[Senate Hearing 117-179]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
S. Hrg. 117-179
NOMINATION OF JAMES KVAAL
TO SERVE AS UNDER SECRETARY
OF EDUCATION
=======================================================================
HEARING
OF THE
COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, EDUCATION,
LABOR, AND PENSIONS
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
FIRST SESSION
ON
EXAMINING THE NOMINATION OF JAMES RICHARD KVAAL, OF MASSACHUSETTS, TO
BE UNDER SECRETARY OF EDUCATION
__________
APRIL 15, 2021
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and
Pensions
[GRAPHIC NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.govinfo.gov
__________
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
46-759 PDF WASHINGTON : 2022
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COMMITTEE ON HEALTH, EDUCATION, LABOR, AND PENSIONS
PATTY MURRAY, Washington, Chair
BERNIE SANDERS (I), Vermont RICHARD BURR, North Carolina,
ROBERT P. CASEY, JR., Pennsylvania Ranking Member
TAMMY BALDWIN, Wisconsin RAND PAUL, M.D., Kentucky
CHRISTOPHER S. MURPHY, Connecticut SUSAN M. COLLINS, Maine
TIM KAINE, Virginia BILL CASSIDY, M.D., Louisiana
MAGGIE HASSAN, New Hampshire LISA MURKOWSKI, Alaska
TINA SMITH, Minnesota MIKE BRAUN, Indiana
JACKY ROSEN, Nevada ROGER MARSHALL, M.D., Kansas
BEN RAY LUJAN, New Mexico TIM SCOTT, South Carolina
JOHN HICKENLOOPER, Colorado MITT ROMNEY, Utah
TOMMY TUBERVILLE, Alabama
JERRY MORAN, Kansas
Evan T. Schatz, Staff Director
David P. Cleary, Republican Staff Director
John Righter, Deputy Staff Director
C O N T E N T S
----------
STATEMENTS
THURSDAY, APRIL 15, 2021
Page
Committee Members
Murray, Hon. Patty, Chair, Committee on Health, Education, Labor,
and Pensions, Opening statement................................ 1
Burr, Hon. Richard, Ranking Member, a U.S. Senator from the State
of North Carolina, Opening statement........................... 2
Witnesses
Kvaal, James, of Massachusetts, to be Under Secretary of
Education...................................................... 6
Prepared statement........................................... 8
ADDITIONAL MATERIAL
Statements, articles, publications, letters, etc.
Murray, Hon. Patty:
Letters of support for James Kvaal, of Massachusetts, to be
Under Secretary of Education............................... 29-36
NOMINATION OF JAMES KVAAL
TO SERVE AS UNDER SECRETARY
OF EDUCATION
----------
Thursday, April 15, 2021
U.S. Senate,
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions,
Washington, DC.
The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:05 a.m., in
Room 430, Dirksen Senate Office Building, Hon. Patty Murray,
Chair of the Committee, presiding.
Present: Senators Murray [presiding], Baldwin, Kaine,
Hassan, Smith, Rosen, Hickenlooper, Burr, Thune, Cassidy,
Braun, and Tuberville.
OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR MURRAY
The Chair. [Technical problems.] The Senate Health,
Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee will please come to
order. Today we are holding a hearing on the nomination of
James Kvaal to serve as Under Secretary of Education. Senator
Burr and I will each have an opening statement and then I will
turn it over to Congressman George Miller to introduce Mr.
Kvaal. After Mr. Kvaal's testimony, Senators will have five
minutes each for a round of questions. And I will stay for a
second round if any Senators have any remaining questions.
Before we begin, I want to walk through the COVID-19 safety
protocols in place. We will follow the advice of the Attending
Physician and the Sergeant-at-Arms in conducting this hearing.
We are, again, all very grateful to our Clerks and everyone who
has worked hard to set this up and help everyone stay safe and
healthy. Committee Members are seated at least six feet apart,
and some Senators are participating by video conference. And
while we were unable to have the hearing fully open to the
public or media for in-person attendance, live video is
available on our Committee website at help.senate.gov. And if
you are in need of accommodations, including closed captioning,
you can reach out to the Committee or the Office of
Congressional Accessibility Services.
We received James Kvaal's formal nomination on February
22nd, his office of Government Ethics paperwork, including his
public financial disclosures and ethics agreement, on February
24th, and his Committee paperwork on March 26th. Mr. Kvaal,
thank you so much for joining us today. It is nice to be able
to see you here in person. And I am pleased to welcome also
your wife, Stephanie, and your mother Martha, who I understand
is with you as well. I think everyone here is encouraged by the
progress our Nation continues to make toward ending the COVID-
19 crisis, but we are also well aware of the challenge before
us isn't just ending this pandemic but rebuilding stronger and
fairer. Because while this pandemic has made life harder for
students pursuing a higher education by disrupting their
classrooms and dorms and challenging their mental health and
upending the economy and creating uncertainty for students
already struggling to pay their tuition and rent and food and
other basic needs, the painful reality is higher education was
at a crisis point well before the pandemic struck.
Before COVID-19, student debt was already historically
high. The cost of higher education was already relentlessly on
the rise. The roots of systemic racism were already deep and
damaging, and campus sexual assault was already an epidemic.
And after COVID-19, these problems will remain as urgent as
ever. That is why it is so important we have leaders like Dr.
Kvaal at the Department of Education who have the drive and the
experience to tackle them. As President of the Institute for
College Access and Success, Mr. Kvaal has testified before
Congress and led the public discussion on issues like
strengthening Pell Grants, simplifying the FAFSA, supporting
student loan borrowers, and increasing state and Federal
investments in higher education. And in his previous work under
President Obama as Deputy Under Secretary of Education and
later as Deputy Director of the Domestic Policy Council, Mr.
Kvaal helped to implement one of the largest overhauls of
student aid, which ended wasteful subsidies to banks in our
student loan system, and massively expanded the Pell Grant
program to create the College Scorecard, which provides
students more information about the outcomes of the schools
they are considering, and to develop the gainful employment
rule, which protected students and taxpayers from predatory,
for profit colleges that left students with debt they could not
repay.
Given everything the previous administration did to
undermine this critical work over the last four years,
President Biden could not have picked a better candidate to get
things back on track. I have no doubt that when confirmed, Mr.
Kvaal will fight for students and against special interests
because it is what he is always done. Mr. Kvaal's record shows
he is clearly qualified to serve as Under Secretary of
Education, and I am pleased to support his nomination. I also
look forward to working with Mr. Kvaal to make sure higher
education is affordable, accessible, accountable, and safe for
every student.
Finally, I seek unanimous consent to put on the record
eight letters in support of Mr. Kvaal's nomination from more
than 80 education advocacy groups, educators, and colleges and
universities. So ordered.
[The information referred to can be found on pages 29-36]
The Chair. With that, I will recognize Ranking Member Burr
for his opening remarks.
OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR BURR
Senator Burr. Thank you, Madam Chair, and thank you for
scheduling this nomination hearing for James Kvaal. Welcome,
and to your wife and to your mother, again. I hope you are both
proud. You should be. I want to thank the Chair for agreeing to
hold this hearing, to consider the nomination of someone who,
if confirmed, will hold arguably the third most powerful
position in the Department of Education. If confirmed, Mr.
Kvaal will be the third in line of succession after the
Secretary and Deputy Secretary. And you would be the most
senior political official in the department overseeing programs
and policies related to higher education, vocational adult
education, and the White House initiative on historically Black
colleges and universities. Most critically, you would be
trusted to manage the approximate $1.6 trillion student loan
debt portfolio managed by the Office of Federal Student Aid.
Therefore, I look forward to this hearing and to hearing
more about your vision for Federal student aid and the
appropriate role for the Federal Government moving forward in
higher education and the workforce. Mr. Kvaal, you come before
this Committee with significant experience in higher education,
including your time in the Obama administration. However, your
work within the President Obama's White House and in the
Department of Education raises some concerns for me because it
shows that you believe solutions should come from unelected
administrative appointees rather than the hard work of Members
of Congress elected by the people negotiating lasting
solutions. There is the college rating plan, the borrowed
defense rule, and the gainful employment fiasco.
The first, gainful employment rule finalized during the
Obama administration was struck down by the Federal courts as
being arbitrary and capricious. Undeterred, you tried again
taking two words that had been in law for decades without being
tied to consequences or accountability and statute and
developed a 900 page regulation of extraordinary complexity
aimed at certain institutions over others, which was inherently
politically motivated to hurt for profit institutions when not
for profits, with similarly bad measures, were left free to
operate.
These regulatory efforts, which by all accounts were driven
in large part by you, have set off a proverbial seesaw for
higher education regulation from administration to
administration. That is not good for our country and I hope you
will agree that lasting solutions come through the legislative
process. Finally, I want to carefully point out your close
proximity to potentially unethical conduct at the department
under the Obama administration. Proximity being the key word
here, not central involvement, otherwise this would be a
different conversation.
Official emails being sent to and from private emails,
close collaboration with short sellers on market moving
information, and an administration official using his old
advocacy organizations and their emails to try to hide the
public scrutiny in furtherance of a partisan objective. Noting
that no charges were ultimately made, I am going to give you
the benefit of the doubt given your background in higher
education. But as I suggested, concerning allegations raised
against Cindy Marten, I know that my colleagues on the other
side of the aisle would be screaming from the rooftops about a
nomination of someone who would had been involved even remotely
with providing deliberative and confidential regulatory
information to short sellers on Wall Street.
I am glad their hypocrisy in evaluating nominees has ended,
and I hope it stays that way when the next Republican President
comes to office. You have deep expertise in higher education,
and with the Secretary and deputy Secretary with little to no
higher education policy experience, you are going to play a key
role in all these areas. My staff has assured me that while you
are a committed partisan, you are also enjoyable to work with
and willing to listen and work on compromises. I do want to
work with you on these issues, if confirmed.
That said, I want to be clear about some worries that I
have about proposals by some of my colleagues on the other side
of the aisle, as well as suggestions within the Biden
administration to cancel extraordinary amounts of outstanding
Federal loan debt. I firmly believe this is the wrong solution
to what I think most of us agree are challenges faced by many
current and future student loan borrowers. Higher Education
Act, or HEA, was enacted in 1965. Are we supposed to believe
that for the last 56 years that the HEA has been in place the
Secretary has been unable to cancel vast amounts of debt for
every single borrower in the United States this whole time and
we just didn't know about it until now? Not the case. Mr.
Kvaal, I must be honest with you and with everyone else on this
Committee, this does not pass the laugh test.
Importantly, I believe the negative implications of
unilaterally canceling outstanding Federal student loan debt
would be more than enough to deem this policy bad. For
starters, this has a one-time cost of as much as $1 trillion,
shifting the burden to unsuspecting taxpayers. Many of those
taxpayers paid their student loan debt. It is also a regressive
policy, meaning it would benefit the rich, mostly people who
are already earning more because of their college education. It
would be a huge gift, particularly for Americans with student
loan debt from graduate school who disproportionately earn
higher incomes.
