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February 7, 2022 — Lewis-Burke Associates LLC
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As the snow in D.C. begins to thaw, so does the freeze in Congress. Movement has slowly begun on the fiscal year (FY) 2022 spending bills, Build Back Better reconciliation package, and the recently passed House of Representatives’ competitiveness package, the America COMPETES Act of 2022. In addition to reauthorizing research programs, this innovation package would update foreign gift and contract reporting requirements of institutions as directed under the Higher Education Act. It also includes the National Apprenticeship Act of 2022, which would require the Secretaries of Labor and Education to enter into an interagency agreement to promote alignment between the apprenticeship system and education, as well as authorize funding for the Department of Labor (DOL) to grant over $400 million towards “Modernizing Apprenticeship Programs for the 21st Century”.
House and Senate Appropriations Committees are still in negotiations on spending and passage of FY 2022 appropriations is unlikely before the February 18th deadline. Another continuing resolution (CR) will be needed to extend federal funding for a short period of time to avoid a government shutdown. Democrats are also focused on finding a pathway to pass the Build Back Better Act after being stalled for months. It is expected that Senate Democrats will aim to divide the package into multiple smaller bills in hopes of passing some provisions, though this risks leaving universal pre-k and education provisions behind.
The Supreme Court announced it would hear a challenge to affirmative action, specifically barring Harvard University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill from considering race as a factor in the admissions process. While Supreme Court affirmative action cases in 2003 and 2016 sided with universities, the court has switched to a conservative majority. Chief Justice John Roberts, now known for being a swing vote, was cited in the previous cases as being an opponent of affirmation action. It is not known when the case will be argued but it is expected that the Court will not come to a decision before June 2023.
After announcing the extension of the pause on federal student loan payments last month, the Department of Education (ED) announced that due to changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program in October, 70,000 borrowers now qualify for federal student loan forgiveness, totaling close to $5 billion in relief. This is compared to the total of 16,000 borrowers who had ever received forgiveness through the program up to last October.
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CONGRESSIONAL UPDATES AND NEWS
House Passes Competitiveness Legislation Package
Democratic leadership of the House of Representatives recently introduced the America COMPETES Act, H.R. 4521, as a response to the Senate’s United States Innovation and Competition Act (USICA), S. 1260. Both pieces of legislation represent efforts to address concerns about U.S. competitiveness as it relates to science and technology. Of interest to the education and workforce community, the bill would create a program at the National Science Foundation (NSF) to fund multidisciplinary research and translation centers to scale STEM education innovations; support research and development to increase access to STEM education in rural schools; and authorizes a new grant program at the Department of Education to support equitable access to postsecondary STEM pathways. The bill would also reauthorize the Higher Education Act (HEA) Title VI international programs and would make changes to the foreign gift reporting requirements found in Section 117 of the HEA.
The bill also includes an update to the registered apprenticeship system via the National Apprenticeship Act and would place restrictions on federal funding for institutions with Confucius Institutes. The America COMPETES Act passed the House last Friday on a 222-210 vote, paving the way for the development of a compromise package that could pass both chambers. Final passage of competitiveness legislation is possible before Memorial Day.
Legislative Bills of Note
- H.R. 6424 (Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-OR) Higher ED Act. This legislation would amend the Higher Education Authorization Act to improve loans, including Income-Driven Repayment (IDR) plans, and improve and simplify the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program. The full press release from Rep. DeFazio can be found here.
- H.R. 6425 (Rep. Peter Defazio, D-OR) The AID Act. This legislation would double the Pell Grant award to $13,000 and modify every subsequent year based off inflation. It would also allow for Pell Grant funds to cover short-term workforce training programs, at least 150 hours at accredited institutions. The full press release from Rep. DeFazio’s can be found here.
- H.R. 1836 (Rep. Mike Levin, D-CA) Guard and Reserve Parity Act of 2021. This legislation would provide National Guard and Reserve members who conduct similar training and missions as other servicemembers the same GI Bill benefits. The full press release from Rep. Levin’s office can be found here.
- H.R. 6436 (Rep. Stephanie Bice, R-OK and Sara Jacobs, D-CA) Workforce and Education Partnership Act. This legislation would authorize an expansion of three programs within the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) to generate new partnerships between educational institutions and employers. The full press release from Rep. Bice’s office can be found here.
