Negotiated Rulemaking Decoded

Send us Fan MailNegotiated rulemaking is where higher education policy turns into the rules that hit your campus, your budget, and your students. We sit down with higher ed policy expert Kristin Hultquist of HCM Strategists and Dr. Andy Vaughn, president and CEO of Alliant University, to explain how the U.S. Department of Education writes federal regulations after Congress passes a major bill and why the people in the room can shape outcomes that last for years. We get specific about what each committee tackled, from Workforce Pell and its completion and in-field job placement requirements, to the new accountability floor that asks a simple question: do graduates earn more than a high school graduate a few years after completion? Kristin walks through how negotiators navigate tight statutory constraints, caucus sessions behind closed doors, and the constant push and pull between stakeholder demands and learner-centered consumer protection. Andy shares what it looks like to “lean in” as an institutional leader when Title IV changes and graduate student loan limits threaten real programs. He breaks down how facts, data, and coalition-building helped influence the professional designation list, and why waiting for politics to change is a losing strategy. We also dig into the next big frontier: accreditation reform, especially for graduate licensure programs where specialty accreditors can drive costs in ways colleges cannot solve alone. If you care about college affordability, federal student aid, Workforce Pell, graduate student debt, and accountability metrics that define program value, this conversation will help you understand what’s coming and how to respond. Subscribe, share this episode with a colleague, and leave a review so more higher ed leaders can find it.https://www.alliant.edu/https://hcmstrategists.com/[email protected]