Brown University's president will step down following a conflict with the Trump administration
Brown University President Christina Paxson announced that she will step down at the end of the current academic year.
She said she had planned to step down earlier but decided to stay on to help the university navigate the crisis caused by the freeze on federal funding.
In an open letter, Paxson explained her decision: “I stayed to navigate the federal funding freeze that threatened our mission.”
Brown University was one of the first prestigious American universities to face pressure from the Donald Trump administration during his second term as president.
The White House demanded that universities change their policies regarding student protests over the war in Gaza, diversity programs, and other internal issues.
The Trump administration labeled some of the student protests as anti-Semitic, but the protesters—including some Jewish organizations—denied these accusations. They emphasized that criticizing Israel’s actions and supporting Palestinian rights does not constitute anti-Semitism or extremism.
After threats to block $510 million in federal grants to Brown University, in July 2025, Christina Paxson reached an agreement with federal authorities to restore funding.
Under the agreement, the university was required to:
- engage independent experts to assess the campus climate;
- analyze the situation of Jewish students;
- develop recommendations to improve the situation.
In the fall, the university president rejected a new proposal from the Trump administration addressed to nine leading U.S. universities.
The White House offered preferential treatment in the allocation of federal funding in exchange for:
- limiting the number of international students;
- defining gender exclusively based on biological characteristics;
- refraining from considering race and gender in admissions and hiring.
Paxson stated that complying with these conditions “would restrict academic freedom and undermine the autonomy of Brown University’s administration.”
In her farewell letter, Christina Paxson noted that federal policy toward American universities remains unstable.
At the same time, she reported that Brown University is once again receiving significant federal grants for scientific research, which, she said, could serve as the foundation for important innovations in the U.S.
This was reported by Reuters.
Earlier, U.S. Senator Mark Kelly called on Donald Trump to appoint more experienced diplomats to negotiate with Iran. In his view, the current U.S. representatives, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, have failed to rise to the challenge, and Washington should join forces with its allies.
As a reminder, on August 2, U.S. President Donald Trump stated that the U.S. military would not launch new strikes against Iran if Washington and Tehran reach an agreement in the near future.
