As university leaders, staying up to date on the public Federal Updates resources is an important way to demonstrate commitment to the people and teams you serve. This includes regularly checking the Federal Updates website/FAQ and reading the weekly newsletter.
As always, if you need additional support or information, please email federalupdates@illinois.edu. We recognize these are challenging times for higher education leadership, and we’re truly grateful for the patience, compassion and steadfast commitment you bring to our shared mission.
Your teams are looking to you for guidance and answers regarding Federal Updates., which can be adapted to reflect your unit’s unique context and priorities.
Robert J. Jones
Chancellor
- As leaders, we encourage you and your teams to engage openly and empathetically with employee concerns. It is okay to say, “I don’t know” or “I can take that concern to the appropriate office and report back to you.” In some cases, your staff may simply want to be heard.
- The resources and FAQs on the Federal Updates website will be continuously updated as new information becomes available.
- There is a Federal Updates newsletter that is sent weekly to all faculty, staff and graduate students and posted on the Federal Updates website.
- Other questions or concerns can be sent to federalupdates@illinois.edu, and the people monitoring that inbox will work to find an answer as soon as possible.
- Our higher education peers are grappling with questions surrounding federal actions, and we are collaborating to find clarity and solutions. The university is pursuing strategies and initiatives in consultation with our peers throughout the Association of American Universities, the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities and other national organizations. This also includes our own university leadership, federal relations staff, legal, civil rights and compliance experts, faculty and other subject matter experts.
- In all decisions and planning, the university will hold fast to our core principles of safeguarding the university’s mission; supporting the well-being and privacy of all members of our campus community; and . We remain unwavering in our commitment to our values. We will be transparent and compassionate as we navigate these important issues together.
- International Student and Scholar Services is actively monitoring issues related to immigration and travel that affect our international community.
- When ISSS identifies a change in a student’s or scholar’s immigration status, the affected individual is alerted by ISSS and provided resources to navigate any applicable next steps, which will vary depending on individual circumstances. ISSS, with the support of StratCom, will also alert university leadership, the relevant dean or unit head and the dean of students or appropriate human resources representative.
- ISSS has prepared a FAQ list about immigration to help our community better understand these issues.
- We will approach this situation with empathy, compassion and a deep respect for the dignity and privacy of those affected.
- ISSS continues to communicate directly with our international community when it identifies a change in federal immigration or travel policy that may have broad impacts.
- We are working in close connection with our higher ed partners, advocacy groups and other key stakeholders to monitor and respond to directives that affect our research enterprise.
- We have joined several national higher ed associations and other leading research universities in a lawsuit challenging a new U.S. Department of Energy policy that caps the reimbursement of Facilities and Administrative (F&A) costs at 15% — a rate that is far below the true cost of doing research.
- F&A costs include a variety of expenses that cannot be directly charged to individual grants, such as electricity, physical space, compliance staffing and other critical infrastructure for research.
- Importantly, the university fronts these costs, and the federal government reimburses us for these expenses.
- The new DOE policy runs afoul of longstanding regulatory frameworks governing federal grants and foundational principles of administrative law, hindering progress, jeopardizing national security and threatening national competitiveness. It also sets a dangerous precedent that could be used to cap reimbursement rates at other federal agencies.
- Cuts to research affect nearly every unit on campus. To review a listing of terminated/impacted grants (updated weekly), consult the SPA website. A university login is required.
- Thousands of people are paid from federal research grants at the university. Cuts to research funding will have ripple effects across our community.
- Illinois Human Resources is hosting with unit leadership and senior HR leaders April 17 to April 25 to offer information, planning resources and support to units.
- This effort is focused on proactively and collaboratively discussing options and perspectives before a situation becomes challenging, so units are better prepared to lead with clarity and confidence.
Recent federal activity has likely caused anxiety for those at this university who, like us, care deeply about cultivating inclusion and combatting discrimination, especially as we witness other institutions of higher education making dramatic changes. The university remains fully committed to programs and strategies that value diverse perspectives, ideas and lived experiences and adhere to our commitment as a public university to expand access, opportunity and academic excellence.
Our work will focus on the use of inclusive, welcoming language and compliance with nondiscrimination law, rather than simply striking all phrases related to diversity, equity and inclusion work and discontinuing programs and activities.