It is also a very poorly targeted use of Federal resources
that does nothing to benefit the more than 200 million
Americans that do not have student loan debt and never attended
college. Finally, the promise of canceling mass amounts of
student loan creates a significant moral hazard. When borrowers
take out student loans from the Federal Government, there is an
expectation that loan will be repaid. When the Government
relieves and forgives that expectation for borrowers, this
creates a new expectation that future borrowers will receive
the same treatment. So in two years, we would expect to see
another massive pile of debt and a whole new group of students
demanding forgiveness.
Therefore students and institutions will change their
behavior and make riskier choices because they expect that they
will never have to repay these loans. So we know what will
happen if we cancel tens of thousands of dollars' worth of
student loans for individual borrowers. What will stop schools
from raising tuition and digging an even deeper hole? Finally--
excuse me. Most important part, James. Without institutional
accountability, will you be asking the American taxpayer to
foot another loan forgiveness scheme in every 5, 10, 15, 20
years? Where does it end?
In addition to asking colleges and universities to play
their part to stem this debt spiral, I have a better idea for a
loan repayment. A few weeks ago, my colleague and I, Angus
King, reintroduced the Repay Act. I know you are familiar with
it. Instead of making students choose between nine unique loan
repayment plans, our plan would allow borrowers to choose
between two simple plans. The first is what most borrowers
already pay now, a fixed 10 year repayment option. The second
is a simplified, income driven repayment plan. It
simultaneously accounts for how much a student borrowed and how
much they currently earn. Very low income borrowers or
borrowers who make below 150 percent of Federal poverty line
would have a zero dollar payment. Borrowers with more modest
income would still have a low monthly payment, equal to 10
percent of their earnings above the 150 percent of poverty
line.
Higher income borrowers would pay 10 percent on the first
$25,000 dollars of their discretionary income, and 15 percent
on the income above that. Finally, our plan would provide loan
forgiveness after 20 years of payments for undergraduate
students and 25 years for graduate students. I believe the
Repay Act is a commonsense solution to our very overcomplicated
student loan repayment system. It is fair to students. More
importantly, it is fair to taxpayers.
Mr. Kvaal, if confirmed, I look forward to working with you
on this pragmatic bipartisan solution and others, and I hope
you will do the same. Thank you for the time we spent together
this morning. I believe that we can work with suggestions of
the past that can legislatively make it through the
difficulties of the U.S. Senate today, that are not impossible,
if in fact we form a partnership to do it. I thank the Chair.
The Chair. Thank you, Ranking Member Burr. And now I am
going to turn it over to Congressman Miller, who will introduce
Mr. Kvaal.
Congressman Miller. Thank you, Madam Chair, Ranking Member,
and the Members of the Committee. I am honored to be here
today. I am delighted to be here today to have the opportunity
to introduce James Kvaal. A former member of my Committee
staff, James is before you today and President Biden's nominee
to serve as Under Secretary of Education. While I am sorry that
I am unable to be with you in person, I am pleased that James's
wife and mother, as you have already noted Madam Chair, are in
the hearing room and James is currently on paternity leave. His
3 month old son, Joseph is at home with James's father. And I
should say hello to his father.
As Members of this Committee know, colleges, universities,
trade schools, and graduate schools play key roles in helping
American workers access skills that lead to middle class income
and a better life. As Buzz Lightyear used to say, to infinity
and beyond, for these people. Madam Chair and Ranking Member
Burr, you know this from the outstanding higher education
systems in your home States of Washington and in North
Carolina, and many Members of the Committee know this from the
state systems that they run there, the university and college
systems, and the community college systems.
These programs are excellent and can be found in so many
states across the country, but too many students face rising
cost, ever growing debt, widening inequality. On top of that
those problems, the pandemic led many students to postpone
college, impaired the learning of some enrolled, and devastated
state and college budgets. The Under Secretary of Education
will play a key role in finding solutions to these problems by
coordinating policies and programs related to Federal student
aid, higher education, career and technical education.
James Kvaal is prepared to meet the moment with laser
focus, making sure that all Americans can access affordable
higher education, free of discrimination and that they can
achieve their educational goals and aspirations. For more than
two decades, he has worked in the public service with the
overriding goal of helping more Americans from all backgrounds
graduate from college. In addition to his work on the House
Education Labor Committee, he has been a staff member here in
the Senate and served two Presidents in the White House in the
U.S. Department of Education. James is a gain--additional
perspectives from his time on the faculty at the University of
Michigan, and in law school at Harvard. That is hard for me to
say from the West Coast. But now--he was the President of the
Institute for College Access and Success, a nonprofit
organization that has--that he has degrees from Stanford and
Harvard.
The question is not about his competency, the question is
really about his drive and his determination to improve the
higher education system and all education systems in this
country. I know from my time working with him, he cares deeply
about facts and evidence. He is tireless in his advocacy of
young people and their families. James is a careful listener
who looks for common ground and is respected by his peers on
both sides of the aisle. He understands the complexities of
higher education policy, seeks to understand the competing
perspectives, and he values accountability and transparency.
For those of you who are meeting James for the first time
today, I think you will soon share my view that the President
has made an excellent choice. For those of you who have worked
with James, you already know that he is exceptionally well
qualified and a gifted leader in this field. I want to thank
you so much for giving me the opportunity to express my support
for James's confirmation as President Biden's Under Secretary
of Education. Thank you.
The Chair. Thank you, Congressman Miller. It looks like you
are sitting where we would all rather be than in a hearing room
today. Thank you for taking the time to join us today.
Congressman Miller. Thank you very much.
The Chair. With that, we will turn it over to Mr. Kvaal.
You may now begin your testimony.
STATEMENT OF JAMES KVAAL OF MASSACHUSETTS, TO BE UNDER
SECRETARY OF EDUCATION
Mr. Kvaal. Chair Murray, Ranking Member Burr, and Members
of the Committee, it is humbling to be before you today. Two
decades ago, I sat in this room as a Legislative Assistant to a
Member of this Committee and I could not have imagined that I
would someday find myself at this table. I want to thank
President Biden for the honor of this nomination. I thank the
Members of this Committee for the experienced insight that you
have shared in our conversations in recent days and for the
consideration you are giving me today. And I thank Mr. Miller
for his exceptionally kind introduction and his decades of
public service.
As has been mentioned, I am joined here today by my wife,
Stephanie, and my mother, Martha. Stephanie and I have an
infant son, Joseph, who is home with my father. And Stephanie
and I hope to share with Joseph two great gifts that my parents
gave to me. The first was an excellent education. I attended
strong public schools and with the help of Pell Grants and
student loans and my parents sacrifices, I attended two great
research universities. Every young person should have the same
opportunities that those schools created for me.
The second is a commitment to giving back to something
greater than myself. My mother showed her idealism every day by
putting her heart and soul into a civil service job. She
believed in Government service as a way to improve the lives of
her fellow Americans, and inspired by her, I have spent my
career in public service. 25 years ago, my first permanent job
was working on financial aid at the U.S. Department of
Education. Among the career employees and political employees
there, I found people whose talent and depth of commitment
reminded me of my mother. I saw how Secretary Dick Riley
treated every single person with respect and inspired each
member of the team to do their best work.
As a congressional staffer, I saw how George Miller
combined idealism and legislative skill, and in other positions
in the Senate, the White House and the Department of Education,
I was fortunate to learn from great leaders like Arne Duncan
and Cecilia Munoz. Most recently, I have led a nonprofit called
the Institute for College Access and Success that conducts
research into higher education policy. In each position, I
sought to expand the circle of college opportunity, increase
college scholarships, and make student loans easier to repay.
I have come to believe that few, if any, institutions have
as much potential to meet America's challenges as our colleges
and universities do. They can boost people out of poverty,
raise living standards, and while there's no silver bullet to
racial injustices, colleges can do as much as any single
institution to promote opportunity. University research also
points the way on many of our country's most important
challenges. To take advantage of that potential though we need
to face three challenges first. And the first is the damage
caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. More than half a million
students have not enrolled this year, and some may never
return. Colleges, some are already financially fragile, are
struggling with higher costs and lower revenues.
Students face academic gaps, new mental health challenges,
and are likely to face a weak job market for years to come. If
I am confirmed as Under Secretary, I will work every day to get
students in colleges the resources and guidance they need to
recover. Second, there is a crisis in the student loan program.
For too long, the easy answer to rising college costs has been
larger and larger loans. During the Great Recession, state
funding fell dramatically, and student debt rose dramatically.
Young people are beginning their careers in a hole, and in
particular, the crisis among Black borrowers should weigh on
our conscious as policymakers. We should explore ways to
provide relief for students under the burden of student loan
debt while helping current and future students with affordable
options for college.
Finally, we need to invest in making colleges a more
reliable, more inclusive path to the middle class. Too often
students do not complete their program, or a degree does not
lead to a career. We can do better. Community colleges in New
York cities have found ways to nearly double graduation rates.
San Antonio colleges offer adult retraining programs and health
care that break the cycle of poverty. We should invest in
colleges committed to expanding opportunity, including
community colleges, historically Black colleges and
universities, minority serving institutions and others.
We should support all kinds of successful post-secondary
education and training programs, not just those that lead to
four year degrees. I am inspired by the opportunity to serve
President Biden and Secretary Cardona, whose ideas are as big
as these challenges. Many Members of this Committee to have
compelling solutions that will support our recovery.
If you decide to support my confirmation, I promise to put
my whole heart into working with you to offer all young people
the same opportunities I hope to offer my son. Thank you. I
look forward to the conversation.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Kvaal follows:]
prepared statement of james kvaal
Chair Murray, Ranking Member Burr, and Members of the Committee:
It is humbling to be before you today. Two decades ago, I sat in
this room as a legislative assistant to a Member of this Committee. I
could not have imagined that I would someday find myself at this table.
I want to thank President Biden for the honor of this nomination. I
thank the Members of the Committee for sharing their experience and
insight in our recent conversations and for the consideration you are
giving me today.
I'm joined here today by my wife Stephanie. Stephanie and I hope to
share with our infant son, Joseph, two great gifts my parents gave to
me.
The first is an excellent education. I attended strong public
schools and--with the help of Pell grants, student loans, and my
parents' sacrifices--went on to two great research universities. Every
young person should have the same opportunities those schools created
for me.
The second is a commitment to giving back to something greater than
yourself. My mother showed her idealism every day by putting her heart
and soul into a civil service job. She believed in government service
as a way to improve Americans' lives. Inspired by her, I have spent my
career in public service.
Twenty-five years ago, my first permanent job was working on
financial aid at the U.S. Department of Education. Among the career
employees and political appointees there, I found people whose talent
and depth of commitment reminded me of my mother. I saw how Secretary
Dick Riley treated every single person with respect and inspired each
member of his team to do their best work.
As a congressional staffer, I saw how George Miller combined
idealism and legislative skill. Through other positions in the Senate,
the White House, and the Department of Education, I was fortunate to
have the opportunity to learn from other great education leaders like
Arne Duncan, Cecilia Munoz, and others. Most recently, I led a
nonprofit called The Institute for College Access & Success that
conducts research into higher education policy. In each position, I
sought to expand the circle of college opportunity, increase college
scholarships, and make student loans easier to repay.
