Policy & Legal: Page 6


  • A brick building with a sign that says "Kansas State University"
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    Wolterk via Getty Images
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    Kansas State professor sues university for alleged transgender bias

    A supervisor at the public institution forced a transgender faculty member to drastically cut short his medical leave for a hysterectomy, the lawsuit said.

    By Laurel Kalser • May 6, 2025
  • U.S. Capitol building in Washington D.C.
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    Jeremy Poland via Getty Images
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    Deep Dive

    Risk-sharing: A ‘well-intentioned’ disaster for colleges?

    Experts say a push to make institutions responsible for unpaid student loans could hit hardest on those serving historically underrepresented students.

    By May 6, 2025
  • The entrance to the National Science Foundation's building.
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    JHVEPhoto via Getty Images
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    National Science Foundation caps indirect research costs at 15% for new grants to colleges

    The move comes after federal judges blocked similar policies at the National Institutes of Health and the U.S. Department of Energy.

    By May 5, 2025
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    Chip Somodevilla via Getty Images
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    Trump’s FY26 budget plan slashes Education Department programs

    The president's proposed cuts would dramatically reduce funding for Federal Work-Study and eliminate all spending on the TRIO program.

    By May 2, 2025
  • he U.S. flag and Department of Education flags whip in the wind outside the department's headquarters
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    Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    Education Department unveils guidance to make switching accreditors easier

    The new process could result in colleges changing accrediting agencies with little review into whether they’re trying to evade oversight, one expert said. 

    By May 2, 2025
  • Aerial over Duke University in Durham, North Carolina
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    Ryan Herron/ iStock via Getty Images
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    Duke University offers buyouts and signals future layoffs as federal cuts hit

    Policy changes under the Trump administration could amount to hundreds of millions of dollars in funding losses for the institution.

    By May 1, 2025
  • Bernie Sanders speaks at a rally.
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    Kayla Bartkowski via Getty Images
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    Senate education panel postpones vote on polarizing antisemitism definition

    The bill would require the U.S. Department of Education to use a controversial definition that critics say would undermine free speech. 

    By May 1, 2025
  • Rep. Ilhan Omar speaks before a post saying "Slashing Education to Pay for Tax Cuts for the Rich."
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    House Committee on Education and Workforce Democrats. (2025). [Photograph]. Retrieved from Flickr.
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    House education committee advances sweeping higher ed bill

    Republicans say the plan would save $330 billion and spur institutions to lower costs, but Democrats argue it would create barriers to college. 

    By April 29, 2025
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    Rob Carr / Staff via Getty Images
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    Johns Hopkins University self-funds some research in wake of federal cuts

    Faced with grant delays and terminations, the university has created two new programs, partly funded through earnings on its endowment.

    By Updated April 30, 2025
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    Retrieved from Cecelia Alexander.
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    ‘A complete takeover’: Indiana lawmakers pass last-minute college governance overhaul

    A proposed state budget would, in part, create post-tenure reviews at public colleges and give the governor full control of Indiana University's board.

    By April 29, 2025
  • A view of a building on the University of Pennsylvania's campus through an arched doorway.
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    aimintang via Getty Images
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    University of Pennsylvania violated Title IX, Education Department charges

    The agency has been threatening education institutions with the loss of federal funding if they allow transgender athletes to compete in women’s sports. 

    By April 28, 2025
  • Bystanders gather near Columbia University gates in New York City
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    Adam Gray via Getty Images
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    Federal agency reportedly texts survey to professors asking if they’re Jewish or Israeli

    An administrative judge for the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission criticized the move as a “complete overreach.”

    By Ryan Golden • April 25, 2025
  • Trump speaks from his desk with officials in the background.
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    Chip Somodevilla via Getty Images
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    White House declares goal to reach 1M new apprentices per year

    President Donald Trump castigated prior investment in higher ed, arguing many programs don't have necessary incentives “to meet workforce training needs.”

    By Kathryn Moody • April 25, 2025
  • A headshot photo of Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
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    Brandon Bell via Getty Images
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    Michigan promotes college access and skills training for men

    The education initiative supports Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s goal to increase the percentage of Michiganders with a degree or certificate to 60% by 2030.

    By Carolyn Crist • April 25, 2025
  • A large metal bell sits in the courtyard in front of the U.S. Department of Education building.
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    Kara Arundel/Higher Ed Dive
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    Federal judges deal major blow to Education Department’s anti-DEI guidance

    The agency didn’t follow the proper procedures when it issued sweeping guidance threatening federal funding in February, one court ruled. 

    By April 24, 2025
  • President Trump in the oval office of the white house as press looks on
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    Win McNamee/Getty Images via Getty Images
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    ‘The gatekeepers’: Trump’s action on accreditation sparks concerns over government intrusion

    The president signed a directive seeking to punish accreditors for diversity criteria while easing the path for new quality-assurance bodies.

    By April 24, 2025
  • Students walk around a tent encampment on Columbia University's lawn.
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    Alex Kent via Getty Images
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    Columbia University vows to remove any future encampments

    The Ivy League institution also threatened student protesters with arrest amid reports that demonstrators were planning more encampments. 

    By , April 24, 2025
  • An entrance to a National Institutes of Health building is lit by the sun on a clear day.
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    Grandbrothers via Getty Images
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    NIH prohibits new grant awards to colleges with DEI initiatives

    Organizations will have to certify that they don’t have diversity programs that violate federal antidiscrimination laws and that they aren’t boycotting Israel. 

    By April 23, 2025
  • Demonstrators hold paper signs, one reading "No Science No Progress"
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    Scott Olson via Getty Images
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    Federal cuts are putting university finances at risk, S&P says

    While Trump administration policies are pressuring major institutions, many of them have the resources to withstand disruption for now.

    By April 22, 2025
  • Harvard Medical School
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    The image by Németh Dezső is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0
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    Harvard University sues Trump administration over federal funding threats

    The Ivy League institution’s scathing lawsuit accuses the federal government of threatening research “that has nothing at all to do with antisemitism.”

    By April 21, 2025
  • Signage and flowers decorate the tree where ICE officials detained Rumeysa Ozturk.
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    Scott Eisen via Getty Images
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    133 foreign students get back their legal status — for now

    A federal judge granted a temporary restraining order in the case, one of many contesting the Trump administration’s crackdown on international students. 

    By April 21, 2025
  • Dome of capitol building, with gold decorations, seen through tree branches
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    Stephen Maturen via Getty Images
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    Minnesota college leaders eye tuition hikes as costs rise and state funding flatlines

    Most are weighing an increase of 8%, but one Minnesota State official said even that would not bridge the public system's anticipated budget gap.

    By April 18, 2025
  • The Department of Energy (DOE) sign is seen at its headquarters, the James Forrestal Building, nicknamed the Little Pentagon, in Washington, DC.
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    hapabapa via Getty Images
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    Federal judge freezes Energy Department’s 15% cap on indirect costs

    Colleges would "sustain immediate and irreparable injury" if the policy were allowed to continue during litigation, the judge ruled Wednesday.

    By April 17, 2025
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    Maddie Meyer via Getty Images
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    Will Harvard lose its ability to enroll foreign students?

    Federal officials have ratcheted up the pressure on the Ivy League college since its leadership declined to meet an unprecedented list of ultimatums.

    By April 17, 2025
  • Tourists walk by Harvard University's main gate.
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    Scott Eisen via Getty Images
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    Trump administration freezes $2.2B in Harvard University grants after demands refused

    The move came shortly after the Ivy League institution’s president said it wouldn’t comply with a series of “unprecedented” mandates. 

    By April 15, 2025