(KNOX) –The U.S. Department of Education and the State Department are investigating the University of North Dakota’s School of Aerospace. The school of aerospace is accused of submitting government disclosures that are apparently incomplete and inaccurate.
A press release from Wednesday says that the school of aerospace has been investing and is involved in Chinese aviation companies “known to have close associations with China’s military.”
U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer says that because there’s an investigation doesn’t automatically mean there’s any wrongdoing. He tells KNOX’s Critical Thought with Noah Chelliah.
The 1965 Higher Education Act requires American universities to report any foreign gifts that are worth over $250,000. The Education Department said in a letter that UND did not provide any foreign funding reports prior to July 2020, but has reported in the years since there were 71 transactions that were valued at nearly $100 million. UND says it will comply with the investigation, and Cramer believes the investigation won’t find anything nefarious.
UND is being asked to provide a list of its foreign financial disclosures within the next 30 days. UND is not the only university being investigated by both departments. Duke University, located in Durham, North Carolina, is currently being investigated for its relationship with Wuhan University in China.
Senator Cramer’s full comments that were made Thursday on Critical Thought can be listened to below.
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