Large increase in funding to US schools from Arab sources, little transparency on its aim, report says

Funding for U.S. universities from Arab states, institutions and donors has increased significantly in the past five years, and there isn’t enough transparency about the sources of that financial support, according to a report from Jewish Virtual Library, which the nonprofit American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise publishes.

Arab governments, organizations and individuals have donated some $14.6 billion to U.S. colleges and universities since 1981, with a third of that funding coming since 2020, including $1.5 billion in one year, per the report . (The Arab funding was one quarter of all foreign funding for U.S. universities, per the report.)

“Donations from Arab states have quietly flowed into American universities, steadily creating endowed chairs, research centers and academic progr