NACUBO On Your Side: May 2–15, 2023
5/15/2023
As things move quickly in Washington, DC, NACUBO is your constant advocate in action. NACUBO On Your Side covers important legislative and agency activity NACUBO staff are tracking, what we’re currently advocating for, and how you can take action with us.
Here are the issues we are tracking and advocating for this week.
Agency Action
ED Calls on Institutions to Leverage Federal Work-Study for K-12 Tutoring and Mentoring
The Department of Education has shared a letter encouraging colleges and universities to use the Federal Work-Study (FWS) Program to increase the number of college students that support school-aged children and youth as tutors, mentors, and other support roles. ED is specifically calling for institutions to, within the next two years, allocate at least 15 percent of FWS funds toward this effort and to share data with the National Partnership for Student Success.
ED Updates “Ban the Box” Recommendations for Colleges and Universities
In an update to guidance issued in 2016, the Department of Education shared recommendations for colleges and universities to better serve students who were previously incarcerated. Highlighting that the criminal justice system directly impacts nearly a third of the American population and disproportionately affects people of color and people living in poverty, the report calls on higher education leaders to build more pathways to success and to eliminate admissions questions about criminal history.
Advocacy
NACUBO Supports Fix for Pell-AOTC Interaction
In a higher education community letter led by the American Council on Education, NACUBO and 19 other associations wrote to Reps. Lloyd Doggett (D-TX) and Mike Kelly (R-PA) in support of the Tax-Free Pell Grant Act. The legislation would repeal the taxability of Pell Grants and eliminate an interaction wherein Pell Grant recipients, especially those at low-cost institutions, may be unable to access the full value of the American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC) if they allocate the Pell Grant toward qualified tuition and related expenses. ED estimates that 730,00 Pell recipients are adversely affected