I have come to believe that few, if any institutions have as much
potential to meet America's most important challenges as our colleges
and universities do. They can boost people out of poverty and raise
living standards. While there is no silver bullet to eradicating racial
injustice, colleges can do as much as any single institution to
equalize opportunity. And at a time when, too often, we talk past one
another, colleges can foster the exchange of new perspectives and
promote empathy and understanding.
To take advantage of that potential, though, we need to face three
challenges. The first is the damage caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
More than 500,000 fewer students enrolled this year, and many may never
return. Colleges, some already financially fragile, are struggling with
higher costs and lower revenues. Students will face academic gaps,
mental health needs, and a weak job market for years to come. If I am
confirmed as Under Secretary, I will work every day to get students and
colleges the resources and guidance they need.
Second, there is a crisis in the student loan program. For too
long, the easy answer to rising college costs has been larger and
larger loans. During the Great Recession, state funding fell by $2,000
per student at public colleges, while annual borrowing grew by $1,100.
Young people bear the weight of beginning their careers in a hole due
to large college debts. In particular, the crisis among Black
borrowers--more than a third of whom default within 12 years--should
weigh on our consciences. We need to continue to explore ways to
provide relief for students under the burden of loan debt, while
helping current and future students with affordable options.
Finally, we need to invest in making colleges a more reliable, more
inclusive path to the middle class. Too often, students do not complete
their program or their degree does not lead to a career. We can do
better. We know this can be done. For example, community colleges in
New York City, Chicago, and Fort Worth have found ways to nearly double
graduation rates. San Antonio colleges offer adult retraining programs
in health care and other fields that break the cycle of poverty.
We should invest in colleges committed to expanding opportunity,
including community colleges, Historically Black Colleges and
Universities, Minority-Serving Institutions, and others. We should
support all kinds of successful education and training programs, not
just those that lead to four-year degrees.
I am inspired by the opportunity to serve President Biden and
Secretary Cardona, whose ideas are as big as these challenges. Many
Members of this Committee have compelling solutions of their own that
will support our recovery.
If you decide to support my confirmation, I promise to put my whole
heart into working with you to offer all young people the same
opportunities I hope to offer my son.
Thank you. I look forward to our discussion.
______
The Chair. Thank you very much. We will now begin a round
of five minute questions, and I asked my colleagues to please
keep track of the clock and stay within those five minutes. Mr.
Kvaal, across the country, students and borrowers face the
substantial and rising price of college and the looming
possibility of restarting loan payments that are currently
halted due to the pandemic. We know issues of access and
affordability can have the greatest impacts on students of
color.
The pandemic has compounded the inequities that students of
color already experience. And on top of this, the colleges that
are most likely to serve our students of color continue to be
underfunded. If confirmed, where do you see the strongest
opportunities to close longstanding racial equity gaps in
higher education, including funding, affordability, and student
debt?
Mr. Kvaal. Senator, thank you for the question and for your
long standing commitment to equity in higher education. I think
there are three parts of President Biden's agenda that are
particularly important, and one is looking at student debts
that exist now and students can't afford to repay. And we see a
lot of students whose loans are getting larger rather than
smaller as they struggle to repay those loans, particularly
among Black students. The second is making college more
affordable for current and future students, and that means
invested in eliminating tuition at public colleges and
universities, doubling Pell grants.
The third would be putting a particular focus on those
institutions that you mentioned that serve the highest
proportions of low income students and students of color, like
community colleges, historically Black colleges and
universities, and minority serving institutions.
The Chair. Okay, very good. You know, helping students and
their families meet basic needs like food and housing and child
care and health care has to be a top priority for the
department. We have to support the whole student to make sure
they can succeed academically. And unfortunately, recent data
reveals what a challenge this is going to be. A survey released
by the Hope Center two weeks ago shows that more than half of
the students continue to report basic needs insecurity. And
many other students just dropped out of school.
Beginning in March 2010, Congress provided billions of
dollars of emergency financial aid grants to help students
during this pandemic. And Congress just passed another round of
$20 billion for those grants in the American Rescue Plan.
However, in that same Hope Center survey, two thirds of
students who struggled with food and housing and basic needs
and security said they were not able to access those emergency
aid grants.
That was in large part due to poor implementation of the
CARES Act by the previous administration and really a lack of
clear guidance to those students on how to access that
emergency aid. While we are hopefully over the worst of the
COVID-19 pandemic, there is a lot more work that needs to be
done to better support students whose basic needs are not
currently being met.
If confirmed, will you make it a priority to help connect
students to those basic needs supports, including the emergency
financial aid grants that were included in the American Rescue
Plan?
Mr. Kvaal. I will. It will be a top priority of mine.
The Chair. Will you bring a whole of Government approach to
working with all the relevant Federal agencies to streamline
and automate access to the benefit programs?
Mr. Kvaal. I will.
The Chair. Well, thank you very much. I really appreciate
it.
Senator Burr.
Senator Burr. Thank you, Madam Chair. You know, I am often
asked these days, what does the world look like post-COVID?
What is Congress going to do for the balance of this year?
Crystal ball is not very good. Somehow the crystal ball is good
enough for us to say that if you are Black or brown, then there
is no way for you to make a loan repayment--if you are a
minority. If you come from this part of the country, that part
of the country, you may or may not be able to--I don't know how
we arbitrarily make that determination. Now, you made a
statement that I just found to be incredible.
We want to eliminate tuition at public institutions. Who is
going to pay for that? Do we expect the taxpayers of those
states who are already subsidizing higher education and in
North Carolina, we have subsidized--we started at 66 percent,
which was a year, years ago and I think we are down to about 48
percent from the legislature of those public institutions? And
that has sort of thrown everything into a bucket that some of
them are HBCUs, some of them are prominent universities like NC
State and the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill.
Do we--and we say that tuition is unaffordable across the
board. But under this scenario, we are either going to raise
that tuition that we don't charge for at the taxpayer level or
we are going to raise the tuition for everybody else at the
institution to pay for the ones that are now free. Is that
fair?
Mr. Kvaal. Well, Senator, thank you for the question. We
have seen a pattern now for decades where in every recession,
states faced budget crises that lead them to make deep cuts in
higher education funding. And that is the primary factor in
rising tuition at community colleges and public universities,
where almost three quarters of students go, and a big factor in
rising debt levels. And so I believe that a new partnership
between the Federal Government and states is needed to make
sure that public colleges and universities are affordable for
all students.
Senator Burr. Let me just interpret, and tell me whether I
am wrong. So for the states that won't subsidize public
education so it is affordable for the most at risk students,
which my State of North Carolina continues to do, you are going
to penalize North Carolina that did it right, and you are going
to subsidize the ones that wouldn't prioritize public education
in their states.
If the states won't fill the gap between affordability and
what a student can pay, then the Federal taxpayer is going to
do that. And somehow North Carolina does it right today, but
states that don't are going to be the ones that drive this new
policy. Is that an accurate statement?
Mr. Kvaal. Hopefully we will have the opportunity to work
together on this legislation. And I think it is really going to
be important to think about how resources are allocated among
states in a way that does not penalize states like North
Carolina that successfully cap tuition.
Senator Burr. Well, let me just--let me extrapolate that
over to student loans for just a second. The approach that some
are suggesting is that a doctor is treated just like an
individual that had a sociology degree. Sociology might have a
lower earnings capacity over their lifetime with a degree than
a lawyer, but we are just going to do away with the loans that
both of them have. Is that fair?
Mr. Kvaal. Well----
Senator Burr. One of them clearly has the capacity to repay
the loan.
Mr. Kvaal. What President Biden has suggested is that we
need to think about a couple of different kinds of loan
forgiveness. One is a temporary form of loan forgiveness
directed at people struggling with the pandemic. A second would
be for those in public service. And a third would be for those
with low incomes and high debts. I think that is a general--as
a general matter, that is a good structure for thinking about
how do we identify those loans that are weighing people down
and that they are struggling with and unable to afford.
Senator Burr. Given that by the end of May, every American
who wants to be vaccinated will have been vaccinated, can we
then cutoff the people that are adversely affected by COVID
because we can now replenish the workforce and the only thing
that we are talking about is last March to this June that
people have been financially impacted in a way that wouldn't
provide them the ability to pay their student loan, or is this
a program that we are going to put in place that extends well
into the future?
Mr. Kvaal. Well, I think some of these solutions do need to
be permanent solutions. Public service loan forgiveness, for
example. We need a permanent solution to that problem. I think
in terms of the immediate actions that we take this year, we
are in a situation that is unprecedented.
In the last recession, student debt was one third the level
that it is now. And so we do have millions of people who are
struggling. And it is not just a question for those households,
but it is also a broader challenge for our economy when
everybody is weighed down by student debt. And so I think, if
confirmed, I would be eager to work with you on how to design
that.
Senator Burr. I look forward to working with you. I think
the biggest distinction between before, 2008, 2009, and today
is we suspended the requirement to make student loan debts in,
so one can only expect that you would have a higher number
today based upon the increase in tuition, but also based on the
fact that last year we haven't required anybody to make that
student loan debt.
I am glad to see Coach Tuberville here because I don't
think there is anybody who has served in more institutions in
the U.S. Senate than he has, and I am sure he will have some
good comments. Thank you, Madam Chair.
The Chair. Thank you.
Senator Baldwin.
Senator Baldwin. Thank you, Madam Chair. I welcome Mr.
Powell to the HELP Committee. And it was great to see my former
colleague George Miller, in his introduction of you. Our Nation
faces significant challenges as we recover from the economic
downturn created by this pandemic. For many people, today's
financial hardships have led to existing related problems, the
high cost of college and Americans' mountain of student debt,
even worse.
After our last recession, America's community and technical
colleges played a critical role in helping folks affordably
acquire new skills and get connected to high quality jobs in
in-demand industries. That is why I will soon be reintroducing
the America's College Promise Act legislation that I have led
for several Congresses that would create a Federal, state
partnership to make two years of education at these
institutions tuition free.
Mr. Kvaal, I understand you actually worked on this concept
when President Obama first proposed it. Do you agree that this
measure could not only help address the issue that President
Obama was most focused on, college affordability, but also help
aid our economic recovery today?
Mr. Kvaal. Senator, I do. Thank you so much for your
leadership on these issues. And I think that community colleges
are really a very American institution and that they take
people from all walks of life, whatever level of academic
preparation they are at, whatever type of training or education
they need. And I think that makes them, one of the leading
purveyors of second chances in America, and investments in them
could do a lot to strengthen our economy and promote equity.
Senator Baldwin. Thank you. While we are making really
great strides in our fight against COVID-19 and have worked to
provide significant resources to colleges and universities to
assist them during this challenging time, I think the road
ahead of us is still pretty large. Institutions continue to
work on vaccinating their students, faculty, their staff,
finishing out their spring semesters, and planning for summer
and next fall with an eye toward greater normalcy.
