Federal orders squeeze campuses while states argue over vouchers and teacher retention

1. 01
   Trump administration ramps up higher-education orders; Columbia flags $70,000 DHS fee

   Columbia notified international students of a Department of Homeland Security proposal for a $70,000 work-related fee as the university manages a wave of federal directives ahead of the midterms. A fee of that size would price many international graduates out of U.S. employment pathways and signals the administration intends to keep elite universities under pressure through the election.

   Columbia notified its international students Thursday of a new Department of Homeland Security proposal that seeks to implement a $70000 fee for a work

   1 more receipt

   Columbia navigates ‘chaos’ as Trump ramps up higher education orders before midterms

2. 02
   Education Department rescinds 2024 Title IX rules; colleges revert to 2020 regime

   Following a Sept. 28 federal mandate, the Department of Education formally rescinded the 2024 Title IX regulations, and Amherst College has reverted to its 2020 Title IX procedures. Every federally funded campus must now re-align its sexual misconduct and civil rights processes, reintroducing live-hearing and cross-examination requirements and narrowing protections added in 2024.

   Following the Sept. 28 federal mandate, the college has reverted to its 2020 Title IX regulations.

3. 03
   Arkansas LEARNS Act vouchers become central issue in gubernatorial debate

   Gov. Sanders defended the 2023 LEARNS Act and its educational freedom accounts against challengers Love and Shelby, citing literacy coaches and higher starting teacher pay. Arkansas is a bellwether for whether universal private-school funding programs survive electoral scrutiny, and the incumbent is framing vouchers and public-school investment as compatible.

   saying it invested in 120 literacy coaches for failing schools and raised starting public school teacher salaries from the bottom of the rankings to the top five

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   the 2023 LEARNS Act’s educational freedom accounts (EFAs) that provide families public dollars for private and homeschooling expenses

4. 04
   Walton/Gallup research links teacher retention to feeling valued

   The Walton Family Foundation, Gallup and The Mattering Institute released research finding teachers who feel valued are more likely to stay in the profession. It shifts the retention conversation from pay alone toward workplace recognition, giving districts a low-cost lever amid persistent staffing shortages, though the finding comes from the funder's own release.

   New research from the Walton Family Foundation, Gallup and The Mattering Institute highlights the importance of helping educators feel valued and supported

5. 05
   Evanston report shows racial disparities in special education placements and grades

   Evanston Township High School's District 202 board received a report documenting racial disparities in special education placements and grades, alongside data showing special education students spent more time in general classrooms in 2024-25. Inclusion gains and disproportionate placement by race are moving in parallel at a high-profile suburban district, a tension many districts will face as they expand general-classroom time.

   ETHS report shows racial disparities in special education placements, grades

   1 more receipt

   Special education students at Evanston Township High School spent more time in general classrooms in the 2024-2025 school year than in the previous two years

Why it matters

The federal government is reshaping the operating environment for universities on two fronts at once: immigration-linked costs that threaten international enrollment and revenue, and civil rights rules that force procedural reversals campus by campus. Timed before the midterms, these moves make higher education a campaign issue rather than a settled policy domain, and institutions are responding defensively.

At the state and district level, the fights are about money and legitimacy. Arkansas's voucher debate tests whether school choice can be sold alongside public-school investment, while retention research and Evanston's disparity data show the system's underlying strains: teachers leaving and inequities persisting even as inclusion improves.

What to watch

• Whether the DHS $70,000 work-visa fee proposal advances to a formal rule and how universities with large international populations respond.
• Further federal higher-education orders before the midterms and any litigation over the Title IX rescission.
• Polling and debate fallout in Arkansas on the LEARNS Act, plus local education levies on Skagit County ballots in the general election.

Sources read

Source	Outlet	Published, UTC	Quoted
They’re Not Lazy: Why Trauma-Informed Teaching Matters in Higher Education	facultyfocus.com	03:55	read, not quoted
Teachers Who Feel Valued Are More Likely to Stay in Education	waltonfamilyfoundation.org	04:55	1×
Divestment and moral education	dailyprincetonian.com	06:04	read, not quoted
State education board meeting in Sitka this week	kcaw.org	00:55	read, not quoted
ETHS report shows racial disparities in special education placements, grades	evanstonroundtable.com	05:55	2×
Columbia navigates ‘chaos’ as Trump ramps up higher education orders before midterms	columbiaspectator.com	03:55	2×
City, fire, education dollars up for vote in Skagit County	cascadiadaily.com	03:55	read, not quoted
Sanders, Love and Shelby spar over health care, education, prison	talkbusiness.net	00:55	2×
U.S. Department of Education Formally Rescinds 2024 Title IX Regulations	amherststudent.com	04:55	1×
Upcoming trapper and wolf trapper education courses in Salmon	idfg.idaho.gov	19:55	read, not quoted