Topics:
Accreditation, Authorizations, & Higher Education Act | Higher Education Act (HEA)
The American Council on Education (ACE) in addition to 35 other higher education associations, issued a statement expressing opposition to the Trump administration’s Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education. The associations expressed that the compact “would hinder, not safeguard” freedom of speech and wrote that it runs counter to the interest of higher education and the nation itself. The statement concludes that “the compact is a step in the wrong direction” and urges the administration to withdraw the compact and reverse course.
Topics:
Accreditation, Authorizations, & Higher Education Act | Higher Education Act (HEA)
Opinion and Order Granting Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment. Plaintiffs, two associations representing not-for-profit, public and for-profit cosmetology schools, challenged the Department of Education’s 2023 final gainful-employment rule, arguing that it violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). The court rejected plaintiffs’ claims that the final rule exceeded the Department’s statutory authority, finding that that there was nothing about the term “gainful employment” in the Higher Education Act to suggest the Department “can’t call employment unprofitable when a student remains in high loan debt.” The court also rejected plaintiff’s argument that the final rule was arbitrary and capricious, finding, in part, that the Department’s thresholds for its debt-to earnings metric, when applied together, were “more than reasonable.”
Topics:
Accreditation, Authorizations, & Higher Education Act | Higher Education Act (HEA) | Program Integrity & Gainful Employment
The Department of Education Office of Federal Student Aid (the Department) announced that it has placed Harvard University on Heightened Cash Monitoring status (HCM), which requires the university to disburse its own funds for federal student aid and then seek reimbursement from the Department. Additionally, the Department required the university to post an irrevocable letter of credit for $36 million to serve as a financial guarantee to cover potential liabilities. The Department’s press release indicates the HCM status is a result of (1) the Department of Health and Human Services June 30th Notice of Title VI Violation; (2) alleged noncompliance with the Department’s audit looking at possible use of race in admissions; and (3) the university’s decision to issue over $1 billion in bonds to support its operations.
Topics:
Accreditation, Authorizations, & Higher Education Act | Financial Aid, Scholarships, & Student Loans | Higher Education Act (HEA) | Students
U.S. Department of Education (the Department) published a Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) outlining the immediate implementation of several higher education provisions in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBB). The first provision eliminates the requirement that borrowers have a partial financial hardship to qualify for enrollment in an income-based repayment plan (IBR). Currently, a borrower is considered to have a partial financial hardship if the payment amount calculated under a standard 10-year repayment plan exceeds the amount calculated under IBR. The second provision permits borrowers who repaid a Parent PLUS loan with a consolidation loan to enroll in an IBR plan. The third provision explains that available loan amounts for students who are enrolled less than full-time during the academic year have been reduced and the Department is currently developing the schedule of reductions that is required by the OBBB and will submit it for public comment later this year. The fourth provision creates amendments to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program and now allows for payments made under a newly created Repayment Assistance Plan (RAP) to count toward loan forgiveness. RAP is intended to go into effect no later than July 1, 2026. The fifth provision announces that OBBB has delayed implementation of the Biden Administration’s Borrower Defense to Repayment regulations. For loans originating before July 1, 2035, the previous Trump Administration’s Borrower Defense to Repayment regulations that were effective July 1, 2020 will be effective as if the regulations were never amended. Finally, OBBB has delayed implementation of the Biden Administration’s Closed School Loan Discharge regulations. The Closed School Discharge regulations that were effective July 1, 2020 will be effective as if the regulations were never amended. The DCL concludes that additional information about these updates will be published in the coming weeks and months ahead.
Topics:
Accreditation, Authorizations, & Higher Education Act | Financial Aid, Scholarships, & Student Loans | Higher Education Act (HEA) | Students
U.S. Department of Education (the Department) announced a new partnership with the Department of Labor (DOL) to create an integrated federal education and workforce system. Pursuant to an interagency agreement, DOL will now take on a greater role in administering the adult education and family literacy programs funded under Title II of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) and career and technical education (CTE) programs. The partnership, which is intended to be consistent with Executive Order 14278 “Preparing Americans for High-Paying Skilled Trade Jobs of the Future” will result in DOL providing day-to-day administration of the department’s Perkins and WIOA Title II programs alongside the larger suite of workforce programs DOL already administers.” The DOL plans to facilitate streamlined services for states and grantees and allow for a unified state plan portal as well as consistent timelines for submitting state plans for WIOA and Perkins. A fact sheet was published with this notice.
Topics:
Accreditation, Authorizations, & Higher Education Act | Higher Education Act (HEA)
Order Granting Petitioners’ Application for Stay. Respondents—comprised of multiple states, school districts, and labor organizations—filed suit against Linda McMahon, Secretary of Education; President Donald J. Trump; and the Department of Education (the Department), challenging the administration’s attempt to dismantle the Department through a large-scale reduction in force (RIF). Respondents claimed that the RIF unlawfully sought to eliminate a statutorily created federal agency, exceeding the President’s constitutional authority and violating the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) as arbitrary, capricious, and contrary to law. The U.S. Supreme Court, by way of an emergency application, granted petitioners’ application for stay following a preliminary injunction issued by the federal district court of Massachusetts that ordered the reinstatement of terminated employees, and a denial by the First Circuit of the administration’s motion for a stay. In a one-paragraph unsigned order, the Court permitted petitioners to proceed with the planned RIF at the Department while the appeal remains pending.
Topics:
Accreditation, Authorizations, & Higher Education Act | Higher Education Act (HEA)
The U.S. Department of Education Office of Federal Student Aid issued a reminder to institutions of higher education that Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment (FVT/GE) data reporting for the 2025 cycle began on July 1, 2025, and runs through October 1, 2025. Notably, the deadline for the 2024 cycle for reporting and the evaluation of the Completers List was extended to September 30, 3025, and the draft Completers List for the 2025 cycle will be generated shortly following. Institutions will have at least 60 days to make any corrections to their data after the list is issued. The announcement included several resources for institutions in compiling their data.
Topics:
Accreditation, Authorizations, & Higher Education Act | Program Integrity & Gainful Employment
