EXCLUSIVE: A bipartisan group of lawmakers is moving to crack down on foreign influence in American education by targeting universities’ financial ties to adversarial nations.

The package would ban federal funding to colleges that operate «branch» campuses in adversarial countries or accept research funding for sensitive fields like artificial intelligence, biotech and quantum computing. 

China, for example, has been a major source of foreign influence in American education through its Confucius Classrooms, which states like Oklahoma have cracked down on.

On a federal level, Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., has taken the mantle of defending education against issues from foreign influence to antisemitism on campus, famously headlining a hearing after which UPenn’s president resigned amid pressure over her responses to the latter.

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Stefanik again is out in front of an education protection endeavor, telling Fox News Digital she is part of a bicameral, bipartisan group focused on keeping foreign influence away from America’s young and growing minds.

«I introduced the No Branch Campuses in Hostile Countries Act with Senator Rick Scott, and this is part of the broader higher education reform effort that I have been leading on in the Congress,» Stefanik said in an exclusive interview.

«One of the challenges that I’ve seen is the influence of foreign adversaries sowing discord on our higher education campuses. And part of this has been coming from the foreign dollars flowing in, but also the existence of branches in these foreign adversarial countries.»

She noted her home state of New York has major universities operating branch campuses in Chin, but said the problem extends beyond the Empire State to other top schools in Chicago, Washington and elsewhere.

Stefanik added that Confucius Institutes and classrooms were recently banned by the national defense bill and that, just as that effort was bipartisan, so is her second education security bill this week.

The Defending American Research Act prevents any institution of higher education from receiving federal research funding for five years if it receives funds from certain foreign countries, including Qatar, Venezuela, Turkey and North Korea.

In Stefanik’s book, «Poisoned Ivies,» she noted she dove into the topic of dangerous aspects of today’s campus life from foreign influence to antisemitism.

«[Ours] was the most viewed hearing in the history of Congress. It led to multiple university presidents’ resignations, but, importantly, it set off an earthquake in higher education reform. There have been seismic shifts in higher ed, both in the marketplace, as you’re seeing parents and students voting with their wallets and feet, as it’s shifted,» Stefanik said. 

She added that many American youths are seeking collegiate education at southern schools where the liberal northeast and west coast influence is more muted.

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A Chinese flag flies near the Capitol dome in Washington, D.C., amid new legislation targeting lobbying by former government officials for China. (Douglas Rissing/Getty Images)

Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., and Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., are joining Stefanik in the effort, and Scott told Fox News Digital that America «has enemies» and should «start acting like it» when it comes to their influence on higher education.

«Countries like Communist China and terror-supporting Qatar should not be able to use America’s colleges and universities as outposts to spy on us, steal sensitive research and spread anti-American propaganda, but we’ve been letting them do it for years,» Scott said.

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«This legislation is critical to America’s national security and the future of our higher education system, neither of which should be for sale.»

While the list includes more obvious entries like North Korea, Cuba and China, Qatar is also included, even as it remains a somewhat neutral or cooperative partner on national security concerns such as evacuations from Afghanistan and the Iran conflict.

However, Stefanik said when it comes to its influence on U.S. education, her research led her to «billions of dollars» from Doha appearing to prop up antisemitic interests and «pro-terror professors» at some universities, including in her home state.

«I think that’s one of the major ways we need to push back on this foreign influence that’s really shifting away from the founding missions of these higher education institutions,» she said.

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Other nations on both bills’ lists include the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Islamic Republic of Iran and the Russian Federation.

The bill sponsors’ collective hope is that their measures will provide the leverage needed to force U.S. universities to cut ties with adversarial governments or risk their bottom line.

Un equipo de estudiantes de la Universidad de Costa Rica avanza en la manufactura del que será el cohete de propulsión sólida más grande y potente lanzado en territorio costarricense, un proyecto que sitúa al país en la frontera de la investigación en ingeniería aeroespacial y aspira a consolidar una base tecnológica clave para futuros desarrollos científicos.

Este esfuerzo de innovación busca no solo alcanzar un nuevo récord nacional, sino también fortalecer las competencias técnicas de toda la comunidad académica y científica.

El proyecto, denominado Miravalles, implica la construcción de un cohete experimental de entre dos y tres metros de longitud, diseñado para alcanzar 1,000 metros de altitud y transportar una carga útil de un kilogramo.

Según La Universidad de Costa Rica, la carga seleccionada consiste en un grupo de cianobacterias, y el objetivo de este experimento es analizar el impacto de las condiciones extremas del vuelo sobre estos organismos y medir su tasa de supervivencia, sentando así bases para futuras investigaciones de biología en entornos espaciales.

Una de las particularidades que distingue esta iniciativa en el panorama latinoamericano es la validación reciente de su sistema de propulsión: por primera vez en Costa Rica, un equipo local completó dos pruebas consecutivas exitosas de un motor de clase K, hecho que Karina Artavia, líder del Grupo Crater, calificó como un avance decisivo para el futuro de la cohetería nacional al declarar a la Universidad de Costa Rica que estos resultados “abren camino con resultados clave que impulsan el futuro del proyecto y de la cohetería costarricense”.

El Costa Rican Aerospace Team for Experimental Rocketry (Crater) fue creado en el seno del Grupo de Ingeniería Aeroespacial (GIA-UCR), una plataforma abierta para estudiantes de la Universidad de Costa Rica y de otras universidades públicas orientada a promover la investigación y el desarrollo de sistemas aeroespaciales.

