Seven of the nine universities targeted by the White House’s “Compact for Academic Excellence” publicly rejected the administration’s proposed conditions this month, with several others declining to sign while offering to engage in dialogue. The compact sought to tie federal funding priorities to changes on issues ranging from admissions and viewpoint diversity to limits on diversity and gender-identity programs. Leaders at institutions including MIT and others framed the compact’s terms as politically intrusive; some campuses that initially resisted later signaled willingness to provide feedback. The episode exposed a split across higher education about whether to resist, negotiate or accept conditional federal deals. The compact fight matters for trustees and presidents: it tests institutions’ willingness to trade policy autonomy and reputation for expedited access to federal grants and priority funding.