NOVEMBER 2023 | VOLUME I NUMBER 3
Welcome to the November 2023 edition of the ACCS Legal Update, coming your way just before the Thanksgiving holiday! So, before we venture into legal news, allow me wish you all a very happy Thanksgiving. Even in the most difficult times, we have inexhaustible reasons to say “the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations” (Psalm 100:5).
Ralph Waldo Emerson once wrote that we should “cultivate the habit of being grateful for every good thing that comes to you, and to give thanks continuously. And because all things have contributed to your advancement, you should include all things in your gratitude.” Even adversity, used in the Providence of God, should be received with gratitude. And this month’s Legal Update covers some potentially concerning events, which give us all an opportunity to practice such gratitude.
New Regulations from the U.S. Department of Education
On October 31st, the Office of Postsecondary Education of the Department of Education (ED) released several amendments to title IV of the Higher Education Act (HEA) of 1965. These new regulations change the way higher educational institutions must evaluate high school diplomas when awarding financial aid. The new regulations seem to require college financial aid administrators to be familiar with graduation requirements for all 50 states, along with knowledge of the variations they may find on private, classical, or homeschool transcripts.
One major concern, well stated by the Council for American Private Education (CAPE), is that “Faced with the requirement to analyze technical, nuanced, ever-changing, and multi-faceted state regulations and laws to confirm whether a diploma is valid, CAPE is concerned that institutions of higher education will err and/or be extra cautious and deny financial aid, particularly to students from unfamiliar nonpublic schools.” In other words, faced with the mountainous burden of keeping up with the variations of state graduation requirements, in addition to the increased fear of violating the new ED regulations, financial aid officers may simply pass over students whose transcripts look “different” when they apply for federal financial aid.
Should These Regulations Concern Us?
Such regulations are concerning for several reasons. To begin with, there are no national graduation requirements, so expecting admissions officers or financial aid administrators to be conversant with the requirements of all fifty states is a recipe for problems –lack of familiarity with out-of-state standards, slowing the process of financial aid decisions, and more.
Further, of even greater overall concern, is whether such regulations may lead to the request for or implementation of national graduation requirements. While such a step would face tremendous legal hurdles and resistance from many state governments, the suggestion could create troubling precedent and overreach by the ED.
Finally, the main issue for ACCS schools, is that these new regulations may disproportionately affect graduates of Christian classical schools. If financial aid officers are now required to “weed out” diplomas that seem suspicious, how might they respond to transcripts laden with Latin, logic, multiple years of rhetoric, and humane letters?
What Should ACCS Schools Do?
Because these new regulations have been so recently implemented, it is difficult to know what long-term effect they will have. In the meantime, however, ACCS schools can help their graduates by simply planning ahead. Here are a few suggestions to consider:
- Prepare a brief explanation paper to detail how your school’s courses meet graduation requirements in your state. This can be posted on your school website or even sent out with transcript requests from colleges.
- College counselors should work to cultivate relationships with college admissions officers and financial aid administrators, beginning with colleges frequently attended by your graduates. This will allow you to communicate how your graduates’ transcripts should be “read” and compared with those of other schools.
- Teach current and prospective parents the differences between what Christian classical schools and conventional schools do and teach. Help them understand how to advocate for their student in the college admissions and financial aid process. This could be done through school newsletters, at open house events, during parent education nights, etc.
Grace & Peace,
Brian Phillips, Ed.D.
If you are in search of legal advice for you or your school, please consider the following resources: Brotherhood Mutual and Alliance Defending Freedom
Brian Phillips is the pastor of Holy Trinity Reformed Church (CREC – Concord, NC), teaches Rhetoric at Oaks Classical Christian Academy (Albemarle, NC), and is Board Vice Chairman for New Aberdeen College. Brian has also served as the Director of Consulting for The Circe Institute, Head of Upper School at Covenant Classical School (Concord, NC), and was an adjunct faculty member of Belmont Abbey College.
Dr. Phillips has an M.A. in Theological Studies, an M.A. in Classical Studies, an Ed.D. in Classical Education, and completed paralegal training at Duke University. He is also the author/editor of several books, including Sunday Mornings: An Introduction to Biblical Worship and the Canon Classics Guides to Dante’s Inferno and the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius. Brian and his wife, Shannon, live in North Carolina with their four children and their German Shepherd, Ajax the Great.