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Key Higher Education Issues in the New Congress

Key Higher Education Issues in the New Congress. A University of Vermont Legal Issues in Higher Education Webinar January 23, 2013 Ken Salomon Chairman, Dow Lohnes Government Strategies. Structure. Split congressional higher education jurisdiction: House and Senate/numerous committees

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Key Higher Education Issues in the New Congress

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  1. Key Higher Education Issues in the New Congress A University of Vermont Legal Issues in Higher Education Webinar January 23, 2013 Ken Salomon Chairman, Dow Lohnes Government Strategies

  2. Structure • Split congressional higher education jurisdiction: House and Senate/numerous committees • Authorization and Oversight of Higher Education Act and student aid programs • Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee • House Education and the Workforce Committee • Actual funding • House and Senate Appropriations Committees • Judiciary, Science, and Commerce Committees among others with some jurisdiction • Lots of venues/lots of players • Today’s discussion only the Education Committees 2

  3. Some New PlayersSenate HELP Committee 3

  4. Some New PlayersHouse Education & Workforce Committee 4

  5. Primary Concern: The Budget • Budget, deficit and revenue issues are driving Congress • Budgetary process dysfunctional • Congress no longer budgets and appropriates federal funds through its normal process • “Stopgap” appropriations have become the norm, each of which provides an opportunity for discretionary program cuts • Meanwhile, Pell Grant program costs have exploded • In-school subsidies, year-round Pell, and other eligibility changes have squeezed Title IV funds • What’s next? • It could be removing the housing allowance for distance education students, which could be a Trojan Horse to remove the housing allowance for all Pell Grants 5

  6. Too Much Work, Too Little Time The House and Senate authorizing committees have an enormous laundry list of education legislation overdue or coming due: • The Elementary and Secondary Education Act • The Workforce Investment Act • The Higher Education Act • Plus • Pell Grant funding levels and student loan interest rates • Near term issue for Senate HELP, however, likely to be mental health issues related to school safety in the President’s gun violence initiative 6

  7. The Path to HEA Reauthorization • Two major issues Congress will focus on during HEA reauthorization • Cost of attendance • Role of accreditation in higher education • We hear lots of angst, particularly Sen. Harkin (D-IA), but no solid reform proposals • Other issues • Modification and interpretation of Title IV financial aid rules that could potentially harm eLearning students (e.g., Last Day of Attendance, state authorization) • Data and outcomes will be front-and-center, and it is essential that such use of data is not unfairly construed against eLearning students • The role of technology and innovation broadly, from the proposed ARPA-ED to the fruits of the Department’s Investing in Innovation grants from the Recovery Act 7

  8. A Focus on e-Learning • Start with the fact of congressional/DoE skeptics • Conflation of e-Learning with private sector schools • Explosive growth lead to concerns • Quality, integrity, cost of attendance, value, outcomes • What’s a MOOC? 8

  9. Previous Reauthorizations • The action on eLearning since 1992 • 1992 Reauthorization: Title IV funds allowed for distance learning for the first time • 1998 Reauthorization: Distance Education Demonstration Program • 2006 HEA Extension: Removal of the 50% Rule • 2008 Reauthorization: Mostly technical changes, but some on the margins, such as the definition of “distance education,” that have led to both DoE regulatory and enforcement roadblocks for institutions • No organized e-Learning representation in ’92,’98’ 06, or ’08 9

  10. This Time Could be Different • State authorization rule galvanized the community into action • Traditional sector belatedly realized that private sector funded schools not only ones affected • Scramble for relief/response • Various groups formed to develop ways to address state authorization • President’s Forum • APLU/SHEEO • Congressional E-Learning Caucus formed • Reps. Noem (R-SD) and Polis (D-CO) • Potential to be a significant advocate in reauthorization • It is time for a coordinated voice to advocate for e-Learning 10

  11. Key Higher Education Issues in the New Congress A University of Vermont Legal Issues in Higher Education Webinar January 23, 2013 Ken Salomon Dow Lohnes Government Strategies Washington, d.c. 202.776.2566 kSalomon@dowlohnesgov.com

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