Continuing its support of efforts that increase access to postsecondary education while preserving quality, the AAUP joined The Institute for College Access and Success (TICAS) and other higher education organizations in writing a letter to President Obama in support of the new federal student aid regulations. 1
The new regulations will bar colleges from misrepresenting their programs and results, they will prohibit colleges from paying employees based on the number of students they recruit and ensure that states play a role in preventing waste, fraud, and abuse in federal student aid programs. The new regulations were agreed to by all stakeholders in the Department of Education’s negotiated rule-making process, including representatives from the for-profit postsecondary education industry.
The AAUP’s letter was also in response to the lawsuit filed by the Association of Private Sector Colleges and Universities (formerly the Career College Association). APSCU has escalated their efforts to halt the implementation of the new federal financial aid regulations, particularly the “gainful employment” rules. Given the amount of time, energy, and money they have spent on advertising and lobbying against this latest round of financial aid regulations, last Friday’s lawsuit does not come as a surprise.
Read our coalition's letter to President Obama here.
1 Negotiated Rulemaking Outcomes on Federal Student Aid Integrity Rules, February 10, 2010, http://www.naicu.edu/publications/negotiated-rulemaking-outcomes-on-federal-student-aid-integrity-rules.