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Last week, I covered President Trump’s offer to ten universities that I labeled his “Compact for Control.” The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has now rejected the offer. In her letter to the U.S. Secretary of Education, MIT President Sally Kornbluth highlighted the defense of institutional independence and academic freedom, commitment to scientific merit, and belief in open competition for her decision.

She wrote:

The document also includes principles with which we disagree, including those that would restrict freedom of expression and our independence as an institution. And fundamentally, the premise of the document is inconsistent with our core belief that scientific funding should be based on scientific merit alone.

In our view, America’s leadership in science and innovation depends on independent thinking and open competition for excellence. In that free marketplace of ideas, the people of MIT gladly compete with the very best, without preferences. Therefore, with respect, we cannot support the proposed approach to addressing the issues facing higher education.

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