Welcome to the sixth issue of The Academic Advisor – our e-newsletter focused on education law insights. For this mid-summer edition, we take a deeper look at the newest developments regarding the 2024 amendments to...more
On January 2, 2024, the Department of Education (DOE) released six issue papers that contain a range of proposals to ensure institutions of higher education and federal student aid programs best serve students. The issue...more
In the last several days, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) finally published three important updates on ED expectations under its extensive October 2023 Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment regulations...more
On November 9, the DOE announced it is outlining a framework for how it will increase borrower support and ensure student loan servicers are accountable for errors. Richard Cordray, Federal Student Aid (FSA) Chief Operating...more
U.S. Department of Education Takes Action Against Five Schools for Disbursing Federal Student Aid to Students Enrolled in Unaccredited Programs - “The settlement agreements include the payment of liabilities for all five...more
On February 9, 2023, the Department of Education Office of Federal Student Aid (“FSA”) issued an electronic notice regarding the Federal Trade Commission’s Final Rule amending the Standards for Safeguarding Customer...more
Our Education Team studies how a change to the 90/10 Rule will affect how for-profit institutions will count federal funding in the 90/10 calculation. The Moran–Carper Amendment to the American Rescue Plan significantly...more
UPDATE: On April 11, the Department of Education (Department) published a blog post updating the latest Third-Party Services (TPS) Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) which was published on February 15, 2023 (updated February 28,...more
On March 1, 2023, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) published Electronic Announcement GENERAL-23-11 (EA) notifying institutions that participate in the Title IV federal student aid programs (Title IV) that it is...more
On March 2, 2023, the U.S. Department of Education announced it will hold individuals representing corporations or other legal entities, including a member of the board of directors or a chief executive officer, personally...more
The Department of Education announced two initiatives that expand oversight of third-party providers to institutions of higher education that participate in federal financial aid programs. On February 15, ED announced...more
Having stood up and promoted the whistleblower program at the CFPB, it appears that Richard Cordray may now be taking similar steps at Federal Student Aid (“FSA”). On November 10, the Department of Education (“ED”) and FSA...more
On July 19, 2022, the U.S. Department of Education (the Department) issued three new guidance documents pertaining to institutions adding or changing an institutional accreditor. This new guidance was announced by Department...more
On April 19, one day before the release of a highly critical performance audit by the U.S. Government Accountability Office, the Department of Education (ED) announced a series of actions it is taking to “address[] historical...more
In the wake of NCAA v. Alston, a student-athlete’s education-related benefits may impact the amount of Federal Student Aid the student-athlete receives. According to the U.S. Department of Education rules, a student who...more
After nearly one year of advocacy efforts and watchful waiting by education associations and other stakeholders, Congress has now confirmed via legislation that institutions may approach incentive payment requirements for...more
As we discussed in a prior LawFlash, US President Donald Trump signed four executive actions that purportedly extend various aid measures for individuals impacted by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on August 8. One of...more
At the end of last week, the Department of Education announced that Education Secretary Betsy DeVos has directed Federal Student Aid (FSA) to extend until December 31, 2020 the relief that was provided to federal student loan...more
On February 28, 2020, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) issued an electronic announcement regarding its enforcement of cybersecurity requirements under the Gramm-Leach Bliley Act (GLBA). As described in more detail below,...more
The CDC, American College Health Association, and Department of Education have all issued recent guidance regarding the COVID-19 Coronavirus. Concurrently, colleges across the country have taken steps to move classes online...more
Last week, Senators Elizabeth Warren, Kamala Harris and Cory Booker sent a letter to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights (OCR) requesting information about how OCR “plans to address alarming racial...more
As discussed in a previous DBR on Data post, the U.S. Department of Education (“ED”) in recent years has repeatedly emphasized the importance of higher education institutions taking all appropriate measures to secure and...more
My colleagues and I have the privilege of advising numerous clients on income share agreements (ISAs), including universities, service providers, and institutional investors. So we were excited by reports that the U.S....more
The US Department of Education today issued the unofficial version of its final state authorization regulations that includes new rules governing accreditation and recognition of state authorizing agencies. The final rule...more
As widely reported in the news and as discussed in our recent webinar, on 22 July 2019 the U.S. Department of Education (ED) notified institutions that, as a result of the U.S. District Court ruling in NEA v. DeVos, ED's 2016...more