Columbia Alumni for Academic Freedom
Columbia Alumni for Academic Freedom (CAAF) is a coalition of Columbia University graduates dedicated to protecting, maintaining, and developing academic freedom at our alma mater and throughout American higher education.
CAAF formed in response to unprecedented threats to academic freedom at Columbia University. In March 2025, the Trump Administration issued a letter demanding that Columbia surrender control of core academic and administrative functions—effectively requiring the university to cede its academic independence. This came after the administration abruptly canceled $400 million in federal funding on March 7, 2025, without following proper Title VI procedures for investigating alleged violations.
Rather than comply with standard due process, the Trump administration—led by Education Secretary Linda McMahon – leveraged this funding as a weapon to override Columbia’s First Amendment rights, due process protections, and fundamental academic freedom. We formed to ensure that Columbia stays independent and able to pursue its core mission to educate its students and to pursue free inquiry in all academic realms.
CAAF works on three fronts to protect academic freedom:
Education: We inform the Columbia community and the public about threats to academic freedom and institutional independence.
Advocacy: We advocate for governance reform at Columbia to strengthen protections against future attacks on academic freedom.
Coalition Building: We ally with Columbia community stakeholders to address local Columbia issues and simultaneously align with alumni groups across the country to create a united front defending academic freedom, First Amendment rights, and due process protections at all American universities.