Higher Education
College and university strategy, faculty work, enrollment, student success, and campus operations.
Fall aid delays expose problems with the new federal loan rules
Colleges are still reworking aid systems months after the July 1 overhaul, slowing disbursements and leaving some graduate students short on living costs.
Working paper: Academic probation may backfire for low-income students
A September 2026 study at a large California public university found that warning-only probation increased dropout and reduced degree completion for low-income students, while a coaching-based model removed those harms and improved academic performance.
DOJ says GW medical school used race in 2024 and 2025 admissions
The Justice Department says it is seeking a settlement with George Washington University after finding its medical school violated Title VI in recent admissions cycles, a disputed case that gives graduate programs a clearer compliance test for essays, interviews and reviewer records after SFFA.
All Higher Education stories
MIT rolls out course-level AI guidance and redesign support
The institute’s new AI-in-education playbook asks each subject to explain how AI may be used and why, while giving instructors a policy planner, sample syllabus modes, and course redesign help.
DOJ sues 4 more states over in-state tuition for undocumented students
Arizona, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington now face federal challenges to tuition and aid policies, creating new uncertainty for colleges handling residency, billing and student aid this academic year.
Michigan Reconnect now open to residents ages 21 to 24
The state lowered the program’s minimum age from 25 to 21, creating a new recruiting pool for community colleges and advisors. Reconnect can cover in-district tuition and mandatory fees, but students still need college admission, a FAFSA, and a Pell-eligible program, and out-of-district costs may remain.
Education restarts SSA match for disability-based student loan relief
Set to take effect Oct. 1, the revived Education Department-Social Security data match should help identify borrowers with MINE status for possible TPD discharge. But federal materials still do not clearly say whether newly matched borrowers will be discharged automatically or moved into a simplified application process.
Texas Dream Act fight returns to Fifth Circuit with rehearing request
The Aug. 24 filing does not restore in-state tuition, but it keeps alive a case shaping residency, billing and state-aid decisions in Texas and beyond.
America250 reopens startup contest for undergrads and trade-school founders
Eligible students can apply by Oct. 8 for up to $50,000 in non-dilutive funding, but advisers should flag residency rules, the AI ban, public-disclosure terms, and December travel.
Education Department accreditation rule opens for comment until Sept. 21
The Federal Register notice starts a live rulemaking window on accreditor recognition, transfer-credit oversight, and the evidence colleges may need to show on student outcomes.
DOJ reviews William & Mary scholarships over race-linked criteria
The Title VI review spans undergraduate, education and law-school programs, signaling that federal scrutiny is moving beyond admissions into aid, mentoring and other student benefits. DOJ has not made a finding of wrongdoing.
NUS expands ChatGPT Edu campuswide, with advanced tools piloted first
Starting Aug. 31, NUS will give all students, faculty, and staff access to ChatGPT Edu through a managed workspace with stronger privacy controls, while requiring new students to complete AI training and testing advanced tools in selected courses first.
Unions sue over graduate loan caps affecting education degrees
A new lawsuit challenges the Education Department’s RISE rule, arguing that its narrow definition of professional degrees leaves many education programs under lower federal borrowing limits just as colleges finalize fall aid packages.
Colleges get Jan. 15 deadline to fix missing FVT/GE data
Federal Student Aid says more than 1,900 institutions still have missing or under-reported filings from the 2024 and 2025 cycles, while the Oct. 1, 2026 reporting deadline stays in place and schools weigh an early move to STATS reporting.
Education Dept. opens Title VI probes at San José State and SF State
The federal investigations stem from complaints alleging antisemitic harassment, but they are not findings of liability. Our breakdown explains what OCR is likely to examine first, from complaint records and supportive measures to how campuses separate protected speech from actionable harassment response duties.
DOJ says Duke Law admissions violated Title VI
The department’s finding centers on short-answer prompts, reviewer tags, and other race-linked signals in Duke’s 2023-25 admissions process. For law schools and graduate programs, it is a warning that workflow design is now a frontline compliance issue.
2027-28 FAFSA beta starts, with live aid records reaching colleges
Students in the first beta round are submitting real 2027-28 FAFSA forms, and a small number of official ISIRs may reach colleges and states before many campuses begin their usual aid cycle.
First Workforce Pell approval lets Iowa EMT students use federal aid
The Education Department cleared Iowa Central Community College’s 14-week EMT course, giving colleges the first practical model for how a short workforce program can qualify for Pell.
OpenAI offers free ChatGPT research workspaces to eligible faculty, postdocs
The 12-month program gives approved academic teams up to five seats with business data protections, but access is limited by institution, country, field, and recent preprint history.
Two college chatbot studies show AI helps with tasks, not persistence
Two July 2026 working papers point to a narrower use for higher-ed AI. Course-specific chatbot outreach improved grades and tutoring use, while a four-year administrative bot helped students complete time-sensitive tasks without detectable gains in academic performance or persistence.
Five medical schools face new federal civil rights admissions probes
The Education Department said its Office for Civil Rights opened Title VI investigations at Dartmouth, East Carolina, Saint Louis University, Western University of Health Sciences, and William Carey, raising the stakes for admissions documentation and reviewer training ahead of the 2026-27 cycle.
DOJ opens Title VI review of Harvard aid tied to China funding
The department says it is examining whether Harvard financial aid programs linked to China-based funding exclude U.S. citizens, signaling that federal civil-rights scrutiny may be expanding from admissions into scholarship design and donor restrictions.
DOJ says UC San Diego medical school used racial proxies in admissions
A new federal finding says hardship responses, subgrouping methods and reviewer access to race data may have crossed the post-SFFA line for medical school admissions. UC San Diego said it is reviewing the government’s conclusions and remains committed to complying with federal law.
New FAFSA fraud FAQ puts colleges on the hook for flagged applicants
Federal Student Aid says students routed into identity confirmation currently need a mobile device, while colleges must use existing verification workflows to clear many flagged records.
DHS replaces open-ended student visa stays, adding work for colleges
Set to take effect Sept. 15, 2026, the rule would require federal extension filings for longer degree and exchange pathways, reshaping campus advising, travel guidance, and compliance planning.
DOJ sues Maryland over in-state tuition and aid for undocumented students
The federal lawsuit asks a court to block Maryland’s Dream Act tuition and aid rules. For public colleges, the immediate issue is not a policy change yet, but whether an injunction could disrupt 2026-27 tuition coding, billing, and state-aid packaging.
T-ReX opens July 14 for college teams to reuse retired energy hardware
The National Laboratory of the Rockies’ new academic-year competition invites U.S. postsecondary teams to tackle recycling or repurposing projects before applications close Sept. 30. For colleges, it looks like a strong capstone or workforce project, though public details on rules, costs, and prize support are still limited.
California study: Dual enrollment’s bigger problem is support, not access
Using records for about 1.74 million California public high school students, a new working paper found that low-income students were more likely to fail dual-enrollment courses at every achievement level. But students who tried dual enrollment and failed still enrolled in college at higher rates than similar peers who never took it.
Yale confirms DOJ resolution talks over admissions investigations
President Maurie McInnis said Yale is in the federal voluntary-resolution process after DOJ findings involving the medical school, while Yale College and Yale Law School investigations remain pending. The disclosure offers colleges a live look at how post-SFFA admissions scrutiny can move into negotiations with operational and governance consequences.
OMB grant-rule comments close as colleges warn of political review
The proposed rewrite would affect federal assistance across agencies, and universities say it could slow awards, expand compliance screening, and make terminations easier if finalized.