They will continue to need the department's guidance and
assistance to do so. If confirmed, how do you plan to work in
partnership with other agencies, such as the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention, and other Federal agencies to
support colleges and universities as they move forward?
Mr. Kvaal. Thank you for the question. I agree
wholeheartedly that we have quite a bit of work to do, and that
students and colleges will be facing a number of challenges
related to the pandemic for some time to come. Part of the
question is public health guidance. And I am not a public
health expert, but I know that the CDC has worked very hard to
answer the questions that colleges and universities have.
I think there is also a role for the department in helping
colleges and universities learn from each other because a lot
of institutions are tackling these challenges, dealing with
questions about how to come back to campus safely and
equitably, how to address mental health challenges, how to
address any academic gaps. And I think there is a role for the
department to help colleges learn from each other.
Senator Baldwin. Well, thank you for that. As I noted
before, I believe career and technical education programs will
play a critical role in supporting our economic recovery. But
those very programs, both at the middle and high school levels
as well as at the community and technical colleges, have faced
significant challenges during the pandemic.
By public health necessity, many of the hands on training
experiences of CTE programs became unavailable, requiring a
challenging shift to online models of teaching and learning at
the post-secondary level. We saw significant drops in community
and technical college enrollments overall. So in short, at a
moment when we will have the greatest need for these programs,
they are facing significant challenges.
If confirmed, in your role overseeing the Office of Career
Technical and Adult Education, how would you help CTE programs
navigate these issues and meet the needs of our economic
recovery?
Mr. Kvaal. I agree entirely. I am a wholehearted supporter
of career and technical education and I think it is going to be
particularly important as the job market recovers and the jobs
that are being created coming forward may not be quite the same
as the jobs that existed before. So it will be really important
to help people gain skills to get good jobs as the economy
grows.
Obviously, it has been a particular challenge to deliver
high quality career and technical education in a virtual
environment. But there are people who are doing it
successfully. So I think it is important to develop and share
those best practices and find ways to invest more in the kinds
of programs suited to the conditions we are in today.
Senator Baldwin. Thank you. And Madam Chair, I yield back.
The Chair. Thank you.
Senator Cassidy.
Senator Cassidy. Thank you for offering your service. I
appreciate that. I am the lead Republican sponsor of the
College Transparency Act, which is a bipartisan, bicameral bill
that ensures that students, families, as well as those who are
interested, policymakers, researchers, etcetera, can easily
access high quality, postsecondary education to tell them where
to go to school.
For example, they can log on, and if I, whatever I look
like when I look in the mirror, whatever my socioeconomic
status, I would be able to find me in which school, in which
curriculum, and how much would I be expected to borrow, what is
my likelihood to graduate, and what money am I going to earn
when I graduate. If you get a petroleum engineering at the
school, how will you do or computer science versus if you get
gender studies at another school. What is your likelihood of
graduating with debt that you can pay off with your beginning
salary?
Now, DOE gets it, the department of Ed gets this
information already, but there is a ban on the Federal
Government collecting and reporting program level outcomes
data. So I guess my question is, one, how do you feel about
such a program? This is bipartisan by the way, our Democratic
colleagues in the Senate, and then both parties in the House.
How do you feel about it? And let me start with that and I will
ask a follow-up after that.
Mr. Kvaal. Senator, I am aware of and I commend your
longstanding work on this issue. I talked to many students and
parents who faced with one of the biggest investments of their
lives, are frustrated by the lack of information about some of
the questions that you just mentioned. I am not aware that the
Administration has a position on the piece of legislation you
mentioned, but in some of my prior writings, I have talked
about the importance of the College Transparency Act and
putting better information in the hands of students in ways
that are secure, and privacy protected.
Senator Cassidy. Okay with the concept, but you need kind
of the sign off from the Administration before you go forward?
Mr. Kvaal. Correct. I am not a member of the Administration
and I am not in a position to make policy commitments on behalf
of the Administration. But, I can share my personal opinion,
which is I think, repealing the student record ban would be a
big step forward.
Senator Cassidy. Sounds great. Let me ask you about this.
The student's IEP in K through 12 does not track through to
higher education.
For example, the child who was diagnosed with dyslexia,
which is a real interest of mine, may have to get reevaluated
when they go to college, even though one is diagnosed with
dyslexia in the first grade, you are dyslexic for the rest of
your life. This is just a question about how well you
compensate and how well you can otherwise function around it. I
am the co-sponsor of the RISE Act with Senator Casey, making
sure that students get the services and accommodations for
dyslexia that they may need in higher education.
Any thoughts upon that? I mean, again, I know that you
can't prescribe policy for the Administration, but I guess it
is more fundamental. Would you accept that if once a dyslexic,
always a dyslexic, and that if somebody is evaluated in fourth
grade, why make them pay for another evaluation before they
head off to school?
Mr. Kvaal. Senator, I think you are making a great point
there. And perhaps at some point we thought high school was for
everyone and college was not. But we are now at a point where
some kind of education or training after high school is more
and more important. And I think it is important for us to pay
very careful attention to the continuing inequities that face
students with disabilities in the post-secondary environment.
And that includes racial disparities. That includes making sure
that college instructors are trained in how to teach students
with disabilities. And, of course, all these challenges----
Senator Cassidy. My specific question is, what about if
somebody has got an IEP establishing that they are dyslexic and
K through 12, my specific question is, should that be allowed
to follow them into the university, or should they be forced to
pay for another evaluation?
Mr. Kvaal. I am sorry, I didn't mean to ramble on. I think
that is an idea that is very much worth studying. I don't
understand the full ramifications of that, but I would love to
meet with you and your staff to talk more about it.
Senator Cassidy. Sounds great. With that, Madam Chair, I
yield back.
The Chair. Thank you.
Senator Kaine.
Senator Kaine. Thank you, Chair Murray and Ranking Member
Burr. And Mr. Kvaal, good to be with you. First, thank you for
your career. There is a very straight through line in your
career in terms of what your passions are. You are a mission
driven person and that is very obvious, and it is laudable. And
congratulations both on your nomination and also the new
addition to your family. You and I had a good discussion
yesterday about an issue of passion. And I will just start, for
me, and I will just start this way, do you think that high
quality post-secondary workforce training is higher education?
Mr. Kvaal. I do.
Senator Kaine. It is really important to me. I once gave a
graduation speech at the apprenticeship school at the Newport
News Shipbuilding School. And my speech was, I want to
congratulate you and I want to apologize to you. I congratulate
you because you got into a program whose acceptance rate is
lower than getting into Harvard and you have trained to earn
this wonderful skill and now you will earn a great living doing
something really patriotic, shipbuilding. But I want to
apologize to you, because in the Nation's statistics, we don't
count you as having a higher education degree.
I have a passion about eliminating, root and branch, the
way we treat people with career and technical degrees. We don't
treat them as having higher education degrees. And this has
been a passion of mine for many years, and I am very, very
focused on it. You praised your own educational background,
including the importance of the Pell Grant program to help you
get through college. And we try to make Pell Grant pretty
flexible. A student who does 12 credit hours a semester can get
a Pell Grant if their family income qualifies and the course is
15 weeks long, a traditional college semester.
We pro-rated Pell Grants if a student says, I can't do 12
hours, I can only do six semester hours because I have a job.
Then we prorated the Pell Grant. We just did a wonderful thing
in expanding Pell Grant availability after many years of not
doing it to folks in prison. But here is who doesn't get a Pell
Grant. If a student and a family that qualifies for Pell Grants
wants to take a super intense, you know, eight week career and
technical program at a community college, the fact that it is
eight weeks in length means they can't get a Pell Grant. It is
not 15 weeks long. Eight weeks often is, you know, 30 or 40
hours a week.
They spend almost as much time in an eight-week class as
somebody would in a 15 week semester at a college. But we don't
give them a Pell Grant. And so the family that Pell Grant
qualifies, whose kid wants to go to college, gets it as an
entitlement. The family and student can plan how to use it,
where to take it to an accredited institution. But the family
with the child that wants to do a high quality career and
technical education program doesn't get a Pell Grant.
Maybe there is a program available for him, maybe there
isn't. Maybe the cost is affordable, maybe it isn't. And we owe
the funds that we use for career and technical training, are
dispersed by Governors. They are often in program funds, they
don't go to families, and they are often focused on hard hit
workers, not up and coming young people. So my passion is to
try to do what we have done with Pell Grants for part time
students and do what we have done with Pell Grants for
prisoners and make Pell Grants available to people who enroll
in high quality career and technical post-secondary programs,
even if they aren't 15 weeks long, so long as there is quality
metrics to suggest, as you say, these are things that can get
people good careers.
I ask you, do you believe in using the Pell Grant as we
have with other populations to try to be flexible to their
needs to support students who choose to focus their education
on high quality career and technical education programs, even
if they are not 15 weeks long?
Mr. Kvaal. I do. I appreciate your long leadership on this
issue. And in our conversation yesterday, a new appreciation
for your thoughtfulness and your passion. I agree that career
and technical education programs can lead to really meaningful
career job opportunities. They deserve the same amount of
support and the same amount of respect that other types of
higher education programs do. And if I am confirmed, I am
confident we can work together to support high quality training
programs, including those that are shorter than 15 weeks.
Senator Kaine. Because there isn't any--just as there isn't
anything magic about you have to be a full time, you know,
student with 12 semester hours, and we prorate Pell Grants for
part time students, there isn't anything magic about a 15 week
semester is there?
Mr. Kvaal. There certainly are programs that are shorter
than 15 weeks that get very strong outcomes, and some of those
are in your home state, of course.
Senator Kaine. Right. We have a wonderful program in my
community college system, the Fast Forward Program that has had
some significant and notable success. Mr. Kvaal, thank you for
that dialog and your testimony today. I yield back.
The Chair. Thank you.
Senator Braun.
Senator Braun. Thank you, Madam Chair. Good to visit again.
It was just yesterday we had a good robust, I think, half an
hour conversation. I am going to cover some of that same
territory. I served on a school board in my hometown for ten
years and recall how every time we crafted a budget and did
everything, it was within parameters and always worked out
where year after year after year. We did things that were
sustainable, including building projects. Was in our state
legislature for three years, and I think I told you the story
that interviewed Mitch Daniels on being on Ways and Means in
2015.
Second year, I was on the Education Committee and started
talking about career, technical education because as a business
owner in a place like Indiana, where we export twice as many
four year degrees as we keep, high demand, high wage jobs, all
of us out there need more training in high school that is
better by the time they get to the arena that you are going to
be involved with. High cost to me is what is besetting
education. And I look again, I told you, Mitch Daniels, when I
interviewed him, he said he wants to try to keep tuition
sustainable.
Well, it is the 9th or 10th year. He shamed other
Presidents, at least in our neck of the woods, into doing the
same. It is no different than my other main issue or one of
them here, which would be high cost of health care. The
industry is broken to an extent. So I have got three areas I
would like your comments on. What do we do to lower the cost
and increase effectiveness, which is the hallmark of anything
else that works in this country, and it is not done with
unlimited resources like we might have here?
