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An audit of Duke University’s finances concluded that the North Carolina institution lacked justification for recent cuts and has ample financial resources. The audit was conducted by Howard Bunsis, an accounting professor at Eastern Michigan, for Duke’s American Association of University Professors chapter.
Number of the week: $79 billion
That’s the amount of discretionary funding the U.S. Department of Education will receive in fiscal 2026 under the budget bill signed into law last week by President Donald Trump. Congressional lawmakers rejected the steep cuts the Trump administration had proposed to the agency and preserved key student financial aid programs.
Colleges tighten their belts:
- Senior officials at the University of Pennsylvania directed the Ivy League institution’s schools and centers to reduce “certain expenditures” by 4%. They pointed to federal policy changes as necessitating the cuts, including higher endowment taxes and student loan restrictions that will take effect this year.
- Southern Oregon University officials said the public institution’s current trajectory could leave it without enough cash to meet its financial obligations by spring 2027. The university’s cash flows highlight an “urgent operational reality” that they said was caused by high monthly labor expenses and irregular revenue intake from tuition payments and state appropriations.
- Princeton University President Christopher Eisgruber said leaders plan to tighten the Ivy League institution’s budget in response to lower investment returns in its endowment. Leaders are now budgeting for 8% endowment returns, down from 10.2%.
Oklahoma governor eliminates tenure for most state colleges:
Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt signed an executive order Thursday to eliminate tenure at the state’s regional universities and community colleges and instead employ faculty members through renewable contracts.
The executive order intends to preserve tenure at public research universities, though it would mandate that those faculty be subject to post-tenure reviews every five years. The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education must first adopt these policies, though most members were appointed by Stitt.
- AAUP President Todd Wolfson slammed the decision in a statement Thursday, arguing that the order would undermine academic freedom, hamper recruiting efforts and weaken public trust in higher education. “With this order, the state of Oklahoma has sent a clear and deeply troubling message that academic freedom is no longer valued as a core public good,” Wolfson said.
