UW says federal grants freeze won’t stop “teaching and learning.” But research might suffer.
The pause, which has been temporarily halted by a federal judge, caused alarm Tuesday. In an email to campus, UW President Ed Seidel says Pell grants are safe. Research grants could be impacted.
A Tuesday memo from the Trump Administration announcing an imminent freeze on federal grants caused confusion across the nation.
The stated goal was to align federal spending with the priorities of the new president, but those who rely on such federal grants — including state governments, nonprofits and research institutions — were unclear about what the vaguely worded memo would mean for their ability to operate.
It’s still unclear what the pause and the administration’s executive orders will mean for research. The National Science Foundation announced, “all review panels, new awards and all payments of funds under open awards will be paused as the agency conducts the required reviews and analysis.” The federal grant freeze is already impacting scientists across the country.
But University of Wyoming President Ed Seidel writes in a message to campus that UW’s “core academic functions of teaching and learning” will “continue as usual.”
“While this is a complex and rapidly evolving situation, I want to share what we know today and what we are doing to advocate for the interests of the university,” Seidel writes in an email to all employees and students. “Federal financial aid, including Pell grants and work-study programs, is not affected.”
The pause is, however, likely to impact research grants and student success initiatives.
Seidel adds that university leaders are staying in touch with “the Association of Public & Land-Grant Universities, other universities, and federal agencies” to keep tabs on “how other institutions are addressing this matter.”
“I want you to know that our team brings a wealth of experience in working at the federal level, and we are working hard to address issues that may impact the campus,” Seidel writes. “This situation is dynamic and is likely to change. Federal agencies themselves are still working out implications, but we’re following this developing issue as closely as we can.”
The Association of Public & Land-Grant Universities called the freeze “an overly broad mandate that is unnecessary and damaging.”
“This action will sideline world-leading American scientists who are working toward cures for cancer, developing breakthroughs in AI and quantum computing, driving progress in advanced manufacturing, and supporting American farmers,” according to the association’s statement. “It will have far-reaching impacts in every corner of the country and hamper American innovation at a moment when it’s being fiercely challenged on a global stage.”
UW launched a web page to “provide guidance to those engaged in research and to track updates at the federal level.” At time of writing, the page had policy change announcements from the U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Department of Justice and Wyoming BLM.
Presidential priorities
Trump’s Office of Management and Budget issued a memo to executive departments and agencies Tuesday morning announcing a “Temporary Pause of Agency Grant, Loan, and Other Financial Assistance Programs.”
The exact parameters of this pause were unclear — to the public, to reporters and to the agencies possibly impacted by the memo.
The two-page notice itself requires federal agencies to “review all Federal financial assistance programs and supporting activities” to ensure they align with Trump’s week-one executive orders regarding immigration, foreign aid, international climate agreements, energy, DEI, gender and abortion.
“Financial assistance should be dedicated to advancing Administration priorities, focusing taxpayer dollars to advance a stronger and safer America, eliminating the financial burden of inflation for citizens, unleashing American energy and manufacturing, ending ‘wokeness’ and the weaponization of government, promoting efficiency in government, and Making America Healthy Again,” the memo states. “The use of Federal resources to advance Marxist equity, transgenderism, and green new deal social engineering policies is a waste of taxpayer dollars that does not improve the day-to-day lives of those we serve.”
States, local governments, universities, nonprofits and companies across a vast range of industries saw the memo as threatening billions of dollars in crucial support for research, social safety net programs and more. They feared their support would be completely cut off at 5 p.m. when the pause was scheduled to start.
During a White House press briefing and a Q-and-A fact-sheet published online, the administration insisted its intentions were clear and being misrepresented by the press, even as they clarified that the pause “does not apply across-the-board” and “does not affect individual assistance going to Americans” such as SNAP.
“It is expressly limited to programs, projects, and activities implicated by the President’s Executive Orders, such as ending DEI, the green new deal, and funding nongovernmental organizations that undermine the national interest,” the fact sheet states. “[A]ny program that provides direct benefits to Americans is explicitly excluded from the pause and exempted from this review process … Funds for small businesses, farmers, Pell grants, Head Start, rental assistance, and other similar programs will not be paused.”
However, many programs that provide aid to people in need — but which do not cut checks to individuals — could still be impacted. Even some of the programs explicitly listed above experienced disruptions Tuesday.
In the afternoon, a federal judge temporarily blocked Trump’s pause from going into effect. It will now begin February 3.
Obeying in advance
UW has given significant attention to the topic of DEI, or “diversity, equity and inclusion,” in recent months. That might mean the university is already complying with the new president’s orders.
State legislators defunded the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion last year and UW leaders elected to shutter the office rather than fund it through other means.
At the suggestion of the governor, UW also conducted a campus-wide review of diversity-oriented or -related programs and trainings. This has resulted in some changes on campus — notably including the end of the Multicultural Affairs Office.
State lawmakers are pursuing new legislation to further restrict UW programs and curriculum, but the purge of DEI could mean Wyoming’s university is already aligned with the anti-DEI goals of the Trump Administration.
“The work we’ve undertaken since May to move from a DEI model to an access and engagement model already has us well-positioned to respond as needed while remaining supportive of our communities,” Seidel writes.
Wild for UW to put this information out when the fools who wrote the original memo don't even know what it does.