Another year, another round of U.S. Department of Education Negotiated Rulemaking, and once again, the results could have a big impact on students and the institutions serving them through distance education.
On July 25, 2025, the Department released Public Hearing; Negotiated Rulemaking Committees. Two committees will be formed to develop future regulations affecting Title IV Student Aid programs:
The Reimagining and Improving Student Education (RISE) Committee will address changes to the Federal student loan programs.
The Accountability in Higher Education and Access through Demand-driven Workforce Pell (AHEAD) Committee will address changes to institutional programmatic accountability, the Pell Grant Program, and other changes to the Title IV, HEA programs.
For our digital learning community, the AHEAD Committee is the one to watch. In this post, we’ll break down the Department’s goals, explain why this matters for you, and highlight how you can get involved.
While the Biden Administration’s higher education focus leaned heavily toward student consumer protection, the current Trump Administration is signaling priorities of accountability and efficiency.
We encourage everyone in our digital learning community to offer their voice through two different opportunities:
The Federal Register announcement marks the first step of a legislatively mandated process for an administrative agency to develop regulations to implement Federal statutes. The Department indicated that this rulemaking is necessary to implement recent statutory changes to Title IV HEA programs that were addressed in the recent enactment of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). Please review our recent WCET Frontiers article on its impact on digital learning.
Because these regulations affect Title IV HEA programs, the Department must follow a special process called negotiated rulemaking. This means that the Department will convene a committee of stakeholders, nominated by the public, to discuss and draft the rules together. We will be given the opportunity to watch the committee meetings virtually. Later in the rulemaking process, proposed rules will be released for public comment. If you have any additional interest in the elements of rulemaking, please review our one-page SAN Resource, U.S. Department of Education Rulemaking Process.
The following is pertinent information from the announcement about the AHEAD Committee.
AHEAD Committee Issues
The Department shared the following proposed issues for negotiation for the AHEAD Committee:
Changes in institutional and programmatic accountability measures, including loss of Direct Loan eligibility for certain programs with low earnings outcomes for 2 out of 3 years, and Financial Value Transparency and Gainful Employment.
Establishment of program eligibility requirements for a new Workforce Pell Grant for students enrolled in programs that last 8-15 weeks, are transferable to a recognized postsecondary credential or degree, are approved by the state governor, and have strong outcomes.
Exclusion of Pell Grant assistance for students who receive grant or scholarship aid covering their entire cost of attendance or for students with a Student Aid Index in excess of twice the maximum Pell Grant award.
Other provisions included in Public Law 119-21 that are effective upon enactment, on July 1, 2026, on July 1, 2027, or on July 1, 2028.
AHEAD Committee Constituency Groups for Stakeholder Public Nominations
Students who are currently enrolled and receiving assistance from the Title IV, HEA programs.
Students who are veterans, U.S. military service members, or groups representing them.
Employers and groups representing the business community, including small, medium, and large businesses.
Legal assistance organizations that represent students, consumer advocates, and civil rights groups that represent students.
Public institutions of higher education, including institutions eligible to receive Federal assistance under Title III and Title V of the HEA, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Private nonprofit institutions of higher education including institutions eligible to receive Federal assistance under Title III and Title V of the HEA, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and Historically Black Colleges and Universities.
Proprietary institutions of higher education, as defined in 34 CFR 600.5.
State workforce agencies and workforce development boards.
State grant agencies, and other state and non-profit higher education financing organizations.
State higher education executive officers, State authorizing agencies, and other State regulators.
Accrediting agencies recognized by the Secretary of Education.
Organizations representing taxpayers and the public interest.
AHEAD Committee Meeting Schedule for Negotiations
The committee meetings will be held in person, but will also be live-streamed.
Times: 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. Eastern time
Session 1: December 8, December 9, December 10, December 11, and December 12, 2025.
Session 2: January 5, January 6, January 7, January 8, and January 9, 2026.
Insights from the August 7 Virtual Public Hearing
The Department’s virtual hearing featured a diverse set of speakers, from student advocates to higher ed associations to veterans’ organizations. Overall, the theme of participant requests was for the Department to develop clear language of definitions, offer direction regarding implementation of the regulations, and provide information for the public to understand the changes.
Notably, the moderator was more interactive with commenters than in past hearings, offering editorial comments that were more sympathetic with student concerns, clarifying issues predating this administration, and indicating support for the administration’s priorities.
For our community, five themes stood out:
More diverse representations on rulemaking committees. Comments called for additional seats on the rulemaking committee to represent community colleges, financial aid offices, representation by minority-serving institutions, and civil rights advocates.
