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Latest Cases & Developments
Date:
Department of Homeland Security Fixed Time Period of Admission and Extension of Stay Procedure for Nonimmigrant Academic Students (Aug. 28, 2025)
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) along with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) issued a notice of proposed rulemaking that would establish a fixed period of admission and an extension of stay procedure for nonimmigrant academic students, exchange visitors, and representatives of foreign information media. Specifically, DHS proposes to amend its regulations by changing the admission period in the F, J, and I classifications from duration of status to an admission for a fixed time period. The proposed rule would further create a fixed period of admission for students on an F visa for a duration not to exceed a 4-year period. Finally, the proposed rule would decrease the allowed period of F-1 nonimmigrants to prepare to depart from the United States after completion of a course of study or authorized period of post-completion practical training from 60 to 30 days. Comments are due by September 29, 2025.
Topics:
Employment of Foreign Nationals | Faculty & Staff | Immigration | International Activities | International Students | Study Abroad ProgramsDate:
ACE Letter Offering Comments on the Department of Education’s Pending Implementation of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (Aug. 28, 2025)
The American Council on Education (ACE) sent a letter to the Department of Education (the Department) offering comments on the Department’s pending implementation of the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) Act. The letter urges the Department to work with Congress to delay the implementation of the OBBB until at least July 1, 2027, in order to provide sufficient time for negotiated rulemaking committees to meet, for a proposed rule to be released, for public comments to be reviewed, and for a final rule promulgated with time for campuses to make system and other necessary changes before the start of a new award year. The letter requests (i) clear and direct communication to understand new annual and aggregate loan limits and student loan repayment plans; (ii) a comprehensive list of professional degree programs; (iii) proper staffing to implement the full scope of the OBBB; (iv) making the data used to determine median earnings for each program publicly available; (v) further guidance on the requirement for institutions to package non-federal grant aid before the Pell Grant; (vi) further guidance on institutional accountability reporting; and (vii) add additional constituency groups to the negotiated rulemaking committee.
Topics:
Financial Aid, Scholarships, & Student Loans | StudentsDate:
Department of Education Comment Request on the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act State Plan Guide (Aug. 27, 2025)
The Department of Education (the Department) has proposed a revision to the currently approved information collection request (ICR) on the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act State Plan Guide. The Department is proposing to reinstate the previously approved version of the collection, which will eliminate the requirement that eligible agencies and eligible recipients use numerator and denominator specifications recently established by the Department to set State determined performance levels for the indicators of performance under the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 (Perkins V). Comments are due on or before September 26, 2025.
Topics:
Financial Aid, Scholarships, & Student Loans | StudentsDate:
Dudley v. Boise State University (9th Cir. Aug. 27th, 2025)
Opinion Reversing in Part and Affirming in Part. Plaintiff, a graduate of Boise State University, brought due process claims against the university after her degree was revoked for misconduct during a required internship. The District Court found in favor of the university, determining that plaintiff was afforded sufficient notice and opportunity to be heard and that she failed to allege a property interest in her university education. On appeal, the Circuit Court affirmed the district court’s dismissal of plaintiff’s substantive due process claim, reasoning that the university’s decision to revoke the degree was “not substantively arbitrary [or] lacking a rational basis.” However, the court reversed its dismissal of her procedural due process claim, calling the revocation “procedurally infirm.” The court held that because plaintiff had an ascertainable monetary value in her degree and further had “a legitimate claim of entitlement” to her degree under Idaho law, the university improperly denied her procedural due process rights when it revoked her degree without any notice or hearing.
Topics:
Academic Performance and Misconduct | Constitutional Issues | Due Process | Internships, Externships, & Clinical Work | StudentsDate:
Department of Education Confirms On-Time Launch of the 2026-27 FAFSA Form (Aug. 26, 2025)
The Department of Education (the Department) sent a letter to Congress certifying that the 2026-27 FAFSA form will be available on time this fall with a scheduled launch date of October 1. The Department conducted beta testing in early August with over 1,000 applications successfully submitted.
Topics:
Financial Aid, Scholarships, & Student Loans | StudentsDate:
Health and Human Services Department Terminates Health Minority Biomedical Research Support Program (Aug. 26, 2025)
The Health and Human Services Department (HHS) announced the termination of the Minority Biomedical Research Support Program (MBRS), which provided institutions with grants to increase the number of minority faculty, students, and investigators conducting biomedical research. The rescission is made to maintain compliance with Executive Order 14172 (Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity) and 14151 (Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing) and abide by Supreme Court precedent. The final rule becomes effective September 25, 2025. HHS wrote that MBRS must be repealed because it is contrary to the Supreme Court’s decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. President and Fellows of Harvard College as it prioritizes racial classifications in awarding federal funding.
Topics:
Discrimination, Accommodation, & Diversity | Enforcement of Non-Discrimination LawsDate:
Department of Education Safeguarding Academia (Aug. 25, 2025)
The Department of Education (the Department), alongside the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and other federal partners, issued new guidance in its Safeguarding Academia bulletin to alert U.S. colleges and universities to increasing foreign threats to fundamental research, intellectual property, critical technologies, and the U.S. research ecosystem. The guidance also arms institutions with mitigation strategies. The bulletin and reference guides review best practices for recruitment programs, overseas research collaborations, espionage activities of foreign intelligence services, and cyber intrusion.
Topics:
International Ventures | Research | Research Safety & ProtectionDate:
Department of Labor Comment Request on Registration and Equal Employment Opportunity in Apprenticeship Programs (Aug. 25, 2025)
The Department of Labor (the Department) is collecting comments on a proposed revision of the information collection request, “Registration and Equal Employment Opportunity in Apprenticeship Programs” associated with the Department’s proposed rule, ‘‘Prohibiting Illegal Discrimination in Registered Apprenticeship Programs,’’ which has been assigned the Regulation Identifier Number (RIN) 1205–AC21 and was published in the Federal Register on July 2, 2025 (90 FR 28947). The Department’s proposed rule is intended to streamline the regulation and proposes rescission of several requirements for registered apprenticeship program sponsors, including those mandating the development and implementation of affirmative action plans and initiatives that impose “substantial administrative burdens and tend to promote illegal and divisive group-based preferences.” If finalized, the rule would also rescind the Employment and Training Administration (ETA) Form 9039, which enables an apprentice to file a complaint alleging violations of part 30 requirements, as well as Form 671 Section IIA, which allows an apprentice to voluntarily self-report their disability status. Comments are due by October 24, 2025.
Topics:
Discrimination, Accommodation, & Diversity | Enforcement of Non-Discrimination LawsDate:
Department of Education Revised Information Collection Request for Application for Approval to Participate in Federal Student Aid Programs (Aug. 25, 2025)
The Department of Education (the Department) is collecting comments on the revised information collection request, “Application for Approval to Participate in the Federal Student Aid Programs.” An institution must use this Application to apply for approval to be determined eligible and if the institution wishes, to participate; to expand its eligibility; or to continue to participate in the Title IV programs. An institution must also use the Application to report certain required data as part of its recordkeeping requirements. Comments are due by October 24, 2025.
Topics:
Financial Aid, Scholarships, & Student Loans | StudentsDate:
ACE Overview of Optional Practical Training and Current Policy Threats (Aug. 25, 2025)
The American Council on Education (ACE) published an issue brief providing an overview of the Optional Practical Training (OPT) for international students at U.S. colleges and universities and the current policy landscape for the program. The brief discusses what OPT is, how it is different from curricular practical training and an F-1 student visa, the economic impact of OPT, and legal challenges to OPT.
Topics:
Immigration | International Students
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