Ivanka Trump
© Yuri Gripas | Reuters
Top presidential advisor, and first daughter, Ivanka Trump is leading the administration's latest bipartisan effort, this time to reform federal college education and job training, even for newly released prison inmates.

With other bipartisan victories already under her belt, Trump this week turned to improving the Higher Education Act to help more poor students and bolster efforts to steer Americans to trades where the jobs are, including apprenticeships.

"We need to modernize our higher education system to make it affordable, flexible, and outcome-oriented so all Americans, young and old, can learn the skills they need to secure and retain good-paying jobs," said Trump who heads the administration's workplace and jobs campaign.

Congressional Democrats and Republicans are working to reauthorize the Higher Education Act and the administration is eager to win bipartisan support for its changes presented by Trump on Monday.


Key to the plan is requiring colleges and universities to tell students their record in placing graduates in good jobs.

Other points made by Trump:
  • Simplifying student loan repayment.
  • Allow low-income students/workers to use Pell Grants for short-term, high-quality programs.
  • Enhance outcome-based transparency.
  • Expand federal aid for workforce training to prisoners eligible for release.
The "wish list" would also move to limit loans drowning many students and even lead to loan counseling at colleges.

The trade publication Inside Higher Ed wrote of it, "The wish list is the most comprehensive accounting so far of the Trump administration's higher ed agenda. And it suggests the Trump administration sees limiting student borrowing as a top issue."

The chairman of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, Sen. Lamar Alexander, welcomed the proposal. "I share the Administration's goals to make a college education worth it and to make it simpler to apply for federal student aid and pay back student loans. It is helpful to have these suggestions as I work with Sen.Patty Murray, the senior Democrat on the education committee, to develop bipartisan recommendations so that we can report legislation to the full Senate before summer," said Alexander.