Impact of Government Shutdown on Higher Education

Congress failed to reach a last-minute agreement Friday night to avoid a government shutdown. That won't mean immediate consequences for federal student aid recipients or institutional funding. But institutions and students depending on Education Department programs could see an impact if the shutdown drags on.

For academics and institutions that receive grants from research agencies, funds already awarded are not affected, but peer review and other activities to select new grants may halt, and new funds will not be going out. The impact on academic science may be minimal if the shutdown lasts just a few days, but it would get significant in a longer shutdown.

Other functions of the Department of Education will be immediately curtailed or frozen, however, from work awarding special grants to the enforcement of civil rights at campuses across the country.

While the shutdown means no new federal dollars can be spent until lawmakers reach a funding deal, federal funding has already been disbursed for student aid in 2017-18.

Much of the funding for Pell Grants is mandatory -- meaning it is unaffected by a shutdown -- as is funding for federal student loans.

But David Bergeron, a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress who previously served as acting assistant secretary for postsecondary education, said the longer a shutdown goes on, the more unanticipated problems can arise.

"Certainly there’s the potential for something to fall through the cracks," he said. "When you have 90 percent of your work force not here, making sure things are getting done, it can result in things not happening that are critical."

A prolonged shutdown could have a long-term impact for the department's grant-making work involving Title III funds, TRIO and GEAR UP programs, as well as graduate fellowships. A shutdown can slow the work of selecting grant recipients, Bergeron said. It can also create questions about the availability of future grant funds.

For more information: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2018/01/22/impact-government-shutdown-higher-education