The first few days of President Donald Trump’s second term have been marked with a flurry of executive orders signaling policy changes across many aspects of government. However, the Department of Education, as well as Linn-Benton Community College, have stated that a recent ruling regarding federal grants and loans will not affect student aid.
A Jan. 27 memo from Matthew J. Vaeth, the acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, directed that agencies “must temporarily pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance, and other relevant agency activities that may be implicated by the executive orders, including, but not limited to, financial assistance for foreign aid, nongovernmental organizations, DEI, woke gender ideology, and the green new deal.”
The order, now temporarily blocked by a judge, specifically excluded Social Security and Medicare from its scope, but student aid such as the FAFSA was not explicitly mentioned.
However, in an email to students on Jan. 28, LBCC’s Director of Financial Aid & Veterans Affairs Karen Ash wrote, “We want to reassure you that your access to financial aid remains secure and unaffected.”
Ash cited the Department of Education’s statement, currently featured on a banner above its website, which reads, “Direct Loans, Pell Grants, and other federal student aid funds that are provided to individual students are not impacted by the Jan. 27, 2025, guidance temporarily pausing federal financial assistance programs. We continue to award and disburse federal student aid.”
Ash still encouraged students to reach out to LBCC’s financial aid office with any questions.
USA Today reported on Jan. 28 that student aid is “still included in a massive list of government funding streams the Trump administration is reviewing to ensure they comply with his suite of recent executive orders, according to a set of instructions provided to agencies.”
