[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":3,"doc-seo-585290-105":59,"doc-detail-585290-en":130},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",[7,13,18,23,28,33,38,43,48,51,55],{"id":8,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":10,"show_sort_weight":11,"slug":12},1,"Document","Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":14,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":15,"show_sort_weight":16,"slug":17},2,"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":19,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":20,"show_sort_weight":21,"slug":22},4,"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":24,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":25,"show_sort_weight":26,"slug":27},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":29,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":30,"show_sort_weight":31,"slug":32},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":34,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":35,"show_sort_weight":36,"slug":37},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":39,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":40,"show_sort_weight":41,"slug":42},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":44,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":45,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":47},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":46,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":49,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":50},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":53,"show_sort_weight":52,"slug":54},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":56,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":57,"show_sort_weight":24,"slug":58},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":60,"data":61},"ok",{"site_id":62,"language":63,"slug":64,"title":65,"keywords":66,"description":67,"schema_data":68,"social_meta":123,"head_meta":125,"extra_data":127,"updated_unix":129},105,"en","issue-brief-no-5403-themes-for-higher-education-reform","ISSUE BRIEF - No. 5403 - Themes for Higher Education Reform","","Issue Brief No. 5403 outlines a case for higher education reform, arguing that the system in America is in crisis due to tuition inflation, escalating student debt, administrative bloat, and uneven program outcomes. It highlights concerns about campus speech restrictions, financial harm from many master’s programs, and misallocation of Pell and federal aid. The brief evaluates proposals connected to a Trump-era Compact for Academic Excellence, emphasizing reduced federal involvement and reforms to accreditation, lending, Parent PLUS, and loan forgiveness, while urging states and institutions to address core problems.",{"@graph":69,"@context":122},[70,84,105],{"@type":71,"itemListElement":72},"BreadcrumbList",[73,77,79,82],{"item":74,"name":75,"@type":76,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":78,"name":9,"@type":76,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":80,"name":40,"@type":76,"position":81},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/research-report/",3,{"item":83,"name":65,"@type":76,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/issue-brief-no-5403-themes-for-higher-education-reform/585290/",{"url":83,"name":65,"@type":85,"image":86,"author":91,"headline":65,"publisher":94,"fileFormat":97,"inLanguage":63,"description":67,"dateModified":98,"datePublished":99,"encodingFormat":97,"isAccessibleForFree":100,"interactionStatistic":101},"DigitalDocument",{"url":87,"@type":88,"width":89,"height":90},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/issue-brief-no-5403-themes-for-higher-education-reform/585290.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":92,"@type":93},"Aria Callaghan","Person",{"url":74,"name":95,"@type":96},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-29","2026-10-15",true,{"@type":102,"interactionType":103,"userInteractionCount":24},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":104},"ViewAction",{"@type":106,"mainEntity":107},"FAQPage",[108,114,118],{"name":109,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":111},"What key problems in higher education does the brief highlight?","Question",{"text":112,"@type":113},"It points to tuition-driven inflation and student debt exceeding $1.8 trillion, administrative bloat, concerns about campus speech suppression, and evidence that many programs leave students financially worse off or fail to deliver positive returns.","Answer",{"name":115,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":116},"Which policy directions are emphasized for federal lawmakers?",{"text":117,"@type":113},"The brief urges decoupling accreditation from federal financing, lowering caps on student lending, phasing out the Parent PLUS program, and winding down costly loan forgiveness schemes.",{"name":119,"@type":110,"acceptedAnswer":120},"What additional issues does the brief say colleges control themselves?",{"text":121,"@type":113},"It calls on colleges to strengthen nondiscrimination practices, promote marketplaces of ideas and civil discourse, adopt institutional neutrality consistent with the University of Chicago’s Kalven Report, and manage foreign-related compliance in higher education relationships.