CECI Daily Update Email

COVID-19 Resources & Webinars
On March 13, 2020, Career Education Colleges and Universities launched an information webpage for institutions responding to Coronavirus (COVID-19). CECU’s Coronavirus webpage includes a multitude of helpful resources to assist higher education leaders understand the various legal and operational implications of temporarily closing a campus or adapting courses to online learning.
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View all past webinars here.

Member Spotlight
Lincoln Tech campuses join in the fight against COVID-19
Lincoln Educational Services Corporation (NASDAQ: LINC), a national leader in specialized automotive, skilled trades and allied health career training, announced today that several of its campuses in the Tri-State (NY, NJ & CT) area have donated medical supplies and personal protective equipment (PPEs) to major medical facilities throughout the region.

Coronavirus News
Coronavirus Emergency Loans Guide and Checklist for Small Businesses and Nonprofits – U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation
Starting April 3, small businesses and sole proprietorships can apply for loans through existing SBA lenders. Starting April 10, independent contractors and self-employed individuals can apply for loans through existing SBA lenders.

Free Blackboard Tool Converts Files to Accessible Formats – Campus Technology
File Transformer, Powered by Blackboard Ally, allows students to convert files into a variety of alternative formats, such as HTML, audio MP3, ePub, electronic Braille or Beeline Reader.

Can hands-on career education go online during school shutdowns? – PBS News Hour
At Peninsula College in Washington state, Eoin Doherty, who coordinates the school’s welding program, is scrambling to devise a plan for offering classes amid new restrictions resulting from the virus.

How Much Did Coronavirus Disruptions Affect 2 Closing Colleges? – Inside Higher Ed
The San Francisco Art Institute will not admit any new students. MacMurray College will close its doors permanently. Both cite the coronavirus outbreak as contributing to financial challenges that were already growing.

Additional Coronavirus Coverage - Updated Daily
A French Scientist Says He Can Cure Covid-19. Other Researchers Have Their Doubts. – The Chronicle of Higher Education; Adapting to online in a pinch – Community College Daily; Scholars v. COVID-19 Racism – Inside Higher Ed.

Coronavirus - CARES Act

• Higher Education Institution and Student Relief in the CARES Act - Duane Morris

Regulatory Issues
In Case You Missed It- Coronavirus Public Health Emergency Underscores Need for Department of Education’s Proposed Distance Learning Rules
U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos proposed new rules today that would govern distance learning for higher education students. Although work on the proposed Distance Learning and Innovation regulation started more than a year ago, the COVID-19 National Emergency underscores the need for reform and for all educational institutions to have a robust capacity to teach remotely.

ED Publishes Proposed Regulations for Distance Education for Public Comment – NASFAA
As institutions across the country grapple with new online education options for students seeking to continue classes remotely, the Department of Education (ED) today published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to restructure regulations related to distance education.

Suspension of Financial Responsibility Scores? – Inside Higher Ed
Higher education groups push the Education Department to suspend measure of colleges’ financial standing, and the department releases new proposed rules on distance education.

Ed Dept issues proposed distance learning rules, emphasizes flexibility – Education Dive
The proposal seeks to give schools more flexibility for providing online programs, such as by reducing some barriers to offering competency-based education and providing latitude for measuring the credit hour.

Major Disaster Guidance for Institutions in States Impacted by COVID-19 – NASFAA
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has declared multiple states and U.S. territories affected by COVID-19 as major disaster areas — and it is expected that more states may be added to the disaster area list in the future.

House Committee Chairs Request Extension of Public Comment Periods During Coronavirus National Emergency
The Committee leaders asked that OMB direct agencies to extend public comment periods by at least 45 days beyond the end of the declared national emergency.

New Title IX rule ready to drop, despite pleas for delay – Politico
The completion of OMB’s review on Friday officially clears the way for DeVos to issue the new rule, which is expected to shake up how sexual assault and harassment charges are handled at every college campus and K-12 school.

Coronavirus - Resources
CER Coronavirus (COVID-19) News Coverage
We have put all of our coronavirus coverage regarding higher education on one page. View coverage here.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Web Center - NASFAA
This web center has been created to keep NASFAA members and the financial aid community updated on pertinent news related to the coronavirus (COVID-19).
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*NEW* Follow-Up Webinar — COVID-19 and Federal Student Aid: What We Know
Join us Thursday, April 2 at 2:00 p.m. ET for this special follow-up webinar as NASFAA President Justin Draeger and NASFAA staff from the AskRegs and policy teams review some of the most common questions related to Title IV aid and COVID-19.