Lumina Foundation is committed to increasing the proportion of Americans with high-quality degrees, certificates and other credentials to 60 percent by 2025.
With a now-rescinded White House directive that threw millions of federal dollars for education and research into uncertainty, President Donald J. Trump and his allies tried to prove they were not bluffing with their campaign threats to target colleges and universities.
But before President Trump even returned to office, many of the nation’s well-known postsecondary institutions were already preparing to fight back. Some are hiring powerhouse Republican lobbying firms. Others are strengthening, or rebuilding, their presences in Washington.
The higher education landscape could shift in major ways this year, including through changes brought by court decisions. Several of the Biden administration’s policies are under legal fire, though it’s so far unclear how the Trump administration will handle those cases.
Meanwhile, major academic publishers are facing a class-action lawsuit accusing them of violating antitrust law. And the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program—which prevents the deportation of immigrants brought illegally to the United States as children—could land on the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court.
Martin University, the only predominantly Black institution in Indiana, started receiving state funding two years ago—a welcome $5 million cash influx for the enrollment-starved private university.
But those funds disappeared in Governor Mike Braun’s 2025-2027 budget proposal, unveiled on the heels of an anti-diversity, equity, and inclusion executive order. One lawmaker calls it racist.
The relationship between K-12 schools and community colleges has evolved dramatically over the years, growing from isolated programs to true partnerships driven by a shared commitment to creating cradle-to-career pathways that prepare students for high-paying careers and lifelong success.
In this interview, David Schuler, executive director of AASA, The School Superintendents Association, outlines the importance of K-12 and community college partnerships, particularly as dual- and concurrent-enrollment programs experience exponential growth.
While most California college students attend a public college or university, roughly 160,000 undergraduates pursue degrees at private nonprofit universities such as Chapman University, Loyola Marymount University, Stanford, and the University of Southern California.
For some of these students, the expense can be significant, leading some to work multiple jobs and sacrifice extracurricular activities to supplement their financial aid. Many, however, say it’s worth it.
On the campaign trail, President Donald Trump promised, among other things, to do away with the U.S. Department of Education. But a very different philosophy prevailed in Washington during the presidency of Joe Biden, who embraced student debt relief as a key priority and leaned on the education department to execute a bold—if not always successful—agenda.
James Kvall, who served as the Biden administration’s undersecretary of education, reflects on the department’s work, its failures, and the future of Democratic higher education policy.
