Katherine Knott

The wide-ranging College Cost Reduction Act suggests there’s an emerging bipartisan consensus on what needs fixing in higher education.

The question of whether college athletes should be employees looms over the conversation about setting a national standard on name, image and likeness rights. “People should be careful what they wish for,” a softball player testified Thursday.

The Education Department has now opened dozens of investigations into antisemitic and other bias-related incidents on college campuses since Oct. 7. But resolutions that could lead to changes are expected to take a while.

Opening up the college-prep programs to undocumented students has been a priority for years. But some administrators say the political climate is too fraught to make such a change now.

With higher education becoming more politicized, it’s poised to play a more prominent role than usual in this year’s presidential and congressional elections. The outcomes will carry huge policy implications.