“They’ve realized that they can take a bit of a step further, that they can advance their policy priorities through those levers they have through the state university system,” said Preston Cooper, a senior fellow who studies higher education policy at the conservative American Enterprise Institute.

The investigation comes only two days after a federal judge cast doubt on the Trump administration’s argument in Harvard’s lawsuit over federal funding.

The new office will be a reimagined Harvard Foundation that fulfills our commitment to support all students,” according to an email sent Wednesday by the dean.

Officials say eight children at a church near Harvard University where a French youth choir was holding a concert suffered seizure-like symptoms and were taken to hospitals.

A Massachusetts judge hasn't ruled on Harvard's lawsuit against the Trump administration, but she did make some pointed comments on Monday.

Legal analysts say Harvard has a strong case in arguing that the U.S. government improperly cut $2.2 billion in federal funding from the Ivy League school. The federal district judge presiding over a key hearing Monday appeared skeptical of the government’s arguments.

Harvard University has appeared in federal court, challenging $2.6 billion in funding cuts by the Trump administration.