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Read. Follow. Verify.Congressional Hearing: Oversight of For-Profit Colleges and Student Debt
Record date · January 1, 2019
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What This Bill Does
The House on Economic and Consumer Policy held a hearing on May 22, 2019, to investigate the oversight of s and the impact of school closures on student debt. The hearing examined the rapid growth and subsequent collapse of several major for-profit education chains and heard testimony from former students, legal experts, and Department of Education officials.
This hearing serves as a formal inquiry into federal regulatory failures and the financial consequences for students left with debt after the sudden closure of chains.
Who It Affects
Groups the bill's text affects, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Former students of closed for-profit colleges
These individuals face potential loss of educational credit and ongoing student loan obligations following the closure of their institutions.
Department of Education
The agency is responsible for the federal oversight and regulatory framework governing for-profit institutions.
Key Facts
- Enrollment at for-profit colleges tripled during the Great Recession of the late 2000s.
- By 2010, for-profit college enrollment reached over 2 million students.
- Revenue for the for-profit college sector grew by over 600 percent leading up to 2010.
- Corinthian Colleges collapsed in 2015.
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- ITT Tech collapsed in 2016.
- Education Corporation of America and Dream Center Schools closed in the six months prior to the May 2019 hearing.
- The hearing included testimony from two panels: one featuring former students and legal experts, and one featuring a Department of Education official.
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News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceFull breakdown
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Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Recession-Driven Enrollment
The document highlights a direct correlation between the Great Recession and the rapid expansion of for-profit college enrollment.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.govinfo.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance75How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy65Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment30Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz20Current news / social attention level
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