The student debt that has risen along with extremely high
post-secondary education costs, and now the discussion of maybe
free college tuition, when we got a place that has got more
debt than it has had since World War II. And back then, we were
savers and investors, and we are spenders and consumers now. So
please address the high cost, currently, what you do about it,
does Mitch Daniels have it right? Student debt, would you
forgive it? And would you be interested in free college
tuition?
Mr. Kvaal. Senator, thanks again for the time you spent
with me yesterday. I appreciated that conversation and for the
questions today, I do think that it is important for colleges
and universities to focus on the value that they are offering
students and to taxpayers, and that there are things that
colleges and universities can do to find ways to lower their
costs without hurting or even in some cases while helping
academic quality.
Our system is very good at innovating, our system of higher
education. We are not always as good at putting our finger on
what is working and helping others learn from it. And that
might be something that we could work on together, if I am
confirmed. In the area of student debt cancellation, President
Biden has proposed some forms of loan forgiveness.
There is a temporary measure related to hardship related to
the pandemic and the economic emergency, making the public
service loan program work and forgiving debts for people with
particularly high debts and low incomes. I think generally that
is a structure that makes sense and would be interested in
continuing the conversation with you about how to design those
forms of loan forgiveness. In the area of tuition, I note that
a century ago we decided to make high school not just
universal, but free.
In the middle of the last century, we had a commanding lead
on the rest of the world in levels of educational attainment. I
believe the figure is in the 1950's or 60's, an American was
two or three times more likely to be a high school graduate
than a European was. And that was an important factor in our
economic prosperity. I think we are at a point now where more
education is needed to create opportunity and create growth.
I think we should recognize that we all have a stake in
making college more widely available. And so I think it is
appropriate for us to invest more in our colleges and
universities, and part of that could be eliminating tuition.
Senator Braun. That is good. And I think the complication
currently, and when you cite the 50's and even up until the
turn of the century, we actually had a balance sheet and a
capability that would maybe make that reasonable to say you
could do any of that.
I think until we get that in order here, whether it is
climate, whether it is education, whether it is health care,
that is the biggest challenge is how do you pay for it and do
it sustainably, so you don't simply throw an illusion out there
for the American public. Thank you.
The Chair. Thank you.
Senator Hassan.
Senator Hassan. Well, thank you, Chair Murray and Ranking
Member Burr. And welcome to Mr. Kvaal for being here today.
Thank you for your interest in service and thank your family as
well.
Mr. Kvaal. Thank you.
Senator Hassan. I want to start with a question about for
profit colleges. One key priority for me is to hold predatory,
for profit colleges accountable so that students get the
results that they were promised and that they have paid for.
That is why I worked with Senator Durbin last Congress to
introduce a comprehensive bill to strengthen consumer
protections in higher education that protects student debt.
I am pleased that the American Rescue Plan that the
President signed into law last month included a provision from
the Protect Students Act to help stop for profit colleges from
taking advantage of veterans and service members. But there is
still much work to be done. For example, the Protect Students
Act would also strengthen enforcement when students are
defrauded and improve oversight of the process used by for
profit colleges that seek to convert to nonprofit status.
Mr. Kvaal, how can the Administration and Congress work
together to hold predatory, for profit colleges accountable and
provide recourse to students who have been defunded--defrauded?
Mr. Kvaal. Senator, thanks so much for your leadership on
this issue. And that legislation, I think, is a really
important list of things that Congress could do to ensure that
students aren't left with debts they can't afford to repay and
that colleges aren't allowed to shift the costs of illegal
conduct onto students. And many of the proposals in that bill,
of course, affect all kinds of colleges. How we have seen
disproportionate abuses in for profit colleges in the past.
I appreciate your partnership on that really important
piece of legislation and congratulate you on the inclusion of
the 1910 provision in the American Rescue Plan and also some of
the steps that the Administration has taken in the area of
defrauded students.
Senator Hassan. Well, thank you. I look forward to
continuing working with you on those issues. Let me talk a
little bit, too, about the realities of today's students,
because you just said a moment ago the for profit sector is one
area where students don't always get what they paid for. But we
also have to think hard about the situation that today's
college students are in. They have numerous demands on their
time, and they often struggle to actually complete their
academic programs.
One of my concerns is that institutions don't always have
all the tools that they need to help students succeed. So I
recently joined Senators Young, Kaine and Cassidy in
reintroducing the bipartisan Innovation Zones Act, a bill to
improve on existing program--an existing program that colleges
use to implement innovative programs to better serve their
students. I also have a bill to support competency based
education so that more students have access to programs that
actually measure their mastery of skills and knowledge rather
than the hours they spend in their seat.
That goes a little bit to Senator Kaine's point about 8
weeks versus 15 weeks. We really should be looking at giving
students flexibility when they are completing their programs
and really measuring what they have learned, not just how long
they have been in their seats. So how do you think the
Department of Education can support responsible innovation in
higher education to meet the needs of today's college students?
Mr. Kvaal. Thank you for the question, Senator. I think
those pieces of legislation address some really important
topics. And competency based education, for example, has the
potential to help students complete their degrees faster while
saving them money. And it could also be a way of ensuring that
they are learning what it is that they are supposed to learn.
Unfortunately, our rules of the existing financial aid programs
were really written with the traditional model in mind. And
there are a lot of hurdles for institutions like Southern New
Hampshire who are trying to do things in new and different ways
and would be eager to work with you to find ways to make new
ways of doing things possible.
Senator Hassan. Well, thank you. I appreciate that. Last
topic, we also have to work on expanding higher education
programs to engage workers who have fallen out of the labor
force or who are working but need help in making progress in
their career. They might need a new credential. So I recently
reintroduced the Gateway to Careers Act with Senators Young,
Kaine and Collins. This bipartisan bill would support career
pathway programs where students can earn an income while they
are also completing educational credentials.
The bill also includes important wraparound supports for
learners who face barriers to completion, like help accessing
affordable housing or covering transportation costs. So do you
agree that it is important to support these kinds of programs
so that our most vulnerable workers have access to educational
opportunities to help them succeed?
Mr. Kvaal. I do. And I have seen a lot of colleges have
success with tragedies like the ones you have mentioned.
Senator Hassan. Thank you. I look forward to working with
you. Thank you, Madam Chair.
The Chair. Thank you.
Senator Tuberville.
Senator Tuberville. Thank you, Madam Chair. Good morning.
Mr. Kvaal. Morning.
Senator Tuberville. Thanks for being here. As you probably
heard, I got a little background in education, 40 years of
coaching, but coached high school and taught a little bit in
high school and taught some in college, and it is a passion of
mine. One of the reasons I am here as a United States Senator,
because I saw in 40 years how our education has kind of
drifted. We have gotten too much politics involved.
I think it is a total right for every kid in this country
to have a quality education, especially in secondary education,
but I am a true believer that it is not the obligation of the
people, the taxpayer of this country to pay for higher
education, because I think when you get to that point, you need
to earn that right. You know, these young kids. And I think it
is important that we understand that if we continue to put
politics and make more things free for these kids, it is going
to be hard for them to really understand the importance of it.
Secretary Cardona lacks extensive experience in some areas
in education, especially higher education. If confirmed, how
are you going to help him with that? Just give me a few ideas.
Mr. Kvaal. Well, Senator, I am a big admirer of Secretary
Cardona, and I found him to be a really principled man and a
strong leader. And of course, I will be taking my direction
from him and from President Biden and attempting to apply the
values and policy direction he sets in the areas in which I am
responsible. And I will attempt to give him, for whatever
decision he faces, the best available data and evidence and a
fair reflection of the different perspectives that are out
there on the question.
Senator Tuberville. Have we seen--as we have seen in this
pandemic, we have had a tough time getting back to school? A
lot of teachers going back to school. To me, teachers are First
Responders. I mean, we got to fight to get back to help our
kids.
Education is one of the most important things that we have
done in this country. Unfortunately, we are 38th in the world
now in math in this country. That is unacceptable. It is very
unacceptable. We have got a lot of areas that we have got to
improve on. I am not a big fan of teachers unions. To this
point after seeing what just happened, I am not a fan of tenure
in four year universities. I am a big fan of junior colleges. I
have been in hundreds of them across this country.
I think we can make them better. But I think it is
important if we are going to work with higher-ed that we have
got to understand, we have got to start teaching. We can't let
graduate assistants teach all of our classes. I mean, we have
got to get our professors back in the classroom.
One area that I am a little bit disappointed in and I want
to get your opinion on this and see where you stand on it is,
you know, for 40 years I worked for Title 9 in this country. I
am a big proponent of women's athletics and I think they have
come so far in this country. It has given opportunities to
young girls that they would never have had.
Now, all of a sudden, we are thinking about allowing young
transgender boys to participate in women's athletics. It is
going to kill it. What are your thoughts on that?
Mr. Kvaal. Well, Senator, the laws written by Congress
requires the department to ensure that all students have equal
access to educational opportunities, and that includes
transgender students, and that includes extracurricular
activities. I understand this is an issue that people have very
strong opinions about. People don't necessarily agree. And if I
am confirmed, I will work under the leadership of Secretary
Cardona and do my best to protect all students rights and
respect the dignity of all students.
Senator Tuberville. I just hope we look at the overall big
picture of this, because it could be devastating to a lot of
kids in this Country. And again, we want to give everybody free
rein to have a great education and play sports, I understand
that. But we have got to look at the sensibility of this. What
about diversity and speech on college campuses? You know, we
are having a huge fight right now, East, West, North, South,
and all our four year universities. You are going to have this
problem.
Again, I have been on campuses all my life and we are
having a division on--when you have a division on your campus
in education, you have division in Country. And right now we
are having a division on politics on campus. What is your
thought about diversity in speech on four year universities?
Mr. Kvaal. I think that freedom of speech is a foundational
value of our democracy in our country and that given their
mission and producing knowledge, and teaching students the free
exchange of ideas is particularly important on college
campuses.
Senator Tuberville. Thank you. Look forward to working with
you. Thank you, Chair Murray.
The Chair. Thank you.
Senator Smith.
Senator Smith. Thank you so much, Chair Murray. And Mr.
Kvaal, it is wonderful to be with you virtually, and I want to
thank you so much for your willingness to serve. And I look
forward to supporting your nomination for Under Secretary. I
would like to ask you a couple of questions but let me start
with a question around the Public Service Loan Forgiveness
Program, which I am sure, you know, we have had a lot of
challenges with. So we all know, I think, that public sector
workers are so important to our--the way our country works, the
way our economy works, the way our families work.
We have really seen this so much over the last year as
essential workers and public health nurses, teachers, and
others have really literally been risking their lives and
working so hard for our communities in the midst of this
pandemic. And as you know, the Public Service Loan Forgiveness
Program was created in 2007 to help incentivize public service
and support those who dedicate themselves to these really
important roles by providing loan forgiveness after 120
qualifying monthly payments.
