Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Audrey Anderson commented in a recent Inside Higher Ed article examining how colleges and universities are weighing their responses to Education Secretary Linda McMahon’s “Call to Action,” which asks institutional leaders to publicly address issues including admissions, free speech, intellectual pluralism, and affordability. While the letter does not expressly tie participation to federal funding, higher education stakeholders are evaluating the legal, financial, and reputational implications of responding or declining to respond.
Audrey noted that colleges are navigating a familiar environment of uncertainty. “Being in a place where there’s no clear right answer and lots of unknowns is very much where we’ve been since the beginning of the Trump administration,” Audrey said, emphasizing the challenge institutions face in balancing compliance considerations with broader institutional priorities.
Discussing the potential impact on federally funded institutions, Audrey observed that the decision whether to respond may depend largely on an institution’s reliance on federal research support. “If an institution is not getting a lot of federal grant money, I think they really need to think about whether they want to spend time on this at all,” she said. At the same time, she suggested that institutions with significant federal research portfolios may face different considerations as they assess potential funding and enforcement risks.
Audrey also cautioned that submitting a response does not necessarily insulate institutions from scrutiny. “The context of the ‘Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education’ is important because it tells us the answers that this administration wants,” she explained. “Institutions need to be careful about how they answer those questions, so as to not make themselves a target for administration enforcement actions.”
As colleges and universities evaluate their next steps ahead of the administration’s deadline, Anderson’s comments underscore the importance of carefully assessing institutional goals, funding exposure, and potential regulatory implications when determining how to engage with evolving federal higher education policy initiatives.
The full article, “How Should Leaders Respond to McMahon’s Letter?” was published on August 10 by Inside Higher Ed and is available online.