The US Department of Education (ED) has partnered with the US Department of Labor to provide unemployed workers better access to educational opportunities for improved career prospects.
Both departments have launched initiatives involving institutions and state workforce agencies to give unemployment insurance (UI) beneficiaries access to higher education.
The Education Department has updated its guide on how financial aid administrators at colleges and universities use “professional judgment” to assess financial aid applicants. The income of recently unemployed applicants can be adjusted to zero under this initiative and has helped students receive the maximum benefit from their financial package.
Meanwhile, the Labor Department will also inform state workforce agencies that UI recipients are eligible for college funding, such as federal student aid.
“I am heartened that through these changes, the US Departments of Education and Labor are helping unemployed Americans have the chance to go back to school, gain new knowledge and skills, and access opportunity through higher education,” US Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said in a press release.
“These efforts will go a long way toward expanding the middle class, growing the economy, and helping individuals lead thriving lives and support their families, as our nation continues to recover from the effects of the pandemic. I’m looking forward to furthering this invaluable cross-agency partnership and to seeing the ways that more Americans can benefit from it,” Cardona concluded.