Actualmente, los integrantes del equipo concluyen la fase de investigación y estudios de factibilidad de materiales para la estructura del cohete. Paralelamente, avanzan en las pruebas del sistema de propulsión, con miras a modificar el diseño según los resultados técnicos obtenidos, paso previo a la fabricación final.

La colaboración entre disciplinas es un eje distintivo de este proyecto: el diseño y desarrollo del cohete Miravalles se sustenta en el talento de la comunidad estudiantil de ingeniería mecánica y áreas afines, que orienta sus esfuerzos hacia el cumplimiento de estándares internacionales en ingeniería aeroespacial.

El equipo Crater abrió una convocatoria pública a empresas, organizaciones y personas interesadas en apoyar la culminación del proyecto Miravalles, una iniciativa que para sus impulsores representa la posibilidad de impulsar la innovación y fortalecer el tejido científico del país.

Karina Artavia remarcó a La Universidad de Costa Rica: “Ya estamos bastante avanzados en la fase de diseño del cohete, pero le pedimos a todas las personas que quieran sumarse que nos apoyen para hacer este sueño posible. Nuestra misión siempre ha sido y será la de impulsar la innovación aeroespacial en Costa Rica, la investigación aplicada y consolidar un entorno colaborativo que contribuya al establecimiento de una base sólida en estos temas del espacio”.

El Grupo de Ingeniería Aeroespacial también extiende la invitación a otros estudiantes de ciencias e ingeniería que deseen involucrarse en el sector. Artavia enfatizó sobre la vocación por “realizar misiones cada vez más desafiantes, abrir puertas a la participación internacional y ayudar a construir una comunidad aeroespacial sólida que inspire a todo el país”.

Las personas y entidades interesadas en respaldar al equipo Crater pueden contactar al grupo mediante la dirección electrónica crater.gia@gmail.com o por teléfono al (+506) 84546822.

NEW YORK CITY — A group financed by a pro-Chinese Communist Party tech tycoon was one of the first on the scene for Friday’s May Day demonstrations and socialist Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s remarks.

The People’s Forum, which received funding from Shanghai-based Neville Roy Singham, was a key player in organizing protesters in Union Square ahead of the May Day events, working closely with leaders from the Party for Socialism and Liberation.

A self-identified speaker from the Party for Socialism and Liberation announced a People’s Forum spokesperson who was the second to speak at the microphone. The speaker rallied the crowd of demonstrators, asking them to repeat chants and later bashing capitalism. 

Shortly before the remarks began, members from the Party for Socialism and Liberation arrived with equipment and dozens of pre-made anti-Trump signs packed in a van, unloading the signs and equipment from the van parked next to Union Square Park.

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A Fox News Digital investigation found that the People’s Forum has received $22.4 million from Singham.

Communism was a recurring theme on May Day in New York, with the Revolutionary Communists of America, the Revolutionary Communist Party and the Communist Workers of America present, their signs held by several demonstrators.

Pro-communism advocates were canvassing the crowd, hawking communist newspapers and encouraging participation in upcoming organized events.

Supporters of communism hold up flyers and a newspaper during the May Day march in New York City, N.Y., Friday, May 1, 2026. (Fox News Digital)

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«The existing capitalist-imperialist system and institutions of government in this country must be abolished and dismantled and replaced by a new, socialist system based on the constitution for the new socialist republic of America,» one paper read.

Fox News Digital interviewed a Revolutionary Communists of America member, who went only by Tom and said capitalism «is in crisis in the U.S.»

«The small farmer has been killed off by capitalism,» Tom told Fox News Digital. «The small businessman has been killed off by capitalism. Big corporations dominate society. So, America is very proletarianized. And, therefore, the working classes have more of a, let’s say, the class balance of forces. It’s more on the side of the working class now than it ever has been.»

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Activists hold up signs during a May Day march in New York City Friday, May 1, 2026.   (Fox News Digital)

Teamsters and union members gathered downtown at Washington Square Park while the People’s Forum and the Party for Socialism and Liberation marched from Union Square Park several blocks away. The union workers’ rally ended shortly after the Singham-connected groups arrived. 

May Day is historically focused on advocacy for pro-workers, but once New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani began speaking, a significant number of Teamsters and union employees had already left as calls for their cheers were dull, and the presence of other organizations dominated the crowd. 

Mamdani stood in front of billboards labeled «NO ICE, NO WAR» and «NO BILLIONAIRES,» pushed his commitment to taxing the rich and mentioned «faster buses» instead of his usual commitment to making bus transportation in the city free. 

The crowd cheered loudly for Mamdani, whose appearance was not publicized and seemingly not expected from many of the demonstrators.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani arrives to speak at a May Day march in New York City Friday, May 1, 2026. (Fox News Digital)

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«That is why we continue to fight for those who power this city as we look to deliver universal childcare,» Mamdani told the crowd. «Faster buses, cheaper groceries, protecting our neighbors from the cruelty of ice. And, yes, working to tax the wealthiest and the most profitable corporations in New York City.»

Crowds dispersed after Mamdani’s brief address, but some streets remained closed as demonstrators continued the march. And one ambulance with flashing lights was forced to turn around earlier in the day on the march from Union Square to Washington Square.