However, due to the extreme complexities of this program,
poor implementation, and a lack of oversight, the Public
Service Loan Forgiveness Program has not fulfilled its promise.
Since its inception, this is I think incredible, just over 1
percent of applicants to the program have been approved,
meaning that over 98 percent of applicants seeking forgiveness
have been rejected. And I can tell you from the conversations
that I have had with many, many Minnesotans, how families have
seen their finances turned upside down as this happened. I
mean, this just shouldn't be happening.
I think we can do a lot more with the Public Service Loan
Forgiveness Program to make sure that helping people who
dedicated their professional lives to service. And I think that
there is a great need for better management of this program,
better oversight, better implementation.
Mr. Kvaal, if you are confirmed, could you talk to us a
little bit about what you would do to help improve the
administration of the public loan service--a Public Service
Loan Forgiveness Program, and how do you see this challenge,
and what we can do to fix it?
Mr. Kvaal. Senator, thank you for the question. I agree
entirely on the importance of this program. And we need to make
sure that people who go into public service careers with the
understanding that the Federal Government has promised to help
them with their student loan debt, do in fact receive the
benefit of that promise. And we have a program that is
unfortunately quite complicated. Not all Federal loans are
eligible. If you do have the right kind of loan, not all
repayment plans are eligible.
Then on top of that, as you suggest, it has not been well
implemented and students struggle to get accurate, clear
information and to navigate the application process. So I think
there is a lot we can do together to make sure that students
get the benefits that they are entitled to.
Senator Smith. Well, I would really look forward to working
with you on this. I think it is extremely important. We have a
promise to fulfill and a real opportunity to support public
sector workers who thought that they had an agreement and
understanding about what was going to happen with this program
only to find themselves left high and dry way too many times.
So thank you for that and I look forward to working with you.
Well we just have a little bit of time left and I want to just
go to the issue of student loan forgiveness.
We all can acknowledge, can understand and see both sides
of the party divide that the student loan debt crisis is out of
control. I likened it to somebody with a student loan debt, it
is like they are carrying a thousand pound weight around with
them wherever they go, and this makes it so much harder for
them to buy a house, buy a car, to take the job that they want.
Of course, we know that weight doesn't, isn't an equal
across all folks, and that this is a particularly a challenge
for Black and brown and indigenous students who are seeing an
even higher student loan debt. And it is also not just an issue
for people at the beginning of their career, it is also a
matter of great concern to folks who maybe got additional
education halfway through their career to find themselves
postponing retirement because of student loan debt.
I support the idea of canceling student loan debt up to
$50,000. There are lots of ideas. There is not just one
solution for what to do about this. Could you just take a
minute to say what you would like to, you know, kind of where
you think we ought to be looking for help for folks as we look
at the student debt crisis?
Mr. Kvaal. Well, Senator, I think you describe the problem
very, very well, and I agree with the challenge that we face,
as you described it. President Biden has talked about loan
forgiveness in a couple of different categories. One is some
relief now for people struggling with the pandemic and the
economic emergency, and then additional relief in the areas of
public service loan forgiveness, and also for students with
particularly high debts and low income. So I don't have a fixed
opinion about how exactly to structure relief in those three
categories, but I would be eager to work with you, if I am
confirmed, on how to approach those issues.
Senator Smith. I think you are right that there are many
solutions to this problem. Thank you very much, Mr. Kvaal.
Thank you.
The Chair. Thank you. I believe Senator Rosen is online.
And do not--don't see Senator Rosen? Is Senator Hickenlooper--
seeing neither one of them? I will ask one question. Encourage
them to get online quickly. I think Senator Burr and I are left
and if they want to ask a question, they are going have to get
online. But, Mr. Kvaal, thank you for your patience. Let me ask
one question.
As you know, the pandemic has created unprecedented chaos
and economic uncertainty for students across the country. And
unfortunately, we have seen a decline in FAFSA completion
during this pandemic. This challenge has been particularly
severe at those high schools with a very high population of
students of color, where the decline is almost four times worse
than at schools where the students are predominantly white.
I am extremely concerned about what that means for the
pipeline of students moving on to higher education and training
opportunities, and how it may further increase equity gaps in
college access and success. So I wanted to ask you, if
confirmed, how will you make sure the department works to
improve FAFSA completion at schools within, especially with
substantial populations of students from low income households
and among unemployed adults?
Mr. Kvaal. Thank you, Senator. As you noted in your opening
remarks, there are a number of areas where we have longstanding
challenges that have been exacerbated by the pandemic and this
is one. Of course, it is particularly troubling the decline in
FAFSA completion rates and the extent that it suggests that
people are not continuing on to college and it will be extra
work to try to get them back on the pipeline and back on to the
path.
We do not want to see a permanent dent in educational
attainment as a result of this pandemic. So I think all options
have to be on the table in terms of reaching out to these
students, extending deadlines, being flexible with
requirements, and trying to make sure that as many people as
possible are going back to school as soon as it is safe to do
so.
The Chair. Okay. How will you make sure the department
prioritizes implementation of the bipartisan FAFSA
Simplification Act as quickly as possible, including using
early implementation authority?
Mr. Kvaal. Thank you, Senator. I appreciate your enacting
that legislation as well as the legislation allowing the
department access to tax data to simplify financial aid
applications. I think that and reducing the number of questions
is a really important step. And if I am confirmed, it will be
one of my highest priorities to work with FSA to get that
implemented as quickly as well as possible.
The Chair. Okay, thank you very much. And I see Senator
Rosen and Senator Hickenlooper have come back on. Senator Burr,
you want to wait until they ask their questions or--Senator
Rosen, we will start with you.
Senator Rosen. Thank you, Chair Murray and Ranking Member
Burr. I appreciate it. And thank you to Mr. Kvaal for spending
time with us today and for your willingness to serve. I want to
talk a little bit about supporting minority students, because
in Clark County, Nevada, nearly half of our K through 12
students are Latino, and statewide, half of our colleges are
Hispanic serving institutions or agencies.
We also have one of the fastest growing AAPI populations in
the country. And we are home to UNLV, one of the Nation's few
Asian-American, Native American Pacific, Islander serving
institutions or NAPs. So what would you do if confirmed to
support HSIs or NAPCs and college students of color more
broadly, please?
Mr. Kvaal. Senator, thanks for the question. And one of the
reasons that I am inspired by the opportunity to serve in the
Biden administration is how much he talks about the importance
in investing in institutions that serve the most students of
color and the most low income students. And, as I am sure you
are aware, he campaigned on an ambitious plan to invest in
those types of colleges. And, I would be eager to be a part of
carrying out those promises.
I think one of the first orders of business would be
aggressively implementing the resources that Congress has
provided in the recent economic recovery packages. And, I would
say I think it is also particularly important that the voices
representing those institutions are heard at the highest levels
of the department and the Administration.
Senator Rosen. Thank you. I would like to talk and just
move on a little bit to our TRIO, our Federal TRIO programs,
because they provide individualized tutoring, mentoring, and
advising for first generation and low income college students,
students with disabilities, and they help them enter and
complete college. So in the Fiscal Year 2020 in Nevada, TRIO
served over 7,000 students and 31 TRIO programs.
TRIO improves college enrollment and completion, which
actually leads to higher lifetime earnings for students, which
creates taxpaying citizens and reduces costs for Government
services later in life. I have joined 40 of my Senate
colleagues and urged them that the December COVID Relief bill
include TRIO as an allowable use of higher education funds.
Although we were successful, colleges continue to face
dramatic revenue losses. To increase costs, it will make it
difficult for many of them to continue their TRIO services. So
if confirmed, will you support an increase in President Biden's
Fiscal Year 2022 budget to help expand the TRIO programs to
help low income students, students with disabilities, first
generation students?
Mr. Kvaal. Senator, thanks for that question. The TRIO
programs, of course, have a long history coming out of the
civil rights movement in helping low income students and first
generation students earn college degrees. I believe they have
now contributed to millions, literally millions of college
degrees. And I think they play a very important role in
promoting equal opportunity. And if I am confirmed, I will
strongly support the trio programs.
Senator Rosen. In addition to supporting, you have worked
in higher education for many years. How might you expand? Do
you see an opportunity for us to expand and grow these programs
to help many more students achieve their goals?
Mr. Kvaal. I hope so, Senator. I think that they would be
worthy recipients of additional Federal resources for sure.
Senator Rosen. Thank you. I would like to move on and talk
a little bit about digital learning, first during the pandemic.
COVID-19 really exacerbates the inequities facing college
students, of course all of our students and so many of us in
every other way, but particularly at the students with the
digital divide. It disproportionately affects Blacks, Latinos,
native households, rural communities in our State of Nevada.
They are really struggling to begin or continue their
education in this last year. So what will you see for the
department in helping to close that digital divide for college
students, for students of color, for our rural populations, and
if so, how are you going to be able to address this problem
through the Department of Education?
Mr. Kvaal. Thank you for the question. It is clear that the
pandemic has revealed just how wide the digital divide is and
how much many communities struggle to access broadband. And
even as hopefully students return safely to campuses, the
digital divide is going to remain a really important barrier to
equal educational opportunity and a problem for many other
reasons as well. So, I would be delighted to explore with you
what the Department of Education can do and how we can advocate
for broadband investments with other Federal agencies as well.
Senator Rosen. Thank you very much. I think broadband is
critical infrastructure, so I look forward to those
conversations. Thank you. I yield back.
The Chair. Thank you.
Senator Hickenlooper, are you available?
Senator Hickenlooper. Yes. Can you hear me?
The Chair. Yes, we can now. Go ahead.
Senator Hickenlooper. Sorry about that. I appreciate all
the testimony today. It has been really fascinating, and
enjoyed our discussion yesterday, Mr. Kvaal. You know, as you--
as we discuss, I am very committed to the idea of
apprenticeships at all levels for, every possible profession,
career wise and Colorado's made a lot of progress on that.
Obviously, I think as we recover from the pandemic, this
nexus between the needs of the workforce and our educational
access is going to be very important. So I thought I would just
start and ask, in terms of these apprenticeships, do you see
that we can begin to accelerate and expand our, the Federal
Government's ability to support apprenticeships in states all
across the country?
Mr. Kvaal. Thanks, Senator. I also really enjoyed our
conversation the other day and learning about some of the great
programs you have been a part of in Colorado. I do think that
apprenticeships are one of the most effective ways that we
found to help people gain new skills and get into new careers.
And if confirmed, I would be eager to work with you to find new
ways for the Federal Government to support them.
Senator Hickenlooper. Great. And as we discussed--sorry to
go back over some of the things we already have covered. But I
think it is good to get on the record. This notion that we can
utilize apprenticeships or some other forms of experiential
learning that they can be applied to what I say, I usually say
is kids of all ages and we can begin to move toward a system of
stackable credentials so that it is a lifetime learning
solution to the--I mean, there is no question we are going to
see disruptions in our workforce from automation and artificial
intelligence, machine learning, etcetera.
