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The Department's Office for Civil Rights said the institutions — which range from flagship public research universities to elite private schools — either had already ended their relationships with the organization or agreed to do so as part of signed resolution agreements. Federal officials also required each institution to audit its external partnerships and identify any additional organizations that restrict participation on the basis of race.
"This is the Trump effect in action: institutions of higher education are agreeing to cut ties with discriminatory organizations, recommitting themselves to abiding by federal law, and restoring equality of opportunity on campuses across the nation," said Education Secretary Linda McMahon.
The investigation, launched in March 2025, targeted 45 institutions for their affiliations with The PhD Project. Officials determined those partnerships ran afoul of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on race, color, or national origin in programs and activities receiving federal funding. Fourteen schools remain under active negotiation with the department.
Among the institutions signing resolution agreements are Arizona State University, the University of Michigan, Ohio State University, Yale, Duke, MIT, Carnegie Mellon, the University of California-Berkeley, and the University of Chicago.
Founded decades ago to increase the number of minority business faculty, The PhD Project says it has helped more than 1,500 members earn doctoral degrees. The organization pushed back against the administration's characterization of its work.
"The PhD Project was founded with the goal of providing more role models in the front of business classrooms, and this remains our goal today," the organization said in a statement.
