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Education and Workforce Policy Newsletter
September 1, 2022 – Lewis-Burke Associates LLC
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As a new academic year begins, education and workforce policy developments are making headlines. On August 24, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) announced a long-awaited decision regarding broad student loan forgiveness for federal borrowers, a final extension of the pause on student loan repayment, and other changes to federal loan repayment and forgiveness programs. More information on the debt relief and related developments is included below. The White House in its press release announcing the debt relief noted, “the Department of Education is announcing new actions to hold accountable colleges that have contributed to the student debt crisis. These include publishing an annual watch list of the programs with the worst debt levels in the country, so that students registering for the next academic year can steer clear of programs with poor outcomes.”
ED recently held the “Raise the B.A.R. (Bold + Action + Results) in College Excellence and Equity Summit.” During the event, U.S. Education Secretary Miguel Cardona provided his thoughts on higher education and highlighted the Department’s focus on college completion. In remarks prepared for the event, the Secretary noted “Too often, our best-resourced schools are chasing rankings that mean little on measures that truly count: college completion, economic mobility, narrowing gaps in access to opportunity for ALL Americans… We need a culture change in higher education, NOW!”
The updates above highlight the growing attention higher education can expect to receive in the coming years. While shifting political winds might increase focus more on issues like free-speech and viewpoint diversity, there is a growing bipartisan consensus on issues like the return-on-investment for a college degree or whether institutions of higher education are engines of economic mobility. Legislation like the bills highlighted below could foreshadow future proposals aimed at reducing student aid and increasing accountability.
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CONGRESSIONAL UPDATES AND NEWS
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President Biden Signs Ensuring Best Schools for Veterans Act of 2022 into Law
On August 26, President Biden signed into law the Ensuring the Best Schools for Veterans Act of 2022, which aims to improve the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) process that determines and assesses education programs for violations of the 85/15 rule. This new law clarifies the reporting requirements for the 85/15 rule, including exempting accredited schools with GI Bill-benefit student enrollment of under 35 percent or less than 10 VA “supported” students, among other changes.
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Legislative Bills of Note
• H.R. 8655 (Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-NC) Responsible Education Assistance through Loan (REAL) Reforms Act – This bill, which is sponsored by the current Ranking Member of the Committee on Education and Labor, would place caps on the amount of money graduate student loan borrowers can borrow and would provide targeted debt relief for certain federal student loan borrowers. The bill would eliminate the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program entirely and would allow the Pell Grant to be used for short-term career training programs. The press release from the Republican Education & Labor Committee can be found here.
• S. 4772 (Senator Rick Scott, R-FL) Changing Our Learning, Loans, Endowments, and Graduation Expectations (COLLEGE) Act – This bill aims to hold universities accountable for rising tuition costs through new reporting and accountability metrics, including making institutions responsible for a percentage of the loan balances for students who are in default and new endowment reporting requirements. It would also require colleges, both private and public, with endowments over $1 billion to fund a proportion of each full-time students’ cost of attendance. The press release from Sen. Scott can be found here.
Note: Both H.R. 8655 and S. 4772 are examples of bills that are unlikely to pass this year given the current Democratic control of both chambers of Congress but could be a blueprint for bills that could be considered in a Republican-controlled Congress.
• H.R. 8700 (Rep. Susan Wild, D-PA) Simplifying Student Loans Act – This bill aims to simplify the process of paying back federal student loans by replacing existing federal loan payment plans with two options for repayment. Federal borrowers would have the choice between a fixed repayment plan or an income-based repayment plan. The bill would also establish a one percent interest rate on student loans. The full press release from Rep. Wild can be found here. |
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ADMINISTRATION AND AGENCY UPDATES AND NEWS
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Biden Administration Announces Targeted Student Loan Relief and Repayment Pause Extension
On August 24, 2022, the Biden Administration announced a long-awaited decision regarding broad student loan forgiveness for federal borrowers, the pause on student loan repayment, and other changes to federal loan repayment and forgiveness programs. The U.S. Department of Education (ED) will provide up to $10,000 of student loan debt cancellation per borrower whose annual income is less than $125,000 for individuals or less than $250,000 for households. Additional efforts the Administration is taking regarding federal loan repayments and programs include a final extension of the pause on student loan repayment, interest, and collections through December 31, 2022, which was set to expire on August 31, 2022. ED also announced proposed rules to the income-driven repayment plan for undergraduate borrowers and permanent changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) Program.
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ED Postsecondary Head Sworn In; NACIQI Nominees Sought
This past month, Nasser H. Paydar was confirmed by the Senate and sworn in as the Department of Education’s (ED) Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education. As head of the Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE), Assistant Secretary Paydar will oversee the higher education grant programs, including institutional service and student support grants, as well as higher education policy and planning office. ED also announced it is seeking nominations until September 15, 2022 to fill a one-member vacancy on the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity ( NACIQI) with terms of service expiring on September 30, 2025.
