The EDU Ledger has compiled a working record of where each action against colleges and universities currently stands: who ruled, on what grounds, and whether the fight is over or just paused. Litigation is fast-moving, and we will continue to update this page as statuses change.
Race, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion & Title VI
Feb. 14, 2025 "Dear Colleague Letter" (Title VI) and the anti-DEI certification/complaint portal (Overturned)
Office of Civil Rights guidance threatened federal funding over race-conscious admissions, hiring, financial aid, graduation ceremonies, and identity-based support programs. A companion mandate required institutions to certify compliance under threat of False Claims Act liability.
American Federation of Teachers v. Dept. of Education (D. Md.) and NEA v. Dept. of Education (D. N.H.): Judge Stephanie Gallagher vacated both the Dear Colleague Letter and the certification requirement (Aug. 14, 2025), finding an unlawful legislative rule issued without notice-and-comment, unconstitutional vagueness, and viewpoint discrimination.
Education Department dropped its appeal Jan. 22, 2026.
The administration has since pursued the same policy goal through other vehicles — a DOJ memo (July 2025) and a General Services Administration funding-conditions policy (April 2026) — that are separately being challenged and haven't yet been struck down.
Executive order restricting federal "DEI grants and contracts" (Ongoing)
National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education v. Trump (D. Md.): Judge Adam Abelson issued a nationwide preliminary injunction in Feb. 2025.
The Fourth Circuit stayed that injunction in March 2025 and, in a published opinion Feb. 6, 2026, held the plaintiffs were unlikely to succeed on the merits and vacated the injunction.
Research Funding
National Institutes of Health 15% cap on indirect (overhead) research costs (Overturned)
February 7, 2025, NIH notice capped F&A reimbursement at 15%, down from negotiated rates often 50–65%.
Massachusetts v. NIH, AAU v. NIH, AAMC v. NIH (D. Mass.): Judge Angel Kelley issued a temporary restraining order (Feb. 10, 2025), preliminary injunction (March 5, 2025), and permanent injunction (April 4, 2025) — the cap violated federal statute, was arbitrary and capricious, and skipped required rulemaking.
First Circuit unanimously affirmed January 5, 2026. DOJ let its Supreme Court appeal deadline lapses in April 2026
Parallel 15% caps attempted at National Science Foundation, Department of Education, and Department of Defense were also blocked on similar grounds.
NIH termination of DEI/LGBTQ-related and gender-identity research grants (Mixed: illegality found, remedy narrowed)
A coalition of 16 states and researchers (D. Mass.): Judge William Young ruled in June 2025 that roughly 800 terminations violated the Administrative Procedure Act and reflected "racial discrimination ... [and] discrimination against America's LGBTQ community," ordering the grants reinstated.
The Supreme Court intervened in August 2025: a five-to-four majority held the district court lacking jurisdiction to order funding restored (that belongs in the Court of Federal Claims), while leaving Young's illegality finding undisturbed. Net effect: the conduct was ruled unlawful, but affected grantees have to separately sue for money.
Grant terminations citing "changed agency priorities"
A Massachusetts federal judge ruled July 21, 2026, that agencies can't cite "changed priorities" to cancel already-awarded grants, covering the 23 states that sued.
Not final, and possibly short-lived: Office of Management and Budget has a pending proposed rule (490,000+ public comments) that would explicitly authorize exactly this going forward.
UCLA/University of California grant funding freeze ($600M+)
District court blocked withholding the funds via preliminary injunction. The administration appealed, then withdrew the appeal after the parties agreed the injunction wouldn't bar future investigations that end in voluntary resolution — settled, not a final merit ruling.
Student Loans & Financial Aid
Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) eligibility rule (Pending)
Trump's March 2025 executive order directed the Education Department to redefine "public service" employer eligibility to exclude organizations with a "substantial illegal purpose”, a category the final rule (published October 2025) defined to include aiding illegal immigration, supporting terrorism, "illegal discrimination," and gender-affirming care for minors.
Two federal judges — Myong Joun (D. Mass.) and Amir Ali (D. D.C.) blocked the rule on June 30, 2026, ruling the department exceeded its statutory authority and finding likely First Amendment problems with targeting disfavored viewpoints.
Government could still appeal; not yet final.
Sweet v. McMahon (Borrower Defense settlement delays) (on the specific delay request)
Under the 2022 Sweet settlement (originally Sweet v. Cardona, recaptioned Sweet v. McMahon as the sitting secretary changed), the department agreed to process Borrower Defense claims for roughly 200,000 "Post-Class" borrowers by set deadlines.
The administration sought an 18-month delay; Judge William Alsup rejected the request in December 2025, ordering the department to meet the original January 28, 2026, deadline or grant full discharge automatically.
This is a settlement-enforcement ruling, not a new merits decision, but it's a clean, final loss for the administration's attempt to slow-walk the program.
International Students & Visas
Mass Student & Exchange Visitor Information System record terminations, spring 2025 (reversed by the government; legality still being litigated)
Beginning April 2025, ICE terminated SEVIS records for thousands of F-1 students, often citing minor infractions or NCIC database flags without notice.
Triggered 100+ federal suits; the large majority produced TROs or preliminary injunctions ordering individual students' records restored.
DOJ announced in court (April 25, 2025) it would restore SEVIS records nationwide pending a new policy, a reversal, not a ruling striking the policy down outright.
The broader legal challenge (Presidents' Alliance/AICUM suit) survived a motion to dismiss in March 2026 and remains pending; the core legality question is still open.
Harvard SEVP certification revocation (Pending)
DHS revoked Harvard's ability to enroll international students (May 22, 2025) over an "insufficient response" to a records request.
Judge Allison Burroughs (D. Mass.) granted a temporary restraining order within 24 hours and a preliminary injunction June 20, 2025.
The case is still under appeal at the First Circuit.
Academic Freedom / Faculty Speech
West Point pre-clearance policy for faculty speech
A district court struck down a policy requiring West Point faculty to get preapproval before public speech or writing.
The government's appeal deadline (July 27, 2026) passed without an appeal — final as of early August 2026.
State Tuition Policy for Undocumented Students
DOJ challenge to Minnesota in-state tuition law (loss for the administration)
DOJ sued Minnesota over its law extending in-state tuition to undocumented students, arguing a federal statute preempts it. District Judge Katherine Menendez sided with the state and dismissed the suit (March 2026).
Context: this is one of seven related state suits, and the administration's overall record there is mixed — it secured voluntary repeal agreements (not court rulings) from Kentucky, Oklahoma, and Texas; lost in Minnesota; and Virginia is still pending.
Caution: a July 29, 2026, ruling on Illinois's law went the other way — a federal judge ruled against in-state tuition for noncitizens there. This category is genuinely split state-by-state, not a clean sweep.
Title IX and transgender athletes
The Supreme Court ruled in mid-2026 that Title IX permits sex-separated college sports based on biological sex — a win for the administration's position.
H-1B $100,000 fee proclamation
The fee was upheld as legal in December 2025 as within presidential authority; plaintiffs have appealed.
U.S. Department of Education mass layoffs/reorganization
The dismantling of the Department was blocked at the district court initially, but the Supreme Court allowed the layoffs to proceed in July 2025.
