, Harvard can no longer be considered even a decent place of learning, and should not be considered on any list of the World’s Great Universities or Colleges. Harvard is a JOKE, teaches Hate and Stupidity, and should no longer receive Federal Funds. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

What’s Next

According to the DHS release, Noem asked Harvard to provide “detailed” records on foreign student visa holders by April 30 or face the “immediate” loss of Student and Exchange Visitor Program certification.