Billions in Aid Head to Colleges
The U.S. Education Department on Thursday made available the $21.2 billion in help to higher education included in the coronavirus relief legislation Congress and President Trump approved in December, but undocumented students could be left out of getting help through emergency student grants again. Meanwhile, billions more in aid could be on the way. President-elect Joe Biden on Thursday also released a summary of the $1.9 trillion relief package he is planning to propose upon taking office, including another $35 billion in help for colleges and universities. “This $35 billion in funding will be directed to public institutions, including community colleges, as well as public and private Historically Black Colleges and Universities and other minority-serving Institutions,” said the document marked “confidential.” The document did not mention most private colleges and universities. ( Inside Higher Ed - Jan. 15, 2021)
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Biden Outlines $1.9 Trillion Spending Package to Combat Virus and Downturn
President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. on Thursday proposed a $1.9 trillion rescue package to combat the economic downturn and the Covid-19 crisis, outlining the type of sweeping aid that Democrats have demanded for months and signaling the shift in the federal government’s pandemic response as Mr. Biden prepares to take office. The package includes more than $400 billion to combat the pandemic directly, including money to accelerate vaccine deployment and to safely reopen most schools within 100 days. Another $350 billion would help state and local governments bridge budget shortfalls, while the plan would also include $1,400 direct payments to individuals, more generous unemployment benefits, federally mandated paid leave for workers and large subsidies for child care costs. ( The New York Times - Jan. 14, 2021)
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Trump Administration Tries to Hamstring Biden on Student Loan Forgiveness
The Trump administration on Wednesday sought to throw up a bureaucratic roadblock to progressives’ push for the incoming Biden administration to cancel large swaths of outstanding student loan debt through executive action. Education Department officials released a memo, signed by an outgoing political appointee, that concludes that the agency lacks the power to unilaterally forgive federal student loan debt on the scale that some Democrats want. The legal opinion is not necessarily binding on the Biden administration, which could reverse or change its interpretation of the laws that govern federal student loans. But the memo comes as President-elect Joe Biden is already signaling that he will not accede to growing progressive demands that he employ executive action to cancel student loan debt. ( Politico - Jan. 13, 2021)
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Senators Ask GAO to Examine if Colleges Are Doing Enough for Disabled Students
A bipartisan group of three senators on Wednesday asked the Government Accountability Office to examine whether colleges and universities are doing enough to make sure disabled students have the same access to learning during the coronavirus pandemic as others. In particular, the senators expressed concern about the ability of students with disabilities to use videoconferencing and other equipment in remote learning. A survey in October by the Student Experience in the Research University, or SERU, Consortium, found that students with disabilities are more likely to experience financial hardships, mental health challenges and food and housing insecurity as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Students with disabilities were more likely to feel unsupported by their universities than students without disabilities, the report said. ( Inside Higher Ed - Jan. 14, 2021)
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ICE Acting Director Resigns Weeks after Assuming Post
The acting director for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is resigning just two weeks after taking on the role, an agency official confirmed to The Hill. CNN and BuzzFeed News first reported Jonathan Fahey’s resignation Wednesday evening, citing a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) official and a source with knowledge of the situation, respectively. [The] agency did not give a reason behind the resignation. Fahey’s departure comes after acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf announced Monday he was stepping down after serving in the role for 14 months . . . . Fahey had taken over ICE from Tony Pham, who left last month after assuming the post in August. ICE has had six directors under the Trump administration, though the agency has not had a Senate-confirmed director during the past four years. ( The Hill - Jan. 13, 2021)
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