This post includes articles about institutions' decision-making around what fall instruction will look like, a flurry of activity in the US House of Representatives related to broadband access, the expiration of internet service providers' pledge to support broadband service to those facing economic hardship, and one institution's approach to a "gap year."
With our "Interesting Policy Reads" blog posts, the EDUCAUSE Policy Office highlights recent articles on federal policy issues and developments that are directly relevant to members or provide insights on higher education policy in general.
- Campus Plans for Fall Evolve, Inside Higher Ed, June 25, 2020. (As colleges and universities begin to develop plans for fall instruction, online and in-person learning are falling on a continuum, and institutions are discerning where they find themselves on that spectrum.)
- Rep. Clyburn Leads Introduction of $100B Broadband Bill, Multichannel News, June 24, 2020. (The House Rural Broadband Task Force and other House Democrats introduced the Accessible, Affordable Internet for All Act, which would provide $100 billion to build high-speed broadband infrastructure in underserved and unserved communities.)
- A Discounted 'Gap Year' Online, Inside Higher Ed, June 26, 2020. (Concerned about students who may disconnect with their studies and not return to complete their degree, a college in Missouri is urging students to take an online "gap year" where they would take online courses during the 2020–2021 academic year at a discounted rate.)
- COVID-19-Related Broadband Funding Bill Introduced, Multichannel News, June 29, 2020. (A recently introduced bill, the Emergency Broadband Connections Act, would aid families in maintaining internet connectivity by, among other things, tying eligibility for the lifeline program to Federal Pell Grants.)
- COVID Is Over, Apparently: ISPs Are Bringing Back Broadband Data Caps, Vice, June 29, 2020. (As internet services providers' pledge to freeze data caps expires, major providers will resume limits on broadband and data usage.)
- House Passes Dems' Massive Broadband Funding Bill, Multichannel News, July 1, 2020. (Included in the House's recently passed infrastructure bill is roughly $100 billion to support internet access for all Americans although the larger package is likely dead on arrival in the Senate.)
- Broadband's Underused Lifeline for Low-Income Users, Axios, July 6, 2020. (The federal government's lifeline program designed to aid lower income individuals in accessing the internet is currently serving less than a fifth of the households that qualify for the program.)
- US Adds More Than 200,000 IT Workers in June, The Wall Street Journal, July 7, 2020. (According to the IT trade group CompTIA, US employers added more than 200,000 information technology workers in June. The trade group said the June numbers were fueled by demand for support professionals and individuals with expertise in security and data science.)
For more information about policy issues impacting higher education IT, please visit the EDUCAUSE Review Policy Spotlight blog as well as the EDUCAUSE Policy web page.
Kathryn Branson is a Senior Associate with Ulman Public Policy.
© 2020 Kathryn Branson. The text of this work is licensed under a Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 4.0 International License.