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ADMINISTRATION AND AGENCY UPDATES AND NEWS
Continued Recovery and Beyond – Priority Areas for ED
Last Thursday, Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona spoke on his vision for the Department of Education (ED) regarding the continued recovery through the pandemic and larger investment priorities for the U.S. education system. Secretary Cardona addressed the work that the Administration has done and key strategies that the Department, schools, institutions of higher education (IHEs) are taking to recover from the pandemic and ameliorate the broader inequities in our education system. More specifically to the higher education community, he laid out strategies ED is taking to improve post-secondary education including, and not limited to:
- “Ensure pathways through higher education lead to successful careers through:
- Reimagining the connection between p-12, higher education, and workforce.
- Collaborating with the Department of Labor and Department of Commerce to invest in career preparation programs that meet the needs of today's economy.
- Boldly address opportunity and achievement gaps.
- Investing in, recruiting, and supporting the professional development of a diverse educator workforce, including special education teachers, paraprofessionals, and bilingual educators so education jobs are ones that people from all backgrounds want to pursue.
- Make higher education more inclusive and affordable.
- Making long term improvements to programs like Public Service Loan Forgiveness and creating a strong Gainful Employment Rule so career programs aren't leaving students with mountains of debt and without good job opportunities.”
The full press release, including the Secretary’s full remarks, can be found here.
ED Announces Additional HEERF Funding for Colleges and Universities
On January 20, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) announced that it will be providing additional resources to students and institutions of higher education (IHEs) to aid the ongoing challenges spurred by COVID-19. ED will be delivering an additional $198 million under the Supplemental Support of American Rescue Plan (SSARP) funds that will aim to predominantly serve community colleges and institutions with the greatest need. More specifically, these funds will be prioritized for IHEs with the greatest unmet needs related to COVID-19. ED also will provide new guidance for colleges and universities on using the ARP funds to meet students’ basic needs. This includes guidance on ways in which colleges can use existing information to connect students with other benefits such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), as well as the Affordable Connectivity Program at the Federal Communications Commission. ED will also provide examples of how institutions can use HEERF grants to support student needs such as food and housing insecurity and childcare. ED is currently inviting applications for the SSARP program with a deadline for submission on April 4, 2022. More information on this announcement, including the new guidance and additional information on HEERF under the American Rescue Plan, can be found here.
White House Initiative on HBCUs Partners with NASA
This month, the White House Initiative on Advancing Educational Equity, Excellence, and Economic Opportunity through Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) announced a new partnership with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to provide increased opportunities for HBCU students to participate in hands-on learning and innovation generation. The announcement formalizes and extends a relationship between the HBCU Initiative and NASA that has existed since 2014. In addition to NASA continuing to provide students participating in the White House HBCU Initiative access to their trainings and partners and making its Mini Minority University Research and Education Project (MUREP) Innovation Tech Transfer Idea Competition as part of the HBCU Initiative’s HBCU Scholar Recognition Program, NASA will now allow students to work closely with the agency throughout their participation in White House HBCU Initiative to assist in the commercialization of NASA research.
DHS Announces Expansion of Fields of Study in OPT Program
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced an update the STEM Optional Practical Training (OPT) program by adding 22 new fields of study. The OPT program allows F-1 visa students who are working towards a bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree in one of the identified STEM fields to remain in the U.S. to work in their STEM field for no more than 36 months. The program was created with the vision of supporting the growth of U.S. innovation through enhancing the contributions of nonimmigrant students studying in the field of STEM. The 22 new fields of study include bioenergy, cloud computing, climate science, computer science, general data science, research methodology, among others. The full list of the new accepted STEM fields and the announcement from DHS can be found here.
National Science Board Releases Indicators 2022 Report
The National Science Board (NSB) recently released the 2022 edition of its biannual report: Science and Engineering Indicators: The State of U.S. Science and Engineering. The Indicators report analyzes the state of science and engineering in America and highlights the United States’ global position across multiple aspects of the science and engineering (S&E) enterprise. An important change from previous reports included integration of both science and engineering workers who had obtained at least a bachelor’s degree with those that had not in the report’s analysis, as a means to “provide a better estimate of those using S&E skills and knowledge to support the U.S. S&E enterprise.” At the kickoff event for the report, representatives from NSB highlighted several key takeaways related to education, including the need to tap into and recruit the United States’ diverse student body to bring the “missing millions” into science and engineering studies and to review policies at institutions of higher education to ensure minority students needs are being met as a means to fight the persistent gender and racial gaps present in science and engineering higher education.
