Valley Forge Military College in Pennsylvania has become the first institution to volunteer to join President Donald Trump’s Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education, a decision that comes as several prominent universities have declined to participate.
The two-year junior military college, which offers an early commissioning program for future officers in the Army, Army Reserve, and National Guard, formally announced its decision in a letter sent Tuesday to Dr. David Barker, the Trump administration’s assistant secretary for postsecondary education.
“On behalf of Valley Forge Military College, we are writing to express our desire and honor to be the first military college to support you and our Commander in Chief, President Donald J. Trump, by signing the Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education,” the letter stated. “We share the Compact’s commitment to advancing educational quality, access, and accountability across American institutions of higher learning, and we would be honored to participate in this important national initiative.”
“Our mission—to educate, train, and inspire the leaders of tomorrow—aligns naturally with the Compact’s goals of promoting institutional excellence and preparing students for meaningful contributions to society,” the letter added.
The Compact for Academic Excellence is part of a series of higher education reforms the Trump administration is urging universities to adopt. According to Inside Higher Ed, the nine-page proposal “represents the priorities of the U.S. government in its engagements with universities that benefit from the relationship.”
Among its provisions are requirements that colleges eliminate consideration of race or sex in hiring and admissions, impose a five-year freeze on tuition increases, address grade inflation, and shut down departments that “spark violence against conservative ideas.” The terms would be enforced by the Department of Justice, and institutions that sign on would be eligible for “substantial and meaningful federal grants” and “increased overhead payments where feasible.”
President Trump invited any college willing to “return to the pursuit of Truth and Achievement” to sign the compact. The Department of Education initially sought feedback from nine universities by October 20, but seven refused to participate and the remaining two remained noncommittal.
Among those declining was the University of Arizona, which said in a statement that while it shares “common ground” with the administration’s goals, it would not sign the compact, arguing that it undermines federal research funding based on merit rather than political conditions.
