[Wsssc] Dear Colleague Letter: Title IV Discrimination

[Lauren Hibbs]

Good morning and happy Monday, WSSSC,

Sharing the below Title IV guidance released from the DE as well as an overview of the Education and Workforce hearings. Many of the challenges discussed in our weekly hot topics are highlighted here.

Department of Education Guidance on Title IV Discrimination
The Department of Education's (ED) Office for Civil Rights issued new guidance through a Dear Colleague Letter<https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/colleague-202405-shared-ancestry.pdf> to every school district and college in the country, providing examples of Antisemitic discrimination, as well as other forms of hate, that could lead to investigations for violations of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. A White House Fact Sheet may be accessed here<https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2024/05/07/biden-harris-administration-ramps-up-actions-to-counter-antisemitism-on-college-campuses-and-protect-jewish-communities/>. A press release from the Department of Education may be accessed here<https://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/us-department-educations-office-civil-rights-reminds-schools-their-legal-obligation-address-discrimination-based-shared-ancestry-and-ethnic-characteristics>.

Congressional Hearings on FY 25 DOL and ED Budget Requests
On Tuesday, the House Education and the Workforce Committee held a hearing titled, "Examining the Education Department's Policies, Priorities, and FY 2023 Financial Audit Failure", in which Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona testified. Chair Virginia Foxx (R-NC) started the hearing by stating that Sec. Cardona had not lived up to his potential, and that if she were to grade him based on the state of K-12 schools, postsecondary education, and as administrator, she would give him an "F" in all three categories.

The hearing was highly contentious, with discussion of the FAFSA rollout, student loan forgiveness, Title IX, transgender athletes, regulatory action, mental health, foreign influences on college campuses, unauthorized immigrants in the school system, and college campus protests. Both sides of the aisle expressed their disappointment in the FAFSA rollout and many shared how it impacted their constituents. There was praise for career and technical education programs (CTE), and Sec. Cardona emphasized the President's support for doubling the Pell Grant. Our memo on the hearing is here<https://caphillpartners.egnyte.com/dl/1LzeZBSYeI>. A hearing recap from Committee Republicans may be accessed here<https://edworkforce.house.gov/news/documentsingle.aspx?DocumentID=410540>.

Yesterday, the Senate Appropriations Committee's Labor-HHS-ED Subcommittee held its hearing on the President's FY 25 budget request for DOL, with testimony from Acting Secretary Julie Su. Su faced a barrage of questions and criticisms from Republicans. Chair Foxx took issue with DOL's regulatory actions. Tensions ran high as Republicans raised issues ranging from the DOL's handling of fraud in pandemic unemployment benefits to concerns about federal overreach and the confirmation status of Acting Sec. Su. Other topics discussed during the hearing included the state of the economy and jobs numbers, CTE, apprenticeship, independent contractor classification, the proposed fiduciary rule, labor unions, and considerations for teacher pay. Our memo on the hearing is here<https://caphillpartners.egnyte.com/dl/adpwYKuvsu>.


If you made it here, you may also be interested in the 2024 Lumina and Gallup<https://www.luminafoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/State-of-Higher-Education-2024.pdf> report on the state of higher education.


Warm Regards,





Lauren Hibbs, Ed.D

Director, Student Services

Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges

lhibbs at sbctc.edu* o: 360-704-4334 *

sbctc.edu<https://www.sbctc.edu/> * Twitter: @SBCTCWashington<https://twitter.com/SBCTCWashington> * Facebook: @WASBCTC<https://www.facebook.com/wasbctc/>



SBCTC Vision:



"Leading with racial equity, our colleges maximize student potential and transform lives within a culture of belonging that advances racial, social, and economic justice in service to our diverse communities."

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