Below is RAMC’s weekly Washington Wrap Up from Wednesday. Find out more about Wrap Up and other RAMC resources here.

May 15, 2024

CONGRESS
The bipartisan leaders of the appropriations and authorizing committees of Congress sent a joint letter to U.S. Secretary of Education, Miguel Cardona, calling for a timely Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) rollout next year.

Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Chair Sanders announced that he is seeking reelection.

ADMINISTRATION

Secretary Cardona wrote to college presidents about the prevalence of antisemitism across college campuses and provided several resources aimed at addressing cases of discrimination.

The Office for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Education (ED) published a Dear Colleague Letter, providing guidance on specific examples of discrimination that can occur at schools and application of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to those incidents.

The White House released a fact sheet showcasing the actions the Administration has taken thus far to address antisemitism on campuses and previewing forthcoming actions such as building an online campus safety resources guide.

ED announced a $50 million program to help school districts, States, nonprofits and other public and private organizations boost FAFSA completion.

GRANT OPPORTUNITIES
Penn Hill Group provides a list of grant opportunities and summaries for select grants. Please visit our website for more information.

Education News Headlines
[Click on the link to read the article online]

Federal student loan interest rates highest in more than a decade [The Hill]

When Trustees Run for Public Office [Inside Higher Ed]

Tuition discounts at private nonprofit colleges reach new highs, study finds [Higher Ed Dive]

The Tutoring Problem [The Chronicle of Higher Education]

New Data: Indiana High School Students College-Going Rate Continues to Flatline [The 74]

Political Standoff Over Title IX Puts Red State Colleges in No-Win Situation [Inside Higher Ed]

UNC board votes to cut DEI funding [The Hill]

Dartmouth’s Leader Called in Police Quickly. The Fallout Was Just as Swift. [The New York Times]

Nearly half of master’s degrees have a negative ROI [The Hill]

A New Push to Get Community College Students to the Polls [Inside Higher Ed]

Student protests caused mostly minor disruptions at several graduation ceremonies [NPR]

Who is managing the endowments of the wealthiest colleges? [Higher Ed Dive]

More college presidents face no-confidence votes over handling of protests [The Washington Post]

Committee News and Schedule, Schedule for House and Senate Floor:

Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions

Press Release: Ranking Member Cassidy Introduces Bill Protecting Workers from Union Deception, Ensuring Transparency

House Committee on Education and the Workforce

Press Release: Foxx to Conduct Oversight of the Department of Health and Human Services

Press Release: Foxx, Comer Seek Information from Treasury Secretary Yellen on Groups Funding Pro-Hamas Propaganda and Antisemitic Harassment on College Campuses

Press Release: Committee Oversight Uncovers DOL Caving to Unions on Return-to-Work Policy

Press Release: CBO: Chair Foxx Bill to Lower College Costs SAVES $185 Billion

Press Release: @EdWorkforceCmte Demands Documents From Northwestern Ahead of Hearing with President Schill

May 15: Full Committee Hearing on “Examining the Policies and Priorities of the Department of Health and Human Services”

Witnesses: The Honorable Xavier Becerra, Secretary, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

2175 Rayburn and via Webcast

10:15 a.m. ET

May 23: Full Committee Hearing on “Calling for Accountability: Stopping Antisemitic College Chaos”

Witnesses: Dr. Peter Salovey, President, Yale University; Dr. Gene Block, Chancellor, University of California, Los Angeles; Dr. Santa Ono, President, University of Michigan

2175 Rayburn and via Webcast

10:15 a.m. ET

U.S. Department of Education and the Administration

DOL Press Release: Department of Labor’s Job Corps to Highlight Importance Of Mental Health, Combatting Violence, Drug Use During Youth 2 Youth Week 2024

DOL Press Release: Department Of Labor Announces Availability Of $40m In Grants To Out-Of-School Time Organizations To Improve Access To Good Jobs For Underserved Youth

GAO Report: College Athletics: Education Should Improve Its Title IX Enforcement Efforts

Legislative Movement in Congress:

H.R.8367 — To ensure labor organization transparency and accountability.

Sponsor: Steel, Michelle [Rep.-R-CA-45] (Introduced 05/10/2024) Cosponsors: (0)

Committees: House – Education and the Workforce

Latest Action: House – 05/10/2024 Referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.

H.R.8389 —To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require institutions of higher education to report to the Secretary of Education each incident of antisemitism reported to campus security authorities or local police agencies.

Sponsor: Molinaro, Marcus J. [Rep.-R-NY-19] (Introduced 05/14/2024) Cosponsors: (1)

Committees: House – Education and the Workforce; Oversight and Accountability

Latest Action: House – 05/14/2024 Referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce, and in addition to the Committee on Oversight and Accountability, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.

Press Release: Molinaro Introduces Bipartisan Bill To Crack Down On Antisemitism On College Campuses

S.4328 — A bill to require any labor organization that is or would be the collective bargaining representative for any employees to provide information regarding the amount of funds in any defined benefit plan of the labor organization before any labor organization election, and for other purposes.

Sponsor: Cassidy, Bill [Sen.-R-LA] (Introduced 05/14/2024) Cosponsors: (0)

Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

Latest Action: Senate – 05/14/2024 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

S.4333 — A bill to provide for the discharge of parent borrower liability if a student on whose behalf a parent has received certain student loans becomes disabled.

Sponsor: Vance, J. D. [Sen.-R-OH] (Introduced 05/14/2024) Cosponsors: (2)

Committees: Senate – Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

Latest Action: Senate – 05/14/2024 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

Federal Education Training and Grant Opportunities, Notices:

ED Comment Request: The Title VI Undergraduate International Studies and Foreign Language (UISFL) Program Application (1894-0001). Comments due on or before May 20, 2024.

NSF Grant Notice: Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Computing in Undergraduate Education. Applications due on or before May 30, 2024.

ED Comment Request: Joint Consolidation Loan Separation Application. Comments due on or before June 6, 2024.

DOL Notice: Registration and Equal Employment Opportunity in Apprenticeship Programs. Comments due on or before June 13, 2024.

ED Comment Request: Income Driven Repayment Plan Request for the William D. Ford Federal Direct Loans and Federal Family Education Loan Programs. Comments due on or before June 17, 2024.

ED Comment Request: Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request; Federal Perkins/NDSL Loan Assignment Form. Comments due on or before June 24, 2024.

ED Notice: Annual Notice of Interest Rates for Variable-Rate Federal Student Loans Made Under the Federal Family Education Loan Program Prior to July 1, 2010.

ED Comment Request: U.S. Department of Education Postsecondary Success Recognition Program. Comments are due on or before July 2, 2024.

ED Notice: Annual Updates to the Income-Contingent Repayment (ICR) Plan Formula for 2024-William D. Ford Federal Direct Loan Program

ED Comment Request: Pell Grant Reporting Under the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) System