I think these stackable credentials are a great
opportunity. I think you are the person sitting right at the
nexus of where that is--where that work is going to have--is
going to happen between the community colleges and universities
and these kind of high school to university programs. What is
your sense about what the priority, what the first step should
be?
Mr. Kvaal. Well, Senator, I am very aware about the urgency
of this issue. And I think when you look at the potential for
long term unemployment, past experience has been people never
get back to the proper level of earnings. And particularly when
you read about the impact on families, it is particularly
heartbreaking.
I think as we are supporting colleges and universities, as
they hopefully return and return to something better than what
we had before, we need to be helping them find successful
models for stackable credentials. And we need to be making sure
that we are supporting them as they try and strengthen the
value that they offer to students.
Senator Hickenlooper. Right. No, absolutely. Well, I
appreciate that sense of urgency, because I do think it is one
of the most pressing issues that you are going to face and that
we as a country face. Let me switch then, and you talked about
this a little earlier today, and this our ability to attract
people from disadvantaged backgrounds, low income communities,
whether they are African-American or Latino or Asian or any
constituency.
We haven't done a good job of attracting these kids into
science and technology, into STEM. And I would argue STEAM. You
know, you have art, that A in there for the arts. Have you got
any ideas of what we can do to do a better job of attracting--
and I think taking fifth graders, sixth graders, I think there
is a key point there where if we can stimulate their curiosity
at that early age, then we have a legitimate chance to capture
them, to, to bring them into a life of research and innovation?
Mr. Kvaal. It is--I certainly agree with you that these
careers are so important in that we as a country have a long
way to go to fully take advantage of all the talents of our
population. And, I know a little less about elementary and
secondary education, but I do think one important thing we can
do is invest in historically Black colleges and universities
and minority serving institutions which have proven to be such
effective pipelines for diverse talent.
Senator Hickenlooper. No, that is exactly right. And I love
that you are serving with a Secretary who really does
understand, or you are about to, we hope, to be serving with a
Secretary who really does understand elementary education and
education all the way through the entire system. Just real
quickly, again, as kids come out of whether it is Black
colleges or whatever higher education system they have, how do
we keep them into--in STEM, in science and technology?
Mr. Kvaal. There is a lot of work to do there, too,
Senator. I think one important part of it is helping young
people have role models for their careers. And one thing that I
hear over and over again is the importance of role models who
look like them. So that seems like a daunting challenge now
when these professions are not as inclusive as we would all
like them to be. But the good news there is I think when we
start to make progress, it will be self-reinforcing.
Senator Hickenlooper. I think you are exactly right. And I
think it is one of those things that needs to become a national
movement, which, again, we talked about. I am out of time. I
could continue our discussion the other day by another hour. I
could do it again today, but I look forward to that in the
future. Thank you so much for your service.
Mr. Kvaal. Thank you, Senator.
The Chair. Thank you.
Senator Burr.
Senator Burr. Thank you, Madam Chair. And Mr. Kvaal, some
follow-up of--it is really housekeeping. These are yes or no
answers. Oversight is an important function of Congress and
hopefully that can be done in a bipartisan way.
But if it is not, I intend to exercise my authority as
Ranking Member of this Committee, just as Senator Murray did as
Ranking Member. Question, do you commit to providing me and my
staff with the information that I or the minority Members of
the Committee request from the Department of Education within
the requested timeframe?
Mr. Kvaal. I do.
Senator Burr. Do you commit to providing me and my staff
with documents that I or other minority Members of the
Committee request from the Department of Education within the
requested timeframe?
Mr. Kvaal. Yes.
Senator Burr. Do you commit to providing me or my staff or
other minority Members of the Committee with briefings request
for you or your staff within the requested timeframe?
Mr. Kvaal. Yes, I do.
Senator Burr. Do you commit to providing the Department of
Education Inspector General and the Government Accountability
Office with any information, briefings, documents they might
request?
Mr. Kvaal. Yes.
Senator Burr. Do you commit to testify, when called, before
a Congressional Committee?
Mr. Kvaal. I do.
Senator Burr. Mr. Kvaal, thank you. I think you will be
confirmed, and I will probably be supportive of that. Thank
you, Madam Chair.
The Chair. Thank you, Senator Burr. I do have one
additional thing I want to say today. I have been very
concerned by the way the Trump administration and Secretary
DeVos failed to support survivors of sexual assault and defend
the rights of all students to be safe and attend school without
being discriminated against. No student should have to worry
about their safety or being bullied or harassed or unwelcomed
because of their race, religion, sex, sexual orientation or
gender identity or disability.
We have got to work together to hold institutions of higher
education accountable for providing safe environments for all
students, including holding them accountable for preventing and
addressing sexual assault. I have heard from survivors across
the country, and we have got to do better. I am encouraged by
the department's recently announced plans to address this
problem, including a robust and transparent process to make
sure survivors, institutions of higher education, and families
across our country can be heard. And I am looking forward to
seeing meaningful actions with that.
I will end this hearing and I want to thank my fellow
Committee Members for their participation in today's hearing,
and Mr. Kvaal, for taking the time today to talk with us about
the challenges students and borrowers across the country are
facing.
For any Senators who wish to ask additional questions of
the nominee, questions for the record will be due by Friday,
April 16th, at 5 p.m. The hearing record will remain open for
10 days for Members who wish to submit additional materials.
For the record, the Committee has noticed an executive session
to markup Mr. Kvaal's nomination on Wednesday, April 21st,
along with the nominations of Julie Su to be Deputy Secretary
of Labor, and Cindy Marten to be Deputy Secretary of Education.
I look forward to all of these nominees being confirmed as
quickly as possible so they can get to work. This Committee
will next meet on Tuesday, April 20th in Dirksen 430 at 10 a.m.
for a hearing on our workforce programs and the jobs crisis
caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. With that, this meeting is now
adjourned.
ADDITIONAL MATERIAL
LETTERS OF SUPPORT FOR JAMES KVAAL, OF MASSACHUSETTS, TO BE UNDER
SECRETARY OF EDUCATION
Student Defense
1015 15th St. NW, Suite 600,
Washington, DC
April 8, 2021
Hon. Patty Murray, Madam Chair,
Hon. Richard Burr, Ranking Member,
U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions,
428 Dirksen Senate Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Dear Madam Chair Murray and Ranking Member Burr:
The undersigned organizations--representing students,
student loan borrowers, veterans, and consumers--strongly
support the confirmation of James Kvaal as Under Secretary of
Education. Mr. Kvaal has an accomplished career as an advocate
for students and economic opportunity, and his deep expertise
and commitment make him an ideal candidate for this important
role.
As president of The Institute for College Access & Success
(TICAS), Mr. Kvaal led one of the foremost organizations
working to address college affordability and improve student
financial aid through evidence-based policies and solutions. As
deputy domestic policy adviser under President Barack Obama,
Mr. Kvaal supported the administration's work fostering
economic opportunity, working on many of the same issues he'll
address as Under Secretary. From promoting affordable tuition,
to combating predatory institutions and lenders, and working to
increase graduation rates across the Nation, the breadth and
relevance of Kvaal's experience are beyond question.
The next Under Secretary of Education will come into office
at a pivotal time. Colleges and universities are under
tremendous financial stress, the chaotic rollout of distance
learning has been stressful for faculty and students alike, and
the long-term challenges in higher education have not gone
anywhere. With his careful focus on the facts, thoughtfulness
in approaching difficult problems, and passionate concern for
students, Mr. Kvaal is well-positioned to lead the Nation's
higher education policies at this time. The nation will be
lucky to have James Kvaal in this essential role. We strongly
support his confirmation, and look forward to working with him
to advance student success.
Sincerely,
Accountable.US
American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education
American Federation of Teachers
Campaign for College Opportunity
Campaign for Free College Tuition
Education Reform Now
Institute for Higher Education Policy
National Association for College Admission Counseling
National Center for Teacher Residencies
National Education Association
New America Higher Education Program
Organizations Concerned About Rural Education
Project on Predatory Student Lending
Rebuild America's Schools Coalition
Rural School and Community Trust
Student Borrower Protection Center
Student Defense
Third Way
U.S. Public Interest Research Group (PIRG)
UnidosUS
Veterans Education Success
------
Frederick S. Edelstein, Ph.D.
4413 East Sawmill Road,
Park City, Utah
April 9, 2021
Hon. Patty Murray, Madam Chair,
Hon. Richard Burr, Ranking Member,
U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions,
428 Dirksen Senate Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Dear Madam Chair Murray and Ranking Member Burr:
I'm writing to you in support of the nomination and confirmation of
James Kvaal to be Under Secretary of Education at the U.S. Department
of Education. Having known James for about 25 years, he is a very
impressive and qualified individual for this position.
I first met James while serving as Director of Constituent
Relations and Outreach at the Department beginning with the tenure of
U.S. Secretary of Education Richard Riley and continuing in that
position when Rodney Paige became the U.S. Secretary of Education.
During my 31 years as a career civil servant in both HEW and the U.S.
Department of Education, I held a variety of positions.
I worked with James on numerous postsecondary education and general
education policy issues. He was always knowledgeable, thoughtful, and
engaged on every issue which he worked. From my work experiences with
him, unquestionably he is a team player. James is both unassuming and
affable which is an enormous asset when one serves in such an important
position as Under Secretary. He brings knowledge about and experience
in the Department and the Federal Government, which is an important
asset when serving in the position of Under Secretary. James is a very
good listener to all points of view. In my opinion, you will not find a
more dedicated public servant.
Throughout these many years, we have stayed in touch and discussed
various policy issues while he served in government as well as at other
times when he held positions outside of government.
James has earned the respect of the education community, especially
those involved in postsecondary education.
As I stated earlier, he is extremely qualified for the Under
Secretary position and has earned this nomination through years of
important and cutting-edge work in an array public policy issues.
Sincerely,
Frederick S. Edelstein,
Ph.D.
______
American Council on Education
April 14, 2021
Hon. Patty Murray, Madam Chair,
Hon. Richard Burr, Ranking Member,
U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions,
428 Dirksen Senate Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Dear Madam Chair Murray and Ranking Member Burr:
On behalf of the undersigned higher education associations, I write
to express our enthusiastic support for James Kvaal, who has been
nominated to serve as Under Secretary in the U.S. Department of
Education. Our endorsement reflects the profound respect our members
have for Mr. Kvaal's judgment, expertise, and professionalism,
qualities he has consistently demonstrated in and out of government.
Throughout an accomplished career in the public and private
sectors, Mr. Kvaal has distinguished himself through his deep knowledge
of higher education and Federal postsecondary policy. With his
extensive experience working in the Senate, the House of
Representatives, the White House, the Department of Education, and as a
professor, Mr. Kvaal will bring comprehensive knowledge of the design,
implementation, and management of Federal programs to the role of Under
Secretary.
Perhaps more importantly, this wealth of skill and experience has
always been focused first and foremost on elevating the needs of
students and their families to the center of policymaking. In his
current role as president of The Institute for College Access and
Success (TICAS), Mr. Kvaal has continued this dedication to ensuring
that all students have an equal opportunity to succeed in postsecondary
education.
