The U.S. Education Department on late Friday announced that it will extend to January 15 the deadline for institutions to provide a battery of information on their Title IV students under “financial value transparency” (FVT) and “gainful employment” (GE) regulations. The original deadline was July 1, which ED earlier this year delayed to October 1.
The new deadline gives institutions breathing room to provide the needed data for ED’s expansive new information framework, which represents the central higher education accountability plank of the Biden administration. While much of the required data are already being reported by colleges for Title IV compliance purposes — though in a different format — some of the elements are new and must be obtained by colleges.
The information colleges must report (see AACC summary) will be used both to determine eligibility under the Title IV GE regulations, which affect all community college Title IV-eligible certificate programs, and populate the broader transparency framework. Importantly for community colleges, the FVT framework will generate more refined data on post-completion earnings than what’s currently provided through the College Scorecard.
A small number of community college certificate programs appear likely to lose their student aid approval under the GE rules, which will have a greater impact on for-profit institutions.
Related article: Senators seek delay in GE reporting requirements
Problems foreseen
ED’s decision reflects officials’ growing recognition that the October 1 deadline had become increasingly difficult, if not impossible, for institutions to meet, through no fault of their own. For one thing, ED was delinquent in providing basic compliance guidance, as well as promised data, that was necessary for institutional compliance. This included the key “Completers List.”
Furthermore, student aid offices that have been overwhelmed in awarding student financial aid in a timely fashion under the revised FAFSA system are also responsible for much of the FVT/GE compliance (though several other campus offices need to be involved). Finally, the regulation itself is complex and, in some cases, requires colleges to obtain information that is not readily on hand, including private loans and state licensure requirements.
The American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) is pleased with the delay, which hopefully will facilitate effective compliance. The association has been involved in the development of the new regulatory framework since it was first proposed by the Biden administration via the “negotiated rulemaking” process. (Anne Kress, president of Northern Virginia Community College, served as the lead negotiator for the community college sector.)
AACC also submitted comments on the proposed rules and held webinars for its members when the rule became final.
In addition, AACC communicated with ED officials about looming problems with making the October 1 deadline and had requested a delay. All this was driven in part by community colleges’ long history with GE reporting, which in earlier iterations was extremely onerous for public two-year institutions. Hopefully, they are now headed for smoother administrative waters.
