Dive Brief:

• Some of the most progressive House lawmakers are urging the Biden administration to wield executive power to “curb predatory behaviors” among for-profit colleges.
• The Congressional Progressive Caucus on Thursday released its wishlist of policy actions for the White House to take. Among the recommendations was denying poorly performing colleges access to federal student financial aid.
• The lawmakers also said the U.S. Department of Education should warn students who apply to “low-value” colleges — ones that leave them with high debt and low earnings potential.

Dive Insight:

Progressives have long backed many of the education priorities on the House lawmakers’ list. 

Improved student consumer protections have been proposed by progressives including Sen. Elizabeth Warren, a Massachusetts Democrat and Rep. Pramila Jayapal, a Washington Democrat who chairs the House Progressive Caucus. 

The continued emphasis on these issues likely signals more partisan debate around them. On for-profit colleges, for instance, some congressional progressives have called for more oversight. Republicans have accused Democrats and the Biden administration of starting a witch hunt against these institutions.

Researchers have documented how some for-profit colleges leave students with unmanageable debts and poor pay. Left-leaning think tank Third Way found in 2021 that more than 60% of for-profit institutions “show their low-income students earning less than the average high school graduate within 10 years of entering their institution.”

Jason Altmire, president and CEO of Career Education Colleges and Universities, which represents for-profit institutions, said in an emailed statement that “accountability measures must be applied to all schools in all sectors to ensure every student is able to benefit from the same federal protections, regardless of the type of institution they choose to attend.”

The Biden administration has already started pushing for more consumer protections. It’s currently drafting a regulation meant to ensure students who complete career education programs can find work and repay their loans. The proposal, called “gainful employment,” is due to be released this month.

House progressives also urged the Education Department to expedite and strengthen this rule, a version of which was put in place by the Obama administration and rescinded by the Trump administration.

The lawmakers in their wishlist also referenced a “low-value college list,” which the Biden administration said it plans to release at an unspecified time. This is in part a strategy to publicly shame poorly performing institutions, pundits have said. 

“With a divided Congress, President Biden must make full use of his executive authority to continue to deliver for working families,” Jayapal said in a statement.