WASHINGTON: The entire board overseeing the prestigious Fulbright Program resigned on Wednesday, accusing the Trump administration of politicizing the long-standing academic exchange initiative and interfering with the selection process for scholars.
In a public resignation statement, board members said the administration had “usurped the authority of the board” by denying Fulbright awards to numerous candidates already approved for the 2025–2026 academic year.
“The current administration has injected politics and ideological mandates into a program that has always been non-partisan,” the board wrote. “These actions undermine both the Fulbright mission and the values of free speech and academic freedom as defined by Congress.”
The board also revealed that the State Department had initiated an unauthorized review of an additional 1,200 foreign Fulbright recipients, potentially leading to further rejections.
Rather than endorse what they called “unprecedented and legally questionable actions,” the members chose to step down, citing threats to the program’s integrity and U.S. national interests.
Established in 1946, the Fulbright Program is one of the most respected international exchange initiatives in the world, supporting approximately 8,000 merit-based grants each year for American and foreign students, scholars, and professionals across 160 countries.
The resignation follows reports by The New York Times that around 200 U.S. professors and researchers who were set to begin overseas assignments this summer were unexpectedly rejected by the State Department, allegedly due to the topics of their research.
According to the Times, these decisions came not from the board, but from the department’s Office of Public Diplomacy, raising concerns over ideological vetting.
Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen, the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, condemned the administration’s actions:
“The Fulbright Board was created to act as a safeguard against exactly this kind of political favoritism. Their mass resignation is a powerful statement—and a troubling sign for the future of American academic leadership,” she said.
The Trump administration has intensified its criticism of U.S. universities, with Vice President J.D. Vance previously labeling them “the enemy” due to their perceived liberal bias. In recent months, the administration has cut billions in research funding, citing alleged inaction on anti-Semitism during pro-Palestinian campus protests.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has also moved to tighten visa scrutiny, invoking rarely used legal provisions to cancel or delay student visas over national security concerns and online activity.
The State Department did not respond to Reuters requests for comment. Harvard University, among other institutions affected by recent funding cuts and visa delays, also declined to comment.
The Fulbright Board’s departure marks a dramatic rupture in the program’s nearly 80-year history, raising alarms about the future of academic exchange, free inquiry, and U.S. global engagement.