Department of Education Publishes FAFSA Dear Colleague Letter
The U.S. Department of Education (ED) issued a Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) to institutions of higher education (IHEs) re-emphasizing that ED has issued a designation allowing IHEs to use data from the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to conduct outreach to students about federal benefit programs they may be eligible for in light of the economic fallout from COVID-19. Federal benefit programs IHEs may utilize FAFSA data to make students aware of include the Child Tax Credit, the Recovery Rebate Credit, the Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program, the Affordable Connectivity Program, and financial assistance for health insurance enrollment. The DCL emphasizes that IHEs should only utilize FAFSA data in ways that do not violate a student’s privacy rights, are relevant to verify eligibility for federal benefits, and are required to make students aware of federal benefits they may be eligible for. The DCL encourages IHEs to coordinate with other campus stakeholders, such as student organizations and faculty, to make students aware of federal benefits they may be eligible for.
Funding Opportunities
DOL Announces Intent to Fund UI Labor Research Center
Last month, the Department of Labor’s (DOL) Chief Evalution Office announced its intent to establish a new Elizabeth Brandeis UI Research Center in order to further connect academic research, training and partnerships to improve unemployment insurance. The UI Labor Research Center program is expected to fund a single qualified institution of higher education (IHE), or consortium of IHEs, for deeper research in U.S. unemployment insurance including its effects on workers, employers, and communities. Additionally, the program would support rigorous, inter-disciplinary research to better understand “equitable UI program administration and policy”. Through four activities, the UI Labor Research Center will accomplish objectives including:
- (1) producing rigorous academic research on UI and related labor issues;
- (2) teaching students about the UI program, including training future social and behavioral scientists whose research agenda focuses on UI and related labor and social insurance issues;
- (3) supporting state UI agencies and DOL in bringing research and data analytical capacity to program administration; and
- (4) disseminating policy-relevant research and findings to administrators, practitioners, policymakers, and other stakeholders and members of the public.
DOL is expected to award approximately $5 million to fund one cooperative agreement for 48 months. Applicants can apply for maximum of $2 million under the announcement in which DOL expected to award. An increment of $3 million can be awarded to a recipient based upon program outcomes and federal fund availability. More information regarding this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) can be found here.
ONR Releases FOA for FY 2022 Naval STEM Education and Workforce Program
The Office of Naval Research (ONR) within the Department of Defense (DOD) released a funding opportunity announcement (FOA) for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 Department of Navy (DON) Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics (STEM), Education and Workforce Program. The program aims to focus DON’s educational and outreach efforts on cultivating a diverse STEM workforce capable of addressing the technological challenges of the Navy. ONR is seeking a broad range of proposals that identify projects working to engage more students in naval relevant STEM education and enhance STEM educational research currently being used to advance the naval STEM workforce. STEM education priority areas based on naval relevance are outlined in the “Naval Research and Development Framework and Addendum” and include the following:
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FACTS AND FIGURES: Fall’s Final Enrollment Count Is In. Colleges Lost More Than 475,000 Students.
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WHAT WE'RE READING
NSTC Releases Progress Report on Five-Year STEM Education Strategic Plan
The National Science and Technology Council (NSTC), within the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP), released the 2021 Progress Report on the Implementation of the Federal STEM Education Strategic Plan which presents the five-year federal STEM education strategic plan focusing on the following goals:
- “Build Strong Foundations for STEM Literacy by ensuring that every American has the opportunity to master basic STEM concepts and to become digitally literate.
- Increase Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in STEM by providing all Americans with lifelong access to high-quality STEM education, especially those historically underrepresented and underserved in STEM fields and employment.
- Prepare the STEM Workforce for the Future by creating authentic learning experiences—for both college-educated STEM practitioners and those working in skilled trades that do not require a four-year degree—that encourage and prepare learners to pursue STEM careers.”
Progress on the strategic plan and details of its ongoing implementation as well as STEM education investments per federal agency can be found in the full report.
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