The News
Saturday 23 of November 2024

Trump administration reviewing foreign money to US colleges


AP Photo,In this Aug. 9, 2017, photo, flags decorate a space outside the office of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, at the Education Department in Washington. The U.S. Education Department is warning America’s universities that they must accurately report money coming from foreign nations or risk facing federal investigations, fines and legal action.  (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)
AP Photo,In this Aug. 9, 2017, photo, flags decorate a space outside the office of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, at the Education Department in Washington. The U.S. Education Department is warning America’s universities that they must accurately report money coming from foreign nations or risk facing federal investigations, fines and legal action. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

The U.S. Education Department is opening investigations into foreign funding at Georgetown University and Texas A&M University as the Trump administration increases its scrutiny of international money flowing to American colleges.

Letters sent to the schools Thursday and obtained by The Associated Press accuse the schools of failing to report gifts and contracts tied to their branch campuses in Qatar. Investigators also are demanding years of records related to funding from sources in China, Russia and Saudi Arabia.

Officials at Georgetown and Texas A&M haven’t immediately responded to requests for comment.

Federal law requires colleges to report gifts or contracts with any foreign source amounting to $250,000 or more in a year. Some lawmakers say the Education Department has done too little to enforce the rule.