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COVID-19 Resources & Webinars CECU’s Coronavirus webpage includes a multitude of helpful resources to assist higher education leaders understand the various legal and operational implications of COVID-19, including temporarily closing a campus or adapting courses to online learning. View all past COVID-19 response webinars here. Guide for the Distribution of the Student and Institutional Portions of the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund First published on April 13, 2020 to address the student portion of the HEERF, this CECU-developed guide was updated on May 5, 2020 to include a new section describing how institutions should manage the institutional share of funds. With the recent update, this guide now comprises three distinct sections detailing the student and institutional portions of the HEERF as well as additional resources for school leaders. In the midst of the Coronavirus pandemic, the proprietary school sector has a unique opportunity. The federal government has included our schools in the Emergency Stabilization Fund for institutions of higher education authorized by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”). Starting the week of April 13, 2020, institutions are provided the opportunity to direct critical Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (“HEERF”) grants to those eligible students most impacted by the pandemic. This guide, developed with the assistance of sector leaders, supports institutions in understanding what they should know regarding the student and institutional portions of the HEERF, provides example formulas for the distribution of emergency financial aid grants to students, includes a sample grant application form, and lists general principles institutions should consider. This guide will be updated regularly based on ongoing stakeholder feedback and federal updates, so institutions are encouraged to check back often. View the guide here. Template Now Available for Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund Reporting – Student Portion Last week, the U.S. Department of Education announced new reporting requirements for institutions of higher education that received their student portion of the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund. To support the sector, CECU has developed a reporting template that institutions can use to meet the Department’s initial 30-day reporting deadline. For some institutions, the reporting deadline could be this week! Upcoming Webinars “Stronger, Safer: The New Normal” Webinar Series Presented by KACCS Noted lecturers, authors and legal experts Dr. Wallace K. Pond and Yolanda Gallegos, Esq., in collaboration with Anthony S. Bieda, public policy authority and KACCS Executive Director, present a series of webinars on the “Stronger, Safer New Normal” confronting career colleges and schools at a time of teaching, guiding and serving students from a distance. Legal and Regulatory Issues
OCR Releases Questions and Answers for Postsecondary Institutions Regarding COVID-19 – U.S. Department of Education In response to inquiries received by the Department, the Office for Civil Rights released additional COVID-19-related technical assistance for institutions of higher education. The technical assistance document, Questions and Answers for Postsecondary Institutions Regarding the COVID-19 National Emergency, provides information related to schools’ obligations under Section 504/Title II, Title VI, and Title IX in light of COVID-19. Minding FERPA during COVID-19 – Thompson Coburn LLC If you have not already done so, it is important to take a moment to consider whether the changes that have occurred on your campus have given rise to new student privacy matters that need to be addressed. Education Department Says 54k Borrowers Still Having Wages Seized During Pandemic – Politico The Education Department has still been garnishing the wages of approximately 54,000 student loan borrowers even though the coronavirus economic stimulus law signed in March suspended the practice, the Trump administration disclosed in a court filing on Monday. Coronavirus Education News ‘I Don’t Trust My University.’ Readers Share Their Fears of Returning to Campus in the Fall. – The Chronicle of Higher Education We asked readers to tell us how they felt about returning to campus. More than 300 of you responded. Our survey was anonymous and not scientific. Still, the responses paint a picture of educators’ fears and the decisions people are weighing. Fauci: Developing Vaccine by Fall Term Is ‘Bridge Too Far’ – Inside Higher Ed Dr. Anthony Fauci, a key member of the Trump administration’s coronavirus task force, told a Senate committee that the prospects of developing a vaccine by the fall to truly make college students comfortable enough to go back to campuses “is a bridge too far.” Additional Coronavirus Coverage - Updated Daily Orienting Students to Online Learning: A Must for Student Success – Educause Review; Why Students Want Tuition Refunds Over Shift to Online Teaching – EdSurge; Students’ Internships Are Disappearing. Can Virtual Models Replace Them? – The Chronicle of Higher Education. Coronavirus Education Politics and Policy House Democrats’ Latest COVID-19 Relief Package Would Direct $37 Billion More to Higher Ed – NASFAA This latest package — dubbed the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) Act — builds off of the CARES Act, which was signed into law in March and allocated roughly $14 billion for higher education, though many groups, including NASFAA, said it was far from enough to offset the disruptions caused by the pandemic. Student Loan Forgiveness And $1,200 Second Stimulus Check Included In New Stimulus Proposal – Forbes House Democrats pitched an ambitious $3 trillion new stimulus spending proposal – called the HEROES Act – that, among other benefits, includes a new, one-time stimulus check for $1,200 for each individual ($2,400 for married couples) and $1,200 for each dependent (with a maximum of three dependents). Calif. colleges sue ED over CARES grants – Community College Daily Five community college districts in California and the state’s community college system filed a lawsuit in federal court on Monday against the U.S. Education Department (ED), charging that its decision to deny emergency aid to hundreds of thousands of students violates the intent of the government’s stimulus aid package. Education News Enrollment At Some For-Profit Colleges Is Way Up. Many Expect That Trend To Continue. – eLearning Inside For-profit college Strayer University saw total student enrollment increase 11% compared to Q1 2019. New student enrollment at Capella University and Colorado Technical University (CTU) grew by 17% and 16.8%, respectively. Both Strayer and Capella are owned by Strategic Education, Inc. CTU is owned by Perdoceo. Financial Aid and Student Loans Issues 2020-2021 Federal Student Loan Rates Drop To Record Lows – Forbes The interest rates for federal student loans for the following year are set based on the May 10-year Treasury notes auction. That auction took place today, and we now know the interest rates for student loans effective July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2021. Reports Report: Living Expenses, Not Tuition, Are the Problem – Inside Higher Ed Sticker prices at most, if not all, colleges and universities in the country have increased since the mid-1990s, and some have increased dramatically. But financial aid assistance for low- and middle-income students generally has kept pace with these rising costs, according to a new report from the American Enterprise Institute. Comments are closed.
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