As colleges and universities face uncertain months ahead as the COVID-19 pandemic worsens, higher education leaders are continuing their pleas to the federal government for more assistance to sustain their operations and maintain their financial health. But the Education Department, led by Secretary Betsy DeVos, is pushing back, claiming that schools don’t need anymore relief.
When colleges were forced to move classes online as the pandemic took hold in March, Congress awarded $14 billion in grants to higher education institutions through the CARES Act. But schools have continued to ask lawmakers for more as they keep losing revenue and accruing expenses.
DeVos said last week that institutions aren’t in any immediate need of new aid because the entirety of the CARES Act funding has not yet been used up, according to data from a new dashboard showing how much of the relief package’s Education Stabilization Fund has been used up.
According to data from the new site, institutions spent $9 billion, or 64% of the total fund, through Sept. 30.
“The CARES Act was passed to provide schools the resources they needed to protect students and teachers and ensure learning continues,” DeVos said in a press release, “But these data make clear there is little to support [schools’] claims of being cash-poor.”