The House and Senate were out of session, though a few events and announcements concerning federal education policy occurred last week. The infrastructure bill proposed by President Biden in early April remains a key topic of discussion in Washington, but has yet to gain traction with Senate Republicans. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) said last Monday that no Senate Republican would back the $4 trillion proposal, but negotiations are expected to continue this week. Here are a few other notes from last week:
- House Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Department of Education 2022 Budget: The House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education hosted Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona to testify on the Administration’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 Budget Request for the Department of Education. Community schools, IDEA, Pell Grants, HBCUs and CTE were among the topics that were discussed during the hearing. Read more on our full blog.
- House Committee Holds a Hearing Addressing COVID-19 Impact on Students with Disabilities: The House Education and Labor Committee’s Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education Subcommittee hosted a hearing on Addressing the Impact of COVID-19 on Students with Disabilities. During Chairman Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan’s (Northern Mariana Islands) opening statement he emphasized the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on learners with disabilities, and stressed the need to address the barriers that these learners face in order to provide them equitable access to educational opportunities.
- Department of Labor Accepts Applications for Apprenticeship Advisory Committee: The Department of Labor is now accepting applications for members to serve on the reinstated National Advisory Committee on Apprenticeships. It will include a diverse group of stakeholders and focus on equitably expanding apprenticeships into fast-growing industries, such as clean energy, technology and healthcare to create more high-quality training and employment opportunities.
- President Biden Visits Community College: President Biden and First Lady Jill Biden visited an HVAC workshop at Tidewater Community College in Portsmouth, Virginia. Throughout the tour, the President was shown how to program provided pathways to good jobs, and the different types of certifications and/or degrees students could earn while in the program. This visit was aimed to build support for the president’s infrastructure proposal.
- Department of Education Announces New Chief Operating Officer of Federal Student Aid: The Department of Education announced Richard Cordray as the chief operating officer of Federal Student Aid Office. This department is responsible for managing student financial assistance programs, which include grants, work-studies and loans. Cordray will likely be involved in the discussions happening within the Department of Education to determine whether President Biden has the legal authority to cancel some student loan debt.
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