Call To Action – Comment on the Gainful Employment regulations before time runs out (Sep 9)

The last date for public comment on these perplexing regulations (slated to become law on Nov. 1) is coming fast!

The only soapbox I tend to hop on here is the one where I advocate for education technology, but these new regulations are seriously disconcerting and I just have to weigh in, and reach out to readers.

The Gainful Employment regulations are aimed at for-profit career colleges (“those engaged in training leading to gainful employment”) and so much about these regulations is simply unfair, and rather troubling. Not only are they likely to make education less attainable for many low income and minority students, but the regulations don’t appear to allow for any sort of due process.

The intent of the regulations is to limit or deny Title IV aid (Pell grants, loans, etc.) to students in schools that have “higher than normal” default rates, along with other harmful punitive measures, including forced enrollment limits. This may very well make sense for some unscrupulous educational institutions out there, but these regulations fail to take into consideration things like a school’s graduation or placement rates, students who postpone paying loans while they continue their education, or a long list of other highly relevant factors. There is a clear need to more carefully consider the impact this can have on many students across the country, who should not be made to suffer due to the actions of the few.

To provide additional information and clarity, here are a few insightful resources on the subject:

• This letter from US Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Thomas J. Donohue outlines the Chamber's opposition to the Gainful Employment Regulations.
• Matt Schnittman, CEO of Topschools, Inc. (an education software solutions company) offers this excellent article, “For-Profit Colleges: Sound Taxpayer Investment or Wasteful Spending?“. This article is chock full of facts and figures clearly supporting the financial efficiency of for-profit schools as compared to non-profits, and the associated benefits of these differences for student's families and taxpayers in general.
• “How To Discourage College Students“, from AmericasFocus.com.

Please take a moment right now to click here and submit your comments, or a preformatted letter, to the DoE. Remember, the government’s final period for input from the public on this legislation (presently scheduled to become law on Nov. 1) closes on September 9. We can be heard and we can make a difference. Thanks!

For more on this issue, please visit: http://gainfulemployment.wordpress.com/