The U.S. Department of Education’s (Department’s) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today released a Dear Colleague Letter to schools specifying with concrete examples the application of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to allegations of discrimination in schools based on shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, including discrimination against students and school community members who are or are perceived to be Jewish, Israeli, Muslim, Arab, Sikh, South Asian, Hindu, or Palestinian.
The U.S. Department of Education (Department) today announced additional steps to support students and their families with the Better FAFSA. The Department is launching a multi-million-dollar program as part of the FAFSA Student Support Strategy to help school districts, state, nonprofits and other public and private organizations with efforts to boost FAFSA completion. Since the new 2024–25 FAFSA form became available on Dec. 30, more than 8.95 million forms have been successfully submitted.
The Biden-Harris Administration today released new data showing the breakdown of borrowers approved for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) by Congressional District. The data showcase how every district across the country has borrowers that are part of the 876,000 individuals who have been approved for $62.8 billion in relief through this program. By contrast, at the start of this Administration only 7,000 had been approved for PSLF.
The Biden-Harris Administration today announced the approval of more than $6.1 billion in automatic student loan relief to nearly 317,000 borrowers who enrolled at any Art Institute campus on or after Jan. 1, 2004, through Oct. 16, 2017. The U.S. Department of Education (Department) found that The Art Institutes and its parent company, Education Management Corporation (EDMC), made pervasive and substantial misrepresentations to prospective students about postgraduation employment rates, salaries, and career services during that time.
The U.S. Department of Education (Department) announced that it has completed reprocessing 2024–25 Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) forms impacted by known issues with IRS data, which should enable all institutions to package financial aid offers.
The Department also announced changes to allow applicants and contributors without a Social Security number (SSN) to immediately access and submit the online form.
The U.S. Department of Education today announced the 2024 U.S. Department of Education Green Ribbon Schools, District Sustainability Awardees, and Postsecondary Sustainability Awardees.
U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona today released the following statement on Richard Cordray stepping down as Chief Operating Officer of the U.S. Department of Education office of Federal Student Aid (FSA):
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced today that the Redlands Unified School District in California has entered into a resolution agreement to remedy violations OCR found of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 regarding district responses to notice of sexual assault and other sexual harassment of its students, including by employees.
U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona today will announce at the U.S. Department of Education’s (Department) Attaining College Excellence and Equity Summit the release of a Request for Information (RFI) to develop a new Postsecondary Student Success Recognition Program that will uplift institutions of higher education that support all students to complete affordable credentials of value that prepare them for success.
U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona announced today the selection of Mario Diaz Albarran, head custodian at Lincoln Elementary School in Palatine, Illinois, as the 2024 Recognizing Inspiring School Employees (RISE) honoree.
Department Advances Educational Equity and Opportunity
The U.S. Department of Education (Department) today announced a new path for borrowers who are incarcerated to exit default through consolidation, providing them access to improve their credit and better repayment options than ever before.
The Biden-Harris Administration today released its first set of draft rules that propose to provide student debt relief for tens of millions of borrowers across the country. These plans were announced last week by President Biden in Madison, Wisconsin. If implemented as proposed, these plans, and others announced by the President, would bring the total number of borrowers getting relief under the Biden-Harris Administration to more than 30 million.
The Biden-Harris Administration announced today the approval of $7.4 billion in additional student loan debt relief for 277,000 borrowers. These discharges are for borrowers who signed up for President Biden’s Saving on a Valuable Education (SAVE) Plan and are eligible for its shortened time-to-forgiveness benefit and as a result of fixes made by the Administration to income-driven repayment (IDR) forgiveness. This action comes as nearly 8 million borrowers have been helped by the SAVE plan. That includes 4.5 million with a $0 monthly payment.
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today announced that the Hinds Community College in Mississippi entered into a resolution agreement to address a student’s pregnancy discrimination complaint.
Today, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced that the Denton Independent School District in Texas has entered into a resolution agreement to ensure that its restraint policies and practices do not deny students with disabilities a free appropriate public education (FAPE).
Department of Education releases new state-by-state numbers showing the effect of four major discharge program proposals for the 4 million borrowers who have already been approved for relief