Johns Hopkins University, a renowned institution based in Baltimore, Maryland, has announced the layoff of over 2,000 employees due to major cuts in foreign aid funding under the Trump administration.
The layoffs are a direct result of the loss of more than $800 million in funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), a key financial resource for global health and humanitarian initiatives.
“This is a difficult day for our entire community,” the university said in a statement.
“The termination of more than $800 million in USAID funding is now forcing us to wind down critical work here in Baltimore and internationally.”
The layoffs, which affect 1,975 employees working on projects across 44 countries, will also impact 247 positions within the United States.
Several prominent university programs are expected to be severely impacted, including the Bloomberg School of Public Health, the School of Medicine, and Jhpiego, a global health nonprofit founded at the university more than 50 years ago.
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Jhpiego’s work has focused on improving health in developing nations, particularly in areas such as maternal and infant care, disease prevention, and providing clean water.
“Johns Hopkins is immensely proud of the work done by our colleagues in Jhpiego, the Bloomberg School of Public Health, and the School of Medicine to care for mothers and infants, fight disease, provide clean drinking water, and advance countless other critical, life-saving efforts around the world,” the statement continued.
The university’s decision makes it one of the institutions most heavily impacted by the Trump administration’s reduction in foreign aid.
Critics argue that the funding cuts will have devastating effects on vulnerable populations globally. Johns Hopkins, which typically receives around $1 billion annually from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), is currently running over 600 clinical trials and is also involved in a federal lawsuit challenging cuts to federal research funding.
This move follows President Trump’s executive order in January, which froze all U.S. foreign aid to review overseas spending.
USAID, which operates in approximately 120 countries, has played a crucial role in global health and emergency response efforts, making this funding cut a significant blow to international aid programs.
The reduction in foreign aid funding is part of a broader strategy by the Trump administration to scale back U.S. involvement in overseas assistance, a policy that many critics argue will undermine vital humanitarian efforts.
