Va. Senate Democrats are calling Trump’s proposal to fund UVA “political extortion.” One school in Pa. is on the administration’s list.

Rotunda at the University of Virginia. (Photo: Sarah Vogelsong/Virginia Mercury)

Virginia Senate Democrats warned that if the university’s leadership accepts a proposed funding agreement with President Donald Trump’s administration, which lawmakers say comes with strings attached, it would have solemn consequences for the University of Virginia’s future budget cycles, as described in a letter they sent to the university’s leadership on Wednesday.

On October 1, UVA and eight other non-Commonwealth institutions were offered an agreement in exchange for committing to the administration’s Compact for Academic Excellence. The agreement’s specific requirements for school principals include a commitment to remain neutral in social and political events, limit foreign affiliations such as limiting the number of international students participating in the student visa exchange program, and meet demanding equality and objective criteria in the selection of students and staff.

Senate Democratic leaders – Majority Leader Scott Surowell, D-Fairfax, President Pro Tempore Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, and Senate Democratic Caucus Chair Mamie Locke, D-Hampton – said the agreement would constitute “unprecedented federal interference” with UVA’s autonomy and academic freedom.

“This is not a partnership; it is, as other university leaders have aptly described, political extortion,” the October 8 letter reads.

Democrats said the pact contains contradictory and unenforceable provisions, poses financial risks and introduces harmful operational changes. The leadership insisted that the institution “cease” any consideration of signing the agreement.

UVA and Democratic leadership in the Senate is currently closed lawsuit following a district court decision prohibiting multiple gubernatorial appointments to serve on an institution’s board of directors. The case also involves appointments to the Boards of Visitors at George Mason University and the Virginia Military Institute. The Supreme Court has requested oral arguments in the case for October 30, indicating that a court decision is unlikely general elections November 4.

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“If the University of Virginia signs this agreement, it will have serious consequences for Virginia’s future budget cycles,” the letter reads. “As Senate leaders responsible for measures affecting higher education, we will work with our colleagues to ensure that the Commonwealth does not subsidize an institution that has ceded its independence to federal political control.”

On Monday, UVA Chancellor Rachel Sheridan and Interim President Paul Mahoney confirmed they had received a letter regarding the agreement. Mahoney formed a working group to advise him on the response to the letter to the administration.

“The Board of Visitors has confidence in this process and looks forward to working with President Mahoney to address this critical moment in the relationship between the federal government and America’s universities,” the statement said.

The president and rector encouraged the UVA community to share their thoughts on the proposal and added that “it will be difficult for the university to agree to some of the provisions of the pact.”

They said the school’s response would be “guided by the same principles of academic freedom and free learning that Thomas Jefferson placed at the center of the university’s mission more than 200 years ago and to which the university remains committed to today.”

On Wednesday evening, UVA Vice Chancellor Porter Wilkinson, Sheridan and Mahoney signed a letter to senators expressing their concerns about the proposed agreement and assuring them that they have “no intention of abandoning the principles of the university.”

American Association of Colleges and Universities (AAUP) announced in a statement his opposition to the administration’s deal, adding that he strongly opposes any partnership alternative that would “eviscerate fundamental freedoms” and “promote instability.”

The University of Virginia Faculty Senate joined the AAUP in passing resolution stated that the agreement contained provisions “contrary” to the university’s mission and traditions and would threaten the university’s independence and integrity.

Nine institutions were asked to join the pact: Brown University in Rhode Island, Vanderbilt University in Tennessee, Dartmouth School in modern hampshire Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of Arizona, University of Pennsylvania, University of Southern California, University of Texas at Austin, and University of Virginia.

According to media reports, universities are expected to submit comments to the administration by October 20, and the agreement is expected to be signed by November 21.

This story was originally produced by Virginia Mercurywhich is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network that includes Pennsylvania Capital-Star, and is supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.

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