Harvard's $53.2 billion endowment grants the university less protection against potential federal funding cuts than such a stacked bank account might suggest.

Why it matters: Elite universities like Harvard have massive endowments, but legal restrictions, donor intent and other red tape severely limit the flexibility the schools have to spend.

Threat level: The Trump administration has threatened to withdraw nearly $9 billion in grants over free speech concerns and charges of campus antisemitism.

• Harvard yesterday said it "will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights," rejecting the White House's conditions for keeping the money in place.
• A federal joint task force announced within hours that it would freeze some $2.2 billion in federal funds Harvard receives.

By the numbers: Harvard got $2.4 billion from the endowment in fiscal year 2024. That made up about 37.5% of the university's $6.4 billion operating budget.

• $686 million: The amount of federal funding, about 16% of operating revenue.
• According to the Harvard Crimson, donations to the school dropped by more than $150 million in the last fiscal year.
• Some wealthy donors stopped giving because of the same campus culture concerns Trump cites.

Yes, but: Restoring funding for cut programs is more complicated than simply tapping into the old trust fund.

• When donors give money to the endowment, they often name programs, departments or uses for the funds.
• 70% of endowment distributions are restricted by donors and only 20% of funds can be used for discretionary spending, like bailing out programs and grants slashed by the Trump administration.

Zoom in: Harvard has put some measures in place to protect it from hard economic times.

• The school imposed a temporary hiring freeze in March.
• Harvard also got back into the debt market in March, issuing $450 million in tax-exempt bonds.

The bottom line: Harvard will certainly survive federal funding reductions, but it will likely mean changes to operations and financial maneuvers beyond relying on an endowment bailout.

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More than two dozen Jewish groups have denounced the Trump administration's arrest of Tufts international student Rümeysa Öztürk in the name of antisemitism.

Why it matters: The Trump administration has vowed to claw back student visas against student protesters for what critics call politically protected speech surrounding the war in Gaza.

State of play: 27 organizations, including the Boston Workers Circle and the Congregation Dorshei Tzedek in Newton, filed an amicus brief last week calling Öztürk's detainment for allegedly supporting Hamas, unconstitutional.

• They say the government has shown no proof of pro-Hamas activities.
• Her attorneys claim the only known basis is an op-ed Öztürk wrote for the Tufts Daily News, calling for Tufts to recognize as genocide Israel's response to the Oct. 7, 2023 attack by Hamas.

Between the lines: The brief says two things — one, that the organizations do not necessarily agree with the contents of Öztürk's 2024 op-ed, and two, that they don't believe the arrest was ever really about purported antisemitism.

What they're saying: "The government instead appears to be exploiting Jewish Americans' legitimate concerns about antisemitism as pretext for undermining core pillars of American democracy, the rule of law, and the fundamental rights of free speech and academic debate on which this nation was built," the organizations wrote in their brief, filed in Vermont federal court.

An internal State Department memo showed no evidence linking Ozturk to antisemitism or terrorism, the Washington Post reported Sunday.

Zoom in: Öztürk's attorneys asked District Judge William K. Sessions III yesterday to consider releasing her from a Louisiana immigrant detention center as they allege the arrest and detainment violated her First and Fifth Amendment rights.

What's next: Öztürk has an immigration hearing tomorrow, in which she's seeking release on bond.

Go deeper

⚖️ MIT, Brown University and other colleges are suing the U.S. Department of Energy over its move to terminate research grants. (UniversalHub)

Woburn District Court was evacuated yesterday after a man in a gas mask allegedly showered the courthouse with pepper spray. (Boston.com)

🎓 Wellesley College is imposing a hiring freeze for the next six months, citing a "significant and ongoing structural deficit." (BBJ)

❌ ICYMI: City health inspectors shut down a Family Dollar store on Blue Hill Avenue over several code violations, including alleged rat spottings and standing water. (Dorchester Reporter)

🌮 The rumors are mostly true. El Barco, the Martha's Vineyard taqueria, is coming to the Back Bay as a seasonal pop-up.

• El Barco's pop-up launches this week inside Summer Shack on Dalton Street and will last through the summer.
• Summer Shack will still serve food from its menu, alongside El Barco's selection of tacos, margaritas and street corn.

When to go: El Barco's pop-up will be open daily, 11am-10pm.

🍔 NOWON, the New York-based, Korean-American burger chain, opens today in the Seaport.

Alas, nobody got Townie's whereabouts last week. She was chillin' at the Braintree T Station.

May it was too difficult. Maybe you need to get out more.

• Either way, we'll be back next week with a new "Where's Townie?" for you.