Harvard Magazine has compiled key players on both sides of the conflict, from those in the Trump administration leading the crackdown to the Harvard faculty and administrators fighting back.
Click here to read comprehensive coverage of Harvard in the Crosshairs
TEAM TRUMP
Secretary of Education Linda McMahon*
Plays a key role in pressuring Harvard to comply with the Trump administration’s demands. In a May 5 letter—which went viral on social media for its Trumpian grammar quirks—she informed the University it was no longer eligible for federal research grants because of its “disastrous mismanagement.” Later that month, in an interview with The New York Times, McMahon signaled she was open to talks—but offered little indication that she was willing to compromise.
Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem*
Head of border security and immigration enforcement and the former governor of South Dakota. Noem has spearheaded the crackdown on international students, including sending an April 16 letter to the University demanding records related to students’ “known illegal” or “dangerous” activities. In response, Harvard said it would send materials “required by law.” On May 22, Noem said Harvard had failed to comply and revoked the University’s ability to host international students. Harvard sued, and a judge has temporarily blocked the order while the matter is taken up in court.
Attorney General Pam Bondi*
Leader of the Department of Justice (DOJ), which has demanded that institutions dismantle their diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives—or face legal consequences. The department is investigating whether Harvard’s admissions practices comply with the Supreme Court’s decision to end affirmative action. And in May, the DOJ announced that it intends to use an anti-fraud law to cut funding from schools that promote DEI.
Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. ’76*
Oversees the department that has slashed billions of dollars in research funding to his alma mater, citing allegations of antisemitism and racial discrimination. Kennedy has also made broader threats to scientists, including those at Harvard, warning that he may ban government-funded researchers from publishing in top scientific journals.
Republican Congresswoman Elise Stefanik ’02
Became one of her alma mater’s most vocal critics in the wake of October 7, 2023, terrorist attack on Israel—most notably during a December 2023 congressional hearing on campus antisemitism, when she asked then-President Claudine Gay and other university presidents whether calling for the genocide of Jews violated campus policies. Her nomination for U.N. ambassador was revoked in March so the Republican party could maintain its majority in the House. She’s continued to push for scrutiny of Harvard, cosigning letters announcing investigations into the University’s civil rights compliance and collaborations with China.
*Denotes a named defendant in Harvard’s suit against the Trump administration
(Illustrations by Jennifer Carling/Harvard Magazine, Based off images in the public domain)
TEAM HARVARD
President Alan M. Garber ’77
Physician-economist and former provost, appointed by the Harvard Corporation in January 2024 to provide steady leadership after a disastrous fall 2023 semester. Garber wrote the April 14 letter announcing that Harvard would reject the Trump administration’s demands. A month later, in a letter to McMahon, he defended Harvard’s record on antisemitism and said Harvard would not surrender its independence—even as he acknowledged “common ground” with the administration. He has asked alumni for support—financial and political—during the University’s fight.
Provost John Manning ’82
Former Harvard Law School Dean, selected as provost in March 2024. A conservative in a sea of liberal-leaning faculty, he was seen by some as an asset in helping Harvard respond to Republican criticism over campus antisemitism. Known for keeping a low profile, Manning has mostly stayed behind the scenes as Garber and other faculty have spearheaded a media blitz to rally support. He coauthored a May 14 letter with Garber announcing a $250 million disbursement toward research affected by federal cuts.
Faculty of Arts and Sciences Dean Hopi Hoekstra
Took the reins of Harvard’s largest faculty—which houses the College and Ph.D. programs—in June 2023. As dean, she regularly interacts with faculty at FAS meetings, sometimes defending unpopular positions. But since Harvard announced its lawsuit against the federal government, she’s encountered a more receptive crowd—even as she tries to prepare for the long-term, painful consequences of sweeping federal funding cuts.
Members of the Harvard Corporation
The University’s principal governing board. While Garber has served as the public face of Harvard’s fight with the Trump administration, the Corporation has played a significant behind-the-scenes role in shaping the University’s response. According to The New York Times, the Corporation had been trying to cut a deal before receiving the Trump administration’s April 11 demand letter. But the demands were so extreme that the University broke off talks. The praise the Corporation is receiving for that decision marks a shift: following the conflict that engulfed the University after October 7, 2023, the group drew mostly negative press attention for its perceived lack of transparency.
Harvard faculty
While the relationship between Harvard’s faculty and administration has sometimes been strained in the past two years—prompting an effort to create a faculty senate as a voice for the former group’s interests—many professors have vocally supported Harvard and have been eager to make a public case for their work. Soon after the federal government began freezing research funding, scientists who received stop-work orders took to the media to argue that the cuts will undermine the Trump administration’s agenda: Sarah Fortune spoke to The New York Times about her research on tuberculosis; David Walt, who studies ALS, told CNN the funding cuts will “cost lives.” Former Harvard President Lawrence H. Summers, an economics professor who has criticized the University’s handling of campus politics, has been unscathing about Trump’s assault. “There are issues the government is right to look at. Academic freedom does not mean universities are unconstrained by the Civil Rights Act, the Constitution and much more,” Summers wrote on X in May. “But totalizing efforts at destruction are never legal in America and doing vast damage beyond their object is a reason the Founding Fathers separated powers.”
(Illustrations by Jennifer Carling/Harvard Magazine)
