August 9, 2025 – UC Graduate and Professional Council (UCGPC) and the UC Student Association (UCSA) have released an urgent open letter to UC President James B. Milliken and UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk in response to the Trump administration’s unprecedented financial and regulatory demands targeting UCLA’s public higher education mission.
UC Graduate and Professional Council | president@ucgpc501c3.org
981 Mission Street, #31, San Francisco, CA 94103
UC Student Association | president@ucsa.org
1020 12th St. Suite 232, Sacramento, CA 95814
August 9, 2025President James B. Milliken
UC Office of the President
1111 Franklin St., 12th Floor
Oakland, CA 94607
Chancellor Julio Frenk
UCLA Office of the Chancellor
405 Hilgard Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90095Dear President James B. Milliken and UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk,
On behalf of the students of the University of California (UC), including over 63,000 graduate and professional students, 23% of whom are at UCLA, we write with grave concern regarding the Trump administration’s recent attacks on public higher education, with UCLA as the primary target. While recognizing your responsibility to manage this serious financial risk, we urge your collaboration in supporting the following demands to uphold democratic principles and our shared UC values.
UCLA immediately faces the indiscriminate and unlawful suspension of approximately $584 million in federal research funding. This suspension continues to jeopardize the approximately 800 critical research projects that not only provide a lifeline for training our students, but also support healthcare, national security, scientific innovation, the economy, and more, for California, for our nation, and for the entire world.We understand that the federal government has proposed that UCLA pay a $1 billion fine and contribute $172 million to a fund intended to compensate individuals allegedly affected by civil rights violations. Beyond these financial demands, the proposal calls for sweeping changes across the UC system, including restrictions on campus peaceful protests, changes to admissions fair practices, limitations on gender identity accommodations in housing and athletics, elimination of scholarships based on race or ethnicity, and the appointment of an external monitor to enforce compliance. At UCLA specifically, the demands reportedly also include implementing a senior administrator whose sole purpose is to ensure UCLA’s compliance with anti-discrimination laws, sharing admissions data with the federal government, and halting gender-affirming care through the UCLA Health System.
In solidarity with the UCLA Faculty Association, we urge the UC to stand firm against the Trump administration’s illegitimate and bad-faith demands. The UC must reject these malicious efforts to weaken higher education in the United States and immediately challenge them vigorously in court. We further call on the UC Office of the President to work in close partnership with Governor Newsom and the California State Legislature to address any resulting financial shortfall, and to explore utilizing a portion of the University’s over $5 billion in unrestricted endowment funds to preserve the integrity of its mission.
We, the undersigned UC student leaders, cannot compromise on the following non-negotiables:
1. Academic Freedom and Scientific Integrity – Our research and scholarship cannot be compromised by ideological coercion and fascism.
2. Institutional Autonomy – Uphold our shared governance and resist concessions that undermine the University of California’s autonomy.
3. Public Mission – Affordability, accessibility, and public benefit must remain central to our mission.
4. Equity and Inclusion – Institutional support and protection for international, undocumented, LGBTQ+, and historically underrepresented and marginalized students and scholars must remain unwavering.
5. Student Privacy and Data Security – Personal information must never be leveraged as collateral in negotiations.
We recognize the complexity of this situation, especially as it is unfolding early in your tenures as leaders of the University. Yet, even under this immense pressure, negotiations must not come at the expense of the University’s values. In a press conference on August 7, 2025, the Governor of California and President of the UC Board of Regents, Gavin Newsom, issued a firm admonition amplifying our stance followed by his recent proposed move to sue the Trump administration regarding this matter:
“We’re not Brown, we’re not Columbia, and I’m not going to be governor if we act like that, period full stop. I will fight like hell to make sure that doesn’t happen. There’s principles, there’s right and wrong, and we’ll do the right thing. And what President Trump is doing is wrong, and everybody knows it.”These words underscore a critical distinction: UC must not follow suit as these private institutions surrendered their core principles, compromised their students’ constitutional rights, and mistakenly capitulated to the Trump administration in order to regain funding.
Brown University has yielded admissions data, while also being forced to make decisions that cause major setbacks for transgender rights. Columbia University agreed to a $220 million penalty while cutting diversity-related programs because they were deemed “unlawful.”
With over 280,000 students, 227,000 faculty and staff, and more than 2 million alumni worldwide, the UC has the collective strength, power, and unity to stand firm against unconstitutional federal overreach. Rather than engage in coercive negotiations, we reiterate the urgent need for the University to pursue immediate legal action against the federal government.If the UC yields to politically motivated federal demands, it will set a dangerous national precedent threatening academic freedom, institutional autonomy, and civil rights protections. As the nation’s leading public university system, home to the #1 public university nationwide, the UC must demonstrate principled and fearless leadership in defending its mission, values, and commitments.
