E-Update for August 4, 2017
Highlights:
- On August 1, U.S. Department of Education (USED) Secretary Betsy DeVos announced that the Department has approved Delaware’s ESSA consolidated state plan.
- On August 3, the Senate unanimously confirmed Peter Oppenheim to serve as USED Assistant Secretary for Legislation and Congressional Affairs.
- On August 1, USED Secretary DeVos announced her decision to cancel plans to award the Department’s student loan servicing contract to a single company.
Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA):
USED Posts Feedback on ESSA Consolidated State Plans: The U.S. Department of Education (USED) posted feedback on ESSA consolidated state plans for Washington, D.C. and Illinois. Arizona, Colorado, Maine, Michigan, North Dakota, and Vermont have yet to receive feedback on their plans. The feedback letter for Washington, D.C. can be found here and the feedback letter for Illinois can be found here.
August 4, 2017
USED Approves Delaware’s ESSA Consolidated State Plan: USED Secretary Betsy DeVos announced that the Department has approved Delaware’s ESSA consolidated state plan after the state’s plan went through a revision process based on USED feedback. Delaware is the first state to have its plan approved. Regarding the decision, USED Secretary DeVos states, “My criteria for approval is clear: does the state’s plan adhere to the law? Delaware demonstrated their plan does, and so I am happy to approve it.” The approved consolidated state plan for Delaware can be found here.
August 1, 2017
Democratic Members Send Letter to USED on ESSA Review and Feedback Process: Ranking Member of the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee Patty Murray (D-WA) and Ranking Member of the House Education and the Workforce Committee Bobby Scott (D-VA) sent a letter to USED Secretary DeVos urging her to maintain the Department’s previously established review and feedback process for ESSA consolidated state plans. This letter comes in response to the Department’s decision to alter the process and speak with states one-on-one before posting public feedback. In the letter, the Ranking Members cite concerns about transparency to the public.
July 28, 2017
Congress:
Senate and House Members Introduce Companion Bills on Child Care Access: Representatives Katherine Clark (D-MA) and Don Young (R-AK), Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Bob Casey (D-PA), and Dick Durbin (D-IL), and Ranking Member of the Senate HELP Committee Patty Murray introduced House and Senate companion bills titled, “Child Care Access Means Parents in Schools (CCAMPIS) Reauthorization Act” to reauthorize the CCAMPIS program and increase funding. The CCAMPIS program is currently proposed for elimination under the House Fiscal Year (FY) 2018 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education (LHHS) Appropriations bill.
July 27, 2017
Senate:
Senate Passes the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Reauthorization Act: The Senate passed S.860, the “Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Reauthorization Act of 2017,” which reauthorizes and reforms the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act to support state and local leaders in better serving vulnerable youth. Regarding the passage of the Senate bill, Chairwoman of the House Education and the Workforce Committee Virginia Foxx (R-NC) and Ranking Member of the Committee Bobby Scott issued a joint statement, noting, “We look forward to working with our Senate colleagues to craft a bipartisan, bicameral final bill focusing on evidence-based prevention efforts, alternatives to youth incarceration, public safety, and the just treatment of juvenile offenders as major priorities.”
August 2, 2017
Senate Passes Bill to Increase Veterans’ Education Benefits: The Senate passed by unanimous consent S. 1598, the “Harry W. Colmery Veterans Educational Assistance Act of 2017,” which will increase veterans education benefits and restore GI Bill benefits for veterans affected by the closure of ITT Tech and Corinthian Colleges. As the House passed an identical bill last month, the bill will now head to the President to be signed into law.
August 2, 2017
Senate HELP Committee Announces Bipartisan Hearings on Health Care Reform: The Senate HELP Committee Chairman Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and Ranking Member of the Committee Patty Murray announced that the committee will hold a series of bipartisan hearings on health care during the week of September 4th. The hearings will focus on, “actions Congress should take to stabilize and strengthen the individual health insurance market so that Americans will be able to buy insurance at affordable prices in the year 2018.” Regarding the announcement, Chairman Alexander stated, “I am consulting with Senator Murray to make these hearings bipartisan and to involve as many members of the committee as possible, all who want to can be involved.”
August 1, 2017
House:
Democratic Representatives Inquire about Progress of the White House HBCU Initiative: a group of Democratic representatives, including Representatives Alma Adams (D-NC) and Andre Carson (D-IN), sent a letter to President Donald Trump asking him about the progress of the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). In the letter, the members also noted their concerns about the Administration’s proposed FY2018 budget cuts to programs that support HBCUs. Also in regards to HBCUs, White House Aid Omarosa Manigault met with a group of HBCU leaders to discuss the launch of the White House HBCU office and reassured the press that the Administration is continuing to move forward with the initiative. Representative Adams’s statement can be found here.
August 1, 2017
Administration:
USED Cancels Plans to Award a Single Servicer Contract: Shortly after a bipartisan group of Senators, including Senators Roy Blunt (R-MO), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), James Lankford (R-OK), and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), announced legislation that would require the Department to maintain its system of multiple student loan servicers, USED Secretary DeVos announced her decision to change how the Department’s Office of Federal Student Aid provides customer service to student loan borrowers by 2019. The new data processing platform, titled “FSA Next Generation Processing and Servicing Environment” will contain all student loan information and allow customer account servicing to be done by a single contract servicer or multiple contract servicers. In the press release, the Secretary also announced her decision to cancel plans to award the Department’s student loan servicing contract to a single company.
