The White House issued a proposal on Wednesday promising leading universities special treatment if they agree to comply with several terms from the Trump administration. 

Washington sent letters outlining the “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education” to nine schools. If they agree to sign the 10-point compact, the universities could be given priority for “multiple positive benefits,” including invitations to White House events, talks with officials, and “substantial” federal grants when possible. 

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The letters were sent on Wednesday evening to Vanderbilt University, Dartmouth College, the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Southern California, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Texas at Austin, the University of Arizona, Brown University, and the University of Virginia, officials told the Wall Street Journal. University officials who sign the agreement and then violate the compact’s terms could be forced to return any federal funding distributed to them that year, as well as any private contributions.

Some aspects of the memo regard steadying tuition rates, which have skyrocketed in recent years. Universities that sign on would freeze tuition for five years and be asked to reduce administrative costs and refund tuition for students who drop out during the first semester. The compact requests universities with an endowment of $2 million per undergraduate student to waive tuition for students who pursue “hard science” programs.

Other components of the compact center on admissions. 

The memo demands that schools ban the use of race or sex in hiring and admissions, a critical aspect of the Trump administration’s effort to crack down on diversity, equity, and inclusion policies it views as violating federal anti-discrimination laws. The effect would additionally cap international undergraduate enrollment at 15% and require that applicants take the SAT or a similar test. 

The most controversial aspect of the compact is likely its request that participating colleges ensure a “vibrant marketplace of ideas on campus” and bar employees from conveying actions or speech related to politics in their official capacity, unless the matter affects the school. This component of the memo follows conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s recent assassination on a Utah campus as he debated political ideas with students. It sparked concerns that universities have become hostile to open discussion, free speech, and conservative-leaning ideologies. 

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The Oct. 1 memo framed the request as an effort to create a more welcoming environment for conservatives and asked colleges to make governance changes and abolish departments that “purposefully punish, belittle, and even spark violence against conservative ideas.” Schools entering the compact must ban political demonstrations that could disrupt study locations or harass students, according to Bloomberg. 

Any school that aligns itself with the “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education” will be asked to hold itself accountable by hiring an outside auditor to conduct anonymous polling among faculty, students, and staff to evaluate the university’s compliance with the agreement. The audit’s results would be made public and reviewed by the Justice Department.