Tag Archives: federal

President Purce Addresses the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs

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Yesterday in the other Washington Evergreen’s smallest public baccalaureate institution shined as a national leader in the advancement of higher education for Native American students.

Invited by the U.S. Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, President Purce addressed members about the history and continuing efforts of the College to advance higher education for Native American students as part of the Senate’s work “Indian Education Series: Examining Higher Education for American Indian Students.”

Purce spoke to the College’s history and current work of Evergreen’s Native American academic and public service programs. And he shared with the Committee the future direction Evergreen as an evolving part of the College’s identity. He closed his remarks with,

The decisions we make today will have implications long into the future. Now is the time as we would say at Evergreen to “Dig Deep” and ensure that there is a national commitment to advancing higher education for American Indian students today and for generations to come, in partnership and collaboration with tribes. We must make an investment to ensure that American Indian students have access to higher education, have the resources necessary to be successful, and that they graduate with the skills and credentials they need to make a difference for their communities and their families.

The stakes are too high not to. We live in an increasingly complex world, and tribal leaders are challenged to respond to the very real impact of climate change and other threats to the environment, threats to tribal sovereignty, and other challenges. At the same time there are unprecedented opportunities through various kinds of economic development, changing technologies and the fastest growing demographic—Native youth. Well educated tribal members can help negotiate the changing terrain on behalf of their communities.

The landscape in higher education is changing quickly and dramatically. The students in higher education and those at the doorstep are more diverse racially, ethnically and financially. If the United States is to be competitive globally well into the twenty-first century we must make sure that no one is left behind and that each student is able to reach behind and pull the next generation through.

As stated by Vi Hilbert (1918-2008), Upper Skagit Elder and Daniel J. Evans Chair Scholar (1995),  “When I first walked on that campus (Evergreen), the beautiful thing that I felt there was the Spirit. The Spirit said ‘Come. This is a place for people to hear what your ancestors wanted you to pass on.”

President Purce’s testimony can be viewed at the 1:45 mark.

The Obama Administration Expands Loan Program to Older Borrowers

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Yesterday, President Obama directed his Administration to make an additional 5 million existing student loan borrowers eligible for the federal government’s  – Pay As You Earn – income-based repayment program.

This change will allow all who borrowed federal direct loans as students, regardless of when they borrowed, to cap their payments at 10 percent of their monthly incomes. In addition any remaining loan debt would be forgiven after twenty years.  Currently loan forgiveness is only available to borrowers who first took out a loan after September 30, 2007 and continued borrowing after September 30, 2011.  It is worth noting that the change to loan forgiveness eligibility was set to become an option for all new borrowers beginning July 1.

The Department will begin the process to amend its regulations this fall with a goal of making the new plan available to borrowers by December 2015.

Obama also directed the U.S. Department of Education to increase outreach to better publicize the income-based repayment programs through targeted outreach and to study how to more effectively counsel borrowers.  The Administration will also renegotiate its contracts with loan servicing companies to encourage them to do more for struggling borrowers.

The plan to expand income-based repayment plans was critiqued by congressional Republicans, raising concerns about the cost to taxpayers and the administration’s legal authority to make the change without legislation passed by Congress.

Hundreds of TRiO Students Convene at Evergreen; Elected Officials Engage Students

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Throughout the day high school and college students from across Washington could be seen crossing The Evergreen State College campus to engage with elected officials and workshop speakers at the Washington State TRiO Conference.

The morning opened with a welcome address by President Purce who introduced the opening keynote U.S. Representative Derek Kilmer (WA-6th). Kilmer spoke to his own journey and encouraged the audience to be engaged in their education and communities.

Students spent the remainder of the morning participating in break-out sessions on a range of topics such as civic leadership, selecting and financing the right college, and internships.

The lunch hour was focused on remarks by Washington State Representative Chris Reykdal (22nd District). Reykdal spoke to his personal story and pathway. He encouraged students to speak up and participate in their communities. In addition students heard from Luis Ortega, Founder of Power to Define who spoke of the importance and value of education.The day closed out with a legislative panel of state leaders including Representatives Kathy Haigh (35th District), Hans Zeiger (25th District), Sam Hunt (22nd District) and JT Wilcox (2nd District).  The panel addressed the question, As a state representative you have the ability to influence policy and legislation that directly affect the K-12 and higher education system.  If you could see into the future what are you greatest hopes and fears for the state of education?  How will the students in this audience be affected by either possible outcome?  The panelists spoke to the value of engagement by students in the legislative process and the importance of participating at the local, state and national levels. The panel took questions from the audience ranging from internships to concerns about the number of young people in the prison system.

The day concluded with closing remarks from U.S. Representative Denny Heck (WA-10th). Heck spoke of his own commitment to service and expressed the need for young people to find what drives them and to share their passions.

President Obama Release FY15 Budget: Higher Education Impacts

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Yesterday President Obama released a proposal for funding the federal government for FY15. The proposal would make several changes to higher education.

