‘New Dems’ Outline Higher Ed Agenda

Michael Stratford, Education Reporter for POLITICO Pro, speaks with New Dem Vice-Chair Rep. Polis about the New Dem Higher Education Priorities, released September 15th, 2016. Read more below:

‘NEW DEMS’ OUTLINE HIGHER ED AGENDA: A group of moderate House Democrats today are releasing their priorities for reauthorizing the Higher Education Act. The three-page education agenda from the “New Democrat Coalition” calls for increasing Pell Grants, promoting dual enrollment programs, and supporting competency-based education. The plan calls for refinancing of federal student loans and programs to spur state spending on colleges. But it stops short of advocating for “tuition-free” or “debt-free” college — ideas that became popular during the Democratic primary and are now at the centerpiece of Hillary Clinton’s education plan.

— “We’re really focused on practical ideas,” Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colo.), who is vice chair of the coalition, told Morning Education. Polis said he personally supports Clinton’s education plan and thinks that many of the coalition’s priorities are reflected in it. “The New Dems are focused on the innovation pieces” of higher education policy, he added, such as building on the Obama administration’s pilot program to allow students to use Pell Grants and federal loans at online “coding boot camps” and other nontraditional providers. Read the full plan here.