Northwestern University President Michael Schill Resigns Amid Federal Funding Freeze and Campus Tensions

Evanston, Ill., Sept. 4, 2025 - Michael Schill announced Thursday that he will step down as president of Northwestern University after a three-year tenure marked by campus protests, a significant hazing scandal and the freezing of nearly $790 million in federal research funding by the Trump administration.

Schill addressed the university community in an open letter, citing “extraordinary challenges” that included anti-Israel encampments last spring, multiple Title VI investigations into alleged antisemitic harassment on campus and the suspension of federal grants by the Department of Education. He noted that while substantive progress has been made, “significant issues persist, particularly at the federal level,” and declared it “the right time for new leadership to guide Northwestern into its next chapter.”

Under Schill’s leadership, the university negotiated with pro-Palestinian demonstrators to peacefully dismantle an on-campus encampment rather than resort to police intervention, a decision that drew intense criticism from Republican lawmakers and contributed to the federal funding freeze. He also oversaw the controversial suspension and eventual firing of longtime football coach Pat Fitzgerald amid hazing allegations. Last spring, Northwestern eliminated roughly 425 positions in response to budget constraints arising from the grant suspension.

Schill will remain in office until an interim president is named by the Board of Trustees and will then take a sabbatical before returning to teach at the Pritzker School of Law. He pledged to continue working with trustees to restore the university’s frozen research support and maintain its commitment to academic freedom, integrity and independence.