The request would provide level-funding for most student aid programs and basic research programs, but would provide funding for several ambitious new higher education proposals.

The budget would maintain discretionary funding for the Pell Grant program at the same level as last year.  This will allow the maximum award to jump by $100 to $5,830 because of an automatic, mandatory increase in funding. With regard to the Pell Grant the budget also issues a call to “strengthen academic progress requirements in the Pell Grant program to encourage students to complete their studies on time” and restores a pathway to Pell Grants for students who don’t have a high school diploma or GED.

The budget also makes permanent the American Opportunity Tax Credit and makes changes to federal financial aid programs.

The more daring proposals include:

  • College Opportunity and Graduation Bonuses (10-year budget, $7 billion):  The program would reward colleges that successfully enroll and graduate significant numbers of low- and moderate-income students on time, and encourage all institutions to boost performance by providing grants to institutions based on their number of on-time Pell graduates. Institutions would be allowed to use these funds to expand need-based financial aid, enhance student instruction and support strategies, and adopt other best practices to increase college access and success for low-income students.
  • State Higher Education Performance Fund ($4 billion): A competitive state grant, these funds would support systemic efforts to reform and improve the performance of public higher education systems and make college more affordable, especially for low-income students.
  • First in the World ($100 million): Building on the 2014 competition, the budget increases funding to support innovative strategies and practices shown to be effective in improving educational outcomes and making college more affordable for students and families.
  • College Success Grants ($75 million): A competition that would support sustainable strategies to reduce costs and improve student outcomes through awards to Historically Black Colleges or Universities and other Minority-Serving Institutions.
  • Pay As You Earn (PAYE) Expansion: Extend PAYE to all student borrowers, regardless of when they borrowed. The budget also would reform PAYE to safeguard the program for the future and ensure that program benefits are targeted to the neediest borrowers.

The President’s budget is largely a political document. Congress has already set budget levels for federal spending. Senate Democrats have commented that they will not produce a budget but will instead directly allocate funding program by program. The House Republicans have indicated their budget proposal will be released later this month.

Obama Signs Appropriations Legislation.

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Earlier this year President Obama signed into law the omnibus appropriations bills for FY14.  The bill increased funding for the U.S. Department of Education by $1.6 billion over FY13.

While the increase did not fully restore the reductions in discretionary funding from sequestration, the budget does provide much needed investments for the entire education continuum.

Specific to higher education the act provides $75 million for the First in the World initiative aimed at college access and affordability.

The President will release a summary of his FY 2015 budget proposal on March 4.

Federal Budget Deal What It Means for Higher Education

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The announcement last week that budget negotiators in D.C. had reached a budget deal is improved news for higher education compared to the series of cuts the sector has experienced in recent years.

The budget deal would alleviate reductions to research funding and campus-based student aid programs. While no specific funding levels are proposed for higher education, funding levels are increased for non-military spending which impacts higher education and research.

If passed by the Senate, the House has already passed the deal, budget writers would have $492 billion for non-military spending. This is approximately $23 billion more than would be available if the second round of automatic cuts (sequestration) were to occur in January, but still $14 billion below the original level of non-defense funding before the cuts were implemented.

Within these dollars policymakers would have the option to restore and even increase funding to campus-based financial aid programs and federal research agencies.

To pay for the reversal of sequestration cuts, policymakers identified various sources of revenue since raising taxes or making changes to entitlement programs were off the table. With regard to higher education, revenue would be generated by making changes to payments for loan servicers.

  • Default Reduction Program – This provision reduces the compensation that guaranty agencies receive for rehabilitating a loan from the Federal Family Education Loan Program beginning July 1, 2014. ($2 billion savings over 10 years).
  • Elimination of Non-Profit Servicing Contracts – This provision eliminates the mandatory spending for payments to non-profit student loan servicers and instead ensures they will be paid with discretionary funds in the same manner as other student loan services. ($3.1 billion savings)

Representatives of servicers and guaranty agencies expressed concerns about the proposed changes. They noted that cutting the default reduction fees would likely result in fewer loan rehabilitations but also negatively impact the ability of these agencies to provide access, financial literacy, and delinquency prevention services.

Congress must pass the new budget before January 15 to avert another government shutdown.

U.S. Department of Education Announces Series of Public Hearings on College Rating System

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This week the U.S. Department of Education announced a series of regional public hearings to gather feedback from the public and stakeholders about the Administration’s proposal to create a federal college ratings system.

Next month representatives from the Department will travel to four campuses across the country to solicit feedback on the proposal. The Department will hold hearings throughout November at California State University Dominguez Hills campus, Los Angeles CA; George Mason University, Fairfax, VA; the University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA; and Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, LA.

Update on Obama Administration’s College Rating System

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More and more details are emerging from D.C. about the college rating system that the Obama Administration has made a primary focus of their higher education policy agenda.

