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Mitch Blunt / Getty Images / Images Ikon
Mitch Blunt / Getty Images / Images Ikon
You read NPR's weekly summary on education.
Harvard admission practices are the subject of a lawsuit
The highly anticipated trial on Harvard University admission practices began Monday and continued throughout the week. The Students for Fair Admissions Group, which opposes affirmative action, sued Harvard in 2014, alleging that the school discriminated against US applicants of Asian origin by awarding them a lower score based on personality criteria affecting admissions.
While William R. Fitzsimmons, dean of Harvard admissions and grants, answered questions at the booth, previously unknown details about Harvard admission practices emerged. Fitzsimmons acknowledged that the admissions department maintains an "interest list" of children related to donors and alumni.
John Hughes, a lawyer for Students for Fair Admissions, e-mailed Harvard officials to explain the power that donations – or potential donations – could have on a candidate's prospects. In an email, a former tennis coach explained how he "rolled out the red carpet" for a candidate whose family had donated $ 1.1 million to the school.
The case is expected to last another two weeks and could eventually end up in the Supreme Court.
Lawmakers call for action on the loan cancellation program
More than 150 members of Congress this week sent a letter to Education Secretary Betsy DeVos asking her to conduct an investigation into the public service loan forgiveness program.
"We are deeply concerned that millions of dedicated public servants may not be getting the loan forgiveness they deserved if the ministry did not act quickly to correct the problems associated with program implementation. ", they wrote.
The Public Service Loan Exemption Program, or PSLF, was to release teachers, first responders and other officials from their student loans after 10 years of service and 120 qualifying payments. However, recent reviews show that the implementation of the program has not proceeded smoothly.
A report from the Government Accountability Office, the independent federal oversight agency, shows that 99% of loan delisting requests have been denied so far. It describes a breakdown in communication between the education department and its credit service providers, who collaborate with borrowers to manage their loans.
The Office of Consumer Financial Protection brandished a red flag about the program over a year ago.
Defrauded borrowers can now apply for a loan forgiveness
After more than a year late, an Obama era rule granting loan forgiveness to student fraudulent borrowers came into effect this week. The rule, known as the Borrower's Defense Until Refund, applies to students who have attended a for-profit college that have violated consumer protection laws or who have lied about student success measures, such as placement rates.
This is one of the many Obama era rules aimed at private, for-profit colleges that the current US Department of Education, headed by DeVos, has canceled or delayed. The Department had initially delayed the implementation of the rule in 2017 and this week, Federal Judge Randolph Moss rejected the California Association of Private Postsecondary Schools' request to completely remove the rule.
"This is not the first (and presumably not the last) chapter of a dispute over the fate of the regulations promulgated by the Ministry of Education in November 2016," wrote Moss in his opinion. this week. The Court documents show that the Department "remains committed to canceling the 2016 rule".
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