Reexamining the Federal Role in Higher Education

2024 Society of Professors of Education Outstanding Book Award

2022 American Educational Studies Association Critics' Choice Book Award

2022 Royal Dragonfly Book Award for Politics and Education

This book provides a comprehensive description of the federal government’s relationship with higher education and how that relationship became so expansive and indispensable over time. Drawing from constitutional law, social science research, federal policy documents, and original interviews with key policy insiders, the author explores the U.S. government’s role in regulating, financing, and otherwise influencing higher education. Natow analyzes how the government’s role has evolved over time, the activities of specific governmental branches and agencies that affect higher education, the nature of the government’s influence today, and prospects for the future of federal involvement in higher education. Chapters examine the politics and practices that shape policies affecting nondiscrimination and civil rights, student financial aid, educational quality and student success, campus crime, research and development, intellectual property, student privacy, and more.

Book Features:

• Provides a contemporary and thorough understanding of how federal higher education policies are created, implemented, and influenced by federal and nonfederal policy actors.
• Situates higher education policy within the constitutional, political, and historical contexts of the federal government.
• Offers nuanced perspectives informed by insider information about what occurs behind the scenes in the federal higher education policy arena.
• Includes case studies illustrating the profound effects federal policy processes have on the everyday lives of college students, their families, institutions, and other higher education stakeholders.

Rebecca S. Natow is an assistant professor of educational leadership and policy in the Department of Specialized Programs in Education at Hofstra University.

“An accurate, concise survey of the federal role in US higher education.”

—CHOICE

“Although higher education is commonly assumed to be the primary responsibility of states, all branches of the federal government and numerous federal agencies influence some aspect of higher education. Drawing on multiple sources of data, including interviews with policy observers, this book offers useful insights into the complex and multifaceted relationship between higher education and the federal government, the forces that influence the federal government’s role, and how this role has changed over time. Relevant reading for anyone who cares about influencing federal higher education policy, especially in this polarized political environment.”
—Laura W. Perna, GSE Centennial Presidential Professor of Education, University of Pennsylvania

“Reexamining the Federal Role in Higher Education is both comprehensive and meticulous, full of interesting, little-known historical details and relevant examples from current events. Natow drives home the vast scope and complexity of the federal role in higher education. The book provides a complete and well-structured overview for newcomers to the field, and will be a valuable resource for any higher education stakeholder interested not only in how the sausage gets made, but how the sausage-maker came to be in the first place.”
—Judith Scott-Clayton, professor of economics and education, Teachers College, Columbia University

“Natow’s analysis significantly deepens our understanding of recent decades’ dramatic shifts in federal approaches to higher education. By comprehensively assaying the many aspects of federal action in higher education, illuminating largely unexamined developments, and calling into question some accepted wisdom, Natow has provided a valuable new resource for policymakers, institutional leaders, and researchers.”
—James C. Hearn, professor and associate director, Louise McBee Institute of Higher Education, University of Georgia

Contents

Acknowledgments xi

Introduction 1
Federal Higher Education Policy Areas 3
Guiding Questions, Perspectives, and Methods 8
Preview of the Remainder of the Book 12

1.  The Federal Structure and Higher Education Policy 15
Federalism in the United States 15
Federal Powers and Politics 20
Constitutional Provisions and Policy Instruments 25
Summary and Conclusion 31

2.  The History of the Federal Government’s Role in Higher Education 33
Higher Education’s Early Expansion: 1780s–1920s 34
The Post–World War I Era, Great Depression, and New Deal: 1920s–1940s 38
Higher Education and the National Defense: 1940s–1950s 39
The Civil Rights Movement and Steps Toward Equity: 1930s–1970s 42
Consumerism and Accountability: 1970s–2020s 48
Summary and Conclusion 51

3.  Congress’s Roles in Higher Education 53
Structure of Congress 54
Congress’s Legislative Power 59
Congressional Oversight Powers 64
Senate Confirmation Power 66
The Congressional “Bully Pulpit” 67
Congressional Power Case Study: The CARES Act 69
Summary and Conclusion 69

4.  The President’s Power and Influence Over Higher Education 71
Overview of the Presidency and Executive Branch 72
The President’s Legislative Role in Higher Education Policymaking 73
Executive Action 75
Using the “Bully Pulpit” and Presidential Messaging 80
Policymaking in the White House 81
Presidential Power Case Study: International Students and Scholars 88
Summary and Conclusion 89

5.  Federal Administrative Agencies and Higher Education 91
Overview of Federal Administrative Agencies 92
Policy Powers of Federal Agencies 94
Federal Agencies Influencing Higher Education 101
Agency Power Case Study: Borrower Defense to Repayment 110
Summary and Conclusion 111

6.  Higher Education and the Federal Courts 113
Overview of the Federal Court System 114
Federal Courts’ Jurisdiction and Powers 117
Key Higher Education Policy Areas Affected by the Federal Judiciary 119
Judicial Power Case Study: Bankruptcy Courts 125
Summary and Conclusion 126

7.  Nonfederal Actors’ Influence on Federal Higher Education Policy 127
Interest Groups 128
State and Local Governments 134
Accreditors 138
News Media 140
Other Nonfederal Actors 141
Summary and Conclusion 144

8.  Reexamining the Federal Role in Higher Education 147
Returning to the Guiding Questions 148
Revisiting Perspectives on the Size of Government 159
Summary and Conclusion 161

Methodological Appendix 163
Interview Data 163
Documentary Data 165

Notes 167

References 171

Index 221

About the Author 245

2022 American Educational Studies Association (AESA) Critics' Choice Book Award

2022 Royal Dragonfly Book Award for Politics and Education