Update: On February 3, Judge AliKhan issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) to block the federal funding freeze and ordered the OMB to provide written notice of the order to all agencies it initially sent OMB Memorandum M-25-13.

Since President Trump’s inauguration on January 20, 2025, he has issued several Executive Orders, signaling potential shifts in federal funding priorities, some of which have resulted in project-specific suspensions, stop-work orders, and terminations from federal agencies and sponsors.

The purpose of this page is to provide a dedicated space for resources to help our CUNY community members navigate the changing landscape. As federal agencies adjust to these new developments, both the CUNY Office of Research and RFCUNY will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates, guidance, and relevant resources.

At this time, we recommend Principal Investigators (PIs) to move forward with their funded projects unless they receive a formal notification with a termination, suspension, or Stop Work Order (SWO) specific to their grant/contract from their federal funding agency. We also want to encourage our PIs to continue to apply and pursue federal funding opportunities.

 

RFCUNY and CUNY have developed a protocol to review the notifications of changes to federally funded awards such as a Stop Work Order (SWO), please find that below:

Protocol for Review of Federal Funding Changes Pursuant to the Presidential Executive Orders

 

Should your sponsor communicate unexpected changes/suspension of any approved funding, issue a SWO, or an agency directive to pause specific activities on your grant, please forward the notice to the CUNY Office of Research (OfficeofResearch@cuny.edu) and RFCUNY (PresidentOffice@rfcuny.org).

 

Links for Additional Resources to Watch:

2025 Administration Transition Information & Resources | Council on Governmental Relations (COGR)

COGR Summary of Executive Orders That May Impact Funding

APLU Overview of President Trump’s Executive Orders

ACE Summary of Executive Orders Impacting Higher Education

 

Executive Orders:

List of Most Recent Executive Orders

Presidential Action: Reevaluating and Realigning United States Foreign Aid

Presidential Action: Ending Government DEI Programs and Preferencing

 

Agency Communications:

US DOE Takes Action to Eliminate DEI

GSA Memo to Contractors Suspending Contractual DEI Terms

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