Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt University Medical Center together reported $880 million in federal funding last year across a range of grants and contracts. President Donald Trump’s abrupt decision to freeze federal grants Tuesday could imperil hundreds of doctors, researchers, professors and graduate students and jeopardize ongoing efforts at the city’s top medical center and university.
Last week, federal health agencies abruptly paused communications days after Trump’s inauguration. Vanderbilt University researchers and professors are still awaiting more information about previously secured grants and express confusion about the scope and duration of the funding pause, according to internal emails reviewed by the Scene. One administrator indicated that the university had federal lobbyists working in D.C. to ensure continued funding.
Medical professionals are worried about the future of specific research that doesn’t align with political goals of the Trump administration. In a conversation with the Scene, one researcher who requested anonymity specifically brought up the uncertain future of pediatric immunology, regarded as a highly successful area of modern medicine responsible for safe and effective preventative medicine. Childhood vaccination is at odds with the policies of Trump’s pending nominee to head the Department of Health and Human Services, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has made repeated unsubstantiated claims against childhood vaccination.
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Vanderbilt University and Vanderbilt University Medical Center are separate legal entities with significant crossover work, particularly for physicians and researchers involved in VUMC hospitals and Vanderbilt University Medical School. Many do not know the fate of grants and awards that have already been issued to projects at Vanderbilt and VUMC. Both reported federal grants from the Department of Health and Human Services (including the National Institutes of Health), the National Science Foundation, the Department of Education, the Department of Defense and the Department of Energy within the past three years.
Vanderbilt University reported $210 million in federal funding in 2024 and 2023, mostly from the DHHS. Vanderbilt University Medical Center reported nearly $670 million with $109 million passing through to subrecipients in fiscal year 2023, the most recently available VUMC audit.
Other local universities relying on federal funds include Belmont, Tennessee State University, Fisk University and Trevecca Nazarene University. Vanderbilt is the area’s largest recipient and often functions as a pass-through entity to other universities.
Update, 5:25 p.m.: U.S. District Judge Loren L. AliKhan on Tuesday afternoon blocked the Trump administration's freeze on federal grants and loans. Per the Associated Press, "the administrative stay pauses the freeze until Monday."
Update, 12:45 p.m., Jan. 29: Trump's budget office rescinded the grant-freezing order Wednesday, reportedly issuing a "two-sentence notice to agencies and departments."
