Most of the elite institutions that received the Trump administration’s proposed “Compact for Academic Excellence” publicly rebuffed the offer this week, even as a smaller group signaled a willingness to comment and hold talks. Vanderbilt, Arizona and Washington University in St. Louis moved from outright rejection to a posture of engagement, saying they’ll provide feedback to the White House. The rapid, mixed responses show a sector testing how to preserve institutional autonomy while protecting access to federal research and student funding. University leaders are balancing reputational and governance risks against potential preferences in federal grants tied to compact compliance. The standoff underscores rising federal leverage over campus policy and the political calculus university boards and presidents now face.