Following the attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6th, former Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos resigned, stating that she believed Donald Trump’s rhetoric led to the violence of that day. Weeks later, thousands of troops are still quartering in the Capitol complex for the first time since the Civil War. Congress and the new Biden/Harris administration continues to deal with the social unrest as well as the impeachment of Donald Trump, in addition to an increased military presence in the D.C. area. Nonetheless, the Biden administration has already taken some significant movement to change regulations and advance their agenda in their first days in office. The attack on the U.S. Capitol quickly outshadowed the January 5 election of Democrats Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff in Georgia’s runoffs, which flipped the Senate majority to Democratic control. Coupled with the existing Democratic majority in the House, the change will allow for more of Biden’s legislative agenda to pass, although margins in both chambers are thin.

So, where is the Biden/Harris administration focusing on near-term education policy? On day one, Biden extended the moratorium on student loan payments until September 30, 2021, including a pause of interest accrual. He also moved to protect DACA recipients’ citizenship status. Biden’s pick for Secretary of Education, Miguel Cardona, has yet to be confirmed by the Senate, but he has said he supports multiple Biden campaign platform issues, including canceling $10,000 of debt per individual, as well as making community college tuition free. Biden himself has recently discussed the need for greater funding for HBCUs and other minority-serving institutions. Some recent discussions in the Senate include wanting to improve job training and provide more funding for students to assist with housing, mental health services, childcare, and other barriers to educational attainment. The Department of Education has also moved to prevent embattled accreditor ACICS from  continuing work after the Trump administration reversed course on the prior restriction placed on ACICS by the Obama administration. That action was taken to stop the accreditor that had been accused of poor oversight of for-profit institutions, including Corinthian Colleges. This restoration of Obama-era regulations is likely to continue, and more reversals on Trump administration policies are expected.

All of this activity is set against the backdrop of the ongoing economic and public health emergency due to the pandemic. President Biden signed an executive order to help guide the safe reopening of colleges, and released a significant document on the White House’s strategy for addressing COVID-19. The administration is also pushing a new $1.9 trillion economic relief package, the American Rescue Plan, which includes an additional $35B in funding for mostly public higher education institutions; state/local funding relief; and a significant portion dedicated to bolstering public health measures to address the pandemic, including $130B for reopening K-12 and colleges and universities. Other items in the plan include supporting working/parent students through items like a child care tax credit, SNAP and housing relief, support for paid sick leave, and additional direct cash payments.

Other News

• Education Department Releases Billions in Aid to Colleges (Inside Higher Ed)
• The Betsy DeVos legacy: not much in higher education (Inside Higher Ed)