History warns us: in 1930s Germany, universities were purged of politically “undesirable” faculty, academic freedom was curtailed, and institutions became tools of propaganda. The regime leveraged compliance to legitimize discrimination and suppress dissent. Today, similar rhetoric and tactics of political intimidation and coercion are being used by the Trump administration to erode civil liberties, dismantle inclusive excellence programs, weaponize data collection, and enforce ideological conformity.To acquiesce to the Trump administration’s coercive demands would compromise our integrity and embolden further attacks on public education. What happens to UCLA will reverberate across the country. Should the UC bend under the authoritarian threats disguised as anti-discrimination enforcement, it sets a dangerous precedent for others to do the same. This would mark the start of the dismantlement of public education through incremental surrender. This is not just about UCLA, or about the University of California; this is about defending the future of higher education.
Your students are urging you to lead with courage, conviction, and clarity, to challenge in court, and to refuse any settlement or agreement that results in financial obligations, compromises to academic freedom and autonomy, or any concessions whatsoever.Research funding has already been systematically slashed across all UC campuses. Past concessions to the Trump administration have done nothing to safeguard these resources, and striking a deal offers no guarantee they will honor it. We must stay strong in protecting UC values and priorities despite these attacks. We are eager to partner with you and support you on this matter.
Thank you for your service and commitment to our students. We look forward to hearing from you to discuss this matter forward. You can contact Stephanie Valadez, UCGPC President at president@ucgpc501c3.org or (415) 283-6918.
In solidarity,
University of California Graduate and Professional Council,
UC Student Association, and select presidents of UC graduate and undergraduate student associationsSignatories list — Presidents, Directors, and Representatives from various UC campuses as included in original
Read the full letter with all signatures here.
Add your name to the letter here.
Federal Threats and Unprecedented Financial Penalties
In a move shaking the nation’s top public university system, the Trump administration is demanding a $1 billion fine from UCLA and $172million for a civil rights fund, while suspending nearly $584million in federal research funding. This action imperils over 800 critical research projects at UCLA, undermining not just the training of students but also vital advancements in healthcare, national security, and scientific innovation that benefit Californians and the global community.
On top of steep financial penalties, the federal proposal demands sweeping institutional changes:
- Limitations on campus protests and freedom of expression
- Curtailment of gender identity accommodations in housing and athletics
- Elimination of race- and ethnicity-based scholarships
- Appointment of external monitors to enforce compliance
- Full disclosure of admissions data to federal authorities
- Halting of gender-affirming care at UCLA Health
Students and Faculty Stand Firm: No Surrender of UC Values
UCGPC, representing more than 63,000 graduate and professional students, calls these measures an attack on academic autonomy and democratic principles. The letter urges UC leaders to reject any settlement or agreement that could compromise academic freedom, autonomy, or institutional values. Student leaders lay out five non-negotiables:
- Academic Freedom and Scientific Integrity
- Institutional Autonomy
- Public Mission: Affordability and Accessibility
- Equity and Inclusion for all marginalized groups
- Student Privacy and Data Security
The letter emphasizes: “Our research and scholarship cannot be compromised by ideological coercion and fascism.”
Solidarity, Legal Action, and Historical Context
The UC student coalition stands with UCLA’s Faculty Association and calls for unified resistance, immediate legal challenge, and direct engagement with Governor Gavin Newsom and the legislature to protect funding and values. Newsom himself has vowed to fight back, stating, “We’re not Brown, we’re not Columbia, and I’m not going to be governor if we act like that, period full stop. There’s right and wrong, and we’ll do the right thing.”
UC leaders are urged to learn from history, including 1930s Germany, where universities were transformed into “tools of propaganda” under political intimidation. The letter warns against repeating such mistakes, referencing current cases where private universities like Brown and Columbia capitulated to federal overreach, resulting in setbacks for diversity and civil rights.
A National Precedent in the Making
With over 280,000 students and more than 2 million alumni worldwide, UC’s actions will set a precedent impacting the future of public higher education across the country. The students demand fearless, principled leadership to defend UC’s mission, warning that acquiescence would “embolden further attacks on public education.”
The situation remains fluid, with litigation already underway—including class action lawsuits and efforts to restore suspended research grants. UC’s response in the coming days will be watched nationwide.
This is a pivotal moment for American higher education, democratic values, and civil rights. UCGPC and UCSA urge all allies in California and beyond to unite in defense of public universities, institutional autonomy, and the future of free inquiry.
For inquiries, contact Stephanie Valadez, UCGPC President (president@ucgpc501c3.org).
Official Blog | UCGPC 
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