MIT Graduate Student Union holds Oct. 10 press conference on college compact
Attendees commended MIT’s decision to formally reject the compact
On Friday, Oct. 10 at 1 p.m., the MIT Graduate Student Union (GSU) held a press conference outside Building 7 commending MIT’s decision to formally reject the federal government’s proposed college compact. Besides the GSU, representatives of four organizations who signed the Union’s open letter attended the event. They delivered remarks on how the Trump administration’s policies would impact MIT and the universities that sign the compact. Over 50 people showed up to the press conference. Several carried picket signs reading, “1 public rejection down, 8 to go!”
MIT is the first university out of the nine targeted institutions of higher education to formally reject the compact. In President Kornbluth’s email sent to U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon on Oct. 10, she stated that the compact undermined some of the Institute’s values, including scientific funding based on “scientific merit alone” and freedom of expression. As of this article’s publication, Brown University has formally rejected the compact, and the remaining seven universities who received the offer have not made an official decision.
The press conference began with a speech from GSU President Lauren Chua G, who said that the compact is not about students nor freedom, but rather control and division. “It’s a thinly veiled attempt to divide us, to make us turn against each other and weaken the very communities that make our university thrive,” Chua said.
Between Oct. 1 and 10, 15 MIT organizations worked together to demand a rejection from the MIT administration. As of Oct. 10, over 30 MIT-affiliated organizations and 900 individuals signed the open letter. Chua applauded MIT for rejecting the compact, calling it a “victory for every single one of us,” and reaffirmed that the GSU will not yield to the Trump administration’s policies that are “racist, xenophobic, or anti-worker.” She encouraged attendees to continue to stand up for their rights and called for the other universities to reject the compact. Students chanted, “Who’s got the power? We got the power!,” eliciting cheers from the crowd.
After Chua spoke, Black Student Union (BSU) representative Jade Personna ’26 delivered a speech about the impact of the Trump administration’s attacks on DEI initiatives on MIT. Personna cited the closure of the Institute Community and Equity Office (ICEO) in May and the replacement of the Office of Minority Education (OME) with the new Office of Academic Community, Empowerment, and Success (OACES) as recent removals of race-based programs.
“We are nervous that the spaces and organizations we fought so hard for are in danger of extinction in the current political climate,” Personna said. She argued that the Trump administration’s new policies are “political stunts” to pressure universities to decrease support for organizations like the BSU. Despite these challenges, Personna reaffirmed that Black students “belong in higher education” and promised to continue fighting for their community.
Graduate student Malik George ’22 G, Vice President of the MIT Black Graduate Student Association (BGSA), spoke after Personna. George criticized the compact for being an “attack” on “DEI, affirmative action, gender, and immigration.” He argued that the compact doesn’t demand complete admissions data for the purposes of transparency, but rather to control universities. “We cannot swear loyalty to a government that consistently undervalues and attacks any form of science, any form of speech, and most importantly, any person who disagrees with their beliefs,” George said.
Latinx Graduate Student Association (LGSA) President Carla Garcia G thanked the MIT administration for rejecting the compact and called for MIT to continue defending its core values. Like Personna, Garcia highlighted the importance of resources for underrepresented students at MIT, which have been dismantled in the past year. Garcia stated that MIT’s new policies regarding DEI have adversely affected the Latinx community by impacting their ability to “celebrate [their] identities” and “coordinating advocacy efforts to defend [their] collective interests.” Garcia then stressed that international students are crucial for MIT’s reputation as a prestigious research institution and maintained that MIT should continue to protect them.
Vice President of the MIT AAUP chapter and Professor of Political Science Ariel White then shared her thoughts about why other universities should also reject the compact. From White’s perspective, the compact was not about specific policies such as tuition or international student enrollment, but rather intended to “leave universities powerless.” White stated that if universities sign the compact, the federal government’s demands would continue, citing Columbia University’s decision to comply with the Trump administration in March 2025 as an example.
The rally concluded with brief remarks from GSU Vice President Nadia Zaragoza G. Zaragoza acknowledged the diverse student populations that contribute to the MIT community, from Black to queer to international students. “I’m feeling really energized and inspired by our ability to unify and take control of our campus and demand that MIT stand up for us and our rights,” Zaragoza said. “Our mobilizations show that when we come together, when we fight, we win.”