TIME SENSITIVE Webinar on Civil Rights Guidance No images? Click here May 8, 2024 Leading the news this week: The Senate struggles to reauthorize the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) bill before its looming Friday deadline, with the possibility of a temporary extension becoming increasingly likely. Meanwhile, on the House side, discussions between Marjorie Taylor Greene and Speaker Johnson regarding her intention to bring up a motion to vacate remain ongoing. Now let's dive into the latest news in higher education! Stakeholder Briefing: New Civil Rights Guidance on Title VI DiscriminationYesterday, the Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights (OCR) released a Dear Colleague Letter concerning colleges' federal civil rights responsibilities under Title VI. Amid the recent increases in discrimination complaints filed with OCR, particularly regarding the dramatic rise in anti-Muslim, antisemitic, and anti-Arab hate, the letter provides guidance for how colleges can uphold their responsibility to protect students from discrimination based on race, color, or national origin, including shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics. OCR will host a stakeholder briefing to provide clarity regarding existing legal requirements to protect students from discrimination under Title VI today, May 8 from 3:30 - 4:00 pm ET. To register for the webinar, click here. FY25 Appropriations Hearings RoundupThe Senate Labor, Health and Human Services, Education Appropriations Subcommittee will hold a hearing titled “A Review of the President’s Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Request for the Department of Labor” on Thursday, May 9, at 10:00am ET. Acting Secretary of Labor Julie Su will testify and justify President Biden’s FY 25 budget request for DOL. To watch the recording of the hearing click here. Better FAFSA UpdateThe Department of Education (ED) recently provided updates on the 2024–25 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Notably, they have successfully completed reprocessing FAFSA forms with IRS data issues, ensuring that all institutions now have accurate data and can proceed with packaging financial aid offers. Additionally, individuals without a Social Security number (SSN) can now access and submit the FAFSA form online. ED reports that the overall number of submitted FAFSA forms has exceeded 9 million, with approximately 46% of graduating seniors (1.74 million) having already submitted their FAFSA. This marks a 12% decrease in submissions from last year, where 58% of graduating seniors had submitted their FAFSA by this time. Moreover, targeted outreach initiatives are underway to encourage students who have previously filed to complete their FAFSA. Stakeholders can access state breakdowns and compare submission rates between years to assess submission rates in their respective areas here. A tutorial on how to retrieve the data can be found here. Higher Ed Legal Issues Update WebinarJoin ACCT’s panel of Higher Ed legal practitioners as they provide a comprehensive and interactive update on four of the leading legal issues currently facing Higher Ed Institutions in the areas of (1) Artificial Intelligence; (2) The new and long-awaited Title IX Education Department Regulations; (3) The new Federal Minimum Wage/Overtime Regulations; and (4) First Amendment Litigation issues facing Higher Ed Institutions. The webinar will take place Wednesday, June 5 from 2:00 - 3:30 pm ET. To register, click here.
Outreach EffortsIs your institution meeting or hosting an event with federal elected officials? We created a Congressional Contact Form that will help us track outreach efforts of community college leaders across our membership. By filling out the form, you are better informing ACCT's advocacy efforts and our advocacy team is able to continue those conversations with congressional staff in DC. ACCT NOW is the go-to resource for issues affecting community colleges. Our new website features original reporting and research, as well as of-the-moment legislative updates. ACCT NOW also includes articles, reports, and research from outside sources that benefit the ACCT community. Read the Latest Articles on ACCT NOW: Have a Question?Contact us with any questions or concerns about public policy and ACCT's advocacy on behalf of two-year colleges and two-year college trustees. ACCT's Latest Action in Washington alerts are sent to interested ACCT members to keep you up to date on important legislative activities that impact community colleges. If you no longer wish to receive ACCT's Latest Action in Washington alerts, reply to this email with UNSUBSCRIBE in the subject line. For more information about ACCT's advocacy services, visit acct.org/advocacy Spread the Word.Please encourage your fellow trustees, presidents and colleagues to stay up to date about legislation that affects their community colleges by joining the Latest Action in Washington (LAW) Alert network. To join, simply register here. For more community college news from inside the beltway, follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn, or like us Facebook. |