dotEDU

The hosts run a rapid-fire policy lightning round on the biggest higher ed issues right now, from federal funding and a looming Pell shortfall to new graduate loan limits. They also dig into two fast-moving flashpoints: the Education Department's scrutiny of a long-running student voting study and the administration's escalating actions aimed at Harvard, including potential impacts on service members' education benefits. Plus, an update on Sarah's favorite topic, Section 117 foreign gift reporting.
Here are some of the links and references from this week's show:
Appropriations
How Congress's Budget Could Hamper Trump ED Agenda
Inside Higher Ed | Feb. 12, 2026
Tufts/NSLVE  
National Study of Learning, Voting and Engagement
U.S. Department of Education Takes Actions to Protect Integrity of U.S. Elections
Department of Education | Feb. 5. 2026
Education Dept. Tells Universities Not to Use Student Voting Data
Inside Higher Ed | Feb. 5, 2026
dotEDU: Debates, Flies, and Political Engagement at the University of Utah 
New SAVE Act Bills Would Still Block Millions of Americans From Voting
Brennan Center for Justice | Feb. 9, 2026
Harvard v. Trump 
dotEDU: What the Headlines Miss About Higher Ed: A Conversation with Kirk Carapezza 
Justice Department Sues Harvard for Admissions Records
The New York Times | Feb. 13, 2026
Department of Defense Severs Academic Ties With Harvard
Inside Higher Ed | Feb. 10, 2026
Grad Loan Limits

Reimagining and Improving Student Education 
Federal Register | Jan. 30, 2026
Summary: ​The U.S. Department of Education's Proposal on OBBB RISE Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
ACE
**Contact Congress to Urge a Broader Professional Degree Definition**
Accreditation 
U.S. Department of Education Announces Negotiated Rulemaking to Reform and Strengthen America's Higher Education Accreditation System
Department of Education | Jan. 26, 2026
U.S. Department of Education Issues Proposed Interpretive Rule to Eliminate the Use of "Regional" by Accrediting Agencies
Department of Education | Feb. 13, 2026
Section 117
Section 117 Foreign Gift and Contract Public Transparency Dashboard
Department of Education
U.S. Department of Education Releases Latest Foreign Funding Disclosures from Federally-Funded American Universities
Department of Education | Feb. 11, 2026

The national conversation about higher education shifted dramatically in 2025. In this episode recorded in Boston in December, Jon Fansmith and Mushtaq Gunja talk with GBH News correspondent Kirk Carapezza about the reporting landscape and the pressures facing colleges beyond the headlines. 
Here are some of the links and references from this week's show: 
Brandeis bets big on rebuilding the liberal arts around real-world skills 
GBH | Dec. 2, 2025 
Colleges hope to 'AI-proof' their offerings as new tech changes job expectations 
GBH | Oct. 29, 2025 
Local colleges targeted amid growing campus culture wars  
GBH | Sept. 24, 2025 
College Uncovered Season 4: The Demographic Cliff  
College Uncovered Season 4 Bonus: The New College Compact 
College Uncovered Season 2, Episode 4: Closing Time 
Amherst College: 1,900 Students, 850 Courses. What's Not To Like? 
On Campus | Aug. 3, 2016

Questions about the future of federal TRIO programs—academic and support services for low-income, first-generation, and disabled students—come up more than almost any other topic on the podcast. We're joined this week by Kimberly Jones, president of the Council for Opportunity in Education, for a conversation about where TRIO stands and what may be ahead. We begin with some speculation on whether or not we're heading toward a partial government shutdown, and the latest on the Department of Education's moves on accreditation.
Here are some of the links and references from this week's show:
Contact Congress to Urge a Broader Professional Degree Definition
2026 Winter Term Pulse Point Survey (PDF)
Appropriations
House Passes FY 2026 Spending Package Preserving Education and Research Funding as Senate Showdown Looms 
ACE | Jan. 26, 2026
ACE, Higher Ed Groups Urge Congress to Safeguard FY 2026 Education Funding 
ACE | Oct. 1, 2025
Letter to Congress on MSI Funding 
ACE | Oct. 3, 2025
Legal Updates
Education Dept. Drops Appeal of Court Order Blocking Anti-DEI Guidance 
Inside Higher Ed | Jan. 22, 2026
Higher Ed Groups Back Harvard in Appeal Challenging Trump Proclamation on International Students 
ACE | Jan. 21, 2026
Accreditation
U.S. Department of Education Announces Negotiated Rulemaking to Reform and Strengthen America's Higher Education Accreditation System 
Department of Education | Jan. 26, 2026
ED Eyes Rewrite of Accreditation Rules 
Inside Higher Ed | Jan. 27, 2026
Comments on the Education Department's Proposed Revisions to the Accreditation Handbook
ACE | Jan. 26, 2026
NACIQI Members Stalemate on Picking New Chair
Republic Report (December 2025)
TRIO
Council for Opportunity in Education and TRIO Programs
COE Trio Advocacy
Congressional Outreach Packet
Federal Court Orders Reconsideration of Canceled TRIO Grants
Inside Higher Ed | Jan . 20, 2026
Trump's DEI Crackdown Closes 120 TRIO Programs
Inside Higher Ed | Oct. 27, 2025
Trump Administration Delays $660M for College Access Programs 
Inside Higher Ed | Sept. 12 2025

Valerie Fuller, president of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners, visited the podcast to talk about how new federal loan limits will change what graduate students can borrow and why nursing may no longer be considered a professional degree. The hosts also looked at the appropriations outlook on Capitol Hill, negotiations on rulemaking to implement the One Big Beautiful Bill, and more.
Here are some of the links and references from this week's show:
Graduate Loan Limits
Valerie Fuller, president of American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP) 
Graduate and Professional Student Loan Limits Under the OBBB
National Nurse Practitioner Organizations Express Concern Over Department of Education Negotiated Rulemaking
Nov. 21, 2025
AANP Advocacy Center
Bills Introduced to Address Changes to Graduate Lending Programs 
NAICU Washington Update | Dec. 19, 2025
Nurses Continue to Lead in Honesty and Ethics Ratings
Gallup | Jan. 12, 2026
Constitutionality of Race-Based Higher Education Grant Programs
U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon Statement on the Office of Legal Counsel's Opinion on the Constitutionality of Race-Based Higher Education Grant Programs
Negotiated Rulemaking 
Negotiated Rulemaking for Higher Education 2025
Department of Education
AHEAD Committee's Second Rulemaking Session Results in Consensus on Accountability Framework
ACE | Jan. 12, 2026
ED Panel Signs Off on New Earnings Test 
Inside Higher Ed | Jan. 9, 2026
Negotiators Reach Consensus on Pell Regulations 
ACE | Dec. 15, 2025
Consensus Reached on Workforce Pell, Earnings Test Looms
Inside Higher Ed | Dec. 15, 2026

In this final episode of 2025, hosts Mushtaq Gunja, Sarah Spreitzer, and Jon Fansmith spend the hour taking questions on the policy shifts and challenges campuses are watching most closely and the developments expected to matter early in 2026. 
Here are some of the links and references from this week's show:
Lucy Dacus and Hozier, Bullseye 
Jason Isbell, Bury Me
Stranger Things Season 5 (Netflix)