federal government
August 1, 2011
PELL Grant Program Left Intact For Now.
If the US House and Senate approve the debt deal that the Obama Administration and Congressional leaders seem to have worked out over the weekend, the Pell Grant Program will remain intact. Although PELL had been targeted for significant cuts, the deal leaves the current maximum grant at $5,550, and retains the in-school interest subsidy…
July 21, 2011
Federal Scrutiny of For-Profits Spurs State Action
As the for-profit higher education industry continues to fight federal regulation, states are starting to pay more attention to the fast growing sector. The National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) reports that, as of May, twenty states have introduced at least 34 bills aimed at regulating or supporting for-profit higher education. NCSL reports that eight…
July 5, 2011
US Department of Ed Publishes College Affordability Data
When Congress renewed the Higher Education Opportunity Act in 2008 it contained some significant revisions, including new mandates to increase transparency around the issue of college cost and affordability. As a result, all institutions were required to develop and publish some form of a ‘net cost calculator’ that could help a prospective student get a…
June 14, 2011
Harkin Holds What Could be Last Senate Hearing on For-Profits
Days after the Department of Education released its finalized Gainful Employment rule, Senator Tom Harkin held his fifth Senate hearing investigating the practices of the for-profit higher education industry. Senator Harkin focused the hearing on the high levels of student borrowing and outsized loan default rates for students at for-profit institutions. Previous hearings and reports…
Department of Ed Finalizes (and Softens) Gainful Employment Rule
After much debate, public comment, intense lobbying, a lawsuit, and the threat of political action to block them, expansive new US Department of Education higher education regulations are set to go into effect on July 1st. While the Department has made revisions to and provided implementation guidance for most of the new rules, it had…
May 5, 2011
Momentum Building to Reign in For-Profits
It was speculated that Republican gains in Congress last November could stall the Senate’s aggressive investigation of the for-profit higher education industry and sweeping new Department of Education regulations that are set to go into effect July 1. While bipartisan action in the House did attempt to block some of the regulations, particularly the controversial…
March 14, 2011
Education Roundtable with US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan
US Secretary of Education Arne Duncan joined Governor Chris Gregoire and legislative leadership today for an education roundtable. Duncan congratulated state lawmakers on discussing the issue of education reform, even through tough budget times. He further drew attention to the grave problems troubling education in the United States—a 25% national dropout rate, poor STEM education,…
March 3, 2011
GAO Details How For-Profit Colleges Exploit Veterans
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report and recommendations, DOD Education Benefits: Increased Oversight of Tuition Assistance Program is Needed, ahead of another Senate hearing focused on the conduct of for-profit colleges, this time held by Senator Tom Carper. The GAO report focused on the DOD Military Tuition Assistance Program, which provides tuition benefits…
March 2, 2011
Supreme Court Hears Arguments in Research Patent Case
On Monday, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments for Stanford University v. Roche Molecular Systems et al.. At issue is whether the Supreme Court will agree with the argument made by research institutions to expand the current interpretation of what is known as the Bayh-Dole Act (1980’s University and Small Business Patent Procedures Act), which…
February 14, 2011
Federal Budget Proposals Affect Higher Education
The UW Office of Federal Relations has posted detailed summaries of how recent federal budget proposals may affect higher education. As the House Republicans propose major spending cuts for FY 2011 that target Pell grants and funding for federal agencies that support academic research, President Obama has released a FY 2012 proposal that largely protects…
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