A White House order that was supposed to pause federal loans and grants caused confusion among students who receive federal aid and other government assistance.
In a memo on Monday night, Jan. 27, the acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, Matthew Vaeth, directed federal agencies to pause the disbursements of federal assistance and to review the use of funds to see that they comply with President Donald Trump’s executive orders.
A federal judge temporarily blocked the order on Tuesday, Jan. 28. The White House rescinded the order a day later.
If enacted, the freeze could have affected schools, healthcare, non-profit organizations and local governments that rely on federal funds. States reported that they lost access to Medicaid portals on Tuesday.
“The use of federal resources to advance Marxist equity, transgenderism and green new deal social engineering policies is a waste of taxpayer dollars that does not improve the day-to-day lives of those we serve,” the memo stated.
Although the order would have excluded assistance provided directly to individuals though Pell Grants and other types of federal student aid, students told the Chronicle they were alarmed and confused, unsure what types of assistance could ultimately be affected.
The memo said that the pause would have excluded “assistance provided directly to individuals,” like Medicare or Social Security benefits. It is not clear what other forms of assistance might have been affected, but the Department of Education said that Pell Grants and Federal Direct loans would not be paused, but that they are among the list of programs to be reviewed.
“I was seeing things like people were saying ‘No more FAFSA.’ I’m still confused on it,” said first-year comedy writing and performance major Claere Cody.
Direct loans include federal subsidized, unsubsidized, PLUS and consolidation loans. Federal Pell grants that do not need to be repaid are awarded to students who show exceptional financial need. In Fall 2024, 49% of undergraduate students at Columbia received Pell Grants according to the Office of Institutional Effectiveness.
“I thought it was going to affect FAFSA at first and I got scared. I was scared that all my grants and loans would be canceled or paused or frozen,” said junior audio arts and acoustics major Tammer Ali. Ali said that after doing more research, he felt assured that his student aid would not be affected.
Interim president and CEO Jerry Tarrer sent an email on Tuesday seeking to reassure students. This was before the order was rescinded.
“It is important to note that earlier today the Trump administration clarified that Pell grants (also known as federal financial aid) and student loans were not part of the freeze, though it remains unclear whether the Trump administration’s action would affect other federal funding the college receives,” he said in the email.
Columbia is a private college that does not receive institutional support from the federal government but can still acquire federal funds through grants. This year, Columbia became eligible to apply for a federal grant for Hispanic-serving institutions. The availability of that grant under the Trump administration has yet to be determined, but Trump has already taken executive actions to end Biden-era DEI spending.
Trump also made a campaign promise to abolish the Department of Education, which administers student aid programs. However, he could not do that through an executive order and would instead need approval from a U.S. Senate supermajority.
Ali said he believes that the reasoning given for the freeze and Trump’s recent actions against DEI spending is not genuine. “It’s all just lies and propaganda spewed by Trump’s government,” he said.
Copy edited by Trinity Balboa
Resumen en Español
Una orden de la Casa Blanca que se suponía que iba hacer una pausa a los préstamos y subvenciones federales causó confusión entre los estudiantes que reciben ayuda federal y otras asistencias gubernamentales.
En un memorando de la noche del lunes 27 de enero, el director interino de la Oficina de Administración y Presupuesto, Matthew Vaeth, ordenó a las agencias federales que pausaran a los desembolsos de asistencia federal y revisen el uso de fondos para ver que cumplan con las órdenes ejecutivas del presidente Donald Trump.
Un juez federal bloqueó temporalmente la orden el martes 28 de enero. La Casa Blanca rescindió la orden un día después.
Si se promulga, la congelación podría haber afectado a las escuelas, la atención médica, las organizaciones sin fines de lucro y los gobiernos locales que dependen de fondos federales. Los estados informaron que perdieron el acceso a los portales de Medicaid el martes.
Resumen en Español por Araceli Ramirez
Resumen en Español editado por Doreen Abril Albuerne Rodriguez