Considering the importance of the federal role in higher education,
it is critical that the position of Under Secretary be filled by
someone with the judgment, experience, personal commitment, and vision
necessary to succeed in this role. For this reason, we strongly urge
your Members to support Mr. Kvaal's nomination when he comes before the
Committee for a hearing.
Sincerely,
Ted Mitchell,
President
On behalf of:
Achieving the Dream
ACPA-College Student Educators International
ACT
American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education
American Association of Collegiate Registrars and
Admissions Officers
American Association of Community Colleges
American Association of State Colleges and Universities
American Association of University Professors
American Council on Education
APPA, ``Leadership in Educational Facilities''
Association of American Medical Colleges
Association of American Universities
Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities
Association of Community College Trustees
Association of Governing Boards of Universities and
Colleges
Association of Independent Colleges and Universities in
Pennsylvania
Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities
Association of Public and Land-grant Universities
Association of Research Libraries
Association of Schools Advancing Health Professions
College Board
Council for Advancement and Support of Education
Council for Christian Colleges & Universities
Council for Higher Education Accreditation
Council for Opportunity in Education
Council of Graduate Schools
Council of Independent Colleges
EDUCAUSE
ETS
Higher Education Consultants Association
Higher Education Loan Coalition
International Association of Campus Law Enforcement
Administrators
NASPA-Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education
National Association for College Admission Counseling
National Association of College and University Business
Officers
National Association of Colleges and Employers
National Association of Independent Colleges and
Universities
National Association of System Heads
National Council for Community and Education Partnerships
State Higher Education Executive Officers Association
TMCF
UPCEA
______
Council for Opportunity in Education
1025 Vermont Ave., NW, Suite 400,
Washington, DC
April 12, 2021
Hon. Patty Murray, Madam Chair,
Hon. Richard Burr, Ranking Member,
U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions,
428 Dirksen Senate Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Dear Madam Chair Murray and Ranking Member Burr:
As President of the Council for Opportunity in Education (COE),
which represents nearly 1,000 institutions of higher education and
community-based agencies committed to expanding college opportunity
through college access and success programs for low-income and first-
generation students, I write in strong support of the confirmation of
James Kvaal, who has been nominated to serve as Under Secretary of
Education in the U.S. Department of Education. Throughout his career,
Mr. Kvaal has placed the highest priority on providing opportunity for
upward mobility to students from low-income and first-generation
backgrounds and students with disabilities, as well as to veterans and
adults displaced or seeking advancement in the workforce.
Mr. Kvaal's long career in both the public and private sectors has
focused on assuring equity in higher education. He possesses a
comprehensive knowledge of Federal policy that is not limited to the
design of programs but also includes a deep understanding of how the
implementation and management of the programs affects their likelihood
of achieving their intended purposes. Mr. Kvaal has been deliberate in
understanding the interaction between financial and non-financial
obstacles that limit degree completion for low-income and first-
generation students and how Federal efforts, including TRIO and GEAR
UP, address those obstacles and contribute to a greater return on
Federal financial aid.
Mr. Kvaal is a thoughtful leader who not only listens to a wide
range of opinions and viewpoints but actively solicits input from many
constituencies. His considered judgment reinforces confidence in those
working with him and his commitment and dedication to the goals of the
Higher Education Act, and the Act itself, are unquestioned. On behalf
of our membership and on behalf of the thousands of educators working
in TRIO programs, COE endorses Mr. Kvaal's nomination and urges your
Members to support it. We are confident that his stewardship of higher
education programs in the U.S. Department of Education will benefit
millions of low-income and first-generation students and families who
look to higher education as a path to mobility and as a means to
realizing their aspirations.
Sincerely,
Maureen Hoyler,
President
______
NAICU
1025 Connecticut Ave., NW, Suite 700,
Washington, DC
March 1, 2021
Hon. Patty Murray, Madam Chair,
Hon. Richard Burr, Ranking Member,
U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions,
428 Dirksen Senate Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Dear Madam Chair Murray and Ranking Member Burr:
As the president of the National Association of Independent
Colleges and Universities (NAICU), I am writing to endorse the
nomination of James Kvaal for the position of Under Secretary for
Education, the top higher education post at the Department. Mr. Kvaal
is experienced, understands the complexities of higher education and is
a reasonable and approachable policymaker.
NAICU has worked with Mr. Kvaal since his early days in the Senate,
and continued that work throughout his tenure with the Obama
administration and as he served as the president of The Institute for
College Access and Success (TICAS). Throughout his career he has
championed many important improvements to the Federal student aid
programs. While we have not always agreed on every policy proposal he
has put forward, we do agree with his commitment to put the needs of
students first and his continual openness to dialog. We find his
knowledge and reasonableness his most important attributes to be
successful in this position.
The National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities
(NAICU) serves as the unified voice of private, nonprofit higher
education. NAICU's membership reflects the diversity of private,
nonprofit higher education in the U.S. Our member institutions include
major research universities, faith-based colleges, Historically Black
Colleges and Universities, Minority-Serving Institutions, art and
design colleges, traditional liberal arts and science institutions,
women's colleges, work colleges, two-year colleges, and schools of law,
medicine, engineering, business, and other professions. With more than
5 million students attending 1,700 independent colleges and
universities in all 50 states, and more than 1 million employees, the
private sector of American higher education has a dramatic impact on
our Nation's larger public interests.
I look forward to working with you and Mr. Kvaal in the days ahead
to create opportunities for greater access and affordability for all
who seek a higher education.
Sincerely,
Barbara K. Mistick,
President
______
Opportunity America
April 6, 2021
Hon. Patty Murray, Madam Chair,
Hon. Richard Burr, Ranking Member,
U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions,
428 Dirksen Senate Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Dear Madam Chair Murray and Ranking Member Burr:
I write to encourage you to support the confirmation of James Kvaal
as Under Secretary of Education.
Few people are better prepared for the job: deeply knowledgeable
about the issues at the forefront of the higher education debate and
experienced in using the levers of Federal policy to advance change
nationwide. James and I do not agree on every issue, but I have always
found him deeply thoughtful and willing to collaborate across party
lines. I believe he is also genuinely committed to creating
opportunities for poor and working Americans.
Opportunity America is a Washington think tank and policy shop
promoting economic mobility--work, skills, careers, ownership and
entrepreneurship for poor and working Americans. Our principal
activities are research, policy development, dissemination of policy
ideas and working to build consensus around policy proposals. Among
other projects, Opportunity America manages a coalition of employers
and employer associations working to improve policy on workforce
issues.
James and I have spoken often over the years about the twin
imperatives of opportunity and upward mobility. In contrast to many
postsecondary policy thinkers, he understands the importance of
community colleges, job training and high-quality associate degrees and
certificates--understands that these are essential tools in any
strategy to fight poverty and raise living standards. Even when we have
disagreed, he has worked to find common ground, identifying practical
solutions and building a consensus for change.
I look forward to working with you and James toward a higher
education system that enhances economic opportunity and upward mobility
for all Americans.
Yours sincerely,
Tamar Jacoby,
President
______
RAMC
April 7, 2021
Hon. Patty Murray, Madam Chair,
Hon. Richard Burr, Ranking Member,
U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions,
428 Dirksen Senate Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Dear Madam Chair Murray and Ranking Member Burr:
On behalf of Rebuilding America's Middle Class (RAMC), I am writing
to express my support for the nomination of James Kvaal for Under
Secretary of Education. If confirmed, Mr. Kvaal's long and effective
experience in working to advance higher education policy to improve
student and institutional success will be of great benefit to our
Nation.
Federal student aid and related programs funded by the U.S.
Department of Education (ED) are vital to the success of community
college students in our Nation. Without these programs, many students
would not be able to earn the certificate or degree to obtain
employment or advance in their careers. Mr. Kvaal's leadership during
his work for previous administrations and in Congress has always
recognized the economic and societal power of obtaining a postsecondary
education. The recognition of the importance of a higher education to
one's future earnings and career success is more critical now than ever
as we work to recover from the economic disruptions caused by the
ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Mr. Kvaal's leadership does not simply stop with well intentions,
but instead has led to action and results. Throughout his career, Mr.
Kvaal has always sought to put the interests of community colleges and
the students which we serve in the forefront. If confirmed, I am
confident that Mr. Kvaal's thoughtful and effective leadership will
continue to help us advance the mission of educating America's
community college students. I also believe Mr. Kvaal's expertise is
needed at ED to aid our students during this crisis and ensure America
has the educated and trained workforce to rebuild our economy.
Given this, we urge you to quickly consider and confirm Mr. Kvaal
as the next United States Under Secretary of Education. Thank you in
advance for your consideration of these views and I look forward to
continuing our work together to advance the opportunities for all of
our students and their families to ensure that their needs are met
during these unprecedented times.
Sincerely,
Joe May,
Board Chair,
Rebuilding America's Middle Class (RAMC)
Chancellor, Dallas College
______
Results for America
April 12, 2021
Hon. Patty Murray, Madam Chair,
Hon. Richard Burr, Ranking Member,
U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions,
428 Dirksen Senate Office Building,
Washington, DC.
Dear Madam Chair Murray and Ranking Member Burr:
As nonpartisan organizations and individuals committed to improving
the effectiveness of government through evidence and data, we are
writing to endorse the nomination of James Kvaal to be the Under
Secretary at the Department of Education. Through his long government
career, Mr. Kvaal has demonstrated his commitment to using evidence and
data to help solve many of the problems facing our Nation.
Many of us worked with Mr. Kvaal during his senior roles on the
House Education and Workforce Committee, at the Department of
Education, and the White House Domestic Policy Council. As a senior
White House official, he consistently sought to inform policy decisions
with the best available evidence. He worked to apply evidence-based
policy strategies across domestic policy changes, brought together
Federal agencies to produce new data to inform college choices, and
called on college presidents to commit to take evidence-based steps to
help students graduate from college. As President of The Institute for
College Access and Success, he emphasized quality research and
supported policies to help colleges use proven practices to help
students graduate.
As Under Secretary, we believe Mr. Kvaal will combine his passion
for improving educational equity with a commitment to grounding
decisions in evidence and data.
Sincerely,
[Organizations listed in alphabetical order]
A+ Colorado
Alliance for Excellent Education
America Forward
AppleTree Institute for Education Innovation
Braven
Cascade Philanthropy Advisors, Inc.
Center for Research and Reform in Education at Johns
Hopkins University
EDGE Consulting Partners
Education Northwest
Education Reform Now
Excelencia in Education
Friends of the Children
National Institute for Excellence in Teaching
New America Higher Education Program
Results for America
StriveTogether
Success for All Foundation
TeachPlus
John Bridgeland,
Former Director Domestic Policy Council (G.W. Bush
administration), Founder & CEO, CIVIC
Cecilia Munoz,
Former Director, Domestic Policy Council (Obama
administration), Senior Advisor New America
______
[Whereupon, at 11:32 a.m., the hearing was adjourned.]
[all]