University professors call out Trump administration "pay-to-play approach" to higher education governance

A report by the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) on the state of higher education alleges that the federal government is utilising “extorted compliance” to strip institutions of their autonomy.

The report, titled "Extorted Compliance: A Threat to Institutional Autonomy, Academic Freedom and Shared Governance" and released in July 2026, details an unprecedented “pay-to-play approach”: a campaign by the second Trump administration to use federal research funding as a lever to force ideological shifts on US campuses.

The report points out the emergence of a “regulation by deal” strategy. Rather than following established legal protocols, the administration has frozen billions in federal funding to compel universities to sign restrictive "compliance agreements".

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