A regular digest for UW faculty with updates on federal, national and local issues of relevance to their teaching, research and service; actions the University is taking; and ways for faculty to be involved.
Federal Landscape
State of Washington joins lawsuit over federal student loan access
Washington and a multistate coalition have filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Education over a new rule that limits access to federal student loans for students pursuing professional degree programs, including many in health care and other critical workforce fields. The lawsuit challenges a recently finalized Department of Education rule that narrows the federal definition of “professional degree” and imposes restrictions Congress did not authorize. The coalition of 24 states and District of Columbia argues the rule unlawfully excludes many degree programs that qualify under the standards established by federal law, potentially reducing access to financial aid for students pursuing advanced education. The UW submitted a statement expressing concern during the comment period in advance of the rule being implemented.
International
Green card application changes announced
U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced May 22 that it would start approving I-485 Applications to Adjust Status (the “green card” or “permanent residence” application) only in “extraordinary circumstances.” This policy could affect any UW student or employee who has applied or will apply for permanent residence inside the U.S., requiring them to leave the country to apply for permanent residence. However, other applications and petitions (e.g., I-129 Petitions for Nonimmigrant Workers) should not be affected. The UW has reached out to individuals impacted by this change to provide support. For more details, see the International Scholars Operations blog and the International Student Services blog.
Leadership
Research Advisory Group report posted
In response to a rapidly changing funding, administrative and training landscape, President Jones and Provost Serio charged an advisory group with assessing the current state and the future of the UW’s research ecosystem. The Research Resilience and Transformation Advisory Group has issued guiding principles and recommendations after examining operational processes, shared research resources, funding and visibility, impactful research development, and research training across undergraduate through postdoctoral levels. Read the report, the guiding principles and the provost’s response.
New funding to expand TA capacity, improve student success
New central funding will support teaching assistant positions across all three campuses to expand TA capacity, particularly in high-demand undergraduate courses; improve student access and success; and complement, but not replace, existing school, college, and campus investments in instructional support. The $7 million will be distributed to all three campuses’ schools and colleges based on each unit’s proportional share of tri-campus undergraduate student credit hours, calculated using a three-year rolling average. This approach ensures that allocations reflect instructional load in a stable, predictable manner and equitably accounts for variation across the campuses. A memo sent last week to the Board of Deans and Chancellors outlines how the funds will be allocated, expectations and reporting requirements. The Provost’s Office will share specifics with each school and college.
Key links
- Office of the Provost’s Federal Policy Updates
- UW Medicine’s Federal Policy Updates (UW NetID required)
- Office of Research’s Federal Policy Guidance
- UW Research Makes America
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Resources for Researchers & Instructors
REMINDER: Open private funding opportunities for faculty, researchers
Faculty and researchers may search current open funding opportunities from private sources for their research and programs through a dashboard developed by the UW Corporate & Foundation Relations team.