U.S. Department of Education Announces Expansion of Second Chance Pell Experiment and Actions to Help Incarcerated Individuals R
Categories: US Education News
Today, during Second Chance Month, the U.S. Department of Education announces actions to help incarcerated individuals access educational programs as part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s broader efforts to support reentry, empower formerly incarcerated persons, enhance public safety, and strengthen our communities and our economy. The Department is also announcing changes to policies to help incarcerated individuals with defaulted loans, including affirming that incarcerated individuals qualify for a “fresh start,” which returns borrowers with defaulted loans to repayment in good standing and allows them to access programs like the Second Chance Pell Experiment. The Department will also allow incarcerated individuals to consolidate their loans to help them exit default in the long term. U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona and Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Amy Solomon will recognize today’s announcements by visiting DC Central Kitchen in Washington D.C. where they will have a conversation with formerly incarcerated individuals who participated in education while incarcerated. The Department’s announcements affirming that incarcerated individuals qualify for a “fresh start,” eliminating the impact of default on borrowers when the student loan payment pause ends, will also help more incarcerated individuals access the Second Chance Pell Experiment. Previously, incarcerated individuals interested in enrolling in the Second Chance Pell Experiment were twice as likely as the broader population to be turned away because they had defaulted loans. In addition to ensuring that incarcerated individuals benefit from the “fresh start,” the Department is also announcing a broader fix to ensure individuals have an opportunity to exit default and resume their educational journey in the long term. After Fresh Start is implemented, the Department will allow incarcerated individuals to consolidate loans to get out of default — an option available to everyone else and cut off for too long for incarcerated individuals. In December 2020, lawmakers expanded access to Pell Grants once again to include students who are incarcerated, as long as they are enrolled in prison education programs that are approved by their state corrections departments or the Federal Bureau of Prisons and that meet other requirements. The expansion of the Second Chance Pell Experiment will allow for opportunities to study the best practices for implementing the reinstatement of Pell Grant eligibility for incarcerated students, and will expand the geographic range of the programs. Expanding the experiment will also allow for a wider variety of postsecondary education programs that serve a more diverse population.