Harvard, US' richest university, says it’s temporarily freezing hiring of staff, faculty

Harvard University is imposing a temporary pause on hiring of staff and faculty, as the risk of federal funding cuts by the Trump administration threatens the finances of American colleges, reported Bloomberg News on Monday.

Harvard, the richest US university with a $53 billion endowment, is one of several schools under government investigation for alleged failure to tackle antisemitism on campus. Last week, the administration said it’s canceling $400 million in federal grants and contracts to Columbia University, citing complaints by Jewish students since the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas on Israel.

“We need to prepare for a wide range of financial circumstances, and strategic adjustments will take time to identify and implement,” Harvard’s president, Alan Garber, wrote in a statement Monday. “Consequently, it is imperative to limit significant new long-term commitments that would increase our financial exposure and make further adjustments more disruptive.”