Higher Ed Policy Roundup: Vol. 9 - Issue 11

Late last week, a judge ruled that probationary employees who were fired from 18 federal agencies, including the Education Department (ED), must be rehired. Recall that ED laid off nearly 50% of its workforce, which included some probationary employees, as part of President Trump’s plan to dismantle the agency, sending shockwaves through the education community. The move led to a suit filed by 21 attorneys general arguing that the layoffs “incapacitates components of the Department responsible for performing functions mandated by statute, effectively nullifying those mandates.”

Yesterday, President Trump signed an executive order (EO) instructing the Secretary of Education to begin the process of closing ED. While the White House said this week that ED would continue to administer the federal student loan program, the EO implies that the Office of Federal Student Aid does not have the capacity to run the program. It states that ED “is not a bank, and it must return bank functions to an entity equipped to serve America’s students.” Eliminating the agency would require an act of Congress, which insiders say is highly unlikely. However, the recent reduction in force and termination of grants are a step towards shrinking ED’s footprint.

TouchNet released its 2025 Student Financial Experience Report, offering key insights into the intersection of student finances, mobile technology, and academic achievement across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia.

The American Enterprise Institute published a report on trends in net college tuition and financial aid, unpacking increases from 1990 to 2020.

There were no relevant student-aid related bills recently introduced for consideration by the 119th Congress (2025-26).