NSF terminates hundreds of grants flagged for DEI and gender-related keywords
- Date
- Actor
- National Science Foundation
- Type
- Funding action
Summary
On April 18-19, 2025, NSF sent termination emails for awards "not aligned with program goals or agency priorities," targeting DEI, environmental justice, and misinformation research; DOGE reported 402 grants worth $233 million cancelled, with over 400 active grants containing DEI-related terms terminated. NSF's stated policy permits sex/gender research only when "intrinsic to the research question" and not aimed at broadening participation of protected groups — the criteria under which LGBTQ- and gender-focused social science was cut. NSF declared the terminations final and non-appealable.
Status
Largely in effect. A June 2025 court order reinstated 114 terminated awards to University of California researchers; NSF's revised priorities policy remains in place.
As recorded in the data of . Check the sources for anything newer.
Sources
- eos.org/research-and-developments/nsf-cancels-hundreds-of-dei-and-disinformatio…(opens another site)
- insidehighered.com/news/government/science-research-policy/2025/04/22/nsf-termi…(opens another site)
- niemanlab.org/2025/04/national-science-foundation-cancels-research-grants-relat…(opens another site)
- nsf.gov/updates-on-priorities(opens another site)