HOUSE and SENATE

This week, Senators sought to advance, by unanimous consent, two proposals to extend mandatory funding for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and other Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs) under the Higher Education Act (HEA), the FUTURE Act (H.R.2486) and the Student Aid Improvement Act (S.2557). Both requests were objected to and therefore did not advance.

ADMINISTRATION

The U.S. Department of Education’s (ED’s) final Title IX regulations have been sent to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA) for review.

ED announced that it will cancel the Federal student loan debt of more than 1,500 former students who attended two closed Dream Center institutions of higher education (IHEs).

ED released new guidance for what it considers a “standard term.” Under the guidance, semesters and trimesters may now be between 14 and 21 weeks of instruction, quarters may now be between 9 and 13 weeks of instruction, and standard terms (semesters, trimesters and quarters) are no longer required to be substantially equal in length. These terms have implications for the awarding of Title IV student aid.

ED withdrew its request for a Federal judge to reconsider the $100,000 fine levied against the agency for violating a court order to cease collecting on loan payments from former Corinthian Colleges students.

ED ruled that Grand Canyon University will continue to be treated as a for-profit IHE for the purposes of HEA, after the University had attempted to gain approval for its conversion to nonprofit status last year.

GRANT OPPORTUNITIES 

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