Jessica Blake

Under Secretary Kent Says Higher Ed Needs a “Hard Reset” The top higher ed official, Nicholas Kent, flaunted the speed and breadth of the administration’s higher ed reforms in a room full of skeptical sector leaders.

I started my day listening to a speech from ED undersecretary Nicholas Kent who had a lot to say about higher ed's need for a "hard reset."

And while the college leaders in the room appeared to agree that there are problems within the system, many took issue with Kent's approach to solving them.

ED’s DEI Guidance Is Dead, but Trump’s Crackdown Isn’t Diversity advocates say the courts have been clear—Trump has no justification to ban DEI. But other legal experts say the administration has plenty of other tools it can use to accomplish the same goa...

The Dear Colleague letter, a key tool in Trump’s attack on DEI, had been blocked for months. Then, ED dropped its appeal, killing the policy for good.

Some DEI advocates declared it a “major win,” but other legal experts say the war is far from over.

www.insidehighered.com/news/governm...

CBO: Pell Grant Facing $11.5B Shortfall If Congress doesn’t add money to the Federal Student Aid account by Sept. 30, students could face dramatic grant cuts or eligibility restrictions.

ICYMI: A new report from the Congressional Budget Office projects that by the end of FY 2026, the Pell Grant program will be short $5.5 billion; that number skyrockets to $11.5 billion in FY 2027 if Congress doesn’t make cuts or put in new money.

For students, this could mean dramatic grant cuts.

How Congress’s Budget Could Hamper Trump ED Agenda Democratic lawmakers pushed for several guardrails in an attempt to restrict how the White House doles out federal funds.

The new budget bills include significant changes that may restrict how Trump doles out federal funds.

Experts from both parties agree, Congress is sending a message.

“The changes to the bill show that even Republicans are concerned about their lack of ability to hold those strings of the purse.”

What to Know About the Government Shutdown and Budget Deal The government shutdown should be brief, and higher ed advocates see a number of wins in the legislation to fund the Education Department and other agencies.

Here's what you need to know about today's government shutdown.

It's anticipated to be short term and look more like a pause than a full shutdown, especially compared to the historic 43 day halt that took place in the fall. But nothing is guaranteed.

Read more from @knottkatherine.bsky.social:

At CHEA, Kent Blames Accreditors for Higher Ed’s Woes The education under secretary argued that accreditors have largely failed to hold colleges accountable and pledged to make reforms.

www.insidehighered.com/news/governa...

Education Dept. Eyes Rewrite of Accreditation Rules ED officials have said for months that they want to tackle the regulations governing accreditors. A Monday announcement offers more specifics on their agenda.

Accreditation may just be the word of the year at the Education Dept.

And @insidehighered.com will be following the topic closely as the Trump administration tries to overhaul longstanding norms for academic oversight.

Here’s our two latest stories from me and @byjoshmoody.bsky.social:

Minneapolis-Area Universities Respond to ICE, CBP, Protests The killings by federal agents in Minneapolis have fueled demonstrations. Area institutions are stepping up security, moving classes online and more.

The killings by federal agents in Minneapolis have fueled demonstrations. Area institutions are stepping up security, moving classes online and more.

Read more from @ryanequinn.bsky.social:

www.insidehighered.com/news/student...

This story comes as the result of weeks of observation and my conversations with a swath of higher ed experts.

It sheds light on how a determined department can control the direction and outcome of its rulemaking meetings and what we can learn from the Trump admin’s rule book.

Many say ED “strong armed” voters to reach consensus. Others say that’s just the art of the deal.

But I’ve closely following every step of this rulemaking process and can confidently say that it is a different approach than we’ve seen from any other recent administration.

High-Stakes Policy Talks Shed Light on ED’s Playbook In negotiating loan caps, a Pell Grant expansion and accountability measures, the Education Department made few concessions and yet secured unanimous agreement. Here’s how they did it.

Over the past 4 months, @usdeptofed.bsky.social used a series of negotiations with key higher ed experts to gain unanimous approval for major changes to federal student aid.

But ED’s tactics for doing so have raised concerns.

www.insidehighered.com/news/governm...

ICYMI: Financial aid experts are expressing concern as the Trump administration delays its annual FSA Conference.

A source within the Education Department told me the event is just being pushed back until March. But a department spokesperson has yet to confirm that statement.

Federal Aid Conference Delayed, University Employees Lament Financial aid administrators are upset that the Education Department has not scheduled its annual training for them. But one official says it’s now slated for March.

Normally the @usdeptofed.bsky.social hosts a financial aid conference the first week of December to provide administrators with updated education on regulations.

But that hasn’t happened this year.

So @insidehighered.com talked with financial aid experts about why that's concerning.

What to Know About the Definition of Professional Degree Social media critics have focused on the fact that certain female-dominated careers, like nursing, are “no longer” recognized as professional. But the term didn’t mean much before Congress passed new ...

Is your feed overloaded with content about what counts as a professional degree and how it will affect access to student loans?

Mine too.

But some folks weren't getting the facts right. So I wrote about it in hopes of countering some misinformation. Share the news and fact check your sources!

