Soundbites

Part of Student Loan Portfolio Moves to Treasury. The Department of Education plans to send a portion of its student loan portfolio to the Department of the Treasury, though the interagency agreement for this change has not yet been made available to the public. The portion being sent are delinquent loans, which the Department estimates include roughly 7.7 million borrowers with $180 billion in outstanding federal student loan debt, which, as of December 2025, makes up about 11% of the total federal student loan portfolio.

Accreditors Warned on DEI. The Department of Education reportedly sent letters to two accreditors – Middle States Commission on Higher Education and the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education – warning them that their DEI standards conflict with federal law. Although neither accreditor is currently enforcing their DEI standards, they remain on the books, and, as part of the federal recognition process, the Department is requiring both accreditors to submit monitoring reports describing the steps they are taking to rescind their DEI policies.

Report on Antisemitism on Campus Released. The House Committee on Education and Workforce released a majority staff report detailing the findings of its investigations into antisemitism on college campuses. The report concluded that “leadership failures and radical faculty and student groups,” as well as universities failing to adequately promote “Western values” at their overseas satellite campuses, were largely to blame for the perpetuation of antisemitism in higher education. The committee provided numerous recommendations for universities to follow to remedy the issue.

Sponsor Webinar. NAICU and Pearl Meyer are hosting a webinar [register] on May 7, 2026, from 3:00-4:00 p.m. EDT) examining how the evolving demands of higher education leadership are reshaping presidential contracts, compensation, and governance. As the presidency becomes more complex, visible, and risk-exposed, boards must rethink legacy contract structures and benchmarking practices. This session will explore practical strategies for aligning presidential agreements, incentives, and evaluation processes with today’s institutional, political, and reputational realities.