The Pentagon has named Auburn University as a potential new partner institution for military education programs, part of a broader shake-up ordered by Department of War Secretary Pete Hegseth that cuts ties with several elite universities he has labeled ideologically hostile to the military.
In a memo signed February 27, Hegseth directed the end of Pentagon-funded graduate attendance and fellowships at Harvard, Princeton, Columbia, Yale, Brown, MIT and other institutions, calling them “woke breeding grounds” that promote “anti-American resentment and military disdain.”
The memo, titled “Aligning Senior Service College Opportunities with American Values,” calls for new partnerships with institutions that promote “American exceptionalism.” Currently, 93 military students are enrolled across 22 affected institutions.
Auburn is among 21 universities identified as “value-aligned” potential replacements. No specific program or contract has been announced for Auburn yet, but the designation signals that graduate fellowships and mid-career officer education slots previously hosted at elite private universities could be redirected to Auburn’s programs.
The move builds on an already substantial relationship between Auburn and the Department of Defense:
- Auburn’s Samuel Ginn College of Engineering reported a record $117.7 million in research awards in FY2024, with the Department of Defense among its largest sponsors.
- In 2025, Auburn secured an $11.4 million contract with the Missile Defense Agency to establish a radiation-hardening test facility connected to Redstone Arsenal — the only university-led site of its kind in the country.
- Auburn’s Applied Research Institute operates in Huntsville’s Cummings Research Park, working directly with Army commands at Redstone Arsenal on signals intelligence and next-generation defense engineering.
- Auburn has received multiple “Military Friendly School” designations and maintains an active ROTC presence and Veterans Resource Center on campus.
If a formal partnership materializes, it would likely focus on technical domains where Auburn already has deep DoD involvement — space and missile defense, advanced manufacturing, cyber, and signals intelligence — rather than the theoretical strategy seminars more typical of Ivy League military programs.
Sawyer Knowles is a capitol reporter for Yellowhammer News. You may contact him at sawyer@yellowhammernews.com.