How Much Colleges Will Get in Coronavirus Relief[American Council on Education] estimated the amount of aid going to 3,500 public and private nonprofit colleges and universities. It does not include another $1.7 billion in the relief package for historically Black colleges and universities and other minority-serving institutions or $113 million set aside for institutions with the greatest unmet need or those not served by the primary formula, such as independent graduate schools, as well as another $681 million dedicated for emergency aid for students attending for-profit universities. The colleges receiving the most funds are getting more than the combined amount institutions are getting in some states. Colleges and universities with large endowments are receiving only half of the aid they would have otherwise received. ( Inside Higher Ed - Jan. 11, 2021)
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Biden to Extend Pause on Student Loan Payments
As expected, President-elect Joe Biden will, upon taking office Jan. 20, instruct the Education Department to continue the pause excusing student loan borrowers from making payments, a top economic adviser in the incoming administration said. David Kamin, who will be deputy director of the National Economic Council in the Biden administration, did not reveal additional details including how much longer borrowers will not have to make their monthly repayments in a call with reporters Friday. Kamin . . . said in a briefing on Biden’s economic plans that the president-elect supports asking Congress to erase $10,000 from the debt of all borrowers . . . [and] that Biden also plans to expand income-based repayment plans and reform the currently little-used debt forgiveness program for borrowers working in public service. ( Inside Higher Ed - Jan. 11, 2021)
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Science Advocacy Groups Join Calls for Trump’s Removal
A number of science advocacy groups have joined calls for President Donald Trump to resign or be removed from office in the wake of his role in inciting a violent mob attack on the U.S. Capitol. The March for Science is asking individuals and organizations to sign an online petition calling for Trump “to be removed from office immediately,” either through the congressional impeachment process or the invocation of the 25th Amendment by Vice President Mike Pence and Trump’s Cabinet. The Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), as well as the groups 500 Women Scientists and 314 Action (which was formed to support science-oriented political candidates, but has since expanded its focus) have also released statements calling for Trump’s removal, arguing that a healthy democracy is critical for scientific progress. ( Science Magazine - Jan. 8, 2021)
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AAU, Organizations Urge Incoming Administration to Rescind Human Fetal Tissue Research Restrictions
Yesterday, AAU joined 98 scientific, medical, and patient-based organizations on a letter to President-elect Biden’s transition team calling on the incoming administration to rescind restrictions and policy changes on human fetal tissue. A 2019 Department of Health and Human Services policy banned intramural NIH research using human fetal tissue; the policy change also created additional and unnecessary barriers that obstructed new extramural research, which chilled vital public health and other scientific research during a global pandemic. The letter also requests that the incoming Biden administration commission an expert to report on the value of scientific and medical research that uses human fetal tissue. ( Association of American Universities - Jan. 8, 2021)
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Little Legacy on Higher Ed—Except Controversy
What’s perhaps most telling about Betsy DeVos’s contentious tenure as education secretary, before her resignation last week, is the legacy she’ll leave behind for colleges. There likely won’t be one, in a matter of months or at most a couple of years. For DeVos, . . . higher education hasn’t been a focus during her time in office. Her deeply ideological stances on what higher education issues she did deal with, including increasing the rights of people accused of sexual assault and harassment on campuses, garnered no bipartisan support. Ultimately, much of what DeVos has done will be wiped away as soon as the incoming Biden administration, and the new Democratic majority in Congress, can do so. ( Inside Higher Ed - Jan. 11, 2021)
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