The U.S. Department of Justice announced on the 20th that it has initiated a compliance review of Harvard University to investigate whether the school has accepted donations and contract funds from China and established or supported financial aid programs that prioritize students from specific countries, potentially violating Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination based on nationality.
The investigation stems from an audit of Harvard’s foreign funding disclosure records. According to Section 117 of the Higher Education Act of 1965, U.S. universities are required to report foreign donations and contracts worth over $250,000. Harvard has reported nearly $4.5 billion in foreign funds to date, with the largest source being China, totaling over $630 million.
Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet K. Dhillon wrote in a notification letter to Harvard University that the school “seems to have accepted condition-based funding from Chinese sponsors and, based on nationality, prioritized providing this student aid to foreign students (presumably Chinese nationals).”
Dhillon stated, “Every American student should have equal opportunities to compete for university scholarships, financial aid, and other forms of financial assistance and benefits. Schools cannot both take federal funds and accept foreign money while distributing aid that intentionally excludes American citizens; if this practice is true, it is illegal.”
The Department of Justice has requested Harvard to submit documents related to the “China Restricted Funds” and information on students benefiting from financial aid programs to clarify if there is any nationality-based allocation of scholarships.
The DOJ emphasized that the compliance review is ongoing, and no conclusions have been reached regarding whether Harvard has violated the law.
According to the attached notification letter published by the Department of Justice, the Chinese donors under investigation include China Evergrande Group, Jiangsu Industrial Technology Research Institute (JITRI), Nanjing University of Information Science & Technology (NUIST), University of Hong Kong, SOHO China City Culture Foundation, Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust Fund, Chow Tai Fook Enterprises, New World Group Charitable Foundation, members of the Guo Bingjiang family, among others. The details of the notification letter can be found here: [link]
Harvard University stated that it will cooperate with the government investigation and reaffirm that the school has always handled financial aid in accordance with the law, committed to the fair distribution of educational resources, and will continue to safeguard student rights during the investigation.