Clear definition of professional student. There are requests for clarity and an expanded definition of who is a professional student. There is interest in a broader definition that includes programs that the Department may not have considered, such as education for pilots and the advanced postgraduate law degree (LLM). Some said that the Department should also provide a list of programs.
Accountability measures for public service programs. Concerns that accountability measures should account for high-value but lower-salary occupations (teaching, social work, and other public service programs).
Regional variability of salaries. It was recommended that regional variability in states be considered as states determine state median salaries related to program outcomes.
Additional guiderails for Workforce Pell. Comments and recommendations that Workforce Pell incorporate guardrails to prevent bad actors from being approved to offer programs. Additional comments requested state direction by the Department to include shared definitions, data support, and tools to navigate the oversight of the program intended for this grant opportunity.
These comments will likely influence the Department’s initial issue papers, which could be the starting point for committee negotiations in December.
How to Participate
There are several ways our community can make its voice heard in this rulemaking. There will also be more opportunities as the process unfolds. Here are two initial ways to participate now and one opportunity that will be available when the rulemaking meetings begin.
Nominate a Committee Member
As noted earlier, the Federal Register announcement lists specific stakeholder groups the Department considers key for this rulemaking. Institutions or organizations may nominate someone outside those groups, but acceptance is not guaranteed. The nomination process is detailed in the “Nominations Process” section of the Federal Register announcement. Please follow those instructions carefully.
The nomination deadline is August 25, 2025. The Department will confirm receipt and later post the final list of negotiators on its webpage for Negotiated Rulemaking 2025.
Submit a Public Comment
WCET and SAN strongly encourage members to submit comments when invited. This is your best chance to share questions, concerns, recommendations, or support for specific issues. Practitioner perspectives are invaluable in shaping rules that can be implemented effectively.
Anyone may submit a comment, but do not state that you represent your institution or agency unless you have official authorization. For tips, see SAN’s one-pager, Writing an Effective Public Comment.
The public comment deadline is August 28, 2025 (updated from the original August 25 date). Submit your comment(s) via the Federal eRulemaking Portal. The deadline and submission process are the same for both committees. This deadline was changed when the Department made a Correction to Docket ID, published on July 29, 2025.
Make a pre-registered Comment During the Negotiated Rulemaking Meetings
Once negotiations begin, the Department reserves the last 30 minutes of each day for pre-registered public comments. This is another opportunity to make your perspective part of the official record.
After negotiations conclude, the Department will publish the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), typically with a 30-day written comment window. We will share guidance on participating in that stage when the time comes.
Next Steps
We recommend that you discuss this process and your interest in active participation in the rulemaking with others at your institution or agency. Even if you don’t plan to submit comments or nominate someone directly, designate someone on your team to follow the process closely. These issues are significant and will likely affect your work. As we noted in our OBBBA analysis, this administration has made accountability measurement, for all programs and across all sectors, a top priority. That means your processes may need to change once the new structures are in place.
You may also find new opportunities to serve students through Workforce Pell, but that will require planning and building the right institutional processes.
In the meantime, SAN and WCET will help you prepare for what’s ahead by tracking developments and sharing updates, analysis, and practical guidance on how the proposed rules could affect you.
Policy analysis for judicial opinions, statutes, regulations, and guidance related to postsecondary digital education,
Compliance training for institutions to meet distance education-related requirements to provide student consumer protections,
State and Federal Compliance considerations for out-of-state activity compliance for postsecondary institutions (including for military students).
Bio
Cheryl joined WCET in August 2015 as the director of the State Authorization Network. She currently serves as the senior director, policy innovations. She directs the overall activities of WCET’s State Authorization Network (SAN), including coordination of staff addressing interstate policy and compliance and other ancillary compliance issues. As senior director, Cheryl also serves the overall WCET membership in addressing emerging and special regulatory issues related to digital learning in postsecondary education. She brings extensive experience in education and compliance to the WCET team and is a contributing author for State Authorization of Colleges and Universities, a guidebook for understanding the legal basis for State and Federal compliance for activities of postsecondary institutions.
Cheryl holds a Juris Doctorate from the University of Richmond, a master’s degree in criminal justice from Bowling Green State University, and a bachelor’s degree in political science from James Madison University. She is the mother of four kids, all of whom have been instrumental in helping her develop new interests in theatre, hockey, and figure skating. Outside of work, Cheryl enjoys spending time with her family and is an avid fan of movies and TV shows written by Aaron Sorkin.
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