US Dept. of Ed. urged to release foreign funding data

By the Editorial Team · Wednesday, September 2, 2026

The Louis D. Brandeis Center has urged the U.S. Department of Education to release delayed records on foreign funding sources at American colleges, filing a FOIA request after multiple postponements. The call for transparency highlights concerns over potential foreign influence on university policies and campus culture, emphasizing the public’s right to understand the origins and impact of billions in overseas contributions.

The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law has called on the U.S. Department of Education to promptly release records detailing foreign funding sources for American colleges and universities after multiple delays in publication. The department had initially planned to publish the Section 117 foreign funding reports on July 15 but postponed the release repeatedly—to July 29, August 12, August 26, and most recently to September 11.

In response to the ongoing delays, the Brandeis Center submitted a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to obtain copies of the Department of Education’s compiled reports from earlier reporting cycles, seeking greater public transparency around foreign financial contributions to U.S. institutions of higher education.

Howard Kenneth L. Marcus, chairman and CEO of the Brandeis Center and a former U.S. assistant secretary of Education for Civil Rights, said the postponements hinder public access to information that federal law mandates should be open to scrutiny. “The American people have a right to know more,” Marcus said, emphasizing concerns about the sources of billions of dollars flowing into campuses and classrooms and the potential influence that may accompany such funding.

The issue has garnered increasing public and legal attention amid concerns that foreign financial support may affect university policies and campus culture. Earlier this year, Marcus illustrated this concern in a widely discussed article detailing substantial Qatari funding at Carnegie Mellon University and suggesting a possible link to the institution’s handling of antisemitism complaints.

By seeking to expose these funding streams, the Brandeis Center aims to shed light on which foreign governments, state-controlled entities, or intermediaries may be directing resources to American academic institutions. The Department of Education’s continued postponement of the report’s release has drawn criticism from advocates who argue that transparency is essential to understanding the role and impact of foreign funding in U.S. higher education.

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