Columbia University announced the layoffs of approximately 180 staff members on Tuesday, a direct consequence of the Trump administration’s decision to revoke $400 million in federal grants.
The funding cuts, enacted in March 2025, were justified by the administration as a response to the university’s alleged “failure to protect Jewish students from antisemitic harassment” during pro-Palestinian protests on campus.
The layoffs, affecting 20% of staff funded by the terminated grants, mark a significant blow to the university’s research infrastructure and financial stability.
In a letter to faculty and staff, Acting President Claire Shipman and senior leadership described the decision as a painful but necessary measure. “Across the research portfolio, we have had to make difficult choices, and unfortunately, today, nearly 180 of our colleagues who have been working, in whole or in part, on impacted federal grants, will receive notices of non-renewal or termination,” Shipman stated.
She emphasised the financial strain, noting, “The strain in the meantime, financially and on our research mission, is intense.” The university is actively engaging with federal authorities to restore funding, with Shipman adding, “Columbia’s leadership continues discussions with the federal government in support of resuming activity on these research awards and additional other awards that have remained active, but unpaid.”
The revoked grants, part of a larger $5 billion in federal commitments to Columbia, supported critical research in health and science, including projects on Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, and fetal health.
The layoffs have sparked outrage among faculty and students, with many criticising the university’s compliance with the administration’s demands, which included banning face masks at protests, hiring security officers with arrest authority, and placing the Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies department under administrative oversight.
“We have had to make deliberate, considered decisions about the allocation of our financial resources,” the university’s statement read, acknowledging the human toll: “Those decisions also impact our greatest resource, our people. We understand this news will be hard.”
Marcel Agueros, secretary of Columbia’s American Association of University Professors chapter, called the layoffs “dispiriting,” warning that the damage to research would take years to repair. “When there’s an interruption in funding, people have to leave, new people can’t be hired, and research stops moving forward,” he said.
Columbia has established a Research Stabilisation Fund to mitigate future risks, but the university faces an uncertain path forward as it navigates this unprecedented crisis.
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