What does Biden’s anticipated win mean for colleges?

Education Dive

Jeremy Bauer-Wolf

November 7, 2020

Dive Brief:

• Joe Biden is the anticipated winner of the presidential election, according to forecasts by several news organizations and polling groups. His victory is not official until the Electoral College vote in December.
• Biden, who was vice president under the Obama administration, has pledged to expand free college and support workforce training as well as historically Black colleges and other minority-serving institutions.
• His win also promises to undo several Trump administration initiatives that have affected higher education, including changes to immigration policies and oversight of Title IX, the federal law banning sex discrimination on college campuses.

Dive Insight:

Unlike Trump, who in his four years has displayed some antagonism toward higher ed, Biden has pledged to invest heavily in the sector.

His campaign website outlines some of these measures, with a focus on institutions that have historically been overlooked or underfunded, including HBCUs and community colleges. Biden has said he would invest $18 billion in grants for low- and middle-income students to attend four-year MSIs.

Biden broadened his initial proposal of tuition-free community college by pledging to allow any student whose family earns under $125,000 a year to attend a four-year public school without paying tuition. He also wants to double the maximum Pell Grant award and allow formerly incarcerated individuals to use them.

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