This volume presents transcripts of seven hearings held in May, 1991, on the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act of 1965. Of the hearings held in the District of Columbia the first focused on the Pell Grant and Stafford Loan programs and featured witnesses from around the country addressing educational finance. The second hearing focused on the process of accreditation, certification and licensing that determines institutional participation in the Federal student aid programs and featured witnesses from educational institutions, and professional associations. The final hearing presented the testimony of college executives, representatives of educational associations and others on Title VI (which supports international education) and Title III (concerned with institutional aid and funding for institutional facilities). The hearings in other cities provided an opportunity for legislators to hear additional suggestions and recommendations from students, teachers, administrators, institutional executives and state agencies on the reauthorization of higher education programs. Included are the prepared statements of the witnesses as well as additional statements, correspondence and supplemental material. (JB)

The purpose of this hearing was to probe a pattern of fraud and abuse in the Pell Grant Program for postsecondary students, focusing specifically on the IADE American Schools, a for-profit vocational school with campuses in the Los Angeles (California) area and serving primarily Hispanic students. In his opening remarks Senator Roth detailed a history of prior abuses of the program and lax oversight by the Department of Education. Senator Nunn, after summarizing a five-year series of hearings, reports, and recommendations, testified that a year-long investigation of the IADE schools had uncovered serious misconduct, abuses, and possibly fraudulent practices. He charged that the Department was not only incapable of preventing a fraudulent institution from participating in student aid programs but was also unable to detect or pursue such fraudulent activities. Following the senators' opening statements, the Subcommittee team investigating IADE schools reported its findings. David Longanecker, Assistant Secretary for Postsecondary Education, then reviewed the Department's procedures and policies, stating that oversight was being improved. The final testimony was a report from the U.S. General Accounting Office assessing the Department's effectiveness in using student aid data to ensure compliance and prevent abuses. An appendix contains the texts of the witnesses' prepared statements. 56 exhibit statements are listed separately. (CH)