January 28, 2025
Dear NU Faculty, Staff and Students,
As you may have seen, the White House Office of Management and Budget issued Memo M-25-13 late yesterday pausing federal loans and grants, effective today at 5 p.m. ET.
This action has left us actively working to fully understand the scope and impact on our federally sponsored research and other federally funded programs across our University of Nebraska System. However, we do know the following:
- The U.S. Department of Education has confirmed that Pell Grants and federally sponsored direct student loans will not be affected currently by this pause.
- Federal agencies have been directed to submit detailed information to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) by Friday, Feb. 7, regarding any programs, projects, or activities subject to this pause.
- OMB has instructed agencies to pause all activities related to open Notices of Funding Opportunity (NOFOs), such as conducting merit review panels. The memo further states that agencies must halt: 1) The issuance of new awards, 2) the disbursement of federal funds under all open awards, and 3) other relevant agency actions that may be implicated by executive orders.
Today, our primary focus is on gaining a clearer understanding of how this pause will impact research and programmatic grants and contracts—including those already awarded. We are working to identify next steps for faculty, staff, administration, and students. To that end, we are in close contact with federal agencies, national higher education associations, and our peer institutions, collaborating to navigate this situation together.
You will receive further updates from leadership regarding campus-related areas of interest as soon as more information becomes available. Additionally, we are creating a shared website to centralize resources and information.
As always, I am deeply grateful for your dedication to our students, our state, and the advancement of science, the humanities, and the arts—both within our institution and beyond. We will always be more successful when we face changes such as these together as a united University of Nebraska System.
Sincerely,