August 1, 2017
Possible DoJ Investigations Into Race Based College Admissions: The New York Times reported that that the DoJ is seeking attorney detailees to work on, “investigations and possible litigation related to intentional race-based discrimination in college and university admissions.” The DoJ responded with indications that its effort was aimed at one case on behalf of Asian-American students—a position, according to the Times, that was greeted with some skepticism by others. In response to the report, House Education and the Workforce Committee Ranking Member Bobby Scott and House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI) issued a statement in which they criticized the DOJ’s actions and noted their support for affirmative action programs. The Ranking Members also cited more general concerns with the Administration’s dedication to protecting civil rights. The Ranking Members’ statements can be found here. The New York Times article on August 1 can be found here and an article on DOJ response can be found here. To review a blog on this topic written by EducationCounsel’s Managing Partner, Art Coleman click here.
August 1, 2017
Publications:
- On August 3, the Institute of Education Sciences’ National Center for Education Statistics published an IPEDS Enrollment Brochure to inform researchers, policy makers, the public, and other data users about the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System, including how enrollment data is collected and analyzed. Brochure here.
- On August 1, the Institute of Education Sciences’ National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance released a report titled, “Multi-armed RCTs: A design-based framework.” The report focuses on using design-based methods to analyze data for studies with multiple research groups. Report here.
- On August 1, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau released its Monthly Complaint Report, which details consumer complaints, including those from student loan borrowers. Report here.
- On July 31st, USED published a Homeroom blog post titled, “3 Ways to Get Out of Student Loan Default.” The post notes that students can pursue the three options of loan rehabilitation, loan consolidation, and repayment in full. Post here
Legislation:
S.1675
A bill to promote quality student loan servicing by improving the borrower experience for borrowers of Federal Direct Loans.
Sponsor: Sen. Roy Blunt (R-MO)
S.1690
A bill to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide greater support to students with dependents, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL)
S.1694
A bill to improve quality and accountability for educator preparation programs.
Sponsor: Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI)
S.1712
A bill to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide for the automatic recertification of income for income-driven repayment plans, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR)
H.Res.487
A resolution urging all Universities to designate and maintain a sexual assault coordinator on staff who can be accessed by student victims of domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking on campus and in the surrounding community.
Sponsor: Rep. Ted Poe (R-TX)
H.R.3550
A bill to amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to clarify that ASL students are English learners.
Sponsor: Rep. Rick Larsen (D-WA)
H.R.3552
A bill to amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to require that teachers, principals, counselors, and other school leaders receive youth suicide awareness and prevention training.
Sponsor: Rep. Emmanuel Cleaver (D-MO)
H.R.3554
A bill to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide for the automatic recertification of income for income-driven repayment plans, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D-OR)
H.R.3560
A bill to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to give borrowers an option to extend the grace period prior to the beginning of the repayment period, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA)
H.R.3572
A bill to carry out an income-contingent repayment program for Federal Interest Free Education Loans for undergraduate students, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI)
H.R.3574
A bill to amend the Department of Education Organization Act and the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require publication of information relating to religious exemptions to the requirements of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Katherine Clark (D-MA)
H.R.3580
A bill to promote State requirements for local educational agencies and public elementary and secondary schools relating to the prevention and treatment of concussions suffered by students.
Sponsor: Rep. Mark DeSaulnier (D-CA)
H.R.3591
A bill to amend the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 to permit States to determine State residency for higher education purposes and to authorize the cancellation of removal and adjustment of status of certain aliens who are United States residents and who entered the United States as children, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-IL)
H.R.3609
A bill to amend the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to provide that children that have relocated from Puerto Rico to the States are fully considered for purposes of State allotments under the English language acquisition grants.
Sponsor: Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-FL)
H.R.3612
A bill to amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to provide assistance to expand, improve, support, and promote primary and secondary education for displaced children, including girls, from areas designated by the Department of State as areas of conflict.
Sponsor: Rep. Donald Payne (D-NJ)
H.R.3616
A bill to amend the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to provide grants to States for summer employment programs for youth.
Sponsor: Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-LA)
H.R.3618
A bill to amend the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 to establish the Office of School Discipline Policy, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-LA)
H.R.3627
A bill to amend the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to provide for the establishment of Youth Corps programs and provide for wider dissemination of the Youth Corps model.
Sponsor: Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-FL)
H.R.3630
A bill to establish student loan borrowers’ rights to basic consumer protections, reasonable and flexible repayment options, access to earned credentials, and effective loan cancellation in exchange for public service, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-FL)
H.R.3634
A bill to amend Title 38, United States Code, to ensure that individuals may access documentation verifying the monthly housing stipend paid to the individual under the Post-9/11 Educational Assistance Program of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Sponsor: Rep. James Himes (D-CA)
H.R.3636
A bill to improve quality and accountability for educator preparation programs.
Sponsor: Rep. Ruben Kihuen (D-NV)