In August President Obama issued an agenda focused on affordability and access to higher education. The President’s plan included paying for performance, promoting innovation and competition, and ensuring that student debt remains limited. The President directed the U.S. Department of Education to develop a rating system as part of his agenda to better inform students and encourage higher education institutions to improve.

The intention of the system is to compare colleges with similar missions and identify those that do the most to help students from disadvantaged backgrounds and those improving their performance. The goal being that the rating system would direct where future federal funds would go.

As part of the development of the system the Department is asking for the best ideas and creative thinking around three primary themes:

  • College access, such as the percentage of students receiving Pell Grants;
  • College affordability, such as average tuition, scholarships, and loan debt; and
  • Outcomes, such as students’ graduation and transfer rates, graduate earnings, and advanced degrees of college graduates

To facilitate feedback in mid-September the Department began a series of nationwide public discussions with student advocates and leaders. It is the intention of the Department in the coming months to travel across the country to host open forums, roundtable discussions, and town halls to gather suggestions. The public is encouraged to send suggestions as well via collegefeedback@ed.gov

 

 

 

 

The Impact to Higher Education if the Government Shuts Down

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Those in the other Washington and higher education experts believe that if the federal government shuts down the impact to higher education will be modest.  That is in the short-term.

The federal government may shutdown on October 1 if Congress does not agree to a stopgap spending measure to keep the government going. It is unclear on October 1 what federal programs related to higher education would be impacted. Last week the White House directed federal agencies including the U.S. Department of Education to update their plans for operation during a government shutdown. The documents have yet to be released.

Looking back at the last close call in 2011, the Education Department estimated that it would furlough almost all of its staff and would rely on a limited number of people on a limited basis if the shutdown was prolonged longer than a week. At this time the Department said that the administration of federal student aid programs would largely be unaffected at least for the first week. A shutdown beyond a week would have a more severe impact on financial aid.

Beyond the potential shutdown next week, higher education is looking ahead to the multiple federal fiscal fights likely this fall. Even if the shutdown does not occur Congress is expected to pass a stopgap measure. This will be a temporary fix and will leave in place the sequester cuts to campus-based financial aid programs and scientific research.  Making the problem further complex are the looming negotiations over the debt ceiling – October 17. If the federal government were to run out of money higher education is concerned about the impact on federal student aid and research funding.

Movement in Washington D.C. on Higher Education

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Last week marked some movement for higher education in Washington D.C.

Higher Education Act

The U.S. Senate committee on education formally began the process to reauthorize the Higher Education Act. The Higher Education Act is the primary federal legislation which governs federal student aid and higher education.

Senator Harkin – Chairman of the Committee – identified his plan for reauthorization. The Committee will hold a total of twelve hearings – eleven more to come – focused on fact-finding over the next several months with the intention of producing draft legislation by early 2014.

On Thursday of last week the Committee held the first of the twelve hearings. The hearing focused on the complex system oversight for higher education in the United States which consists of regulations from the U.S. Department of Education, state regulators, and accrediting bodies.

The plan to produce draft legislation by early 2014 is optimistic given that it took five years longer to complete the last reauthorization in 2008. In addition Senator Alexander – the senior Republican on the Committee – has asked staff to consider drafting a new Act from the beginning potentially complicating the proposed timeline.

U.S. Department of Education Begins Process for Additional Accountability for Institutions

Last week the Department announced it had begun the process for gathering feedback and input on how to develop metrics for the institutional rating system announced by the Obama Administration earlier this year.

The Department is expected to produce a draft rating system by mid-2014 with a final version out by December of the same year. The long-term goal is to develop a rating system by the 2015 academic year and persuade Congress to link that system to federal student aid dollars by 2018.

The head of the Department – Arne Duncan- provided a small preview into what the rating system may look like.  Duncan promised that the system would take a holistic approach to judging institutions on areas of access, affordability and student performance. With the broad goal being to determine “how many students at an institution graduate, at a reasonable cost, without a lot of debt, and get a job that enables them to support themselves and their families.”

Potential metrics that may be considered include the percentage of students receiving Pell grants, the average amount of tuition, scholarships and loan debt; graduation and transfer rates; the salaries of graduates; and the extent to which graduates pursue advanced degrees.

Duncan also shared that the Department will begin with metrics that have data that already exists.

The Department has already begun the feedback process meeting with student advocacy groups last week which kick-off what the Department refers to as a series of discussions with higher education stakeholders in the coming year.

New Leader at the U.S. Department of Education

Late last week the U.S. Department of Education announced that Jamienne Studley will join the Department as a deputy under secretary of education.

Studley will oversee the Department’s second-term higher education agenda.  She is expected to focus on a range of issues including accreditation and college pricing and play a key role in the Obama Administration’s proposed rating system.

Studley is the former president of Skidmore College and a one-time Education Department general counsel. She comes to the Department from Public Advocates Inc a consumer law and advocacy group. She has served since 2010 on the National Advisory Committee on Institutional Quality and Integrity which advises the education secretary on accreditation issues.