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News and updates

What We’re Reading This Week, January 25-29

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As DC digs out under several feet of snow, here’s a selection of articles the federal relations team has been enjoying.

Importing Bias – Researchers at Baylor University set out to determine whether stereotypes of these minority groups are commonly believed by white freshmen and found their suspicions confirmed. Read more in The Atlantic. 

Waiving to Title IX – The government t would create a searchable database that reveals the names of colleges and universities that have received exemptions on religious grounds from federal civil rights protections. Read more in The New York Times. 

Big Bully? – An op-ed questions whether the Department of Ed is using Title IX to exceed its legal authority and to bully universities. Read the Op-ed in The Wall Street Journal. 

Moody’s Mood on Higher Ed – Several new ratings reports from Moody’s Investor Service were released this week as a glance into the state of higher education, including law schools are suffering and colleges need to diversify. Read more in The Washington Post. 

 

Challenger – Thirty years ago, on January 28, 1986, the US space shuttle Challenger exploded mid-flight. The launch was seen across the country in schools as NASA promoted the flight included New Hampshire teacher, Christa McAuliffe, who applied and was selected to be the first teacher in space. That same day President Reagan was scheduled to give the annual State of the Union Address. That was postponed, and instead, he gave a speech a short speech, written by then unknown Peggy Noonan, to help the nation, and particularly school children, begin to mourn the tragedy. Read more in The  Washington Post. 

Not Exactly Jessie Owens – Scientist recently discovered a rare set of tyrannosaur footprints, which is giving researchers insight into the walking speed of the prehistoric beasts. According to the new estimate, Tyrannosaurus rex may have ambled as quickly as 8 kilometers per hour (5 miles per hour), slower than a plodding amateur marathon runner or even a middle-aged power walker.  Read more in Science. 

You Scream, I Scream, Bernie Gets An Ice Cream – Ben and Jerry’s, the gourmet ice cream maker based in Vermont, created a new flavor for New Hampshire Senator Bernie Sander called, “Bernie’s Yearning”. It’s tag line is “Nothing is so unstoppable as a flavor who’s time has come.” Read more in The Hill.

Endowments Fall 2.4%

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Colleges saw significantly lower returns on their endowments in the 2015 fiscal year. The annual NACUBO-Commonfund Study of Endowments found that 812 colleges returned an average of just 2.4 percent after fees, down from 15.5 percent in 2014 and the lowest return since the -0.3 percent reported for 2012. The long-term return was well below the median 7.5 percent most endowments report they need to earn to maintain purchasing power after spending, inflation and investment management costs, the report notes. Yet 78 percent of participating institutions spent more from their endowments this year, with a median increase of “a substantial 8.8 percent, well above inflation.”

Here is Inside Higher Ed’s take. 

Here is the study. 

Snow Week

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Congress has screeched to a halt this week as DC continues to be quagmired in snow by Snowzilla.

Bench on Connecticut Ave, NW, Washington, DC

A blizzard that blanketed the Northeast this weekend has disrupted the congressional calendar, with the House canceling all votes for the week and the Senate pushing its first vote to Wednesday evening. Congressional Democrats still plan on gather in Baltimore Wednesday evening until Friday for the annual Democratic issues retreat, which was truncating the Congressional calendar on the weather-shortened week. The Federal government’s Office of Personnel Management (OPM) closed all federal offices again on Monday as the District continues to dig out from record snow fall. Meanwhile the latest controversy in the District is the snow totals and how they are officially calculated for DC. The official totals, recorded at Reagan National Airport, came in at 17.8 inches of snow, and many are taking issue with this official recording. Dulles reported 29.3 inches of snow.

Other fun facts:

  • New York City missed is its all-time storm record by a tenth of an inch, with 26.8 inches at Central Park. Meanwhile, 30.1 inches was recorded at JFK airport.
  • Worst-hit was the eastern panhandle of West Virginia, according to the National Weather Service, with 42 inches recorded in Glengarry and 40.5 in Shepherdstown.
  • Airports are recovering, but at least 1,500 flighs were canceled Monday according to FlightAware.

When Congress returns, they come back to a full and already truncated calendar. The FY 2017 Budget will be front and center as Congress waits for the President’s FY 2017 budget request as well as working through a potential budget itself. While Congress does not need to pass a budget for FY 2017 due to the budget deal reached last year that covered FY 2016 and FY 2017, reports of the rising deficit have brought federal budgeting again to the forefront. For the first time since 2009, the deficit will grow relative to the size of the economy, amounting to 2.9 percent of gross domestic product. This year’s deficit is projected to be $544 billion, up from $439 billion last year.

Politics will be in full swing as the Iowa and New Hampshire presidential primaries are fast approaching while the Senators and Members of Congress also begin to focus on their own primaries.

Obama Proposes Pell Grant Expansion in FY 2017 Budget

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The Obama administration is proposing that Congress approve a $2 billion-a-year expansion of Pell Grants to finance year-round awards and a bonus for students who stay on track to graduation. The two new Pell proposals are intended to help students to accelerate progress towards their degrees, increasing their likelihood of on-time completion. The first program, “Pell for Accelerated Completion,” would let full-time students earn a third grant award in an academic year (rather than the current limit of two awards). The President and Congress eliminated year-round grants in a 2011 budget bill. The administration’s other proposal, an “On-Track Pell Bonus,” would add $300 to the maximum award for students who take at least 15 credits per semester in an academic year. The administration estimates the bonus would benefit 2.3 million individuals and help them graduate on time. The $2 billion cost for the Pell expansions in fiscal year 2017 will be included in Obama’s budget proposal to be released on February 9, 2016.