Major Updates

Federal Grant Opportunities: Funding for Workforce Pell Programs and AI (Applications Due December 3)
The Department of Education has launched a rapid grant competition under the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE–Special Projects), with applications due December 3, 2025. The program is designed in part to help institutions build or scale short-term credential programs that align with the new Workforce Pell Grants.

Two of the “absolute priorities” in this competition focus on creation of new short-term offerings as well as the expansion of existing programs. Eligible activities span the practical work of standing programs up or scaling them: hiring faculty and staff, purchasing equipment and technology, improving labs and classrooms, convening employers and workforce boards, and building the data and reporting capacity needed to demonstrate Workforce Pell eligibility and outcomes. Across both priorities, ED emphasizes close collaboration with employers, integration of work-based learning, and alignment with real labor-market demand.

At the same time, there are grant opportunity priorities around advancing AI understanding and use in postsecondary education. The funding opportunities don’t come without criticism, as the Department has repurposed dollars that Congress had originally earmarked for student success and basic-needs initiatives. That funding shift has prompted critiques from some advocates and lawmakers, who argue the move stretches congressional intent and raises questions about executive flexibility in reallocating higher ed funds. Still, for institutions able to move quickly, especially those with existing online, certificate, and nondegree infrastructure or interest in promoting AI understanding or use in teaching and learning, this competition may offer an opportunity for funding. Read more about the grant opportunities and how to apply. 

If your institution is considering applying, UPCEA Research & Consulting could be a partner and provide support for the work. We are interested in opportunities to work with you. Contact [email protected].

 

Consensus Reached in RISE Negotiated Rulemaking: New Graduate Loan Caps; Narrow Definition of “Professional” Programs
The Department of Education’s negotiated rulemaking committee has reached consensus on how to implement the new federal loan caps for graduate and professional students created by Congress’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which take effect in July 2026. Under the law, students in most graduate programs will be limited to $100,000 in federal loans, while students in designated “professional” programs can borrow up to $200,000. The negotiations centered on which programs qualify for that higher cap.

The department and negotiators ultimately agreed on a relatively narrow list of professional fields that include medicine (M.D. and D.O.), dentistry, pharmacy, veterinary medicine, optometry, podiatry, chiropractic programs, law, certain theology degrees (such as M.Div.), and clinical psychology doctorates, along with a few related doctoral tracks. Programs outside this group, including the vast majority of master’s, Ph.D., Ed.D., and professional graduate programs, many of which are offered online, will fall under the lower $100,000 cap. Department officials have touted the policy as a step toward restraining graduate borrowing and tuition growth, while many in the higher ed community worry it could push students into private loans or out of high-cost advanced degrees altogether, especially in health and human services fields.

The way consensus was reached is also notable. ED presented a package of regulatory changes and signaled that several concessions important to different stakeholder groups might be withdrawn if negotiators failed to support the overall deal. That approach left committee members weighing tradeoffs among provisions that helped some constituencies while disadvantaging others, with many reluctant to reject the package and risk a more restrictive rule if the Department proceeded without consensus. For institutions, especially those offering high-tuition online or professional graduate programs, the new caps will likely require revisiting pricing, financial aid strategies, and program design as the rules move toward publication in the Federal Register and eventual implementation. Read more.

 

Trump Administration Accelerates Effort to Dismantle the Department of Education
On November 18, the Trump Administration announced a new set of interagency agreements that would shift large portions of the U.S. Department of Education’s work, and billions of dollars in grant funding, to other federal departments. Building on an earlier transfer of career and technical education and adult education programs to the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration, the latest moves relocate the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Office of Postsecondary Education to Labor, the Office of Indian Education to the Department of the Interior, child-care and foreign medical education functions to Health and Human Services, and international and foreign language education programs to the State Department.

Administration officials, such as in a recent op-ed from Secretary of Education Linda McMahon, frame the restructuring as a way to “return education to the states,” reduce federal bureaucracy, and better align specific programs with agencies that have related missions, such as workforce development at Labor. However, critics argue that using these agreements to effectively dismantle much of the department sidesteps statutory requirements that establish these offices in law and may violate obligations such as prior consultation with Native nations. They warn that scattering programs across multiple agencies could increase complexity for institutions, disrupt services to students, and trigger significant legal challenges.

For colleges and universities, especially those with large online and professional portfolios, the immediate practical impact is uncertain. Programs that historically interacted with ED for grants, reporting, and oversight may soon find themselves dealing with different agencies, unfamiliar processes, and potentially divergent policy priorities. Federal student aid remains within the Department of Education for now, but observers note that those responsibilities could also be targeted in future rounds of restructuring. Read more.

Other News

• Colleges Are Running Out of Time on Digital Accessibility (Inside Higher Ed) 

 

• International student enrollment dips in U.S., report says (Axios)