Changes in Government Could Impact Higher Education

As a result of this year's mid-term elections, republicans will control the House of Representatives next year for the first time since 2006. While Democrats will still control the Senate by a small margin, this shift in party control could have a great impact on issues of higher education. Many republicans in Congress have long opposed an increase of federal aid to students, and the Obama administration's attempt to provide additional federal student loans may be short-lived, forcing students to borrow even more money from private lenders in the future.

Congressional republicans have also been opposed to increased government interference in for-profit schools. U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan has called for stricter government regulation of for-profit colleges, "which include some of the largest online education programs" like Kaplan University and the University of Phoenix, after government investigations questioned the school's recruitment tactics and credibility. Proposed "gainful employment" laws require for-profit colleges to offer proof that their students are repaying loans before the schools are granted federal financial aid. One rule states that for-profit colleges cannot take "more than 90 percent of tuition from federal financial aid programs." Many republican lawmakers have asked Duncan to repeal these rules.

A statement made by Harris Miller, president of the Association of Private Sector Colleges and Universities, criticizes gainful employment rules, claiming that "the administration's proposed regulations single out a specific set of students and schools, rather than apply to all students across the board." If for-profit schools must endure stricter government regulation, many feel that public colleges and universities should as well. Those opposed to the laws claim that they have the potential to hurt nontraditional students like working adults and students from low-income families, whose higher education options are already limited. Seeking a higher degree could become out-of-reach for them as legislation changes.

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