McMahon Says ED Agreements Are Temporary In a recording obtained by Inside Higher Ed, the secretary explained why she’s moving several grant programs to other federal agencies and how it could benefit students.

LATEST: Education Secretary Linda McMahon held an all-staff meeting at the department Tuesday after announcing her next major step toward dismantling it.

@insidehighered.com obtained an audio recording of that meeting.

Read more about what she had to say:

Dismantling of ED Prompts Flurry of Reactions Numerous higher ed leaders, advocates and politicians weighed in on McMahon’s plan to ship several ED programs to other agencies. Here’s a snapshot of what they said.

A DEEPER LOOK: Several higher ed leaders said they care most about ensuring grant dollars reach the students and institutions Congress intended them for, not what agency they are housed under. But the question is can they still count on receiving those funds after the outsourcing takes effect.

McMahon Says “Clock Is Ticking” on Education Department Trump officials are reportedly planning to enact a number of agreements Tuesday that could send key ED responsibilities to other agencies.

As promised, here's more coverage from @insidehighered.com. Stay tuned for more updates throughout the day.

Trump officials are reportedly planning to enact a number of agreements Tuesday that could send key ED responsibilities to other agencies.

@insidehighered.com has received multiple tips that the Department of Education will be signing a number of interagency agreements later today. The agreements would move the responsibilities of key offices to other departments.

Stay tuned for more coverage.

ED Releases Proposal for Defining Professional Programs The Department of Education released its latest proposal Wednesday for determining which post-baccalaureate degree programs get access to what amount of federal loans under Congress’ One Big Beautiful...

We’re at day 4 of this week’s neg reg, and the department offered a slight expansion of its list of professional programs. More from @jessicablake.bsky.social here:

www.insidehighered.com/news/quick-t...

ED Panel Makes Some Progress on Loan Caps But some industries such as aviation are still pushing to get included in the department’s final definition for professional programs.

I’m back at ED for another week of rulemaking!

The committee is still talking about student loan caps and they still have yet to reach consensus on which students should get what amount of money.

But they’re slowly starting to gain some momentum.

Here’s a story with the latest updates:

“The way that I’ve been thinking about this,” on source said, “is if you take the major organs out of a human, do you still have a human or do you have a corpse?”

Under McMahon, ED Is Diminished but Not Dead, Experts Say Inside Higher Ed spoke with more than a dozen politicians, higher education experts and former department employees; their thoughts on the agency’s status varied, but many tried to remain hopeful.

ICYMI: I asked more than a dozen higher ed experts, how dead is the Dept. of Ed?

Some tried to stay optimistic, describing the agency as diminished not dead. Others feared the damage has already been done. But across the board, most say ED is in critical condition.

Amid Trump’s Assault on Free Speech, Advocates Stay Busy Three nonprofit legal organizations say their caseload has ramped up significantly since Trump took office. But so has public support for their work.

“The truth is, the Knight Institute is doing just fine. It’s our democracy that I’m more worried about,” @jameeljaffer.bsky.social tells @insidehighered.com's @jessicablake.bsky.social. He shares more about our work taking on the Trump administration below ⬇️. www.insidehighered.com/news/governm...

How Will Latest ED Layoffs Affect Students With Disabilities? Inside Higher Ed spoke with a leading advocate for students with learning disabilities to hear what the consequences will be across colleges and universities.

There's been lots of discussion about what the Office of Special Education's major reduction in force will mean for K-12 schools, but what about colleges and universities?

I sat down with Jacqueline Rodriguez, CEO of the National Center for Learning Disabilities, to find out.

White House to Meet with Universities Regarding Compact The scheduled meeting follows increasingly forceful pushback to the wide-ranging proposal.

NEWS — The White House says it has invited the five institutions that haven't said whether they'll agree to the compact to a meeting this afternoon. One source sees the meeting as a way to "regain momentum by threatening institutions to sign."

www.insidehighered.com/news/governm...

NACIQI Meeting Delayed by Government Shutdown In an email to committee members Tuesday, department officials said the meeting will now take place in December.

#BREAKING: The Department of Education has delayed the semiannual convening of its accreditation advisory committee, NACIQI, for the second time this year, according to an email obtained by @insidehighered.com.

Trump Fires More Education Dept. Employees The Trump administration threatened to lay off federal workers because of the government shutdown. An unspecified number of employees got pink slips Friday.

Here's the latest from @insidehighered.com on the second round of layoffs at the Department of Education:

BREAKING: Staff at the Education Department are affected by the mass layoffs that OMB Chief Russell Vought promised today on X.

A department spokesperson confirmed this but didn’t say how many employees will be affected or in which offices. ED has already lost half its staff to a previous RIF.

ED Opens Door to Student Loan Cap Negotiations The department made some progress toward its student loan overhaul in negotiated rule making, but big questions remain about borrower limitations and repayment plans.

I spent all of last week sitting in on the Dept of Ed's rulemaking session concerning student loans.

Long story short, some progress has been made on smaller details, but major questions remain on key issues.

Here's a more in-depth rundown of the week's debates for all my fellow policy nerds.