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Donald Trump’s claim that historically Black colleges and universities won’t have to worry about federal funding cuts under his administration barely lasted days before being proved false.
I wrote about the president’s vow to protect HBCU funding last week, after sports commentator Stephen A. Smith (whose coziness with the MAGA movement I’ve documented here) asked Trump a somewhat fawning question about HBCUs during a NewsNation town hall. The background here is that HBCU leaders have openly fretted about what the Trump administration’s attempt to dismantle the Education Department and its assault on diversity initiatives could mean for the sustainability of their schools.
After touting Trump’s previous “contributions” to HBCUs, Smith asked the president whether HBCUs should be concerned about the federal government reducing their already slim budgets, and Trump responded “not at all” before going on a misinformation-filled, self-aggrandizing rant falsely portraying himself as a savior of HBCUs. Just two days later, the White House released a budget proposal for the upcoming fiscal year that would cut tens of millions of dollars from Howard University’s budget.
As The New York Times reported, the proposal “would cut $64 million in funding for Howard University, the nation’s only federally chartered historically Black college and university.”
The Budget reduces funding for Howard University to the 2021 Budget level to more sustainably support the Nation’s only federally-chartered Historically Black College and University (HBCU). The 2025 enacted amount included the conclusion of a one-time $300 million, multiyear Federal commitment to the construction of their new hospital.
But the fact that Howard is fighting to have that funding preserved suggests, at minimum, there’s disagreement over its essentiality. University leadership certainly seems to think it’s far more necessary than the Trump administration does.
In a statement, the university in Washington, D.C., said:
The University is aware of the Trump Administration’s proposed funding recommendations for Howard University—one of the nation’s premier historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs)—as part of the discretionary funding levels for Fiscal Year (FY) 2026.
As a leading HBCU, Howard, has since its founding in 1867, cultivated talent, unlocked opportunity, and contributed mightily to every sector of American life. The University continues to do so as a top-tier Research 1 institution and a leading contributor to social and economic mobility for our graduates.
We look forward to engaging to sustain the FY 2026 budget to at least the level provided in FY 2025, ensuring the continued advancement of our mission and the legacy of academic excellence that defines Howard University.
Whatever the reason, the Trump administration is proposing that Howard receive less money. In other words, Trump’s claim that HBCUs had no reason to be concerned about their funding was simply not true.