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DOL Announces Programs to Support Justice40 Initiative
Following the “ Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad” Executive Order and Justice40 Initiative issued by the White House, the Department of Labor (DOL) has announced programs to be added to the Justice40 Initiative to help advance environmental justice. The news release with further details regarding the implementation of the program at DOL can be found here.
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National Science Foundation Announces New EHR Assistant Director
The National Science Foundation (NSF) recently announced its selection of Dr. James Moore III as the new Assistant Director for the Directorate of Education and Human Resources (EHR). Prior to becoming Assistant Director of EHR on August 22, Dr. Moore served as the Vice Provost for Diversity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer at The Ohio State University. In a statement about his selection as the head of EHR, Dr. Moore said: "Becoming the new EHR assistant director is an opportunity that I do not take lightly. It extends the opportunity to be a part of the director's brain trust in bringing the 'Missing Millions' and developing critical strategy — within NSF — to attract, inspire, and cultivate more U. S. citizens for careers in STEM. With the recent passing of the 'CHIPS and Science Act, there are immense opportunities to improve STEM educational and workforce outcomes."
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DHS Publishes Final Rule on DACA Program
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued its final rule to “preserve and fortify” the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program following the September 2021 publication of a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) and subsequent public comment period regarding the DACA program. The final rule largely codifies the polices presented in the NPRM, including refraining from expanding the DACA program and reinforcing the guidelines defined by former Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano during the establishment of the DACA program in 2012. Further details on the final rule, including the implications of the current pending court action regarding DACA, are included in Lewis-Burke’s write-up will go into effect on October 31, 2022.
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ED Issues NIA for the Augustus F. Hawkins Centers of Excellence Program
The U.S. Department of Education (ED) published a notice inviting applications (NIA) for the Augustus F. Hawkins Centers of Excellence (Hawkins) Program, a new grant program appropriated funding in fiscal year (FY) 2022, which aims to diversify and expand the teacher preparation pipeline at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs), and Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), including Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs). Applications are due no later than October 7, 2022.
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ED Issues NIA for Postsecondary Success Program for MSIs and HBCUs
The Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE), within the U.S. Department of Education (ED), issued a notice inviting applications (NIA) for the fiscal year (FY) 2022 Postsecondary Success Program. The Postsecondary Success Program will invest in evidence-based or data-driven activities that improve student outcomes, such as retention, transfer, and completion at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and other Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs). Applications will be due no later than October 11, 2022.
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ED Announces NIA for Basic Needs for Postsecondary Students Program
The Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE), within the U.S. Department of Education (ED), published a notice inviting applications (NIA) for the Basic Needs for Postsecondary Students Program. The program provides grants to eligible institutions of higher education (IHEs), specifically community colleges, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and other Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), to develop or enhance approaches used to support the basic needs of students. The deadline for transmittal of applications is October 3, 2022.
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IES Forecasts Three Grant Opportunities
The Institute of Education Sciences (IES) has forecasted three forthcoming research grant opportunities. Two opportunities via the National Center for Education Research (NCER). The NCER grants are
- Research Networks Focused on Critical Problems of Education Policy and Practice grant program will be inviting applications for the Career and Technical Education Research Network, Network Lead. The CTE Network will conduct research on CTE through projects funded by other IES grant competitions. Details on that forthcoming opportunity are available here.
- Research Networks Focused on Critical Problems of Education Policy and Practice grant program will be inviting applications for Digital Learning Platforms Network Research Teams. The official applications for both NCER opportunities will be released by October 20, 2022.
Via the National Center for Special Education Research (NCSER)
- The Special Education Research and Development Centers (R&D Centers) will be supporting a new R&D Center on Supporting Students with Disabilities in Postsecondary Education. Applications will be available by September 30, 2022. Details on both the NCSER R&D Center and NCER Digital Learning Platforms Network Research Teams can be found here.
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NASFAA’s National Student Aid Profile: Overview of 2022 Federal Programs - The Federal Pell Grant Program
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GAO Study on Student Loan Cost Estimates: Education Has Increased Federal Cost Estimates of Direct Loans by Billions Due to Programmatic and Other Changes
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report in July detailing that the federal Direct Loan program, initially designed to help students pay for their education and initially projected to return a $114 billion profit for the government, has ended up costing the government $197 billion. The largest estimated cost increases to the government came from the emergency pause on loan payments started during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study may have lasting implications on the way that the Direct Loan program moves forward, especially given the recent actions taken by the Biden Administration to forgive student loan debt.
Source: https://www.gao.gov/products/gao-22-105365
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