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":83,"og:type":124,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":95,"og:description":67},"article",{"robots":126,"canonical":83},"index,follow",{"doc_id":128,"site_id":62},585290,1792189810,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":131},{"doc_id":128,"user_id":132,"nickname":92,"user_avatar":133,"doc_module":4,"category_id":39,"category_name":40,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":67,"doc_content":134,"file_id":135,"file_url":136,"file_type":137,"file_size":138,"view_count":24,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":29,"language":139,"language_code":63,"site_id":62,"html_lang":63,"table_of_contents":140,"faqs":141,"seo_title":142,"seo_description":67,"update_tm":143,"read_time":144,"preview_page_count":4},962084926284,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_29158cc5080c5b710cf443261637dec0","ISSUE BRIEF  \nNo. 5403 | JaNuary 26, 2026  \nCENTEr FOr EDuCaTION POLICy  \nThemes for Higher Education Reform  \nMadison Marino Doan, Adam Kissel, and Jonathan Butcher  \nKEY TAKEAWAYS  \nDirecting efforts to eliminate the Department of Education and downsize the federal role in higher education would be a major step forward.  \nLawmakers should decouple accreditation from federal financing, lower caps on student lending, phase out the Parent PLuS program, and wind down loan forgiveness.  \nreforms proposed by the Trump administration identify several core problems in higher education that states and universities themselves should address.  \nHigher education in America is in a state  \nof crisis. Student debt has surpassed $1.8  \ntrillion, driven upward by relentless tuition inflation.1 Surveys from the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression show that a record number of students now say it is acceptable to shout down, block, or even use violence to stop a campus speaker.2 According to the Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity, almost half of all master’s degree programs leave students financially worse off than before they enrolled, and roughly one-third of all Pell Grant and federal student loan funding goes to programs that fail to deliver a positive return on investment.3 Meanwhile, non-instructional spending on student services and administration continues to outpace instructional spending, a clear symptom of administrative bloat.4 Parents are also losing faith in  \nThis paper, in its entirety, can be found at [https://report.heritage.org/ib5403](https://report.heritage.org/ib5403)  \nThe Heritage Foundation | 214 Massachusetts avenue, NE | Washington, DC 20002 | (202) [546-4400 | heritage.org](546-4400 | heritage.org)[ ](546-4400 | heritage.org)Nothing written here is to be construed as necessarily reflecting the views of The Heritage Foundation or as an attempt to aid or hinder the passage of any bill before Congress.  \nthe system. A recent Gallup poll found that nearly half would prefer to not send their children to four-year colleges—even if cost were no barrier.5  \nIn response to these crises and opportunities, the Trump Administration proposed a “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education,” first to nine major universities and then to all takers.6 Most of the Administration’s goals for the compact would help make American colleges and universities worthy of their position as the world’s most renowned academic institutions. Indeed, the compact’s reforms would address many of the same concerns that other reformers have raised. Even so, federal officials should avoid expanding the federal government’s role in higher education in pursuit of these vital goals.  \nThe Case to Rebuild  \nFor years, researchers at The Heritage Foundation and other scholars have urged policymakers not merely to reform but to rebuild the higher education system. Directing efforts to eliminate the Department of Education and downsize the federal role in higher education would be a major step forward. Another major step is decoupling federal aid eligibility from federally sanctioned accrediting bodies.7 Under the current model, federally approved accrediting bodies must approve colleges tobe eligible for Title IV funding (student loans and grants). This process has turned accreditors into ideological gatekeepers of federal dollars rather than guarantors of quality. Breaking the link between accreditation and federal financing would open the door to state and private quality-assurance entities that evaluate colleges based on outcomes, not ideology. Federal lawmakers should package this reform with other policy changes, such as lowering caps on student lending, phasing out the inflationary Parent PLUS loan program, and winding down costly loan forgiveness schemes that transfer private obligations to taxpayers. These policy proposals would help to restore accountability, curb tuition-inflating lending, and protect students, families,","cbCaik2lquF3Avlf","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaik2lquF3Avlf","pdf",175584,"English","# Key Takeaways\n## Higher Education in Crisis\n## The Case to Rebuild\n## Proposals Within Colleges and Universities","[{\"question\":\"What key problems in higher education does the brief highlight?\",\"answer\":\"It points to tuition-driven inflation and student debt exceeding $1.8 trillion, administrative bloat, concerns about campus speech suppression, and evidence that many programs leave students financially worse off or fail to deliver positive returns.\"},{\"question\":\"Which policy directions are emphasized for federal lawmakers?\",\"answer\":\"The brief urges decoupling accreditation from federal financing, lowering caps on student lending, phasing out the Parent PLUS program, and winding down costly loan forgiveness schemes.\"},{\"question\":\"What additional issues does the brief say colleges control themselves?\",\"answer\":\"It calls on colleges to strengthen nondiscrimination practices, promote marketplaces of ideas and civil discourse, adopt institutional neutrality consistent with the University of Chicago’s Kalven Report, and manage foreign-related compliance in higher education relationships.\"}]","ISSUE BRIEF - No. 5403 - Themes for Higher Education Reform | PDF",1792054258,15]